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:
Apr. 26, 2005
Filed:
Dec. 06, 2002
Jailou HU, West Bloomfield, MI (US);
Gopal Narwani, Warren, MI (US);
Jailou Hu, West Bloomfield, MI (US);
Gopal Narwani, Warren, MI (US);
Automotive Systems Laboratory, Inc., Farmington Hills, MI (US);
Abstract
A plurality of gas generators provide for controllably inflating a plurality of inflatable confinements responsive to a prediction by a predictive collision sensor of both a size of an expected collision object and an expected location of the collision. The inflatable confinements are associated with different zones across a door of a vehicle, each zone having an associated structural stiffness and level of proximity to the occupant. For a pole-like object expected to impact a relatively less-stiff zone of the vehicle, the inflatable confinements are controlled so as to deflect the point of impact towards a stiffer zone away from the occupant. For a barrier-like object, inflatable confinements associated with relatively stiff zones are inflated relatively higher than those associated with relatively less stiff zones so as to transfer impact energy to the relatively stiff zones.