Locking tongue

• US 9,980,537 B2
• Filed: 08/15/2014
• Issued: 05/29/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Autoliv AB (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Autoliv AB (Autoliv Incorporated)
• Inventors: Aoyagi, Mitsunori
• Primary Examiner(s): Beck, Karen
• Application Number:
  US14/910,910
• Publication Number:
  US 20160206050A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,383 Days
• Field of Search: 2808011
• CPC Class Codes: A44B 11/006 Attachment of buckle to strap for safety buckles A44B11/2553
• CPC Class Codes: A44B 11/2561 Tongue elements
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 2022/1812 Connections between seat belt and buckle tongue
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/023 Three-point seat belt systems comprising two side lower and one side upper anchoring devices B60R22/022, B60R22/03 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/18 Anchoring devices
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/30 Coupling devices other than buckles, including length-adjusting fittings or anti-slip devices adaptations of manual three-point seat belt systems for use by small passengers using other means than belt anti-slip devices B60R22/024; buckles A44B11/00; releasable fastenings in general F16B

Abstract

A seat belt restraint system locking tongue (10) having a locking member (30) which moves to a locked position to clamp a webbing (3) inserted in a shoulder-side webbing insertion slot (12) to restrict movement of the webbing (3). A tongue body (11) includes a restricting portion (25) near the shoulder-side webbing insertion slot (12) to clamp the webbing (3) with the locking member (30) when the locking member (3) moves to the locked position. The length in the longitudinal direction of the webbing insertion slot (12), of a portion of the restricting portion (25) that contacts the webbing (3) to clamp the webbing (3) is smaller than the width of the webbing (3). The locking tongue prevents fraying of the webbing (3) and improves the clamping performance in the event of a vehicle crash.

Claims

1. A locking tongue for a belt restraint system and being detachably connectable to a buckle movable along a belt webbing comprising;

a tongue body configured to be coupled with the buckle and having at least a first and a second webbing insertion slot each adapted for insertion of the webbing,

a locking member held in the tongue body so as to be movable between an unlocked position at which the locking member is separated from the first webbing insertion slot and a locked position at which the locking member approaches the first webbing insertion slot, wherein the locking member moves to the locked position to clamp the webbing inserted into the first webbing insertion slot to restrict movement of the webbing,

the tongue body includes a restricting portion formed near the first webbing insertion slot to clamp the webbing together with the locking member when the locking member moves to the locked position, and

a length in a longitudinal direction of the first webbing insertion slot, of at least one of a portion of the locking member that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing and a portion of the restricting portion that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing, is smaller than a width of the webbing.

2. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

the locking member is molded with a resin and the portion of the locking member that makes contact with the webbing is covered with the resin.

3. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

the restricting portion and the locking member clamp the webbing at an intermediate portion of the webbing in a width direction of the webbing when the locking member is positioned at the locked position, and at least one of the portion of the locking member that clamps the webbing and the portion of the restricting portion that clamps the webbing does not make contact with either of two side edges of the webbing in the width direction.

4. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

any one of the portion of the locking member that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing and the portion of the restricting portion that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing has a convex curved surface, and the other portion has a concave curved surface, and

the convex curved surface and the concave curved surface are configured to engage with each other with the webbing interposed therebetween.

5. A seat belt apparatus comprising;

the locking tongue according to claim 1.

6. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

wherein at least one of the portion of the locking member that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing and the portion of the restricting portion that makes contact with the webbing to clamp the webbing, is centered with respect to the width of the webbing.

7. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

wherein the locking member is prevented from moving to the locked position until a predetermined tension load is applied onto the webbing.

8. The locking tongue according to claim 7 further comprising;

wherein at least one element fails in response to the predetermined tension load thereby allowing movement of the locking member to the locked position.

9. The locking tongue according to claim 7 further comprising;

the locking member is urged toward the unlocked position by a spring element.

10. The locking tongue according to claim 1 further comprising;

the locking member is biased to the unlocked position by a tension exerted on the webbing.

11. The locking tongue according to claim 1, wherein the restriction portion includes a clamping surface that clamps the webbing when the locking member is in the locked position, wherein the clamping surface has a height against which the locking member is secured during clamping, and wherein the restricting portion further includes a width in a moving direction of the locking member, wherein the width is greater than the height.

12. The locking tongue according to claim 1, wherein the locking member includes guide portions formed on both of two sides of the locking member, and the locking member is guided along one or more curved guide grooves formed on both of the two sides of the tongue body.