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09-02-2006, 01:25 AM
Ford Tests New Seat Belts
The Daily Auto Insider
Friday, September 1, 2006
September 2006
Ford is researching new designs as a possible replacements for the three-point seat belt, The Detroit News reports.
Among the new ideas Ford is studying are a four-point belt similar to seat restraints used by race car drivers, and an inflatable belt which brings the benefit of air bags to passengers in the rear seat, the story said.
In prototype testing, the company said consumers thought the four-point belt was more comfortable and older people said that it was easier to use because the buckle is in the front and easier to latch.
The inflatable belt has a strap of air bag material within the strap, which is slightly wider and a little thicker than a traditional strap that deploys in a crash, ripping through the seams of the seat belt and inflating into a cylindrical shape.
The changes are still years away from the market, the story said, but Ford hopes such technologies will someday increase the use of belts and save more lives.
"A number of technical challenges still need to be overcome before implementing these restraint systems," Dr. Priya Prasad, a safety fellow at Ford, said in a statement. "If we are successful in implementing these technologies, we will be redefining the nature of future occupant restraint systems."
The Daily Auto Insider
Friday, September 1, 2006
September 2006
Ford is researching new designs as a possible replacements for the three-point seat belt, The Detroit News reports.
Among the new ideas Ford is studying are a four-point belt similar to seat restraints used by race car drivers, and an inflatable belt which brings the benefit of air bags to passengers in the rear seat, the story said.
In prototype testing, the company said consumers thought the four-point belt was more comfortable and older people said that it was easier to use because the buckle is in the front and easier to latch.
The inflatable belt has a strap of air bag material within the strap, which is slightly wider and a little thicker than a traditional strap that deploys in a crash, ripping through the seams of the seat belt and inflating into a cylindrical shape.
The changes are still years away from the market, the story said, but Ford hopes such technologies will someday increase the use of belts and save more lives.
"A number of technical challenges still need to be overcome before implementing these restraint systems," Dr. Priya Prasad, a safety fellow at Ford, said in a statement. "If we are successful in implementing these technologies, we will be redefining the nature of future occupant restraint systems."
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