Patents Examined by Nicole T Verley
  • Patent number: 11780395
    Abstract: An airbag device for a driver's seat is provided with a variant steering wheel, and an airbag module. The variant steering wheel has a module mounting surface and a cover member. When the cover member receives the expansion pressure of a cushion, a cover door opens. The airbag module includes a cloth member that is put on the cushion. A front end side of the cloth member is connected to an inflator, and a rear end is a free end. The airbag module is in a state in which the cushion is in a stored state, the cloth member is put over the cover member side of the cushion, and the cloth member is held between the cover member and the cushion in the stored state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 10, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Kazuki Morita, Kazuhiro Abe, Hiroyoshi Shimono
  • Patent number: 11772591
    Abstract: The invention relates to a device for removably mounting an airbag module on a steering wheel having a retaining portion of a resilient ring for forming elements for holding hooks on the other of the airbag module or the steering wheel in zones of interaction with the hooks, a mounting portion of the resilient ring forming a mounting rotation axis to ensure the rotation of the resilient ring, the resilient ring further including a locking portion, wherein the other of the airbag module or the steering wheel includes a first stop which is arranged to block the movement of the locking portion of the resilient ring in a first direction perpendicular to the mounting rotation axis (Y).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Olivier Bertrand, Remi Baillivet, Hugues Doursoux, Thierry Jacqmarcq
  • Patent number: 11772596
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to a gas generator for a vehicle safety system, comprising an ignition unit, a propellant configured in a combustion chamber in a form of a propellant bed extending along a longitudinal axis of the gas generator. A sleeve having an axial opening protrudes into the propellant bed such that it surrounds the ignition unit at least partially and portions of the propellant are stored inside and outside the sleeve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2023
    Assignee: ZF Airbag Germany GmbH
    Inventors: Karl Engibrecht, Johannes Ebner, Benedikt Peters
  • Patent number: 11766980
    Abstract: The invention relates to a device for removably mounting an airbag module on a steering wheel, the mounting device comprises a mounting portion of a resilient ring for forming, in a locking position of the ring, an element for holding at least one hook on the other of the module or the steering wheel, the resilient ring having an unlocking position in which the mounting portion of the ring is no longer in the zone of interaction with the at least one hook, the device further comprises an element for releasing the ring, connected to one of the module or the steering wheel and arranged so as to move the ring during a movement for extracting the module such that the ring is placed back from the locking position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 26, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Jonathan Pinaud, Laurent Groleau, Alexander Feicht
  • Patent number: 11760301
    Abstract: A steering wheel airbag device includes an airbag and an inflator. The airbag includes: a bag body; and a rectifying member rectifies expansion gas discharged from the inflator. The rectifying member is provided with three gas outlet ports so that the expansion gas can flow out substantially along a ring surface of the ring portion and to left, right, and rear three sides. The rectifying member is configured by partially joining outer peripheral edges of a vehicle body side panel and a driver side panel. The vehicle body side panel is configured to have three joining portions which are joined to corresponding outer peripheral edges of the driver side panel and three non-joining regions between the joining portions arranged on an outer peripheral edge side of the flat surface portion. The gas outlet port is configured by a portion of the non-joining region between the joining portions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 24, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tsutomu Ishii, Koji Kawamura, Yuya Suzuki
  • Patent number: 11760295
    Abstract: A safety airbag assembly, including: an airbag, having an inflated state and a stowed state; an airbag housing; an airbag cover, arranged between the airbag and the airbag housing and at least partially covering the airbag, wherein a hook-shaped member of the airbag cover passes through a bottom wall of the airbag housing from a first side of the airbag housing to a second side of the airbag housing opposite to the first side; and a plurality of locking plates, separated from each other and arranged on a surface of the bottom wall of the airbag housing located on the second side, wherein the locking plates are configured to abut a side surface of the hook-shaped member of the airbag cover so as to prevent the hook-shaped member from moving from the second side to the first side of the airbag housing and from being separated from the airbag housing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 4, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Ruigang Sang, Mingfei Liang, Mingyao Li
  • Patent number: 11753063
    Abstract: According to the present embodiments, a telescopic stroke is increased while an installation space of a steering column is easily secured, and a telescopic operation can be quickly performed without increasing a motor output. During the telescopic operation, noise may be reduced, and assemblability and mass productivity of the steering column may be improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2023
    Assignee: HL MANDO CORPORATION
    Inventors: Sang Chul Ku, Kwon Ho Lee, Sung Hun Park
  • Patent number: 11745689
    Abstract: Decorative emblem assemblies and related airbag modules and methods. In some embodiments, a decorative emblem may be coupled to a plate having a plurality of holes formed therein. A plurality of non-threaded fasteners may extend from the decorative emblem, wherein each of the plurality of non-threaded fasteners is configured to extend through a hole of the plurality of holes formed in the plate. The assembly may further comprise a clip configured to engage each of the plurality of non-threaded fasteners to secure the emblem assembly to an airbag cover and compress the plate between the decorative emblem and the airbag cover.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 4, 2022
    Date of Patent: September 5, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv ASP, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael Kutchey, Geoff Mills, Debra Preston
  • Patent number: 11724665
    Abstract: An assembly for a vehicle includes a pillar elongated along an axis. A seatbelt guide is supported by the pillar. The seatbelt guide is moveable relative to the pillar along the axis. The vehicle includes a seatbelt retractor and a webbing. The webbing is retractably extendable from the retractor. The seatbelt retractor is below the seatbelt guide. The webbing extends upwardly from the retractor and around the seatbelt guide. The vehicle includes a load limiter. The load limiter has a lower end fixed to the pillar. The load limiter has an upper end. The upper end is between the seatbelt guide and the lower end. The load limiter is crushable relative to the seatbelt guide and the pillar.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
    Inventors: Dean M. Jaradi, Mohammad Omar Faruque, S. M. Iskander Farooq
  • Patent number: 11724664
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to a gas generator for a vehicle safety system, comprising a first ignition stage, and a second second ignition stage. The first ignition stage comprises a cup-shaped diffuser with a diffuser base and an adjacent diffuser sidewall (57). The first ignition stage, the diffuser and the second ignition stage are arranged along an axial longitudinal axis of the gas generator and the diffuser is positioned between the first and second ignition stages such that the second ignition stage is fastened on an outer area of the diffuser.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2023
    Assignee: ZF Airbag Germany GmbH
    Inventors: Karl Englbrecht, Johannes Ebner, Hans-Peter Neumayer, Benedikt Peters
  • Patent number: 11718264
    Abstract: Systems and methods of a seatbelt with head restraint are provided. A seatbelt assembly for a vehicle may include a plurality of airbags and an electrostatic clutch to control a deployment of the plurality of airbags. The electrostatic clutch may be operable to limit a movement of the plurality of airbags relative to each other to define a deployment shape of the airbags. Associated vehicles including the seatbelt assembly are provided. Associated methods are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignees: TOYOTA MOTOR ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING NORTH AMERICA, INC., TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Phouvadol P. Khouphongsy, Umesh Gandhi, Danil Prokhorov, Yuyang Song, Paul Gilmore
  • Patent number: 11718263
    Abstract: An adaptor for connecting a fill tube to an inflator includes a sleeve configured to fit over a discharge end portion of the inflator and to be connected to the inflator. The adaptor also includes an end portion comprising a nipple configured to receive and connect with the fill tube, wherein the sleeve is configured to direct inflation fluid discharged from the inflator toward the nipple, and the nipple is configured to direct the inflation fluid into the fill tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: ZF PASSIVE SAFETY SYSTEMS US INC.
    Inventors: Douglas Gould, Gabriela Diaz, David Varcoe, Jason Bare
  • Patent number: 11718267
    Abstract: An initiator for a gas generator of a vehicle safety device includes a cup defining an interior, a primary pyrotechnic material disposed in a primary combustion chamber in the interior of the cup, and a pair of electrical pins in reaction initiating communication with the primary pyrotechnic material through a bridge wire. The bridge wire is in reaction initiating contact with the primary pyrotechnic material at a first end of the primary pyrotechnic material. The primary pyrotechnic material is compacted within the primary combustion chamber to include a depression at a second end of the primary pyrotechnic material, the second end opposite the first end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Autoliv ASP, Inc.
    Inventors: Mason Wayment, Matthew Erni
  • Patent number: 11713068
    Abstract: A left-side side plate is integrally formed downward from an inner end of a left-side upper plate, and a right-side side plate is integrally formed downward from an inner end of a right-side upper plate. A front end of the left-side side plate and a front end of the right-side side plate are connected by a connection upper plate, and the left-side side plate, the connection upper plate, and the right-side side plate are formed continuously and integrally. A total length of the left-side upper plate and the right-side upper plate is formed shorter than a total length of the left-side side plate and the right-side side plate. The length totaling the left-side upper plate and the right-side upper plate is formed substantially equal to the length of the connection upper plate, and all of these members are press worked of a single metal plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2023
    Assignee: YAMADA MANUFACTURING CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Yoshinori Shiroishi
  • Patent number: 11697367
    Abstract: Lift frames for a vehicle in this disclosure may include a frame body on a top portion of a frame, the frame body extending from a first end to a second end; a lift mechanism moveable with respect to the first end of the frame body, the lift mechanism comprising: a lift body having a first end and a second end, a lifting surface on the first end of the lift body and the second end of the lift body being positioned so as to be movable with respect to the first end of the frame body, wherein the lifting surface is positioned to engage an underside of a cargo container when placed on an upper side of the frame body; and an inflatable air bag having an upper side and a lower side and mounted on the lower side to a platform positioned on the frame beneath the lift body, wherein the inflatable air bag is connected on the upper side thereof to a mounting surface attached to the lift body; and a source of compressed air in fluid communication with the inflatable air bag.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 11, 2023
    Assignee: Demountable Concepts, Inc.
    Inventors: Rustin Arthur Cassway, Albert Stephen Perry, David John Fisher
  • Patent number: 11691590
    Abstract: A seat belt mounting bracket mounting structure includes a pillar portion, a connecting member connecting the pillar portion and another forward pillar portion positioned in front of the vehicle body of the pillar portion, and a seat belt mounting bracket mounted at a cross position of the pillar portion and the connecting member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignees: HYUNDAI MOTOR COMPANY, KIA CORPORATION
    Inventor: Haehoon Lee
  • Patent number: 11691587
    Abstract: A passenger seat airbag apparatus for a vehicle, including a housing installed in a structure inside the vehicle, an airbag cushion accommodated in a folded state inside the housing, and inflated and deployed between the structure inside the vehicle and an occupant to restrain and protect the occupant when the vehicle collides, and a flap having one end connected to a wrapper for wrapping the folded airbag cushion to guide a deployed direction of the airbag cushion while the airbag cushion is inflated and deployed. The flap is formed on both sides thereof with expansion parts for expanding a width of the flap wider than a width of an inner space of the housing. This invention further includes a structure inside the vehicle when the airbag cushion is inflated and deployed, which stably guides a deployed direction of the flap and the airbag cushion, enhancing deployment shape and performance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Seung-Wan Sung, Hyun-Chul Yang
  • Patent number: 11685327
    Abstract: A seat belt arrangement for a motor vehicle, with at least one seat belt for the protection of a vehicle occupant seated on a vehicle seat; at least one inflatable gas bag arranged on the seat belt for protecting the vehicle occupant. The gas bag includes a passage through which the seat belt extends and to which at least one inflatable chamber of the gas bag adjoins, wherein during or after inflation of the gas bag at least a sub-section of a wall of the passage presses indirectly and/or directly against the seat belt such that the gas bag couples to the seat belt and follows an extension movement of the seat belt and hence a movement of the vehicle occupant, and wherein the seat belt is at least partly surrounded by a casing element at least within the passage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2023
    Assignee: JOYSON SAFETY SYSTEMS GERMANY GMBH
    Inventors: Norman Steinke, Yves Clauss, Tibor Leupold, Jan Höfer, Mingxi Yan, Tobias Pausch, Koshan Mahdi, Gert Weller
  • Patent number: 11667258
    Abstract: A restraint system includes a restraint configured to deploy from an interior surface and restrain motion of an occupant and a support including a door coupled to an upper portion of the restraint. The door is configured to rotate about a pivot. The door includes a telescoping panel configured to telescopically extend from a stowed position behind the interior surface to a deployed position spaced apart from the interior surface in unison with deployment of the restraint so that the anchor reaches the deployed position after the door rotates about the pivot. The support is configured to orient the upper portion of the restraint in respect to motion of the occupant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 29, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Adam J. Golman, Nathaniel J. Dennis, Jesse T. Buehler, Jonathan O. Sive, Donald R. Monroe, Mikael P. Sedlacek, Arturo Llamazares Domper
  • Patent number: 11661024
    Abstract: A knee airbag configured to rapidly restrain the knees of a passenger and reduce the risk of injury to the passenger by changing a deployment angle of the airbag depending on a seated state of the passenger, the knee airbag including an airbag module coupled to a hinge structure inside a cockpit and configured to rotate around the hinge structure to change a deployment direction of a cushion, a driving unit configured to provide rotational force to the airbag module, and a controller configured to adjust a rotation angle of the airbag module by operating the driving unit based on the seated state of the passenger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2023
    Assignee: HYUNDAI MOBIS CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Seok Hoon Ko, Do Hyoung Kim