The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company

Trw Vehicle Safety Systems Inc.

Trw Automotive Products, Inc.

Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Wallace C Higbee

Louis R Brown

Barney J Bauer

Robert J Rumpf

Regis V Pilarski

Ronald A Willey

Ronald J Walker

Jay Walter Jensen

Gary D Kuntzman

A vehicle safety apparatus includes a safety belt retractor having a reel which is urged to rotate in a belt retraction direction. A comfort assembly is operable between an engaged condition blocking rotation of the reel in the belt retraction direction and a disengaged condition. The comfort assembly includes a manually actuatable push button which initiates operation of the comfort assembly from the disengaged condition to the engaged condition. The comfort assembly also includes a blocking member which blocks movement of a pawl into engagement with a ratchet wheel until the push button has been actuated. The comfort assembly further includes a cam which also blocks movement of the pawl into engagement with the ratchet wheel until the reel has been rotated in a belt retraction direction through at least a major portion of a revolution of the reel. The comfort assembly accommodates limited movement of an occupant in a vehicle. However, if the movement of the occupant of the vehicle is effective to withdraw more than a predetermined length of belt from the reel, the comfort assembly is disengaged and cannot be reengaged until the push button is again actuated.

Safety apparatus

An apparatus comprising a spindle on which belt webbing is wound. The spindle is supported for rotation in belt retraction and belt withdrawal directions. The spindle is biased to rotate in the belt retraction direction. The apparatus also includes a manually movable member. The spindle is rotated in the belt withdrawal direction in response to movement of the manually movable member to pay out a predetermined amount of belt webbing from the spindle. Thereafter, rotation of the spindle in the belt retraction direction is blocked.

Seat belt retractor having a comfort mechanism with full memory and

A seat belt retractor for a vehicle includes a spindle on which belt webbing is wound. The spindle is supported for rotation in belt retraction and belt withdrawal directions. Rotation of the spindle causes rotation of a first ratchet wheel from which a plurality of teeth extend. A lever is movable into engagement with a tooth on the first ratchet wheel to block rotation of the first ratchet wheel in the belt withdrawal direction. The spindle is also connected to a second ratchet wheel from which a plurality of teeth extend. A resiliently deflectable member is engageable with one of the plurality of teeth on the second ratchet wheel to block rotation of the spindle in the belt retraction direction. The resiliently deflectable member deflects to permit the lever to disengage from the first ratchet wheel and prevent a double lock condition in which the spindle cannot rotate in either the belt withdrawal direction or belt retraction direction.

Seat belt retractor with comfort mechanism

A seat belt retractor of the vehicle sensitive type and which is selectively convertible to function as an automatic locking type seat belt retractor in which the protraction of the webbing to a particular extent achieves the conversion and the vehicle sensitive mode is restored upon a selected amount of webbing retraction.

Seat belt retractor

A seat belt retractor has a ring gear connected for rotation with a seat belt reel. A planet gear and sun gear are freely rotatable about their axes. The planet gear is connected to a locking pawl, and a spring normally maintains the pawl in a release position. When the seat belt reel rotates at a rate of acceleration above a predetermined level, the inertia of the sun gear and the planet gear overcomes the action of the spring, causing the planet gear to move bodily around the sun gear. Movement of the planet gear moves the pawl to a lock position, in which it prevents withdrawal of the seat belt from the reel.

Planetary inertial seat belt retractor

A device for guiding and selectively clamping an occupant restraint belt used in a vehicle. The device has a frame with an opening through which the belt extends. The frame has two clamping surfaces that are spaced apart in the direction of belt extension. A clamp member moves between the first and second clamping surfaces transversely to the direction of belt extension to engage the belt and deform a portion of the belt into a serpentine configuration and to clamp the belt against the two clamping surfaces. The clamp member is moved relative to the clamping surfaces by a mechanism that responds to the application of force to the frame by the belt.

Belt turning ring and clamping device

A toggle type web lock using articulated bars in a channel frame to close on webbing with a force dependent upon tension in the webbing. The web lock is variably located in safety belt harness systems and is of greatest utility in prevention of webbing elongation in long runs of safety belt webbing.

Toggle type web lock

An improved comfort mechanism which is located on the frame of a seat belt retractor and which vastly simplifies comfort mechanism construction. The mechanism is loaded into a closable disc-like shallow case. A ratchet is keyed to the shaft of the retractor and a combination clutch plate and cam element is rested over the ratchet and frictionally pressed against the ratchet by a spring so as to turn with it limited by selected stops. A pawl normally biased out-of-contact with the ratchet is also in the case and the pawl is selectively acted upon by the cam skirt of the combination clutch plate and cam element to engage and disengage the pawl with the ratchet as the webbing is manipulated. The case is provided with a cover enclosing all parts. Case cover, combination clutch plate and cam, pawl and the ratchet may all be fabricated from plastic injection molded or formed parts.

Comfort mechanism for safety belt retractors

A passive restraint harness system is provided for deployment of a safety belt. The safety belt is a piece of webbing forming a lap belt portion and a cross chest portion. An upper anchor connects one end of the webbing to the upper rear edge of a vehicle door and a lower anchor connects to the other end of the webbing to the lower rear edge of the same vehicle door. A vehicle sensitive seat belt retractor located adjacent the seat of the user of the belt and inboard of the user is slidably connected to the piece of webbing forming lap and chest portions and urges it under a spring bias toward the retractor. This forms the lap belt portion and the shoulder or cross chest portion in respect to a seated user. A track is vertically oriented on the inner door face and fastened to the lower anchor. A slider is also on the track and the slider is over the webbing above the lower anchor. A traveler linkage is supported on the rear of the track and connected to the slider. The traveler linkage is connected by a cable element from the track to the hinge edge of the door. As the door is opened, the slider is raised on the track elevating the lap belt portion which is swung free with the cross chest portion of the webbing from across the user as the door is opened.

Passive restraint system

A dual spool retractor structure wherein one of the spools is prevented from retraction until a predetermined amount of retraction occurs in the other of the spools.

Rewind prevention for dual spool retractors

A dual spool side by side retractor structure on a common frame wherein both spools are acted upon by a common lock pawl element, the lock pawl element engaging the ratchet teeth of one of the two spools and then being positively and guidably driven by the first spool to powered engagement with the other of said two spools and the guiding occurring as a consequence of cam surfaces directing the pawl-to-ratchet engagement. The pawl lock element is activated by a sensor element such as a pendulum structure. The pawl lock element is located between and beneath the two spools and upon tilting, the lock pawl element pivots toward guided interference with one set of ratchet teeth whereupon the moving spool drives the pawl element up a cam ramp to lockably engage the second spool. The pawl element is first displaced by an actuating sensor element and then the pawl element is displaced and driven laterally by the first spool in a direction transverse to the first displacement and up a ramp into contact with the retractor teeth of the second spool. The withdrawal and retraction directions of both spools are in an opposite sense to each other and the retractor spools are locked against any further withdrawal action when engaged by the pawl element. A spring in association with the cam-ramp restores the pawl element as retraction movement frees the pawl element.

Dual spool positive drive retractor

A post supported bell pendulum omnidirectional inertial sensor for seat belt retractors and the like in which the bell shaped pendulum rests on a post and the post is positioned vertically in a vehicle such as an automobile. The bell pendulum has substantially more mass depending in its flared skirt portion and includes a flat top so that upon displacement of the bell shaped pendulum from the axis of the post, the flat top is cocked or tilted and elevates. This mechanically changes the effective elevation to trip or move a stop control lever and cause a locking of the retractor against withdrawal when inertial imbalance is sensed.

Vehicle sensitive inertial sensor for retractors and the like

A vehicle sensitive inertial retractor for safety belting and the like which includes a frame or base supporting a webbing receptacle in the form of a spring motor loaded reel or drum and biased to rewind. The frame also supports a saddle and the saddle provides a fulcrum seat for an inertially displaceable pendulum mass. A lever, pivotal in the frame is positioned to engage the pendulum in a following relation and a finger portion of the lever holds a face clutch plate against movement corresponding to the outgoing of the adjacent drum or reel which accompanies withdrawal of webbing. The clutch plate includes a cam portion which normally blocks a spring biased pawl bar from lock engagement with ratchet wheels on the reel or drum. Clutch rotation limiting means are also provided in the frame of the retractor restricting the extremes of rotation of the clutch plate in the manner of a stop. The retractor construction is of the inertial locking type in which a mass displaces a lever and the lever thereupon frees a face type friction clutch for limited rotation with the drum of the retractor. Upon the limited displacement of the clutch, the blocking cam is moved away from blocking relation with tbe spring loaded pawl bar and the pawl bar thereupon pivots in the retractor frame to engage the ratchet teeth on the drum flanges and thus preventing any further withdrawal of webbing from the retractor. As a consequence, webbing is freely withdrawn from and retracted onto the retractor reel except under sensed inertial imbalance.

Face clutch vehicle sensitive inertial retractors

A locker retractor for seat belt harness and the like which includes an interposer element articulated by movement of the drum or reel to selectively block or release a spring biased pawl bar and holding the pawl bar away from locking a ratchet on one or both of the reel flanges or selectively freeing the pawl bar so that it may lock the ratchet in prevention of further drum rotation in the withdrawal direction. The shift from blocking to non-blocking position is achieved by a slight retraction of the webbing after initial free withdrawal, whereupon the interposer element falls free of its blocking relation. The interposer is a latch-like element pivotally and slidably connected to the frame and oriented and frictionally directed by a ring element turned by the moving of the drum. The interposer described is also useful in providing quiet free-pull and retraction in inertial retractors as described in copending application Ser. No. 258,576 filed on June 1, 1972 now U.S. Pat. No. 3,865,320.

Growing community of inventors

Romeo, MI, United States of America

Wallace C Higbee