Roof-mounted air bag

A passive vehicle occupant restraint system for an automotive vehicle having a front seat including a seat back defining generally a front passenger area to one side thereof and a rear passenger area to an opposite side thereof, an outer roof surface, and a quantity of insulation material inside of said outer roof surface, said restraint system comprising:

• a headliner overlying said insulation material;
• a first inflatable cushion mounted between said quantity of insulation material and said headliner and overlying at least a portion of the front passenger area of said vehicle:
• said inflatable cushion being inflatable to an increased thickness while still being retained between said quantity of insulation material and said headliner in such a manner as to provide a cushion, when inflated, between a head of a passenger and the outer roof surface, and an inflator operatively connected with said inflatable cushion and responsive to a predetermined triggering signal for producing a quantity of gas for inflating said cushion.

A passive vehicle occupant restraint system for an automotive vehicle having a front seat including a seat back defining generally a front passenger area to one side thereof and a rear passenger area to an opposite side thereof, an outer roof surface, a quantity of insulation material inside of said outer roof surface and a headliner covering said insulation material, said restraint system comprising:

• a first inflatable cushion mounted between said quantity of insulation material and said headliner and overlying at least a portion of the front passenger area of said vehicle;
• an inflator operatively connected with said inflatable cushion and responsive to a predetermined triggering signal for producing a quantity of inflating gas for inflating said cushion;
• and roll-over sensor means operatively coupled with said inflator and mounted to said vehicle for producing said predetermined triggering signal in response to a roll-over of said vehicle, wherein said vehicle has a plurality of roof posts supporting said roof and wherein said roll-over sensor means comprises a plurality of roll-over sensors, respectively mounted on ones of said roof posts.