US3594872A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Vehicle safety belt buckle
Assignee: JEFFREY ALLAN IND Inc
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Filing: 1969-03-25
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Granted: 1971-07-27
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Expires: 1989-03-25
Abstract
Abstract A pushbutton buckle for vehicle safety belts in which a base member has an upwardly biased latch member pivoted near its forward end, with the latch member being a second class lever that has an integral pushbutton at its rear end and intermediate rearwardly facing latch shoulders which engage holes in a slide link that is inserted through a transverse opening in the front of the base above the pivot. A fixed cover that makes a snap fit on the base has a hole through which the pushbutton is accessible.
Inventors
- 👤 Seymour J Kulwin
- 👤 James A Swimmer
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 04:02
CPC Classifications
A; A44; A44B; A44B11/00; A44B11/25; A44B11/2503; A44B11/2507; A44B11/2511; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T24/00; Y10T24/45; Y10T24/45225; Y10T24/45602; Y10T24/45675; Y10T24/45696; Y10T24/45712
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
378 words
A vehicle safety belt buckle comprising, in combination: a base member having a generally planar bottom plate with a front end and a rear end, and upstanding sidewalls; a cover member which has a top wall spanning the base member and downturned peripheral flange means engaging the upstanding sidewalls, there being an opening in said top wall a substantial distance to the rear of the front end of the base member; transverse flange means at the front end of the base wall; which define a shallow transverse opening intermediate the bottom plate and the top wall; a latcH member mounted for pivotal movement about a transverse axis which is adjacent the front end of the base member and spaced above the bottom plate and below the transverse opening, said latch member comprising a planar plate which has rearwardly facing upstanding latch shoulder means and which has a rear extension portion which is entirely to the rear of said shoulder means and beneath the opening in the top wall; latch spring means biasing the latch member upwardly about its pivot axis; stop means which is contacted by a rearward part of the latch member to limit upward pivotal movement of the latch member and normally orient it in a position which is slightly inclined upwardly from front to rear and with the top surfaces of the planar plate aligned with the transverse opening; an upstanding finger piece on the rear extension portion of the latch member for manually depressing the latter through the opening in the cover member; a slide link comprising a planar plate insertable through the transverse opening for releasable engagement with the shoulder means on the latch member, said slide link when engaged with the shoulder means having its free end slightly forward of the finger piece and being in a plane which is generally parallel to the bottom plate with the bottom surface of the slide link in extensive facing engagement with the top surface of the latch member planar plate and held against the stop means by the latch member; means engageable with the underside of the slide link to support the latter when the latch member is manually depressed; and means at the rear of the base member to receive safety belt webbing.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
378 words
A vehicle safety belt buckle comprising, in combination: a base member having a generally planar bottom plate with a front end and a rear end, and upstanding sidewalls; a cover member which has a top wall spanning the base member and downturned peripheral flange means engaging the upstanding sidewalls, there being an opening in said top wall a substantial distance to the rear of the front end of the base member; transverse flange means at the front end of the base wall; which define a shallow transverse opening intermediate the bottom plate and the top wall; a latcH member mounted for pivotal movement about a transverse axis which is adjacent the front end of the base member and spaced above the bottom plate and below the transverse opening, said latch member comprising a planar plate which has rearwardly facing upstanding latch shoulder means and which has a rear extension portion which is entirely to the rear of said shoulder means and beneath the opening in the top wall; latch spring means biasing the latch member upwardly about its pivot axis; stop means which is contacted by a rearward part of the latch member to limit upward pivotal movement of the latch member and normally orient it in a position which is slightly inclined upwardly from front to rear and with the top surfaces of the planar plate aligned with the transverse opening; an upstanding finger piece on the rear extension portion of the latch member for manually depressing the latter through the opening in the cover member; a slide link comprising a planar plate insertable through the transverse opening for releasable engagement with the shoulder means on the latch member, said slide link when engaged with the shoulder means having its free end slightly forward of the finger piece and being in a plane which is generally parallel to the bottom plate with the bottom surface of the slide link in extensive facing engagement with the top surface of the latch member planar plate and held against the stop means by the latch member; means engageable with the underside of the slide link to support the latter when the latch member is manually depressed; and means at the rear of the base member to receive safety belt webbing.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
The buckle of claim 1 in which the latch spring means is a U-shaped spring having a first arm secured to the latch member and a second arm against the bottom plate.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
52 words
The buckle of claim 2 in which the latch member has a hole between the latch shoulders and the finger piece, and in which the second arm of the spring includes an upstanding finger projecting through said hole and bearing on the slide link to furnish the support means for the latter.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
35 words
The buckle of claim 3 in which the first arm of the latch spring is secured beneath the finger piece and the spring has a bight portion just to the rear of the pivot means.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
36 words
The buckle of claim 2 in which the first arm of the latch spring is secured beneath the spring finger piece and the spring has a bight portion just to the rear of the pivot means.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
62 words
The buckle of claim 1 in which the means to receive safety belt webbing includes a cross bar about which the webbing is passed, and a pair of slide members fixedly secured on the ends of the crossbar which are guided between the sidewalls and beneath the cover member, and in which the buckle includes a rear wall behind the slide members.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
58 words
The buckle of claim 1 in which the transverse axis for the latch member comprises a pin the end portions of which project through holes in the sidewalls of the base member, and in which the cover member has resilient sidewalls flanking the sidewalls of the base member and making a snap engagement beneath said projecting end portions.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
38 words
The buckle of claim 7 in which the cover member has a resilient rear wall, and said rear wall has forwardly projecting integral nibs which engage notches in the rear ends of the sidewalls of the base member.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
42 words
The buckle of claim 1 in which the cover member is resilient and has a rear wall, and in which said rear wall has forwardly projecting integral nibs which engage notches in the rear ends of the sidewalls of the base member.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
154 words
In a vehicle safety belt buckle, in combination: a first buckle member having a baseplate with upstanding sidewalls; a transverse pin mounted in said upstanding sidewalls adjacent one end thereof, said pin having end portions which project laterally a short distance beyond the outer surfaces of the sidewalls; latch means pivotally mounted on said pin; spring means urging said latch means in latching direction; a second buckle member releasably engageable with said latch means; means for the manually disengaging the latch means from said second buckle member; and cover means of resilient material which has a top plate with depending sidewalls on said top plate, said cover means spanning the upstanding sidewalls of the first buckle member, ans said depending sidewalls having internal recesses in spaced relationship to their lower margins, said recesses receiving the projecting ends of the pin to provide a snap engagement between the first buckle member and the cover member.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
154 words
In a vehicle safety belt buckle, in combination: a first buckle member having a baseplate with upstanding sidewalls; a transverse pin mounted in said upstanding sidewalls adjacent one end thereof, said pin having end portions which project laterally a short distance beyond the outer surfaces of the sidewalls; latch means pivotally mounted on said pin; spring means urging said latch means in latching direction; a second buckle member releasably engageable with said latch means; means for the manually disengaging the latch means from said second buckle member; and cover means of resilient material which has a top plate with depending sidewalls on said top plate, said cover means spanning the upstanding sidewalls of the first buckle member, ans said depending sidewalls having internal recesses in spaced relationship to their lower margins, said recesses receiving the projecting ends of the pin to provide a snap engagement between the first buckle member and the cover member.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
63 words
The buckle of claim 10 in which the cover means has a transverse rear wall the inner face of which abuts the rear ends of the upstanding sidewalls on the first buckle member, and in which said rear wall and said rear ends of said upstanding sidewalls have interengaging means by which the rear wall makes a snap engagement with the upstanding sidewalls.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
29 words
The buckle of claim 11 in which the interengaging means comprises forwardly projecting integral nibs on the rear wall and notches in the rear ends of the upstanding sidewalls.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
57 words
The buckle of claim 1 in which the stop means are inturned flanges on the sidewalls which are parallel to the bottom plate and extend from adjacent the front to a point behind the free end of the slide link, so that the entire marginal portions of the slide link are in facing engagement with the flanges.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
FR670672A
Cited
US3181215A
Cited
US3317970A
Cited
FR1448046A
Cited
US3378895A
Cited
US3364531A
Cited
US3449800A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1974-07-26 | 1975-01-25 | 1975-07-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1978-07-26 | 1979-01-25 | 1979-07-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1982-07-26 | 1983-01-25 | 1983-07-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |