Passive restraint seat system

Claim 2

In a vehicle restraint system having at least one guard arm, the improvement wherein at least a portion of said guard arm is adapted for bending movement, tension means carried within at least said portion of the guard arm, one end of the tension means being secured to the guard arm, and means to apply a force to the other end of the tension means to bend the guard arm to a restraining position to at least partially encircle a portion of a body of a vehicle occupant.

Claim 3

The restraint system of claim 1, wherein said restraint system includes an upper guard arm assembly and a lower guard arm assembly, each of said upper and lower guard arm assemblies comprising a pair of said guard arms.

Claim 4

The system of claim 1, wherein said guard arms are elongated guard arms.

Claim 5

The system of claim 3, wherein said tension means comprise elongated tension belt means.

Claim 6

The restraint system of claim 1, wherein only a portion of said guard arm is adapted for a bending movement.

Claim 7

The restraint system of claim 5, wherein said portion of said guard arm adpated for bending movement is a segmented portion.

Claim 8

The vehicle restraint system of claim 1, wherein the restraint system is A passive restraint system.

Claim 9

The restraint system of claim 7, wherein said system includes seat sensor means associated with said guard arm, said seat sensor means adapted to actuate said guard arm when a passenger is seated in the vehicle.

Claim 10

The system of claim 8, wherein said seat sensor means operate in conjunction with further means such that said guard arms are actuated only when the vehicle is in motion.

Claim 11

The system of claim 2 including padding means, said padding means extending along a portion of said guard arms, said portion being adapted to at least partially encircle the vehicle occupant.

Claim 12

The system of claim 2, wherein said lower guard arm assembly comprises a pair of said guard arms, each of said pair of guard arms being positioned on either side of a passenger, each of said guard arms adapted for bending movement along a portion thereof to a restraining position to at least partially encircle a side hip portion of a vehicle occupant.

Claim 13

The system of claim 2, wherein said upper guard arm assembly comprises a pair of guard arms, each of said guard arms being adapted for bending movement such that at least a portion of said guard arms is adapted to restrain the shoulder/chest portion of a vehicle occupant.

Claim 14

The system of claim 2, wherein at least one of said guard arms includes location sensor means, said location sensor means sensing when said guard arm is in a restraining position relative to the vehicle occupant.

Claim 15

The system of claim 11, wherein each of said pair of lower guard arms includes pivoting means, whereby each of said lower guard arms may be pivotably moved in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the longitudinal axis of said guard arms.

Claim 16

The system of claim 5, wherein said portion of said guard arm adpated for bending movement includes spring means, said spring means adapted to return said guard arm to a generally straight planar condition when a force is not applied to said tension means.

Claim 17

The system of claim 2, including positioning means for positioning said upper guard arm assembly.

Claim 18

The system of claim 12, including padding means on the portion of said upper guard arms adapted to restrain the shoulder/chest area of the vehicle occupant, said padding means including fluid restraint means, said fluid restraint means comprising a first fluid chamber having fluid therein positioned approximate to the passenger, valve means operatively associated with said first fluid chamber, and a further chamber, the fluid in said first fluid chamber passing through said valve means into said further chamber when a force is applied thereto, said further chamber forming a cushion for th chin/face portion of a passenger.

Claim 19

The system of claim 16, including seat means and seat back means, wherein said seat back means are hingeable with respect to said seat means, the improvement wherein the system includes inertia reel means, belt means, one end of said belt means being connected to said inertia reel means, the other end of said belt means being connected to said seat back means.

Claim 20

The system of claim 2, including drive means and reel means, one end of said tension belt means being connected to said reel means, said drive means being adpated to drive said reel means whereby said tension belt means are wound about said reel means thereby applying a force to said tension belt means.

Claim 21

A vehicle restraint system comprising at least one elongated guard arm having at least one portion thereof adapted for bending movement, said portion being of a segmented construction, eleongated tension strap means carried within at least the segmented portion of said guard arm, one end of said tension strap means being secured to the guard arm, the other end of said tension strap means being secured to a reel whereby said tension strap means are wound thereupon causing said segmented portion to bend and said guard arm to move to a restraining position to at least partially encircle a portion of a bOdy of a vehicle occupant.

Claim 22

A vehicle restraint system comprising at least one elongated guard arm having at least one portion thereof adapted for bending movement, said portion being of a segmented construction, eleongated tension strap means carried within at least the segmented portion of said guard arm, one end of said tension strap means being secured to the guard arm, the other end of said tension strap means being secured to a reel whereby said tension strap means are wound thereupon causing said segmented portion to bend and said guard arm to move to a restraining position to at least partially encircle a portion of a bOdy of a vehicle occupant.

Claim 23

The system of claim 18, wherein said means for positioning said upper guard arm assembly includes a mounting rail means, said mounting rail means being secured to the seat back means, said mounting rail means extending vertically of said seat back means, said mounting rail means including a channel running longitudinally thereof, said upper guard arm assembly including a projection adapted to slidingly engage in said channel.

Claim 24

The system of claim 21, wherein said positioning means additionally includes a pair of rotatable pulleys with a cable entrained thereabout, said cable being secured to said upper guard arm assembly, one of said pulleys being operatively associated with said drive means.

Claim 25

The vehicle restraint system of claim 20, wherein said restraint system includes an upper guard arm assembly and a lower guard arm assembly, each of said upper and lower guard arm assemblies comprising a pair of said guard arms, each of said lower guard arms adapted to restrain a hip portion of the vehicle occupant, each of said upper guard arms adatped to restrain the shoulder/chest portion of the vehicle occupant.

Claim 26

The vehicle restraint system of claim 23, wherein said vehicle restraint system is a passive restraint system including sensor means, said sensor means adapted to automatically deploy said guard arms under predetermined conditions.

Claim 27

The vehicle restraint system of claim 24, wherein said guard arms include spring means integral therewith, said spring means adapted to return said guard arms to a straight line configuration when the force is not applied to the tension means.

Claim 28

The system of claim 25, including seat means and seat back means, said seat back being hingeable with respect to said seat portion, and inertial reel means, said inertia reel means being operatively connected to said seat back structure.

Claim 29

The vehicle restraint system of claim 26, wherein said upper guard arm assembly includes positioning means.

Claim 30

The vehicle restraint system of claim 27, including chin/head restraint means, said restraint means comprising a first fluid retaining chamber on said guard arm, said fluid retaining chamber being in juxtaposition to the passenger, a further chamber, valve means intermediate said fluid retaining chamber and said further chamber, said valve means preventing the passage of fluid from said fluid retaining chamber to said further chamber under normal conditions of operation, said valve means permitting said fluid from said fluid retaining chamber to pass to said further chamber under high external pressure, said further chamber forming a cushion for the chin/head portion of the vehicle occupant.