Patent ID: 6843339

Claim:
An automotive passenger restraint and protection apparatus for an automotive vehicle, having a seatbelt, for restraining an occupant of the automotive vehicle by the seatbelt to protect the occupant, comprising: an electric retractor having driving means for retracting and protracting the seatbelt; supply voltage supplying means for supplying supply voltage to said driving means; abnormality detecting means for detecting abnormality of said driving means; supply voltage decreasing means for decreasing the supply voltage supplied to said driving means by said supply voltage supplying means when the abnormality of said driving means is detected by said abnormality detecting means; current detecting means for detecting current flowing to said driving means; and timer means for measuring a time period during which the current detected by said current detecting means exceeds a predetermined value, wherein said abnormality detecting means detects that said driving means is abnormal when the time period measured by said timer means exceeds a predetermined time period.