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US 5,669,572 AGranted
Anti-cinch automatic locking retractor with cam release
AssigneeIndiana Mills & Manufacturing, Inc.
InventorJames E. Crook
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An anti-cinch automatic locking retractor. A web spool is rotatably mounted between a pair of upstanding walls. The spool includes a pair of flanges each having a plurality of locking teeth with the teeth spaced apart by an included angle. A pawl is pivotally mounted to the walls and is lockingly engagable with the teeth. A cam plate mounted adjacent the spool and rotatable therewith includes a cam surface extending through an angle greater than the teeth included angle to limit cinching of the web spool as the spool rotates to and from the locking position and through the included angle. A cam release rotatably mounted to the upstanding walls limits movement of the cam plate.
Claims19
A retractor with cam release comprising:
- a frame;
- a spool rotatably mounted to said frame about an axis and having an end wall with a plurality of outwardly extending teeth thereon;
- a web wound on said spool;
- first spring means connected to said frame and said spool operable to bias said spool to a web retracted position but yieldable to allow said spool to rotate to a web extended position;
- a pawl movably mounted to said frame and lockingly engagable with said teeth;
- a cam plate movably mounted on said frame and positioned adjacent said end wall, said cam plate including a cam surface with an initial contact area movable adjacent said pawl to keep said pawl apart from said teeth as said web is initially extended to said web extended position;
- bias means on said frame operable to bias said cam plate to rotate with said spool about said axis but yieldable to allow said cam plate to remain stationary while said spool rotates;
- a release device movably mounted on said frame and engagable with said cam plate;
- and,
- second spring means on said frame operable to bias said pawl into locking engagement with said teeth limiting rotation of said spool when said spool is in said web extended position and also to bias said release device when said spool is in said web extended position to block movement of said initial contact area against said pawl allowing said pawl to lockingly engage said teeth but yieldable to allow said pawl to move apart from said cam plate when said spool is in said web retracted position.
7 more elements
A retractor comprising:
- a frame;
- a spool to receive a web wound thereon with said spool rotatably mounted to said frame about an axis and having an end wall with a plurality of outwardly extending teeth thereon;
- a first spring connected to said frame and said spool operable to bias said spool to a web retracted position but yieldable to allow said spool to rotate to a web extended position;
- a pawl movably mounted to said frame and lockingly engagable with said teeth;
- a cam plate movably mounted on said frame and positioned adjacent said end wall, said cam plate including a cam surface with an initial contact area movable adjacent said pawl to keep said pawl apart from said teeth as said web is initially extended to said web extended position;
- a second spring on said frame operable to bias said cam plate to rotate with said spool about said axis but yieldable to allow said cam plate to remain stationary while said spool rotates;
- a release device movably mounted on said frame and engagable with said cam plate;
- a third spring on said frame operable to bias said pawl into locking engagement with said teeth limiting rotation of said spool when said spool is in said web extended position;
- and,
- a fourth spring on said frame operable to bias said release device when said spool is in said web extended position to block movement of said initial contact area against said pawl allowing said pawl to lockingly engage said teeth.
7 more elements
A web retractor comprising:
- a retractor frame with a pair of upstanding walls;
- a web spool rotatably mounted about an axis of rotation to said pair of upstanding walls and movable to and between a web retracted position and a web extended position, said spool including at least one spool end wall with teeth formed circumferentially thereon;
- a lock movably mounted to said frame and lockingly engagable with said teeth;
- a first device movably mounted on said frame and movable from a first position blocking said lock and teeth from locking together as said spool is moving toward said web extended position to a second position allowing said lock to lock with said teeth as said lock moves from said web extended position;
- and,
- a second device mounted on said frame and movable between a third position and a fourth position, said second device when in said third position blocking movement of said first device to said first position and when in said fourth position allowing movement of said first device to said first position.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.