A restraint system for a vehicle comprising at least one guard arm adapted for bending movement, tension strap means carried within the guard arm and secured to one end thereof, and means to apply a force to the other end of the tension strap means to bend the guard arm to a restraining position to at least partially encircle a portion of a body of a vehicle occupant. The guard arm is particularly suitable for use in a passive restraint system.

A passive restraint safety belt system for a vehicle comprises at least one belt movable from a hidden stowed position to a restraining position about the occupant of the vehicle at the time of an accident. Means are provided for sensing an impact or sudden deceleration or acceleration of the vehicle and are operable to shift the belt from the stowage position to the restraining position. Means are also provided for returning automatically the belt from the restraining position to the stowage position so that the belt may be readily reused. Preferably, the safety belt is substantially hidden from view and does not interfere with ingress or egress from the vehicle.

A restraining device for limiting forward movement of an operator of a wheeled mechanical vehicle in case of a collision includes two restraining bars pivotally mounted at opposite sides of a seat and extending toward one another. The restraining bars are mounted so as to pivot in a vertical plane about axes which are parallel to each other and lie on opposite sides of the seat. The restraining bars are synchronized or interlocked so that when one bar is raised or lowered by the occupant of the seat the other bar is also moved. A lock or retention device on one side of the seat holds the restraining bars in the lowered or raised position after they have been positioned by the occupant. The vehicle may be a forklift or front end loader and the run controls and load controls of the vehicle are interlocked with the synchronizing mechanism so that the run and load controls cannot be operated when the restraining bars are not in the occupant restraining position.

A safety belt having four anchoring points in which there is provided an abdominal strap connected to a swinging frame pivoted on the seat's sidewalls, and two paired shoulder straps which are connected to sliding members placed on the abdominal strap and are connected at the other end, to the top corners of the seat back.

An automatically applied three point safety belt system includes a retractor reel located at one side of the vehicle seat and spring rewinding an inflatable tubular lap belt which is arcuate in its inflated state and a retractor reel located at the same side of the seat back above the occupant shoulder level and spring rewinding a shoulder belt having a rear inflatable tubular section which upon inflation, extends horizontally, forwardly of the occupant's shoulder. The ends of the belts are joined proximate an attached coupling ring which is lockable in engagement with a coupling hook on the other side of the seat. A flexible tube connects the interiors of the belts by way of a three way valve to a compressor, the valve being opened to connect the belt interiors to the compressor when the seat is occupied, and the vehicle door closed to inflate and extend the belts to advance the ring into engagement with the hook, and a manually, releasable locking member is actuated in response to such engagement, and the belts are deflated. A control network, including an inertia switch inflates the belts and locks the retractor reels under abnormal riding conditions, and recycles the application sequence when the ring is not engaged by the hook member.