Knee protection airbag device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11912224-B2
Application number	US-202318308052-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 27, 2023
Priority date	May 12, 2022
Publication date	Feb 27, 2024
Grant date	Feb 27, 2024

Abstract

A knee protection airbag device includes an airbag, an inflator, an airbag cover, and an attachment base which holds those and is to be attached to a vehicle body member. The attachment base includes a holding seat which is disposed in front of a body portion of the inflator and a folded portion of the airbag, and holds the body portion and the airbag attached by a fastening bolt of the inflator, and attachment seats which are arranged on left and right sides of the holding seat and are attached to the vehicle body member. The airbag cover covers a vicinity of the airbag folded and the body portion of the inflator on a rear side of the attachment base, is attached to the attachment base due to the fastening bolt being fastened, and provides a projection opening on a bottom side of the airbag cover.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A knee protection airbag device comprising:
an airbag for knee protection, which is to be folded and accommodated;
an inflator that supplies inflation gas to the airbag;
an airbag cover that covers the airbag which is folded and accommodated, in which the airbag cover is pushed by the airbag being inflated to form a projection opening through which the airbag projects; and
an attachment base that holds the airbag, the inflator, and the airbag cover, and is to be attached to a vehicle body member,
wherein the knee protection airbag device is mounted on a front lower side of a seat, and the airbag being inflated projects downward from a mounted portion of the airbag folded and subsequently deploys rearward and upward,
the inflator includes a body portion accommodated in the airbag, and a fastening bolt projecting outside the airbag from the body portion and fastened to the attachment base,
the airbag includes:
a base portion that accommodates the body portion of the inflator and is attached to the attachment base together with the body portion of the inflator due to the fastening bolt being fastened;
a reversing portion that extends downward from the base portion and reverses upward during the inflation of the airbag; and
an inflation body portion that is inflated to expand upward from the reversing portion,

the airbag is accommodated at the mounted portion to dispose a folded portion, which is folded such that an upper edge of the inflation body portion approaches the base portion, below the body portion of the inflator,
the attachment base includes:
a holding seat that is disposed in front of the body portion of the inflator and the folded portion of the airbag when mounted on a vehicle, and holds the body portion and the airbag attached by the fastening bolt being fastened; and
attachment seats that are arranged on left and right sides of the holding seat and are attached to the vehicle body member using attachment bolts of which axial directions are parallel to a front-rear direction,

the attachment base is configured to have a substantially flat plate shape extending in a left-right direction, and
the airbag cover is configured to cover a vicinity of the airbag folded and the body portion of the inflator on a rear side of the attachment base, be attached to the attachment base due to the fastening bolt passing through the airbag cover, and provide the projection opening on a bottom side.

2. The knee protection airbag device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the attachment base is configured such that an arrangement position of the fastening bolt on the holding seat and arrangement positions of the attachment bolts on the attachment seat correspond to each other in height over the left-right direction.

3. The knee protection airbag device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the attachment base is made of a metal plate, and is configured to be of a substantially flat plate-shape and have reinforcing ribs which project from upper and lower edges.

4. The knee protection airbag device according to claim 2 ,
wherein the attachment base is made of a metal plate, and is configured to be of a substantially flat plate-shape and have reinforcing ribs which project from upper and lower edges.

Assignees

• Toyoda Gosei Kk

Inventors

• Ono Minoru

Classifications

• B60R21/206 Primary

  in the lower part of dashboards, e.g. for protecting the knees · CPC title

• B60R21/217

  Inflation fluid source retainers, e.g. reaction canisters; Connection of bags, covers, diffusers or inflation fluid sources therewith or together · CPC title

• B60R21/2165 Primary

  characterised by a tear line for defining a deployment opening · CPC title

• B60R21/237

  characterised by the way they are folded · CPC title

• B60R2021/23169

  specially adapted for knee protection · CPC title