An apparatus, system, and method for helping to protect occupants of a vehicle seat in the event of a collision. The vehicle seat includes a base with a bottom cushion, a backrest with a back cushion, and a side rest having a side cushion that extends upward from the bottom cushion and forward from the back cushion. The apparatus comprises a deployable restraint stored in a pre-deployment condition in the side rest. The deployable restraint comprising an airbag and an inflator for inflating and deploying the airbag. When inflated to a deployed condition the restrain cushions the occupant against impacts with the side rest.

An airbag apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention is configured such that the airbag is housed as a compressed body which is compressed to collapse. The second aspect of the present invention is a method for manufacturing an airbag apparatus, wherein the method includes the step of forming a compressed body of an airbag by compressing the airbag so as to collapse the airbag without rolling or folding the airbag.

An occupant protection device for protecting an occupant sitting in a seat includes an inflator, a holding member that is adapted to be disposed in front of a pelvic region of the occupant as sitting in the seat, and an airbag that is formed of a sheet material having flexibility and stored in and held by the holding member in a folded form. The airbag is configured to be inflated with an inflation gas fed by the inflator. The airbag includes a shoulder restraining portion that is configured to be deployed in front of shoulders of the occupant, and a supporting inflatable portion that is disposed in a lower end portion of the airbag as deployed for supporting the shoulder restraining portion. The supporting inflatable portion as deployed includes, in the underside, a supported surface that is adapted to be supported by thighs of the occupant.

A driver seat airbag device that includes an occupant side panel of a cushion having a larger surface area than that of a steering wheel side panel and a side surface panel that forms the side surface of the cushion; the occupant side panel includes a depressed section recessed toward the steering wheel side and a bulged section in a ring shape positioned surrounding the depressed section; where based on prescribed means pulling toward the steering wheel side, a center area closest to the steering wheel and a first inclined area sloped in a flared shaped from the center area toward the occupant side are formed in the depressed section and a second inclined area continuous with the first inclined area is formed in the bulged section; and the center area and first and second inclined areas restrain the head of the occupant.

A side airbag apparatus includes an inflator, an airbag having a main inflation portion and an auxiliary inflation portion, and a restriction portion. The main inflation portion is configured to be inflated by inflation gas supplied from the inflator and deployed forward in a space between a side wail of the vehicle and an occupant seated in a normal posture in a vehicle seat. The auxiliary inflation portion is configured to be inflated in a seat back by the inflation gas from the inflator, thereby pushing the occupant toward an inner side of the vehicle. The restriction portion restricts the auxiliary inflation portion from being inflated toward a gap that is between the rear end section in the outer side portion of the seat back and the rear end section in the middle portion of the seat back.

In the side airbag device, in an inflation and deployment state of the side airbag, a tension cloth extendingly disposed across between a front-rear partition and a rear end of the rear bag section is stretched, thereby restricting inflation in the vehicle front-rear direction of the rear bag section. An inflating width in a vehicle width direction of the rear bag section can be increased without significantly changing a position in the vehicle front-rear direction of the front-rear partition. In a flat developed state of the side airbag, the tension cloth is extendingly disposed across between the front-rear partition so folded into two as to protrude toward the rear bag section, and the rear end of the rear bag section. Accordingly, dimensions of each component can be so defined as to cause no redundancy in the rear bag section in the flat developed state, thus compactly folding the side airbag.

The present disclosure provides a vehicle airbag device including: an airbag that inflates and deploys due to supply of gas, that has a main body and a projection that projects in a vehicle rearward direction, and that has a gap portion, between the main body and the projection, which opens in the vehicle rearward direction; and a coupling portion that couples together a first attachment portion set at the airbag at a front end portion side of the gap portion and a second attachment portion set at a side portion of the projection, and which, when inflation and deployment of the airbag, stretches between the first attachment portion and the second attachment portion, which is positioned further in the vehicle rearward direction than the first attachment portion.

Airbag assemblies are disclosed that can reduce rotational velocity of an occupant's head during a collision event and thereby mitigate traumatic brain injury/head injury to an occupant. An airbag includes a pair of lobes or protrusions to deploy and extend from the rear face of the airbag on either side of the occupant's head to limit rotation of the head. A pair of vertical tethers within an interior of the airbag configure the lobes and contour the rear face to form one or more low fabric tension zones or bubbles. The lobes maintain high fabric tension, similar to a pressurization of a main inflatable chamber of the airbag.

The airbag device includes an airbag including a base fabric and an occupant protection fabric whose outer peripheries are joined together. The occupant protection fabric is positioned on the vehicle rear side of the base fabric and configured to restrain an occupant, and includes: at least one protruding portion that protrudes to the vehicle rear side; a flat portion that is continuously formed from the at least one protruding portion and is designed to come into contact with the occupant; and a tether that is disposed between the base fabric and the at least one protruding portion in the airbag, extending from the flat portion to the joint between the occupant protection fabric and the base fabric. The tether is joined at its end on the joint side with a base edge of the at least one protruding portion and the outer periphery of the base fabric.

Airbag cushion assemblies for anchoring an airbag cushion in a desired position during deployment. Some embodiments may be configured for use in connection with eccentric steering wheels, such as steering wheels lacking an upper rim portion. Some embodiments may comprise an airbag housing coupled with the steering wheel, an airbag cushion positioned in the airbag housing, and means for anchoring a portion of the airbag cushion to assist in preventing the airbag cushion from being pushed in a direction opposite to the missing steering wheel structural element relative to the steering wheel during deployment of the airbag cushion.