TECHNOLOGY
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Webbing Construction
TAKATA has a unique "memory effect" designed into our webbing. Special woven in
mono filaments perform like small leaf springs and keep the webbing flat throughout
the life of the belt. This results in better load spreading over the full width of the
TAKATA webbing. In addition, this filament helps to form smooth rounded edges for
added comfort.
Street Legal Belts (ECE-R 16.04 / DOT-FMVSS 209)
TAKATA DRIFT II and DRIFT III harnessbelts are unique in their ability to be installed to standard factory mounting points, without
effecting the proper operation of your stock seat belts. It is not recommended to remove your factory seat belts. These harnessbelts
are manufactured in accordance to the European Standard ECE-R 16.04 AND US Department of Transportation (DOT), Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 209. FMVSS 209 is a US DOT standard for seat belts that are legal for use on all public
roads. These belts meet the applicable mandatory seat belt requirements in all US states.
Each belt comes with complete installation and operating instructions, a copy of which can be downloaded here.
Since the shoulder belts are mounted to the rear factory lap belt mounting points the rear seat must not be used when a DRIFT belt
is installed.
DRIFT II or DRIFT III can only be safely installed in safely in vehicles with seat having a vertically adjustable headrest or a pass-
through for the shoulder belts. Wrapping shoulder belts around the outside of a seat with an integrated headrest will force the
shoulder belts off your shoulder in the event of an accident.
2" LAP BELTS
2" Lap belts have been widely accepted by most motorsports sanctioning bodies
worldwide. If you look at Formula One, NASCAR, IndyCar, Grand AM, ALMS, and
almost any professional series you will find a large percentage of the drivers using 2"
lap belts. This trend has grown as well in Club Racing for Porsche, BMW, SCCA, and
even for track day enthusiasts.
To understand why 2" webbing is more effective than 3" webbing, one needs to look at
the shape of the human body. The Iliac Crest is the part of the pelvic bone that sticks
out above the hips. 2" webbing (pictured in black), fits entirely within that crest where 3"
webbing (pictured in red). rides over the tips of the crest The 3" webbing has less
surface area by percentage than the 2" webbing, this results in more potential bruising
with 3" webbing on impact as "hot-spots" of force develop where the belt is making
contact with the pelvic bone. Since the 2" webbing rides inside the crest it can be worn
as much as 1" to 2" tighter and at the same time is more comfortable. It is also less
likely to slide up above the crest and cause submarining, a condition where the body
slides down below the lap belt possibly causing internal organ damage.
Research shows that the faster the pelvis is captured, the lower the resultant loads on
the chest, head, and neck. There is no difference in the strength of the 2" webbing. All
webbing (2" or 3") must meet the same load tests.
Additional advantages of the 2" lap belt is that the adjusters are easier to work and
there are generally fewer "interference" issues with the lap belt openings in race shell
seats.
TAKATA WEBBING
All webbing is not created equal. The webbing in all TAKATA
harnessbelts is specially designed and manufactured exclusively for
TAKATA. Each lot manufactured must pass our stringent quality
control procedures.
TAKATA uses only Polyester webbing which offers significant
advantages such as minimal degradation under UV light (see figure
1) and a resistance against acids like battery acid. In addition
Polyester does not absorb moisture so the performance of TAKATA
harnesses does not change whatever the climate may be. Polyester
also has better management of the force/elongation ratio allowing our
harnessbelts to better convert energy during an accident.
ASM® Anti Sub Marining Technology
The TAKATA asm® system offers a unique safety advantage for 4-point harnesses. asm® (the acronym for anti-submarining)
significantly reduces the risk to submarine (sliding underneath the lap belt), a well-known phenomenon during frontal impacts. In a
severe impact, an energy converter on the shoulder belt containing the asm system, releases an extra length of webbing allowing
the upper torso to slightly rotate, which tensions the lap belt asymmetrically, thus preventing submarining under the lap belt. On the
rebound phase with the upper torso out of alignment, your "butt" is planted firmly back into the seat similar to what you would
experience with a 3-point factory belt.
A 4-point belt without asm® loads the shoulders and upper torso evenly on initial impact and allows the body to slide forward and
under the lab belt protion of the harness. Severe injuries or death are possible using 4-point harnesses without the TAKATA asm®
safety system.
The asm® system on all TAKATA DRIFT series belts are NOT compatible with HANS®. A HANS® device may be used with the
RACE 4 harness belt.