Hinge device for airbag door of vehicle

Abstract

A hinge device for an airbag door of a vehicle is provided. In particular embodiments, a fabric sheet is made by weaving warp yarns and weft yarns with a plurality of grid spaces and integrally formed on an inner surface of an airbag door. Grid spaces formed in opposite ends of the fabric sheet that are rotated when the airbag door is opened by deployment of an airbag are arranged in a state of being compressed so as to be extensible.

Claims

1. A hinge device for an airbag door of a vehicle, the hinge device comprising: a fabric sheet made by weaving warp yarns and weft yarns with a plurality of grid spaces and integrally formed on an inner surface of an airbag door, wherein grid spaces formed in opposite ends of the fabric sheet that are rotated when the airbag door is opened by deployment of an airbag are arranged in a state of being compressed so as to be extensible; wherein the grid spaces comprise first rhombus-shaped grid spaces arranged in a fixed state in a central region of the fabric sheet, and second rhombus-shaped grid spaces arranged in a state of being compressed so as to be extensible in opposite ends of the fabric sheet; and wherein a left-right diagonal line of each of the second grid spaces is perpendicular to a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed, and is longer than a left-right diagonal line of each of the first grid spaces, and an up-down diagonal line of the second grid spaces is parallel with a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed, and is shorter than an up-down diagonal line of the first grid spaces.

2. The hinge device of claim 1, wherein the fabric sheet is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door by an insert injection molding method.

3. The hinge device of claim 1, wherein each of the first grid spaces is formed in a form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging from 30 to 60 based on a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed.

4. The hinge device of claim 1, wherein each of the second grid spaces is formed in a form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging from 60 to 90 based on a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed.

5. The hinge device of claim 1, wherein the second grid spaces are formed such that, before the airbag is deployed, an up-down diagonal line of each of the second grid spaces is maintained to be shorter than an left-right diagonal line thereof, and after the airbag is deployed, the up-down diagonal line of the second grid spaces extends to be longer than the left-right diagonal line thereof.

6. A method of making a hinge device for an airbag door of a vehicle, the method comprising: forming a fabric sheet by weaving warp yarns and weft yarns with a plurality of grid spaces and integrally formed on an inner surface of an airbag door, wherein grid spaces formed in opposite ends of the fabric sheet that are rotated when the airbag door is opened by deployment of an airbag are arranged in a state of being compressed so as to be extensible; wherein the grid spaces comprise first rhombus-shaped grid spaces arranged in a fixed state in a central region of the fabric sheet, and second rhombus-shaped grid spaces arranged in a state of being compressed so as to be extensible in opposite ends of the fabric sheet; and wherein a left-right diagonal line of each of the second grid spaces is perpendicular to a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed, and is longer than a left-right diagonal line of each of the first grid spaces, and an up-down diagonal line of the second grid spaces is parallel with a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed, and is shorter than an up-down diagonal line of the first grid spaces.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the fabric sheet is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door by an insert injection molding method.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein each of the first grid spaces is formed in a form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging from 30 to 60 based on a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein each of the second grid spaces is formed in a form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging from 60 to 90 based on a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed.

10. The method of claim 6, wherein the second grid spaces are formed such that, before the airbag is deployed, an up-down diagonal line of each of the second grid spaces is maintained to be shorter than an left-right diagonal line thereof, and after the airbag is deployed, the up-down diagonal line of the second grid spaces extends to be longer than the left-right diagonal line thereof.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The above and other features of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof illustrated the accompanying drawings which are given hereinbelow by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is a rear view illustrating a hinge device for an airbag door of a vehicle according to the present invention;

(3) FIGS. 2 and 3 are sectional views illustrating the hinge device for the airbag door of the vehicle according to the present invention;

(4) FIG. 4 illustrates a fabric sheet according to the present invention, and is a partial enlarged view illustrating an example in which opposite ends of the fabric sheet are changed in shape when the airbag is deployed; and

(5) FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view comparing in size between a first grid space and a second grid space of the fabric sheet according to the present invention.

(6) It should be understood that the appended drawings are not necessarily to scale, presenting a somewhat simplified representation of various preferred features illustrative of the basic principles of the invention. The specific design features of the present invention as disclosed herein, including, for example, specific dimensions, orientations, locations, and shapes will be determined in part by the particular intended application and use environment.

(7) In the figures, reference numbers refer to the same or equivalent parts of the present invention throughout the several figures of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

(8) Hereinafter reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. While the invention will be described in conjunction with exemplary embodiments, it will be understood that present description is not intended to limit the invention to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention is intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various alternatives, modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

(9) Further, in the following detailed description, names of constituents, which are in the same relationship, are divided into the first, the second, etc., but the present invention is not necessarily limited to the order in the following description.

(10) Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(11) FIG. 1 is a rear view illustrating a hinge device for an airbag door of a vehicle according to the present invention, and shows a fabric sheet formed on an inner surface of the airbag door by an insert injection molding. FIG. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the hinge device for the airbag door of the vehicle according to the present invention, and shows the state of the airbag before it is deployed.

(12) In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes an instrument panel, and reference numeral 20 denotes an airbag door.

(13) The instrument panel 10 is a panel disposed ahead of a passenger seat. A globe compartment or the like is installed in a lower part of the instrument panel 10, and an airbag module 22 for a passenger seat is installed in an upper part of the instrument panel 10.

(14) The airbag module 22 is installed such that it is covered with the airbag door 20. A cutting line (not shown) having a line groove shape is formed in an inner or outer surface of the airbag door 20 such that the cutting line is cut when the airbag is deployed.

(15) According to the present invention, the fabric sheet 30 is made by weaving warp yarns and weft yarns such that a plurality grid spaces 32 is formed, and the woven fabric sheet 30 is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door 20. Each grid space 32 is formed in a rhombus shape.

(16) Preferably, each of the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30 is a portion on which the airbag door 20 is rotated, that is, a portion functioning as a hinge of the airbag door 20, when the airbag door 20 opens. The grid spaces 32 in the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30 are arranged in a state in which they are compressed so as to be extensible.

(17) In detail, the grid spaces 32 formed in the fabric sheet 30 include first rhombus-shaped grid spaces 32a which are distributed in a central region of the fabric sheet 30, and second rhombus-shaped grid spaces 32b which are arranged in the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30 in a state in which they are compressed so as to be extensible.

(18) In this regard, the words the second grid spaces 32b of the fabric sheet 30 are arranged in the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30 in a state in which they are compressed so as to be extensible mean that, as shown in FIG. 4, a left-right diagonal line b of each second grid space 32b that is perpendicular to a direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed is longer than a left-right diagonal line of each first grid space 32a, and an up-down diagonal line a of the second grid space 32b that is parallel with the direction in which the force is applied when the airbag is deployed is shorter than an up-down diagonal line of the first grid space 32a.

(19) Referring to FIG. 5, the first grid space 32a is formed in the form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging 30 to 60 based on the direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed. The second grid space 32b is formed in the form of a rhombus having a symmetry angle ranging 60 to 90 based on the direction in which force is applied when the airbag is deployed. As such, the second grid spaces 32b of the fabric sheet 30 can be arranged in the state in which they are compressed so as to be extensible compared to the first grid spaces 32a.

(20) When the fabric sheet 30 is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door 20 by an insert injection molding method, it is preferable that only the portion of the fabric sheet 30 in which the first grid spaces 32a may be formed is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door 20, and the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30, that is, the portions of the fabric sheet 30 in which the second grid spaces 32b are formed, may remain to be separated from the inner surface of the airbag door so that each of the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30 can function as a hinge.

(21) The operation flow of the hinge device of the airbag door according to the present invention will be described below.

(22) When a vehicle collision or the like occurs, the airbag module 22 is operated and the airbag is deployed. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, the airbag door 20 is torn along the cutting line and is opened in both directions.

(23) When the airbag door 20 opens, the opposite ends of the fabric sheet 30, that is, the portions of the fabric sheet 30 in which the second grid spaces 32b are formed, function as hinges of the airbag door 20.

(24) In more detail, as shown in FIG. 4, before the airbag is deployed, the up-down diagonal line a of each second grid space 32b is maintained to be shorter than the left-right diagonal line b thereof. After the airbag is deployed, the up-down diagonal line a of each second grid space 32b extends to be longer than the left-right diagonal line b thereof. Consequently, the portions of the fabric sheet 30 in which the second grid spaces 32b are formed can reliably function as the hinges of the airbag door.

(25) Because the portion of the fabric sheet 30 in which the first grid spaces 32a are formed is integrally formed on the inner surface of the airbag door 20 by injection molding, the deployment load of the airbag can be dispersed to the left and right and, simultaneously, the portions of the fabric sheet 30 in which the second grid spaces 32b are formed are extended by the force generated when the airbag is deployed. Therefore, the portions of the fabric sheet 30 in which the second grid spaces 32b are formed can reliably function as the hinges for rotating the airbag door.

(26) Furthermore, the fabric sheet 30 functions to tightly hold the inner surface of the airbag door 20, thus preventing fragments or the like from being generated from the airbag door when it is torn by the pressure of explosion of the airbag. In addition, even if fragments are generated, the fragments are caught by the fabric sheet 30 so that they can be prevented from being scattered to the outside.

(27) As described above, the present invention has the following effects.

(28) First, a fabric sheet is integrally formed on an inner surface of an airbag door, and a portion of the fabric sheet in which first grid spaces (distributed on a central region of the fabric sheet) are formed can disperse a deployment load of the airbag to the left and right. Portions of the fabric sheet in which second grid spaces (distributed on opposite ends of the fabric sheet) are formed are extended by force generated when the airbag is deployed, and thus are able to reliably function as hinges for rotation of the airbag door.

(29) Second, because the fabric sheet functions to tightly hold the inner surface of the airbag door, fragments or the like of the airbag door can be prevented from being scattered when the airbag is deployed.

(30) Third, warp yarns and weft yarns of the fabric sheet that is used as the hinge of the airbag door according to the present invention can reliably function as the hinge despite having tensile strength which is lowered by approximately to of that of the warp yarns that are used as the hinge for the conventional airbag door.

(31) Fourth, the fabric sheet that is used as the hinge of the airbag door according to the present invention employs warp yarns and weft yarns which have low tensile strength and are inexpensive. Therefore, compared to the conventional fabric sheet that employs expensive stop warp yarns for supporting a load, the production cost of the fabric sheet can be reduced.

(32) The invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments thereof. However, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.