Abstract: A plurality of gas generators provide for controllably inflating a plurality of inflatable confinements responsive to a prediction by a predictive collision sensor of both a size of an expected collision object and an expected location of the collision. The inflatable confinements are associated with different zones across a door of a vehicle, each zone having an associated structural stiffness and level of proximity to the occupant. For a pole-like object expected to impact a relatively less-stiff zone of the vehicle, the inflatable confinements are controlled so as to deflect the point of impact towards a stiffer zone away from the occupant. For a barrier-like object, inflatable confinements associated with relatively stiff zones are inflated relatively higher than those associated with relatively less stiff zones so as to transfer impact energy to the relatively stiff zones.

Abstract: An occupant protection system (10) comprises an external air bag system (12) and an associated predictive collision sensing system (14). The external air bag system (12) comprises at least one external air bag inflator module (22) that is mounted in a door (24) proximate to the seating location of the of the occupant (18) to be protected, and which comprises a plurality of gas generator modules (28) that each provide for a controllable inflation characteristic for inflating an associated inflatable confinement (36), the plurality of which are arranged across the door (24) adjacent to one another, each associated with a different zone (I, II, III, IV, 43) having an associated structural stiffness and level of proximity to the occupant (18). The control of the actuation of various gas generator modules (28) is responsive to the prediction by the predictive collision sensor (26) of both 1) the size (i.e.