Buckles – buttons – clasps – etc. – Separable-fastener or required component thereof – Including member having distinct formations and mating...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-03
2001-09-25
Brittain, James R. (Department: 3626)
Buckles, buttons, clasps, etc.
Separable-fastener or required component thereof
Including member having distinct formations and mating...
C024S633000, C024S640000, C024S636000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06292988
ABSTRACT:
The present invention relates to seat belt buckles for seat belts in motor vehicles. One form of such seat belt buckle involves a latch plate having an aperture therein, engageable on one part of the seat belt, and a buckle having a rigid frame including a base having an opening therein and upstanding side walls adapted to guide the latch plate longitudinally of the frame.
The latch plate can be inserted against the action of a spring loaded ejector and when in the fully inserted position a locking member is pivoted to a lower latching position in which a locking element engages in the aperture in the latch plate. A push button is used to release the locking member which pivots back to an unlatched position.
It is important that such seat belt buckles should have an easy and effective latching of the latch plate and should easily release the latch plate by operation of the push button. It is most important to retain the latch plate in a latched position in the buckle even when the latch plate and buckle are subject to a very heavy impact load.
GB-A-2238074 discloses a seat belt buckle adapted to releasably engage a latch plate having an aperture therein, said buckle comprising a rigid frame including a base having an opening therein, upstanding side walls adapted to guide the latch plate longitudinally of the frame, a bar extending transversely of the frame between said side walls, said bar being spaced above the base, a locking member pivotally mounted on the frame and pivotal between a lower latched position and an upper unlatched position, said locking member carrying a downwardly projecting locking element engageable in said aperture in the latch plate to retain the latch plate in place and passing into said opening, a slider slidable longitudinally of the locking member between a first position in which it is located under said bar, to retain the locking member in the lower latched position and the rear of the bar to retain the locking member in its upper unlatched position, a push button to push the slider from its first position to its second position and a slider spring to urge the slider towards its first position.
The present invention is concerned with an improvement in this general type of buckle. In GB-A-2238074, the slider, which is usually formed of a plastics material, includes downwardly extending flanges provided with inwardly facing grooves. The slider is assembled by sliding the side edges of the body of the locking member into these grooves.
According to the present invention the locking member body is provided with at least two elongate slots and the slider with cooperating clips which can pass through the slots and retain the slider in place, the length of the slots being adequate to allow for the necessary sliding movement of the slider.
Such a construction is in fact far simpler to assemble and it is found that it produces a more robust construction than that previously proposed.
In a preferred embodiment a pair of wings extend laterally from said locking member and engage in said side walls, to pivotally and resiliently mount the locking member for movement between its upper and lower positions and at least one stop member extends laterally along said member, said at least one stop member engaging abutments on said rigid frame to prevent flexing of the wings beyond their elastic limit.
The provision of the bar extending over the slider assists in the withstanding of heavy loads and prevents inadvertent release of the buckle. More importantly, however, the provision of the stop member or members prevents excessive flexing of the wings, which acts as the pivot for the locking member, so that the wings never are distorted beyond their elastic limit.
The stop member may take a number of forms but advantageously each stop member extends laterally from the locking member forwardly from the wings and may comprise a pair of arms engaging, at least in the lower latching position of the locking member, against abutments in the side walls. In a simple construction these abutments are in the form of open-topped notches in the upper edges of the side walls into which the arms move in the lower latching position.
Preferably the locking element in the lower latching position of the locking member, has its forward edge spaced from the forward edge of said opening under normal conditions, said at least one stop member and the associated abutments may be adapted to enhance the load bearing capacity of the locking element engaging the forward edge of said opening. Advantageously the rearward edge of said bar and the forward edge of said slider are cooperatingly chamfered to retain the locking member in its upper unlatched position when said forward and rearward edges are inter-engaged by said slider opening.
Advantageously, according to the present invention, the clips are integrally formed with the slider.
Desirably the clips are provided with flanges which engage below the body of the locking member to retain the slider in place. The lower surfaces of the flanges may be chamfered so that the slider may simply be pushed downwardly, relative to the locking member, the clips flexing to pass through the elongate slots and then springing back so that the flanges engage on the lower surface of the locking member.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4899424 (1990-02-01), Barnes et al.
patent: 5210915 (1993-05-01), Clarke
patent: 5271129 (1993-12-01), Clarke et al.
patent: 5870810 (1999-02-01), Harrison et al.
patent: 0 341 839-A1 (1988-11-01), None
patent: 0 341 840 (1989-11-01), None
patent: 0 750 862 (1997-01-01), None
patent: 2 218 457 (1989-11-01), None
patent: 2 238 074 (1991-05-01), None
Harrison Mark John
Jackson Michael John
Brittain James R.
European Components Co. Limited
Foley & Lardner
Rodriguez Ruth C.
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