Passive lap and shoulder belt system

• US 4,201,401 A
• Filed: 03/26/1979
• Issued: 05/06/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/1979
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: Brynn, Gerald E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bertsch, Richard A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Schrecengost, Randall A.
• Application Number:
  US06/023,687
• Time in Patent Office: 407 Days
• Field of Search: 280/802, 280/803, 280/804, 280/807, 280/808, 297/469, 297/474, 297/475, 297/483
• US Class Current: 280/803
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/04 Passive restraint systems, i.e. systems both applied and removed automatically, e.g. by movement of the vehicle door

Abstract

In a passive seat belt system, the outboard ends of the lap and shoulder belts are respectively mounted at upper and lower locations on the vehicle door. The inboard ends of the lap and shoulder belts are joined together and are attached to a pivot belt having an inboard end fixedly mounted on the vehicle body substantially forward of the inboard occupant hip. The pivot belt has a fixed length adapted to define an arcuate path of horizontal swinging movement of the inboard ends of the lap and shoulder belts between restraining positions adjacent the inboard occupant hip when the door is closed and a stowed position substantially forwardly of the occupant hip when the door is open. A control belt is connected to the juncture of the lap, shoulder and pivot belts. A control belt retractor is mounted on the vehicle body generally adjacent the inboard hip of the occupant and is adapted to retract the control belt when the door is closed to draw the inboard restraint belt ends rearwardly in the arcuate swinging path defined by the pivot belt to a point substantially adjacent the inboard hip to establish the lap and shoulder belts in their respective restraining positions closely adjacent the occupant.

Claims

1. In combination with a vehicle body having an occupant compartment in which an occupant seat is accessible through a door opening selectively opened and closed by a movable door, a passive occupant restraining belt arrangement comprising:

a restraint belt having an outboard end and an inboard end;

means mounting the outboard belt end on the vehicle body outboard the occupant and adapted to move the outboard belt end between a rearward restraining position closely adjacent the occupant when the door is closed and a stowed position forwardly of the occupant when the door is open;

a pivot belt having an inboard end fixedly mounted on the vehicle body substantially forwardly of the inboard occupant hip and an outboard end connected to the inboard end of the restraint belt, said pivot belt having a fixed length and being adapted to extend generally colinear with the restraint belt when the door is open so that the restraint belt is stowed forwardly of the occupant when the door is open to facilitate occupant access;

a control belt connected to the inboard end of the restraint belt and the outboard end of the pivot belt;

and a control belt retractor mounted on the vehicle body generally adjacent the inboard hip of the occupant and adapted to retract the control belt when the door is closed to draw the inboard restraint belt end rearwardly adjacent the occupant inboard hip and thereby establish the inboard restraint belt end in the restraining position closely adjacent the occupant.

2. In combination with a vehicle body having an occupant compartment in which an occupant seat is accessible through a door opening selectively opened and closed by a movable door, a passive occupant restraining belt arrangement comprising:

a restraint belt having an outboard end mounted on the vehicle door and an inboard end adapted for positioning adjacent the inboard occupant hip when the door is closed to restrain the occupant in the seat;

a pivot belt having an inboard end fixedly mounted on the vehicle body substantially forwardly of the inboard occupant hip and an outboard end connected to the inboard end of the restraint belt, said pivot belt having a fixed length adapted to define an arcuate path of horizontal swinging movement of the inboard restraint belt end between the restraining position adjacent the occupant hip when the door is closed and a position forwardly of the occupant hip when the door is open;

a control belt connected to the inboard restraint belt and the outboard end of the pivot belt;

and a control belt retractor mounted on the vehicle body generally adjacent the inboard hip of the occupant and adapted to retract the control belt when the door is closed to draw the inboard restraint belt end rearwardly to substantially adjacent the occupant inboard hip and thereby cooperate with the inboard swinging movement of the outboard restraint belt end during door closing movement to establish the restraint belt in the restraining position closely adjacent the occupant.

3. In combination with a vehicle body having an occupant compartment in which an occupant seat is accessible through a door opening selectively opened and closed by a movable door, a passive occupant restraining belt arrangement comprising:

a restraint belt having an inboard end and an outboard end;

a retractor mounting the outboard belt end on the vehicle door and adapted to wind and unwind the restraint belt during door movement between the open and closed positions;

a fixed length pivot belt having an inboard end fixedly mounted on the vehicle body substantially forwardly of the inboard occupant hip and an outboard end connected to the inboard end of the restraint belt so that the pivot belt extends colinear with the restraint belt to establish the inboard restraint belt end substantially forward of the occupant;

a control belt connected to the inboard restraint belt and the outboard end of the pivot belt;

and a control belt retractor mounted on the vehicle body generally adjacent the inboard hip of the occupant, said control belt retractor having selectively actuable drive means associated therewith to forcibly retract the control belt against the retracting effort of the restraint belt retractor to swing the inboard restraint belt end rearwardly to substantially adjacent the occupant inboard hip and thereby cooperate with the inboard swinging movement of the outboard restraint belt end during door closing movement to establish the restraint belt in the restraining position closely adjacent the occupant.

4. In combination with a vehicle body having an occupant compartment in which an occupant seat is accessible through a door opening selectively opened and closed by a movable door, a passive occupant restraining belt arrangement comprising:

a restraint belt having an outboard end mounted on the vehicle door and an inboard end fixedly mounted on the vehicle body substantially forwardly of the inboard occupant hip so that when the door is opened the belt is positioned substantially forwardly of the occupant by the swing geometry of the door to facilitate occupant ingress and egress;

a control belt connected to the restraint belt at a point thereon which is spaced from the inboard fixed end by a distance generally equal to the distance from the inboard occupant hip to the inboard fixed belt end;

and retractor means mounted on the vehicle body generally adjacent the inboard hip of the occupant, said inboard retractor means having means associated therewith to retract the control belt when the door is closed to draw the restraint belt rearwardly to substantially adjacent the occupant inboard hip and thereby dispose the restraint belt in a restraint position closely adjacent the occupant.