Finite element/boundary element coupling for airbag deployment

In a small percentage of airbag deployments, out-of-position impact occurs, usually resulting in severe injuries. To understand and improve the inflation process, a precise understanding of the airbag dynamics is required. This can be provided by accurate numerical simulations. These simulations are however a complicated endeavor, mainly on account of the large displacements and length-scale disparities inherently involved. On the one hand, a realistic stowed airbag constitutes a labyrinth of intricate folds. On the other, the final configuration is a relatively simple bulb. To date, the complex behavior on the small scales have been overly simplified (e.g. [3]) rendering the results inappropriate for analysis of out-of-position situations.