Land vehicles – Wheeled – Attachment
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-15
2003-07-15
Dickson, Paul N. (Department: 3619)
Land vehicles
Wheeled
Attachment
C024S168000, C297S486000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06592149
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to vehicle occupant restraint systems, such as seat belts and shoulder harnesses, and more specifically to devices for adjusting the position and tension of such belts and harnesses, particularly the shoulder harness strap, as they pass across the seated vehicle occupant.
2. Description of Related Art
Increasing safety consciousness, as well as increasing vehicle speeds, have led to the development of various systems for protecting the operator and passengers of such vehicles. While occupant restraint systems were first developed for aircraft, their efficacy in ground vehicles (automobiles, etc.) was later recognized and required in automobiles, light trucks, and other road vehicles.
Restraining straps in some form (e.g., seat belts and shoulder harnesses) have been universally adapted as occupant restraints in ground vehicles, along with other passive protective systems (“air bags,” etc.). However, the use of such restraints is far from universal, even though nearly every jurisdiction has enacted laws requiring their use by vehicle occupants.
Perhaps one of the major reasons behind this lack of use, is the discomfort experienced by many vehicle occupants due to the restraint belts and straps crossing their bodies. This factor has been considered in regulations relating to seat belt and shoulder harness installations in vehicles, but it appears impossible to develop a “one size fits all” restraint system for such vehicles, due to the wide variation in sizes and shapes of vehicle occupants.
As a result, the National Highway Transportation Safety Board (NHTSB) has adopted a standard requiring restraint systems to be developed around the 50th percentile male body. The greater the difference between the vehicle occupant and this 50th percentile male standard, the less likely the restraints are to fit the occupant comfortably. This is particularly true with women, and particularly smaller women, and the path of the shoulder harness generally diagonally across their chests. The interference of the shoulder harness strap with the breast most nearly adjacent the high attach point of the strap, has been noted for years by many women. While various devices and techniques have been sought over the years to alleviate the problem of poorly fitting belts for both men and women, the problem still exists for many vehicle occupants.
Accordingly, a need will be seen for means for repositioning the conventional occupant restraint belts or straps in a motor vehicle, in order to provide greater occupant comfort. The present invention responds to this need with two related embodiments. In the first embodiment, a clamp is releasibly attachable to the restraint strap (e.g., shoulder harness) and is adjusted to bear against the conventional “B” pillar anchor point for such shoulder restraints, thereby preventing the strap from retracting further onto its conventional retraction reel and providing some slack in the strap as desired by the occupant.
The second embodiment comprises an adjustably positionable bar which secures adjustably to the headrest support columns of a vertically adjustable headrest. The bar extends toward the outside wall of the vehicle, and provides a slot through which the shoulder harness strap passes. The two embodiments of the present invention may be used together with one another, or separately as desired. The embodiments of the present invention do not form any permanent part of the vehicle structure, but secure only to a shoulder harness (or seat belt) strap, or to the headrest support columns, as appropriate, and are quickly and easily installed and removed as desired.
A discussion of the related art of which the present inventor is aware, and its differences and distinctions from the present invention, is provided below.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,912,035 issued on Oct. 14, 1975 to Izaak A. Ulert, titled “Belt Relaxer,” describes a complex electromechanical system which is permanently installed in the vehicle. The Ulert system requires a sensor in the lap belt and gearing to drive the belt retractor reel in a belt extending direction to provide the desired slack. Ulert also requires sensors in the seat to detect the weight of the occupant therein. In contrast, the present system is not a permanent part of the vehicle, does not require complex electromechanical or other mechanisms, and is easily installed and removed by the vehicle occupants in a few seconds.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,371,192 issued on Feb. 1, 1983 to Maurice A. J. Alix, titled “Tension Stop For Safety Belt Of The Inertia Reel Type,” describes various embodiments of a device which secures around the belt and locks in place, to prevent undesired retraction of the belt. However, the Alix device operates differently than the present invention, in that the locking means operates in a longitudinal direction, i.e., in the direction of the length of the belt, in one embodiment, and rotationally in the other embodiment. Each embodiment requires two hands for tightening and releasing, in that the longitudinal actuation would merely pull the belt out or jam against the restraint, unless the body of the clamp were held by the other hand, and the rotational actuation would require that the body of the device be held to preclude twisting the belt during actuation. In contrast, the present clamp uses lateral actuation, permitting the device to be gripped and actuated using only a single hand. It is also noted that the belt locking contact portions of the Alix devices contact the belt directly, rather than bearing against a secondary plate which in turn grips the belt, as in the present invention. This direct gripping of the belt by a component which slides or rotates, results in the belt material being urged in the same direction during actuation, thus twisting or shifting the belt out of the desired position when using the Alix device. Moreover, Alix requires that his clamping devices be disassembled for installation to and removal from the belt, with the body and locking portions comprising two separable components. The present invention comprises a clamp with a hinge along one edge and a pressure actuated latch along the other, permitting the device to be secured around the belt or strap using only one hand.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,751 issued on Jun. 2, 1987 to Hans Unger, titled “Tension Eliminator For A Vehicle Safety Belt Retractor,” describes a complex mechanical retraction system which alternately locks the belt in position at a preset point or allows it to retract, with each pull on the belt. The Unger device is a permanently installed component in the vehicle, and is more closely related to the device of the '035 U.S. patent to Ulert, discussed further above, than to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,683 issued on Jul. 17, 1990 to Hiroshi Tabata et al., titled “Vehicle Seat Belt Tightening System,” describes a complex, explosively activated mechanism for tightening a seat belt in the event of a collision. The Tabata et al. device is a permanently installed component in the motor vehicle, and is incorporated with the conventional belt retraction reel of the vehicle. The Tabata et al. device is thus more closely related to the devices of the '035 U.S. patent to Ulert and '751 U.S. patent to Unger, both discussed further above, than to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,876 issued on Dec. 4, 1990 to Gosta P. A. Svensson et al., titled “Seat Belt Retractor,” describes various embodiments of a shoulder harness height adjusting device, generally comprising a spool permanently mounted to the “B” pillar of a motor vehicle. In some embodiments, a housing covers the spool with a slide installed in a slot in the housing. The shoulder harness passes through the slide, which adjusts upwardly and downwardly in the housing slot to position the height of the strap. The Svensson et al. device cannot be removably secured to the headrest supports of a vehicle occupant seat, as can the shoulder harness position adjuster of the pr
Litman Richard C.
To Toan
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