JP2006143214A - Energy absorption device for vehicle side part - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To shorten the time required till opening by making an expansion amount of a skin material 19 itself small until a fragile part 19a is opened by a deployment pressure in an energy absorption device at a side part of a vehicle, provided with an airbag unit 21 at a neighborhood to a side part in a seat covered with the skin material 19, in which the fragile part 19a openable by receiving the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 is provided on the skin material 19. <P>SOLUTION: Low expansion sheet members 38 are respectively provided on the back surface of a first skin material extending from a seat rear side toward the fragile part 19a through a seat width direction outside, and on the back surface of a second skin material extending from the seat width direction central side in the seat front side to the fragile part 19a. A notch groove part 33 (breakage starting point) serving as a starting point where a pad 15 starts to be broken by receiving the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 is provided on a portion corresponding to the airbag unit 21 in the pad 15 provided on the inside surface of the seat of the skin material 19. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an energy absorbing device for a side portion of a vehicle, and particularly relates to a technical field in which an airbag unit is disposed in a seat covered with a skin material.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, it is well known that an airbag unit is disposed on a steering handle to ensure the safety of an occupant during a frontal collision of a vehicle body. On the other hand, in recent years, for example, as shown in Patent Document 1, an airbag unit is disposed on a side portion in a seat, and an airbag is deployed on the side of an occupant at the time of a collision with a vehicle body side portion. It has been proposed to protect the occupant by absorbing the energy of the side collision with the airbag.
JP-A-6-64491

  By the way, when the airbag unit is disposed in the seat as in the above proposal example, the outermost surface of the seat is usually covered with a skin material, so the skin material corresponding to the airbag unit is A fragile portion that easily opens when subjected to an airbag deployment pressure is provided, and the airbag is deployed outward from the opened fragile portion.

  However, as the skin material is usually used with a high stretch rate so that wrinkles do not occur on the surface, the skin material is first stretched to the outside of the seat when subjected to airbag deployment pressure, and thereafter The fragile part will open. For this reason, the opening of the fragile portion of the skin material is delayed, and there is room for improvement in order to deploy the airbag to the outside of the seat earlier.

  The present invention has been made in view of such points, and the object of the present invention is to reduce the extension amount of the skin material itself until the fragile portion is opened by the airbag deployment pressure, and to the opening. The purpose is to shorten the time as much as possible so that the airbag can be deployed outside the seat in a shorter time.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a low-extension sheet-like member is provided that suppresses the expansion of the skin material before the fragile portion is opened by the airbag deployment pressure of the airbag unit. A first low-stretch sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the first skin material that extends from the rear side of the sheet through the outer side in the sheet width direction toward the weakened portion, and from the center side in the sheet width direction on the front side of the sheet It shall consist of the 2nd low extension sheet-like member provided in the back of the 2nd skin material extended toward the above-mentioned weak part, and in the part corresponding to the airbag unit in the pad provided in the sheet inside of the skin material, A breakage starting point portion which is a starting point at which the pad starts to break under the deployment pressure of the airbag is provided.

  Specifically, in the invention of claim 1, an airbag unit disposed in a predetermined direction is provided in the vicinity of the side portion in the sheet on which the skin material is covered, and the skin material is provided with an air bag. It is premised on a vehicle side energy absorbing device that is provided with a fragile portion that can be opened by receiving a bag deployment pressure, and that an airbag is deployed outward from the opened fragile portion.

  The skin material includes a first skin material that extends from the rear side of the sheet through the outer side in the seat width direction toward the fragile portion, and a second skin material that extends from the center side in the seat width direction on the front side of the seat toward the fragile portion. A low-extension sheet-like member that suppresses the expansion of the skin material before the fragile portion is opened by the airbag deployment pressure of the airbag unit is provided. It consists of a first low-stretch sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the first skin material and a second low-stretch sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the second skin material. It is assumed that a pad is provided, and a breakage starting point portion that is a starting point of the pad starting to break due to the deployment pressure of the airbag is provided at a portion corresponding to the airbag unit in the pad.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the break starting point portion of the pad is cut toward the fragile portion.

  In the invention of claim 3, in the invention of claim 1, the first and second low-extension sheet-like members are joined to the first and second skin materials, respectively.

  According to the first to third aspects of the invention, the first and second skin materials in the vicinity of the fragile portion are subjected to the airbag deployment pressure and tend to extend to the outside of the seat. It is restrained by the extension member. As a result, the time until the fragile portion is opened is shortened, and the airbag is smoothly deployed out of the seat from the opened fragile portion. Therefore, the airbag can be deployed to the outside of the seat even faster.

  As described above, according to the vehicle side energy absorbing device of the present invention, the low expansion sheet-like member that suppresses the expansion of the skin material before the fragile portion is opened by the airbag deployment pressure of the airbag unit. A first low-extension sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the first skin material extending from the rear side of the sheet toward the weakened portion through the outer side in the sheet width direction; An air bag unit in a pad provided on the inner side of the skin material sheet, comprising a second low-extension sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the second skin material extending from the center side in the seat width direction toward the fragile portion. Is provided with a rupture starting point that is a starting point for the pad to start rupturing under the deployment pressure of the airbag. , It is possible to carry out the expansion towards the seat outside of the air bag from the fragile portion to more early.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
1 to 4 show a seat 1 on the left side of a front seat of an automobile in an energy absorbing device for a vehicle side portion according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention (in the following description, front and rear and right and left of an automobile are simply referred to as front and rear and left and right). ), The seat 1 includes a seat cushion 2, a seat back 3, and a headrest 4. Sliders 7 and 7 extending in the front-rear direction are provided at the lower portions of the left and right ends of the seat cushion 2, and the sliders 7 are fixed to the floor at the front and rear portions via rail mounting members 10 and 10, respectively. The front and rear positions of the seat 1 can be adjusted by being engaged with the slide rails 8. Further, a knuckle member 9 is provided at the rear portion of the seat cushion 2 so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft 11 extending in the left-right direction, and the seat back 3 is rotated with respect to the seat cushion 2 through the knuckle member 9. The angle of the seat back 3 can be adjusted by being coupled so as to be rotatable about 11.

  The headrest 4 is attached to the seat back 3 by inserting the frames 5 and 5 protruding from the lower end surface thereof into two holes formed in the upper end surface of the seat back 3.

  A frame-like seat back frame 13 (seat frame) having upper and lower portions and left and right side portions made of a steel pipe material is provided on the outer periphery of the rear portion in the seat back 3. The two headrest adjusting members 14 and 14 are fitted and fixed so as to be fitted to the respective frames 5 protruding from the lower end surface of the headrest 4 and adjust the vertical position of the headrest 4.

  Between the left and right side portions of the seat back frame 13, a plurality of wire frames 18, 18,... Both ends of each wire frame 18 are fixedly attached to the front sides of both left and right sides of the seat back frame 13 by welding.

  A pad 15 is provided on the front side of each wire frame 18, and the pad 15 is supported by each wire frame 18 so as not to escape backward when the occupant falls into the seat back 3. Further, the pad 15 is supported by the seat back frame 13 so that the end portion of the pad 15 wraps around from the outside of the seat back frame 13. The seat outer surface of the pad 15 is covered with a skin material 19 made of fabric. That is, the skin material 19 is covered on the outermost side of the sheet 1.

  Side support portions 2a, 2a bulging upward are provided at the left and right ends of the seat cushion 2, and side support portions 3a, 3a bulging forward are provided at the left and right ends of the seat back 3, respectively. It plays the role of supporting not to move.

  In the seat back 3, an airbag unit 21 is disposed in a side portion near the side door near the seat 1, that is, in the left side support portion 3a. The airbag unit 21 has a module can 22 having a substantially U-shaped cross section. In the module can 22, a cylindrical can-like inflator 23 containing an ignition part and explosives is provided on the back side, and an opening side is also provided. Each of the airbags 24 folded in is accommodated. Although not shown, an ignition signal is supplied to the ignition part of the inflator 23 from an acceleration sensor that detects a side collision to the left side of the automobile. The ignition part ignites the explosive by the ignition signal. The air bag 24 is inflated and expanded by a large amount of gas generated at that time.

  The airbag unit 21 is arranged such that its longitudinal direction substantially coincides with the vertical direction of the seat back 3, and mounting members are provided by two sets of upper and lower bolts 27, 27 and nuts 28, 28 on the side surface of the module can 22. It is fastened to one end of 26. The other end of the attachment member 26 is fixedly attached to the seat back frame 13 by welding. Thus, the airbag unit 21 is fixed to the seat back frame 13 via the attachment member 26. The airbag unit 21 is arranged so that the opening direction of the module can 22, that is, the direction in which the airbag 24 is deployed is inclined to the left with respect to the front.

  A portion corresponding to the airbag unit 21 in the seat inner surface portion of the pad 15, that is, a substantially front portion of the opening of the module can 22 in the airbag unit 21 receives the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 and the pad 15 starts to break. The notch groove part 33 used as a starting point part is provided, and this notch groove part 33 is made weaker than another part. The cut groove portion 33 is provided at substantially the same height in the vertical direction of the module can 22 and the seat back 3 of the airbag unit 21 and over substantially the same length. When the airbag 24 is deployed, the pad 15 begins to break from the cut groove portion 33 due to the deployment pressure, and the portion on the extension line of the cut groove portion 33 is broken.

  The skin material 19 corresponding to the airbag unit 21, that is, the skin material 19 on the substantially extended line of the cut groove portion 33, is provided with a fragile portion 19 a so as to open upon receiving the deployment pressure of the airbag 24. That is, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the fragile portion 19a is substantially linear at substantially the same height in the vertical direction of the cut groove portion 33 and the seat back 3 and over the same length. The opening portion of the skin material 19 is closed by sewing, and when the airbag 24 is subjected to the deployment pressure, the closed weak portion 19a is opened, and the open weak portion 19a and the broken portion of the pad 15 are opened. Accordingly, the airbag 24 is deployed outside the seat back 3 and between the occupant of the seat 1 and the left side door.

  The sewn portion of the weakened portion 19a has the skin material 19 at both ends of the opening folded back and stitched together by the first sewing threads 35, 35, and the tips of both folded portions of the skin material 19 are second. The double stitches are sewn together by the sewing thread 36. The strength of the first and second sewing threads 35 and 36 of the sewing portion is set lower in the skin material 19 than in other sewing portions.

  The skin material 19 is provided with expansion limiting means for limiting the expansion of the skin material 19 before the fragile portion 19a is opened by the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 of the airbag unit 21. That is, the extension limiting means is composed of a plurality of low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,... Having a lower extension rate than the skin material 19, and each of the low-extension sheet-like members 38 is a skin material 19 near the fragile portion 19a. The back surface 19 and the skin material 19 are joined together by adhesion. The plurality of low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,... Are predetermined substantially along the longitudinal direction of the fragile portion 19a that is linear on both sides in the opposite direction of the fragile portion 19a across the fragile portion 19a. They are spaced apart. Each low-extension sheet-like member 38 on one side of the fragile portion 19a extends from the vicinity of the fragile portion 19a to the vicinity of the left side support portion 3a base on the seating surface side (front side) of the seat back 3, and The extended sheet-like member 38 extends from the vicinity of the fragile portion 19a to the vicinity of the rear side of the left side support portion 3a.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the airbag 24 is deployed forward from the seat back 3 and between the occupant sitting on the seat 1 and the side door 40 from the occupant's abdomen to the head. The chest protection part 24a corresponding to the chest part of the occupant and the head protection part 24b corresponding to the head part of the occupant are provided substantially continuously above the chest protection part 24a. The chest protection part 24 a is directly connected to the inflator 23 of the airbag unit 21 and extends substantially forward from the inflator 23. The head protecting part 24b is connected to the chest protecting part 24a and extends substantially upward so that the gas as the airbag developing gas flows through the chest protecting part 24a. .

  The operation when the airbag 24 is deployed due to a side collision in the vehicle side energy absorbing device configured as described above will be described. First, when the acceleration sensor detects a side collision to the left side of the automobile, a deployment signal is supplied to the ignition unit of the inflator 23 and the ignition unit ignites. As a result, the explosive in the inflator 23 burns at a high speed, a large amount of gas is supplied to the airbag 24, and the airbag 24 tries to expand and deploy. The airbag 24 attempts to deploy substantially forward, which is the opening direction of the module can 22, contacts the seat inner surface of the pad 15, and presses the pad 15 from the seat inner side to the outer side by the deployment pressure. For this reason, the pad 15 starts to break from the fragile portion, that is, the cut groove portion 33, and the pad 15 is broken substantially along the extension line of the cut groove portion 33.

  Next, the fragile portion 19a of the skin material 19 is opened, but before that, the skin material 19 in the vicinity of the fragile portion 19a is expanded to the outside of the seat by receiving the deployment pressure of the airbag 24, and for the time it is expanded. Opening is slow. However, in the first embodiment, since the extension of the skin material 19 itself is limited by each low-extension sheet-like member 38, the extension amount of the skin material 19 becomes small and the time until opening is short. Then, the strength of the first and second sewing threads 35 and 36 of the sewing part that is a double stitch in the fragile part 19 a is set lower than that of the other sewing parts in the skin material 19, and moreover than the first sewing thread 35. In addition, since the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 is greatly applied to the second sewing thread 36, only the second sewing thread 36 is cut and the fragile portion 19a is opened. Furthermore, since the skin material 19 around the fragile portion 19a is reinforced by the first sewing thread 35, the skin material 19 itself around the fragile portion 19a is broken, so that the skin material 19 is opened before the sewing. The airbag 24 does not open out of position, and the airbag 24 can be reliably and quickly deployed from the opening before sewing.

  Subsequently, the airbag 24 is deployed on the outer front side of the seat back 3 from the open fragile portion 19 a and the broken portion of the pad 15. At this time, the chest protection part 24a connected to the inflator 23 of the airbag unit 21 is first deployed, and then the gas flows into the head protection part 24b and the head protection part 24b is deployed. As a result, the deployment of the head protection part 24b is slightly delayed, but since the time until the fragile part 19a of the skin material 19 is opened is short, the time until the head protection part 24b is fully deployed is also short. I'll do it. As a result, even if the large-capacity airbag 24 having such a head protecting portion 24b is provided, the airbag 24 can be deployed in a short time, and the chest of an occupant sitting on the seat 1 and It is possible to prevent the head from colliding with the left side door. Therefore, it is possible to effectively use the energy absorbing device on the side of the vehicle and to improve the safety of the passenger.

  Therefore, in Embodiment 1 described above, the skin material in the vicinity of the fragile portion 19a is used as an expansion limiting means for restricting the expansion of the skin material 19 before the fragile portion 19a is opened by the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 of the airbag unit 21. 19 is provided with a plurality of low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,... Having a lower expansion rate than the skin material 19, and the low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,. Since the skin material 19 is integrally bonded to both sides of the portion 19a in the opposing direction, the stretching of the skin material 19 itself can be effectively limited with a simple configuration, and the amount of stretching can be reduced. . For this reason, the opening action of the fragile portion 19a due to the deployment pressure of the airbag 24 is promoted, and the time until the fragile portion 19a is opened is shortened, and the airbag 24 is smoothly opened from the opened fragile portion 19a. Expand outward. Therefore, the airbag 24 can be easily deployed outside the seat back 3 in a short time.

  Further, the plurality of low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,... Are arranged at predetermined intervals substantially along the longitudinal direction of the fragile portion 19a that is linear, so that the surface of the skin material 19 Can be effectively suppressed, and the soft touch of the skin material 19 can be maintained. Therefore, appearance and sitting comfort can be improved.

  Further, since the airbag unit 21 is disposed in the left side support portion 3a of the seat back 3, the airbag 24 is easily deployed between the occupant and the left side door by a side collision to the left side portion of the automobile. It is possible to reliably prevent the passenger from colliding with the left side door. In addition, a relatively large space can be provided in the side support portion 3 a of the seat back 3. Therefore, the airbag unit 21 can be accommodated in the seat 1 without hindering the sitting comfort of the occupant, and further safety of the occupant during a side collision can be achieved.

  In the first embodiment, the sewing portion of the fragile portion 19a is a double stitch. However, the present invention can also be applied to a single stitch that is sewn with only the second sewing thread 36. In this case, the weakened portion 19a is further reduced by further reducing the strength of the thread of the sewing portion of the weakened portion 19a or increasing the strength of the base fabric of the laminate usually joined to the inner surface of the sheet of the skin material 19. Only the thread of the sewing portion can be cut without breaking the surrounding skin material 19, and the airbag 24 can be reliably deployed outward from the seat back 3 from the opening before sewing in the fragile portion 19a. .

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention (in the following embodiment, the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, detailed description thereof is omitted, and only other different parts are described. ), The configuration of the sewn portion that is a double stitch in the fragile portion 19a is different from that of the first embodiment.

  That is, in this embodiment, resin plates 43 are respectively interposed between the folded portions of the skin material 19 in the fragile portion 19a, and the folded portions are sewn together by the first sewing thread 35 with the resin plate 43 interposed therebetween, The ends of the folded portions of the skin material 19 are sewn together by the second sewing thread 36.

  Therefore, in the second embodiment, the skin material 19 around the fragile portion 19a is further reinforced by the resin plates 43, so that the second sewing thread 36 can be cut more reliably, and the sewing at the fragile portion 19a. Deployment of the airbag 24 from the front opening can be made more reliable.

  In the first and second embodiments, a plurality of low-extension sheet-like members 38, 38,... Are joined to the skin material 19 by adhesion, but each low-extension sheet-like member 38 may be joined by sewing, The present invention can be applied even if one low-extension sheet-like member is joined to the skin material 19 around the entire fragile portion 19a.

  In the first and second embodiments, the cut groove 33 is provided on the sheet inner surface portion of the pad 15 so that the pad 15 is easily broken. However, the pad 15 is reliably broken on the extension line of the cut groove 33. As described above, a slit may be provided on the extended line so that the pad 15 is separated.

  Further, in the first and second embodiments, the airbag unit 21 is disposed in the left side support portion 3a of the seat back 3. However, the present invention also applies when the airbag unit 21 is disposed in the right side support portion 3a of the seat back 3. Can be applied and collision between passengers can be prevented. The airbag unit 21 is arranged in the side support portion 2a of the seat cushion 2 so that the opening of the module can 22 faces substantially upward and the airbag 24 is deployed substantially upward of the seat cushion 2. Even in the case of being provided, the present invention can be applied in the same manner as in the case where the seat back 3 is disposed in the side support portion 3a. In addition, when side support portions are provided on the left and right side portions of the headrest 4 and a small airbag unit is disposed on the side support portions so that the airbag is deployed substantially forward, thereby protecting the occupant's head and the like. The present invention can be applied.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is useful for an energy absorbing device on a vehicle side portion in which an airbag unit is disposed in a seat that is covered with a skin material.

It is the II sectional view taken on the line of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the sheet | seat in the energy absorber of the vehicle side part which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a left view of the sheet | seat which shows the expansion | deployment state of an airbag. It is a perspective view which shows the weak part of the skin material in a seat back. FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 1 in Embodiment 2.

Explanation of symbols

1 seat 2 seat cushion 3 seat back 13 seat back frame (seat frame)
15 Pad 19 Skin material 19a Weak part 21 Airbag unit 24 Airbag 33 Cut groove part (breaking origin part)
38 Low stretch sheet-like members

Claims (3)

In the vicinity of the side portion in the seat covered with the skin material, an airbag unit arranged in a predetermined direction is provided,
In the above-mentioned skin material, a weak portion that can be opened by receiving an airbag deployment pressure is provided, and the vehicle side energy absorbing device configured to deploy the airbag outward from the seat from the opened weak portion,
The skin material includes a first skin material that extends from the rear side of the seat through the outer side in the seat width direction toward the fragile portion, and a second skin material that extends from the center side in the seat width direction on the front side of the seat toward the fragile portion. Consists of
A low-stretch sheet-like member is provided to suppress the skin material from stretching before the fragile portion is opened by the airbag deployment pressure of the airbag unit,
The low-stretch sheet-like member is composed of a first low-stretch sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the first skin material and a second low-stretch sheet-like member provided on the back surface of the second skin material,
A pad is provided inside the sheet of the skin material,
An energy absorbing device for a vehicle side portion, wherein a break starting point portion is provided at a portion corresponding to the airbag unit in the pad, which is a starting point for the pad to start breaking upon receiving the deployment pressure of the airbag. . The energy absorber for a vehicle side portion according to claim 1,
The vehicle side portion energy absorbing device, wherein the rupture starting point portion of the pad is cut toward the fragile portion. The energy absorber for a vehicle side portion according to claim 1,
The first and second low-extension sheet-like members are joined to the first and second skin materials, respectively, and the vehicle side portion energy absorbing device.

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