Patent Application
20120274056
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Portions of the disclosure of this patent document contain material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
The present invention relates generally to the field of seatbelt harnesses and more specifically relates to a seatbelt harness for use on pregnant drivers and passengers to prevent the death or injury to unborn fetuses during vehicular accidents. The seatbelt harness may also be used for obese people.
A seatbelt, sometimes called a safety belt, is a safety harness designed to secure the occupant of a vehicle against harmful movement that may result from a collision or a sudden stop. As part of an overall automobile passive safety system, seat belts are intended to reduce injuries by stopping the wearer from hitting hard interior elements of the vehicle, or other passengers (the so-called second impact), keep the wearer in the correct position for the airbag to deploy and prevent the wearer from being thrown into the windshield or from the vehicle. Seatbelts also absorb energy by being designed to stretch during sudden deceleration. So that there is less speed differential between the passenger's body and their vehicle interior, and also to spread the loading of impact on the passenger's body. However, there are many shortcomings in current seatbelt systems.
In pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets. Childbirth usually occurs about 38 weeks after conception; in women who have a menstrual cycle of four weeks, this is approximately 40 weeks from the last normal menstrual period (LNMP). During this time expectant mothers may be traveling using seatbelts, causing potential danger to the fetus.
Individuals should always wear a seatbelt, even while pregnant. However, wearing a lap belt across one's pregnant abdomen can be dangerous. In the event of an accident, the lap belt could potentially cause severe harm to the unborn child. The belt is often positioned over the top of the baby, and in a collision can cause trauma to the child. Death is even a possibility depending on the severity of the accident and the position of the lap belt. Pregnant woman are often uncomfortable with the idea of not wearing a seatbelt, but also want to protect their child from seatbelt trauma. A more efficient seatbelt option is needed.
Various attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problems such as those found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,354; 2002/0140279; 2005/0110316; U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,005,865; 6,935,700; 4,610,463; and 5,915,789. The prior art is representative of seatbelts. None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, describe the invention as claimed.
Ideally, a safety seatbelt system for pregnant women should be safe, user-friendly, easy to install and yet, operate reliably, and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a reliable safety seatbelt system for pregnant woman that protects unborn fetuses in the event of a vehicular accident.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known seatbelt harness art, the present invention provides a novel safety seatbelt system for pregnant woman. The general purpose of the present invention, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a safety seatbelt usable by pregnant woman that protects unborn fetuses in the event of a vehicular accident.
The present invention, safety seatbelt system for pregnant woman, as disclosed herein preferably comprises: a standard seatbelt webbing restraint harness having a profile providing an open abdominal area for accommodating a developing fetus within the pregnant passenger; a chest engaging portion such that the chest of the pregnant passenger is suitably restrained from forward movement in the event of a collision; a thigh engaging portion with at least one crotch buckle such that the hips and lower extremities of the pregnant passenger is suitably restrained from forward movement in the event of a collision; a back strap; and at least two threadable clips to provide adjustment. The restraint provides attachment points on both bottom sides and top of the restraint harness such that the restraint harness can be removably affixed to the OEM (original equipment manufacturer) seatbelt assembly in the vehicle.
Further, the invention preferably comprises an additional attachment point for the restraint harness and a perineal belt. A base strap that wraps around the posterior base region of a seat backrest can provide for this additional attachment point for the restraint harness. A perineal belt, extending from the rear of the passenger through the gluteal area to the pubis engages the thigh portion of the restraint harness, providing for a crotch restraint.
The restraint harness further comprises a back strap that wraps over a shoulder of a passenger behind the vehicle seat and connects to the perineal belt. The back strap distributes forces/stresses incurred by the safety harness over an increased surface area also providing comfort to the pregnant passenger. The restraint harness further preferably comprises a chest-engaging portion such that a chest of the pregnant passenger is suitably restrained from forward movement in the event of a collision.
The profile providing an open abdominal area circumvents the developing fetus. The profile of the restraint harness is given a larger surface area of contact with the pregnant passenger, thereby directing the force around where the developing fetus is growing to provide a safety zone for the fetus. The threadable clips on the restraint harness permit the harness to be adjustable and accommodate a relative size of the developing fetus within the confines of the mother, and the mother herself.
A kit is also embodied herein for the safety seatbelt for pregnant woman system comprising; a restraint harness; at least one attachment strap; and a set of user instructions for installation and use.
In accordance with the embodiments of the present invention a preferred method of use is disclosed herein preferably comprising: step one, removably-attaching a base strap around the seat back of a pregnant passenger; step two, placing a restraint harness over a head of a pregnant passenger; step three, removably-attaching a female end of the restraint harness to a male end of an OEM seatbelt assembly in a vehicle; step four, removably-attaching a male buckle to a female end of an OEM seatbelt assembly in a vehicle; step five, removably-attaching an additional male buckle to the base strap; step six, removably-attaching the restraint harness to the perineal belt between a pregnant passenger's legs using the crotch buckle; step seven, adjusting the restrain harness around a periphery of a developing fetus within the pregnant passenger; and step eight, adjusting the restraint harness to a user-preferred tightness thereby securing the pregnant passenger (and the unborn fetus) safely into the seat of the vehicle.
The present invention holds significant improvements and serves as a safety seatbelt system for pregnant woman. For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.
The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and method(s) of use for the present invention, safety seatbelt system for pregnant women, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present invention.
The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote elements.
As discussed above, embodiments of the present invention relate to the field of seatbelt harnesses and more specifically relates to a seatbelt harness for use on pregnant women to prevent the death or injury of unborn fetuses in vehicular accidents.
Referring now to
Referring now to
As best shown in
The restraint harness further comprises a back strap 170. Back strap 170 may include a 2-inch webbing strap to preferably distribute tension caused by forward movement of passenger over an increased surface area, thereby also providing comfort and safety to pregnant passenger 101 as shown in
Attachment of the safety seatbelt system for pregnant women 100 is illustrated in
Safety seatbelt system for pregnant women 100, according to embodiments of the present invention of
Upon reading this specification, it should be appreciated that, under appropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference, user preferences, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements, available materials, technological advances, other kit contents or arrangements such as, for example, including more or less components, customized parts, different anchoring combinations, parts may be sold separately.
Referring now to
It should be noted that the steps described in the method of use could be carried out in many different orders according to user preference. Upon reading this specification, it should be appreciated that, under appropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference, user preference, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements, available materials, technological advances, other methods of use arrangements such as for example, different orders with above-mentioned list, elimination or addition of certain steps, including or excluding certain maintenance steps, may be sufficient.
The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially scientists, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application.
This application is a continuation in part of non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 13/182,967 filed on Jul. 14, 2011, which is currently pending. Applicant claims priority to the filing date of non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 13/182,967, which in turn claims the priority filing date of provisional patent application No. 61/369,827 filed on Aug. 2, 2010. The prior applications are incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61369827 | Aug 2010 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 13182967 | Jul 2011 | US |
| Child | 13543767 | US |
