Steering wheel with safety air cushion

Claim 1

In combination, a steering wheel having a hub, a rim and angularly inclined spoke sections supporting the rim above the hub, an air cushion having a folded inoperative position and an inflated position in which, in the event of a collision, it is operative to cushion the driver from the steering wheel, and a gas generator housing equipped with a diffuser section located in a recess at the base of the steering wheel spoke sections and attached to the steering wheel hub, the cushion in its folded position being connected at its bottom edge to the diffuser section and being held in position by a cover having deliberate weak points, characterized in that the foldable air cushion is housed when folded in a deformable synthetic material housing connected to the gas generator housing and the cover to form a preassembled unit which is attached to the angularly inclined steering wheel spoke sections, the deformable housing having a funnel shape and being attached through a bottom flanged edge and a clamping ring which simultaneously fixes the bottom edge of the air cushion to a radial flange on the gas generator, the upper edge of the funnel-shaped housing being thickened and attached to the cover by fasteners.