The Invention of the Air Bag

1
The Invention of the Air Bag

• By Jeff Luerman

2
How the Invention Works

• The air bag works when a car hits another car or
  object at ten to fifteen miles per hour. Then
  the accelerometer sends the information to the
  crash sensors which trigger the inflation device.
  The inflation system works when sodium azide is
  mixed with potassium nitrate to produce nitrogen
  gas. Then a hot blast of the nitrogen gas
  inflates the air bag. Faster than the blink of
  an eye, the air bag blows out of its storage
  place at 200 mph. Once the air bag is inflated,
  then it deflates a second later so that you can
  move. The gas quickly leaves the bag through
  tiny holes in the bag.

3
History of the Air Bag

• The air bag was invented by John W. Hetrick in
  1952 and was patented in 1953. Hetrick was
  inspired to invent the first prototype after he
  and his family were in a car accident. Although
  he had the first patent he did not receive a
  penny off it. Allen K. Breed invented the key
  component for automobile use, the ball in tube
  sensor for crash detection. Allen Breed marketed
  this in 1967. The air bag was available in the
  U.S. in the 1970s. In 1973 an infant was killed
  by an air bag and this was the first air bag
  fatality.
• The government had a lot to do with air bags
  being required to be in cars. In 1971 the NHTSA
  ordered passive restraints in cars by 1976. But
  they had a problem with safety and people being
  potentially killed by the force of air bags
  hitting them.

4
History of the Air Bag

• Air bags became common in the 1980s with
  Chrysler making them standard equipment in all of
  their cars by 1990. In March 12, 1990 two
  LeBarons were going over a blind hill top at over
  seventy miles per hour and collided. Both
  passengers walked away because each car was
  equipped with an air bag. This was the first
  recorded collision between two vehicles in which
  an air bag deployed to protect each driver.
• In July of 1994 the U.S. government required
  all cars being made after April 1, 1989 to have
  driver side airbags. In 1998 dual air bags were
  required by the National Highway Traffic Safety
  Administration (NHTSA).
• In 1995 side air bags were first offered as an
  option in Volvos. In 2006 Honda introduced the
  first motorcycle air bag safety system. The air
  bag was installed on its Gold Wing motorcycle.

5
Picture
6
Improvements that have Been Made

• Over the years the air bag has become safer and
  more effective. One improvement is that the air
  bag knows if the crash is bad or not so bad. If
  the crash is really bad then the bag will fill up
  with a lot of air. If the crash is minor the bag
  will only fill up with a small amount of air. On
  some cars the air bags know how hard to go off by
  taking the persons weight, seat position, and
  also severity of the crash. Researchers have
  learned that the risk zone for driver air bags is
  the first two to three inches. So placing
  yourself ten inches away from the air bag can
  increase the margin of safety. There are also
  now side curtain air bags for some cars in the
  front and back. Also, Honda has now made air
  bags for their motorcycles.

7
Biography of Allen K. Breed

• Allen Breed was born in 1927 and died in 1999.
  He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in
  mechanical engineering from Northwestern
  University in 1950.
• After college Allen Breed worked for RCA as a
  manager of manufacturing and design engineering.
  In 1957 he founded his first company Waltham
  Engineering. In 1961 he formed the Breed Corp.
  to make safety and arming devices for the
  military.
• He invented the first sensor and safety system
  in 1968. This was the worlds first
  electromechanical automotive air bag system.
• In 1995 he was elected the National
  Entrepreneur of the year and in 1999 Allen Breed
  was placed in the Automotive Hall of Fame.
• Allen K. Breed was married to Johnie Cordell
  and had four children, Leslie, Daryl, Douglas,
  and Jeffrey.

8
Allen K. Breed
9
How the Invention Improved Life

• The invention of the air bag has saved thousands
  of lives. From 1975 to 1994 the air bag has
  saved about 730 lives. It has also saved the
  following number of lives 783 in 1996, 973 in
  1997, 1,208 in 1998, 1,716 in 2000, 1,978 in
  2001, and 2,248 in 2,002, which is the most
  recent report. It has also reduced the amount of
  injury from car crashes that do not kill people.
  People can now drive without the fear of their
  face smashing into the dashboard.

10
The Future of the Invention

• Air bag Technology is changing constantly.
  Smart air bags are being developed which will
  inflate according to such factors as seat belt
  use, occupant size, presence, and closeness to
  the air bag module. Even motorcycle air bag
  technology has been developed to protect riders
  from injury when the front of the motorcycle
  strikes an object. They have even invented a
  vest that inflates when riders are ejected from
  their motorcycles.