Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-29
2001-07-03
Dickson, Paul N. (Department: 3611)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
C280S749000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06254123
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a structure for a head-protecting airbag body in which by ejecting gas from an inflator when a predetermined high load is applied to a side portion of a vehicle, at least an airbag body accommodated along a roof side rail portion inflates in a curtain shape.
2. Description of the Related Art
The present applicant has already proposed a head-protecting airbag apparatus which is so constructed as to inflate an airbag body, accommodated in a folded state extending from an pillar portion to a roof side rail portion, in the form of a curtain along a side window glass, in order to improve the ability to protect the head of a vehicle occupant sitting on a front seat when a predetermined high load is applied to a vehicle side portion. Hereinafter, a structure disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open (JP-A) No.11-91490 (published Apr. 6, 1999) which has proposed this head-protecting airbag apparatus will be described.
In this head-protecting airbag apparatus, as shown in
FIG. 34
, a jump base
202
is disposed below a folded airbag body
200
and the jump base
202
is disposed extending from a position in front of the B pillar
204
(called center pillar also) across the B pillar
204
. The jump base
202
is composed of a sheet material bent so as to have an L-shaped cross-section and has a guide wall
202
A extending toward a upper end portion
206
A of the B pillar garnish
206
. Therefore, when the airbag body inflates, as shown by the double dot dash line in
FIG. 34
, the airbag body
200
expands into the interior of the vehicle occupant compartment along a guide wall
202
A of the jump base
202
, so that the airbag body
200
does not become caught up by the upper end portion
206
A of the B pillar garnish
206
. Note that, ordinarily, the B pillar garnish
206
is divided into two sections, upper and lower, and the upper B pillar garnish is fastened to a vehicle body
212
at two upper and lower points.
However, although in this head-protecting airbag apparatus, the lower end portion of the B pillar garnish
206
is firmly fastened to the vehicle body, a upper end portion
206
A is fixed to the vehicle body via a clip in order to increase of installing the head-protecting airbag apparatus. As a result, it can be considered that if the vehicle body is deformed by a side collision, the clip
210
may become dissociated from the vehicle body
212
so that the airbag body during inflation may be caught up by the upper end portion
206
A of the loose B pillar garnish
206
as it inflates.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, the present invention has been achieved in view of the above problem and therefore, an object of the invention is to provide a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body in which the airbag body during the process of inflating is never caught up by the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish so that expansion of the airbag body can be ensured.
To achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body which inflates into a curtain shape at least along a roof side rail across a B pillar, wherein the structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body is provided with catching preventing means for, even when the position of a upper end portion of a B pillar garnish covering the B pillar changes during a side collision of a vehicle, preventing the airbag body from being caught on the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish corresponding to the position change of the upper end portion.
Therefore, according to this aspect, when the position of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish changes when a side collision occurs, the catching preventing means is actuated corresponding to that changed position. Thus, even if the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish leaves from an inner panel in a vehicle transverse inner direction upon that a side collision, the airbag body during inflation is prevented from being caught by the upper end portion.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body according to the first aspect, wherein the catching preventing means comprises airbag body expansion direction restricting means disposed on the roof side rail in the vicinity of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and having a guide wall extending toward the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish; and movement restricting means disposed on the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and the airbag body expansion direction restricting means and by engaging each other upon a side collision, restricting movement of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish in the vehicle occupant compartment transverse inner direction.
Accordingly, although, when the vehicle body is deformed upon a side collision, the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish attempts to move in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction, the movement restricting means disposed on the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and the airbag body expansion direction restricting means engage each other, thereby restricting movement of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction. Therefore, the airbag body during inflation is never caught by the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish, so that the airbag can be expanded securely between a predetermined vehicle side portion and an occupant side portion.
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body according to the second aspect, wherein the movement restricting means comprises an engaging protrusion formed so as to protrude on one of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and the airbag body expansion direction restricting means and an engaging hole formed on the other thereof.
Therefore, in addition to the contents of the second aspect, when the vehicle body is deformed upon a side collision so that the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish moves in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction, the engaging protrusion formed so as to protrude on the one of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish and the airbag body expansion direction restricting means engages the engaging hole formed on the other, thereby restricting movement of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction. Further, this is achieved by a simple structure comprising only the engaging protrusion and engaging hole.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body according to the first aspect, wherein the catching preventing means further comprises an airbag body link means for moving the airbag body in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction in linkage with a movement of the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction upon a side collision.
Therefore, when the vehicle body is deformed upon a side collision so that the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish moves in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction, the airbag body is moved in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction by the airbag body link means. As a result, even when the vehicle body is deformed upon a side collision so that the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish moves in a vehicle occupant compartment inner direction, a positional relation between the airbag body and the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish does not change largely. Therefore, the airbag body during inflation is never caught by the upper end portion of the B pillar garnish, so that the airbag body can be expanded securely between a specified vehicle side portion and an occupant side portion.
According to a fifth aspect of the invention, there is provided a structure for mounting a head-protecting airbag body according to the fourth a
Chida Minoru
Furukawa Yoshiharu
Ishiyama Hiroshi
Nakajima Kenichi
Saito Etsuji
Dickson Paul N.
Pillsbury & Winthrop LLP
Toyota Jidosha & Kabushiki Kaisha
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