Davidson Textron Inc.

Other

Colin C Frost

Scott M Filion

Denis L Moore

Robert Juzwiak

Richard D Roberge

Alan S Rouse

Vincent J Yedlin

John D Gray

Steven L Souders

Paul Hagenow

A locking system for a telescopic seating system is disclosed. The system provides a means to releasably lock adjacent telescopic seating platforms together and a means to release the locking mechanism without the need for a trip bar or other like device. The locking system employs a low profile tier catch and tier catch ramp that promotes ease of use and a reduction in the possibility of damage due to individuals walking over the locking device.

Telescopic seating system tier catch and method

A cover for covering an air bag in a motor vehicle has a thin elastic plastic skin, a rigid substrate and an intermediate layer of soft plastic foam. The skin has a tear seam and the substrate includes a door that is impacted by the inflating air bag and presses outward against the foam layer and the skin to tear the foam layer and the tear seam and then swing outward with a torn section of the foam layer and skin to form an opening in the cover for deployment of the air bag into the passenger space in the vehicle. The tear seam in the skin is formed with extremely small laser machined holes that are not observable to a person of normal vision when viewed from a normal viewing distance in the passenger compartment by having a maximum hole size dimension at the outer side of the skin that does not exceed about 0.0005 inches. The array of holes are arranged in a prescribed tear seam pattern and relative to each other so as to reduce the tensile strength of the skin along the tear seam by not more than about 50 percent whereby the structural integrity of the skin is maintained prior to air bag inflation but then on the occurrence of the latter, the tear seam will assuredly tear from the force of the inflating air bag to form an opening therefor in the skin.

Motor vehicle air bag cover having a skin with a virtually invisible

A trim assembly for a vehicle providing energy absorption between a body member and a trim cover and a plurality of energy absorbing pins therebetween that are either permanently plastically deformed upon the cover initially being impacted or that are elastically deformed to absorb kinetic energy as the cover is impacted.

Energy absorbent interior trim for vehicle

A fibrous headliner for a motor vehicle passenger compartment is formed with a nonwoven high loft batting of thermoplastic fibers having a low percentage of binder fibers that are activated with heat to establish and hold the desired appearance side contour of the headliner. The batting is needled on both sides to form integral fibrous skin layers wherein the roof side layer is substantially thicker and more dense than the passenger compartment side skin layer. The high density skin layer is then coated with a thermoset resin after the batting has been heated to activate the binder fibers. The hot batting with its resinated high density skin layer is then sandwiched by a blank of scrim stock on this side and a blank of adhesive coated cover stock on the appearance side. This assembly is then placed in a heated form mold wherein the mold surfaces are heated to different temperatures to facilitate the curing of the thermoset resin and bonding of the scrim thereto, and setting of the cover at the passenger compartment side skin layer. The resin coated fibrous skin layer with the scrim bonded thereto forms a strong, elastic frame at the back side of the headliner from which the fibers are suspended to absorb the sounds transmitted through the cover and adjoining low density fibrous layer.

Method of making a fibrous headliner by compression molding

A trim assembly for a vehicle providing energy absorption between a structural member and a trim cover has a curved cover including a curved inner surface supporting an energy absorbing tube having a first side portion thereon that has an undeformed position and a deformed position that is permanently plasticly deformed upon the cover initially being impacted and the energy absorbing tube has a first segment thereon with an undeformed curvature substantially fully engaged with the curved inner surface of the cover and further having a second side portion overlying the curved segment to form a leaf spring action therebetween that will absorb energy by elastic deformation upon plastic deformation of the first side portion as the cover is impacted.

A steering wheel (12) incorporates an air bag unit (22). The air bag unit has a cover door (30) with a transducer (38) molded in a deformable front wall (35) of the cover door. The transducer can be a force sensitive resistor (38) which is operably connected to an electrical circuit (42) that actuates a horn (44) when the circuit senses a change in the resistance of force sensitive resistor (38). The force sensitive resistor (38) produces a suitable change in resistance when hand pressure is exerted on the front wall (35).

Horn actuator incorporating a transducer in a steering wheel

An impact resistent flexible grille is located in an impact zone at a front end of an automobile having a grille support structure and an energy absorbing bumper. The flexible grille is rigidly fastened to the grille support structure and the bumper by rigid attachments that are located so that the flexible grille flexes to avoid damage when the front bumper collapses rearwardly responsive to a front end impact. Elastomeric tethers connect deflected portions of the flexible grille to the grille support structure to guide them back to their original position when the bumper returns to its original position. In one arrangement, the rigid attachments are located along a vertical centerline of the flexible grille and an elastomeric tether connects each upper corner of the flexible grille to the grille support structure. In a second arrangement, sides of the flexible grille are rigidly attached to the grille support structure on a horizontal centerline and an upper end of the flexible grille is connected to the grille support structure by a plurality of elastomeric tethers. In a third arrangement, an integral nib of the flexible grille is snapped into an aperture of the bumper and moves forwardly in the aperture of the bumper to accommodate initial movement of the bumper when it collapses rearwardly.

Impact resistent flexible grille arrangement

A steering wheel (12) incorporates an air bag unit (22). The air bag unit has a cover door (30) with a transducer (38) molded in a deformable front wall (35) of the cover door. The transducer is operably connected to an electrical circuit (42) that actuates a horn (44) when the circuit senses an actuating output voltage at the output lead (41) of the transducer (38). The transducer produces the actuating output voltage when hand pressure is exerted on the front wall (35).

Growing community of inventors

Dover, NH, United States of America

Colin C Frost