# US 10,369,962 B2 · Restraint system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,369,962 B2 - Document ID: US10369962B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/594,877 - Filed: 2017-05-15 - Published: 2018-11-15 - Granted: 2019-08-06 - Earliest claimed: 2017-05-15 - Assignees: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Applicants: Ford Global Technologies, LLC - Inventors: Mohammad Omar Faruque; Dean M. Jaradi; Saeed David Barbat; James Chih Cheng; Robert William McCoy; Mohamed Ridha Baccouche - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10369962B2 ## CPC - B60R 22/28: incorporating energy-absorbing devices {(belt anchors provided with energy-absorbing means for protecting the occupants in case of physical contact therewith B60R21/055; belt retractors comprising energy-absorbing means B60R22/341, B60R22/4676)} - F16F 5/00: Liquid springs in which the liquid works as a spring by compression, e.g. combined with throttling action; Combinations of devices including liquid springs {(dampers with solid or semi-solid material F16F9/30)} - F16F 9/006: {characterised by the nature of the damping medium, e.g. biodegradable (variable viscosity damping adjustment F16F9/53)} - F16F 9/53: Means for adjusting damping characteristics by varying fluid viscosity, e.g. electromagnetically {(F16F13/30 takes precedence; brakes comprising a medium with electrically or magnetically controlled friction F16D57/002; electrorheological fluids per se C10M171/001; magnetorheological fluids per se H01F1/447)} - B60R 22/341: {comprising energy-absorbing means} - B60R 2022/282: {using fluids or vico-elastic materials} - B60R 2022/288: {with means to adjust or regulate the amount of energy to be absorbed} - F16F 2232/04: Rotary-to-translation conversion - B60R: VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - F16F: SPRINGS; SHOCK-ABSORBERS; MEANS FOR DAMPING VIBRATION ## Abstract A restraint system includes a housing, a spool rotatably coupled to the housing, a pinion fixed to the spool, a rack engaged with the pinion, and a piston attached to the rack and the housing. The piston is filled with a resilient material. The resilient material may be a heterogeneous mixture of a liquid and hydrophobic, nanoporous particles. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A restraint system comprising: a housing; a spool rotatably coupled to the housing; a pinion fixed to the spool; a rack engaged with the pinion; and a piston attached to the rack and the housing and filled with a heterogeneous mixture of a liquid and hydrophobic, nanoporous particles. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, wherein the piston includes a piston head attached to the rack and a piston cylinder attached to the housing. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The restraint system of claim 2, wherein the particles have nanopores, and the piston head is movable relative to the piston cylinder from a first position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with air to a second position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with the liquid. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The restraint system of claim 3, wherein a volume of the heterogeneous mixture when the piston head is in the second position is at most half of a volume of the heterogeneous mixture when the piston head is in the first position. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The restraint system of claim 3, wherein the piston head is movable relative to the piston cylinder from the second position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with the liquid to the first position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with air. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, wherein the heterogeneous mixture is a colloid of hydrophopic nanoporous particles in a liquid. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, wherein the particles are formed of silica. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The restraint system of claim 7, wherein the particles have a hydrophobic surface treatment. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, further comprising webbing fixed to the spool. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The restraint system of claim 9, further comprising a retractor, wherein the webbing extends from a first end fixed to the spool to a second end retractably attached to the retractor. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The restraint system of claim 9, wherein the webbing is wrapped around the spool. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, wherein the spool defines a spool axis, and the pinion is centered on the spool axis. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The restraint system of claim 12, wherein the piston defines a piston axis, and the rack is movable parallel to the piston axis while engaged with the pinion. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, further comprising a seat, wherein the housing is fixed to the seat. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The restraint system of claim 1, further comprising a buckle attached to the spool. ### Claim 16 A restraint system comprising: a housing; a spool rotatably coupled to the housing; a pinion fixed to the spool; a rack engaged with the pinion; and a piston including a piston head attached to the rack and a piston cylinder attached to the housing, the piston head and the piston cylinder defining a volume filled with a resilient material; wherein the piston head is movable in the piston cylinder between a first position and a second position in which the volume is smaller than the first position, the resilient material biasing the piston head from the second position to the first position. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The restraint system of claim 16, further comprising webbing fixed to the spool. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The restraint system of claim 17, further comprising a retractor, wherein the webbing extends from a first end fixed to the spool to a second end retractably attached to the retractor. ### Claim 19 (depends on 16) The restraint system of claim 16, wherein the spool defines a spool axis, and the pinion is centered on the spool axis. ### Claim 20 (depends on 16) The restraint system of claim 16, wherein the resilient material is a heterogeneous mixture of a liquid and hydrophobic, nanoporous particles.