GB2220344A

GB2220344A - Seat belt strap cover

Info

Publication number: GB2220344A
Application number: GB8910081A
Authority: GB
Inventors: William Lindsay
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1988-06-02
Filing date: 1989-05-03
Publication date: 1990-01-10
Also published as: GB8910081D0

Abstract

A seat belt strap cover 10 for a road vehicle seat belt is removably folded around a strap 11 of a seat belt and secured thereon so that it can be removed for cleaning or disposal. The cover 10 is of a material which can compress longitudinally when the strap 11 is retracted into a seat belt housing 12 and it has end members 13, 13' which resist such compression and prevent the cover 10 entering the housing or sliding over the belt buckle 14. The cover 10 is a rectangular sheet material, e.g. cloth, plastics or paper which is foldable about the longitudinal to surround the strap 11 and co-operating fastening means (15/16, Figs. 1 & 3) e.g. Velcro (RTM) strips on the longitudinal sides of the sheet material are provided. The cover 10 or a modified form thereof may be applied to an airline seat belt. <IMAGE>

Description

SEAT BELT STRAP COVER.

This invention relates to a seat belt strap cover, especially, but not exclusively, for a road vehicle seat belt.

The straps of a road vehicle seat belt can attract dust or dirt from various sources, such as a user's clothing, dirty hands, and the like, and that dust or dirt can be transferred to the clothing of a subsequent user, most noticeably when the latters clothing is lightcoloured.

An object of this invention is to obviate or mitigate the aforementioned disadvantage.

According to the present invention there is provided a cover which is adapted to be folded around a strap of a seat belt and secured thereon, the cover being of a material which can compress longitudinally when the strap is retracted into a seat belt housing.

Preferably, means is provided at each end to prevent the cover entering the seat belt housing or sliding over the belt buckle.

Preferably, the cover is a rectangular sheet material which is foldable about the longitudinal to surround the strap.

The material may be cloth, plastics or paper.

Preferably, the means to secure the cover on the strap comprises co-operating fastening means on the longitudinal sides of the sheet material.

Preferably, the fastening means comprises one or more pieces of 'velcro' (RTM) fasteners.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a plan view of the seat belt strap cover; Fig. 2 is a front elevation showing the cover located on a road vehicle seat belt strap; Fig. 3 is a rear elevation showing a portion of the cover on a strap; and Fig. 4 is a front elevation showing the cover compressed and the seat belt strap retracted.

Referring to the drawings, a road vehicle seat belt has a strap which locates across the user's lap and a strap which locates diagonally downwards across the user's body. Only the latter strap is illustrated in Figs. 2 to 4 of the drawings.

The cover 10 to be located on the strap 11 is in the form of a rectangular sheet and is made of a material which can fold around the strap and which can be compressed when the strap is retracted into its housing 12.

The cover is therefore made of, e.g. a cloth, plastics, paper or the like.

At each transverse end of the cover 10 is a strip 13, 13' of firm but bendable material which will resist compression when the strap is retracted. The strip is for example 1/2" wide and of a sufficient length that when the cover is located on the strap, the end reinforcing strip 13 will abut but will not enter the housing. The strip 13' at the other end will abut but not slide over the seat belt buckle 14. The length of material between the ends will when the belt is retracted bunch up into a small portion 10' between the two end strips 13, 13'.

The cover may be, e.g. 18" in length but can be made in various lengths. It has fastening means by which its longitudinal sides can be secured together once it has been folded round the strap. The fastening means may be hooks and eyesj or press-studs but is preferably 'velcro' strips 15, 16 spaced at each side of the cover. The strips 15, 16 extend along the length of the icoveri,"but alternatively, are a number of small pieces spaced along each side.

The folded ends are preferably at the back or underside of the strap leaving a front face which, conveniently can carry advertising material.

The cover in its above or a modified form can also be applied to an airline seat belt, but in such a use, there is no retraction of the straps, so the material of the cover can be of a material not suited to the preferred embodiment such as heavy brown paper. The ends may or may not be reinforced.

The cover is intended to be removeable for cleaning or disposable.

It can be easily and quickly fitted to or removed from the strap.

Claims

CLAIMS.

1. A cover which is adapted to be folded around a strap of a seat belt and secured thereon, the cover being of a material which can compress longitudinally when the strap is retracted into a seat belt housing.

2. A cover as claimed in claim 1, in which means is provided at each end to prevent the cover entering the seat belt housing or sliding over the belt buckle.

3. A cover as claimed in claim 1 or 2, which is of a rectangular sheet material foldable about the longitudinal to surround the strap.

4. A cover as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 in which the means to secure the cover on the strap comprises co-operating fastening means on, the longitudinal sides of the sheet material.

5. A cover as claimed in claim 2 in which each end means comprises a strip of firm but flexible material which folds when the cover is folded around the strap.

6. A cover substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.