Device And Method For Influencing The Force Of A Seatbelt
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Abstract
A device for influencing the force of a seatbelt acting on an occupant of a passenger vehicle during a collision, for example. The device includes a rotary damper with a magnetorheological fluid as a working fluid for damping a rotational movement of a damper shaft of the rotary damper when winding or unwinding the seatbelt. The rotary damper has a displacing device with displacing components which engage into one another and which are wetted by the magnetorheological fluid. By using a paired controller, a magnetic field of a magnetic field source with an electric coil can be controlled and the magnetorheological fluid can be influenced in order to adjust the damping of the rotational movement of the damper shaft.
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Citations
46 Claims
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1-23. -23. (canceled)
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24. An apparatus for influencing the force of a safety belt on an occupant of a vehicle, the apparatus comprising:
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a rotary damper having a damper shaft and magneto-rheological fluid being a working fluid for damping a rotational movement of said damper shaft during a winding-up or unwinding of the safety belt; said rotary damper having a displacement device with displacement components that engage into one another and which are wetted by the magnetorheological fluid; a magnetic field source with at least one electrical coil for generating a magnetic field; and a control device configured to control the magnetic field of the magnetic field source and to thereby influence the magnetorheological fluid and to adjust a degree of damping of the rotational movement of said damper shaft. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
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46. A method for influencing a force of a safety belt on an occupant of a passenger vehicle, the method comprising:
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providing a rotary damper with a magnetorheological fluid being a working fluid in a damping channel, the rotary damper being effective to exert a torque opposing a rotation of a damper shaft; determining a value for a load exerted on the occupant by the safety belt; subsequently, in dependence on the value for the load, adjusting a magnetic field of a magnetic field source effective in the damping channel of the rotary damper in order to dampen a rotational movement of the damper shaft during a winding-up or unwinding of the safety belt.
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Specification