Mitsubishi Jidosha Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Tachi-S Co., Ltd.

Mitsubishi Jidosha Kogyo K.k.

Mutsuo Muramatsu

Shinji Hara

Yohei Mabashi

Masaaki Honda

Kazuya Imayou

Toshiki Igarashi

Mikiharu Shimoda

Yayoi Hirano

Toshiaki Isogai

Toyoaki Kato

Makoto Miyabata

Shigeyuki Nozumi

Kenichi Sugimoto

Kazuyuki Kuriyama

Tsunenori Kishimoto

A part of the planar member, which is defined by the slits and extends over the center groove made in a seat pad, serves as a bridge part. As the sewn part of a trim cover is pulled into the groove, the bridge part is pressed onto the sewn part of the trim cover and pulled into the groove, together with the sewn part, and is bend in the form like letter U and held in the groove. The groove defines a through hole penetrating the seat pad at the bridge part of the planar member. The bridge part is not pressed onto the bottom of the groove even if the seat pad undergoes compressive deformation and is pressed down in the groove, because the groove has no bottom at some parts.

Vehicle seat

An occupant restraint system having a knee airbag and an upper-body airbag. The control unit inflates only the knee airbag if the impact load applied to the vehicle due to a collision or the like is equal to or greater than the first predetermined value and less than the second predetermined value that is set larger than the first predetermined value, and inflates both the knee airbag and the upper-body airbag if the impact load is equal to or greater than the second predetermined value.

Occupant restraint system

A knee bolster whose load receiving parts absorb load from the knees of seated occupants of various physical sizes is provided. An upper knee bolster and a lower knee bolster are each provided with a load receiving part that receives load from the knees of a seated occupant who moves forward in the direction of vehicle length in the event of a vehicle head-on collision, and a deforming part that moves the load receiving part, which has been deformed by the load, forward in the direction of vehicle length.

Knee bolster

The present invention comprises a column support fixed to a deck cross member extending along a width of a vehicle; a steering column supported by the column support; a column bracket disposed about an axis of the steering column in such a manner as to widen toward a front part of the vehicle, both ends of the column bracket being fixed to a body of the vehicle; and knee absorbers disposed at both sides of the column bracket, each of the knee absorbers having a base end fixed to the deck cross member and a front end facing the knees of an occupant, the front end coming into contact with the knees of the occupant. When the vehicle crashes, the occupant and his or her knees move forward to collide with the column bracket. The column bracket, however, is not displaced since both ends of the column bracket are fixed to the body of the vehicle. The knees of the occupant are guided forward along the surface of the column bracket to the right and left knee absorbers. This prevents the deformation of the steering column, and prevents the disturbance of the contracting function of a steering system for absorbing the impact energy. Moreover, the knee absorbers buckle and deform when the knees collide with them, and this results in the absorption of the impact energy to reduce the load that is applied to the knees. It is therefore possible to protect the knees of the occupant.

Occupant's knee protection system

Growing community of inventors

Tokai, Japan

Mutsuo Muramatsu