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Seatbelt buckle apparatus

  • US 6,907,646 B2
  • Filed: 09/22/2003
  • Issued: 06/21/2005
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2002
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A seatbelt buckle apparatus with a buckle assembly including upper and lower cases coupled to each other, a release button coupled to a frame for unlatching a locking bar of a locking lever from a tongue, an ejector elastically and movably supported in an aperture for discharging the tongue latched to the locking bar responsive to the release button, the locking lever including a slider elastically and movably mounted on a guide surface thereof and being pivoted at one end portion and latching/unlatching the tongue at the other end portion, a frame including a bottom plate on which the ejector is movable, a front wall constituted as an arched supporting beam on which the slider is supported and side walls having an upper end portion on which the locking lever is pivotally rotated at its rear end, the seatbelt buckle apparatus comprising:

  • the lower case including a clamp groove into which a clamp of the upper case is inserted, first and second supporting grooves to which first and second supporting end portions are respectively coupled, and a hook-fixing portion serving to fit the first and second supporting end portions into the first and second supporting grooves to be coupled with the upper case;

    the lower case receiving a hall sensor assembly therein and including a position determining projection formed to determine a mounting position and prevent rocking of the hall sensor assembly, a shoulder formed with a gap from a bottom to support the hall sensor assembly, a first supporting block integrally and inwardly extended from a middle portion of both sidewalls, a second supporting block integrally and inwardly extended from a pair of ribs having a smaller width to be fitted into a groove portion of the hall sensor assembly and guide walls formed behind the second supporting block in an arc share to be opposite to each other;

    the hall sensor assembly being positioned on the bottom of the lower case and including a hall sensor portion containing a hall sensor and a printed circuit board electrically connected to the hall sensor in one package, a base plate electrically connected at one end portion to the printed circuit board and at the other end to a cable having control lines and power lines, on an upper surface of which a metal pattern is formed, with means for coupling with the frame, a movable member freely moving on the base plate with a first permanent magnet mounted at a center portion and a pair of contact terminals contacted with the metal pattern and a terminal block including the control lines and power lines contained therein and means for determining a position of the hall sensor assembly and fixing the hall sensor assembly in the lower case;

    the fame including a coupling surface formed adjacent a rear portion of a sliding aperture thereof to be coupled with the hook of the hall sensor assembly and a coupling groove formed behind a hook portion thereof; and

    the ejector including a second permanent magnet to cooperate with the hall sensor responsive to the movement thereof and a pair of leg portions projected from a lower surface thereof to cooperate with the movable member.

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