Patent Application
20180056919
Vehicles can include passive occupant restraints, such as airbags and air curtains. One type of passive occupant restraint is a side air curtain. Side air curtains may be mounted to a frame of the vehicle above a passenger compartment. For example, the vehicle may include a headliner above the passenger compartment, and the side air curtain may be mounted above the headliner. When an impact event is sensed, the side air curtain may be inflated. When inflated, the side air curtain extends downwardly from the headliner and may extend along doors and/or side pillars of the vehicle to cushion impact between an occupant and the doors and/or side pillars.
Several research organizations release test protocols and standards for vehicles. For example, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) releases a standard for head injury criterion (HIC) to assess head injury risk in vehicle impact tests. HIC is a measurement of the likelihood of a head injury based on linear impact of an occupant's head. The HIC measurement is benefited by low translational head acceleration.
In 2012, IIHS also released a standard to measure brain injury criterion (BrIC). The BrIC measurement is benefited from low rotation of the occupant's head. Rotation of the occupant's head can occur, e.g., from side impact events. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is updating its New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) to include BrIC criteria in addition to its already existing HIC criteria.
The NHTSA's NCAP criteria for BrIC may result in competing design factors for side air curtains than its criteria for HIC.
With reference to the Figures, wherein like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, a vehicle 10 may include a side air curtain 20, 220. The side air curtain 20, 220 includes an outer panel 22 and an inner panel 24. The outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24 define an inflation chamber 26 therebetween. The inflation chamber 26 may be inflatable to inflate the side air curtain 20, 220 from an uninflated position as shown in
A tether 28, 228 is attached to the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24 of the side air curtain 20, 220. The tether 28, 228 has a length from the outer panel 22 to the inner panel 24 that is greater than zero. The tether 28, 228 may include at least one hole 34 that extends through the tether 28, 228. The hole 34 is spaced from the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24, and allows an inflation medium, e.g., gas, to flow through the tether 28, 228 in the inflation chamber 26. In this way, the at least one hole 34 can reduce disruption of the flow of the inflation medium through the inflation chamber 26 by the tether 28, 228.
One example of the side air curtain 20 shown in
In the example of the side air curtain 20 illustrated in
The leg portion 36 includes a proximal end 38 and a distal end 40. The proximal end 38 of the leg portion 36 may contact the base portion 42, as shown in
The distal end 40 of the leg portion 36 is located further from the base portion 42 relative to the proximal end 38 when the side air curtain 20 is installed in the vehicle 10 and in the inflated position. Referring to
For example, the taper of the leg portion 36 between the distal end 40 and the proximal end 38 can extend from the distal end 40 to the proximal end 38. The taper from the distal end 40 to the proximal end 38 may be constant.
Alternatively, as shown in
The base portion 42 of the examples of the tether 28 shown in
Referring to
Alternatively, the base portion 42 may taper between the vehicle-forward end 44 and the leg portion 36 in a direction of the leg portion 36 and/or may taper between the vehicle-rearward end 46 and the leg potion in a direction of the leg portion 36. As shown in
As discussed above, the tether 28, 228 includes at least one hole 34 that extends through the tether 28, 228 and is spaced from the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24. Each hole 34 is continuously bounded by the material of the tether 28, 228, e.g., by woven polymer, as discussed further below. Said differently, the material of the tether 28, 228, e.g., woven polymer, extends continuously around each hole 34.
In the example of the tether 28 shown in
The base portion 42 may include a plurality of holes 34 spaced from the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24. The holes 34 can be spaced from each other between the vehicle-forward and the vehicle-rearward ends 44, 46 of the base portion 42. The holes 34 may be spaced from each other along the base portion 42 from the vehicle-forward end 44 to the vehicle-rearward end 46 of the base portion 42.
As discussed above, the tether 28 is attached to the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24 of the side air curtain 20. For example, a first side 30 of the tether 28 may be stitched to the outer panel 22, and a second side 32 of the tether 28 may be stitched to the inner panel 24. Alternatively, other means can be used for attaching the first and the second sides 30, 32 of the tether 28 to the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24, respectively, such as adhesives, chemical welding, staples, and other suitable means.
In the example of the tether 28 in
The tether 228 and the second tether 238 have a length from the outer panel 22 to the inner panel 24 that is greater than zero. Moreover, each of the tether 228 and the second tether 238 include at least one hole 34 that extends through the tether 228 and the second tether 238.
The hole 34 is spaced from the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24, and allows an inflation medium, e.g., gas, to flow through the tether 228 and the second tether 238 in the inflation chamber 26. In this way, the at least one hole 34 can reduce disruption of the flow of the inflation medium through the inflation chamber 26 by the tether 228 and the second tether 238.
The tether 228 and the second tether 238 may be attached to the outer and the inner panels 22, 24 in the manner described above with respect to the tether 28. For example, the tether 228 and the second tether 238 have first sides 230, 240 that may be stitched to the outer panel 22, and second sides 232, 242 that may be stitched to the inner panel 24. Other means may be used for attaching the tether 228 and the second tether 238 to the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24, including adhesives, chemical welding, staples, and other suitable means.
As shown in
The tether 228 includes a first end 234 and a second end 236. The first end 234 is in located in closer proximity to a roof (not shown) of the vehicle 10 relative to the second end 236 when the side air curtain 220 is installed in the vehicle 10 and in the inflated position. Referring to
For example, the taper of the tether 228 between the first end 234 and the second end 236 can extend from the first end 234 to the second end 236. The taper may be constant, as shown in
With reference to
As discussed above, the tether 228 and the second tether 238 have lengths from the outer panel 22 to the inner panel 24 that is greater than zero. As shown in
The tether 228 and the second tether 238 may each include a plurality of holes 34 spaced from the outer panel 22 and the inner panel 24. The holes 34 can be spaced from each other between the first ends 234, 244 and the second ends 236, 246 of the tether 228 and the second tether 238. The holes 34 may be spaced from each other along the tether 228 and the second tether 238 from their first ends 234, 244 to their second end 236, 246.
In the example of the tether 228 and second tether 238 in
The side air curtain 20, 220 may be formed of any suitable material, such as a woven polymer. For example, the inner panel 24, the outer panel 22, as well as the tether 28, 228 and second tether 238 can be formed of woven nylon yarn, for example, nylon 6-6. Other suitable examples include polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polyetherketoneketone (PEKK), polyester, or any other suitable polymer. The woven polymer may include a coating, such as silicone, neoprene, urethane, and so on. For example, the coating may be polyorgano siloxane.
The side air curtain 20, 220 may be a component of a passive restraint system 100, which is shown schematically in
The passive restraint system 100 may include a controller 106. The controller 106 and the sensor 104 may be connected to a communication bus 108, such as a controller area network (CAN) bus, of the vehicle 12. The controller 106 may use information from the communication bus 108 to control the activation of an inflator 110. The inflator 110 may be connected to the controller 106, as shown in
The inflator 110 is in fluid communication with the side air curtain 20, 220, and expands the side air curtain 20, 220 with the inflation medium, such as gas. The inflator 110 may, for example, be a pyrotechnic inflator that uses a chemical reaction to drive inflation medium to the side air curtain 20, 220. More specifically, when the impact sensing system 102 activates the pyrotechnic inflator, a chemical reaction occurs causing a portion of the inflator 110 to burst, allowing the inflation medium to fill the side air curtain 20, 220. Alternatively, the inflator 110 may, for example, be a cold-gas inflator which, when activated, ignites a pyrotechnic charge that creates an opening for releasing the pressurized inflation medium to the side air curtain 20, 220 via a fill tube (not shown). The inflator 110 may be a cold-gas inflator. Alternatively, the inflator 26 may be of any suitable type, for example, a hybrid inflator.
With reference to
The controller 106 may be a microprocessor-based controller. The sensor 104 is in communication with the controller 106 to communicate data to the controller 106. Based on the data communicated by the sensor 104, the controller 106 may instruct the inflator 110 to activate.
In operation, in response to an impact sensed by the sensor 104, the controller 106 may provide an instruction to the inflator 110 to inflate the side air curtain 20, 220 from the uninflated position to the inflated position. As the side air curtain 20, 220 inflates to the inflated position, the side air curtain 20, 220 displaces a headliner 54 to extend downwardly into the passenger compartment 16 from a reaction surface 56, such as a roof beam, or any other suitable surface to which the side air curtain 20, 220 can be mounted.
As used herein, the adverb “substantially” modifying an adjective means that a shape, structure, measurement, etc. may deviate, e.g., +/−5% or any other suitable industry tolerance, from an exact described geometry, distance, measurement, etc., because of imperfections in materials, machining, manufacturing, etc.
The disclosure has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology which has been used is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. Many modifications and variations of the present disclosure are possible in light of the above teachings, and the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.
