Vehicle occupant restraint belt buckle including illumination

For use in a vehicle occupant restraint belt system including at least one belt portion for restraining a vehicle occupant, a buckle for detachably securing a keeper of the belt system to secure the belt portion across the occupant, said buckle comprising:

• a hollow housing including a translucent portion that functions as a manually operable latch member operator;
• a latch member mounted within the housing for movement between latched and unlatched positions to detachably secure the keeper under the control of the translucent latch member operator;
• an electrically energized light source that is mounted within the housing and that, when energized, continuously provides illumination outwardly from the buckle housing through the translucent latch member operator;
• electrical connectors within the housing for connecting the light source to a power supply so as to thereby energize the light source and provide illumination through the translucent portion;
• and
• a switch that controls energization of the light source in response to the secured or detached condition of the keeper by the latch member.

For use in a vehicle occupant restraint belt system including at least one belt portion for restraining a vehicle occupant, a buckle for detachably securing a keeper of the belt system to secure the belt portion across the occupant, said buckle comprising:

• a hollow housing including a translucent portion that functions as a manually operable latch member operator;
• a latch member mounted within the housing for movement between latched and unlatched positions to detachably secure the keep under the control of the translucent latch member operator;
• an electrically energized light source that is mounted within the housing and that, when energized, continuously provides illumination outwardly from the buckle housing through the translucent latch member operator, and said light source being selected from the group consisting of a bulb and a light emitting diode;
• electrical connectors within the housing for connecting the light source to a power supply so as to thereby energize the light source and provide illumination through the translucent portion;
• and
• a switch that controls energization of the light source in response to the secured or detached condition of the keeper by the latch member.