Patent ID: 7384065

Claim:
A knee protection airbag device arranged in front of an occupant knee area, the airbag device comprising an airbag folded and housed in undeployed condition, and upon inflow of inflation gas, the airbag protrudes rearward from a deployment opening of the housing to deploy upward and be located in front of the occupant knee area between a vehicle body and the occupant knee area, wherein the airbag has a generally rectangular plate shape when it is completely expanded and inflated, and wherein a transverse width of the airbag, when the airbag is completely inflated, is greater than a transverse width of the housing, such that the airbag covers the occupant knee area, the airbag comprising an occupant side wall disposed toward the knee area and a vehicular body side wall disposed toward the vehicular body, respectively upon deployment, a lower side of the airbag, while the airbag is expanded, or developed, with the occupant side wall and the vehicular body side wall overlaid on each other, constitutes an upstream part of an inflation gas channel upon deployment of the airbag, in a folding process, from a flattened state in which the occupant side wall and the vehicular body side wall are overlaid on each other, the airbag firstly is folded to bring an upper end of the airbag close to a lower end of the airbag, which forms a folded portion, and then the airbag is folded to reduce the width of the airbag, and the airbag is housed as thus folded, wherein, when reducing the transverse width of the airbag, left and right ends of the folded portion of the airbag, which were folded to bring the upper end close to the lower end, are folded downward and toward a lateral center of the folded portion and on the occupant side wall.