| JP03227755 | SAFETY SEAT BELT DEVICE |
| JP2002125718 | BUCKLE AND HUMAN BODY PROTECTIVE CLOTHING WITH THE SAME |
| WO/2004/069594 | SEAT BELT RESTRAINT SYSTEM WITH DOUBLE SHOULDER BELTS |
HYLKEMA, Constance, Agnes (Angsteloord 73, ED Abcoude, NL-1391, NL)
SCHOEVERS, Peter (Naarderstraat 284, NS Huizen, NL-1272, NL)
VIËTOR, Henk (Angsteloord 73, ED Abcoude, NL-1391, NL)
HYLKEMA, Constance, Agnes (Angsteloord 73, ED Abcoude, NL-1391, NL)
SCHOEVERS, Peter (Naarderstraat 284, NS Huizen, NL-1272, NL)
C L A I M S
1. A safety device suitable for use with a seat belt, the safety de- vice comprising a body having
- a female end for receiving a male buckle portion of the seat belt,
- a male end for insertion into a female buckle portion of the seat belt, and
- a release mechanism arranged to release at least one of a) the male buckle portion and b) the female buckle portion upon actuation of the release mechanism, the safety device being a coupling unit for indirectly linking the female and male buckle portions of a seat belt.
2. The safety device according to claim 1, wherein the male end is opposite of the female end.
3. The safety device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the safety- device comprises a cover section configured to allow covering of a seat belt release button of the female buckle portion if the male end and the female buckle portion are engaged.
4. The safety device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the release mechanism comprises a knob having sections and at least one of the sections being arranged to allow a first movement for moving the section relative to another section, the first movement being required to allow for a second movement for releasing at least one of the male buckle portion and the female buckle portion.
5. The safety device according to claim 4, wherein the knob is arranged such that the first movement involves the squeezing of two opposing compression points on the knob.
6. The safety device according to claim 5, wherein the knob is made of a resilient material.
■ 7. The safety device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the safety device is arranged such that a force of at least 45 N, preferably at least 50 N, more preferably at least 55 N and most preferably at least 60 N is required for release of at least one of said male buckle portion or said female buckle portion. |
A safety device suitable for use with a seat belt
The present invention relates to a safety device suitable for use with a seat belt. Automotive vehicles such as cars have seat belts. These seat belts have to be engaged and disengaged easily but not prematurely or by a child. To modify an existing seat belt, safety devices are known, for example from WO93/20728. The device disclosed in this publication comprises a housing or body, part of which is capable of covering the release button of the female portion of the seat belt. The body comprises a release mechanism, designated pressure release button that is designed and manufactured such that a child will not be able to press and exert enough pressure to unlock the seat belt.
A seat belt is, to fulfil its particular purpose, firmly at- tached to the vehicle, and cannot be easily interchanged to suit the needs for the particular occupant of the seat for which the seat belt is used.
The objective of the present invention is to provide an alternative cover to alleviate this and other problems . To this end, the present invention provides a safety device suitable for use with a seat belt, the safety device comprising a body having
- a female end for receiving a male buckle portion of the seat belt,
- a male end for insertion into a female buckle portion of the seat belt, and
- a release mechanism arranged to release at least one of a) the male buckle portion and b) the female buckle portion upon actuation of the release mechanism.
Thus the invention provides for a device that is a coupling unit (i.e. connecting piece) for indirectly linking the female and male buckle portions of a seat belt. In practice, the safety device will be attached semi-permanently to one of a female or male seat belt portion, where the other seat belt portion will cooperate with the device to close or open the seat belt. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the knob is a turning knob. The present
''. invention allows for the accommodation of an existing seat belt to the occupant of the seat. For example, an elderly person or a person suffering from arthritis may have difficulty opening the existing
seat belt. A safety device according to the invention may be chosen that offers a release mechanism allowing the person to open and close the seat belt more easily. Release of the male buckle portion is thought to be preferable, in particular for three-point seat-belts which retract the male buckle portion automatically. By releasing the male buckle portion from the safety device, it is avoided that the safety device could injure the face of the child (or other occupant) after opening the seat belt. According to an important embodiment, the male end is opposite of the female end, to allow forces occurring during a car crash to be passed on smoothly along the same path (direction) as a male tongue of a male buckle portion of the seat belt if the belt is closed by direct insertion of the tongue of the male buckle portion into the female buckle portion.
According to an important embodiment, the safety device com- prises a cover section configured to allow covering of a seat belt release button of the female buckle portion if the male end and the female buckle portion are engaged.
Thus, the safety device according to the invention may be used to prevent opening of the seat belt by a child. This can be achieved by relying on the force with which the safety device is to be opened, and/or by relying on a release mechanism offering physical or intellectual barriers, such as a mechanism similar to child-proof bottle caps .
According to a first embodiment, the release mechanism com- prises a knob having sections and at least one of the sections being arranged to allow a first movement for moving the section relative to another section, the first movement being required to allow for a second movement for releasing at least one of the male buckle portion and the female buckle portion. The requirement of two movements makes it considerably harder for a young child to open the safety device. It is conceivable to rely on even more movements, but this may make the safety device too hard to open for adults as well, if the safety device is no longer to open intuitively by adults. The term "section" is intended to mean a portion or part of the button.
According to a preferred embodiment, the knob is arranged such that the first movement involves the squeezing of two opposing compression points on the knob.
Such a design is hard to open by a child, but is likely to be openable, even by a person, such as a rescue worker, who has never encountered the safety device before.
Preferably, the knob is made of a resilient material. This allows for a simple and reliable design. Being similar to childproof bottle caps, they are very easy to open for adults, yet difficult to open for children. Generally, the resilient material will be a plastic, such as ABS, PP, PA, POM etc. Generally, the force required to open the safety device relying on a rotary release mecha- nism is for example at least 0.4 Nm, such as at least 0.8 Nm.
Alternatively or in addition, the safety device can rely on force to prevent a child from opening the safety device. Thus, according to a preferred embodiment, the safety device is arranged such that a force of at least 45 N, preferably at least 50 N, more pref- erably at least 55 N and most preferably at least 60 N is required for release of at least one of said male buckle portion or said female buckle portion. Generally a force of no more than 80 N will be desirable, to ensure that most grown ups can still open the seat belt. The present invention will now be illustrated by reference to the drawing, where fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a first embodiment of the safety device according to the invention in service; fig. 2 shows the embodiment of fig. 1 in a side view; fig. 3 shows a first cut-away view of along line III-III of fig. 2; fig. 4 shows a second cut-away view corresponding to fig. 3; fig. 5 shows a third cut-away view corresponding to fig. 3; fig. 6 shows the embodiment of fig. 1, along line VI-VI of fig. 2; fig. 7 shows a cross-sectional view of fig. 3 along line VII- VII; fig. 8 shows a cross-sectional view of fig. 4 along line VIII- VIII; fig. 9 shows a cross-sectional view of fig. 3 along line IX-IX; fig. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of fig. 5 along line X-X; fig. 11 and fig. 12 show two bottom views of parts of the safety device shown in fig. 1;
fig. 13 and 14 show two cross-sectional views along line XIII-
XIII of fig. 11. fig. 15 shows a perspective view of a second embodiment of a safety device according to the invention; fig. 16 shows the embodiment of fig. 15 in a top view; fig. 17 shows the embodiment of fig. 15 in a front view; fig. 18 shows the embodiment of fig. 15 but is a sectional drawing along line XVI-XVI; fig. 19 to 21 correspond with fig. 16 but are sectional views along line XIX-XIX of fig. 17; fig. 22 shows a perspective view of a third embodiment of the safety device according to the invention; fig. 23 shows a top view of the safety device of fig. 22; fig. 24 shows a side view of the safety device of fig. 22; fig. 25 and 26 show sectional views of the device along line XXV-XXV of fig. 24; fig. 27a-c display a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the safety device according to the invention in three stages during buckling up; fig. 28 is a perspective view of a part of the embodiment of fig. 27 (and corresponds in particular fig. 27a); fig. 29a and c show bottom views of the stages of fig. 27a and c; fig. 30 shows a side view of the embodiment of fig. 27 c and fig. 29c; fig. 31 shows an schematic explosion view of yet another embodiment of the invention together with the male and female buckle portion of a seat belt; and fig. 32 shows a schematic side view of the embodiment of fig. 31.
Fig. 1 shows a safety device 1 according to the invention designed to prevent opening of a seat belt by a child, the safety device 1 having a female end 2 for receiving the male buckle portion A of a known seat belt. At the opposite side of the safety device 1 there is a male tongue 3 for insertion into the female buckle portion B of a seat belt. This female buckle portion B of the seat belt is provided with a push button (not shown) at the distal end of the female buckle portion B for opening the buckle. The safety device 1
comprises a housing 4, said housing 4 comprising a section 5 capable of covering the push button of the female buckle portion B such that a child can no longer push it.
The male buckle portion, i.e. tongue A, (figs. 10-14) of a seat belt will be inserted into the female end 2 of the safety device 1 and will lock irreversibly into the safety device 1. Here, the term "irreversibly" or "semi-permanently" means that the male buckle portion A will remain attached to the safety device 1 in operation, until it is desired to no longer make use of the safety device 1, for example because the child has reached an age at which it is old enough to operate a safety belt responsibly.
To operate the safety device 1, it is provided with a release mechanism 6. Generally speaking, this can be any release mechanism to serve the particular purpose of the safety device. It may be a re- lease mechanism that facilitates opening of the buckle by providing a release mechanism adapted to the physical capabilities of the person for whom the safety device is intended. This can be achieved by providing a different release mechanism different from the one covered by the cover (i.e. of the female buckle portion) , or by providing a similar mechanism operating over a longer distance (lever action) . However, for safety devices intended for use with people (in particular children) who are not capable of operating a seat buckle responsibly, the release mechanism will be designed to be hard to operate. This can be done by increasing the force necessary for opening, and/or by providing a mechanism that requires a more elaborate operation to open. The embodiment shown in fig. 1 is an example of the latter.
The release mechanism 6 comprises a main release button 7 which cannot be moved unless unlocking buttons 8, 9 (which are sections of the main release button 7) have been brought into a particular position, as will be detailed in the figs. 3-10.
Fig. 3 shows a cut-away top view of the safety device 1 (along line III-III in fig. 2) . The main button 7 houses the two unlocking buttons 8, 9, which are movable over guide rods 10, 11 and kept apart by a spring 12 (figs. 3, 4 and 5, 7) . The force exerted by this spring 12 can be chosen such that a child has difficulties pushing both unlocking buttons 8, 9. Figs. 4, 5 and 8 show the unlocking buttons 8, 9 in a pushed-in position. The effect of this is that two
projecting portions 13, 14 of the respective unlocking buttons 8, 9 can move from the position shown in fig. 6 to a more adjacent position (shown with broken lines), away from docking notches 15, 16 of a recessed area 21, thus allowing movement of the projecting portions 13, 14, and consequently the main button 7, from the female end 2 towards the male tongue 3. These final positions of the two projecting portions 13, 14 are also shown with broken lines (fig. 6) . Please note that the main button 7 cannot be moved unless both projecting portions 13, 14 are brought together (both unlocking buttons 8, 9 pushed in) . For smooth operation a guide slot 17 is provided (fig. 4 and 5), guiding a projecting portion 18 of main button 7. A second spring 19 is provided (figs. 7 - 10), which pushes the main button 7 towards the female end 2. If fully extended, the spring 12 will cause the projecting portions 13, 14 of the unlocking buttons to dock in the docking notches 15, 16 (fig. 9) . The second spring 19 can be chosen such that a child has great difficulty to push it towards the male tongue 3 (or more specifically, towards the push button of the female buckle portion of the seat belt) . This is something that a grown up can easily achieve. While one or both of the springs 12 and 19 may be chosen such to require a force which a child cannot easily exert, this is not necessary for very young children, as the mere complexity of the operation will be an effective barrier to prevent inadvertent opening of the buckle by the child.
By first pushing in the unlocking buttons 8, 9, followed by moving the main button 7 towards the male tongue 3, a pushing rod 20 moves from a retracted position (fig. 9) to an extended position
(fig. 10), acting on the release button (push button) of the female buckle portion of the seat belt, releasing the male tongue 3, and the buckle is open. The safety device 1 remains attached to the male buckle portion. This may be easily achieved using a latch 22 (fig. 9), generally made of steel, capable of catching and holding the tongue A of the male buckle portion of the seat belt.
The figures 11 to 14 show an embodiment of how the latch 22 can catch the tongue A of the male buckle portion, the embodiment employing a mechanism essentially similar to a very common mechanism employed in seat belts. The male tongue 3 (with its free end at the left) is held by a receiving bracket 23. The male tongue 3 and the
receiving bracket 23 cannot move with respect to each other. The receiving bracket 23 has two longitudinal slots, in which a locking block 24 is moveably mounted. Two locking springs 25, 26 push the locking block 24 towards the female end 2 of the safety device 1. When the male tongue 3 is inserted at the female end 2, its free end A3 pushes against the locking block 24 (fig. 11 depicts the pushed in position) . In fig. 13, the situation of fig. 11 is shown in a cross sectional view along line XIIl-XIII. If the latch 22 engages the end A3 of the tongue A (fig. 14), the locking springs 25, 26 extend and the locking block 24 moves towards the female end 2, effectively locking the tongue A semi-permanently (fig. 12; see also fig. 10) .
In normal use, in the embodiment discussed here, the safety device 1 remains attached to the male buckle portion. If at a particular moment, for example when the child is sufficiently mature to deal with seat belts responsibly, it is desired to remove the safety device from the male buckle portion of the seat belt, the housing 4 may, for example, be provided with a tiny opening (not shown) to allow entry of a paperclip or the like to pull the locking block 24 towards the male tongue 3, allowing release of the tongue A. It is also possible that the bottom of housing 4 is closed with a cover, held in place by screws. Removal of the screws would then allow removal of the tongue A.
An alternative embodiment of the safety device according to the present invention is shown in fig. 15. Visible are the safety device 101, a female end 102 for receiving a tongue of a male buckle portion
(not shown) , a housing 104, a cover section 105 for covering a push button of a female seat belt portion, a male tongue 103 and a release mechanism 106. Most of these features are visible in the top view of the safety device 101 shown in fig. 16 as well. The release mechanism 106 of this embodiment is similar to a safety cap for bottles . They provide a well-researched way of preventing a child to get access to the contents of a bottle, and according to the invention they are used to prevent the child from opening a seat belt. Fig. 17 shows a front view of the safety device 101, and in particular the female end 102, a turning knob 107 provided with indentations for good grip. The turning knob 107 is made of resilient
plastic, allowing deformation of the turning knob 107, in particular near the housing 104.
Fig. 18 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of the safety device 101, revealing an axis 150 to which the turning knob 107 is at- tached. If not deformed, the turning knob 107 can rotate freely, both clockwise and counter-clockwise. The mere rotation of turning knob 107 will not open the seat belt. Housed within the turning knob 107 is co-axially mounted secondary knob 151. It is not fixed to the turning knob 107. It is also not fixed to the axis 150. So, if the turning knob 107 is rotated in a non-deformed state (as will be explained later), the secondary knob 151 does not move.
To open the seat belt, the turning knob 107 has to be deformed, by squeezing it (usually with the thumb and index finger) . This changes the circumferential shape of the turning knob 107, as shown in fig. 20 and 21, causing the turning knob 107 to engage the secondary knob 151. The secondary knob 151 is provided with a gear segment 152, which is engaged by a gear rack 153 provided in a moveable base plate 156. Thus a rotation of the turning knob 107 is converted into a translational movement which in turn may be used to extend a push- ing rod (not shown) which is part of the base plate 156 to push the push button of a female buckle part to open the seat belt, as described in detail for the previous embodiment. In the embodiment shown in figs. 19-21, guiding members 154, 155 which are part of base plate 156 and in contact with the male tongue 103 are provided to en- sure a smooth operation. Instead of actuating the covered push button of the female buckle end, it is possible to use the translational movement to release the tongue of a male buckle portion. Release mechanisms to release the tongue of the male buckle portion by moving a button on the female buckle portion in a direction from the male buckle portion to the female buckle portion are very well known in the art. So, the ordinary person skilled in the art will be able to use the translational movement of the embodiment discussed above to any of such tongue-releasing mechanisms known in the art. Just by way of example, reference is made to WO2004110830. To ensure opening by people not accustomed to the safety device, the circumference of the secondary knob 151 and the inner wall of the turning knob 107 may be provided with skewed serrations, ensuring that the turning knob 107 can be rotated in one direction
without actuating the gear rack 153, giving a rattling sound or feeling, thus making the user aware that the turning knob 107 is being turned in the wrong direction. If the turning knob 107 is rotated in the opposite direction, the skewed serrations do engage, as a result of which the secondary knob 151 is rotated and the safety device 101 operated to release the seat belt.
A third embodiment 201 of the safety device according to the invention, shown in fig. 22-24, comprises a female end 202, a male tongue 203, a housing 204, the housing 204 comprising a cover section 205. In addition, the safety device comprises a release mechanism. In the embodiment shown, the release mechanism comprises two pushing buttons 260, 261 for opening the seat belt. Fig. 25 and 26 show the safety device 201 in a sectional view along line XXV-XXV of fig. 24, in a situation wherein the pushing buttons 260, 261 are not pushed in (pushing buttons in an extended position) , and a situation wherein the pushing buttons 260, 261 are pushed in, respectively. Springs 262, 263 ensure that the pushing buttons 260, 261 are in the extended position shown in fig. 25. Their spring constants, which will generally be equal, are chosen such that a child is not able to push them in sufficiently to open the seat belt.
The pushing buttons 260, 261 are each provided with a base plate 264, 265. Each base plate 264, 265 is provided with guide slots 266, 267 respectively, the guide slots 266, 267 being at an angle with respect to each other (tapering in the direction of the female end 202) . A pushing rod 268 capable of engaging the pushing button of a female seat buckle portion (the female seat buckle portion being seated in the cover section 205 and having engaged the male tongue 203) , is provided with a guide pin 269 which is held by both the guide slots 266 and 267. Pushing the pushing buttons 260, 261 in cause the base plates 264, 265 to move towards each other, or more precisely to overlap to a greater extent, as a result of which the guide pin 269, and hence the pushing rod 268, is moved towards the push button of a female seat buckle portion. This results in the male tongue 203 being released from the female buckle portion and hence the seat belt being opened. As can be seen best in fig. 26, the guide slots 266, 267 may have a curvature towards the opposite pushing buttons 260, 261. The effect of this is, that a moderate pushing in of the pushing buttons 260, 261 has no translational effect on the guide
pin 269 and hence on the pushing rod 268. Thus, only when sufficiently force is exerted, will the guide pin 269 start to move towards the push button of the female seat buckle portion.
According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the safety device remains attached to the female buckle portion, and to secure the seat belt, the male tongue of the buckle is inserted into a female end of the safety device, whereas to release the seat belt, the male tongue is released from the female end of the safety device. Now a preferred embodiment of such a safety device will be discussed, which safety device uses a release mechanism that in itself is known from a seat belt commercially available.
Figs. 27a-c show the process of the insertion and locking of a tongue A of a male buckle being inserted in a safety device 301, which is shown in a cross-sectional view. Figs. 29a-c correspond to fig. 27a-c, but are bottom views. The safety device 301 has a female end 302 and a male tongue 303. The safety device boasts a sophisticated but elegant release mechanism 306, which will now be elucidated.
The safety device 301 has a U-shaped receiving cradle 323 with a rectangular cross-section (fig. 28) . This cradle 323 can be described as a base with two upright side plates 330, 331. Each of the side plates 330, 331 is provided with an L-shaped guide slot 332, 333. The lower legs of each L points towards the female end 302 of the safety device 301, and their function will be discussed shortly. In addition to the L-shaped guide slots 332, 333, the side plates 330, 331 also comprise an elongated guide slot each, 366, 367 respectively. A moveable stop 334 is moveably present in the cradle 323 (thanks to elongated guide slots 366, 367 into which wing members 376, 377 of the moveable stop 334 are inserted), to allow movement in the direction from the female end 302 towards the male tongue 303, vice versa.
In fig. 27a, a male tongue A of a buckle portion is inserted into the female end 302 of the safety device 301, against the move- able stop 334. The moveable stop 334 is pushed in the direction of the male tongue 303 of the safety device 301. As a result, a spring
337 is compressed, and an increasing force is exerted on a tumbler
338 which is rotatably connected to the moveable stop 334, around an axis 339. At the opposite end of the tumbler 338, the tumbler 338 is
curved toward the female end 302, and engages a guiding rod 340, the ends of which are inserted in the L-shaped guide slots 332, 333. By- moving .the moveable stop 334 towards the male tongue 303, the tumbler 338 starts to exert a force towards the base of the receiving cradle 323, and the guiding rod 340 is pushed downward in the L-shaped guide slots 330, 331. The safety device 301 comprises a latch 341. This latch 341 can rotate around an axis 342. The latch 341 is provided with an opening 343, allowing access for the spring 337 and the tumbler 338. The spring 337 pushes the latch 341 up. By moving the move- able stop 334 in the direction of the male tongue 303, the tumbler 338 rotates and pushes the guiding rod 340 down. The guiding rod 340 rests on the distal end of latch 341, and hence the latch is pushed towards the male tongue A. Once the guiding rod 340 reaches the lower legs of the L-shaped guide slots 330, it will move toward the female end 302 (by the action of the tumbler 338) . As a result, the latch 341 is pushed down quickly and engages an opening B of the male buckle portion, effectively locking the safety device 301.
To unlock the safety device 301 and release the male tongue A of the male buckle portion, the guiding rod 340 has to be moved away from the female end 302. The spring 337 is compressed again, and once the guiding rod 340 reaches the vertical legs of the L-shaped guide slots 332, 333, the guiding rod 340 is forced upward by inclining sides 370, 371 of the L-shaped guide slots 332, 333. Beyond a certain (dead) point, the spring 337 has the opportunity to expand again by pushing the moveable stop 334 towards the female end 302, and the latch 341 releases the tongue A of the male buckle portion. Note that the spring 337 is bent differently in the locked and in the unlocked position of the safety device 301. In a lower bent position it pushes the tumbler 338 at a position below the guiding rod 340, pushing the guiding rod 340 up. In the upper bent position, it pushes the tumbler 338 at a position of the tumbler 338 beyond the axis 339 (i.e. more towards the female end 302), pushing the guiding rod 340 down.
Moving the guiding rod 340 to unlock the safety device 301 can be achieved in any way. In the embodiment shown in fig. 27 the mecha- nism discussed for fig. 25 is used, and guide pin 369 corresponds with guide pin 269. If the guide pin 369 is moved towards the male tongue 303, lateral projections 372, 373 (fig. 28) of sliding body 374 in connection with said guide pin 369 engaging the ends of the
guiding rod 340 move the guiding rod 340 towards the upward oriented legs of the L-shaped guide slots 332, 333, and once the dead point is passed, the spring 337 will push the tongue A of the male buckle portion out of the female end 302 of the safety device 301. Fig. 29a-c are bottom views corresponding to fig. 27a-c, and show how the how the male tongue A of the buckle portion engages the moveable stop 334. In addition, fig. 29a-c show the lateral projections 372, 373 in contact with the ends of the guiding rod 340.
The safety device according to the invention is not limited to the embodiments shown above. Various modifications within the scope of the appended claims will be well within the ordinary skills of the person skilled in the art. For example, the safety device may comprise an electrically operated release mechanism. To anticipate emergency situations or any other situation wherein no or insufficient electrical power is available, it is recommended that a manual release mechanism be present as a back up. A safety device for facilitated opening by mechanical means may, for example, comprise a release mechanism comprising a release button attached to a first gear rack, a small and a large gear wheel, and a second gear rack capable of acting as a pushing rod to push the push button of a female buckle part to open the seat belt. Moving the first gear rack towards the push button of the female buckle part, causes the small gear wheel to rotate in one direction, in turn rotating the large gear wheel in the opposite direction, which in turn moves the second gear rack towards the push button of the female buckle part. The use of the small and large gear allows the user to exert a small force over a long path length, allowing the user to open the seat belt with relatively little force. The present invention also allows for the direction in which the force has to be applied to be reversed, by mounting the small and large gear wheel coaxially such that they can't rotate with respect to each other. Or, the direction may be at an angle with, such as perpendicular to, the direction of release and engagement of the safety device and the particular buckle portion, but preferably in a plane parallel to the tongue of the male buckle portion. Again, these embodiments may help a person who would otherwise have difficulty opening the seat belt.
Fig. 31 and 32 show another embodiment 401 of a safety device according to the invention. This particular embodiment has the advan-
tage that the point of attachment of the male buckle portion is lower than that of the embodiments discussed above. This does not mean that a redesign of the above embodiments to reduce the distance between the male and female buckle portions is impossible, but in the pres- ently discussed embodiment the male tongue of the safety device and the male buckle portion overlap (are side by side) . It is, however, recommended that the tongue A of the male buckle portion be as close to the female buckle portion as possible.
The safety device 401 comprises a housing 404 having a female end 402, said housing 404 being provided a frame 470. The frame 470 may be attached to the housing 404 using nuts and bolts, and using an auxiliary tongue 471. This frame 470 comprises a male tongue 403 which can be inserted into the female buckle portion B of the seat belt. If so, the button B' of the female button portion B will be covered and cannot be operated by a child. The tongue A of the male buckle portion will be inserted into the female end 402. It can be released using any suitable release mechanism 406, for example one discussed above.
To release the safety device from the female buckle portion B, the frame 470 covering the female button portion B' is provided with a hole 472, allowing entry of a rod (not shown) without giving access to a child's fingers.