Chairs and seats – Body or occupant restraint or confinement – Safety belt or harness; e.g. – lap belt or shoulder harness
Patent
1997-04-25
1998-07-28
Nelson, Jr., Milton
Chairs and seats
Body or occupant restraint or confinement
Safety belt or harness; e.g., lap belt or shoulder harness
297397, 297DIG6, A47C 3100
Patent
active
057853886
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
THIS INVENTION relates to a seat belt pillow for use with passenger restraint seat belts to correctly position the passenger in relation to the seat belt.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Although the most common seat belt configuration currently utilised by automotive manufacturers is of the lap and sash type (i.e. incorporating a lap belt and a sash belt), other configurations include simply the lap configuration or the full harness. The lap seat belt configuration which provides limited occupant restraint simply overlies the waist of the occupant and is usually found in the middle of rear bench seats of automobiles. The full harness configuration consists of two vertical strap members which overlie the shoulders and connect with a lap seat belt member.
Seat belts of the lap and sash type are now mandatory safety items in all front and rear seats of automobile and other passenger vehicles. Most passengers who tend to fall asleep on long journeys invariably tend to lean either into or away from the sash belt.
In a collision, a tendency to lean forwardly or into the sash belt facilitates the restraining function of the seat belt as the body of the passenger maintains contact with the overlying sash belt.
The proper functioning of the seat belt however is compromised in passengers who tend to lean away from the sash belt. This is especially common with young children who tend to flop out of the sash belt when asleep. In the most extreme situation, there is a possibility of a young child or small adult slipping out of an incorrectly worn seat belt as a consequence of a sudden braking or stopping force.
In the case of the full harness configuration, optimal protection is obtained provided the seat belt is worn correctly. There is however a possibility of whip lash or other neck injuries occurring due to the fact that the shoulders are firmly restrained leaving the head free to move rearwardly or laterally.
There are pillows currently available on the market which fit around the sleeping passenger's neck. These pillows which are generally of the inflatable variety, are mainly for passenger comfort and do not purport to be safety devices. In this respect they do not encourage passengers to lean in either direction nor are they meant to be used in conjunction with a seat belt.
There are number of examples of cushions or headrests for attachment to seat belts and, in particular, the sash belt which comprise a cushion being folded around the sash belt or the sash belt being inserted between opposed parts of the cushion. In each case, the cushion is attached to the sash belt by appropriate releasable fastening means such as a hooked pile fastener assembly located on adjacent ends of the cushion or headrest. The cushion may then be moved along the seat belt as may be required by the user. Examples of such cushions or headrests include Canadian Patent 2083782, U.S. Pat. No. 5,005,866, U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,495, U.S. Pat. No. 4,348,037, British Patent 2281188, French Patent 2652048, European Patent 311923, U.S. Pat. No. 4,795,190, PCT International Publication WO88/00848, U.S. Pat. No. 4,699,401, Australian Patent 55252/86, British Patent 2169187, German Patent 3434010, British Patent 2133970, German Patent 3232946, German Patent 3202247, German Patent 3150489, Soviet Union Patent 872336 and German Patent 2725850.
References of particular interest include: each edge which is designed to protect the neck and/or chest of an occupant against the sharp edges of a seat belt fixed at an angle to the shoulder. critical areas of the seat belt. In a preferred embodiment, strips of cushioning material such as fibre matting, cotton wool, hairs or polystyrene foam are contained within an inner and outer layer of woven or knitted natural or synthetic fibre. Such cushioning strips may be applied as a sheath to the seat belt and may be closed by press button or by hook and loop fastening means. The advantages claimed in this reference are that the seat belt padding prevents uncomfortable pressure on the shoulders
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Hochberg D. Peter
Jr. Milton Nelson
Kusner Mark
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