Abstract:
An air bag system in a vehicle having opposing upper front interior corners. The system includes at least one air bag assembly located proximate one of the upper front interior corners. The air bag is in fluid communication with a gas expelling inflator and includes a frontal impact portion sized and shaped for deploying along a predetermined deployment path in front of a vehicle occupant. A biasing element of flat pliable character is held in place in hinging relation along an attached edge at an anchoring position inboard of the air bag. The biasing element is unattached at a free end which is extended away from the anchoring position upon deployment of the air bag cushion such that the biasing element is advanced in hinging fashion ahead of the frontal impact portion as the frontal impact portion is deployed in front of the vehicle occupant.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0001]    This invention relates to a vehicle air bag assembly, and more particularly to an air bag assembly including an inflatable cushion deployable from a forward upper corner portion of a vehicle interior in an inflation travel path in front of an occupant to be protected. A biasing element of fabric or other material of flexible character is deployed ahead of the inflatable cushion in leading relation along the path of deployment so as to establish an initial buffer or bridge of material between the inflatable cushion and the occupant or structural elements which may be encountered along the deployment path.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    It is well known in motor vehicles to provide an air bag assembly for protecting a vehicle occupant. It is also known to provide an air bag assembly including an air bag and an inflator for generating gas to inflate the air bag upon sensing predetermined vehicle conditions. It is also known to provide an air bag assembly for both front and side impact protection of the vehicle occupant.  
           [0003]    Air bags are typically provided in the vehicle steering wheel for the protection of the driver and in the vehicle instrument panel for protection of the vehicle passenger. The air bag assemblies have much different designs for the driver&#39;s side and the passenger&#39;s side such that two assemblies are separately designed for the vehicle. In addition, the vehicle may also include separate side air bags for use on opposite sides of the vehicle.  
           [0004]    It has recently been proposed to utilize air bag cushions deployable from a position adjacent the forward corner of the vehicle interior so as to provide forward protection as well as side protection if desired. One such assembly is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,073,960 to Viano et al. the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0005]    This invention offer advantages and alternatives over the prior art by providing an air bag assembly which includes a cushion portion to absorb frontal impact which is deployable from a position along an A-pillar of a vehicle generally at the forward corner portion of the vehicle interior and which further includes an efficient and compact biasing element of highly flexible character which travels ahead of the inflatable air bag cushion during deployment so as to promote travel of the air bag along the desired deployment path between the vehicle occupant and opposing portions of the vehicle interior during early stages of deployment. The biasing element provides a supporting bridge of material and assists in the insertion of the cushion between the occupant and the opposing portions of the vehicle interior such that the occupant may be moved into an appropriate position as the air bag cushion is deployed. In the event that the air bag cushion encounters an obstruction within the natural path of deployment, the biasing element provides a deflection surface to aid in moving the inflating air bag cushion around the obstruction and into a desirable operating position. The biasing element is of a sufficiently flexible and compact configuration that it may be stored within the same storage area as the air bag cushion at the A-pillar of the vehicle.  
           [0006]    These advantages are accomplished in a potentially preferred form of the present invention by providing an air bag assembly in a vehicle having an upper front interior comer and at least one seating position for a vehicle occupant. The air bag assembly includes an inflator for generating gas; an air bag cushion in fluid communication with the inflator such that the air bag cushion is deployable upon generation of gas by the inflator; and a substantially sheet-like biasing element deployable ahead of the air bag cushion upon deployment of the air bag cushion. The air bag cushion and biasing element are stored proximate the upper front comer of the vehicle and preferably along an A-pillar extending away from the upper front corner. The air bag cushion may have a front portion and a side portion. Upon deployment of the air bag cushion, at least a portion of the air bag cushion deploys downwardly and in front of the vehicle occupant. The biasing element is pushed inboard (i.e. towards the vehicle center) in front of the air bag cushion during deployment to form a buffer between the air bag cushion and structures disposed within the preferred path of deployment. The biasing element is preferably a sheet of textile material secured along one edge to the A-pillar of the vehicle at a position inboard of the folded air bag cushion prior to deployment. The free end of the biasing element may be tucked in stored relation at the outboard side of the folded air bag cushion such that upon deployment of the air bag cushion, the free end of the biasing element is forced outwardly away from the A-pillar and to move in a hinging whip-like fashion ahead of the air bag cushion until coming to rest generally behind the inflated air bag cushion once deployment is completed. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]    The accompanying drawings which are incorporated in and which constitute a part of this specification illustrate a potentially preferred embodiment of the present invention and, together with the general description of the invention provided above and the detailed description set forth below, serve to explain the principles of the invention wherein:  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1 is a side view of a vehicle interior partially broken away and including a forward corner mounted air bag assembly in an undeployed state;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2 is view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the air bag assembly in the deployed condition revealing the inflated air bag cushion;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 3 illustrates a representative storage arrangement for an air bag cushion and cooperating biasing element on the driver side of a vehicle;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 4 is a top view of the vehicle illustrating an intermediate stage of deployment of an air bag and associated biasing element according to the present invention on both the driver and passenger sides of the vehicle; and  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 5 is a top view similiar to FIG. 4, illustrating the air bags and associated biasing elements in a substantially fully deployed state.  
     
    
       [0013]    While the invention has been illustrated and generally described above and will hereinafter be described in connection with certain potentially preferred embodiments, practices and procedures, it is to be understood that in no event is the invention to be limited to such embodiments, practices and procedures. On the contrary, it is intended that the present invention shall extend to any alternative or modification as may embrace the broad principles of this invention within the true spirit and scope thereof.  
       DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0014]    Referring to FIG. 1, it is seen that a vehicle  10  includes a vehicle interior  12  having front doors  14  positioned between front side door pillars  16  (commonly referred to as A-pillars) and rear side door pillars  17  (commonly referred to a B-pillars). Moveable windows  18  are mounted on the doors  14 . The vehicle  10  further includes side roof rails  19  extending generally between the A-pillars  16  and the B-pillars  17 . Generally located at the intersection of the side roof rails  19  and the A-pillars  16 , the vehicle  10  includes opposite front upper interior corners  28 . It will be appreciated that the term upper interior corners  28  applies to any location in the area around the intersection of the A-pillars  16  and the roof rails  19  including locations along the A-pillars  16  below the roof rails  19 .  
         [0015]    As shown, the vehicle  10  also preferably includes a steering wheel  20  and an instrument panel  22  disposed generally in front of at least one vehicle occupant  24  supported by a vehicle seat  26 . As will be appreciated, while the view provided is of the driver&#39;s side of the vehicle  10 , the elements of the vehicle (with the exception of the steering wheel  20 ) are generally reproduced in a mirror-image fashion on the passenger side of the vehicle  10 .  
         [0016]    Referring to FIGS.  1 - 5 , air bag assemblies  40  according to the present invention are preferably mounted to the vehicle  10  proximate the upper front interior corners  28 . In this regard it is contemplated that the mounting position may be directly at the front upper interior corners  28  formed at the intersections of the A-pillars  16  to the roof rails  19  on either side of the vehicle  10  or along the A-pillars  16  at a position below the roof rails  19  as dictated by the vehicle  10  geometry. The air bag assemblies  40  each preferably include an inflator  42 , an air bag  44  and a pliable sheet-like biasing element  45  (FIGS.  3 - 5 ). The inflators  42  may preferably be directly attached to the air bags  44  such as by wrapping the air bag  44  around the mounted inflator  42 .  
         [0017]    Prior to deployment, the inflators  42  and air bags  44  as well as the associated biasing element  45  are preferably hidden from view beneath a plastic interior trim piece covering the A-pillar  16  and the roof rail  19 . However, it will be appreciated that the components of the air bag assembly  40  may likewise be contained within a separate frangible housing element of material such as cloth, plastic, or the like that is either mounted atop or beneath the vehicle trim. It will further be appreciated that the air bag assembly  40  could also be stored completely or partially beneath headlining material located in the roof of the vehicle  10  or anywhere generally within the front upper interior corners  28  or along the A-pillars  16 . It is likewise to be appreciated that the inflators  42  need not be mounted at the same location as the air bags  44  and biasing element  45  but rather may be located at isolated locations such as within the instrument panel  22 . In such a configuration fluid communication may be established and maintained between the inflators  42  and the air bags  44  by means of a suitable gas piping structure formed of material such as fabric, plastic or the like. Such an assembly is believed to be illustrated and described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/545,880 bearing a filing date of Apr. 7, 2000 the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0018]    The inflators  42  may be of any conventional construction for the discharge of gas upon the sensing of certain predetermined vehicle conditions. The inflators  42  preferably include a plurality of ports  43  through which the inflator gas is discharged to inflate the air bags  44 . By way of example only, and not limitation, one inflator type and mounting arrangement as may be utilized is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,486 to Spencer et al. the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0019]    As best seen through simultaneous reference to FIGS. 2, 4 and  5 , the air bags  44  are preferably made of a fabric material such as coated or uncoated rip-stop nylon or polyester suitable for rapid inflation. The air bags  44  each include an inboard contact face  46  (FIG. 5) located adjacent the vehicle occupants  24  following deployment, and an outboard contact face  47  (FIG. 2) facing generally away from the vehicle occupants  24  following deployment. According to the illustrated embodiment, each of the air bags  44  includes a frontal impact portion  48  for deployed alignment in front of the vehicle occupants  24 . As illustrated, the air bags  44  may also include side portions  50  adapted for alignment with the upper side of the vehicle occupants  24  generally at the location between the doors  14  and the windows  18  of the vehicle  10  and the head and upper torso portions of the occupants  24 . However, it is also contemplated that the side portions  50  may be eliminated if desired such that the air bags  44  include only the frontal impact portion  48 .  
         [0020]    It will be appreciated that advantageously, the air bag assemblies  40  located on the driver and passenger sides of the vehicle  10  are preferably substantially mirror images of each other and can use the same or very similar components and design. Thus, common parts and testing can be used for both the driver and passenger air bag assemblies  40 . Also advantageously, common body designs can be used for the front upper interior comers  28  at the A-pillar  16  and roof rail  19  on opposite sides of the vehicle  10  to eliminate the need for different manufacturing operations of these large body components. However, it will likewise be appreciated that there may exist some variations, such as to the shape of the air bag  44  and location of attachment along the A-pillar  16  to account for variations in vehicle geometry from driver to passenger side. Another advantage is that since the air bag assemblies  40  are stored in the A-pillar  16  and roof rail  19  areas, extensive styling freedom is enabled for the steering wheel  20  and the instrument panel  22 . In addition, the vehicle interior  12  may be able to provide more occupant space, especially on the passenger side of the vehicle  10 .  
         [0021]    As best illustrated through simultaneous reference to FIGS.  3 - 5 , according to the present invention the air bag  44  is preferably stored in a substantially rolled or folded condition in underlying relation to a sheet-like biasing element  45 . As illustrated, portions of the biasing element  45  may be stored in a tucked relation on either side of the folded air bag  44 . The biasing element  45  is attached to the vehicle  10  along an attached edge  54  at an inboard location while the remainder of the biasing element including an opposing free edge  56  is freely deployable away from the position of storage upon deployment of the underlying air bag  44 . By way of example only and not limitation, according to one embodiment the biasing element is formed of a single piece of substantially flat fabric of substantially rectangular configuration having a length dimension of about 27 inches and a height dimension of about 20 inches. The side forming the attached edge  54  of the biasing element preferably corresponds to one of the shorter sides and is preferably doubled over and seamed together to provide enhanced strength for attachment to the vehicle  10  at an inboard position along the A-pillar  16 .  
         [0022]    Upon the vehicle  10  experiencing certain predetermined conditions, a vehicle sensor (not shown) detects conditions for air bag deployment. Various types of sensors may be used, such as Omni-directional or tri-axial sensors which reference algorithms to determine where and when to direct the inflation gas from the inflator  42 . As the inflator  42  expels inflation gas into the air bag  44 , the air bag  44  is deployed outwardly away from its position of storage. Upon the occurrence of such deployment, the biasing element  45  is likewise forced away from its folded storage position atop the air bag  44 .  
         [0023]    Due to the fact that the free edge  56  is substantially unrestrained, the biasing element  45  moves ahead of the expanding air bag  44  in a generally leading manner along a predefined deployment path towards the center of the vehicle  10  so as to provide a buffering barrier between the air bag  44  and elements which the air bag  44  may encounter along the path of deployment. By way of example only, in the event that the vehicle occupant  24  is seated in exceptionally close proximity to the steering wheel  20  or instrument panel  22 , the presence of the biasing element  45  between the vehicle occupant  24  and the air bag  44  during the early stages of deployment provides the air bag  44  with a relatively uniform surface of substantial area with which to interact while achieving the desired position of final deployment. The biasing element  45  thus acts as a relatively uniform bridging support for the occupant  24  and a deflection surface to aid in the proper positioning of the air bag  44 .  
         [0024]    As previously indicated, the biasing element  45  is preferably of a substantially flat configuration. The biasing element  45  thus will preferably include an air bag contact surface  60  for interaction with the air bag  44  and an external element contact surface  62  for contacting elements along the path of deployment. It is contemplated that the biasing element  45  is most preferably formed of a woven, knitted or non-woven textile material of similar nature to the material forming the air bag  44 . A textile structure of woven construction formed from multi-filament yarns having a yarn linear density of about 210 denier to about 840 denier and a filament linear density of not greater than about 6 denier per filament may be preferred. Woven textile structures formed from multi-filament yarns with a linear density of about 630 denier per yam and a filament linear density of about 3 to 6 denier per filament may be particularly preferred. Nylon textile fabrics may be particularly preferred but it is likewise contemplated that any number of other materials and constructions may also be used including woven, knitted or non-woven structures formed from other materials such as polyester or other fibers as well as non-textile structures.  
         [0025]    According to one potential embodiment of the present invention, the biasing element is formed of fabric with no coating or other surface treatment. However, it is also contemplated that in some instances that the air bag contact surface  60  and/or the external element contact surface  62  may be provided with some type of surface treatment if desired.  
         [0026]    According to one potential embodiment of the present invention, it is contemplated that the air bag contact surface  60  of the biasing element  45  may be treated in such a manner as to reduce the coefficient of friction between the air bag contact surface  60  and the air bag  44  during deployment. In order to provide such reduced friction between the air bag  44  and the air bag contact surface  60 , it is contemplated that the air bag contact surface  60  may be at least partially coated with a friction reducing composition. By way of example only, such friction reducing materials may include silicone, TEFLON®, or other materials as may be compatible with the surface character of the air bag  44 . It is also contemplated that the biasing element may be subject to surface treatment methods such as hot calendering and the like as may be used to provide a smooth, low friction air bag contact surface  60  in an uncoated state if desired.  
         [0027]    According to another potential embodiment, it is contemplated that the external element contact surface  62  may be of a relatively high friction character so as to further enhance the ability of the external element contact surface  62  to substantially conform to the contour of an out of position occupant or other obstruction as may be encountered as the air bag  44  slides over the air bag contact surface  62 . In the event that the biasing element  45  is to be provided with an external element contact surface  62  exhibiting increased friction, it is contemplated that the desired frictional character of the external element contact surface  62  may be attained by applying a coating of a tacky material such as neoprene rubber or the like across at least a portion of the external element contact surface  62  to increase the friction thereof It is further contemplated that such friction enhancing coatings across the external element contact surface  62  may be used in conjunction with friction reducing surface treatments across the air bag contact surface  60  so as to provide cumulative beneficial results.  
         [0028]    As will be appreciated, the utilization of the air bag assemblies  40  incorporating the biasing elements  45  provides a practical and cost effective mechanism for promoting the efficiency of the air bags  44  in some applications. While the present invention has been illustrated and described in relation to certain potentially preferred embodiments, constructions and procedures, it is to be understood that such embodiments, constructions and procedures are illustrative only and that the present invention is in no event to be limited thereto. Rather, it is contemplated that modifications and variations embodying the principles of the present invention will no doubt occur to those of skill in the art to which this invention pertains. It is therefore contemplated and intended that the present invention shall extend to all such modifications and variations as may incorporate the broader aspects of the present invention within the full spirit and scope of the claims appended hereto and all equivalents.