Air bag holding means in an inflating type occupant restraint device

Claim 2

In an inflatable passenger restraint device having an air bag having a substantially circular opening in the central region thereof and fixing bolt holes radially outwardly of said central opening, a gas generator, substantially circular in transverse cross-section, in the opening, a retainer for mounting the air bag and a securing member for securing the air bag and the gas generator, means extending through the fixing bolt holes for securing said air bag and said gas generator together with the retainer and the securing member, the improvement comprising: the diameter of the opening of the air bag being less than the outer diameter of the gas generator, the inner edge of the bag surrounding the opening extending radially inwardly from the retainer and having a plurality of circumferentially spaced substantially radially extending slits therein which extend outwardly from the opening to at least the outer periphery of the gas generator; and said slits being at positions not coincident with said fixing bolt holes.

Claim 3

In an inflatable passenger restraint device as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said slits are substantially equally circumferentially spaced from each other around the opening, said fixing bolt holes are substantially equally circumferentially spaced from each other around the opening, and one of said holes being positioned between each next adjacent pair of said slits.

Claim 4

In an inflatable passenger restraint device as claimed in claim 1, wherein: said gas generator includes a mounting flange; said mounting flange, said retainer and said securing member have bolt holes defined therethrough which register with the fixing bolt holes in the air bag; and said retainer, said air bag, said securing member, and said gas generator being secured together by bolts extending through said bolt holes.

Claim 5

In an inflatable passenger restraint device having an air bag having a substantially circular opening in the central region thereof and fixing bolt holes radially outwardly of said central opening, a gas generator, substantially circular in transverse cross-section, in the opening, said gas generator having a radially outwardly extending mounting flange, a retainer for mounting the air bag and a securing member for securing the air bag and the gas generator, means extending through the fixing bolt holes for securing said air bag and said gas generator together with the retainer and the securing member, the improvement comprising: the diameter of the opening of the air bag being less than the outer diameter of the gas generator, the inner edge of the bag surrounding the opening extending radially inwardly from the retainer and having a plurality of circumferentially spaced substantially radially extending slits therein which extend outwardly from the opening to at least the outer periphery of the gas generator with the portions of the bag between the slits being in abutment with and extending along the periphery of the gas generator in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the opening; and said slits being at positions not coincident with said fixing bolt holes.

Claim 6

In an inflatable passenger restraint device having an air bag having a substantially circular opening in the central region thereof and fixing bolt holes radially outwardly of said central opening, a gas generator, substantially circular in transverse cross-section, in the opening, said gas generator having a radially outwardly extending mounting flange, a retainer for mounting the air bag and a securing member for securing the air bag and the gas generator, means extending through the fixing bolt holes for securing said air bag and said gas generator together with the retainer and the securing member, the improvement comprising: the diameter of the opening of the air bag being less than the outer diameter of the gas generator, the inner edge of the bag surrounding the opening extending radially inwardly from the retainer and having a plurality of circumferentially spaced substantially radially extending slits therein which extend outwardly from the opening to at least the outer periphery of the gas generator with the portions of the bag between the slits being in abutment with and extending along the periphery of the gas generator in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the opening; and said slits being at positions not coincident with said fixing bolt holes.