Video: Ford introduces first inflatable seat belts

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Ford is introducing the first inflatable seat belt, which will be first introduced in the next-generation Ford Explorer. This new technology will eventually be in most Ford models around the world.

New seat belts are designed to provide additional protection for rear-seat occupants, often children and older passengers who can be more vulnerable to head, chest and neck injuries.

These new seat belts are designed to deploy over a vehicle occupant’s torso and shoulder in 40 milliseconds in the event of a crash.

In the event of a frontal or side crash, the inflatable belt’s increased diameter more effectively holds the occupant in the appropriate seating position, helping to reduce the risk of injury.

The inflatable belt’s accordion-folded bag breaks through the belt fabric as it fills with air, expanding sideways across the occupant’s body in about the same amount of time it takes a car traveling at highway speed to cover a yard of distance.

The use of cold compressed gas instead of a heat-generating chemical reaction - which is typical of traditional air bag systems - means the inflated belts feel no warmer on the wearer’s body than the ambient temperature. The inflatable belts also fill at a lower pressure and a slower rate than traditional air bags, because the device does not need to close a gap between the belt and the occupant.

The inflated belt helps distribute crash force energy across five times more of the occupant’s torso than a traditional belt. The belt remains inflated for several seconds before dispersing its air through the pores of the air bag.