Passive lap and shoulder belt system

• US 4,211,430 A
• Filed: 03/26/1979
• Issued: 07/08/1980
• 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: Fancy, Richard E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Song, Robert R.
• Application Number:
  US06/024,108
• Time in Patent Office: 470 Days
• Field of Search: 280/802, 280/803, 297/388, 297/389
• US Class Current: 280/802
• 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

A passive three-point lap and shoulder belt system has lap and shoulder belt retractors mounted on the lower rear corner of the door. The shoulder belt is slidable through an anchor loop mounted on the upper rear corner of the door. The inboard ends of the lap and shoulder belts are joined together at the juncture which is connected to a control belt mounted inboard the seat by an inboard retractor. The winding effort of the shoulder belt retractor is greater than the winding effort of both the lap belt retractor and the inboard retractor to locate the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts adjacent the anchor loop so that the lap belt is stowed vertically along the door and the control belt extends diagonally between the inboard retractor and the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts. The inboard retractor has a motor and a latch mechanism which forcibly retract and hold the control belt against the effort of the shoulder belt retractor when the door is closed to position the lap and shoulder belt juncture at the inboard retractor and thereby establish the shoulder belt and lap belt in their restraining positions. When the door is opened the latch mechanism unlocks the control belt for extension by the greater retracting effort of the shoulder belt retractor so that the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts is returned to the door mounted shoulder height anchor loop to lift the lap belt off the occupant.

Claims

1. In combination with the 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 lap belt and shoulder belt having inboard ends joined together at a juncture and outboard ends;

first means retractably mounting the outboard lap belt end on the door generally adjacent the occupant hip;

second means retractably mounting the outboard shoulder belt end on the door substantially at occupant shoulder height, said second retracting means having a relatively greater retracting effort than the first retracting means so that the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts is normally established at shoulder height to stow the lap belt vertically along the door;

a control belt connected to the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts;

third means retractably mounting the control belt on the vehicle body inboard the occupant seat and having a retracting effort relatively less than the retracting effort of the second means so that the control belt extends diagonally between the third means and the shoulder height location of the lap and shoulder belt juncture;

and drive means associated with the third means to forcibly retract the control belt against the bias of the first and second means when the door is closed so that the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts is positioned inboard the occupant to establish the lap and shoulder belts in their respective occupant restraining positions.

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 lap belt and a shoulder belt having inboard ends joined together and outboard ends;

an anchor loop mounted on the door generally adjacent the shoulder of the occupant and slidably receiving the shoulder belt intermediate the inboard and outboard ends;

a lap belt retractor and a shoulder belt retractor mounted on the door for extending and retracting the outboard ends of the lap belt and the shoulder belt, said shoulder belt retractor having a higher retracting effort than the lap belt retractor to position the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts at the anchor loop and thereby lift the lap belt to a stowed position along the door;

a control belt connected to the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts;

an inboard retractor mounted on the vehicle body inboard the occupant seat for extending and retracting the control belt, and having a retracting effort less than the retracting effort of the shoulder belt retractor;

an electric motor associated with the inboard retractor for forcibly retracting the control belt;

and an electrical control circuit having a door operated switch for energizing the motor to forcibly retract the control belt when the door is closed to extend the lap and shoulder belts from their respective door-mounted retractors so that the shoulder belt is moved to a diagonal restraining position across the chest of the occupant and the lap belt is moved to a restraining position across the lap of 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 lap belt and a shoulder belt having inboard ends joined together and outboard ends;

an anchor loop mounted on the door generally adjacent the shoulder of the occupant and slidably receiving the shoulder belt intermediate the inboard and outboard ends;

a lap belt retractor and a shoulder belt retractor mounted on the door for extending and retracting the outboard ends of the lap belt and the shoulder belt, said shoulder belt retractor having a higher retracting effort than the lap belt retractor to position the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts at the anchor loop and thereby lift the lap belt to a stowed position along the door;

a control belt connected to the juncture of the lap and shoulder belts;

an inboard retractor mounted on the vehicle body inboard the occupant seat for extending and retracting the control belt and having a retracting effort less than the winding effort of the shoulder belt so that the juncture of the lap and shoulder belt is normally positioned at the anchor loop to stow the lap belt vertically along the door;

drive means associated with the inboard retractor to retract the control belt when the door is closed to extend the lap and shoulder belts from their respective door mounted retractors so that the shoulder belt is moved to a diagonally restraining position across the chest of the occupant and the lap belt is moved to a restraining position across the lap of the occupant;

latch means associated with the inboard retractor for selectively latching the retractor against extension of the control belt therefrom;

and control means adapted to engage the latch means when the door is closed so that the shoulder belt is held extended against the relatively large retracting effort of the shoulder belt retractor.