1. A passenger retaining apparatus comprising:
a driver seat airbag; and
a curtain airbag that expands toward a side of a passenger;
wherein the curtain airbag includes:
a first inflation portion that is inflated at a passenger side with respect to the inflated driver seat airbag in a vehicle body longitudinal direction;
a second inflation portion that is inflated at a wind shield side with respect to the inflated driver seat airbag in the vehicle body longitudinal direction; and
a recess portion that is formed between the first inflation portion and the second inflation portion and that is configured to engage with the inflated driver seat airbag;
wherein, upon a slight lap crash or an oblique crash of a vehicle, the driver seat airbag retains a front surface of a head of the passenger and the first inflation portion retains a side surface of the head of the passenger.
2. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein a distance between a most passenger-side surface of the first inflation portion of the inflated curtain airbag and a center axis of a steering shaft is within a range of 80 mm to 230 mm, in a vehicle body width direction.
3. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein a distance between a most door-side end portion of the inflated driver seat airbag and a most passenger-side surface of the second inflation portion of the inflated curtain airbag is within a range of 25 mm to 150 mm, in a vehicle body width direction.
4. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 1,
wherein the curtain airbag further includes:
a shallowing unit that shallows a depth of the recess portion after starting inflations of the first inflation portion and the second inflation portion.
5. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 4,
wherein the shallowing unit is an inflation portion which is configured to be inflated in a vehicle interior side of the recess portion.
6. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 5,
wherein the inflation portion is connected to a lower side of a main body portion of the curtain airbag and is fold at the lower side of the main body portion to a vehicle interior side of the main body portion.
7. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 5,
wherein the inflation portion includes:
a hole that is formed on a panel of a vehicle interior side of the curtain airbag;
a small panel that covers the hole; and
a seam that sews a peripheral edge of the small panel to the panel of the vehicle interior side of the curtain airbag.
8. The passenger retaining apparatus according to claim 4,
wherein the shallowing unit includes:
a tether that extends in the vehicle body longitudinal direction on a vehicle exterior side of the curtain airbag across a forming region of the recess portion;
a front seam that sews a front end portion of the tether to a panel of the curtain airbag; and
a rear seam that sews a rear end portion of the tether to the panel of the curtain airbag;
wherein a length of the tether between the front seam and the rear seam is smaller than a length of the panel of the curtain airbag between the front seam and the rear seam.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A spillover fuel tank for an aircraft, comprising:
a barrier enclosing a fuel chamber within a wing of the aircraft inboard of and adjacent to a main wing tank, the main wing tank housing a main fuel pickup of a primary fuel pump, the barrier comprising an aperture between the fuel chamber and the main wing tank configured to allow aircraft fuel to passively flow between the main wing tank and the fuel chamber; the aperture positioned on an upper portion of the barrier between the fuel chamber and the main wing tank such as to prevent a reserved amount of fuel in the main wing tank sufficient to cover the fuel pickup from flowing into the fuel chamber; and
a pump mechanism operative to provide a continuous flow of fuel from the fuel chamber into the main wing tank such that the reserve amount of fuel remains in the main wing tank as the fuel in the fuel chamber is exhausted.
2. The spillover fuel tank of claim 1, wherein an entirety of the fuel chamber is disposed outside a rotor burst zone of an aircraft engine mounted on the wing.
3. The spillover fuel tank of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of apertures between the fuel chamber and the main wing tank configured to allow aircraft fuel to flow between the main wing tank and the fuel chamber.
4. The spillover fuel tank of claim 3, wherein a number and a size of the plurality of apertures is configured to allow a flow rate of aircraft fuel from the main wing tank to the fuel chamber greater than or equal to a rate of refueling of the aircraft.
5. The spillover fuel tank of claim 1, further comprising a flapper valve through the barrier between the fuel chamber and the main wing tank configured to allow aircraft fuel to flow from the fuel chamber to the main wing tank and to prevent aircraft fuel from flowing from the main wing tank to the fuel chamber.
6. The spillover fuel tank of claim 5, wherein the flapper valve is positioned on a lower portion of the barrier between the fuel chamber and the main wing tank such as to allow aircraft fuel to flow from the fuel chamber to the main wing tank when a level of aircraft fuel in the main wing tank becomes lower than a level of aircraft fuel in the fuel chamber.
7. The spillover fuel tank of claim 1, wherein the pump mechanism comprises one or more scavenge pumps located within the fuel chamber.
8. The spillover fuel tank of claim 7, wherein the one or more scavenge pumps are driven by motive flow from a main engine pump mechanism.
9. A method of extending a main wing tank of an aircraft, comprising:
enclosing a chamber within a wing of the aircraft adjacent to and inboard of the main wing tank to create a spillover tank;
providing an aperture in a barrier between the spillover tank and the main wing tank on an upper portion of the barrier configured to allow aircraft fuel to passively flow between the main wing tank and the spillover tank such that a reserved amount of fuel remains in the main wing tank sufficient to cover a fuel pickup for a primary fuel pump and a hydraulic heat exchanger; and
providing a pump mechanism operative to provide a continuous flow of aircraft fuel from the spillover tank into the main wing tank such that the reserve amount of fuel remains in the main wing tank as the fuel in the spillover tank is exhausted.
10. The method of claim 9, wherein the spillover tank is disposed outside a rotor burst zone of an aircraft engine mounted on the wing.
11. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing a plurality of apertures in the barrier between the spillover tank and the main wing tank to allow a flow rate of aircraft fuel from the main wing tank to the spillover tank greater than or equal to a rate of refueling of the aircraft.
12. The method of claim 9, further comprising positioning a flapper valve in the barrier between the spillover tank and the main wing tank on a lower portion of the barrier such as to allow aircraft fuel to flow from the spillover tank to the main wing tank when a level of aircraft fuel in the main wing tank becomes lower than a level of aircraft fuel in the spillover tank.
13. The method of claim 9, wherein the pump mechanism comprises one or more scavenge pumps located within the spillover tank.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more scavenge pumps are driven by motive flow from a main engine pump mechanism.
15. A method of passive and active fuel flow control to provide fuel to an aircraft engine from an extension spillover tank comprising:
providing motive fuel flow from a main fuel pump mechanism of a main wing tank to a scavenge pump mechanism in the extension spillover tank, the extension spillover tank connected to the main wing tank by at least one aperture in a barrier between the extension spillover tank and the main wing tank configured to allow fuel to passively flow between the main wing tank and the spillover tank, the at least one aperture positioned on an upper portion of the barrier such as to prevent a reserved amount of fuel in the main wing tank sufficient to cover a fuel pickup of the main fuel pump mechanism from flowing into the extension spillover tank;
passively pumping fuel from the extension spillover tank into the main wing tank utilizing the scavenge pump mechanism; and
actively pumping fuel from the main wing tank to the aircraft engine using the main fuel pump mechanism.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the extension spillover tank is contained within a primary wing structure of an aircraft inboard of and adjacent to the main wing tank.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein the extension spillover tank is disposed outside a rotor burst zone of the aircraft engine mounted on a wing of the aircraft.
18. The method of claim 16, further comprising positioning a flapper valve in a barrier between the extension spillover tank and the main wing on a lower portion of the barrier such as to allow fuel to passively flow from the spillover tank to the main wing tank when a level of fuel in the main wing tank becomes lower than a level of fuel in the spillover tank.
19. The spillover fuel tank of claim 1, wherein the main wing tank further houses a hydraulic system heat exchanger and wherein the reserved amount of fuel in the main wing tank is further sufficient to cover the hydraulic system heat exchanger.