U.S. patent application number 09/815197 was filed with the patent office on 2001-11-08 for airbag system for motor vehicles.
Invention is credited to Oehm, Klaus.
Application Number | 20010038200 09/815197 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 7882107 |
Filed Date | 2001-11-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20010038200 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Oehm, Klaus |
November 8, 2001 |
Airbag system for motor vehicles
Abstract
Pressurized gas from a gas source for inflating one or more
vehicle airbags is routed along a path that includes at least a
portion of the air-conditioning ducts of the vehicle. In one
arrangement a pressurized gas hose is routed through the ducts. In
another arrangement the pressurized gas flows through a portion of
the air conditioner ducts that is isolated by valves.
Inventors: |
Oehm, Klaus; (Gifhorn,
DE) |
Correspondence
Address: |
BAKER & BOTTS
30 ROCKEFELLER PLAZA
NEW YORK
NY
10112
|
Family ID: |
7882107 |
Appl. No.: |
09/815197 |
Filed: |
March 22, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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09815197 |
Mar 22, 2001 |
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PCT/EP99/06398 |
Sep 1, 1999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
280/736 ;
280/732; 280/740 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60R 2021/2615 20130101;
B60H 1/00 20130101; B60R 2021/2612 20130101; B60R 21/26 20130101;
B60R 21/205 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
280/736 ;
280/740; 280/732 |
International
Class: |
B60R 021/26 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 24, 1998 |
DE |
198 43 828.1 |
Claims
I claim:
1. An airbag system for a motor vehicle having an air-conditioning
duct, wherein at least one airbag is connected with a central gas
source via a pressurized gas path for filling the airbag, wherein
at least a portion of the pressurized gas path extends via a
portion of said air-conditioning duct.
2. An airbag system as specified in claim 1 wherein said
pressurized gas path includes a pressurized gas duct and wherein
said pressurized gas duct extends through said portion of said
air-conditioning duct.
3. An airbag system as specified in claim 2 wherein said
pressurized gas duct comprises a hose.
4. An airbag system as specified in claim 1 wherein said
air-conditioning duct is formed as an integral dual channel duct
forming said pressurized gas duct and said air-conditioning
duct.
5. An airbag system as specified in claim 1 wherein said
pressurized gas path comprises said portion of said
air-conditioning duct.
6. An airbag system as specified in claim 5 further including at
least one valve for isolating said portion of said air-conditioning
duct from other portions of said air-conditioning duct.
7. An airbag system as specified in claim 6 wherein a control is
provided for activating said gas source and said at least one
valve.
8. An airbag system as specified in claim 7 wherein there is
provided a plurality of said valves, and wherein said control
individually operates said valves according to passenger occupancy
in said motor vehicle.
9. An airbag system as specified in claim 6 wherein said valve is
activated by gas pressure.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to an airbag system for motor
vehicles. To increase safety in motor vehicles, airbags are
arranged in, for example, the region of the dashboard and below the
side windows. While each airbag may be provided with a separate gas
source in the form of a gas generator, or a pyrotechnic device that
causes the airbag to unfold when an accident occurs, it is also
possible to provide a central gas source, which is connected with a
plurality of airbags via pressurized gas ducts. Thus, for example,
when an accident occurs the driver's airbag and the airbag of the
passenger sitting beside the driver may be inflated by a common gas
generator connected to both airbags via pressurized gas ducts. The
gas ducts required for this purpose may be run as pressure hoses
concealed below the paneling of the motor vehicle from the gas
source to the airbags, resulting in a substantial expenditure for
assembly and requiring a corresponding space for assembly of the
pressure hoses.
[0002] DE 4,225,709 A1 discloses that a gas generator for an airbag
system may be arranged in a section of a ventilating duct of an
air-conditioning device, whereby favorable tempering of the gas
generator is obtained. However, no improvement in the utilization
of space nor simplification of assembly with respect to the gas
path between a gas generator and airbags arranged at some distance
away is obtained.
[0003] It is an object of the invention to provide an improved
airbag system for motor vehicles.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] In accordance with the invention, the supply of pressurized
gas to the airbags of a motor vehicle, which are connected to a gas
source at some distance from the airbags, is effected at least
partially via air-conditioning ducts of the motor vehicle. For this
purpose, the pressurized gas path may be via pressure hoses in the
air-conditioning ducts. Alternately, the air-conditioning ducts
themselves may be designed as a portion of the pressurized path
with appropriate structural integrity. The use of the
air-conditioning ducts to accommodate a portion of the pressurized
gas path results in optimal utilization of space as well as
simplification of assembly.
[0005] If the air-conditioning ducts themselves form a part of the
pressurized gas path leading to the airbags, according to a
preferred embodiment of the invention it is provided that the
sections used as pressurized gas ducts be capable of being isolated
from other portions of the air-conditioning ducts connected to them
by at least one valve. In the event of an accident and deployment
of the airbags, the valves may be controlled so that the gas duct
from the gas source to the respective one or more airbags forms a
direct gas duct completely isolated from the air-conditioning
system. In this way, a part of the air-conditioning ducts can be
used to conduct pressurized gas from the gas source to the airbags,
while in otherwise normal driving operation this part of the
air-conditioning ducts is available for the use of the
air-conditioning system.
[0006] Control of the valves may be effected by a control which
detects the occurrence of an accident, and which also activates the
gas source. Thus, control of the valves requires only a suitable
signal connection to the signal output of the control already
present.
[0007] Alternately, the valves may be designed as pressure or flow
operated valves in order to accomplish the desired isolation of the
air-conditioning ducts that are not used as pressurized gas ducts
when an accident occurs. Reset of the valves to airconditioning
operation may be effected with a time delay, so that in the event
of an accident lasting for a longer period of time the connected
airbags can remain filled with gas for a longer period. A
longer-lasting accident exists, for example, in the case of
repeated rollover of the motor vehicle.
[0008] In another arrangement, the valves may be controlled so
that, depending upon seat occupancy, not all airbags are deployed
when an accident occurs. This avoids unnecessary deployment of
airbags in front of empty seats.
[0009] Conventional pressure hoses may be enclosed in the
air-conditioning ducts as pressurized gas ducts, or the
air-conditioning duct may be designed as a one-piece dual channel
part of synthetic material with an integral gas duct. Which of
these two variants is to be used in the region of the
air-conditioning ducts may be made dependent upon the respective
structural circumstances.
[0010] The invention is described in detail below by an example,
and its scope is pointed out in the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG. 1 is a simplified view of a dashboard with
air-conditioning ducts and an airbag system.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of an air-conditioning
system and an airbag system containing two airbags.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0013] In the simplified dashboard 1 represented in FIG. 1,
air-conditioning ducts 2, 3 run from an air-conditioning device 6
to air-discharge openings 4, 5. A gas source 7 is connected via a
pressurized gas duct 8 with an airbag 9 arranged in the dashboard
1. The pressurized gas duct 8 runs partly in the air-conditioning
duct 3, the gas duct 8 being a pressure hose that is enclosed in
the air-conditioning duct 3 in a section 10.
[0014] The gas duct 8 enclosed in the air-conditioning duct 3 may
be designed integrated in the air-conditioning duct 3. The
air-conditioning duct 3 may, for example, form a double-channel
duct as a one-piece part of synthetic material, one channel being
used as air-conditioning duct and the other channel as a
pressurized gas duct.
[0015] It should be understood that the term "air conditioner
ducts" is not limited to systems for cooling the vehicle by
refrigeration, but includes heating and ventilating systems as
well. In the arrangement of FIG. 1 the pressurized gas follows a
path and through pressure hose 8 which is routed through a portion
of air conditioner duct 10 through air conditioner duct 3.
[0016] In the airbag system shown in FIG. 2, air-conditioning duct
portions 11, 12 are also used as pressurized gas ducts for the
airbag system. The other air-conditioning duct portions 13, 14 and
the associated vent 24 and air-conditioning unit 6 may be isolated
by means of valves 15, 16 from the air-conditioning duct portions
11, 12 used as gas ducts. For this purpose, the valves 15, 16 are
connected with a control 17 which activates gas source 7 in the
event of an accident. When an accident occurs, gas source 7 fills
airbags 21, 22 with gas, via pressurized gas ducts 18, 19, 20 and
via the air-conditioning ducts 11, 12 used as gas ducts. When an
accident occurs, depending upon the respective seat occupancy,
valve 16 may be operated so that only one of the two airbags, such
as airbag 21, is filled with gas through the valve 23.
[0017] The valves 15, 16, 23 may be designed as shutoff valves, or
as switching valves. When an accident occurs, and only the airbag
21 is to be deployed, valve 23 can be switched by the control means
17 so that the air-conditioning duct 11 is connected directly with
the gas duct 19, while the air-conditioning duct 12 is isolated. A
direct connection may also be effected between the gas duct 18 and
the air-conditioning duct 11 using valve 15, while the
air-conditioning duct 13 connected with the air-conditioning device
6 is decoupled.
[0018] In normal driving operation, a direct connection between the
air-conditioning device 6 and the air-discharge opening 24 may be
effected by opening the valves 15, 23, 16. The valves 15, 23, 16
can decouple the gas ducts 18, 19, 20 from the air-conditioning
ducts 13, 11, 12, 14.
[0019] Should both airbags 21, 22 be deployed when an accident
occurs, the control 17 controls the valves 15, 23, 16 in such a way
that the air-conditioning ducts 13, 14 are decoupled from the gas
ducts, while the gas supply to the airbags 21, 22 is effected via
the gas ducts 18, 19, 20 and the air-conditioning ducts 11, 12
serving as gas ducts.
[0020] In an alternate arrangement valves 15, 23 and 16 may be
pressure operated, responsive to the pressurized gas from the gas
source 7.
[0021] While there have been described what are believed to be the
preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in
the art will recognize that other and further changes and
modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit
of the invention, and it is intended to claim all such changes and
modifications as fall within the true scope of the invention.
* * * * *