The invention relates to an inflatable side impact airbag for a vehicle occupant protection means.
Conventional side impact airbags (e.g. DE 296 16 904) comprise an upper edge to attach it in the area of an A-column and of a roof frame of a motor vehicle. The invention also relates to a method of installing such a side impact airbag in the area of the A-column and of the roof frame of the motor vehicle. The upper edge is attached in the area of the A-column and of the roof frame in a vehicle. In this arrangement, the airbag is designed such that the upper edge of its contour is adapted to the shape of the A-column. In the non-activated state of the protective device, the airbag is stowed folded along the roof frame and the A-column. However, such folding is relatively complicated to realize. It would be simpler to roll up the airbag all the way to its upper edge. However, due to the curvature of the upper edge, this is not possible without also rolling up a part of the edge. Since the airbag, however, has to be attached to the vehicle across the entire length of the edge, the edge must not be rolled up together with the airbag.
The object of the invention is to provide a side impact airbag that can be rolled up crease-free all the way to its upper edge and that can be attached with this edge in the area of the A-column and of the roof frame of a motor vehicle.
According to the invention, an inflatable side impact airbag for a vehicle occupant protection device comprises an upper edge to attach it in the area of an A-column and of a roof frame of a motor vehicle. The upper edge of the airbag is straight. The airbag proposed can be rolled up straight and without creasing all the way to its upper edge, resulting in an elongated tube. On installation, this tube can be curved without any problem in such a way that it adapts to the curvatures of the A-column and of the roof frame. Nevertheless, the side impact airbag can easily be unrolled by means of inflation so that it covers, for example, the side windows in the area between the A-column and the C-column.
According to another aspect, the invention also provides a method of installing a side impact airbag according to the invention in the area of the A-column and of the roof frame of the motor vehicle. Through the method, the side impact airbag is rolled up towards the upper edge to form a roll which has an axis that is parallel to the upper edge. The roll is adapted to the curvature of the A-column and of the roof frame, and the upper edge of the roll is attached to the A-column and to the roof frame. Since the airbag is not folded but rather only rolled up and can be easily adapted to the curvatures of the A-column and of the roof frame, installation is much faster and easier to carry out.
Additional advantageous embodiments of the invention will be apparent from the subordinate claims.