Patent ID: 8684404

Claim:
An apparatus for helping to protect an occupant of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising: an inflatable vehicle occupant protection device inflatable between a vehicle surface and the vehicle occupant; a vent for releasing inflation fluid from the protection device, the vent having an actuated condition and a non-actuated condition; and a tether having a first connection with the vent and a second connection with the protection device, tension on the tether actuating the vent, wherein the vent is configured to be initially in the non-actuated condition upon initial deployment of the protection device, with further deployment of the protection device to a predetermined degree causing the tether to place the vent in the actuated condition, and the tether and vent being configured such that a predetermined degree of occupant penetration into the protection device causes the tether to place the vent back in the non-actuated condition, wherein the vent comprises a vent opening with a flow area that can be adjusted to throttle inflation fluid flow through the vent, tension on the tether throttling the vent.