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Seat belt system with dual payout retractor

  • US 6,824,222 B2
  • Filed: 08/06/2002
  • Issued: 11/30/2004
  • Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2002
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. A seat belt system for helping to restrain an occupant of a vehicle seat, said seat belt system comprising:

  • a lap belt comprising first and second portions extensible adjacent opposite sides of the vehicle seat and across a seating portion of the vehicle seat;

    a buckle assembly for releasably connecting said first and second portions of said lap belt while extended across the vehicle seat; and

    a retractor comprising;

    a spool rotatable about an axis, said first and second portions of said lap belt being secured to said spool, said spool being biased to rotate in a first rotational direction to wind said first and second portions onto said spool, said first and second portions when tensioned urging said spool to rotate in a second rotational direction opposite said first rotational direction to unwind said first and second portions from said spool;

    a locking mechanism actuateble to a locked condition to lock said spool against rotation in said second rotational direction, said locking mechanism resisting oppositely directed forces applied to said spool and said locking mechanism by said first and second portions of said lap belt to resist rotation of said spool in the second rotational direction for unwinding the first and second portions of the lap belt;

    a first web grabbing device actuatable to clamp onto said first portion of said lap belt when said locking mechanism is in said locked condition to resist movement of said first portion of said lap belt in a first direction relative to the retractor and to reduce the force applied to said spool and said locking mechanism by said first portion of said lap belt that tends to rotate the spool in the second rotational direction; and

    a second web grabbing device actuatable to clamp onto said second portion of lap belt when said locking mechanism is in said locked condition to resist movement of said second portion of said lap belt in a second direction relative to the retractor and to reduce the force applied to said spool and said locking mechanism by said second portion of said lap belt that tends to rotate the spool in the second rotational direction.

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