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AssigneeZf Passive Safety Systems US Inc.
InventorsDouglas Gould, Gabriela Diaz, Kurt F. Fischer, Hylus Ranjit Raj Jayakar, Kiran Mohan Veepuri, David Varcoe
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An apparatus for helping to protect occupants of a vehicle in the event of a collision includes a deployable restraint having a stored, predeployment condition in a vehicle floor. The restraint is deployable from the floor to restrain the feet and/or lower legs of an occupant from swinging forward and upward in response to a vehicle collision. In one configuration, the deployable restraint can include a module comprising an airbag and an inflator for inflating and deploying the airbag. The module can include a door that opens in response to deployment of the airbag and that serves as a reaction surface for the airbag. In another configuration, the deployable restraint can include a restraining panel configured to move to a deployed position extending above the vehicle floor adjacent the occupants lower leg and feet.
An apparatus for helping to protect occupants of a vehicle in the event of a collision, comprising a deployable restraint having a stored, pre-deployment condition in a vehicle floor, the restraint being deployable from the floor configured to restrain the feet and/or lower legs of an occupant from swinging forward and upward in response to a vehicle collision.
A method for helping to protect occupants of a vehicle in the event of a collision, comprising providing a deployable restraint having a stored, pre-deployment condition in a vehicle floor, and deploying from the vehicle floor the deployable restraint, the deployable restraint being configured to restrain the feet and/or lower legs of an occupant from swinging forward and upward in response to a vehicle collision.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.