This is an important safety device on our modern cars. Airbag now inseparable from standard equipment and included in all new models. the first front airbagsto side airbagswhich passes through safety curtains, or even the pedestrian ones, they’ve changed a lot! But where does it come from and how does it work?

We must Swedish manufacturer Volvo most common safety features on current models. Special Swedish manufacturer series (SAAB died out in 2011) has always stood out during its run almost 100 years of existence for his many innovations that made its models safer and more reliable. We owe him back in 1944 the invention of the laminated windshield and the central security camera. The three-point seat belt (1959) then pull-out (1969), headrest (1968). in booster seat (1978) and many others passive safety initiatives.

The airbag revolution in 1980

This little automotive safety retrospective to tell you that the airbag was actually invented…mercedes ! If Volvo is the ace in this field, the German has also always innovated in this direction. In this way, we are indebted to Mercedes-Benz central locking (1958), full ABS (1972). And electronic stability corrector (ESP, 1995). Thus, Mercedes is also the source of the first “ collision protection device for car passengers ” as written on the patent for the first airbag, filed in 1971.

The first serial model that was equipped with it was S-class (W126), 1980 She also carried the first seat belt pretensioner system during shock. Since then, the brand with the star has been patented side airbag (1995), with Window (1998), head/chest (2001), or even knees (2009). However, we must Volvo the invention of an airbag for pedestrians that deploys on the windshield in the event of a head-on collision. It was in 2012, on a V40. These two have always competed, but at least here it was for a good cause…

Concentrate of technologies in the security service

How exactly does it work? On a a significant shockfrom 15 to 30 km/h, sensors send a signal to the “brain” of the airbag, which is called a computer. He decides this depending on the importance of the shock, deployable airbagsand selects the volume of air to be pumped. In fact, the stronger the impact, the greater the volume of air the computer requires from the airbag. The latter is inflated thanks to a pressure generatorWHO fills the bag in a fraction of a second.

The effectiveness of this system lies in the computer’s ability to analyze which hits do not require airbag deployment. For example, shocks against the body or a sudden rise to the pavement. There is an airbag inflator is checked at each technical inspection, but only its electronic organs, not the state of the bag itself, for example. That’s why it is recommended to replace airbags every 10-15 years, for optimal safety.