seatbelt buckle presenter

Abstract

Seatbelt buckle presenter a stationary base body (12) that can be attached to a vehicle and a belt buckle (16) mounted on the base body (12) so as to be movable, wherein a spindle drive (32) is provided which moves the belt buckle (16), wherein a spindle (36) of the spindle drive (32) is non-rotatably connected to the belt buckle (16), and wherein a fastening element (38) is arranged at an upper end of the spindle (36) to which the belt buckle (16) is fixed, characterized in that the spindle (36) is connected to a slide (14) which is movable along the base body (12) and that the slide (14) at least partially encloses the base body (12).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a belt buckle presenter.

[0002] Belt buckle extenders make it easier to fasten and unfasten a seat belt by reversibly moving the belt buckle from a retracted position, in which it is not in the way of the vehicle occupant during normal driving, into an extended position, in which it is easily accessible for the vehicle occupant.

[0003] For example, DE 10 2004 017 457 A1 discloses a belt buckle presenter with a spindle drive. An electric motor rotates a spindle, thereby moving a spindle nut connected to the belt buckle via a steel cable along the spindle. However, the disadvantage here is the complex design of the belt buckle presenter.

[0004] A belt buckle presenter of this type is known from DE 10 2012 016 211 A1. It comprises a base body that can be fixedly mounted on the vehicle and a belt buckle that is movably mounted on the base body. A spindle drive is provided on the base body that moves the belt buckle, and the spindle is connected to the belt buckle in a rotationally fixed manner. In this way, the belt buckle is directly and immediately coupled to the spindle drive, which reduces both the number of required components and thus the manufacturing costs, as well as the size of the entire belt buckle presenter.

[0005] In DE 10 2011 100 085 A1, a belt buckle presenter with a spindle drive is also known, in which the spindle is connected to a carriage that can be moved along a base body.

[0006] The object of the invention is to create a belt buckle presenter with a simple and compact design.

[0007] The rotationally fixed connection of the spindle to the belt buckle is achieved in the belt buckle presenter according to the invention by arranging a fastening element at the upper end of the spindle, to which the belt buckle is fixed. The fastening geometry of the fastening element can be selected so that belt buckles of the same design can be used both with belt buckle presenters and for permanent attachment in the vehicle.

[0008] To achieve the most compact design possible, the spindle is connected to a carriage that can be moved along the base body and at least partially encloses the base body. The carriage can be secured to the spindle, for example, via the fastening element at the upper end of the spindle. With this design, the base body is at least partially housed inside the carriage, eliminating the need for an additional housing, which further reduces the number of parts and the required installation space.

[0009] Preferably, the spindle has an axis, with the carriage being guided on the base body so that it can move in the axial direction. For this purpose, a linear guide system is provided between the base body and the carriage.

[0010] The fastening element and the slide are preferably firmly connected, meaning they are essentially free of play. For example, the fastening element has molded-on tabs that are screwed to the slide to ensure a rigid connection and direct force transmission between the fastening element and the slide. A force applied at an angle to the axial direction at the belt buckle is thus transmitted via the fastening element into the slide, and from the slide via the linear guide system into the body-mounted base body.

[0011] According to one embodiment of the belt buckle presenter, the fastening element and the spindle are connected to one another and have limited mobility relative to one another. For this purpose, the connection can have a predetermined amount of play and / or be designed to be elastically flexible. This limited mobility of the fastening element relative to the spindle allows for compensation of manufacturing tolerances in the components of the belt buckle presenter. Furthermore, forces introduced at an angle to the axial direction on the belt buckle are absorbed by the body-mounted base body via the fixed connection between the fastening element and the carriage, rather than via the spindle drive. Since tolerance-related constraints and transverse forces are thus largely negligible, the spindle drive is very smooth and particularly efficient. This enables extremely energy-efficient operation of the belt buckle presenter.

[0012] In this embodiment, a damping element, in particular an elastic damping element for noise reduction, is preferably arranged between the fastening element and the spindle. The damping element is made, for example, of an elastomer and prevents unwanted impact noises during relative movement between the fastening element and the spindle.

[0013] According to a special embodiment, a coupling body is arranged at the upper end of the spindle and firmly connected to the spindle. The coupling body has extensions that engage with clearance in openings in the fastening element. In this way, a highly resilient and limited-movement connection between the fastening element and the spindle can be realized with little effort.

[0014] At least one ball cage can be arranged between the base body and the slide, on which the slide is mounted for linear movement along the base body. The use of one or more ball cages, particularly in a linear configuration with several balls arranged along a straight line, enables smooth and quiet mounting of the slide on the base body.

[0015] In order to move the spindle of the spindle drive reversibly in the axial direction, the spindle nut of the spindle drive, which causes the axial movement of the spindle, can be driven in the desired direction of rotation.

[0016] The spindle nut is preferably rotatably mounted on the base body.

[0017] For example, the spindle nut can be accommodated in a bearing block that is divided, in particular, perpendicular to the axial direction, which allows easy pre-assembly of the spindle drive before it is attached to the base body.

[0018] The bearing block is preferably encompassed by the slide, so that no separate housing is required and the compactness of the entire belt buckle presenter is increased.

[0019] The bearing block can also accommodate a bearing for an electric motor driving the spindle nut, so that the entire drive can be arranged on the base body and can be at least largely protected from environmental influences by the carriage.

[0020] To transmit the drive power from the electric motor to the spindle nut, an intermediate gear is preferably provided. This intermediate gear is coupled to a drive pinion of the electric motor and has a pinion meshing with the spindle nut. In this way, power transmission with the desired ratio can be achieved in a compact arrangement. The intermediate gear is preferably also mounted on the bearing block and can be pre-assembled thereto.

[0021] For example, the intermediate gear comprises two pinions arranged on an axis, one of which meshes with the drive pinion of the electric motor and the other with an external toothing of the spindle nut.

[0022] The invention is described in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings: - Fig. 1 shows a belt buckle presenter according to the invention in a schematic perspective view in a fully retracted position; - Fig. 2 the belt buckle extender Fig. 1 in a fully extended position; - Fig. 3 a schematic perspective view of the belt buckle presenter from Fig. 1 without the sled; - Fig. 4 which in Fig. 3 assembly shown in a front view; - Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 schematic representations of the spindle drive of the belt buckle presenter according to the invention; - Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 schematic representations of the spindle drive with a bearing block and an electric motor; - Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 is an exploded view of the belt buckle presenter according to the invention; - Fig. 11 shows a section of a belt buckle presenter according to the invention in the area of ​​a connection between the belt buckle and the spindle in an exploded view; - Fig. 12 the cutout of the belt buckle presenter according to Fig. 11 in the assembled state; - Fig. 13 the cutout of the belt buckle according to Fig. 12 in a perspective view with a base body and a carriage; - Fig. 14 the cutout of the belt buckle presenter according to Fig. 12 in a further perspective view with a carriage and a guide system; - Fig. 15 a perspective partial view of the belt buckle presenter according to the Fig. 11 to 14 in the assembled state; - Fig. 16 a side view of the belt buckle presenter according to Fig. 15; and - Fig. 17 a rear view of the belt buckle presenter according to Fig. 15.

[0023] The Fig. 1 and Fig. 2 show a belt buckle presenter 10, which has a rigid base body 12 that can be fixed to the vehicle and a carriage 14 that is mounted on the base body 12 so that it can move along its axial direction A. The carriage 14 encompasses the base body 12 at least partially in the circumferential direction, wherein in this example the carriage 14 is partially completely closed circumferentially (see also Fig. 9).

[0024] Fig. 1 shows the belt buckle presenter 10 in a fully retracted position as assumed during normal driving operation. Fig. Figure 2 shows the belt buckle presenter 10 in the fully extended position used for fastening and unfastening the seat belt. The travel direction V, in which a belt buckle 16 is reversibly moved by the belt buckle presenter 10, coincides with the axial direction A.

[0025] A fastening eyelet 18 is formed on the base body 12, via which the belt buckle presenter 10 is fastened to the vehicle.

[0026] The base body 12 has a back plate 20 and two narrow sides 22 extending in the axial direction A, which protrude laterally from the back plate 20.

[0027] The box-shaped slide 14 has two narrow sides 24, which are arranged parallel to the narrow sides 22 of the base body 12. Between the outer side of the narrow sides 22 and the inner side of the narrow sides 24, several ball cages 26 are arranged as bearings, which are accommodated in guides 28 on the narrow sides 22 of the base body 12 and are freely movable in the axial direction A. This is also shown in the Fig. 3, Fig. 4 and Fig. 10. The ball cages 26 are designed here as linear components, each with four balls, and allow, in a known manner, a smooth and quiet movement of the carriage 14 along the base body 12. A total of four ball cages 26 are provided, each arranged on the outer edges of the narrow sides 22. Stops 30 at the axial ends of the narrow sides 22 prevent the ball cages 26 from leaving the guides 28. At the belt buckle-side ends, the stops 30 are formed here by rivets, which are inserted into the guides 28 after the ball cages 26 have been pushed into the guides 28.

[0028] The belt buckle 16 is moved reversibly in and against the direction of travel V by a spindle drive 32 arranged on the base body 12. The spindle drive 32 is, for example, in the Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 is shown in more detail.

[0029] The spindle drive 32 comprises a rotatably mounted, driven spindle nut 34 and a spindle 36 which can be displaced along the travel direction V by rotating the spindle nut 34.

[0030] At its belt buckle end, the spindle 36 is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the belt buckle 16 via a plate-shaped fastening element 38.

[0031] In order to prevent the spindle 36 from rotating with the spindle nut 34, the fastening element 38 is screwed to the slide 14 in a rotationally fixed manner, such as Fig. 9 shows. In this example, two fastening eyes 40 are provided at one end of the slide 14 on the belt buckle side.

[0032] The spindle 36 is provided with a thread, at least over the maximum travel range, which engages with an internal thread of the spindle nut 34, as is known from spindle drives.

[0033] The spindle nut 34 is axially immovable but rotatable in a bearing block 42 which is firmly connected to the base body 12.

[0034] The bearing block 42 is divided vertically into two sections 42a, 42b (see Fig. 10), between which the spindle nut 34 is mounted. In this example, the bearing block 42 is screwed to the back plate 20 of the base body 12 via a frame 44.

[0035] The spindle nut 34 is driven by an electric motor 46, which is also fixed to the base body 12. The bearing block 42, more precisely the section 42b of the bearing block 42 remote from the belt buckle, forms a bearing for one end of the electric motor 46 on the belt buckle side.

[0036] In order to reduce the installation space in the direction pointing into the vehicle, in this example a recess 48 is provided in the carriage 14 in a front plate 14a and a back plate 14b, into which the electric motor 46 projects.

[0037] On the shaft of the electric motor 46 is a drive pinion 50 that meshes with a first pinion 52 of an intermediate gear 54. The intermediate gear 54 has a second pinion 56 that is arranged on a common shaft with the first pinion 52. The second pinion 56 meshes with an external toothing 58 on the spindle nut 34, whereby a rotary movement of the pinion 50 can be transmitted to the spindle nut 34 at the desired ratio. All toothings here are designed as helical gears. The shaft of the intermediate gear 54 is also mounted in the bearing block 42, as shown in Fig. 10 can be seen.

[0038] The shaft of the electric motor 46, that of the intermediate gear 54 and the spindle 36 are aligned parallel to each other.

[0039] The spindle drive 32 can be pre-assembled with the electric motor 46 in the bearing block 42 to form a separate assembly, as shown in the Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 is shown.

[0040] In this example, two position sensors 60 are also provided for detecting a spindle position. The position sensors 60 are also mounted on the base body 12.

[0041] The Fig. 11 to 17 show a further embodiment of the belt buckle presenter 10, comprising the base body 12 which can be mounted stationary on the vehicle and the belt buckle 16 which is movably mounted on the base body 12, wherein the spindle drive 32 moves the belt buckle 16 and the spindle 36 of the spindle drive 32 is connected to the belt buckle 16 in a rotationally fixed manner.

[0042] Furthermore, the spindle 36 is connected to the carriage 14 and has an axis, wherein the carriage 14 is guided on the base body 12 so as to be movable in the axial direction A.

[0043] Analogous to the embodiment according to the Fig. 1 to 10, the fastening element 38 is arranged at an upper end of the spindle 36 and the belt buckle 16 is fixed to the fastening element 38, for example by screws or rivets, that is to say rigidly connected to the fastening element 38.

[0044] In the embodiment of the belt buckle presenter 10 according to the Fig. 1 to 10, the fastening element 38 is also rigidly connected to the spindle 36, in particular welded.

[0045] On the other hand, the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36 in the embodiment of the belt buckle presenter 10 according to the Fig. 11 to 17 are not rigidly attached to one another, but are connected in such a way that they retain limited mobility relative to one another. For this purpose, the connection between the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36 can have a predetermined play and / or be designed to be elastically flexible.

[0046] The belt buckle presenter 10 according to the Fig. 11 to 17 differs from the embodiment according to the Fig. 1 to 10 essentially only by the type of connection between the spindle 36 and the fastening element 38. Therefore, the following mainly deals with this difference and the resulting advantages and otherwise refers to the above description of the figures.

[0047] The Fig. 11 shows an exploded view of the belt buckle presenter 10 in the area of ​​a connection between the belt buckle 16 and the spindle 36.

[0048] The fastening element 38 is designed here as a sheet metal part having openings 62 for coupling to the spindle 36. Specifically, the sheet metal part is designed in two layers, at least in the region of a coupling section, with the sheet metal layers being spaced apart from one another in the coupling section to form the openings 62.

[0049] At the upper end 64 of the spindle 36, i.e., the end facing the belt buckle 16, a coupling body 66 is arranged and firmly connected to the spindle 36, in particular pressed and / or welded to the spindle 36. The coupling body 66 has extensions 68 that extend transversely to the axial direction A and engage with play in the openings 62 of the fastening element 38. In this way, a highly resilient and limitedly movable connection between the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36 can be realized with little effort.

[0050] For noise dampening, damping elements 70 are arranged between the extensions 68 of the coupling body 66, which is firmly connected to the spindle 36, and the fastening element 38. The damping elements 70 are preferably elastic and can be made, for example, of rubber or another suitable elastomer.

[0051] According to the Fig. 11 and Fig. 12, the damping elements 70 are designed as elastomer caps and are attached to the extensions 68 of the coupling body 66. The elastomer caps thus prevent unwanted impact noises during any relative movement between the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36.

[0052] The damping elements 70 reduce the free play between the extensions 68 and the openings 62, and under certain circumstances, the free play may even be completely eliminated. The limited relative movement between the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36 is then ensured exclusively by deformation of the damping elements 70.

[0053] The Fig. 13 shows the section of the belt buckle presenter 10 according to Fig. 12, wherein the base body 12 and the carriage 14 are additionally shown.

[0054] The carriage 14 and the fastening element 38 are firmly connected to one another, i.e., essentially without play. For this purpose, tabs 72 are formed on the fastening element 38, which are screwed to the carriage 14 to ensure a rigid connection and direct force transmission between the fastening element 38 and the carriage 14. The tabs 72 prevent, in particular, the spindle 36 from rotating with the spindle nut 34 and thus have the same function as the Fig. 9 shown fastening eyes 40 on the belt buckle end of the slide 14.

[0055] According to Fig. 14, a force F acting on the belt buckle 16 is introduced into the carriage 14 via the fastening element 38. Force components acting transversely to the axial direction A are introduced by the carriage 14 via a linear guide system 74 directly into the body-mounted base body 12, whereas force components acting in the axial direction A are transmitted from the carriage 14 to the spindle drive 32.

[0056] The linear guide system 74 has the guides 28 designed as profile rails 76, 78 and allows a displacement of the carriage 14 relative to the base body 12 with as little friction as possible in the axial direction A, whereas it enables a force transmission transverse to the axial direction A.

[0057] In the embodiment according to Fig. 14, the linear guide system 74 comprises a profile rail 76 firmly connected to the carriage 14, a profile rail 78 firmly connected to the base body 12 and at least one ball cage 26 arranged between the profile rails 76, 78. Alternatively, a design of the linear guide system 74 is also conceivable, as described above with reference to the Fig. 3, Fig. 4 and Fig. 10. Instead of the illustrated, particularly low-friction rolling guide by means of ball cages 26, linear guide systems 74 with sliding guides can of course also be used.

[0058] The (limited) mobility of the fastening element 38 relative to the spindle 36 allows for compensation of manufacturing tolerances in the components of the belt buckle presenter 10. Furthermore, force components acting transversely to the axial direction A on the belt buckle 16 are introduced into the body-mounted base body 12 not via the spindle drive 32, but rather via the carriage 14 and the linear guide system 74. The spindle drive 32 only absorbs force components acting in the axial direction A, i.e., in the travel direction V of the belt buckle 16.

[0059] The Fig.15 to 17 show views of the assembled belt buckle presenter 10 in the area of ​​the connection between the belt buckle 16 and the spindle 36. It is clear that the fastening element 38 is rigidly connected to both the belt buckle 16 and the slide 14. However, the connection between the fastening element 38 and the spindle 36 or the coupling body 66 firmly connected to the spindle 36 allows limited relative movement in both the axial direction A and the radial direction R. This relative movement results from free play and / or deformation of the damping elements 70.

[0060] Due to this fastening of the belt buckle 16, manufacturing tolerances can be compensated and loads on the spindle drive 32 transverse to the axial direction A can be avoided. The spindle drive 32 is therefore very smooth and has low friction and a high degree of efficiency.

Claims

[1] Belt buckle presenter with a base body (12) that can be fixed to the vehicle in a stationary manner and a belt buckle (16) movably mounted on the base body (12), wherein a spindle drive (32) is provided which moves the belt buckle (16), wherein a spindle (36) of the spindle drive (32) is connected in a rotationally fixed manner to the belt buckle (16), and wherein a fastening element (38) is arranged at an upper end of the spindle (36), to which the belt buckle (16) is fixed, characterized by that the spindle (36) is connected to a carriage (14) which can be moved along the base body (12), and that the carriage (14) encloses the base body (12) at least in sections. [2] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 1, characterized by that the spindle (36) has an axis and the carriage (14) is guided on the base body (12) so as to be movable in the axial direction (A). [3] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by that the fastening element (38) and the carriage (14) are firmly connected to one another. [4] Belt buckle presenter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that the fastening element (38) and the spindle (36) are connected to one another and are movable to a limited extent relative to one another. [5] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 4, characterized by that a damping element (70) for noise damping is arranged between the fastening element (38) and the spindle (36). [6] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 4 or 5, characterized by that a coupling body (66) is arranged at the upper end of the spindle (36) and is firmly connected to the spindle (36), wherein the coupling body (66) has extensions (68) which engage with play in openings (62) of the fastening element (38). [7] Belt buckle presenter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized bythat between the base body (12) and the slide (14) at least one ball cage (26) is arranged, on which the slide (14) is mounted for a linear movement along the base body (12). [8] Belt buckle presenter according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by that a spindle nut (34) of the spindle drive (32) is rotatably mounted on the base body (12), which causes an axial movement of the spindle (36). [9] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 8, characterized by that the spindle nut (34) is accommodated in a bearing block (42) which is divided in particular perpendicular to the axial direction (A). [10] Belt buckle presenter according to claim 9, characterized by that the spindle (36) is connected to a carriage (14) which can be moved along the base body (12) and engages around the bearing block (42).

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