Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-12
2001-10-23
Dickson, Paul N. (Department: 3618)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
C280S730200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06305707
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a structure for the placement of a head protecting air bag apparatus, and more particularly, to the structure for the placement of an air bag body of a head protecting air bag apparatus in which, at the time when a high load of a predetermined value or greater is applied to a vehicle side portion, gas is ejected from an inflator such that the air bag body expands into a curtain-like form so as to span over to the B pillar along a roof side rail due to the ejected gas. Here, “the air bag body expands so as to span over to the B pillar along the roof side rail” is intended to express a structure in which the air bag body expands from the A pillar or the C pillar to span over to the B pillar along the roof side rail, and also expresses a structure in which the air bag body expands, along the roof guide rail, from the A pillar and passes across the B pillar to extend to the C pillar.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to improve the protection of the head of a vehicle occupant seated in the front seat when a high load of a predetermined value or greater is applied to a vehicle side portion, there have been proposed head protecting air bag apparatuses in which, an air bag body, which is stored in a folded state along a front pillar portion and a roof side rail portion, is inflated so as to expand into a curtain-like form. The structure of such a head protecting air bag apparatus is disclosed in International Publication No. WO 96/26087, and will be described hereinafter.
As shown in
FIG. 16
, the head protecting air bag apparatus
100
is mainly comprised of an elongated duct
106
which is disposed so as to extend from a front pillar portion
102
along a roof side rail
104
, an air bag body
112
which is stored in the duct
106
in a folded state and which is fixed to the vehicle body at a front end fixing point
108
and a rear end fixing point
110
, an inflator
116
which is connected to the rear end portion of the duct
106
by a hose
114
and which ejects gas at the time when a high load of a predetermined value or greater is applied to the vehicle side portion, and a belt-shaped strap
118
whose one end portion is fixed to the vehicle body and whose other end portion is fixed to the rear end portion of the air bag body
112
. Further, the air bag body
112
is formed by connecting together a plurality of cells
120
, each of which is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape whose longitudinal direction corresponds to the substantially vertical direction of the vehicle.
In accordance with the above-described structure, when a high load of a predetermined value or greater is applied to a vehicle side portion, gas is ejected from the inflator
116
. The ejected gas flows into each of the cells
120
of the folded air bag body
112
via the hose
114
and the duct
106
. Accordingly, each of the cells
120
is inflated so as to form a substantially cylindrical shape whose longitudinal direction substantially corresponds to the vertical direction of the vehicle. As a result, the air bag body
112
is inflated into a curtain-like form along a window glass
122
.
However, in this structure for the placement of the head protecting air bag apparatus, the rear end portion of the air bag body
112
is located to the rear of a B pillar (the center pillar) portion
124
in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, and is connected to the vehicle body by the strap
118
. For this reason, it can be understood that, in some cases, the expanding air bag body
112
contacts the upper end portion of the garnish of the B pillar portion
124
, enters into the gap between the garnish of the B pillar portion
124
and the vehicle body, and disturbs the expansion of the air bag body
112
, thereby causing the garnish of the B pillar portion
124
to be displaced from the vehicle body.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the aforementioned, it is an object of the present invention to provide a structure for the placement of a head protecting air bag apparatus which expands the air bag body more smoothly and which prevents the displacement of the B pillar garnish from the vehicle body.
In accordance with the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a structure for the placement of a head protecting air bag apparatus whose one end portion is connected to an inflator and which expands into a curtain-like form so as to span over to a B pillar along a roof side rail, comprising: an air bag body expanding direction regulating member whose base end portion is fixed to a region of the roof side rail adjacent to the upper end portion of a B pillar garnish, and which is located at the vehicle interior side of the folded air bag body, and whose extending portion at the edge portion side thereof extends toward a position at which the extending portion covers the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish at the time of expansion of the air bag body.
At the time of expansion of the air bag body, due to the inflation pressure of the air bag body, the extending portion of the air bag body expanding direction regulating member, which is located at the vehicle interior side of the folded air bag body, covers the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish before the expansion of the air bag body. Therefore, the air bag body in the course of expansion thereof is prevented from tightly contacting the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and entering into the gap between the B pillar garnish and the vehicle body. As a result, the air bag body can be expanded more smoothly, and the displacement of the B pillar garnish from the vehicle body can be prevented.
At the time of a vehicle side collision, even in the case in which the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish is displaced from the vehicle body and is lifted up toward the vehicle interior, since the extending portion at the edge portion side of the air bag body expanding direction regulating member covers the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish before the expansion of the air bag body, the air bag body in the course of expansion thereof is prevented from tightly contacting the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and entering into the gap between the B pillar garnish and the vehicle body, the air bag body can be expanded more smoothly, and the displacement of the B pillar garnish from the vehicle body can be prevented.
In accordance with the second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a structure for the placement of a head protecting air bag apparatus whose one end portion is connected to an inflator and which expands into a curtain-like form so as to span over to a B pillar along a roof side rail, wherein an air bag body expanding direction regulating member whose base end portion is fixed to a region of the roof side rail adjacent to the upper end portion of a B pillar garnish and which is located at the vehicle interior side of the folded air bag body, and whose extending portion at the edge portion side thereof extends toward a position at which the extending portion covers the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish at the time of expansion of the air bag body is a plate whose cross-section is formed in a substantial U-shape, at least one of: (i) a plurality of parallel concave grooves formed in an inner wall surface of the plate and running along the vehicle longitudinal direction; and (ii) at least one oblique concave groove which, when the plate extends, is directed from an inflator-side end portion of the plate toward a vehicle longitudinal direction intermediate portion of a side opposite the fixed side of the B pillar garish, being formed in the plate.
In addition to the first aspect of the present invention, since concave grooves are formed on the inner wall surface of the plate serving as an air bag body expanding direction regulating member, in accordance with the expansion of the air bag body, due to the existence of the concave grooves, the plate can easily bend. Namely, because the concave groov
Furukawa Yoshiharu
Ishiyama Hiroshi
Tanase Toshinori
Totani Chiharu
Dickson Paul N.
Fleming Faye M.
Pillsbury & Winthrop LLP
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
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