The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 12, 2000
Filed:
Apr. 27, 1998
Bryan W Shirk, Mesa, AZ (US);
Jess A Cuevas, Scottsdale, AZ (US);
Ahmad K Al-Amin, Higley, AZ (US);
Timothy A Swann, Mesa, AZ (US);
Roy D Van Wynsberghe, Mesa, AZ (US);
Dean M Esterberg, Tempe, AZ (US);
TRW Inc., Lyndhurst, OH (US);
Abstract
An actuatable inflator (10) for inflating an inflatable vehicle occupant protection device (12) includes a container (70) having a cup-shaped wall including a base portion (72) and a side wall portion (74). The container (70) is a one-piece structure. The base portion (72) and the side wall portion (74) at least partially define a combustion chamber (84) in the container (70). An ignitable material (110) in the combustion chamber (84), when ignited, rapidly increases the fluid pressure inside the combustion chamber. An electrically actuatable initiator (112) ignites the ignitable material (110). The base portion (72) of the cup-shaped wall includes a predefined rupture portion (90). The rupture portion (90) ruptures when the fluid pressure inside the combustion chamber (84) reaches a predetermined elevated fluid pressure level to form an orifice (120) through which the inflation fluid in the combustion chamber flows. The orifice (120) controls the rate at which the inflation fluid flows into the inflatable vehicle occupant protection device (12).