Abstract: A vehicle passenger safety system for use where independent power is required. The system includes as cooperating elements: an independent source of power; a passenger restraining belt; an inflatable bag stored in the belt; crash event sensors; belt orientating structure; a source of inflating gas; and, in the preferred embodiment programmed electronics that control functioning of the safety system and prolong the service life of the independent power source.

Abstract: A conventional webbing-locking inertia reel is modified by integration of a device for the prevention of slap-back lock of the inertia reel upon excessively rapid retraction of the webbing worn by a seat occupant as a safety belt and/or harness. The device also slows the retraction of the webbing enough to prevent a hard collision of the webbing stop at the inertia reel. This is accomplished by interacting the reel shaft with a specially designed damping disk so that both the shaft and the damping disk rotate counter-clockwise when an external force pulls the webbing from its rotatable spool, while simultaneously the shaft also interacts with a conventional housed return spring, causing it to wind and build up a rewinding force, which, when the external force is removed or ceases, causes rotation of the shaft, spool, and damping disk clockwise and rewinds the webbing on the spool.