Patent ID: 11926277
Assignee: ZF PASSIVE SAFETY SYSTEMS US INC.
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 0:
1. A knee airbag comprising:
a cushion portion configured to be inflated and deployed from a stored condition into a vehicle footwell, and to extend from the footwell upward along an occupant facing surface of an instrument panel, the cushion portion comprising overlying panels interconnected along a perimeter connection to define an inflatable volume of the knee airbag, and interconnected within the perimeter connection along one or more interior connections that define inflatable chambers within the inflatable volume, wherein the interior connections and the chambers are configured to extend along a longitudinal dimension of the cushion portion, wherein the knee airbag is configured so that the longitudinal dimension of the cushion portion extends vertically in the vehicle when inflated; and
a tether connected to an exterior surface of the cushion portion at spaced locations, wherein the tether has a length that is shorter than the distance between the locations on the cushion portion to which the tether is connected, wherein the tether comprises a sheet of material having a width extending across the inflatable chambers, the tether being connected to the cushion portion along tether connections that extend widthwise across the tether, transverse to the lengths of the chambers;
wherein the tether is configured to become tensioned in response to inflation of the cushion portion and causing a bend to form in the cushion portion, the bend being transverse to the length of the chambers.