Patents by Inventor Gary Wootton

Gary Wootton has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11021130
    Abstract: A curtain airbag of a vehicle is provided adjacent to the roof of the vehicle in a folded state, is configured to have a shape that unfolds downward between an inner side surface of the vehicle and an occupant when the vehicle crashes, and includes an outer panel that proceeds toward the side surface of the vehicle and an inner panel that proceeds toward the occupant upon expansion. The curtain airbag further includes a head support part configured to have a shape in which an expansion thickness, which is defined by the outer panel and the inner panel in a portion that the head of the occupant contacts due to the car crash, gradually increases toward the front of the vehicle, so as to prevent the head of the occupant from rotating while moving toward the front of the vehicle. The curtain airbag may effectively stop the head of the occupant from rotating while moving toward the front of the vehicle during a vehicle crash.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 1, 2021
    Assignee: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Tae Ik Gwon, Kyu Soung Jang, Wan Dong Yoo, Yong Hyun Jung, Hugh Finn, Gary Wootton, Dae Chang Jung
  • Publication number: 20190161051
    Abstract: A curtain airbag of a vehicle is provided adjacent to the roof of the vehicle in a folded state, is configured to have a shape that unfolds downward between an inner side surface of the vehicle and an occupant when the vehicle crashes, and includes an outer panel that proceeds toward the side surface of the vehicle and an inner panel that proceeds toward the occupant upon expansion. The curtain airbag further includes a head support part configured to have a shape in which an expansion thickness, which is defined by the outer panel and the inner panel in a portion that the head of the occupant contacts due to the car crash, gradually increases toward the front of the vehicle, so as to prevent the head of the occupant from rotating while moving toward the front of the vehicle. The curtain airbag may effectively stop the head of the occupant from rotating while moving toward the front of the vehicle during a vehicle crash.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 26, 2017
    Publication date: May 30, 2019
    Applicant: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Tae Ik GWON, Kyu Soung JANG, Wan Dong YOO, Yong Hyun JUNG, Hugh FINN, Gary WOOTTON, Dae Chang JUNG
  • Patent number: 10112572
    Abstract: An air-bag for a motor vehicle is formed from first and second superposed layers of fabric, each woven from a plurality of yarns. The layers of fabric are connected to each other at least partially through interweaving of the yarns of the two layers with each other. The air-bag includes at least one inflatable region, in which the two layers of fabric are substantially not connected to each other, and at least one non-inflatable region. There is a first number of crossing points of yarns that form the one layer of fabric, and there is a second number of connections between the two layers, wherein at each connection a yarn of the layer of fabric extends across to the other layer and passes over the far side of the a yarn of the other layer, and wherein the second number is no more than 0.0033 times the first number.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 30, 2018
    Assignee: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Gary Wootton, Helen Dean
  • Patent number: 10017147
    Abstract: A safety device for use in a vehicle includes an air-bag inflatable by a gas source. At least part of the air-bag is woven and includes a plurality of generally parallel woven yarns. An elongate tether is attached to the air-bag by an attachment arrangement including a first portion in which part of the tether passes between two adjacent yarns of the air-bag from one side to another side of the air-bag and partly around at least two adjacent yarns on one side of the air-bag. The arrangement incorporates a second portion in which the tether is interwoven with a pre-determined number of single adjacent yarns of the air-bag. The arrangement incorporates a third portion in which the tether passes between two adjacent yarns of the air-bag from one side to another side of the air-bag and partly around at least two adjacent yarns on one side of the air-bag.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2018
    Assignee: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Gary Wootton, Hugh Finn
  • Publication number: 20170120857
    Abstract: An air-bag for a motor vehicle is formed from first and second superposed layers of fabric, each woven from a plurality of yarns. The layers of fabric are connected to each other at least partially through interweaving of the yarns of the two layers with each other. The air-bag includes at least one inflatable region, in which the two layers of fabric are substantially not connected to each other, and at least one non-inflatable region. There is a first number of crossing points of yarns that form the one layer of fabric, and there is a second number of connections between the two layers, wherein at each connection a yarn of the layer of fabric extends across to the other layer and passes over the far side of the a yarn of the other layer, and wherein the second number is no more than 0.0033 times the first number.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2015
    Publication date: May 4, 2017
    Applicant: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Gary WOOTTON, Helen DEAN
  • Publication number: 20160264090
    Abstract: A safety device for use in a vehicle includes an air-bag inflatable by a gas source. At least part of the air-bag is woven and includes a plurality of generally parallel woven yarns. An elongate tether is attached to the air-bag by an attachment arrangement including a first portion in which part of the tether passes between two adjacent yarns of the air-bag from one side to another side of the air-bag and partly around at least two adjacent yarns on one side of the air-bag. The arrangement incorporates a second portion in which the tether is interwoven with a pre-determined number of single adjacent yarns of the air-bag. The arrangement incorporates a third portion in which the tether passes between two adjacent yarns of the air-bag from one side to another side of the air-bag and partly around at least two adjacent yarns on one side of the air-bag.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 13, 2014
    Publication date: September 15, 2016
    Applicant: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Gary WOOTTON, Hugh FINN
  • Patent number: 8991855
    Abstract: A fabric for use in the manufacture of an inflatable air-bag, the fabric having interwoven warp fibers and weft fibers which are arranged substantially perpendicular to one another, one or more of the warp and weft fibers being at least partially coated with an adhesive substance to increase the friction between the warp and weft fibers at their intersections. In another embodiment, the fabric is formed from fibers having a central core and another sheath.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Altay Kismir, David Stow, Gary Wootton, Hugh Finn, Ralf Koehnen
  • Patent number: 8733788
    Abstract: A method of forming a fabric for an air-bag, the method comprising providing a plurality of yarns, each yarn being formed from a plurality of individual fibres; applying an activatable additive or coating to each yarn, the additive or coating initially not being activated and wherein, prior to activation, the additive or coating presents little or no impedance to the relative movement of the fibres within the yarn and, following activation, the additive or coating binds fibres within the yarn to one another to prevent or hinder relative movement of the fibres in the yarn with respect to one another; and passing the yarns through an activation zone including a compressing component which applies a compressive force to the yarns, the additive or coating being activated as the yarns pass through the activation zone so that the yarns each have a substantially flat configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2014
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Hugh Finn, Ralf Koehnen, David Stow, Gary Wootton, Altay Kismir, Will Winzinger, Gonzalo Alves
  • Publication number: 20140021700
    Abstract: A fabric for use in the manufacture of an inflatable air-bag, the fabric having interwoven warp fibres and weft fibres which are arranged substantially perpendicular to one another, one or more of the warp and weft fibres being at least partially coated with an adhesive substance to increase the friction between the warp and weft fibres at their intersections. In another embodiment, the fabric is formed from fibres having a central core and another sheath.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 9, 2012
    Publication date: January 23, 2014
    Applicant: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Altay Kismir, David Stow, Gary Wootton, Hugh Finn, Ralf Koehnen
  • Patent number: 8622424
    Abstract: There is disclosed a safety device for a motor vehicle. The device comprises an inflatable (6) element formed from two opposing layers of fabric (10, 11) and the two layers of fabric are interconnected by a plurality of tether yarns (18) extending between said layers. Each said tether yarn (18) is a composite yarn comprising an outer thread (21) and a core thread (20), with the outer thread (21) being overfed on the core thread (20) and having a higher breaking strength than the core thread (23). The device is preferably configured such that the core threads (20) of the tether yarns (18) break (23) upon inflation of said inflatable element (6), thereby permitting the outer thread (21) to unravel and extend the effective length of the tether yarns (18) between said layers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 7, 2014
    Assignee: Autoliv Development AB
    Inventors: Hugh Finn, Gary Wootton
  • Publication number: 20130113195
    Abstract: There is disclosed a safety device for a motor vehicle. The device comprises an inflatable (6) element formed from two opposing layers of fabric (10, 11) and the two layers of fabric are interconnected by a plurality of tether yarns (18) extending between said layers. Each said tether yarn (18) is a composite yarn comprising an outer thread (21) and a core thread (20), with the outer thread (21) being overfed on the core thread (20) and having a higher breaking strength than the core thread (23). The device is preferably configured such that the core threads (20) of the tether yarns (18) break (23) upon inflation of said inflatable element (6), thereby permitting the outer thread (21) to unravel and extend the effective length of the tether yarns (18) between said layers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 12, 2011
    Publication date: May 9, 2013
    Inventors: Hugh Finn, Gary Wootton
  • Publication number: 20130026740
    Abstract: A method of forming a fabric for an air-bag, the method comprising providing a plurality of yarns, each yarn being formed from a plurality of individual fibres; applying an activatable additive or coating to each yarn, the additive or coating initially not being activated and wherein, prior to activation, the additive or coating presents little or no impedance to the relative movement of the fibres within the yarn and, following activation, the additive or coating binds fibres within the yarn to one another to prevent or hinder relative movement of the fibres in the yarn with respect to one another; and passing the yarns through an activation zone including a compressing component which applies a compressive force to the yarns, the additive or coating being activated as the yarns pass through the activation zone so that the yarns each have a substantially flat configuration.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2011
    Publication date: January 31, 2013
    Applicant: AUTOLIV DEVELOPMENT AB
    Inventors: Hugh Finn, Ralf Koehnen, David Stow, Gary Wootton, Altay Kismir, Will Winzinger, Gonzalo Alves