1. Field
Aspects of the invention relate to a vehicle door trim for a motor vehicle with a head impact protection device and a method for the manufacture thereof.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Side impact protection devices (often referred to as side airbags) are used in motor vehicles. When actuated by sensor control, side impact protection is intended to protect the pelvic and thoracic areas of the occupant of a motor vehicle. Head impact devices are increasingly being used in motor vehicles as well. Such head impact protection devices (often referred to as headbags) serve to protect the head of a motor vehicle occupant from impacting with the side window.
Conventionally, head impact protection devices are built into the roof liner of vehicles and comprise one or more gasbags which deploy from the roof area of a vehicle on actuation of the protective device.
In motor vehicles where it is not possible to accommodate a head impact protection device in the roof area, such as in open-top convertibles, the gasbags or airbags of a head impact protection device must be built into the area of the door side trim.
The interior trim of a standard door structure comprises an armrest below which is found the area in which a storage pocket is often located. Above the armrest is what is known as the center section of the door trim. The transition area between the center section and the top side of the door trim (the curved area between the center section and the essentially horizontally disposed transition area between the door trim and the side window) is referred to as the curb.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,231,253 discloses a head impact protection device which deploys after opening of the door trim's center section.
DE 103 15 662 A1 discloses an airbag module attached in the body-in-white area of the door wherein a part of the body-in-white door area also serves as a firing channel for the gasbag being deployed. The gasbag's opening behavior does not depend on the position of the window. For this reason, the gasbag also has a partial constriction in order to stabilize the deployment process and to do away with the need to guide the gasbag along a surface, such as the window for example. The gasbag lid integrated in the vehicle door trim has specific weakening areas along which the vehicle door trim tears open or which serve as a hinge mechanism. The gasbag lid extends over the area of both the curb and also the center section of the vehicle door trim.
EP 1 445 156 A1 describes a side impact protection device for a vehicle occupant in which a prefabricated airbag module consisting of a gasbag with outer casing, gas lance and compressed air source is attached to a side wall of the vehicle door by means of screws. On actuation of the airbag module, the vehicle door trim tears open along its entire length wherein a defined weakening of the trim is provided in the face of the trim at approximately the height of the pivotable top edge area to support this movement. In this case, the weakening may be formed by several contiguous slot-shaped apertures or may be a continuous, v-shaped or semicircular indentation on the substrate part of the trim.