JP4134883B2 - Curtain airbag device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a curtain airbag device that protects an occupant by inflating and deploying between a vehicle door and the occupant.

  Conventionally, a vehicle such as an automobile is provided with an airbag device that protects an occupant from an impact when the vehicle collides.

  In addition to the airbag device that protects the occupant from a longitudinal collision of the vehicle, many vehicles adopt a curtain airbag device that protects the occupant from a side collision of the vehicle.

  The curtain airbag device is installed in a pillar garnish (interior material) that covers the roof side rail from the front pillar in the passenger compartment, and inflates and deploys in the form of a curtain between the occupant and the door when the vehicle collides sideways. Thus, the occupant is protected from an impact that occurs during a side collision.

On the other hand, the curtain airbag device is accommodated between the roof side rail and the interior material in a state in which the airbag is folded, and a structure for attaching the airbag to the roof side rail is described in, for example, Patent Document 1. An arrangement structure of a protection device for an automobile occupant is known.
JP-A-10-138861.

  In the arrangement structure described in Patent Document 1, the fixed portion of the case that accommodates the airbag stored in the interior material in a folded state is fixed to the roof side rail with a plurality of bolts. Yes.

  Moreover, in vehicles, such as a motor vehicle, what is generally attached to a vehicle body using a clip is known in interior materials, such as a door trim and a ceiling trim, for example.

  However, in the case where the airbag case is attached to the roof side rail with a plurality of bolts, as in the curtain airbag attachment structure described in Patent Document 1, the vehicle is repaired or the curtain airbag is used for maintenance. When detaching from the roof side rail, it is necessary to detach a plurality of bolts using a tool, so that there is a problem that work takes time and work efficiency is poor.

  Moreover, when the method of attaching interior materials such as door trims and ceiling trims using clips is applied to the curtain airbag device as it is, there is a problem that the attaching force of the clips themselves is insufficient.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made to remedy such a problem, and the airbag is inflated and deployed while taking advantage of the simple structure to be removed for maintenance and repair of the airbag device as an advantage of the attachment means by the clip. An object of the present invention is to provide a curtain airbag device in which the attachment strength of the clip to the roof side rail is increased.

The curtain airbag device of the present invention is stored in an folded state in an interior material attached to the side surface of the roof side rail by a locking means having a clip and an airbag storage chamber formed in the interior material. a curtain airbag apparatus provided with the airbag, the clips are al provided in the side wall of the interior material, the clip first locking portion from the clip seat extended by tip side and the clip seat side first The first locking portion is detachably locked to the roof side rail mounting hole, and the second locking portion receives the inflation force of the airbag. It can be pushed into the roof side rail and has a larger locking force than the first locking portion.

  With the above configuration, the interior material attached to the roof side rail by the clip can be easily detached when removing the airbag for repair or maintenance, so that the repair and maintenance work can be efficiently performed in a short time.

  Further, the second locking portion pushed into the roof side rail from the mounting hole by the expansion force generated when the airbag is inflated due to the side collision of the vehicle has a larger locking force than the first locking portion. Since the clip is not pulled out from the roof side rail even when an excessive tensile force is applied to the locking means, the attachment strength of the airbag device to the roof side rail can be increased. .

  In the curtain airbag device of the present invention, the clip is formed of a leg portion and an elastic locking piece provided integrally with the leg portion, and the locking piece is bent into a substantially square shape on both sides of the leg portion. Thus, the first locking portion is formed, and the second locking portion is formed by opening the front end of the locking piece in a substantially C shape.

With the above-described configuration, the interior material is locked to the roof side rail by the first locking portion bent in a substantially square shape, so that the interior material can be easily attached and detached, and at the time of inflating and deploying the airbag, it is substantially C-shaped. Since the interior material is locked to the roof side rail by the second locking portion that is opened to the front, sufficient holding force can be obtained against an excessive tensile load, and thus the roof side rail of the curtain airbag device can be obtained. The attachment strength with respect to can be increased.

  In the curtain airbag device of the present invention, an elastic rib for positioning the first locking portion at the opening edge of the attachment hole is provided on the inner surface of the interior material.

  With the above configuration, the interior material can be easily placed in a predetermined position because the second locking portion does not enter the inside of the roof side rail even if the interior material is pushed too hard during the work of attaching the interior material to the roof side rail with the clip. Can be attached to.

  Further, since the elastic rib is elastically deformed so as to be crushed by the compressive load when the airbag is inflated, the second locking portion is not hindered from being pushed into the roof side rail by the compressive load.

  According to the curtain airbag device of the present invention, the interior material attached to the roof side rail by the clip can be easily detached when removing the airbag for repair or maintenance, so that the repair and maintenance work can be efficiently performed in a short time. The second locking portion pushed into the roof side rail from the mounting hole by the expansion force generated when the airbag is inflated due to a side collision of the vehicle is more effective than the first locking portion. Because it is locked to the roof side rail with a large locking force, the clip can come out from the roof side rail even if an excessive tensile force acts on the locking means due to the subsequent tensile load on the vehicle interior side. Therefore, the attachment strength of the airbag device to the roof side rail can be increased.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a front view of the front pillar and the roof side rail with the interior side (pillar garnish) covered, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view, FIG. 4 is a side view of the locking means, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 4, and FIGS.

  The interior material 1 shown in FIG. 1 is provided so as to cover the front pillar provided from the front part to the upper part of the vehicle compartment and the vehicle compartment side of the roof side rail 2, and is a core material integrally formed with a hard resin. The surface of 1a is covered with a skin 1b made of a soft resin.

  The core material 1a of the interior material 1 covering the roof side rail 2 is formed with an airbag storage chamber 3 elongated in the front-rear direction by recessing the surface toward the roof side rail 2 side. A plurality of locking means 4 for attaching the interior material 1 to the roof side rail 2 are provided on the side wall 1d facing the roof side rail 2 at intervals in the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the locking means 4 includes a clip mounting seat 4 a that projects integrally with the side wall 1 d of the interior material 1, a clip support projection 4 b that projects from the upper surface of the clip mounting seat 4 a, The clip mounting seat 4a includes elastic ribs 4c that are parallel to each other and projecting from both ends of the clip mounting seat 4a, and clips 5 having leg portions 5b fitted to the clip supporting projections 4b from above.

  The clip support protrusion 4b is formed of a plate-like body that is located between the elastic ribs 4c and protrudes in a direction orthogonal to the elastic ribs 4c, and a pair of guide ribs 4d having a triangular shape on one side surface are clip support protrusions 4b. The locking projections 4e are projected between the lower ends of the guide ribs 4d.

  The clip 5 is formed of a thin metal plate having elasticity, and as shown in FIG. 3, a pair of latches whose upper part is continuous by an arc-shaped continuous part 5 c and slightly narrower than the interval between the guide ribs 4 d. A leg portion 5b that is slightly narrower than the interval between the guide ribs 4d projecting from the clip support protrusion 4b is cut and raised downward at the center portion of each locking piece 5a. ing.

  Each leg portion 5b has a substantially inverted U-shaped cross section, and can be mounted at predetermined positions on both side surfaces of the clip support projection 4b by inserting the guide rib 4d while guiding the tip side from above the clip support projection 4b. When one of the leg portions 5b is attached to the clip supporting projection 4b, a locking claw 5d that is locked by a locking projection 4e that protrudes from the lower portion of the guide rib 4d is oblique to the one leg portion 5b. It is cut upward and formed.

  In addition, each locking piece 5a of the clip 5 is bent in a substantially square shape on the outer side, and the bent portion is locked from the inner side to the opening edge of the mounting hole 2a formed in the loose side rail 2. Each locking piece 5a has elasticity in the expanding direction around the connecting portion 5c.

  The lower end side of each locking piece 5a is further opened outward in a substantially C shape, and a second locking portion 5f is formed at the lower end of each locking piece 5a, and the interval between the second locking portions 5f Is larger than the width of the mounting hole 2a.

  The elastic ribs 4c projecting on both sides of the clip support protrusion 4b are formed with the first locking portion 5e of the clip 5 on the loose side rail 2 by bringing the tip portion into contact with the side surface of the compartment of the roof side rail 2. It is positioned so as to engage with the opening edge of the attached mounting hole 2a. When the airbag 6 is inflated, it is elastically deformed so as to be crushed along the side surface of the passenger compartment of the loose side rail 2. It has become.

  On the other hand, the airbag 6 has a shape that is inflated and deployed in a curtain shape between the occupant and the door when the vehicle collides with the side, and is formed by sewing a base fabric made of nylon fiber or the like into a bag shape. In addition, a belt-like attachment piece 6a is extended to the upper edge portion which becomes the upper side when expanded, by sewing a single or separate piece at the same interval as the locking means 4, and each attachment piece 6a. As shown in FIG. 3, a square hole-shaped mounting hole 6b, into which the clip mounting seat 4a can be fitted, is formed at the tip.

  A gas blowing port 6c is formed on one end side of the airbag 6, and an inflator 8 attached to, for example, the rear pillar 7 is connected to the gas blowing port 6c, and the airbag 6 is folded in the interior. The material 1 is accommodated in an airbag storage chamber 3 as shown in FIGS.

  The attachment piece 6a extended from the airbag 6 is pulled out to the locking means 4 side from the long hole 1f formed in the side wall 1d of the airbag storage chamber 3, and the attachment hole 6b is connected to the clip attachment seat 4a. It is mated.

  However, the airbag 6 only needs to be locked to the side wall 1d of the interior material 1, and the mounting hole 6b of the mounting piece 6a of the airbag 6 is fitted to the clip mounting seat 4a as in the present embodiment. It is not limited.

  Further, the side surface of the compartment of the airbag storage chamber 3 is covered with a cover member 9.

  The surface of the cover member 9 is covered with a skin 1b that covers the surface of the interior material 1, so that the presence of the airbag 6 cannot be visually recognized from the passenger compartment side. The cover member 9 and the skin 1b are made of an adhesive. The upper and lower back surfaces of the skin 1b and the upper and lower surfaces of the core material 1a are fixed by vibration welding, ultrasonic welding, an adhesive, or the like. The upper edge portion of the cover member 9 and the cover member 9 is engaged with a slit 1g formed in the core material 1a of the interior material 1, and the lower edge portion of the cover member 9 is formed below the side wall 1d. When the airbag 7 is inflated, it is detached from the side wall 1d.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 10 denotes an interior material (roof head lining) that covers the side surface of the passenger compartment of the roof panel, and 11 denotes a garnish strip that locks the lower end edge of the interior material 1 that covers the roof side rail 2 to the roof side rail 2. .

  Next, the operation of the curtain airbag device constructed as described above will be described with reference to FIGS.

  When the airbag 6 is stored in the airbag storage chamber 3 of the interior material 1 in the folded state and the assembly of the curtain airbag device is completed, the interior material 1 is attached to the side surface of the front pillar and the side surface of the roof side rail 2. When mounting, the front end side of the clip 5 is attached to the mounting hole 2a in a state where the plurality of locking means 4 provided inside the interior material 1 and the mounting hole 2a formed in the roof side rail 2 are aligned. Push into 2a.

  The width of the attachment hole 2a is previously formed smaller than the width between the first locking portions 5e of the clip 5, but when the clip 5 is pushed in, the locking piece 5a of the clip 5 is elastically deformed, and the first engagement Since the stop portion 5e is reduced in the width direction, the interior material 1 can be easily attached to the roof side rail 2.

  Further, by pressing the interior material 1 toward the roof side rail 2 until the end of the elastic rib 4c protruding from the inner surface of the side wall 1d of the interior material 1 abuts against the side surface of the roof side rail 2, the engagement of the clip 5 is increased. Since the 1st latching | locking part 5e formed in the stop piece 5a corresponds to the opening edge of the attachment hole 2a, while being able to latch the 1st latching | locking part 5e to the opening edge of the attachment hole 2a reliably from the inside, At this time, the second locking portion 5f of the locking piece 5a is located on the inner side of the roof side rail 2, that is, on the vehicle compartment side, as shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, when gas is ejected from the inflator 8 due to an impact when the vehicle collides sideways and the airbag 6 starts to inflate, the cover member 9 is pressed toward the passenger compartment side by the inflation pressure of the airbag 6 and the reaction is also reversed. As shown in FIG. 6, a compressive load in the direction of the arrow X acts on the side wall 1 d of the airbag storage chamber 3 by force.

  Since the side wall 1d is pressed in the direction of the arrow X by this compressive load, the second locking portion 5f of the clip 5 that has been locked in the mounting hole 2a of the roof side rail 2 by the first locking portion 5e up to now. As shown in FIG. 7, the elastic ribs 4c projecting from both sides of the clip mounting seat 4a are pushed into the roof side rail 2 by the compressive load. It is elastically deformed along the side of the passenger compartment.

  Thereafter, since the lower edge portion of the cover member 9 is removed from the step portion 1h of the core material 1a and the lower end portion of the skin 1b is detached from the tongue piece portion 11a of the garnish strip 11, the airbag 6 is inflated as shown in FIG. Is expanded downward. When the airbag 6 is inflated and deployed downward, an excessive tensile load that is several to tens of times the compressive load acts on the attachment piece 6a of the airbag 6 in the arrow Y direction as shown in FIG.

  However, at this time, the second locking portion 5f of the clip 5 has already been opened in a substantially C shape by the elasticity of the locking piece 5a and locked from the inner side to the opening edge of the mounting hole 2a of the roof side rail 2. The holding force with respect to the roof side rail 2 is increased by the second locking portion 5f of the clip 5, so that an excessive tensile load is carried by the second locking portion 5f, and from the mounting hole 2a of the roof side rail 2. Since the clip 5 does not come off, it is possible to prevent the interior material 1 from falling off the roof side rail 2 due to an excessive tensile load.

  Further, when removing the airbag 6 for repair or maintenance, the first locking portion 5e of the clip 5 is disengaged from the mounting hole 2a of the roof side rail 2 by pulling the interior material 1 strongly toward the passenger compartment. The desorption work of the interior material 1 can be performed efficiently in a short time.

  9 to 14 show a modification of the clip 5. In the modification shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, the locking piece 5a is cut and formed from substantially the center of the leg 5b of the clip 5. The locking piece 5a is provided with the first locking portion 5e and the second locking portion 5f in the same manner as in the above embodiment, and the distal end side of the leg portion 5b is bent outward in a substantially L shape, The tip of each bent portion 5h is configured to be locked in a concave groove 4g formed in the clip mounting seat 4a. According to this modification, the locking projection 4e of the clip support projection 4b and the leg portion 5b The locking claw 5d becomes unnecessary.

  The modification shown in FIGS. 12 to 14 also includes the same locking piece 5a and leg 5b as in the modification, but the bent part 5h formed at the tip of the leg 5b is attached to the clip mounting seat 4a. The engaging claw 5i protruding from the leg 5b is engaged with the clip supporting protrusion 4b without being engaged.

  Since all the modifications have the same operational effects as the above-described embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted.

  In the curtain airbag device of the present invention, the interior material attached to the roof side rail by the clip can be easily detached when removing the airbag for repair or maintenance, so that the repair and maintenance work can be efficiently performed in a short time. The second locking portion pushed into the roof side rail from the mounting hole by the expansion force generated when the airbag is inflated due to the side collision of the vehicle is larger than the first locking portion. Powered by the roof side rails. The clip will not come out of the roof side rail even if an excessive tensile force is applied to the locking means due to the subsequent pulling load on the vehicle interior side, increasing the attachment strength of the airbag device to the roof side rail. Therefore, it is suitable for a curtain airbag device adapted to protect an occupant by inflating and deploying between the door of the vehicle and the occupant. The present invention can be applied to all airbag devices equipped with airbags.

It is a front view of the state which attached the interior material equipped with the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention to the roof side rail. It is an expanded sectional view which follows the AA line of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the latching means used for the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is a side view of the latching means used for the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is an expanded sectional view which follows the BB line of FIG. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the modification of the latching means employ | adopted as the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows the modification of the latching means employ | adopted as the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the CC line of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the modification of the latching means employ | adopted as the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows the modification of the latching means employ | adopted as the curtain airbag apparatus which becomes embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the DD line | wire of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Interior material 2 Roof side rail 2a Mounting hole 3 Airbag storage chamber 4 Locking means 4c Elastic rib 5 Clip 5a Connecting part 5b Leg part 5c Locking claw 5e 1st locking part 5f 2nd locking part 6 Airbag 6a Mounting piece

Claims (3)

Curtain air provided with an interior material attached to the side surface of the roof side rail by a locking means having a clip, and an airbag stored in a folded state in an airbag storage chamber formed in the interior material A bag device,
The clip, the al side wall of the interior material are, the clip have a locking portion and a second engagement portion of the first locking portion of the extended by tip side and the clip seat side from the clip seat And
The first locking portion is detachably locked to the mounting hole of the roof side rail, and the second locking portion can be pushed into the roof side rail by receiving the inflation force of the airbag. A curtain airbag device that is made and has a larger locking force than the first locking portion. The clip is formed from a leg portion and an elastic locking piece provided integrally with the leg portion, and the locking piece is bent into a substantially square shape on both sides of the leg portion. 2. The curtain airbag device according to claim 1, wherein the second locking portion is formed by forming a locking portion and opening a front end portion of the locking piece in a substantially C shape. The curtain airbag device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an elastic rib is provided on an inner surface of the interior material so as to project the first locking portion at an opening edge of the mounting hole.

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