Tilt locking seat belt retractor
First Claim
1. A seat belt webbing retractor for mounting on a vehicle seat back, said retractor comprising:
- a spool on which seat belt webbing is wound, said spool being supported for rotation about an axis in a belt retraction direction and in an opposite belt withdrawal direction; and
inertia sensing means for blocking rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration;
said inertia sensing means comprising a first inertia member movable from an unactuated position to an actuated position in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration, and sensor means operable to block rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to movement of said first inertia member from the unactuated position to the actuated position;
said sensor means being operable to block rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to tilting of the vehicle seat back by an amount more than a predetermined amount when said first inertia member is in the unactuated position.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A seat belt retractor (10) for mounting on a vehicle seat back (22) includes a spool (110) on which seat belt webbing (32) is wound. The retractor (10) includes inertia sensing means (40) for blocking rotation of the spool (110) in a belt withdrawal direction (124) in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration. The inertia sensing means (40) comprises a first inertia member (222) movable from an unactuated position to an actuated position in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration, and sensor means (230) operable to block rotation of the spool (110) in the belt withdrawal direction (124) in response to movement of the first inertia member (222) from the unactuated position to the actuated position. The sensor means (230) is operable to block rotation of the spool (110) in the belt withdrawal direction (124) in response to tilting of the vehicle seat back (22) by an amount more than a predetermined amount when the first inertia member (222) is in the unactuated position.
67 Citations
12 Claims
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1. A seat belt webbing retractor for mounting on a vehicle seat back, said retractor comprising:
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a spool on which seat belt webbing is wound, said spool being supported for rotation about an axis in a belt retraction direction and in an opposite belt withdrawal direction; and inertia sensing means for blocking rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration; said inertia sensing means comprising a first inertia member movable from an unactuated position to an actuated position in response to vehicle deceleration above a predetermined deceleration, and sensor means operable to block rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to movement of said first inertia member from the unactuated position to the actuated position; said sensor means being operable to block rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to tilting of the vehicle seat back by an amount more than a predetermined amount when said first inertia member is in the unactuated position. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A seat belt webbing retractor for mounting on a vehicle seat back, said retractor comprising:
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a spool on which seat belt webbing is wound, said spool being supported for rotation about an axis in a belt retraction direction and in an opposite belt withdrawal direction; and tilt locking means for blocking rotation of said spool in the belt withdrawal direction in response to tilting of the vehicle seat back above a predetermined amount, said tilt locking means comprising a gimbaled inertia assembly which maintains a predetermined orientation when the seat back is tilted at any amount below the predetermined amount. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12)
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Specification