Seatbelt Spool Piston Absorbing Deceleration Force
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional seatbelt systems do not effectively manage sudden deceleration forces, leading to increased tension and potential injury to occupants, as they lack a mechanism to absorb and distribute the impact energy efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A restraint system incorporating a spool, pinion, rack, and piston filled with a heterogeneous mixture of hydrophobic nanoporous particles and liquid, which compresses to absorb energy and limit load on the occupant during deceleration, allowing the webbing to be extracted from the spool and reducing tension.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If conventional seatbelt systems are used, then the structure is simple and reliable, but the maximum force imparted to the occupant during sudden deceleration is excessive causing potential injury
Solution Approach 1:
A piston filled with resilient material is introduced as an intermediary between the spool and the housing. This piston compresses during sudden deceleration, absorbing impact energy and limiting the maximum force transmitted to the occupant through the webbing, thereby resolving the contradiction between reducing harmful forces and maintaining structural simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient material in the piston changes its density and compressibility parameters during impact events. The material compresses under high force conditions to absorb energy, then returns to its original state, dynamically adjusting the force characteristics of the restraint system without requiring complex active control mechanisms
2Reliability
If energy absorption mechanism is added to limit load during deceleration, then occupant safety is improved, but the system becomes reusable requiring complex mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The piston with resilient material is designed to automatically compress and rebound without external control. The resilient material's inherent elastic properties enable the system to self-regulate force levels during impact and automatically reset after the event, providing reusable operation without complex control systems or replacement requirements
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient material temporarily stores impact energy during compression (discarding the force transmission function) and then recovers by rebounding to its original state, enabling the system to be reused after impact events without permanent damage or replacement, thereby improving reliability while avoiding permanent disablement
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system reduces the maximum force imparted to the occupant during sudden decelerations, minimizing injuries and allowing for reusable operation without the need for replacement.
Implementation Method 1
A piston is attached to the rack and the housing and filled with a resilient material that absorbs energy while allowing extraction of the webbing from the spool, thus mitigating an increase in tension in the webbing during the sudden deceleration
Implementation Method 2
The resilient material may be a heterogeneous mixture of a liquid and hydrophobic, nanoporous particles
Implementation Method 3
The piston head may be movable relative to the piston cylinder from a first position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with air to a second position in which the nanopores are substantially filled with the liquid. A volume of the heterogeneous mixture when the piston head is in the second position may be at most half of a volume of the heterogeneous mixture when the piston head is in the first position
Data Source
AI summary
A restraint system includes a housing, a spool rotatably coupled to the housing, a pinion fixed to the spool, a rack engaged with the pinion, and a piston attached to the rack and the housing. The piston is filled with a resilient material. The resilient material may be a heterogeneous mixture of a liquid and hydrophobic, nanoporous particles.