Design of a four-point seat-belt presenter

Abstract

The ambition of this thesis was to design and prototype a seat-belt presenter of a four-point seat-belt system for the Lear Corporation. The seat-belt presenter designed is to be implemented in automobile seats in order to facilitate putting a four-point seat belt. The worked perform is the culmination of both Petr Petri and myself in our efforts to find a method to properly present a four-point seat-belt system. The design utilizes a magnet at the end of an aluminum arm that is pivoted below a person's knee on the seat. A sensor detects when a person sits down and begins a series of actions to present the seat belt. The device uses a set of four mechanical sensors to locate the position of the arm, the seat belt, and on the seat to detect when a person sits down. A control system, which utilizes logic components, then decides what direction to turn the arm in and when to stop it. The prototype that was built to simulate the seat-belt presenter appears to work well but has little details that need to worked up before a product like this enters the market. Among the most important issues to be resolved is the prototyping of the second arm on the presenter, the mounting of the motor and sensors onto the mount, use of the appropriate sensors, and to address the problem of the electrical components overheating.