The present invention relates to a cover for a vehicle air bag. More specifically, the present invention relates to an air bag cover and method of making the same, the air bag cover having one or more tear seams which separate upon application of force such as the inflation of an air bag, thereby allowing the air bag to deploy through the cover at the tear seams.
It is generally known to provide air bag modules for protecting vehicle occupants. Many known systems utilize plastic fabricated air bag covers having tear seams or scores disposed on a surface of the air bag cover. These known tear seams or scores typically have selected weakened areas of the air bag cover where the inflating air bag initially separates or breaks through the air bag cover and moves toward a vehicle occupant to perform its intended safety function. However, some known systems may have significant tooling and manufacturing costs. For example, many known seamless air bag covers are laser and/or knife scored. These types of known covers require additional manufacturing operations for each cover, which can add capital and processing cost to each product that is made. In addition, some known air bag covers may be aesthetically unpleasing due to seam lines that are visible on the occupant side of the air bag cover (i.e., the “A” side or surface). Further, some known air bag covers may rely on seams that do not include sufficient support to maintain a desired width along the length of the seam, which may lead to aesthetically unpleasing indentations that are visible on the occupant side of the air bag cover. Furthermore, some known air bag covers may be ineffective in inhibiting or resisting surface fracture not on the intended tear seam or tearing of the air bag cover beyond the tear seam.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide an air bag cover having lower tooling and manufacturing costs. It would also be advantageous to provide an air bag having lower labor costs. It would further be advantageous to provide an air bag that has aesthetically pleasing characteristics (e.g., substantially non-visible seam lines on an occupant side of the air bag cover). It would further be advantageous to provide an air bag cover that provides a tear seam having sufficient support to maintain a desired width along the tear seam length (e.g., to resist deformation). It would further be advantageous to provide an air bag cover that prevents and/or inhibits undesired surface fracture or tearing of an area of the air bag cover beyond or outside the intended tear seams. It would be desirable to provide for an air bag cover having one or more of these or other advantageous features. To provide an inexpensive, reliable, and widely adaptable air bag cover that avoids the above-referenced and other problems would represent a significant advance in the art.
The present invention relates to a molded air bag cover for placement within a vehicle to cover an air bag. The air bag cover comprises a first portion providing a substantial portion of the air bag cover and a second portion defining a tear seam. The first portion has a first wall thickness; the second portion has a second wall thickness greater than the first wall thickness. The air bag cover opens to allow the air bag to pass through the air bag cover by surface fracture upon application of force by the air bag as the air bag is inflated. The wall thickness of the second portion is configured to inhibit undesired fracture of the air bag cover.
The present invention also relates to an air bag cover for placement within a vehicle to cover an air bag. The air bag cover comprises a first portion and a second portion. The first portion comprises an outer surface that is configured to face an interior area of a vehicle for occupants and an inner surface opposite the outer surface. The second portion is provided on the first portion and has a greater wall thickness than the first portion to limit separation of the first portion beyond the tear seam. The inner surface of the air bag cover comprises a tear seam having a groove or recess that is defined by a pair of opposing surfaces on the inner surface of the second portion. The tear seam comprises a plurality of spaced apart members or bridges that extend across the width of the tear seam between the opposing surfaces of the groove. The air bag cover opens by surface fracture upon application of force by the air bag as the air bag is inflated.
The present invention further relates to a process for forming an air bag cover comprising introducing the polymeric material into a mold between a mold cavity and a core, forming a first portion comprising a first wall thickness, an outer surface configured to face an interior area of a vehicle for occupants, and an inner surface opposite the outer surface, forming a second fracture limiting portion provided on the first portion and having a second wall thickness greater than the first wall thickness, the second fracture limiting portion defining a tear seam, and demolding the injection material. The polymeric materials may comprise reaction injection molding (RIM) materials such that the air bag cover is formed by a reaction between the reaction injection molding materials.
The present invention further relates to a molded air bag cover for use in a vehicle to cover an air bag. The air bag cover comprises a first portion having an inner surface and an outer surface opposite the inner surface, the inner surface having a tear seam defined by a groove having a length and a width; and a plurality of members extending across the width of the groove to provide structural support to the first portion and inhibit deformation of the first portion along the tear seam. The air bag cover opens by surface fracture along the groove upon application of force by the air bag as the air bag is inflated to allow the air bag to pass through the air bag cover.
The present invention further relates to various features and combinations of features shown and described in the disclosed embodiments. Other ways in which the objects and features of the disclosed embodiments are accomplished will be described in the following specification or will become apparent to those skilled in the art after they have read this specification. Such other ways are deemed to fall within the scope of the disclosed embodiments if they fall within the scope of the disclosed embodiments.
Before beginning the detailed description of the preferred, exemplary and alternative embodiments of the present invention, several general comments can be made about the applicability and scope of this invention. It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the details or methodology set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments or being practiced or carried out in various ways. It is also to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
It should be appreciated that the present air bag cover described herein may be provided for use with a steering wheel. In addition, the air bag cover may be utilized in. any number of other locations within a vehicle to offer protection to any occupant including, but not limited to, a passenger side instrument panel, in the seats, door frames, roof line, etc. Further, although one particular general shape (e.g., an expanded or modified “H” configuration) for the tear seams is shown in the FIGURES, any number of tear seams and/or shapes can be utilized. For example, the overall tear seam shape may be an “H,” an “X,” a “U,” etc., or any other suitable configuration such that the tear seam separates upon application of force by the air bag thereby providing a location for passage through the air bag cover.
Referring to
Cover 10 further comprises a first portion 19 and a second portion 20 (e.g., border, section, region, area, reinforcement member, etc.) that surrounds tear seams 16, 18. First portion 19 provides a substantial portion of the air bag cover. Second portion 20 is at least partially elevated or raised above the surface of first portion 19 of air bag cover 10 and tear seams 16, 18. Second portion 20 has a greater thickness than first portion 19 of cover 10. Generally, air bag cover 10 opens to allow the air bag to pass through air bag cover 10 by surface fracture upon application of a force along the tear seams by the air bag as the air bag is inflated. The greater wall thickness of second portion 20 relative to the rest of air bag cover 10 (e.g., first portion 19) is configured to inhibit undesired surface fracture or tearing at points along the surface or on areas of air bag cover 10 outside tear seams 16, 18. The increased wall thickness of second portion 20 is intended to provide sufficient resistance against the tearing action or separation of air bag cover 10 beyond tear seams 16, 18, thereby limiting any tearing to first portion 19 (outside of the tear seams) or second portion 20. As such, border section 20 provides strain and/or tension relief for air bag cover 10 and is intended to provide a barrier or reinforcement to prevent or inhibit undesired separation or splitting of cover 10 at a location or portion (e.g., area, point, etc.) of cover 10 other than at tear seams 16, 18 (e.g., separation of first portion or second portion beyond the tear seam). According to an alternative embodiment as shown in
According to an exemplary embodiment, the wall thickness of cover 10 between surface 28 and surface 30 is in the range of about 0.5 to 1.5 mm, preferably in the range of about 0.75 to 1.25 mm. As shown in
Referring to
Referring to
It is desirable to configure the air bag cover 10 so that the visibility of the tear seams 16, 18 is minimized to occupants of the vehicle. Greater uniformity along each tear seam diminishes irregularities and thereby helps minimize the visibility of the tear seams 16, 18. It is appreciated that variations or varying sizes and/or shapes of the tear seams can also result in minimal visibility of the tear seams. Accordingly, any of a variety of tear seam configurations are contemplated.
Referring to
According to an exemplary embodiment, the RIM process uses polyurethanes to produce molded parts. The polyurethanes begin as two liquid components—isocyanate and polyol. The isocyanate material may be either an aromatic material (generally not light stable) or an aliphatic material (generally light stable). When using an aromatic material, it is preferred to apply a paint or other covering for protection from light. In exemplary embodiments, depending on how the polyurethane RIM system is formulated, the parts molded with it can be a foam or a solid, and they can vary from flexible to extremely rigid. The density can vary as well, with specific gravities ranging from about 0.2 to 1.8.
The polyurethane RIM process is a chemical reaction between the two liquid components, which are held in separate, temperature-controlled feed tanks 50, 52 as shown in
According to a preferred embodiment, the process for forming an air bag cover 10 comprises providing reaction injection molding materials into a mixhead 64 to form an injection material 72; introducing the injection material 72 into a mold 40 comprising a mold cavity 42 and a core 49 so that the air bag cover 10 is formed by a reaction between the reaction injection molding materials; forming a first portion 19 comprising a first wall thickness, an outer surface 28 configured to face an interior area of a vehicle, and an inner surface 32 opposite the outer surface 30, 32; forming a second portion 20 integral with the first portion 19 and having a second wall thickness greater than the first wall thickness and defining a tear seam 16, 18; forming a plurality of support members 22 within the tear seam that extend across a width of the tear seam; and demolding the injection material. The process may also include applying a paint spray 68 to the mold cavity 42 prior to introducing the injection material 72 and applying a release spray 66 to the mold cavity 42 prior to introducing the injection material 72. The process may also include utilizing the mold cavity 42 to form the outer surface 28.
Reaction injection molded polyurethane is the preferred method and material for making the air bag cover. According to an exemplary embodiment, cover 10 may be substantially flat in shape. According to alternative embodiments, the cover may comprise other geometric configurations such as a cup shape so that the perimeter is attachable to a base element on a steering module. Other shapes for the cover can vary depending on the particular geometry of the parts involved.
It is also important to note that the construction and arrangement of the elements of the air bag cover as shown in the preferred and other exemplary embodiments are illustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail in this disclosure, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements, values of parameters, mounting arrangements, materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter recited in the claims. For example, elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple parts (e.g., multiple layers to create the air bag cover) or elements shown as multiple parts may be integrally formed, the operation of the interfaces may be reversed or otherwise varied, the length or width of the structures and/or other elements of the system may be varied. It should be noted that the elements and/or assemblies of the system may be constructed from any of a wide variety of materials that provide sufficient strength or durability, in any of a wide variety of colors, textures and combinations. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims. The order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced according to alternative embodiments. In the claims, any functional description is intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and/or omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention as described herein.
The present PCT Application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/635,864 entitled AIR BAG COVER, filed on Dec. 14, 2004, the full disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/US05/44934 | 12/13/2005 | WO | 00 | 6/8/2007 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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60635864 | Dec 2004 | US |