METHOD FOR PRODUCING A BELT STRAP FOR A SAFETY BELT SYSTEM IN A VEHICLE, BELT STRAP, AND VEHICLE HAVING BELT STRAP

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a webbing (20) for a seat belt system in a vehicle comprises the following steps of: weaving the webbing (20) using a first yarn (30) and a second yarn (32), the first yarn (30) and the second yarn (32) reflecting light in the spectrum invisible to humans with different intensity, wherein the first and second yarns (30, 32) form a pattern (36), and overdying the webbing (20) so that the webbing (20) reflects light in the spectral range visible to humans in such a way that it has a homogenous appearance for humans. Moreover, such a webbing (20) and a vehicle comprising such a webbing (20) are provided.

Claims

1-12. (canceled)

13. A method for manufacturing a webbing (20) for a seat belt system (12) in a vehicle (10), comprising the steps of: a) forming the webbing (20) using a first yarn (30) and a second yarn (32), the first yarn (30) and the second yarn (32) reflecting light in the spectrum invisible to humans with different intensity, wherein the first and second yarns (30, 32) form a pattern (36), and b) overdying the webbing (20) so that the webbing (20) reflects light in the spectral range visible to humans in such a way that for humans it has a homogenous appearance.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first yarn (30) and the second yarn (32) reflect light in the infrared spectral range, specifically in the near infrared spectral range, with different intensity.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the first yarn (30) and/or the second yarn (32) is/are a modified yarn the reflectance of which in the infrared spectral range was modified by introducing, applying and/or dying with a material.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first yarn (30) is spin-black yarn (30).

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein the second yarn (32) is raw white yarn (32).

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein the pattern (36) has longitudinal stripes.

19. The method according to claim 13, wherein the webbing (20) is formed by weaving using warp threads and at least one weft thread.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the weft thread is made of the first yarn and/or the second yarn (30, 32).

21. The method according to claim 19, wherein a part of the warp threads is made of the first yarn (30) and another part of the warp threads is made of the second yarn (32).

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the webbing (20) includes groups of adjacent warp threads, each of the groups comprising 5 to 450, preferably 50 to 150, specifically 75 to 85 warp threads of the first or second yarn (30, 32).

23. A webbing (20) manufactured according to the method as set forth in claim 13.

24. A vehicle (10) comprising a webbing (20) according to claim 23, a camera (42) and a light source (44).

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] Further advantages and features will result from the following description and from the attached drawings, wherein:

[0036] FIG. 1 shows, in a schematic representation, a vehicle according to the invention comprising a webbing according to the invention;

[0037] FIG. 2 shows, in a schematic representation, a portion of the webbing according to the invention of FIG. 1 in the visible spectral range after a first manufacturing step in accordance with a method of the invention,

[0038] FIG. 3 shows, in a schematic representation, the portion of the webbing according to the invention of FIG. 2 in the visible spectral range after a second manufacturing step in accordance with the method of the invention, and

[0039] FIG. 4 shows, in a schematic representation, the portion of the webbing according to the invention of FIG. 3 in an invisible spectral range.

DESCRIPTION

[0040] FIG. 1 illustrates the vehicle 10 comprising a seat belt system 12 for a vehicle occupant 14. The vehicle occupant 14 is seated in a vehicle seat 16 of the vehicle 10.

[0041] The vehicle 10 in this case is a passenger car. Alternatively, the vehicle 10 may be any vehicle, in particular an autonomously driving vehicle.

[0042] In an alternative embodiment, the seat belt system 12 may be provided for any seats in a vehicle 10 to protect the respective vehicle occupant 14 in a case of restraint, such as a crash.

[0043] The seat belt system 12 comprises a seat belt 18 having a webbing 20 and a plug-in tongue 22 as well as a belt buckle 24 in which the plug-in tongue 22 can engage. The webbing 20 serves for restraining the vehicle occupant 14 in the driver seat 16 when the belt buckle 24 is locked. The belt buckle 24 is locked by inserting the plug-in tongue 22 into and engaging it in the belt buckle 24.

[0044] In an alternative embodiment, the seat belt 18 may have any fastener and can be fastened in any way.

[0045] Furthermore, the seat belt system 12 comprises a belt retractor 26 having a belt reel 28 on which the webbing 20 is partially wound and which exerts tensile force upon the webbing 20. In this way, the webbing 20 and, thus, the seat belt 18 are accommodated to be extendable in the vehicle 10.

[0046] In an alternative embodiment, the webbing 20 can be provided to be extendable in any way or can be not extendable.

[0047] The webbing 20 is woven of spin-black yarn 30 and raw white yarn 32 (see FIG. 2) and is overdyed with a coating 34 (see FIG. 3). Coating 34 in this context means not only a cover of the raw surface produced by applying a color layer using a doctor blade or similar techniques but also a cover which penetrates at least partially the raw material by means of dying.

[0048] As an alternative to weaving, the webbing 20 can be formed in any way.

[0049] The spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32 form a pattern 36 of longitudinal stripes 38 extending in parallel to the longitudinal extension L of the webbing 20.

[0050] The longitudinal extension L of the webbing 20 is the direction in which the webbing 20 is wound up and extended, respectively.

[0051] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the webbing 20 has three longitudinal stripes 38 of spin-black yarn 30 and two longitudinal stripes 38 of raw white yarn 32, each extending in parallel to the longitudinal extension L and being arranged alternately as well as adjacent to each other and having the same width in the direction of the longitudinal extension L.

[0052] In an alternative embodiment, the pattern 36 can have substantially any design. In particular, the webbing 20 can have any number of longitudinal stripes 38 of spin-black yarn 30 and any number of longitudinal stripes 38 of raw white yarn 32 each having any width.

[0053] Each of the longitudinal stripes 38 is made of 80 warp threads.

[0054] Alternatively, each of the longitudinal stripes 38 can be made of 5 to 450, preferably 50 to 150, specifically 75 to 85 warp threads.

[0055] The weft thread with which the warp threads are interwoven consists of spin-black yarn 30. In addition, or as an alternative, the warp thread may consist of raw white yarn 32. Furthermore, the weft threads can be interwoven using plural weft threads, wherein each weft thread can be formed of spin-black yarn 30 and/or raw white yarn 32.

[0056] The materials of which the spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32 are made reflect in the near infrared range, i.e., light with a wavelength ranging from 750 nm to 3 μm, with different intensity.

[0057] In addition, or as an alternative, the materials of which each of the spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32 is made can reflect light in other spectral ranges invisible to humans with different intensity, such as in the UV range, i.e., light with a wavelength ranging from 10 nm to 380 nm, or in the IR-A range, i.e., light with a wavelength ranging from 780 nm to 1400 nm.

[0058] In an alternative embodiment, instead of spin-black yarn 30 and raw white yarn 32, any two types of yarn can be used which reflect light in the spectral range invisible to humans with different intensity.

[0059] For example, at least one of the yarns 30, 32 may be a modified yarn the reflectance of which in the infrared spectral range was modified using a material which absorbs or reflects light in the infrared spectral range particularly well.

[0060] In particular, the spin-black yarn 30 and/or the raw white yarn 32 can be dyed as long as the yarns 30, 32 continue reflecting light in the spectral range invisible to humans with different intensity.

[0061] In addition, or as an alternative, the weft thread can be formed of a third yarn which is different from the spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32.

[0062] The coating 34 covers the whole surface of the webbing 20 and is opaque so that the pattern 36 underneath is not perceptible to the human eye and the webbing 20 for humans has a uniform color impression.

[0063] In the present embodiment, the coating 34 is black. Alternatively, the webbing 20 may be overdyed in any color, i.e., the coating 34 can have any color.

[0064] The coating 34 is transparent to light that is reflected by the spin-black yarn 30 and by the raw white yarn 32 in the spectral range invisible to humans with different intensity. In the present embodiment, this spectral range is the near infrared range. If the light reflected by the spin-black yarn 30 and by the raw white yarn 32 in the spectral range invisible to humans with different intensity is located in a different spectral range, a coating 34 is used, as a matter of course, which is transparent in the respective spectral range.

[0065] For manufacturing the webbing 20, first a ribbon 40 (see FIG. 2) having the pattern 36 is woven out of the spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32.

[0066] In a subsequent step, the ribbon 40 is overdyed with the coating 34 (see FIG. 3).

[0067] The vehicle 10 further comprises a camera 42 and a light source 44 each of which is aligned so that they can detect and, respectively, illuminate at least the torso and/or the waist of the vehicle occupant 14 over which the webbing 20 extends when the seat belt 18 is fastened.

[0068] The camera 42 is a camera configured to detect light in the near infrared range.

[0069] The light source 44 is a light source configured to emit light in the near infrared range.

[0070] This means that the camera 42 and the light source 44 are configured to detect and, resp., to emit light in the spectral range invisible to humans in which the spin-black yarn 30 and the raw white yarn 32 reflect light with different intensity.

[0071] If the light reflected by the spin-black yarn 30 and by the raw white yarn 32 in the spectral range invisible to humans with different intensity is located in a different spectral range, a camera 42 and a light source 44 are used which can detect and, respectively, emit light in the corresponding spectral range.

[0072] As a matter of course, the camera 42 and/or the light source 44 can additionally detect and, resp., emit light in a different spectral range.

[0073] In particular, the camera 42 may be a camera that is provided in the vehicle 10 for further functions, such as an interior camera sensing the vehicle interior.

[0074] The camera 42 and the light source 44 are connected to a control unit 46 of the seat belt system 12 for signal transmission.

[0075] The control unit 46 in the present case is integrated in the on-board computer of the vehicle. In an alternative embodiment, the control unit 34 of the seat belt system 12 can be provided separately, wherein it is preferably connected to the on-board computer of the vehicle 10 for signal transmission.

[0076] The control unit 46 is arranged to control the camera 42 and the light source 44 as well as to detect the pattern 36 and, based on the latter, to determine the webbing path of the webbing 20 in the known way.

[0077] In the spectral range visible to humans, the webbing 20 has, due to the coating 34, a homogenous appearance (see FIG. 3) in which the pattern 36 is not recognizable.

[0078] In the near infrared range, the coating 34 is transparent and the longitudinal stripes 38 of spin-black yarn 30 and the longitudinal stripes 38 of raw white yarn 32 reflect the infrared light with different intensity so that the pattern 36 is visible in this spectral range (see FIG. 4).

[0079] Thus, the pattern 36 can be detected by the camera 42 in this spectral range.

[0080] The light source 44 ensures that a sufficiently high light flux in this spectral range is incident on the ribbon 40 to attain a contrast between the longitudinal stripes 38 of spin-black yarn 30 and the longitudinal stripes 38 of raw white yarn 32, the contrast ensuring reliable detection of the pattern 36.

[0081] Based on the pattern 36 as well as the alignment and the extension thereof, the webbing path of the webbing 20 can be determined by the control unit 46 in a known way.

[0082] In this way, a webbing 20 having a uniform appearance and a pattern invisible to the human eye is provided.

[0083] Using the afore-described method, the webbing 20 can further be manufactured at particularly low cost.

[0084] The invention is not limited to the shown embodiment. In particular, individual features of one embodiment can be combined with any features of other embodiments, especially irrespective of the other features of the respective embodiments.