Vehicle safety belt tightener

Claim 1

A safety belt tightener of a vehicle adapted to tighten a safety belt in the event of a collision or sudden deceleration of said vehicle, comprising a hollow member having formed therein a chamber closed at one end thereof and a slot, said slot extending parallel with a longitudinal axis, said hollow member being connected at the other end thereof to said safety belt, a casing fit in said chamber of said hollow member in such a manner that said hollow member is slidable relative to said casing and having an open end opposite to said closed end of said hollow member, a bracket extending from said casing through said slot and fixedly fastened to a stationary part of said vehicle, said hollow member having a first position in which said one end of said hollow member rather than the other end thereof is adjacent to said casing and a second position in which said other end of said hollow member rather than said one end thereof is adjacent to said casing and movable between said first and second positions, and a pressurized gas producer accommodated in said casing and responsive to an impact for producing pressurized gas to move said hollow member from said first position to said second position.