Shock absorbers are designed to diffuse energy in such a way that a falling person will be slowed down gradually to a stop. Without such a safety device, a person would come to an instantaneous stop that could lead to a serious injury as a result of the forces acting on the body.

Absorbers currently available are made from single folded webbing with looped ends. Carabineers, snap hooks, or similar buckles are placed into these loops allowing the webbing to be incorporated into the fall arrest system. Layers of webbing are sewn together with industrial stitching.

The kinetic energy of a falling person will tear the stitching holding the layers of webbing together. The heavier the person or the higher the fall, the longer the distance is over which the safety stitching will tear.

Another shock absorbing device- (PCT/FR98/00432) is consu-ucted in the same manner and d the application of forces to it causes it to-tear in the same way. In this device, two different lengths of webbing are joined together forming a safety ring. The free ends are sewn together with safety stitching. The central section of the webbing is woven together during the weaving process forming two safety sections. The un-stitched part of the webbing between the safety sections connects the absorber to a fixed point and a mobile point (i.e. carabineers etc.). This is also where a safety line-can be placed. The-two-stitched safety sections slow-down the falling process at the same time. As there is doubled the tearing force ( two stitched safety seetions),-a thinner width of the webbing ean be used than is used in other designs.

These shock absorbers are inserted into special protective cover and only the two loops and attachment devices (i. e. : abineers or-snap hooks3 protruding from the cover. This allows the shock absorber to be incorporated into the fall arrest system.

This new shock-absorbing device has one single folded webbing which has at least two safety sections each of the same length formed one by one between the connecting loops. Each safety section is comprised of single folded webbing joined together with safety stitches. This device works best when there are two safety sections whose length is a-multiple of the h » nf-the cover.

The benefits of this design are as follows: only one length of webbing is used in construction, the design allows for the addition of various types type connections (i. e.: carabineers, buckles, snap hooks, and 'O' and 'D' rings), which are sewn in the final period of production. The production processis simplified, as there are no hard, dangerous metal objects that may damage the head of the sewing machine.

The object is shown in illustration - fig. 1 illustrates the device in an axonometric view ; fig. 2 shows the another version in side view; and fig. 3 shows the object after a fall, when the connecting loops are spread due to the force of a fall This shock-absorber-is-composed-of-syntheti-c-fibre webbing I-and the following explains fig. 1: the webbing ends have connecting loops : upper 2 and lower 3. The central part of webbing 1, between connecting loops 2 and 3, is folded into two safety sections 4' and 4", connected with safety stitching 5' and 5".

This shock absorber is assembled in the following way: first, webbing 1 is folded to brm the first safety section 4', then the layers of webbing 1 are sewn together with the safety stitching 5'. Webbing 1 is folded again to form the second safety section 4", which is joined by the second safety stitching 5". At the end of the sewing process, the ends of webbing 1, connecting loops 2 and 3, where-attachment devices (such as buckles, <BR> <BR> carabineers ete.) em be-placed ae sewn.-The decision-to include these attachment devices can be made after finishing safety stitching 5' and 5". The upper device is connected to a supporting structure (fixed point) and the lower one to the mobile point (i.e.: a person's safety harness). During a fall, stitches 5' and 5" are torn in safety sections 4' and 4". This is shown in fig. 3.

A different version of the shock absorber is shown in fig. 2 in which both the safety-sections-are placed-on-one-side of webbing 1. The usage is the same.