Vehicle seat belt assembly having lofted latch plate stop

A seat belt assembly is provided that includes a buckle, a latch plate configured to releasibly latch onto the buckle, the latch plate comprising a body and a slot formed in the body, a seat belt webbing extending through the slot, and a latch plate stop feature connected to the seat belt webbing and comprising a lofted portion for preventing movement of the latch plate beyond a stop position.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to vehicle seat belts, and more particularly relates to a seat belt assembly having a latch plate that slides on a seat belt webbing and is supported in a stop position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Motor vehicles are commonly equipped with seats having seat belts. Conventional seat belts typically include a belt forming a lap belt and a shoulder belt that is connected onto a seat belt latch plate which, in turn, releasibly connects to a fixed buckle. The seat belt is generally made of a seat belt webbing and the latch plate may slide on the webbing to allow for repositioning between use and non-use positions. In the non-use position, the latch plate may rest on a fixed stop on the webbing to prevent downward movement beyond a stop position. However, in some vehicles the latch plate may rattle or make undesirable noise when driving off-road or in other harsh driving conditions. It would be desirable to provide a seat belt assembly that positions the latch plate on the seat belt webbing in a manner that is less susceptible to noise.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, a seat belt assembly is provided. The seat belt assembly includes a buckle, a latch plate configured to releasibly latch onto the buckle, the latch plate comprising a body and a slot formed in the body, a seat belt webbing extending through the slot, and a latch plate stop feature connected to the seat belt webbing for limiting movement of the latch plate at a stop position, the latch plate stop feature comprising a loop of material having at least one inward folded portion forming a lofted portion.

Embodiments of the first aspect of the invention can include any one or a combination of the following features:the lofted portion of the latch plate stop comprises the loop formed of a seat belt webbing material and connected at the inward folded portion to create at least two curved portions;stitching for connecting overlapping layers of the inward folded portion;the lofted portion is substantially heart-shaped;the seat belt comprises a shoulder belt and a lap belt;the latch plate is configured to latch onto the buckle on a vehicle;the latch plate is held by the lofted portion of the latch plate stop feature at a stop position when the seat belt is unlatched;the lofted portion comprises a separate webbing connected to the seat belt webbing;the separate webbing is stitched onto the seat belt webbing; andthe separate webbing is a seat belt webbing material.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a vehicle seat belt assembly is provided. The vehicle seat belt assembly includes a buckle, a latch plate configured to releasibly latch onto the buckle, the latch plate comprising a body and a slot formed in the body, a seat belt webbing extending through the slot and a latch plate stop feature connected to the seat belt webbing for limiting movement of the latch plate at a stop positon, the latch plate stop feature comprising a loop of material having at least one inward folded portion forming a lofted portion in the shape of a heart.

Embodiments of the second aspect of the invention can include any one or a combination of the following features:the lofted portion comprises a loop formed in the seat belt webbing and connected at overlapping layers of the inward folded portion;stitching provided in the latch plate stop for connecting the overlapping layers of the inward folded portion;the seat belt comprises a shoulder belt and a lap belt;the latch plate is configured to latch onto the buckle on a vehicle;the latch plate is held by the lofted portion when the seat belt is unlatched;the lofted portion comprises a separate webbing connected to the seat belt webbing; andthe separate webbing is stitched onto the seat belt webbing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now toFIG. 1, a portion of the passenger cabin or compartment of a vehicle10is generally illustrated having a seat belt assembly20assembled onto a seat assembly12and including a seat belt connector latch plate30engaged on a seat belt webbing22, according to one embodiment. The vehicle10may include a wheeled motor vehicle, such as a car, truck, van or any other type of vehicle that includes a seating arrangement with one or more seat belt assemblies. The seat assembly12is generally illustrated including a lower seat14pivotally connected to an upper seat back16and configured to receive and retain a seated passenger. It should be appreciated that the vehicle10may include a plurality of seat assemblies12each equipped with a seat belt assembly20having a seat belt latch plate30slidingly engaged on the seat belt webbing22and configured to engage a latch plate stop feature40as shown and described herein.

The seat belt assembly20is shown as a three-point seat belt configuration having the seat belt webbing22connected at a first connection point24generally near the top of the seat back16or another supporting portion within the vehicle10such as the B-pillar, a second connection point26connected to the floor or the lower seat14of the vehicle10generally in the region of the lap of a passenger (not shown) seated on the lower seat14, and a third connection point28shown at a seat belt buckle45which releasibly connects with the latch plate30. The connector latch plate30is configured to be matingly and releasibly coupled to the seat belt buckle45for fastening the latch plate30onto the buckle45in a use position. The seat belt assembly20includes the seat belt comprising the seat belt webbing22. The seat belt webbing22may be a fabric strap and may be flat according to one embodiment, or may be generally in the shape of a flattened tube defining an interior passageway which may form a seat belt airbag according to another embodiment.

In the embodiment shown, the seat belt webbing22serves to form a shoulder belt that is generally positioned to extend from the latch plate30over the shoulder and chest of a seated passenger and a lap belt which is positioned to extend over the lap of the seated passenger when seated in the seat assembly12. The lap belt and shoulder belt are therefore integrally formed of the same continuous piece of seat belt webbing22as shown. It should be appreciated that in the seat belt use position, where the latch plate30is connected to the buckle45, the latch plate30divides the shoulder belt and the lap belt. The seat belt webbing22may include a conventional webbing material that forms a seat belt. The seat belt webbing22may extend within one or more seat belt retractors such as retractors located at or near one or both of the first connection point24and second connection point26to rewind or retract the seat belt webbing22towards the non-use position.

The seat belt webbing22is slidably coupled to the latch plate30such that the latch plate30may slide and thereby change positions on the seat belt webbing22. The sliding movement and coupling is made by way of a slot38extending through the latch plate30which enables the seat belt webbing22to pass through the slot38in the seat belt latch plate30. The seat belt webbing22is configured with a latch plate stop feature40that holds the latch plate30in a stop position on the seat belt webbing22sufficient to prevent the latch plate30from sliding in one direction (e.g., downward) below the stop position on the seat belt webbing22. As such, when the seat belt assembly20is in the non-use or stowed position with the seat belt webbing22retracted, the latch plate30will abut the latch plate stop feature40on the seat belt webbing22. As such, the seat belt latch plate30is prevented from dropping downward due to gravity or other force beyond the latch plate stop feature40towards the ground, and the latch plate30is thereby maintained in the elevated stop position on the seat belt webbing22. Typically the elevated stop position presents the latch plate30at an easy to reach position for a seated passenger to grasp the latch plate30, pull on the latch plate30to unwind the seat belt webbing22, and latch the latch plate30onto the buckle45in the use position. When a seated passenger uses the seat belt assembly20to connect the latch plate30onto the buckle45, the seat belt latch plate30slides along the seat belt webbing22due to force applied by the user on the latch plate30to enable the latch plate30to be positioned to be connected (i.e., latched) onto the buckle45. When the seat belt assembly20is removed from a seated passenger, the seat belt webbing22retracts and the latch plate30slides along the seat belt webbing22to the non-use or stowed position.

Referring toFIG. 2, the seat belt latch plate30is further illustrated having a metal tongue34that forms a latching mechanism and has a latch receiving opening36to enable engagement with a latch on the buckle45. The metal tongue34has a shape and size positioned to be received within a latch opening in the buckle45and latched thereto in the seat belt use position. The latch plate30further includes a body shown as an upper body32which connects to and supports the metal tongue34. The upper body32may include a plastic coating that is overmolded onto the metal tongue34. The seat belt slot38extends through the upper body32to enable the seat belt webbing22to extend therethrough. The seat belt slot38has a width and depth greater than the width and depth of the seat belt webbing22sufficient to allow the seat belt webbing22to slide in the seat belt slot38and prevent the latch plate stop feature40from passing through the seat belt slot38.

Referring toFIGS. 3 and 4, the seat belt assembly20is shown having a lofted latch plate stop feature40connected to the seat belt webbing22. The latch plate stop feature40provides a barrier that limits movement of the latch plate30at a stop position on the seat belt webbing22. The lofted latch plate stop feature40includes a loop of bendable material42having at least one inward extending portion forming a lofted portion for catching the latch plate30as it slides on the seat belt webbing22via slot38to limit movement of the latch plate30relative to the seat belt webbing22at the stop position. The inward extending portion is folded on itself approximately 180 and sewn together with stitching50to create at least two curved portions52and54that cause the loop of bendable material to loft outwards away from one another in the shape of a heart. The lofted latch plate stop feature40is positioned on one side of the seat belt webbing22opposite the metal tongue34. When the latch plate30is in the stowed non-use position, the latch plate30may move relative to the seat belt22downward due to gravity or other force until it reaches the stop position defined by the lofted latch plate stop feature40. The lofted portion of the lofted latch plate stop feature40engages the upper housing32of the latch plate30which prevents the stop feature40from passing through the seat belt slot38, thereby stopping downward movement of the latch plate30beyond the stop position.

The lofted latch plate stop feature40is shown made up of a loop of bendable material42such as a piece of the same or similar seat belt webbing material used for the seat belt and is generally shown arranged in a closed loop. The piece of material42has ends44that are aligned with one another and the material42is essentially overlapped and stitched onto the seat belt webbing22at stitching locations46and48near the lower end of the loop of material42. The ends44of the material42are positioned between the first and second stitching portions46and48. As such, the material42is fixedly connected onto the seat belt webbing22at a lower end such that the lofted portion is at the upper end. At the upper end of the loop of material42, the piece of material42is folded inward and onto itself to form the double curved portions52and54pattern and the overlapping portions are stitched together at stitching50so as to form a lofted configuration having a generally heart-shape. The lofted portion of the lofted latch plate stop feature40essentially creates a widened and resilient stop feature that may abut the body32of the latch plate30to dampen vibrations and prevent or reduce unwanted noise due to the vibration while driving the vehicle10, particularly on rough terrain.

The stitching50may include any known stitching for stitching two layers of bendable material together. Alternatively, the lofted portion of the latch plate stop40may be formed by otherwise connecting portions of the loop together such as by using adhesive or fasteners such as staples or rivets, according to other embodiments. It should be appreciated that the lofted portion at the upper end of the latch plate stop feature40may include additional inward folded and curved portions such as three or four or more curved portions to provide additional loft or width with further stitching or other connections. It should be appreciated that the shape of a heart-shape provided by the lofted portion advantageously provides resiliency so as to apply a cushion force onto the body32of latch plate30to thereby dampen and reduce or minimize noise due to vibration.

The lofted latch plate stop feature40may be formed and assembled to the seat belt webbing22at a location of the stop position for the latch plate30such as to provide a convenient height to hold the latch plate30in the non-use position that is easy for a seated passenger to locate when using the seat belt. The stop position may be any desired location.

The latch plate stop feature40may be formed and assembled to the seat belt webbing22as follows. A predetermined cut length of seat belt webbing or other bendable material may be folded over to provide a flat fold. A straight stitch50may be sewn across near the top edge of the fold, through the entire width of the material. The webbing fold may then be reversed, forming a heart-shaped loop with curved portions52and54. The opposite end with remainder of the stop feature40is then folded and sewn to the seat belt webbing22with stitching46and48. It should be appreciated that the latch plate stop feature40may be formed in other shapes and sizes according to other methods.

Accordingly, the seat belt assembly20as described herein advantageously provides for an enhanced latch plate stop feature40for stopping movement of the latch plate30in a stop position in a manner that dampens and minimizes or reduces vibratory movement and noise that may occur due to vibration of the vehicle10such as while the vehicle10is driven off-road or on a rough road.