An airbag device is to be mounted on a vehicle and includes an outer airbag, an inner airbag and a friction generating member. The outer airbag is made of a base cloth and configured to expand and deploy outward of the vehicle. The inner airbag is made of a base cloth and configured to expand and deploy in the outer airbag. The friction generating member is provided on at least one of an inner surface of the outer airbag and an outer surface of the inner airbag. When the inner surface of the deployed outer airbag contacts the outer surface of the deployed inner airbag, the friction generating member generates a frictional force that is greater than a frictional force that is generated when the base cloths of the outer airbag and the inner airbag overlap one another.

An airbag device is to be mounted on a vehicle and includes an outer airbag, an inner airbag and a friction generating member. The outer airbag is made of a base cloth and configured to expand and deploy outward of the vehicle. The inner airbag is made of a base cloth and configured to expand and deploy in the outer airbag. The friction generating member is provided on at least one of an inner surface of the outer airbag and an outer surface of the inner airbag. When the inner surface of the deployed outer airbag contacts the outer surface of the deployed inner airbag, the friction generating member generates a frictional force that is greater than a frictional force that is generated when the base cloths of the outer airbag and the inner airbag overlap one another.

A plurality of airbags 14 are arranged, in a deflated state, at mutually different heights behind respective panels of a front face part of a vehicle, and are capable of being deployed frontward from the front face part of the vehicle. A head position deduction unit 19 of an ECU 15 deduces the height position of the head of a pedestrian from information provided by a vehicle forward camera 12 and a millimeter-wave radar 13. A collision detection unit 18 of the ECU 15 computes, from information provided by the millimeter-wave radar 13 and a vehicle speed sensor 11, a time-to-collision TTC with respect to the pedestrian, and, after elapse of the time-to-collision TTC, detects a collision between the vehicle and the pedestrian. When a collision between the vehicle and the pedestrian is detected by the collision detection unit 18, an airbag control unit 20 of the ECU 15 deploys, from among the plurality of airbags 14, an airbag 14 that can be deployed at the pedestrian's head height position deduced by the head position deduction unit 19.

A plurality of airbags 14 are arranged, in a deflated state, at mutually different heights behind respective panels of a front face part of a vehicle, and are capable of being deployed frontward from the front face part of the vehicle. A head position deduction unit 19 of an ECU 15 deduces the height position of the head of a pedestrian from information provided by a vehicle forward camera 12 and a millimeter-wave radar 13. A collision detection unit 18 of the ECU 15 computes, from information provided by the millimeter-wave radar 13 and a vehicle speed sensor 11, a time-to-collision TTC with respect to the pedestrian, and, after elapse of the time-to-collision TTC, detects a collision between the vehicle and the pedestrian. When a collision between the vehicle and the pedestrian is detected by the collision detection unit 18, an airbag control unit 20 of the ECU 15 deploys, from among the plurality of airbags 14, an airbag 14 that can be deployed at the pedestrian's head height position deduced by the head position deduction unit 19.

An airbag device for pedestrian protection includes means for shrinking and tying an airbag after deployment toward the storage. The airbag device includes a protecting sheet that is folded together with the airbag and stored in the storage, and a wrapping sheet that wraps the airbag as folded. The protecting sheet includes a main body and a plurality of straps disposed in a periphery of the main body. The wrapping sheet includes a rupturable portion that is configured to rupture and split the wrapping sheet into a front portion and a rear portion at airbag deployment, and a plurality of through holes each for receiving the straps in a vicinity of the rupturable portion in the front portion. The deployed airbag is shrank and tied toward the storage by passing the straps through the through holes and tying them so the straps do not come off of the through holes.

An airbag device for pedestrian protection includes means for shrinking and tying an airbag after deployment toward the storage. The airbag device includes a protecting sheet that is folded together with the airbag and stored in the storage, and a wrapping sheet that wraps the airbag as folded. The protecting sheet includes a main body and a plurality of straps disposed in a periphery of the main body. The wrapping sheet includes a rupturable portion that is configured to rupture and split the wrapping sheet into a front portion and a rear portion at airbag deployment, and a plurality of through holes each for receiving the straps in a vicinity of the rupturable portion in the front portion. The deployed airbag is shrank and tied toward the storage by passing the straps through the through holes and tying them so the straps do not come off of the through holes.

An assembly includes a rocker elongated along a vehicle longitudinal axis. A first slider is supported by the rocker. A second slider is supported by the rocker and is spaced from the first slider along the longitudinal axis. A first actuator is configured to slide the first slider relative to the rocker along a lateral axis. A second actuator is configured to slide the second slider relative to the rocker along the lateral axis. A cable extends from the first slider to the second slider.

According to one aspect, an overall airbag system of an autonomous vehicle uses a combination of sensors to deploy one or more external airbags in advance of a collision or as a collision occurs, for the purpose of protecting vulnerable persons. By using sensor data, combined with perception and prediction algorithms, an autonomous driving system may deploy a substantially optimal combination of external airbags for a given the size of a vulnerable person, vehicle speed, and/or collision timing. In addition to cushioning impact during a collision, the deployment of multiple external airbags may also control kinematics of vulnerable persons, as for example by addressing brain injuries in pedestrians due to rotational kinematics.

According to one aspect, an overall airbag system of an autonomous vehicle uses a combination of sensors to deploy one or more external airbags in advance of a collision or as a collision occurs, for the purpose of protecting vulnerable persons. By using sensor data, combined with perception and prediction algorithms, an autonomous driving system may deploy a substantially optimal combination of external airbags for a given the size of a vulnerable person, vehicle speed, and/or collision timing. In addition to cushioning impact during a collision, the deployment of multiple external airbags may also control kinematics of vulnerable persons, as for example by addressing brain injuries in pedestrians due to rotational kinematics.

Disclosed is a pedestrian collision determination system including a collision detection sensor and a control unit, the collision detection sensor including a conductive pattern disposed on a front surface of a shock absorber of a vehicle bumper to form an electromagnetic field by an application of alternating current power and a conductive material disposed at a position facing the conductive pattern on an inner surface of a bumper skin of the vehicle bumper, and the control unit determining an occurrence or non-occurrence of a collision of a pedestrian based on a change of a current flowing in the conductive pattern.