Patent ID: 7845676
Filing Date: 2010-12-07
Classification: B60R,D03D,D04B,D10B,Y10T

Abstract:
1. An inflatable belt apparatus comprising: a seat belt assembly; a retractor; a releasable locking mechanism for releasably securing the seat belt assembly about a vehicle occupant; an inflatable bag associated with a stretchable portion of the seat belt assembly; and a compacted weft yarn of the seat belt assembly extending across the entire lateral extent of a rigid portion of the seat belt assembly configured and arranged to allow for the rigid portion to be received in the retractor, wherein the stretchable portion and rigid portion include an inserting yarn and knitting yarns extending longitudinally, and the inserting, knitting and weft yarns are of polymeric material thermally treated at a predetermined temperature so at least a portion of the inserting yarn and a portion of the knitting yarns are melted and fused to the other yarns, and so that the weft yarn shrinks more than the inserting yarn and the knitting yarns.