In many cars, airbags spring from just about every possible area, should the driver happen upon an accident. And now ‘inflatable restraint manufacturer’ (we think that essentially means airbags) has developed an airbag mounted in the roof.
It isn’t just puff (pun unfortunately intended) either; apparently TRW has already inked a deal with an as-yet-unnamed European car manufacturer to provide it with roof ’bags.
But does this mean the end is nigh for unseemly, bloated steering wheels and dashbords? Perhaps not; this could be just an extra airbag rather than any sort of replacement.
There is hope however, because TRW’s press release has this to say: This new design concept enhances development efficiency: by eliminating the need to package a passenger airbag in the instrument panel, TRW's bag in roof design can significantly reduce the development costs of the dashboard as there is no need to develop a specific 'door' that opens with the airbag deployment. It is also functionally compatible with a wide range of vehicle architectures.