Trw Vehicle Safety Systems Inc.

Srinivasan Vaidyaraman

Ayad G Nayef

Paul F Altamore

An apparatus ( ) for helping to protect an occupant of a vehicle ( ) having a roof ( ) and a side structure ( ) includes an inflatable device ( ) having a deflated condition and having an inflated condition. In the inflated condition, a head portion ( ) of the inflatable device is inflated between the occupant's head and the vehicle roof and a side portion ( ) of the inflatable device is inflated between the occupant and the vehicle side structure. The apparatus ( ) further includes an actuatable inflation fluid source ( ) for upon actuation directing inflation fluid into the inflatable device ( ) to inflate the inflatable device from the deflated condition to the inflated condition. The head portion ( ) of the inflatable device ( ) is inflated by inflation fluid flow in a direction transverse to the vehicle side structure ( ). In a preferred embodiment, the head portion ( ) of the inflatable device ( ) when in the deflated condition has panels ( ) which lie generally parallel to a headliner ( ) between the headliner and the roof ( ) and which extend from the vehicle side ( ) approximately to the vehicle centerline ( ).

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Rochester Hills, MI, United States of America

Srinivasan Vaidyaraman