Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.

Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Hitoshi Kawabe

Yuji Sato

Masashi Hotta

Kensaku Honda

Hiroshi Kato

Shunichi Katsumata

Kazuya Saimura

Koji Kawamura

Yasushi Masuda

Yoshiaki Goto

Masaaki Okuhara

Takanobu Ikeda

Akihiro Nukaya

An airbag of a side airbag apparatus includes an upstream inflation portion, which inflates by inflation gas, and deploys frontward at a side of a vehicle seat. An opening is provided at a wall portion of the upstream inflation portion. A pressure regulator valve closes before an occupant is restrained by the upstream inflation portion, thereby restricting the inflation gas in the upstream inflation portion from flowing through the opening. Upon the occupant restraint, the pressure regulator valve cancels the restriction in response to a change in a tensed state of the dividing portion by an external force applied due to the restraint. A tear seam that connects valve body portions of the pressure regulator valve delays the opening time of the pressure regulator valve upon the occupant restraint by the upstream inflation portion relative to the opening time set only by the pressure regulator valve.

Side airbag apparatus

Inside of an airbag is partitioned by a partitioning member into an upstream inflation portion, which is inflated by a supply of gas, and a downstream inflation portion, which is inflated by inflow of the gas from the upstream inflation portion. The partitioning member includes a wide portion where an external force to be applied accompanying an occupant restraint by the airbag becomes largest. In the partitioning member, slits are formed at portions other than the wide portion. The slits cause the gas to flow into the downstream inflation portion from the upstream inflation portion upon the inflation of the airbag. The slits are opened by the force to increase the flow rate of the gas into the downstream inflation portion from the upstream inflation portion during the occupant restraint by the airbag compared to the gas flow rate before the occupant restraint by the airbag.

Airbag apparatus

An airbag includes an airbag body and an inner tube. The inner tube includes a gas upstream section located in an upstream region of an inflation gas stream fed from a gas generator and a gas outlet section that opens toward an inflatable region of the airbag body and feeds an inflation gas to the inflatable region. The gas outlet section includes a check valve section. The check valve section has a flexible and a generally tubular shape extending and opening toward the inflatable region due to pressure of an inflation gas so as to stream the inflation gas into the inflatable region. After the gas generator has finished discharging the inflation gas, the check valve section folds back toward the gas upstream section due to an internal pressure of the inflatable region and closes off the gas outlet section.

A curtain airbag of a curtain airbag system includes a gas supply passage that extends in a longitudinal direction in an upper portion of the airbag and guides gas from an inflator toward the front of the vehicle, a front main chamber deployed downward in the event of a side impact or rollover when supplied with gas from the gas supply passage, a front auxiliary chamber deployed when supplied with gas from the gas supply passage or the front main chamber at least in the event of rollover, and an uninflatable portion (gas-flow guide portion) that blocks forward gas flow at a front side of a gas passage communicating with the gas supply passage and the front main chamber, and guides the gas to the front main chamber.

Curtain airbag system

A curtain airbag system for a vehicle is stored in a folded state in a roof side portion, and includes a gas supply passage to be deployed along the roof side portion, a rear main chamber that is inflated and deployed below the gas supply passage in the event of a side impact or rollover of the vehicle, with gas supplied through the gas supply passage, a rear auxiliary chamber that is deployed at a front side of the rear main chamber in the event of at least rollover, with gas supplied through the gas supply passage or the rear main chamber, and a concave deployment portion having a looped line that restricts deployment of a part of the rear auxiliary chamber or a part of a space between the rear auxiliary chamber and the gas supply passage as seen in a side view.

A device includes an airbag and an outer cover. The airbag is accommodated between a body and a rear seat of a vehicle. The outer cover covers a space defined between the body and the rear seat from the passenger compartment and is exposed to the passenger compartment. When an impact greater than a predetermined level is applied to the vehicle body, a thin portion of the outer cover is ruptured by the pressure from inflation of the airbag. This forms an opening in the outer cover. The airbag is then inflated into the passenger compartment from the opening of the outer cover. The end at the part of the outer cover corresponding to the opening and facing toward the rear seat is entirely formed by the end of the outer cover.

Side airbag device

A side airbag apparatus is provided with an airbag which is stored within a vehicle seat. A rear portion of the airbag is fixed to the vehicle seat. Further, the side airbag apparatus is provided with an inflator which is arranged within a rear portion of the airbag and is fixed to the vehicle seat. The side airbag apparatus jets out gas from the inflator in correspondence to an impact applied to a vehicle from a side direction, and inflates and deploys the airbag between a body side portion and the vehicle seat. Further, a vent hole for discharging the gas within the airbag is provided between a gas outlet of the inflator and at least one of an upper end and a lower end of a rear portion of the airbag. Further, the airbag is folded in such a manner as to start and finish an inflation of the airbag finally in the vicinity of the vent hole between the vent hole and the gas outlet.

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Kiyosu, Japan

Hitoshi Kawabe