Safety apparatus for steering wheel assembly

Claim 1

In a safety apparatus for a steering wheel assembly of a vehicle having a collision senser and a fluid pressure source for activating said safety apparatus in response to a signal generated from said senser, comprising a base plate mounted on the hub member of said steering wheel assembly, an inflatable bag assembled on said base plate to be inflated by pressurized fluid from said pressure source, and a container mounted on said base plate to contain said inflatable bag therein, the improvement wherein said container comprises a breakable pad body mounted on said base plate to cover said inflatable bag and a separable cylindrical core element inlaid within the side wall of said pad body, said core element being formed with a plurality of plate members connected at their both sides with other plate members to be separated by said bag when inflated, each of said plate members including a transverse recess at its lower portion to be bent outwardly, whereby when said gas bag is inflated, said pad body is broken by said inflated bag and said core element is separated and bent outwardly so that the bottom portion of said inflated bag is supported by the steering wheel.