Patents by Inventor Hajime Kitte

Hajime Kitte 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: 12194942
    Abstract: An occupant protection device includes a seatbelt having a lap belt portion; a pretensioner mechanism that takes up the seatbelt; an inflator that discharges an inflating gas; and an airbag that is joined to the lap belt portion. The airbag including a bag main body portion, which is housed folded, inflates owing to the inflating gas being supplied, and receives an occupant, and a conduit portion, which guides the inflating gas discharged from the inflator to the bag main body portion, and causes the inflating gas to flow into the bag main body portion. A length dimension along the lap belt portion of a joining region in which the airbag and the lap belt portion are joined is shorter than a length dimension along the lap belt portion of the bag main body portion in a folded state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2023
    Date of Patent: January 14, 2025
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yuji Matsuzaki, Akira Yasuda, Yuto Noda, Takuya Kusumura, Hajime Kitte, Yuya Suzuki
  • Patent number: 12122318
    Abstract: An actuator of an airbag device includes a main body portion, which is attached to an attachment base, and a cap including a fitting protruding portion that is inserted into a fitting recessed portion of the main body portion. The fitting protruding portion has a holding portion, which is inserted into a holding hole of a coupling member when fitted to the main body portion and holds a leading end portion of the coupling member, and a movement permitting unit that, when a ceiling portion of the cap is subjected to pressure of a combustion gas of a squib, causes the ceiling portion to move, and causes the holding portion to move from a holding position, wherein the holding portion is inserted into the holding hole of the coupling member, to a holding released position, wherein the holding portion is removed from the holding hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2023
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2024
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yusuke Kawamura, Keigo Kimura, Koji Kawamura, Hajime Kitte, Yoshio Ono
  • Patent number: 11865997
    Abstract: An actuator of an airbag device includes a main body portion, which is attached to an attachment base, and a cap including a fitting protruding portion that is inserted into a fitting recessed portion of the main body portion. The fitting protruding portion has a holding portion, which is inserted into a holding hole of a coupling member when fitted to the main body portion and holds a leading end portion of the coupling member, and a movement permitting unit that, when a ceiling portion of the cap is subjected to pressure of a combustion gas of a squib, causes the ceiling portion to move, and causes the holding portion to move from a holding position, wherein the holding portion is inserted into the holding hole of the coupling member, to a holding released position, wherein the holding portion is removed from the holding hole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2022
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2024
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yusuke Kawamura, Keigo Kimura, Koji Kawamura, Hajime Kitte, Yoshio Ono
  • Patent number: 11634050
    Abstract: An occupant protection apparatus includes a driver. The driver includes a drive unit, a support shaft, a movable seat pan supported by the support shaft such that the movable seat pan is inclinable in a front-rear direction, a guide groove, a movement pin that is movable along the guide groove, a link that couples the movable seat pan to the movement pin, and an energy absorber. The guide groove includes a first guide groove portion in which the movement pin moves when the movable seat pan is inclined rearward and a second guide groove portion in which the movement pin moves when the movable seat pan is inclined forward. The energy absorber is configured to absorb at least part of a forward load from an occupant when the movement pin moves in the second guide groove portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yusuke Kojima, Tadashi Yamada, Takashi Iida, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono, Joji Aoyama
  • Patent number: 11491943
    Abstract: A front passenger seat airbag includes an attachment portion provided on a front end side when inflation has been completed, an occupant protection portion provided on a rear end side to protect the occupant when inflation has been completed, and a cavity portion formed at an intermediate portion between the attachment portion and the occupant protection portion in a manner of penetrating the front passenger seat airbag substantially along a left-right direction. A left edge side and/or a right edge side of the occupant protection portion when inflation has been completed is formed with a protruding region protruding rearward and outward with respect to a central region. At least one of upper and lower edges of an occupant side panel is coupled to an end of the peripheral wall panel. An outer peripheral panel portion of the panel portion is a concave portion in a flatly deployed state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2022
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Motoyuki Tanaka, Ikuo Yamada, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono
  • Patent number: 11318904
    Abstract: An occupant protection device which is configured to protect an occupant seated on a seat, includes a seat belt, an airbag, and an inflator configured to supply inflation gas to the airbag. The airbag has a bag shape formed of a flexible sheet body, the airbag is folded and stored in a storage part provided in a lap belt, the airbag is inflated so as to project toward a front upper side when the inflation gas flows into the airbag, and the airbag has a substantially triangular prism shape whose axial direction is substantially aligned with a left-right direction so as to include a leg abutting surface which is capable of abutting an upper surface of a leg of the occupant and an upper body restraining surface which is capable of restraining the occupant from a chest to a head, when the airbag is completely inflated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Takenori Ozaki, Shigeyuki Suzuki, Yasushi Masuda, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono, Motoyuki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 11203321
    Abstract: An occupant protection device for protecting an occupant sitting in a front seat of a vehicle. The occupant protection device includes a front airbag device that is adapted to be mounted in front of the front seat and a roof airbag device that is adapted to be mounted on a roof of the vehicle. The front airbag device includes a front airbag that is inflatable and deployable for protecting an upper body of the occupant when an impact is applied to the vehicle from forward. The roof airbag includes a roof airbag that is inflatable and deployable downwardly between the front airbag and the front seat for protecting a head of the occupant when an impact is applied to the vehicle from forward.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2021
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Motoyuki Tanaka, Masashi Hotta, Koji Kawamura, Yuji Sato, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono
  • Patent number: 11186248
    Abstract: An occupant protection device includes an airbag which is deployed and inflated with an amount of protrusion from a storage position to a rear side in an inflation completed state in a large protrusion amount mode and a small protrusion amount mode, and the airbag includes a bag body and a tether. The tether is connected to a length adjustment unit. The bag body has a tubular inflation portion curved in a substantially U shape from the storage position toward the tether connection portion. A shape of the bag body in the large protrusion amount mode is defined such that the tether connection portion is further moved rearward with respect to the inlet port on the inner peripheral surface side, as compared with the case of the small protrusion amount mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2021
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Motoyuki Tanaka, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono, Yuji Sato
  • Publication number: 20210300282
    Abstract: A front passenger seat airbag includes an attachment portion provided on a front end side when inflation has been completed, an occupant protection portion provided on a rear end side to protect the occupant when inflation has been completed, and a cavity portion formed at an intermediate portion between the attachment portion and the occupant protection portion in a manner of penetrating the front passenger seat airbag substantially along a left-right direction. A left edge side and/or a right edge side of the occupant protection portion when inflation has been completed is formed with a protruding region protruding rearward and outward with respect to a central region. At least one of upper and lower edges of an occupant side panel is coupled to an end of the peripheral wall panel. An outer peripheral panel portion of the panel portion is a concave portion in a flatly deployed state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 26, 2021
    Publication date: September 30, 2021
    Inventors: Motoyuki TANAKA, Ikuo Yamada, Hajime Kitte, Kenichi Fukurono
  • Patent number: 11007964
    Abstract: A seat cushion airbag apparatus is applied to a vehicle seat in which a seat cushion includes a cushion part and a support portion. An airbag, including an inflatable portion, is disposed between the support portion and the cushion part. The inflatable portion includes: a rear inflatable portion that inflates on a lower side of buttocks of an occupant; a front inflatable portion that inflates on a lower side of a femur of the occupant; and a connection portion that connects the rear inflatable portion and the front inflatable portion. A tilting plate is disposed between the support portion and the cushion part and is supported to be tiltable in an upper-lower direction by a shaft provided rearward of the front inflatable portion, the tilting plate including a flat pressure receiving portion that receives pressure of inflation gas from a lower side through at least the front inflatable portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Koki Tanaka, Takashi Iida, Shigeyuki Suzuki, Tadashi Yamada, Yasushi Masuda, Hajime Kitte, Motoyuki Tanaka
  • Patent number: 9527471
    Abstract: An actuator includes: a gas generator which generates an operation gas when actuated; an accommodation-side portion which accommodates and holds the gas generator; and a push-side portion which is pushed by the operation gas generated from the gas generator to advance relatively so as to move away from the accommodation-side portion, wherein: a seal material which realizes watertightness between the push-side portion and the accommodation-side portion before actuation is provided in an external surface side portion between the push-side portion and the accommodation-side portion by being poured and set through molding; and the seal material doubles as an adhesive which enables the push-side portion to move relatively when actuated and which provides a joining force with which the push-side portion can be restricted from moving relatively before actuation so as to join the push-side portion and the accommodation-side portion together.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hisashi Takaya, Hajime Kitte, Kosuke Shigeta
  • Patent number: 9102306
    Abstract: A pedestrian airbag apparatus includes a folded airbag and an inflator that supplies an inflation gas to the airbag. Upon completion of the inflation, the airbag includes a transversal inflation portion, two longitudinal inflation portions, and partitions including end-side partitions arranged to extend from both left and right ends of the transversal inflation portion inward in the left and right direction and thus to block front side regions of the longitudinal inflation portions. The airbag further includes tethers limiting a spacing distance from a storage portion for the airbag by connecting proximal portion sides of the tethers to regions on distal end sides of the end-side partitions and connecting distal end sides of the tethers to the storage portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 19, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: TOYODA GOSEI CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Hajime Kitte, Takashi Sasaki
  • Patent number: 8398125
    Abstract: A vehicle pop-up hood apparatus is provided that includes: an arm member, whose proximal end portion is connected to a body of a vehicle so as to be pivotable about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction; a first connection section by which a hood of the vehicle is connected to a tip portion of the arm member, and that allows the hood to pivot relative to the arm member about an axis extending in the vehicle width direction; a second connection section that connects the hood to the arm member to prevent the hood from pivoting relative to the arm member about the first connection section; and an actuator that generates a lifting force that lifts the hood relative to the body and acts in a direction such that the connection between the hood and the arm member by means of the second connection section is broken.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2013
    Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Takahashi, Shuji Masuda, Yukio Nakagawa, Hajime Kitte
  • Patent number: 8307935
    Abstract: In a vehicle pop-up hood apparatus in which a rod is extended and a hood is pushed up by the operation of an actuator at a time of collision with a collision body, collision energy is absorbed with high efficiency when a collision load of a predetermined value or greater is input to an area near a hood pushed up position. Actuator (18) operates such that rod (20) moves in an axial direction toward a hood upper side, pushes up a rear edge side of hood rocker (12) and holds it at that position and, in that state, when a collision load of a predetermined value or greater acts from a hood upper side to near the pushed up position of the hood, push portion (54) slides along pushed up surface (38) of hinge arm (30) towards a vehicle rear side, and rod (20) is made to bend in conjunction therewith.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2012
    Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd., Pacific Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Takahashi, Hitoshi Yuasa, Yukio Nakagawa, Kazuyuki Yoshiyama, Shigeyuki Suzuki, Takeki Hayashi, Hajime Kitte, Masashi Aoki, Toshikatsu Togawa, Toshinobu Tsuboi, Shinji Mori
  • Patent number: 7976058
    Abstract: The occupant protection system includes a catching body that is housed in a housing located between a near-by seat and a distant seat for upward deployment and a support body that supports the catching body. The catching body covers the impact side of a distant-side occupant to catch the occupant moving toward the impacted lateral and includes a distal end acting as a free end swingable in a left and right direction. The support body is located on a side of the near-by seat close to the impacted lateral for deployment to support the catching body when the catching body swings toward the impacted lateral after receiving the distant-side occupant.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shigeyuki Suzuki, Takaki Fukuyama, Kenji Hayakawa, Tsukasa Sugiyama, Michio Inoue, Hirokazu Matsuura, Hajime Kitte, Takeki Hayashi, Masashi Aoki, Hitoshi Ida
  • Patent number: 7975797
    Abstract: In a configuration in which a rod is extended by an actuator and raises a hood at a time of a collision with a collision body, when a collision load greater than a predetermined value is input to near a hood pushed up area, the collision energy is efficiently absorbed. In a state in which a hood (12) is maintained in a pushed up position, when a collision load equal to or greater than a predetermined value is input from a hood upper side, a distal end portion (54) of a rod (20) slides towards a vehicle rear side along a pushed up surface (38) of a hood rear portion, while deforming the rod (20) by bending, thereby absorbing collision energy. At this time, before a base of a hinge arm (30) contacts a cowl top side (22), distal end portion (54) of rod (20) catches against a bending portion (60) such that rod (20) is bent further.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2011
    Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, Pacific Industrial Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hitoshi Yuasa, Hiroyuki Takahashi, Hajime Kitte, Masashi Aoki, Toshikatsu Togawa, Toshinobu Tsuboi
  • Patent number: 7946376
    Abstract: When activated, an actuator causes a piston rod in a cylinder to move forwards so as to support a receiving member for receiving an object to be protected. A lock mechanism for restricting a backward movement of the piston rod includes a lock ring which is accommodated in an accommodating groove on a piston portion and a locking stepped portion on the cylinder side. The locking stepped portion includes a locking and restricting surface and an outer circumferential restricting surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 24, 2011
    Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Takeki Hayashi, Masashi Aoki, Hirokazu Matsuura, Hajime Kitte
  • Publication number: 20110031056
    Abstract: In a vehicle pop-up hood apparatus in which a rod is extended and a hood is pushed up by the operation of an actuator at a time of collision with a collision body, collision energy is absorbed with high efficiency when a collision load of a predetermined value or greater is input to an area near a hood pushed up position. Actuator (18) operates such that rod (20) moves in an axial direction toward a hood upper side, pushes up a rear edge side of hood rocker (12) and holds it at that position and, in that state, when a collision load of a predetermined value or greater acts from a hood upper side to near the pushed up position of the hood, push portion (54) slides along pushed up surface (38) of hinge arm (30) towards a vehicle rear side, and rod (20) is made to bend in conjunction therewith.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 22, 2009
    Publication date: February 10, 2011
    Inventors: Hiroyuki Takahashi, Hitoshi Yuasa, Yukio Nakagawa, Kazuyuki Yoshiyama, Shigeyuki Suzuki, Takeki Hayashi, Hajime Kitte, Masashi Aoki, Toshikatsu Togawa, Toshinobu Tsuboi, Shinji Mori
  • Patent number: 7857087
    Abstract: An actuator AE1 includes a lock mechanism R1 configured to fill a gas G generated by operating a gas generator 35 at inside of a cylinder 22 and moving forward a piston 38 along with a support rod 40 for restricting a rearward movement of the support rod moved forward. The support rod 40 is arranged to be able to absorb a kinetic energy of a protection object person and capable of being plastically deformed when the protection object person is received by a receiving member after having been moved forward. A lock mechanism R1 is constituted by a diameter enlarging deformed portion 42 arranged at a piston and a locking stepped portion 24 capable of restricting the rearward movement of the piston.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 25, 2008
    Date of Patent: December 28, 2010
    Assignee: Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Hirokazu Matsuura, Naoki Yamano, Hideo Higashi, Kazuhito Sugimoto, Hajime Kitte, Ichizo Shiga, Shigeyuki Suzuki, Takeki Hayashi
  • Publication number: 20100294584
    Abstract: In a configuration in which a rod is extended by an actuator and raises a hood at a time of a collision with a collision body, when a collision load greater than a predetermined value is input to near a hood pushed up area, the collision energy is efficiently absorbed. In a state in which a hood (12) is maintained in a pushed up position, when a collision load equal to or greater than a predetermined value is input from a hood upper side, a distal end portion (54) of a rod (20) slides towards a vehicle rear side along a pushed up surface (38) of a hood rear portion, while deforming the rod (20) by bending, thereby absorbing collision energy. At this time, before a base of a hinge arm (30) contacts a cowl top side (22), distal end portion (54) of rod (20) catches against a bending portion (60) such that rod (20) is bent further.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 23, 2009
    Publication date: November 25, 2010
    Inventors: Hitoshi Yuasa, Hiroyuki Takahashi, Hajime Kitte, Masashi Aoki, Toshikatsu Togawa, Toshinobu Tsuboi