Inan automobile, seat belts and air bags are the two main items as safety deviceis concerned. The development of air bags began with the idea for a system thatwould restrain automobile drivers and passengers in an accident. Textiles areused in cars for a wide variety of purposes: to enhance comfort, thermalinsulation, design, vehicle safety and more insulation, often required acousticproperties.

Automotivetextiles are engineered fabrics to meet the challenges of an increasinglycompetitive automobile manufacturer requirement. There exists a lot ofcompetition among the manufacturer due to globalization, which is making it oneof the most happening industries. In the present paper; various fibers used inairbag production, different types of airbags system, recent developments inairbag system are dealt with explanation of chemistry. Textiles are findingincreased application in today's world because of the increased production ofautomobile in the world. It won't an exaggeration to predict this textile to bethe textiles of the 21^st century. Textile materials are used inautomotive for interior trim and for ensuring comfort as well as forreinforcement. Textile material is used primarily for their technicalperformances and functional properties rather than their aesthetics and theirdecorative value.

This article was originally published in the Textile Review magazine,January, 2013 issue, published by Saket Projects Limited, Ahmedabad.

Aboutthe Author:

Aravin Prince Periyasamy*& Moin Khan are associated with the Department of Textile Engineering atthe DKTE Textile and Engineering Institute, Ichalkaranji