Vehicle Belt Fitting Surface Contour for Webbing Guidance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Safety belt devices in vehicles face high stress on the belt webbing during crashes due to the twisting motion of the belt buckle, leading to excessive stress on the material in the corner area of the belt eye, which can result in damage.
Innovation Solution
A belt fitting with a special surface contour on its running surfaces, featuring indentations, furrows, or grooves, that counteracts transverse shifting of the belt webbing by providing a stable and form-fitting guidance, preventing material stress and damage during crashes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the belt buckle is mounted via a torsionally weak, flexible steel cable to allow movement, then the safety belt device can accommodate dynamic movements, but the belt buckle twists in a pulse-like fashion during crashes, applying transverse force components to the belt webbing that cause excessive stress and potential damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a groove as an intermediary structural element between the belt webbing and the belt eye. This groove acts as a mediator that guides the belt webbing along a predetermined path, preventing direct transverse shifting into the corner area of the belt eye while still allowing the necessary movement through the flexible cable mounting.
2Reliability
If the belt webbing is tightly clamped between the clamping element and clamping stop during crashes, then the lap belt segment is effectively arrested, but the belt webbing material in the corner area of the belt eye is subjected to very high flex stress that can cause damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating a groove specifically in the area where the belt webbing passes through the belt eye. This localized structural modification provides enhanced guidance and protection precisely where the corner area is most vulnerable to stress during clamping, without affecting the overall clamping effectiveness.
3Reliability
If the belt running surfaces are designed with a special surface contour featuring indentations, furrows, or grooves, then transverse shifting of the belt webbing is counteracted and stable guidance is provided, but the manufacturing complexity of the belt fitting increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the belt running surface into distinct features including indentations, furrows, and grooves. This segmentation allows each feature to perform a specific function in guiding the belt webbing, while also making the manufacturing process more manageable by breaking down the complex surface into discrete, manufacturable elements.
Data Source
AI summary
A belt fitting for a safety belt device in a vehicle that includes a base segment and an insertion tongue connected thereto, in which base segment a belt eye is provided, through which a belt webbing is guided and divides the belt webbing into a shoulder belt segment and a lap belt segment when the safety belt is worn. The belt fitting has a clamping element movable between a release position, such that the belt webbing is freely movable in sliding contact over at least one belt running surface, and a clamping position, in which the belt webbing is tightly clamped between a clamping stop on the base segment and the clamping element in the event of a load or crash. The belt running surface of the belt fitting has a surface contour, which ensures stable transverse guidance of the belt webbing in the event of a load.