IP Library Granted Patent US 11,117,541
Granted Patent B2
US 11,117,541 · App. 15/863,629 · Granted Sep 14, 2021

Airbag arrangement and method for manufacturing the same

Inventors: Siegfried Lesnik (Toenisvorst, DE); Michael Loch (Freising, DE)
Assignee: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
B60R21/215B29C45/14786B60R21/235B29C45/0081B29C2045/14901B29L2031/3038B60R2021/161B60R2021/21537B60R2021/23509B60R2021/23523B60R2021/23557
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,117,541
App. No.
15/863,629
Granted
Sep 14, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

An airbag arrangement comprising a flap, which closes a passage opening for an airbag, a hinge section along a side of the flap, an chute wall, which is connected to the flap via the hinge section; and a material web, which is partially arranged in the flap and partially in the chute wall, and transverses the hinge section, wherein the material web is molded into the chute wall and is anchored in the material of the chute wall.

Claims (36)

1. An airbag arrangement comprising:

a flap component, which closes a passage opening for an airbag;

a hinge section along one side of the flap component;

a chute component, which is connected to the flap component via the hinge section; and

a material web, which is partially arranged in the flap component and partially in the chute component, and transverses the hinge section;

wherein the material web is molded into the chute component and is anchored in material of the chute component;

wherein the chute component forms at least one wall of an airbag chute, the wall having a length extending away from the flap component and terminating in a distal end;

wherein the material web includes a first part that forms a surface of said flap component and a second part that is arranged on an inner side of the wall from the hinge section for a first distance of the length of the wall, and the material web includes a third part arranged on an outer side of the wall for a second distance of the length of the wall, and wherein the material web penetrates the wall between the material web arranged on the inner side of the wall and the material web arranged on the outer side of the wall;

wherein the material web has a first side, a second side opposite the first side, and a thickness defined between the first side and the second side;

wherein the first side of the material web is arranged on the inner side of the wall, and the first side or the second side of the material web is arranged on the outer side of the wall;

wherein the material web has an edgefolding between said second and third part of said material web, which is embedded into the wall such that the material web abuts on the inner side of the wall on a first side of the edgefolding and the material web abuts on the outer side of the wall on a second side of the edgefolding

wherein said embedded edgefolding defines an acute angle between said second and third part of said material web.

2. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the chute component forms a boundary wall, reinforcing wall, a guide wall or a positioning wall of the airbag chute.

3. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the inner side of the wall faces the airbag chute, and the outer side of the wall faces away the airbag chute, and the material web is embedded into the wall such that the material web is partially arranged on the inner side of the wall and partially on the outer side of the wall.

4. The airbag arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein the material web has an edgefolding and extends along the inner side of the wall to the edgefolding across a distance of at least 10 mm.

5. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the two layers of the material web are connected to one another adjoining the edgefolding on the first side and the second side of the edgefolding.

6. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the edgefolding is embedded into the wall at the distal end of the wall of the airbag chute or at a distance to the distal end of the wall of the airbag chute.

7. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the first distance is at least 10 mm.

8. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one wall of the chute component further comprises a first wall of the airbag chute and an opposite second wall of the airbag chute, wherein the material web is embedded into the first wall and into the second wall.

9. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the wall and the flap component enclose an angle of between 30° and 150°.

10. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the material web is integrated into the flap component.

11. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the flap component, the hinge section and the chute component are provided by an injection molded part.

12. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the material web comprises a net, a fabric, a knitted fabric, a film, a metal layer or a combination thereof.

13. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the material web is expandable at least in a first direction.

14. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the airbag arrangement forms at least a portion of a motor vehicle trim part.

15. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the first distance is at least 20 mm.

16. The airbag arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the material web arranged on said outer side of the wall for a second distance of length ends on said outer side of said wall.

17. A method for manufacturing an airbag arrangement, comprising:

providing a mold comprising a first mold shell and a second mold shell, which are configured to integrally form a flap component, which closes a passage opening for an airbag, a hinge section along a side of the flap component, and a chute component, which is connected to the flap component via the hinge section;

placing a material web into the mold having a first part which is configured to form a surface of the flap component, which faces the airbag, a second part which is configured to form an adjoining surface of the chute component which adjoins the surface of the flap component, and a third part which is configured to form an opposite surface of the chute component which is opposite the adjoining surface;

closing the mold;

introducing plastic material into the closed mold;

wherein the material web, placed into the mold, has an edgefolding between the second and the third part of the material web, into which the plastic material penetrates, wherein the penetrating plastic material pushes apart the second and the third part of the material web and against the opposite surfaces of the mold.

18. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the edgefolding is preformed prior to placing the material web into the mold.

19. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the flap component and the chute component are formed at an angle of between 30° and 150°.

20. The method according to claim 17 , wherein the chute component forms a wall of an airbag chute and, at a distal end of the wall of the airbag chute or a distance to the distal end of the wall of the airbag chute, the edgefolding is positioned in and embedded into the wall.

Assignments (7)
RELEASE OF PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 067006/0846. Recorded Jun 6, 2025
From: BLUE TORCH FINANCE LLC
To: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP NORTH AMERICA, INC.; INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
Reel/Frame 071494/0946 →
RELEASE OF PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 057569/0893. Recorded Jun 6, 2025
From: BLUE TORCH FINANCE LLC
To: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP NORTH AMERICA, INC.; INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
Reel/Frame 071494/0829 →
RELEASE OF PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT RECORDED AT REEL/FRAME 063121/0799. Recorded Jun 6, 2025
From: BLUE TORCH FINANCE LLC
To: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP NORTH AMERICA, INC.; INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
Reel/Frame 071494/0928 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 12, 2025
From: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
To: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP NORTH AMERICA, INC.
Reel/Frame 070188/0332 →
CHANGE OF ADDRESS Recorded Feb 10, 2025
From: AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
To: AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
Reel/Frame 070167/0268 →
PATENT SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Mar 20, 2023
From: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
To: BLUE TORCH FINANCE LLC, AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT
Reel/Frame 063121/0799 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 30, 2018
From: LESNIK, SIEGFRIED; LOCH, MICHAEL
To: INTERNATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE COMPONENTS GROUP GMBH
Reel/Frame 045396/0504 →
Priority Claims (1)
DE 10 2017 100 330.4 · Jan 10, 2017 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20180194319A1 · Jul 12, 2018