Adjustable energy absorbing device for use in a vehicle seat belt restraint system
First Claim
1. An apparatus comprising:
- vehicle seat belt webbing which is extensible about a vehicle occupant;
a first member connectable to a vehicle;
a second member connected to said seat belt webbing;
an energy absorbing mechanism disposed between said first and second members and for dissipating energy transferred to said seat belt webbing due to movement of a vehicle occupant against said seat belt webbing in response to vehicle deceleration of at least a predetermined magnitude;
actuatable means for, when actuated, varying the amount of energy to be dissipated by said energy absorbing mechanism;
sensing means for sensing at least one characteristic selected from an occupant characteristic and a vehicle collision characteristic; and
control means responsive to said sensing means and for actuating said actuatable means to vary the amount of energy to be dissipated by said energy absorbing mechanism.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus (10) comprises vehicle seat belt webbing (26) which is extensible about a vehicle occupant. A first member (60) is connectable to the vehicle and a second member (90) is connected to the belt webbing (26). An energy absorbing mechanism (70) disposed between the first and second members (60, 90) dissipates energy transferred to the belt webbing (26) due to movement of a vehicle occupant against the belt webbing (26) in response to vehicle deceleration. The mechanism (70) includes a cutter block (75) disposed on one of the members (60, 90) for cutting into the material of the other of the members when an occupant presses against the belt webbing (26) in response to vehicle deceleration with a force above a predetermined magnitude. A first sensor (102) senses an occupant characteristic, such as the weight of the occupant. A second sensor (104) senses another occupant characteristic, such as the location of the occupant. A third sensor (106) senses a vehicle collision characteristic, such as the crash severity of the vehicle collision. A microcomputer (100) is responsive to at least one of the sensors (102, 104, 106) and generates a control signal (84) to actuate a motor (80) to adjust the position of the cutter block (75) relative to the other of the first and second members (60, 90) to vary the amount of cutting force, and thus energy, when applied over a distance to be dissipated by the energy absorbing mechanism (70).
51 Citations
18 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
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vehicle seat belt webbing which is extensible about a vehicle occupant; a first member connectable to a vehicle; a second member connected to said seat belt webbing; an energy absorbing mechanism disposed between said first and second members and for dissipating energy transferred to said seat belt webbing due to movement of a vehicle occupant against said seat belt webbing in response to vehicle deceleration of at least a predetermined magnitude; actuatable means for, when actuated, varying the amount of energy to be dissipated by said energy absorbing mechanism; sensing means for sensing at least one characteristic selected from an occupant characteristic and a vehicle collision characteristic; and control means responsive to said sensing means and for actuating said actuatable means to vary the amount of energy to be dissipated by said energy absorbing mechanism. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus comprising:
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vehicle seat belt webbing which is extensible about a vehicle occupant; a first member connectable to a vehicle; a second member connected to said seat belt webbing and movable relative to said first member and moving relative to said first member when tension of at least a predetermined magnitude is applied to said seat belt webbing; cutting means disposed on one of said first and second members for cutting into the material of the other of said first and second members upon said second member moving relative to said first member; actuatable means for, when actuated, adjusting the position of said cutting means relative to said other member such that the extent of cutting by said cutting means into the material of said other member is varied upon said second member moving relative to said first member. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification