Seatbelt retractor
AssigneeTakata Corporation
InventorsHiroki Takehara, Tetsuya Hamaue
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A seat belt retractor has a pretensioner, which has a cover with integral projections made of aluminum. A pretensioner gear with complementary holes is attached to the cover, with the projections inserted into the holes to immobilize the pretensioner gear. A spool driving gear for driving a spool of the retractor is spaced and disengaged from the pretensioner gear so that the pretensioner gear does not interfere with normal operation of the spool. To tension the seat belt, the pretensioner gear is driven to break the projections to mobilize the pretensioner gear, engage the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear, and drive the spool driving gear, which rotates the spool and tension the seat belt.
Claims18
A seat belt retractor comprising:
- a spool for tensioning a seat belt;
- and
- a pretensioner comprising:
- a stationary body;
- a pretensioner gear attached to the stationary body with a plurality of integrally formed breakable projections inserted into a plurality of complementary holes so that the pretensioner gear is immobilized relative to the stationary body;
- a spool driving gear for rotating the spool, the spool driving gear being spaced and disengaged from the pretensioner gear so that the pretensioner gear does not interfere with normal operation of the spool;
- and
- a pretensioner gear driving mechanism for engaging the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear and driving the pretensioner gear,
- wherein one of the pretensioner gear and the stationary body has the integrally formed breakable projections and the other of the pretensioner gear and the stationary body has the complementary holes,
- wherein the pretensioner gear driving mechanism drives the pretensioner gear to break the projections and mobilize the pretensioner gear, engage the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear, and drive the spool driving gear, which rotates the spool and tension the seat belt;
- and
- wherein the pretensioner gear driving mechanism comprises:
- a conduit having an opening, the pretensioner gear being positioned adjacent to the opening so that part of the pretensioner gear extends into the opening;
- a plurality of balls positioned inside the conduit for driving the pretensioner gear;
- a ball propelling mechanism for moving the balls inside the conduit,
- wherein the ball propelling mechanism forces the balls against the portion of the pretensioner gear extending into the opening to break the projections, engage the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear, and rotate the spool driving gear to tension the seat belt.
A pretensioner for a seat belt retractor having a spool for tensioning a seat belt, comprising:
- a stationary body;
- a pretensioner gear attached to the stationary body with a plurality of integrally formed breakable projections inserted into a plurality of complementary holes so that the pretensioner gear is immobilized relative to the stationary body;
- a spool driving gear for rotating the spool, the spool driving gear being spaced and disengaged from the pretensioner gear so that the pretensioner gear does not interfere with normal operation of the spool;
- and
- a pretensioner gear driving mechanism for engaging the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear and driving the pretensioner gear,
- wherein one of the pretensioner gear and the stationary body has the integrally formed breakable projections and the other of the pretensioner gear and the stationary body has the complementary holes,
- wherein the pretensioner gear driving mechanism drives the pretensioner gear to break the projections and mobilize the pretensioner gear, engage the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear, and drive the spool driving gear, which rotates the spool and tension the seat belt;
- and
- wherein the pretensioner gear driving mechanism comprises:
- a conduit having an opening, the pretensioner gear being positioned adjacent to the opening so that part of the pretensioner gear extends into the opening;
- a plurality of balls positioned inside the conduit for driving the pretensioner gear;
- a ball propelling mechanism for moving the balls inside the conduit,
- wherein the ball propelling mechanism forces the balls against the portion of the pretensioner gear extending into the opening to break the projections, engage the pretensioner gear with the spool driving gear, and rotate the spool driving gear to tension the seat belt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.