New Tech to Inflate Larger Car Airbags Efficiently, Reduce Overall Cost

Autoliv, Inc., the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems, has unveiled a patented revolutionary new passenger airbag module that is based on Bernoulli’s Principle and can inflate larger airbags more efficiently as well as reduce development time and cost. The Bernoulli Airbag will be commercialized during the third quarter and on display at the Autoliv Investor Day in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA.

The new Autoliv airbag module is based on Swiss mathematician and physicist Daniel Bernoulli’s fundamental principles of fluid dynamics that explain many phenomena such as how airplanes fly. Bernoulli’s principle states that an increase in the speed of a fluid occurs simultaneously with a decrease in static pressure. Using this principle, Autoliv can leverage pressure differences to add a significant contribution of surrounding air to the inflation of an airbag.

For the Bernoulli Airbag, the inflator will receive the signal that a crash has begun, and it will propel high pressure gases at supersonic speed through multiple inlet tubes. As the gases flow through the tubes, it will suck the surrounding ambient air into the chamber with the gases, creating aspiration, and will inflate a much larger airbag with an even smaller inflator than required today.

Airbags are an important safety feature in cars and can reduce the risk of death and serious injury in a crash. They work by inflating very quickly to create a cushion between the occupant and the vehicle. Airbag systems help to reduce the severity of injuries caused by impact. Autoliv is the world’s largest producer of airbag systems, modules, and components.