The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 16, 1999
Filed:
Apr. 30, 1997
Shigeru Yasuda, Yokohama, JP;
Hiroyoshi Yamaguchi, Yokohama, JP;
Eiji Shimizu, Yokohama, JP;
Tomoharu Ohi, Yokohama, JP;
NHK Spring Co., Ltd., Kanagawa, JP;
Abstract
In a pre-tensioner assembly for automatically increasing a tension of a seat belt in case of a vehicle crash, an arm is pivotally attached to a base plate at its one end and to a part of a seat belt, and a cylinder and piston device is attached to the base plate to selectively rotate the arm from a rest position to an operative position. Typically, the cylinder and piston device comprises a linear cylinder having a propellant placed in a bottom end thereof. The rotary arm for displacing a buckle or other part of the seat belt can be substantially directly connected to the piston of the actuator, and because the piston rod is pushed out of the cylinder when actuating the rotary arm, the pressure receiving surface of the piston can be maximized. Therefore, the power transmission efficiency is improved, and the required amount of the propellant can be reduced with the result that the size and the cost of the assembly can be minimized.