Quick release seat belt anchor

• US 5,215,332 A
• Filed: 05/21/1990
• Issued: 06/01/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 05/21/1990
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Original Assignee: General Motors Corporation (Motors Liquidation Co. GUC Trust)
• Inventors: De Sloovere, Bernard G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Marmor, Charles A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): GRAYSAY, TAMARA L
• Application Number:
  US07/526,479
• Time in Patent Office: 1,107 Days
• Field of Search: 280/727, 280/801, 280/802, 280/803, 280/804, 280/808, 297/468, 297/469, 297/481, 297/482, 297/483, 297/485, 297/486, 403/315, 403/353, 248/223.1
• US Class Current: 280/801.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/18 Anchoring devices

Abstract

A seat belt anchor for detachably mounting a seat belt on a bolt has a shank extending axially from a vehicle body panel and a bolt head projecting in a radial direction from the shank. The seat belt anchor has an anchor plate with a keyhole shaped slot including an access portion for receiving the bolt head and a retaining portion which is narrower than the bolt head and further from the seat belt than the access portion for receiving the shank of the belt. The anchor plate is mounted on the bolt when the retaining portion of the keyhole shaped slot is registered with the bolt head. An axially yieldable spring carried by the anchor plate axially engages the bolt head to urge the anchor plate into engagement with the bolt head. A spring and a pair of detent bosses carried by the anchor plate engage with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the key hole slot. The anchor plate is detachable from the bolt by depressing the anchor plate axially towards the vehicle body panel as permitted by yielding of the axially yieldable spring to disengage the detent bosses from the bolt head and allow sliding movement of the anchor plate in the radial direction to register the bolt head with the access portion. This allows the detaching of the bolt head through the access portion.

Claims

1. A seat belt anchor for detachably mounting a seat belt on a bolt having a shank extending axially from a vehicle body panel and a bolt head projecting in a radial direction from the shank and spaced from the panel by the shank, the seat belt anchor comprising:

an anchor plate connected to the seat belt and having a keyhole shaped slot including an access portion for receiving the bolt head when the access portion is registered with the head, and a retaining portion which is narrower than the head of the bolt and further from the seat belt than the access portion for receiving the shank of the bolt and mounting the anchor plate on the bolt when the retaining portion is registered with the head;

yieldable axial retention means carried by the anchor plate axially engageable with the bolt head to urge the anchor plate into engagement with the bolt head; and

radial yielding spring carried by the anchor plate and yieldable engageable with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially for holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the keyhole slot, whereby the anchor plate is detachable from the bolt by depressing the anchor plate axially toward the vehicle body panel yielding the yieldable axial retention means and the radial yielding spring allowing sliding movement of the anchor plate in the radial direction, the bolt head to be registered with the access portion to allow the detaching of the bolt head through the access portion.

2. A seat belt anchor for detachably mounting a seat belt on a bolt having a shank extending axially from a vehicle body panel and a bolt head projecting in a radial direction from the shank and spaced from the panel by the shank, the seat belt anchor comprising:

an anchor plate connected to the seat belt and having a keyhole shaped slot including an access portion for receiving the bolt head when the access portion is registered with the head, and a retaining portion which is narrower than the head portion of the bolt and further from the seat belt than the access portion for receiving the shank of the bolt and mounting the anchor plate on the bolt when the retaining portion is register with the head;

a cover retained by the anchor plate having a pair of detent bosses projecting axially toward the anchor plate engageable with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially for holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the keyhole slot, and a pair of posts projecting axially toward the anchor plate and register on opposing edges of the access portion of the keyhole shaped slot;

an extension spring mounted between the pair of posts register over the access portion of the keyhole slot engageable with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially for holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the keyhole slot; and

a leaf spring mounted on the the cover axial between the cover and the keyhole shaped slot in the anchor plate engageable with the bolt head to urge the anchor plate into engagement with the bolt head, the anchor plate being detachable from the bolt by depressing the anchor plate axially toward the vehicle body panel yielding the leaf spring and disengaging the bolt head from the detent bosses and then sliding the anchor plate radially yielding the extension spring allowing the head of the bolt to be registered with the access portion to allow the detaching of the bolt head through the access portion.

3. A seat belt anchor for detachably mounting a seat belt on a bolt having a shank extending axially from a vehicle body panel and a bolt head projecting in a radial direction from the shank and spaced from the panel by the shank, the seat belt anchor comprising:

an anchor plate having a seat belt slot towards one end for connecting the seat belt and having a keyhole shaped slot near the other end including an access portion for receiving the bolt head and a retaining portion which is narrower than the bolt head and further from the seat belt slot than the access portion for retaining the shank of the bolt and a pair of notches cut on a pair of opposite edges of the anchor plate;

a cover having a pair of tangs on a pair of sides for engaging the notches in the anchor plate for retaining the cover to the anchor plate, an opening define by a planar surface of the cover and the the anchor plate, the cover having a pair of detent bosses projecting in to the opening for engagement with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially for holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the keyhole slot, a pair of post projected into the opening;

an extension spring mounted between the pair of posts register over the access portion of the keyhole slot engageable with the bolt head to retain the anchor plate radially for holding the bolt in the retaining portion of the keyhole slot; and

a leaf spring mounted on the the cover axial between the cover and the keyhole shaped slot in the anchor plate engageable with the bolt head to urge the anchor plate into engagement with the bolt head, the anchor plate being detachable from the bolt by depressing the anchor plate axially toward the vehicle body panel yielding the leaf spring and disengaging the bolt head from the detent bosses and then sliding the anchor plate radially yielding the extension spring allowing the head of the bolt to be registered with the access portion to allow the detaching of the bolt head through the access portion.

4. A seat belt anchor according to claim 3 wherein the anchor plate is bent so that the keyhole slot is not in the same plane as the seat belt slot.

5. A seat belt anchor according to claim 3 wherein the cover has a locally raised boss portion to assist the attaching the bolt to the seat belt anchor.

6. A seat belt anchor according to claim 3 wherein the cover has a plurality of tabs on the edges for guiding the cover over the anchor plate.