Patent ID: 7744115

Claim:
An airbag device comprising: a vehicle panel of a vehicle having an opening therein; a cover panel connected to the vehicle and sized to fit in the opening for extending in general alignment with the vehicle panel; a frangible portion of the cover panel; an airbag retainer assembly including an airbag for being deployed in a predetermined deployment direction toward the cover panel and breaking the frangible portion thereof during airbag inflation out through the vehicle panel opening; an inner reinforcement panel of the airbag retainer assembly connected to and extending along an underside of the cover panel for reinforcing the cover panel; a generally U-shaped hinge portion of the inner reinforcement panel for pivoting of the inner reinforcement panel thereabout during airbag inflation; a straight section of the hinge portion extending in the predetermined deployment direction, wherein the generally U-shaped hinge portion includes a pair of opposing leg portions and a lower, curved apex portion interconnecting the opposing leg portions, and the straight section comprises a pair of straight sections of the pair of opposing leg portions with the pair of straight sections extending parallel to each other and in the predetermined deployment direction; wherein the generally U-shaped hinge portion includes a slanted, straight section extending transversely to the predetermined deployment direction; wherein the inner reinforcement panel includes side portions on either side of the hinge portion extending along the underside of the cover panel, and the slanted, straight section is between one of the straight sections and one of the side portions of the inner reinforcement panel; and the airbag retainer assembly includes a depending side wall portion extending downwardly from the inner reinforcement panel with the hinge portion and one of the side portions of the inner reinforcement panel on one side of the side wall portion and the other side portion of the inner reinforcement panel on the other side of the side wall portion.