Hybrid gas generator for airbag

US6254128A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• DYNAMIT NOBEL GMBH EXPLOSIVSTOFF-UND SYSTEMTECHNIK · DE

Inventors

• Uwe Albrecht · Bitterfeld-Wolfen, DE
• Anton Bretfeld · Fürth, DE
• Josef Kraft · Starnberg, DE
• Jiang Zhang · Nürnberg, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Sep 1, 1999
• Grant date: Jul 3, 2001
• Expiry date: Sep 1, 2019

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y10T137/1767
• WIPO field: Other special machines
• WIPO sector: Mechanical engineering

Abstract

The invention relates to a gas generator for an air bag (11) including a cartridge (3) containing a gas-generating charge of solid material (5) and a storage reservoir (9) containing a storage gas (10). To trigger gas production the charge of solid material (5) is ignited. The resulting gas pressure tears off the front face (13) of the cartridge (3) along a peripheral notch (6). A sliding element (7) connected to the front face (13) pierces a sealing element (8) of the storage reservoir (9). A guiding channel (23) in which the front face (13) is guided in the manner of a piston, opens into a flow zone (12). When the front face (13) has reached the flow zone (12), reaction gas flows around the front face (13) into openings (16) in the tube-shaped sliding element (7). The reaction gas then flows into the storage reservoir (9) where it is mixed with the remaining storage gas. Because the control for releasing the two gases depends entirely on the trajectory, the operating performance of the hybrid gas generator is exact and reproducible.