JP2016037239A - Curtain air bag device for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a curtain air bag device for a vehicle contributing to improvement in occupant protection performance to side surface collision with a simple structure.SOLUTION: A curtain air bag device 10 for a vehicle includes: a curtain air bag body 40 provided with a front side main chamber 40A protecting a head part H of a front seat occupant P from side surface collision; a sub chamber 42 integrally extending from one side of the upper and lower both end parts of the front side main chamber 40A, communicating with the front side main chamber 40A and also folded back to the vehicle outside to the front side main chamber 40A in an expanded development condition; and a tether 46 holding the sub chamber 42 into a folded back condition by connecting an outer peripheral non-expanded part 43 of the sub chamber 42 and an outer peripheral non-expanded part 41 of the curtain air bag body 40. The sub chamber 42 comes in touch with an opposing vehicle in the side surface collision and thereby the front side main chamber 40A early receives reaction force, so that the head part H of the front seat occupant P can be efficiently held by the front side main chamber 40A.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a curtain airbag device for a vehicle.

  The curtain airbag described in the following Patent Document 1 includes a main cushion and a plurality of sub-cushions formed separately from the main cushion and sewn to the main cushion. The main cushion includes a series of chambers that are inflatable along the side of the passenger compartment, and each chamber inflates both inside and outside the vehicle relative to a common plane. On the other hand, the plurality of sub-cushions communicate with each other through the main cushion and the vent hole, and expand to the outside of the main cushion.

  The sub-cushion straddles the vehicle door belt line up and down, and overlaps or is in contact with an assumed collision area of the main cushion where an occupant's collision is assumed as seen from the vehicle width direction. The main cushion moves toward the inside of the vehicle by the amount of the sub-cushion, and the initial restraint position of the occupant's head by the main cushion is shifted toward the inside of the vehicle. As a result, both the first impact protection performance at the time of a side collision and the outside-release prevention performance at the time of rollover that can occur following the side collision are made compatible.

JP 2012-046175 A

  However, the above-described curtain airbag has a complicated configuration in which the sub-cushion, which is substantially cylindrical in an inflated state, is sewn to the outside of the main cushion, so there is room for improvement in terms of simplifying the configuration. There is.

  In view of the above facts, an object of the present invention is to obtain a curtain airbag device for a vehicle that contributes to improvement of passenger protection performance against a side collision with a simple configuration.

  The curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to the first aspect of the invention includes a plurality of chambers that are housed on the upper end side of the vehicle compartment side portion and that are inflated and deployed by receiving gas supply from the inflator. A front main chamber included in the chamber extends integrally from one of a curtain airbag main body that protects the head of the front seat occupant against a side collision and upper and lower ends of the front main chamber, and the front main chamber The sub-chamber communicated with the chamber and folded back to the vehicle outer side with respect to the front main chamber in an inflated and deployed state, and a non-inflatable portion of the sub-chamber and a non-inflatable portion of the curtain airbag body are connected to each other. And a tether for holding the sub-chamber in the folded state.

  In the first aspect of the invention, for example, when a side collision is detected or predicted, the inflator is activated. Then, the gas from the inflator is supplied to the plurality of chambers of the curtain airbag body, and the plurality of chambers are inflated and deployed. The plurality of chambers include a front main chamber that protects the front seat occupant's head against side collisions. A sub chamber is integrally extended from one of the upper and lower ends of the front main chamber.

  The sub-chamber is folded to the outside of the vehicle with respect to the front main chamber in an inflated and deployed state, and is folded back by a tether that connects the non-inflatable portion of the sub-chamber and the non-inflatable portion of the curtain airbag body. Is retained. Since this sub-chamber communicates with the front main chamber, the gas from the inflator is supplied to the sub-chamber via the front main chamber, and the sub-chamber expands. Since the front main chamber receives an early reaction force when the sub-chamber comes into contact with the opponent vehicle in the side collision, the head of the front seat occupant can be efficiently restrained by the front main chamber. In addition, since the sub-chamber that is integrally extended from the front main chamber is folded to the outside of the front main chamber and held by the tether, the configuration can be simplified. From the above, it contributes to the improvement of occupant protection performance against a side collision with a simple configuration.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to the first aspect, one of the upper and lower end portions of the front main chamber is a lower end portion of the front main chamber.

  In the invention described in claim 2, the sub chamber is integrally extended from the lower end of the front main chamber. For this reason, when the sub-chamber is provided at the lower height of the front main chamber that may overlap in the height direction with respect to the front end of the opponent vehicle in the side collision, the base fabric constituting the sub-chamber The amount used can be reduced.

  A curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to a third aspect of the present invention is the curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to the first aspect, wherein the inflator is provided on an upper end side of the passenger compartment side portion, and is located at both upper and lower end portions of the front main chamber. One is the upper end of the front main chamber.

  In the invention according to claim 3, the sub chamber is integrally extended from the upper end portion of the front main chamber. For this reason, the gas from the inflator provided in the upper part of the compartment side part can be supplied to a subchamber at an early stage.

  A curtain air bag device for a vehicle according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the curtain air bag device according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the sub-chamber is located on the outer side of the front main chamber in an inflated and deployed state. It communicates with the front main chamber via a communication passage having a width dimension in the vehicle front-rear direction smaller than that of the main body portion, and is folded back in the communication passage.

  In the invention according to claim 4, since the sub-chamber is folded to the outside of the front main chamber in the communication path having a small width as described above, gas flows from the front main chamber through the communication path to the sub-chamber. The expansion thickness of the communication path when supplied can be reduced. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the sub chamber from returning from the folded state due to the expansion of the communication path.

  A curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the curtain air bag device for a vehicle according to the second aspect, wherein the plurality of chambers are inflated and deployed on the vehicle front side of the front main chamber and more vehicle than the front main chamber. A front sub-chamber that protrudes downward and straddles the door belt line up and down is included.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the front sub chamber that expands and deploys on the vehicle front side of the front main chamber protrudes below the front main chamber toward the vehicle lower side and straddles the door belt line vertically. For this reason, for example, at the time of rollover, the front seat occupant can be protected by the front auxiliary chamber. Moreover, in the present invention, since the sub chamber is integrally extended from the lower end portion of the front main chamber, the extension direction of the sub chamber is the same as the protruding direction of the front sub chamber. Thereby, it contributes to improving the yield of the base fabric for manufacturing the curtain airbag main body and the sub chamber.

  As described above, the curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to the present invention contributes to improvement of occupant protection performance against a side collision with a simple configuration.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the state which looked at the part of the motor vehicle comprised by applying the curtain airbag apparatus for vehicles which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention from the vehicle front side, The expansion | deployment deployment state of a curtain airbag is shown. FIG. It is the side view which looked at the schematic whole structure of the curtain airbag device for vehicles concerning a 1st embodiment from the car inside, and is a figure showing the state of expansion and deployment of a curtain airbag. It is a top view which shows the 1st state in the middle of manufacture of the curtain airbag which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a top view which shows the 2nd state in the middle of manufacture of the curtain airbag. It is a top view which shows the 3rd state in the middle of manufacture of the curtain airbag. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 1 which shows a part of the motor vehicle comprised by applying the curtain airbag apparatus for vehicles which concerns on a comparative example. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 1 which shows a part of the motor vehicle comprised by applying the curtain airbag apparatus for vehicles which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the side view which looked at the structure of the principal part of the curtain airbag apparatus for vehicles which concerns on 2nd Embodiment from the vehicle inner side, and is a figure which shows the expansion | deployment deployment state of a curtain airbag. It is a top view corresponding to FIG. 3 which shows the state in the middle of manufacture of the curtain airbag which concerns on 1st Embodiment.

<First Embodiment>
A curtain airbag device 10 for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Note that arrows FR, UP, and OUT that are appropriately described in the drawings indicate the front direction (traveling direction), the upward direction, and the vehicle width direction outside of the automobile 12 to which the vehicle curtain airbag device 10 is applied, respectively. Yes. Hereinafter, when simply using the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions, unless otherwise specified, the front-rear direction of the vehicle, the left-right direction of the vehicle left-right direction (vehicle width direction), and the up-down direction of the vehicle are shown. To do.

(Overall configuration of curtain airbag device)
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle curtain airbag device 10 is mounted on, for example, a sedan type automobile 12, and includes a curtain airbag 14 and an inflator 16. The curtain airbag 14 is formed so as to be deployed in a curtain shape along front and rear side window glasses 18 and 20 and a B pillar (center pillar) 24 provided on the side of the passenger compartment. The front side window glass 18 is provided on the front side door 17 located on the side of the front seat (not shown), and the rear side window glass 20 is located on the side of the rear seat (not shown). Is provided. The side window glasses 18 and 20 are configured to be covered by the curtain airbag 14.

  Although not shown, the curtain airbag 14 is folded in a predetermined folding method including at least one of roll folding and bellows folding, and is provided at the upper end of the vehicle compartment side. The roof side portion 28 is housed (arranged) together with the inflator 16. In this storage state, the elongated curtain airbag 14 extends from the A pillar (front pillar) 22 to the vicinity of the C pillar (rear pillar) 26 over the roof side portion 28. The roof side portion 28 includes a roof side rail 29 and a roof head lining (not shown), and the curtain airbag 14 and the inflator 16 are accommodated between the roof side rail 29 and the roof head lining.

  The inflator 16 is a gas generating means for supplying gas into the curtain airbag 14, and for example, a combustion type or a cold gas type is adopted. The gas ejection portion of the inflator 16 communicates with the interior of the curtain airbag 14 via a connection channel 40F described later. When the inflator 16 is operated, the gas ejected from the gas ejection part is supplied into the curtain airbag 14.

  The curtain airbag 14 and the inflator 16 described above are provided on both sides of the automobile 12 in the vehicle width direction. That is, the vehicle curtain airbag device 10 includes a pair of left and right curtain airbags 14 and a pair of left and right inflators 16. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the vehicle curtain airbag device 10 includes an airbag ECU 38 that is electrically connected to each of the side collision sensor 32, the rollover sensor 34, and the oblique collision sensor 36.

  The side collision sensor 32 is configured to predict or detect a side collision (unavoidable) of the automobile 12 and output a side collision detection signal to the airbag ECU 38. The rollover sensor 34 is configured to predict or detect rollover (unavoidable) of the automobile 12 and output a rollover detection signal to the airbag ECU 38. The oblique collision sensor 36 is configured to predict or detect an oblique collision (unavoidable) of the automobile 12 and output an oblique collision detection signal to the airbag ECU 38.

  The airbag ECU 38 is electrically connected to the left and right inflators 16 (only the connection to one inflator 16 is shown in FIG. 1), and a side collision detection signal or a diagonal collision detection signal is input. The inflator 16 on the side collision side or the oblique collision side (both near side) is operated. Therefore, when a side collision or an oblique collision occurs in the automobile 12, the near-side curtain airbag 14 is inflated by receiving a gas supply and is deployed. The airbag ECU 38 is configured to operate the inflators 16 on both sides in the vehicle width direction when a rollover detection signal is input. Note that the airbag ECU 38 operates the inflator 16 on the opposite side (far side) to the already operated near side when a rollover detection signal is input after a side collision or an oblique collision.

(Composition of curtain airbag)
Hereinafter, a specific configuration of the curtain airbag 14 will be described. Unless otherwise specified, the configuration (shape) of the curtain airbag 14 in the inflated and deployed state will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the curtain airbag 14 includes a curtain airbag main body 40, a sub-chamber 42, and a tether 46.

  The curtain airbag body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 are integrally woven by a One Piece Woven method, abbreviated as OPW. In the OPW system, a non-sewn bag is formed by weaving two pieces of cloth at the same time using a jacquard loom while simultaneously weaving the necessary portions. In addition, the manufacturing method of the curtain airbag main body 40 is not restricted above. For example, the curtain airbag body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 may be manufactured by sewing one or a plurality of base fabrics formed by cutting out a nylon or polyester fabric material into a bag shape.

  The curtain airbag body 40 includes a front main chamber 40A and a rear main chamber 40B, which are front and rear main chambers, and a gas flow path 40C in which the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B communicate with each other. . Further, the curtain airbag body 40 includes a front rollover chamber 40D (hereinafter referred to as a front RO chamber 40D) and an intermediate rollover chamber 40E (hereinafter referred to as an intermediate RO chamber 40E) communicated with the front main chamber 40A. I have. In this embodiment, the front main chamber 40A, the rear main chamber 40B, the front RO chamber 40D, and the intermediate RO chamber 40E correspond to a plurality of chambers, and the front RO chamber 40D corresponds to a front sub chamber.

  The front main chamber (front main cushion) 40 </ b> A is inflated and deployed to the side of the rear portion of the side window glass 18 in the vicinity of the vehicle front side of the B pillar 24. In the front main chamber 40A, a side head protection area that protects the head H of the front seat occupant P (see FIG. 1) against a side collision is set. 1 is a dummy doll for a collision test.

  The rear main chamber (rear main cushion) 40B is inflated and deployed to the side of the rear portion of the side window glass 20 in the vicinity of the front side of the C pillar 26 in the vehicle. The rear main chamber 40B is formed so that the upper side of the rear end portion overlaps the C pillar 26 in a vehicle side view. The rear main chamber 40B is provided with a side head protection area that protects the head of a rear seat occupant (not shown) against a side collision. A floating island-shaped non-expandable portion 44 is provided near the center of the rear main chamber 40B.

  The gas flow path 40C extends in the front-rear direction of the curtain airbag 14 between the upper part of the front main chamber 40A and the upper part of the rear main chamber 40B, and the upper part of the front main chamber 40A and the upper part of the rear main chamber 40B. And communicate with each other. A cylindrical connection flow path 40F extends from the substantially central portion of the gas flow path 40C toward the upper side and the rear side. The gas ejection part of the inflator 16 is connected to the front end part (rear end part) of the connection flow path 40F. The inflator 16 is disposed between the front main chamber 40A that is the front portion of the curtain airbag 14 and the rear main chamber 40B that is the rear portion, and is fixed to the roof side rail 29 via a bracket (not shown). Yes. The inflator 16 may be arranged in the B pillar 24 or the C pillar 26.

  The front RO chamber (front rollover cushion) 40D is inflated and deployed in front of the front main chamber 40A to form a front end portion of the curtain airbag body 40, and the head of the front seat occupant P during rollover and oblique collision H is protected on the front side of the front seat. The front RO chamber 40D has a front side upper portion that overlaps the A pillar 22 in a vehicle side view, and a lower end side of the front RO chamber 40D that protrudes downward from the front main chamber 40A so as to move the door belt line BL up and down. It is configured to straddle.

  The front RO chamber 40D is partitioned (partitioned) from the front main chamber 40A by a non-inflatable portion 52 extending in the vertical direction of the curtain airbag body 40. A lower end portion of the non-inflatable portion 52 is integrally connected to a lower portion 41B of the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41 set at the outer peripheral portion of the curtain airbag body 40. Between the upper end portion of the non-expanding portion 52 and the upper portion 41A of the outer peripheral non-expanding portion 41, a throttle channel 58 that is a gas inflow port of the front RO chamber 40D is provided. The upper portion of the front RO chamber 40D and the upper portion of the front main chamber 40A are communicated with each other via the throttle channel 58. 2-5, the code | symbol 41C has shown the front part of the outer periphery non-expandable part 41, and the code | symbol 41D has shown the rear part of the outer periphery non-expanded part 41. FIG. Further, the upper portion 41A of the outer peripheral non-expanding portion 41 is divided at the rear end portion of the connection flow path 40F, and the gas ejection portion of the inflator 16 is attached to the divided portion.

  The front RO chamber 40D covers the most front test point among the test points (impactor striking point or striking point) for hitting the impactor corresponding to the head H of the front seat occupant P in the rollover test (FMVSS226 standard). It is provided as follows. The other test points for the front seat occupant P in the rollover test are configured to be covered by the front main chamber 40A.

  On the other hand, the intermediate RO chamber (intermediate rollover cushion) 40E is located below the gas flow path 40C, and is provided in the curtain airbag body 40 between the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B. ing. That is, the intermediate RO chamber 40E is disposed behind the front main chamber 40A and in front of the rear main chamber 40B. The intermediate RO chamber 40E is partitioned (partitioned) from the rear main chamber 40B and the gas flow path 40C by the non-expanding portion 54. The non-inflatable portion 54 extends in the front-rear direction of the curtain airbag body 40 between the gas flow path 40C and the intermediate RO chamber 40E, and the rear end side is inclined obliquely downward and rearward of the curtain airbag 14. The rear end portion is integrally connected to the rear end portion of the lower portion 41B of the outer peripheral non-expandable portion 41.

  Below the front end of the non-expandable portion 54, a non-expandable portion 56 that extends upward from the lower portion 41B of the outer peripheral non-expandable portion 41 is set. Between the upper end portion of the non-expanding portion 56 and the front end portion of the non-expanding portion 54, a throttle channel 60 that is a gas inflow port of the intermediate RO chamber 40E is formed. The upper portion of the intermediate RO chamber 40E and the intermediate portion in the vertical direction at the rear end portion of the front main chamber 40A are communicated with each other via the throttle channel 60. The front portion of the intermediate RO chamber 40E is inflated and deployed so as to overlap the B pillar 24 in a vehicle side view. The intermediate RO chamber 40E protects the head of the rear seat occupant on the front side of the rear seat at the time of rollover and oblique collision.

  The intermediate RO chamber 40E covers the front test point among the test points (impactor striking point or striking point) for hitting the impactor corresponding to the head of the rear seat occupant in the rollover test (FMVSS226 standard) described above. Is provided. And the test point of the rear side with respect to the rear seat occupant in the rollover test is configured to be covered by the rear main chamber 40B.

  A plurality of tabs 62 are provided on the upper portion 41 </ b> A of the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41, which is the upper end edge of the curtain airbag body 40 having the above configuration. The curtain airbag body 40 is fixed to the vehicle body skeleton (A pillar 22, roof side rail 29, C pillar 26) by fasteners such as clips and bolts and nuts that penetrate these tabs 62. The front end portion of the curtain airbag main body 40 is supported on the lower portion of the A pillar 22 via a tension cloth (not shown).

  On the other hand, as described above, the sub-chamber (sub-cushion) 42 is integrally formed with the curtain airbag body 40 by OPW. The sub chamber 42 is integrally extended from the lower end portion of the front main chamber 40A. That is, the subchamber 42 is formed of a base fabric that is integral with the base fabric constituting the curtain airbag body 40. The sub-chamber main body 42A, which is the main body portion of the sub-chamber 42, is formed in a rectangular bag shape, and its vertical dimension is set to, for example, about half of the vertical dimension of the front main chamber 40A. For example, it is formed slightly shorter than the front main chamber 40A. A cylindrical communication path 42B extends integrally from one end (lower end) of the sub-chamber main body 42A, and the end of the communication path 42B opposite to the sub-chamber main body 42A is the front main part. The lower end portion of the chamber 40A is integrally connected.

  An outer peripheral non-expanding portion 43 that is a non-expanding portion is set at the outer peripheral portion of the sub-chamber 42, that is, the outer peripheral portion of the sub-chamber main body 42A and the front and rear end portions of the communication passage 42B. The outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 43 is integrally connected to a lower portion 41B of the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41 of the curtain airbag body 40. The lower part 41B of the outer periphery non-expanding part 41 is divided into front and rear at the position of the communication path 42B, and the front main chamber 40A and the sub-chamber main body 42A communicate with each other via the communication path 42B. The communication passage 42B is set to have a width dimension in the vehicle front-rear direction smaller than that of the sub-chamber main body 42A, and extends from the front-rear intermediate portion at the lower end of the sub-chamber main body 42A.

  The sub-chamber 42 having the above configuration is folded back to the vehicle outer side (vehicle width direction outer side) with respect to the front main chamber 40A in the inflated and deployed state. Specifically, the sub-chamber 42 is folded back in the communication passage 42B so that the sub-chamber main body 42A is positioned on the outer side in the vehicle width direction with respect to the front main chamber 40A in the expanded and deployed state of the front main chamber 40A. In this folded state, the upper end portion (outer peripheral non-expanding portion 43) of the sub-chamber main body 42A and the upper end portion of the front main chamber 40A (upper portion 41A of the outer peripheral non-expanding portion 41) are connected by the tether 46. .

  In this embodiment, the tether (holding member) 46 is separated from the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub-chamber 42, and is formed in a long band shape by a flexible sheet-like material. As a material of the tether 46, an inexpensive material such as a piece of cloth can be used. For example, the tether 46 may be manufactured using a piece of base fabric discarded when the curtain airbag body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 are manufactured.

  The tether 46 has one end in the longitudinal direction coupled to the upper end of the front main chamber 40A by means such as sewing, and the other end in the longitudinal direction is coupled to the upper end of the sub-chamber body 42A by means such as sewing. Yes. The tether 46 holds the sub-chamber 42 in the folded state, and the sub-chamber main body 42A is restrained on the vehicle outer side (hereinafter simply referred to as the vehicle outer side) with respect to the front main chamber 40A in the inflated and deployed state. . In this state, the length dimension of the communication path 42B is set so that the sub-chamber main body 42A faces the lower half of the front main chamber 40A. The sub-chamber main body 42A is a side protrusion of the front main chamber 40A. It is superimposed on the outside of the car in the protected area.

  When the curtain airbag 14 having the above configuration is manufactured, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub chamber 42 are integrally formed by OPW. Next, as shown in FIG. 4, slit-like cuts 64 and 66 are formed between the front RO chamber 40D and the front main chamber 40A and the sub chamber 42 by means of leather cutting or the like. A plurality of tabs 62 are coupled to the upper portion 41A of the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41 by means such as sewing. Next, as shown in FIG. 5, the sub-chamber 42 is folded back to the vehicle exterior side of the front main chamber 40A. In this folded state, both ends in the longitudinal direction of the tether 46 are coupled to the upper end of the sub-chamber main body 42A and the upper end of the front main chamber 40A (see FIG. 2). Thereafter, the inflator 16 is connected to the connection flow path 40F of the curtain airbag 14 and the curtain airbag 14 is folded by the predetermined folding method described above, and the curtain airbag 14 is attached to the roof side portion 28 at the plurality of tabs 62. Fixed.

  In the curtain airbag 14 configured as described above, when the inflator 16 is activated, the gas from the inflator 16 flows from the connection flow path 40F into the gas flow path 40C. The gas flowing into the gas flow path 40C is distributed to the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B, and the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B expand. As a result, the curtain airbag main body 40 deploys downward along the side surface of the passenger compartment while pushing down the terminal portion of the roof head lining downward.

  The gas supplied to the front main chamber 40A is supplied to the sub chamber 42 through the communication path 42B, and the sub chamber 42 expands outside the front main chamber 40A. The capacity of the sub chamber 42 is set to be sufficiently smaller than the capacity of the front main chamber 40A, the rear main chamber 40B, the front RO chamber 40D, and the intermediate RO chamber 40E. It receives gas supply from the chamber 40A and expands early.

  On the other hand, the front RO chamber 40D has a larger capacity than the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B. In addition, the flow path of the inflator 16 at the initial stage of operation is limited by setting the throttle channel 58 between the front RO chamber 40D and the front main chamber 40A. As a result, the front RO chamber 40D expands with a delay relative to the front and rear main chambers 40A, 40B.

  Similarly, the intermediate RO chamber 40E is formed with a larger capacity than the front main chamber 40A and the rear main chamber 40B, and gas is supplied from the front main chamber 40A through the throttle channel 60, so that The chambers 40A and 40B are expanded with a delay. That is, the cross-sectional areas of the throttle channels 58 and 60 are set so that the front RO chamber 40D and the intermediate RO chamber 40E expand with a time delay relative to the front and rear main chambers 40A and 40B. The front RO chamber 40D and the intermediate RO chamber 40E constitute a so-called delay chamber.

(Function and effect)
Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, when a side collision test carriage 70 (Moving Deformable Barrier: hereinafter referred to as an MDB carriage 70) collides with the automobile 12 according to the present embodiment, the side collision sensor 32 is on the side. A collision detection signal is output to the airbag ECU 38. Receiving the side collision detection signal, the airbag ECU 38 operates the inflator 16 on the side where the side collision has occurred.

  The MDB carriage 70 shown in FIG. 1 is a model of an automobile having a high vehicle height, such as a so-called sports utility vehicle or a minivan. The barrier face 70A and the head H of the front seat occupant P are high. Overlap in direction. In the side collision test (IIHS MDB) shown in FIG. 1, the collision speed of the MDB carriage 70 is set to 60 km / h, for example. Further, FIG. 1 shows a state after the side window glass 18 (not shown in FIG. 1) is broken by a side impact.

  When the inflator 16 is activated, the gas from the inflator 16 is supplied to a plurality of chambers (the front main chamber 40A, the rear main chamber 40B, the front RO chamber 40D, and the intermediate RO chamber 40E) of the curtain airbag body 40. The chamber expands and expands. The plurality of chambers include a front main chamber 40A that protects the head of the front seat occupant against a side collision. A sub chamber 42 is integrally extended from one of the upper and lower ends of the front main chamber 40A.

  The sub-chamber 42 is folded back to the outside of the front main chamber 40A, and the above-described sub-chamber 42 is connected to the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 43 of the sub-chamber 42 and the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41 of the curtain airbag body 40 by the tether 46. It is held in a folded state. Since the sub-chamber 42 communicates with the front main chamber 40A, the gas from the inflator 16 is supplied to the sub-chamber 42 via the front main chamber 40A, and the sub-chamber 42 expands (the state shown in FIG. 1). Since the front main chamber 40A receives an early reaction force when the sub-chamber 42 contacts the barrier face 70A, the head H of the front seat occupant P can be efficiently restrained by the front main chamber 40A. As a result, the head protection performance of the front seat occupant P against side collision can be improved.

  That is, when the subchamber 42 is not provided as in the curtain airbag 14 of the vehicle curtain airbag device 80 (comparative example) shown in FIG. 6, the front main chamber 40A of the inflated and deployed curtain airbag body 40 is provided. Runs idle until it comes into contact with the barrier face 70A (see arrow A in FIG. 6). As a result, the restraint of the head H of the front seat occupant P by the front main chamber 40A is delayed (see arrow B in FIG. 6), and the head injury value (HIC: Head Injury Criterion) increases. In particular, when the collision speed of the MDB carriage 70 is 60 km / h, the energy of the MDB carriage 70 is larger than when the collision speed is 50 km / h, and the acceleration input to the head H of the front seat occupant P is increased. As a result, the HIC increases.

  In order to reduce the HIC, it is necessary to reduce the load applied to the head H to reduce the acceleration of the head H. However, since the amount of energy absorption is reduced only by reducing the load on the head H, it is necessary to increase the shock absorption stroke of the head H to ensure the amount of energy absorption. That is, since it is preferable that the head H absorbs impact with a small load over a long distance, it is necessary to advance the timing of the initial restraint of the head H.

  In this regard, in the present embodiment, since the sub chamber 42 expands outside the front main chamber 40A, the timing of the initial restraint of the head H can be advanced by an amount corresponding to the expansion thickness of the sub chamber 42. Moreover, the shock absorbing stroke of the head H can be increased by the amount of expansion of the sub-chamber 42. Thereby, HIC can be reduced efficiently.

  Moreover, the curtain airbag 14 according to the present embodiment has a configuration in which the sub chamber 42 formed integrally with the curtain airbag body 40 is folded back to the vehicle outer side of the front main chamber 40A and held by the tether 46. . Thereby, compared with the curtain airbag demonstrated in the column of background art, the structure of the curtain airbag 14 can be simplified. From the above, according to the present embodiment, it contributes to the improvement of the occupant protection performance against a side collision with a simple configuration.

  Supplementing the above effect, in the present embodiment, since the curtain airbag body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 are integrally formed of OPW, a sewing process for sewing the sub-chamber 42 to the curtain airbag body 40 is performed. It is unnecessary. Further, when the sub chamber 42 separate from the curtain airbag main body 40 is sewn to the curtain airbag main body 40, a measure for preventing gas leakage from the sewing portion is required. No countermeasures are required. Furthermore, since a piece of cloth or the like can be used as the material of the tether 46, the material cost of the tether 46 can be kept low. And since this tether 46 is couple | bonded with the outer periphery non-inflatable part 43 of the subchamber 42, and the outer periphery non-inflatable part 41 of the curtain airbag main body 40, the gas leak from the said connection part (for example, sewing part) is prevented. No countermeasures are required. Further, in the present embodiment, the sub-chamber 42 is provided at the pinpoint corresponding to the head H of the front seat occupant P that is required to be restrained at an early stage in the collision mode as described above. Contributes to simplification of configuration. From the above, in this embodiment, the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced as compared with the curtain airbag described in the background art section.

  In the present embodiment, the sub-chamber 42 is integrally extended from the lower end of the front main chamber 40A. For this reason, when the sub-chamber 42 is provided at a height on the lower side of the front main chamber 40A that may overlap in the height direction with respect to the front end of the opponent vehicle (in this case, the MDB carriage 70) in a side collision. In addition, the amount of use of the base fabric constituting the sub-chamber 42 and the increase in the capacity of the sub-chamber 42 can be reduced.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the sub chamber 42 is connected to the front main chamber 40A via a communication passage 42B having a width dimension in the vehicle front-rear direction smaller than that of the sub chamber main body 42A located outside the front main chamber 40A. Yes. In the narrow communication passage 42B, the sub-chamber 42 is folded back to the vehicle outer side of the front main chamber 40A. For this reason, the expansion thickness of the communication path 42B when the gas is supplied from the front main chamber 40A to the sub chamber 42 through the communication path 42B can be reduced. Thereby, it can suppress that the subchamber 42 tries to return from the folded state by expansion | swelling of the communicating path 42B.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the front RO chamber 40D that inflates and deploys behind the front main chamber 40A in the front of the vehicle protrudes downward from the front main chamber 40A and straddles the door belt line BL vertically. The front RO chamber 40D can protect the head of the front seat occupant P during a rollover or an oblique collision. Moreover, in this embodiment, since the sub chamber 42 is integrally extended from the lower end portion of the front main chamber 40A, the extending direction of the sub chamber 42 is the same as the protruding direction of the front RO chamber 40D. Thus, as shown in FIG. 3, when the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 are manufactured using OPW or the like, the lower portion of the front RO chamber 42 and the sub-chamber 42 are arranged in the front-rear direction of the curtain airbag main body 40. Can be lined up. As a result, the yield of the base fabric for manufacturing the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub chamber 42 can be improved.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In addition, about the structure and effect | action similar to the said 1st Embodiment, the same code | symbol as the said 1st Embodiment is provided, and the description is abbreviate | omitted.

<Second Embodiment>
FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view corresponding to FIG. 1 showing a part of an automobile 12 to which a curtain airbag device 100 for a vehicle according to a second embodiment of the present invention is applied. In the vehicle curtain airbag device 100, the configuration of the curtain airbag 102 is different from that of the first embodiment. In the curtain airbag 102, the sub-chamber 42 is integrally extended from the upper end portion of the front main chamber 40A. That is, in the subchamber 42 according to the second embodiment, the subchamber main body 42A and the upper end portion of the front main chamber 40A are integrally connected via the communication path 42B.

  The sub-chamber 42 is folded in the communication passage 42B and folded back to the vehicle outer side of the front main chamber 40A, and the sub-chamber main body 42A is superimposed on the vehicle outer side in the side head protection area of the front main chamber 40A. . In this folded state, the lower end portion (outer peripheral non-expanding portion 43) of the sub-chamber main body 42A and the lower end portion of the front main chamber 40A (lower portion 41B of the outer peripheral non-expanding portion 41) are connected by the tether 46. Has been. By this tether 46, the sub chamber 42 is held in the folded state, and the sub chamber main body 42A is held outside the front main chamber 40A. In this state, the length of the communication path 42B is set so that the sub-chamber main body 42A faces, for example, the middle part in the vertical direction of the front main chamber 40A.

  In addition, the state in the middle of manufacture of the curtain airbag 102 which concerns on 2nd Embodiment is shown by the top view (planar developed view) corresponding to FIG. 9 in FIG. When the curtain airbag 102 is manufactured, for example, as shown in FIG. 9, first, the curtain airbag body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 are integrally formed of OPW. Thereafter, notches 104 and 106 shown in FIG. 8 are formed along the cutting lines L1 and L2 shown by broken lines in FIG. 9, and the sub-chamber 42 is changed to the front main chamber as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. It is folded back to the vehicle exterior of 40A. In this folded state, both ends in the longitudinal direction of the tether 46 are coupled to the lower end of the sub-chamber main body 42A and the lower end of the front main chamber 40A, respectively. The configuration other than the above is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  Also in this embodiment, when a side collision occurs, the sub-chamber 42 contacts the barrier face 70A as shown in FIG. 7, so that the front main chamber 40A receives an early reaction force. As a result, it is possible to obtain basically the same effects as those of the first embodiment. Moreover, in this embodiment, the sub-chamber 42 is integrally extended from the upper end portion of the front main chamber 40A, and the communication passage 42B for supplying gas to the sub-chamber 42A is connected to the upper end portion of the curtain airbag main body 40. Has been. Thereby, the gas from the inflator 16 provided in the upper end part of the compartment side part can be supplied to the sub chamber 42 at an early stage.

<Supplementary explanation of the embodiment>
In each of the above embodiments, the tether 46 formed separately from the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 is coupled to the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub-chamber 42. It is not limited. For example, a tether extended integrally from the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 43 of the sub-chamber 42, that is, a tether integrally formed with the curtain airbag main body 40 and the sub-chamber 42 is used as the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion of the curtain airbag main body 40. 41 may be combined.

  In each of the above embodiments, the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 43 of the sub-chamber 42 and the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 41 of the curtain airbag body 40 are connected by the tether 46. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Absent. That is, the non-inflatable portion (for example, the upper end portion of the non-inflatable portion 52 shown in FIG. 2 and the like) provided in the intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the curtain airbag body 40 and the outer peripheral non-inflatable portion 43 of the subchamber 40 are tether 46. You may make it the structure connected by.

  In each of the above embodiments, the curtain airbag main body 40 includes the front and rear main chambers 40A and 40B, the front RO chamber 40D (front sub chamber), and the intermediate RO chamber 40E. It is not limited to. The curtain airbag body may be provided with a plurality of chambers including a front main chamber that protects the head of the front seat occupant against a side collision, and the configuration thereof can be changed as appropriate.

  In addition, the present invention can be implemented with various modifications without departing from the scope of the invention. It goes without saying that the scope of rights of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Vehicle curtain airbag apparatus 16 Inflator 40 Curtain airbag main body 40A Front side main chamber 40D Front side rollover chamber (front side subchamber)
41 Outer peripheral non-expandable part (non-expandable part)
42 Subchamber 42A Subchamber body (main body)
42B Communication passage 43 Outer peripheral non-inflatable part (outer peripheral part)
46 Tether BL Door Belt Line P Front Seat Crew H Head

Claims (5)

The front side main chamber included in the plurality of chambers is accommodated in the front seat occupant against a side collision. A curtain airbag body that protects the head;
A sub-chamber that extends integrally from one of the upper and lower ends of the front main chamber, communicates with the front main chamber, and is folded outward from the front main chamber in an inflated and deployed state;
A tether that holds the sub-chamber in the folded state by connecting the non-inflatable portion of the sub-chamber and the non-inflatable portion of the curtain airbag body;
A curtain airbag device for a vehicle comprising:   The curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein one of upper and lower end portions of the front main chamber is a lower end portion of the front main chamber. The inflator is provided on the upper end side of the passenger compartment side part,
The curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to claim 1, wherein one of upper and lower end portions of the front main chamber is an upper end portion of the front main chamber.   The sub-chamber is communicated with the front main chamber through a communication passage having a width dimension in the vehicle front-rear direction smaller than that of the main body located on the vehicle outer side with respect to the front main chamber in the inflated and deployed state. The curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the curtain airbag device is folded in a passage.   The plurality of chambers include a front side sub-chamber that expands and deploys on the vehicle front side of the front side main chamber and projects downward from the front side main chamber so as to straddle a door belt line. The curtain airbag device for a vehicle according to 2.

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