CA1280351C - Redundant seat locking mechanism - Google Patents
Redundant seat locking mechanismInfo
- Publication number
- CA1280351C CA1280351C CA000560520A CA560520A CA1280351C CA 1280351 C CA1280351 C CA 1280351C CA 000560520 A CA000560520 A CA 000560520A CA 560520 A CA560520 A CA 560520A CA 1280351 C CA1280351 C CA 1280351C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- locking
- gear
- locking pawl
- hinge bracket
- pawl
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60N—SEATS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES; VEHICLE PASSENGER ACCOMMODATION NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B60N2/00—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles
- B60N2/02—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles the seat or part thereof being movable, e.g. adjustable
- B60N2/22—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles the seat or part thereof being movable, e.g. adjustable the back-rest being adjustable
- B60N2/235—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles the seat or part thereof being movable, e.g. adjustable the back-rest being adjustable by gear-pawl type mechanisms
- B60N2/2352—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles the seat or part thereof being movable, e.g. adjustable the back-rest being adjustable by gear-pawl type mechanisms with external pawls
Abstract
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
In a vehicle seat assembly having a backrest member pivotally movable with respect to a seat member, there is disclosed a device for controlled adjustment of the inclination of the backrest member with respect to the seat member, which device includes a redundant locking mechanism which is activated upon failure of the primary locking mechanism so as to prevent uncontrolled rearward pivoting of the backrest member over the seat member. Moreover, the activation of the secondary locking means is signalled to the seat occupant by a change in the operation of the device, which change in operation prevents the seat occupant from attempting to re-adjust the inclination of the backrest member without servicing of the device by qualified personnel.
In a vehicle seat assembly having a backrest member pivotally movable with respect to a seat member, there is disclosed a device for controlled adjustment of the inclination of the backrest member with respect to the seat member, which device includes a redundant locking mechanism which is activated upon failure of the primary locking mechanism so as to prevent uncontrolled rearward pivoting of the backrest member over the seat member. Moreover, the activation of the secondary locking means is signalled to the seat occupant by a change in the operation of the device, which change in operation prevents the seat occupant from attempting to re-adjust the inclination of the backrest member without servicing of the device by qualified personnel.
Description
35~
This invention relates` to improvements in backrest inclination adjustment devices such as are employed, for example, in vehicle seat assemblies.
The prior art is exempltfied by U.S. Patent No.
4,687,252, issued to Robert L. Bell, et al, on Au~ust 18, 198~, which patent discloses the use oE a recliner mecllarlisln for a vehicle seatback, wh.ich mechanism includes a coil spring clutch which is selectively tighterled or loosened around an actuator clutch drum surface to adjustably fix the reclined position of a vehicle seatback. The coil spring clutch is controlled by an actuator lever which selectively causes the coil clutch spring to tighten or loosen around the actuator clutch drum. More importantly, in relation to the present invention, a redundan~
positioning pawl is provided which redundant pawl prevents unrestrained motion of the seatback member in the event of failure of the coil spring clutch. The actuator lever is normally biased by a spring means to an engaged position whereat the coil spring clutch is tightened around the clutch drive surEace and whereat the redundant positioning pawl directly interferes with a structural member of the vehicle seatback, so as to restrain forward or rearward rec}ining oE the seatback. ~ pivotally mounted intermediate lever is intercorlrlected between the actuator lever and the redundant positioning pawl so as to cause movement of the redundant positioning pawl out of such interference when the actuator lever is moved from the engaged position to a disengaged position, thereby allowing for pivotal movement of the backrest member over the seatrest member. Once a selected backrest inclination angle is selected, the actuator lever is released, whereby the aforementioned spring biasing means returns /
~ 3 ~ ~
actuator lever to the engaged posi tiOII, Wi th consequential locking of the se~tback melnber as aforesaid. '~'he redundant positioning pawl is also spring biased towards interEerence with a structural member of the seatback mel-llber. and, UpOII failure or improper operation of the coil spring clutch actuator, such biasing serves to move the redundant posit~oning pawl lnto locking interference with said struc~ural melllber, thereby preventing sudden reclining of the seat back under the weight o~
an occupant, with possible disastrous consequences.
lo While redundant reclining devices such as the Bell device constitute a significant improvement over similar devices not having a redundant locking feature, they nonetheless, have serious safety shortcomings. Foremost among these is the fact that the redundant locking mechanism may. upon failure of the primary locking means, be accidentally moved by the seat occupant to a disengaged mode, thus causing sudden and une~pected rearwar tilting of the backrest member. ~s will be appreciated, this could be particularly disastrous where the seat in question is occupied by the vehicle driver. ~dditionally, it should be 2~ considered that in prior art devices such as Bell there may be no indication to the seat occupant that the primary device has failed. That is, such prior art devices may contirlue to operate in what appears to the occupant to be a normal marlr~er, as the seat occupant is able with such devices to release the actuator lever from the engaged position and, re-ad~iust the inclination angle of the backrest member, thereafter returning the lever to the engaged position. In so doing he rllay not appreciate any difference in the operation of the locking mechanism. The operator may thus continue to use the vehicle seat in a - ~ 2~3~35~
potentially dangerous condition in which it was not designed to be used. Even where th~ seat occupant realizes there is a problem in the operation of the mechanislll, there is a tendency to put off servicin~ of the device to a n~ore convenient time.
Moreover, some prior art redundant locking devices are constructed so that the redundant locking mecharlislll can, after Eailure of the primary locking mechanislll, be accidentally disengaged by inadvertent movelllent of the actuator lever, with subsequent uncontrolled reclining of the lo backrest.
So it will be seen that all prior art inclination adjustment devices, even those incorporating a redundant locking feature, encourage continued usage under potentially dangerous conditlons.
It is an object oE the present invention to provide a device for controlled adjustment of the inclination of a backrest of a vehicle seat assembly which device incorporates a redundant safety locking Eeature and which device is both simple to manufacture and to install.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inclination adjustrnent device having a redundant safet~ locking means which device gives notice to the seat occupant of the failure oE the primary locking means through a significant change in the mode oE operation of the device.
It is yet a further object of this invention to provide an improved inclination adjustment device in which the redundant safety locking means cannot be unintentionally disengaged following failure of the primary locking means, so as to prevent sudden and unexpected rearward inclining of the backrest melllber oE an occupied vehlcle sea~.
It is yet a further object oE the present invelltiorl to provide an improved inclination adjustmellt device which, following failure of the primary locking means, must be restore~ to its full operating condition by servicing personnel be~ore unlocking of backrest member, either intentiol~ y or accidentally, is possible.
These and other objects oE the present invention will become more apparent once the following description oE a o preferred embodiment, described by way of example only, is read with reference to the accolnpanying drawings.
In the drawings:
FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a vehicle seat assembly having an inclination adjustmellt device in accordance with the present invention irlcorporated therein, the backrest member being shown in the norlllal upright position;
FIGURE 2 is an exploded view of the inclination adjustment device of Figure l;
FIGURE 3 is a side sectional view of the device of Figure 2, with the locking mechanism tllereoE in an engaged configuration: and FIGURE 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, with the lockirlg mechanism in a disenga~ed configuration so as to allow pivotal movement of the seat back.
Figure 1 shows a typical vehicle seat assembly 10 of the general type with which the invention may be ;used. Such a seat assembly may be of the "bucket" type as illustrated, or may be of the well-known multi-occupallt "bench" type. In the latter case, it is prefer~ble to use one inclination adjustment device 8~135~
according to the inven-tion at each of the two sides of the "bench"
type seat assembly. With "bucket" type seat assemblies, it is generally sufficient to use a single adjustment mechanism for each seat assembly installed, as for example, in the ci~cled area 2 of Figure 1, and the preferred embodiment will be described with reference to such use, although it will be expressly unders-too~ by those skilled in the art that specific vehicle seat applications may call for the analagous use of two or more inclination adjustment devices according to the invention with each vehicle o seating assembly.
Vehicle seat assembly 10 oE Flgure 1 has a backrest member 12 which is pivotally mounted with respect to a seat member 11. Seat member 11 comprises a seat support frame 13 which is anchored by conventional means in a fore-aft adjustment mode to the floor panels (not shown) of the vehicle and which is covered in the usual-manner with upholstery materials 15. The backres-t member 12 comprises a support frame 16 which is also covered in the usual manner with upholstery materials 17.
The inclination adjustment device 18 of the invention comprises a first hinge bracket (comprising an inner 28 and an outer 30 hinge plate) which bracket is rigidly connected by any known fastening means (not shown) to a free end 20 of the seat support frame 13. A second hinge bracket 22 is provided with an upper terminal aperture 24 dimensioned to receive a nut and bolt (not shown) to rigidly secure the second hinge bracket 22 to the support frame 16 of the backrest member 12. Other conventional fastening means, such as rivets or spot welding, may be used with equal facility. Alternatively, the second hinge bracket 22 may be 3~
integrally formed as a terminal portion of the support frame 16.
The first hinge bracket comprises the inner hinge plate 28 and the outer hinge plate 30, which pla-tes are substantially congruen-t and arranged substantially parallel to one another. It s will be seen from ~igure 2 that the inner 28 and outer 30 h:inye plates are maintained at a defined operative distance ~rorll one another by means of various shouldered rivets and spacing washers as more fully described below.
The second hinge bracket 22 is pivotally mounted about a lo pivot pin 26 between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates so as to be pivotally movable with respect to the first hinge bracket 19 so as to allow for tilting of the backrest member 12 over the seat member 11. As best seen in Figure 2, the inner hinge pla-te 28 is provided with a shouldered main hinge pin 26 of which the second hinge bracket 22 is pivotally mounted by means of aperture 31 about a central portion 32 of the hinge pin 26 for pivotal movement of the seat back as previously mentioned. A reduced diameter end portion 34 of the hinge pin 26 rests in the fully assembled condition in an aligned aperture 36 of the outer hinge 20 plate 30, with the shoulder portion 26a and the spacer elemen-t 38 serving to maintain operative clearances between the second hinge bracket 22 and the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the ~irst hinge bracket. The shoulder 26a could, instead of the integral shoulder shown, take the form of a second spacer element.
The rotational angle through which the second hinge bracket 22 may pivot in the rearward (reclining) direction is limited by a shouldered guide pin 40 which has an intermediate diametered portion 42 which portion slides within a control slot 44 formed in the second hinge bracket 22. In this manner, the ~8~3~l control slot 4g defines the operative range of inclination o~ the back-rest member 12. That is, when the backrest member 12 is in its fully reclined position, further reclining pivotable movement is prevented by contac-t of the intermediate diametered, portion 42 of the shouldered guide pin 40 with the trailing end 41 of the control slo-t 4~. The rotational angle through which the second hinge bracl~et 22 may pivot in the forward (inclining) direction is limi-ted by contact of the intermediate diametered portion 42 of the shouldered guide pin 4Q with the leading end g3 of the control slot 44.
The second hinge bracke-t 22 is formed adJacent its terminal end 45 with a gear sector means 46, which gear sector means interacts with a pinion 48 i.n the following manner. The pinion 48 ~which comprises a "gear means" as used in the claims) is mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of an axle pin 50 in meshing engagement with the gear sector means 46 so as to rotate around the pin 50 on pivotal movement of the second hinge bracket 22 about the main hinge pin 26. A first 52 and a second 54 locking gears are similarly mounted on the axle pin 50 for rotation therearound. The second locking gear 54 is of smaller diameter than the first locking gear 52 and both are affixed to the pinion 48 in concentric relation therewith. Any conven-tional affixation means may be used, such as radial keying, spot welding, etc, it being understood that the pinion 48 and the first 52 and second 54 locking gears rotate together as a unitary structure upon driving rotation by the gear sector means 46.
The first locking pawl 56 is pivotally mounted between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the first hinge bracket by means of an axle pin 58 so as to be freely rotatable there-about, between a first position in which the first loc]cing :, -3S~
pawl 56 restrainingly enga~es the first lock:ing gear 52 by means of a toothed head portion 60 of the first locking pawl 56 (this position being shown in Figures 2 and 3) and a second posi-tion in which the first locking pawl 56 is removed from such restraining engagement (see Figure 4) so as to allow Eor free pivotal movemen-t of the baclcrest member 17. It will be appreciated that ln the first position illus-trated in Figures 2 and 3, the backrest member 17 is held against pivotal movement in either the fore or aft directions and that, when the first latching pawl 56 is in its seco~d position as shown in Figure 4, the backrest member 17 is free to be moved piviotally in either the fore or aft directions to the extent allowed by the shouldered guide pin 40 interac-ting wi-th the central slot 44.
A second locking pawl 62 is pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of the pivot pin 58 on which the first locking pawl 56 is also mounted. In this manner, the second locking pawl 62 is able to pivotally move, under conditions described more fully below, between a first position (not shown) in which it restrainingly engages the second locking gear 54 and a second position ~indicated in all of -the Figures) in which it is removed from such restraining engagement with the second locl~ing gear 54, and bears upon a stop pin 63 protruding from the outer hinge plate 30.
A handle means 64 is pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of a pivot pin 66 spanning the space between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the first hinge bracket 19.
The handle means 64 has a handle extension member 68 which extends towards the front edge of the seat member 11 to facilitate gripping by an occupant of the seat assembly 10. The handle means ~. ~
~ ~ao3s~
64 is pivotaly moveable about the pivot p:in 66 between a first position (illustrated in Figures 2 and 3) in which a cam portion 70 of the handle means 64 bears UpOII the head portion 60 of the first locking pawl 56 so as to urge the first lockillg paw:L into the aforementioned first position oE the locking position and a second position (illustrated in Figure 4) in which the caln portion 70 bears upon a tail portion~ of the ~irst locking pawl 56 so as to urge the first locking pawl into its second position, at whic}l second position the head portion 60 is disengaged froln the first locking gear 52.
A first spring means in the Eorm of a coil spring 72 is mounted abou~ the axle pin 58 so as to be adapted to bias the second locking pawl 62 towards the said first pOSitiOII thereof when not prevented from doing so by the further mechanislll described below. The coil spring 72 has a first hooked end portion 74 which engages a pin 76 protruding from the second locking pawl 62 and a second hooked end portion 78 which engages a notch 80 formed in the underside of the second locking pawl 62 so as to provide for said biasing.
A second spring means in the form of a coil spring 82 is interconnected between an arm portion 8l~ of the ha11dle means 64 and the near side of the second locking pawl 62 so as to norlllally bias the hatldle means 64 to the Eirst position as showrl in Figures 2 and 3. Spring 82 is connected to the arm portion 84 by means of a pin 86 ~ffixed to the arm portion 84, and to the second locking pawl 62 by means of the pin 76. It will be appreciated that the second spring 82 is of greater biasing strength than the first spring means 72 so that it is able to overcome the biasing of the first spring means 72 so as to bias the second locking pawl 62 to its _ g _ ~ 3 ~ ~
respective second position. 'lhe second spring Ineans B2 IllUS t be sufficiently strong to overcome the biasing of the Eirst spring means 72 regardless of whether the halldle nlearls 6~ is in its respective first (see Figure 3) or secon~ (see ~igure ~) position.
With the above arrangelllerlts, it w~ L be a~)preciated that, when both springs 72 and 82 are Eully operative, the seat occupant need only move the harldle means 64 frolll tlle lirst position shown in Figure 3 to its second position as in ~igure 4 to release tlle Eirst locking pawl 56 from engagemerlt Witll the first locking gear 52 to lo efEect manual adjustment of the inclination oE the backrest member 12. The second locking pawl 62 is at all times during such normal operation of the handle nleans 64 positioned substantially at its respective second position by reason oE the overriding biasing effect of the second spring means 82.
Upon failure of tlle second spring mearls ~2, the biasing effect on the second locking pawl 62 toward its respective second position is thereby lost, so that it can no longer override the biasing of the first spring means 72. Under such conditions, the second locking pawl 62 is biased by the first spring means 72 to its first position whereat it restrainingly engages the second locking gear 54 so as to hold the backrest melilber 12 against either fore or aft pivotal movelllent. It will be appreciated that msnipulation oE the handle means 64 by the operator, whether accidental or intentional, will have no eEEect upon the restraining engagemellt oE the backrest melllber 12 by the second locking pawl 62.
As engagement of the second locking gear 54 by the second locking pawl 62 will be substantially instantarleous upon breakage of the second spring means 82, the inclination of the backrest member 12 will not change substantially so that the seat occupant : . ~
' ~ 3 5 ~
will be largely unaffecte~, thereby avoi~ing t}-le potentially dangerous consequences of such failure. Moreover, the seat occupant will not be able to overcome the saLety locking by the second locking pawl 62, so tha~ servicing by qualifie~ personnel will be required before the incl:ination of the backrest mem~er 12 can be altered.
It will be understood t~lat the invelltion is not to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described ln the appended claims. For example, a discreet second locking gear 54 need not be provided. Routine design charlges in placement and operation of the second locking pawl 62 could be such that the second locking pawl 62 engages the Eirst locking gear 52 upon failure of the Eirst spring means 82. Moreover, the first pawl 56 and second locking pawl 62 need not pivot about the same pivot pin 58. Additionally, the Eirst spring means 72 and the second spring means 82 need not engage a single pin 76 such as shown in the drawings, but could engage separate pins affixed to the second locking pawl 62. The Eirst hinge bracket 19 may be attached to the seat support fraole 13 in any one oE the numerous well known arrangenlents currently being used in the art and, indeed, could be made an integral component of the seat support frame 13. Lastly, it is well known in the art to incorporate a separate "dumping" mechanism into the second hinge bracket 22 above the level of the main hinge pin 26. Such dulhpirlg mechallism (not shown) may be of the so-called inertial type, in which case the second hinge bracket 22 would itself be of composite construction having an additional upper pivot point ~not shown) about which the 3~L
upper portion o~ the second hinc~e bracket 22 would pivot in amanner controlled by the dumpirlg mecharlistTl. Such adaptations are well known ln the art and do not add inventive subject matter to the present invention. ~dditionally, the axle pin 5~ could be routinely converted into a drive axle for the pin:iorl ~8 and extended to accommodate a rotary handle means Eor utilization by the seat occupant. This feature would allow the seat occupant to e~fect adjustment of the backrest melnber 12 by turning of the rotary handle means, rather than by gripping and pushing the bac~rest member 17, as is required in the preferred embodiment shown. All of the above modifications to the preferred embodiment shown are mere routine design modificatiorls which do not add inventive subject matter over that claimed.
This invention relates` to improvements in backrest inclination adjustment devices such as are employed, for example, in vehicle seat assemblies.
The prior art is exempltfied by U.S. Patent No.
4,687,252, issued to Robert L. Bell, et al, on Au~ust 18, 198~, which patent discloses the use oE a recliner mecllarlisln for a vehicle seatback, wh.ich mechanism includes a coil spring clutch which is selectively tighterled or loosened around an actuator clutch drum surface to adjustably fix the reclined position of a vehicle seatback. The coil spring clutch is controlled by an actuator lever which selectively causes the coil clutch spring to tighten or loosen around the actuator clutch drum. More importantly, in relation to the present invention, a redundan~
positioning pawl is provided which redundant pawl prevents unrestrained motion of the seatback member in the event of failure of the coil spring clutch. The actuator lever is normally biased by a spring means to an engaged position whereat the coil spring clutch is tightened around the clutch drive surEace and whereat the redundant positioning pawl directly interferes with a structural member of the vehicle seatback, so as to restrain forward or rearward rec}ining oE the seatback. ~ pivotally mounted intermediate lever is intercorlrlected between the actuator lever and the redundant positioning pawl so as to cause movement of the redundant positioning pawl out of such interference when the actuator lever is moved from the engaged position to a disengaged position, thereby allowing for pivotal movement of the backrest member over the seatrest member. Once a selected backrest inclination angle is selected, the actuator lever is released, whereby the aforementioned spring biasing means returns /
~ 3 ~ ~
actuator lever to the engaged posi tiOII, Wi th consequential locking of the se~tback melnber as aforesaid. '~'he redundant positioning pawl is also spring biased towards interEerence with a structural member of the seatback mel-llber. and, UpOII failure or improper operation of the coil spring clutch actuator, such biasing serves to move the redundant posit~oning pawl lnto locking interference with said struc~ural melllber, thereby preventing sudden reclining of the seat back under the weight o~
an occupant, with possible disastrous consequences.
lo While redundant reclining devices such as the Bell device constitute a significant improvement over similar devices not having a redundant locking feature, they nonetheless, have serious safety shortcomings. Foremost among these is the fact that the redundant locking mechanism may. upon failure of the primary locking means, be accidentally moved by the seat occupant to a disengaged mode, thus causing sudden and une~pected rearwar tilting of the backrest member. ~s will be appreciated, this could be particularly disastrous where the seat in question is occupied by the vehicle driver. ~dditionally, it should be 2~ considered that in prior art devices such as Bell there may be no indication to the seat occupant that the primary device has failed. That is, such prior art devices may contirlue to operate in what appears to the occupant to be a normal marlr~er, as the seat occupant is able with such devices to release the actuator lever from the engaged position and, re-ad~iust the inclination angle of the backrest member, thereafter returning the lever to the engaged position. In so doing he rllay not appreciate any difference in the operation of the locking mechanism. The operator may thus continue to use the vehicle seat in a - ~ 2~3~35~
potentially dangerous condition in which it was not designed to be used. Even where th~ seat occupant realizes there is a problem in the operation of the mechanislll, there is a tendency to put off servicin~ of the device to a n~ore convenient time.
Moreover, some prior art redundant locking devices are constructed so that the redundant locking mecharlislll can, after Eailure of the primary locking mechanislll, be accidentally disengaged by inadvertent movelllent of the actuator lever, with subsequent uncontrolled reclining of the lo backrest.
So it will be seen that all prior art inclination adjustment devices, even those incorporating a redundant locking feature, encourage continued usage under potentially dangerous conditlons.
It is an object oE the present invention to provide a device for controlled adjustment of the inclination of a backrest of a vehicle seat assembly which device incorporates a redundant safety locking Eeature and which device is both simple to manufacture and to install.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an inclination adjustrnent device having a redundant safet~ locking means which device gives notice to the seat occupant of the failure oE the primary locking means through a significant change in the mode oE operation of the device.
It is yet a further object of this invention to provide an improved inclination adjustment device in which the redundant safety locking means cannot be unintentionally disengaged following failure of the primary locking means, so as to prevent sudden and unexpected rearward inclining of the backrest melllber oE an occupied vehlcle sea~.
It is yet a further object oE the present invelltiorl to provide an improved inclination adjustmellt device which, following failure of the primary locking means, must be restore~ to its full operating condition by servicing personnel be~ore unlocking of backrest member, either intentiol~ y or accidentally, is possible.
These and other objects oE the present invention will become more apparent once the following description oE a o preferred embodiment, described by way of example only, is read with reference to the accolnpanying drawings.
In the drawings:
FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a vehicle seat assembly having an inclination adjustmellt device in accordance with the present invention irlcorporated therein, the backrest member being shown in the norlllal upright position;
FIGURE 2 is an exploded view of the inclination adjustment device of Figure l;
FIGURE 3 is a side sectional view of the device of Figure 2, with the locking mechanism tllereoE in an engaged configuration: and FIGURE 4 is a view similar to Figure 3, with the lockirlg mechanism in a disenga~ed configuration so as to allow pivotal movement of the seat back.
Figure 1 shows a typical vehicle seat assembly 10 of the general type with which the invention may be ;used. Such a seat assembly may be of the "bucket" type as illustrated, or may be of the well-known multi-occupallt "bench" type. In the latter case, it is prefer~ble to use one inclination adjustment device 8~135~
according to the inven-tion at each of the two sides of the "bench"
type seat assembly. With "bucket" type seat assemblies, it is generally sufficient to use a single adjustment mechanism for each seat assembly installed, as for example, in the ci~cled area 2 of Figure 1, and the preferred embodiment will be described with reference to such use, although it will be expressly unders-too~ by those skilled in the art that specific vehicle seat applications may call for the analagous use of two or more inclination adjustment devices according to the invention with each vehicle o seating assembly.
Vehicle seat assembly 10 oE Flgure 1 has a backrest member 12 which is pivotally mounted with respect to a seat member 11. Seat member 11 comprises a seat support frame 13 which is anchored by conventional means in a fore-aft adjustment mode to the floor panels (not shown) of the vehicle and which is covered in the usual-manner with upholstery materials 15. The backres-t member 12 comprises a support frame 16 which is also covered in the usual manner with upholstery materials 17.
The inclination adjustment device 18 of the invention comprises a first hinge bracket (comprising an inner 28 and an outer 30 hinge plate) which bracket is rigidly connected by any known fastening means (not shown) to a free end 20 of the seat support frame 13. A second hinge bracket 22 is provided with an upper terminal aperture 24 dimensioned to receive a nut and bolt (not shown) to rigidly secure the second hinge bracket 22 to the support frame 16 of the backrest member 12. Other conventional fastening means, such as rivets or spot welding, may be used with equal facility. Alternatively, the second hinge bracket 22 may be 3~
integrally formed as a terminal portion of the support frame 16.
The first hinge bracket comprises the inner hinge plate 28 and the outer hinge plate 30, which pla-tes are substantially congruen-t and arranged substantially parallel to one another. It s will be seen from ~igure 2 that the inner 28 and outer 30 h:inye plates are maintained at a defined operative distance ~rorll one another by means of various shouldered rivets and spacing washers as more fully described below.
The second hinge bracket 22 is pivotally mounted about a lo pivot pin 26 between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates so as to be pivotally movable with respect to the first hinge bracket 19 so as to allow for tilting of the backrest member 12 over the seat member 11. As best seen in Figure 2, the inner hinge pla-te 28 is provided with a shouldered main hinge pin 26 of which the second hinge bracket 22 is pivotally mounted by means of aperture 31 about a central portion 32 of the hinge pin 26 for pivotal movement of the seat back as previously mentioned. A reduced diameter end portion 34 of the hinge pin 26 rests in the fully assembled condition in an aligned aperture 36 of the outer hinge 20 plate 30, with the shoulder portion 26a and the spacer elemen-t 38 serving to maintain operative clearances between the second hinge bracket 22 and the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the ~irst hinge bracket. The shoulder 26a could, instead of the integral shoulder shown, take the form of a second spacer element.
The rotational angle through which the second hinge bracket 22 may pivot in the rearward (reclining) direction is limited by a shouldered guide pin 40 which has an intermediate diametered portion 42 which portion slides within a control slot 44 formed in the second hinge bracket 22. In this manner, the ~8~3~l control slot 4g defines the operative range of inclination o~ the back-rest member 12. That is, when the backrest member 12 is in its fully reclined position, further reclining pivotable movement is prevented by contac-t of the intermediate diametered, portion 42 of the shouldered guide pin 40 with the trailing end 41 of the control slo-t 4~. The rotational angle through which the second hinge bracl~et 22 may pivot in the forward (inclining) direction is limi-ted by contact of the intermediate diametered portion 42 of the shouldered guide pin 4Q with the leading end g3 of the control slot 44.
The second hinge bracke-t 22 is formed adJacent its terminal end 45 with a gear sector means 46, which gear sector means interacts with a pinion 48 i.n the following manner. The pinion 48 ~which comprises a "gear means" as used in the claims) is mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of an axle pin 50 in meshing engagement with the gear sector means 46 so as to rotate around the pin 50 on pivotal movement of the second hinge bracket 22 about the main hinge pin 26. A first 52 and a second 54 locking gears are similarly mounted on the axle pin 50 for rotation therearound. The second locking gear 54 is of smaller diameter than the first locking gear 52 and both are affixed to the pinion 48 in concentric relation therewith. Any conven-tional affixation means may be used, such as radial keying, spot welding, etc, it being understood that the pinion 48 and the first 52 and second 54 locking gears rotate together as a unitary structure upon driving rotation by the gear sector means 46.
The first locking pawl 56 is pivotally mounted between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the first hinge bracket by means of an axle pin 58 so as to be freely rotatable there-about, between a first position in which the first loc]cing :, -3S~
pawl 56 restrainingly enga~es the first lock:ing gear 52 by means of a toothed head portion 60 of the first locking pawl 56 (this position being shown in Figures 2 and 3) and a second posi-tion in which the first locking pawl 56 is removed from such restraining engagement (see Figure 4) so as to allow Eor free pivotal movemen-t of the baclcrest member 17. It will be appreciated that ln the first position illus-trated in Figures 2 and 3, the backrest member 17 is held against pivotal movement in either the fore or aft directions and that, when the first latching pawl 56 is in its seco~d position as shown in Figure 4, the backrest member 17 is free to be moved piviotally in either the fore or aft directions to the extent allowed by the shouldered guide pin 40 interac-ting wi-th the central slot 44.
A second locking pawl 62 is pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of the pivot pin 58 on which the first locking pawl 56 is also mounted. In this manner, the second locking pawl 62 is able to pivotally move, under conditions described more fully below, between a first position (not shown) in which it restrainingly engages the second locking gear 54 and a second position ~indicated in all of -the Figures) in which it is removed from such restraining engagement with the second locl~ing gear 54, and bears upon a stop pin 63 protruding from the outer hinge plate 30.
A handle means 64 is pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of a pivot pin 66 spanning the space between the inner 28 and outer 30 hinge plates of the first hinge bracket 19.
The handle means 64 has a handle extension member 68 which extends towards the front edge of the seat member 11 to facilitate gripping by an occupant of the seat assembly 10. The handle means ~. ~
~ ~ao3s~
64 is pivotaly moveable about the pivot p:in 66 between a first position (illustrated in Figures 2 and 3) in which a cam portion 70 of the handle means 64 bears UpOII the head portion 60 of the first locking pawl 56 so as to urge the first lockillg paw:L into the aforementioned first position oE the locking position and a second position (illustrated in Figure 4) in which the caln portion 70 bears upon a tail portion~ of the ~irst locking pawl 56 so as to urge the first locking pawl into its second position, at whic}l second position the head portion 60 is disengaged froln the first locking gear 52.
A first spring means in the Eorm of a coil spring 72 is mounted abou~ the axle pin 58 so as to be adapted to bias the second locking pawl 62 towards the said first pOSitiOII thereof when not prevented from doing so by the further mechanislll described below. The coil spring 72 has a first hooked end portion 74 which engages a pin 76 protruding from the second locking pawl 62 and a second hooked end portion 78 which engages a notch 80 formed in the underside of the second locking pawl 62 so as to provide for said biasing.
A second spring means in the form of a coil spring 82 is interconnected between an arm portion 8l~ of the ha11dle means 64 and the near side of the second locking pawl 62 so as to norlllally bias the hatldle means 64 to the Eirst position as showrl in Figures 2 and 3. Spring 82 is connected to the arm portion 84 by means of a pin 86 ~ffixed to the arm portion 84, and to the second locking pawl 62 by means of the pin 76. It will be appreciated that the second spring 82 is of greater biasing strength than the first spring means 72 so that it is able to overcome the biasing of the first spring means 72 so as to bias the second locking pawl 62 to its _ g _ ~ 3 ~ ~
respective second position. 'lhe second spring Ineans B2 IllUS t be sufficiently strong to overcome the biasing of the Eirst spring means 72 regardless of whether the halldle nlearls 6~ is in its respective first (see Figure 3) or secon~ (see ~igure ~) position.
With the above arrangelllerlts, it w~ L be a~)preciated that, when both springs 72 and 82 are Eully operative, the seat occupant need only move the harldle means 64 frolll tlle lirst position shown in Figure 3 to its second position as in ~igure 4 to release tlle Eirst locking pawl 56 from engagemerlt Witll the first locking gear 52 to lo efEect manual adjustment of the inclination oE the backrest member 12. The second locking pawl 62 is at all times during such normal operation of the handle nleans 64 positioned substantially at its respective second position by reason oE the overriding biasing effect of the second spring means 82.
Upon failure of tlle second spring mearls ~2, the biasing effect on the second locking pawl 62 toward its respective second position is thereby lost, so that it can no longer override the biasing of the first spring means 72. Under such conditions, the second locking pawl 62 is biased by the first spring means 72 to its first position whereat it restrainingly engages the second locking gear 54 so as to hold the backrest melilber 12 against either fore or aft pivotal movelllent. It will be appreciated that msnipulation oE the handle means 64 by the operator, whether accidental or intentional, will have no eEEect upon the restraining engagemellt oE the backrest melllber 12 by the second locking pawl 62.
As engagement of the second locking gear 54 by the second locking pawl 62 will be substantially instantarleous upon breakage of the second spring means 82, the inclination of the backrest member 12 will not change substantially so that the seat occupant : . ~
' ~ 3 5 ~
will be largely unaffecte~, thereby avoi~ing t}-le potentially dangerous consequences of such failure. Moreover, the seat occupant will not be able to overcome the saLety locking by the second locking pawl 62, so tha~ servicing by qualifie~ personnel will be required before the incl:ination of the backrest mem~er 12 can be altered.
It will be understood t~lat the invelltion is not to be limited to the exact construction shown and described, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as described ln the appended claims. For example, a discreet second locking gear 54 need not be provided. Routine design charlges in placement and operation of the second locking pawl 62 could be such that the second locking pawl 62 engages the Eirst locking gear 52 upon failure of the Eirst spring means 82. Moreover, the first pawl 56 and second locking pawl 62 need not pivot about the same pivot pin 58. Additionally, the Eirst spring means 72 and the second spring means 82 need not engage a single pin 76 such as shown in the drawings, but could engage separate pins affixed to the second locking pawl 62. The Eirst hinge bracket 19 may be attached to the seat support fraole 13 in any one oE the numerous well known arrangenlents currently being used in the art and, indeed, could be made an integral component of the seat support frame 13. Lastly, it is well known in the art to incorporate a separate "dumping" mechanism into the second hinge bracket 22 above the level of the main hinge pin 26. Such dulhpirlg mechallism (not shown) may be of the so-called inertial type, in which case the second hinge bracket 22 would itself be of composite construction having an additional upper pivot point ~not shown) about which the 3~L
upper portion o~ the second hinc~e bracket 22 would pivot in amanner controlled by the dumpirlg mecharlistTl. Such adaptations are well known ln the art and do not add inventive subject matter to the present invention. ~dditionally, the axle pin 5~ could be routinely converted into a drive axle for the pin:iorl ~8 and extended to accommodate a rotary handle means Eor utilization by the seat occupant. This feature would allow the seat occupant to e~fect adjustment of the backrest melnber 12 by turning of the rotary handle means, rather than by gripping and pushing the bac~rest member 17, as is required in the preferred embodiment shown. All of the above modifications to the preferred embodiment shown are mere routine design modificatiorls which do not add inventive subject matter over that claimed.
Claims (5)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. In a vehicle seat assembly having a backrest member pivotably moveable with respect to a seat member, a device for controlled adjustment of the inclination of the backrest member with respect to the seat member, said device comprising:
a) a first hinge bracket secured to one of said members and a second hinge bracket secured to the other of said members, wherein the one of said first and second hinge brackets which is secured to the backrest member is pivotally moveable with respect to the other of said first and second hinge brackets;
b) a gear sector means mounted on said second hinge bracket;
c) a gear means mounted on said first hinge bracket in meshing engagement with said gear sector means so as to rotate upon said pivotal movement of the said one of the first and second hinge brackets;
d) a first locking gear affixed to the gear means for rotation therewith;
e) a first locking pawl pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket for movement between a first position in which the first locking pawl restrainingly engages the first locking gear and a second position in which the locking pawl is removed from said restraining engagement;
f) a second locking pawl pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket for movement between a first position in which the second locking pawl restrainingly engages -the first locking gear and a second position in which the second locking pawl is removed from said restraining engagement;
g) a handle means pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket so as to be moveable between a first position in which a cam portion of the handle means bears upon a head portion of the first locking pawl so as to urge the first locking pawl into its said first position, and a second position in which said cam portion bears upon a tail portion of the first locking pawl so as to urge the first locking pawl into its said second position;
h) a first spring means mounted on the first hinge bracket so as to be adapted to bias the second locking pawl towards its said first position;
i) a second spring means of greater strength than said first spring means, interconnected between the handle means and the second locking pawl so as to bias the handle means to said first position of said handle means, while at the same time biasing the second locking pawl to its said second position against said biasing of the -first spring means, such that, upon failure of the second spring means, the second locking pawl is biased by the first spring means to its first position so as to restrainingly engage the first locking gear, thereby to hold the backrest member against said pivotal movement.
a) a first hinge bracket secured to one of said members and a second hinge bracket secured to the other of said members, wherein the one of said first and second hinge brackets which is secured to the backrest member is pivotally moveable with respect to the other of said first and second hinge brackets;
b) a gear sector means mounted on said second hinge bracket;
c) a gear means mounted on said first hinge bracket in meshing engagement with said gear sector means so as to rotate upon said pivotal movement of the said one of the first and second hinge brackets;
d) a first locking gear affixed to the gear means for rotation therewith;
e) a first locking pawl pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket for movement between a first position in which the first locking pawl restrainingly engages the first locking gear and a second position in which the locking pawl is removed from said restraining engagement;
f) a second locking pawl pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket for movement between a first position in which the second locking pawl restrainingly engages -the first locking gear and a second position in which the second locking pawl is removed from said restraining engagement;
g) a handle means pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket so as to be moveable between a first position in which a cam portion of the handle means bears upon a head portion of the first locking pawl so as to urge the first locking pawl into its said first position, and a second position in which said cam portion bears upon a tail portion of the first locking pawl so as to urge the first locking pawl into its said second position;
h) a first spring means mounted on the first hinge bracket so as to be adapted to bias the second locking pawl towards its said first position;
i) a second spring means of greater strength than said first spring means, interconnected between the handle means and the second locking pawl so as to bias the handle means to said first position of said handle means, while at the same time biasing the second locking pawl to its said second position against said biasing of the -first spring means, such that, upon failure of the second spring means, the second locking pawl is biased by the first spring means to its first position so as to restrainingly engage the first locking gear, thereby to hold the backrest member against said pivotal movement.
2. A device according to Claim 1, wherein the first locking gear is affixed to the gear means in concentric relation therewith, and wherein a second locking gear of smaller diameter than the first locking gear is concentrically affixed to the gear means for rotation therewith, and wherein the second locking pawl is pivotally mounted as aforesaid to restrainingly engage the second locking gear at its said first position and to be removed from said restraining engagement of the second locking gear upon movement to said second position.
3. A device according to Claim 2 wherein the first and second locking pawls are pivotally mounted on the first hinge bracket by means of a single pivot pin.
4. A device according to Claim 3 wherein the first hinge bracket is integrally formed with the seat member.
5. A device according to Claim 4, wherein a rotary handle means is drivingly connected to the gear means for activation thereof by an occupant of the vehicle seat assembly when the handle means is in its respective first position and the second locking pawl is in its respective second position.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000560520A CA1280351C (en) | 1988-03-01 | 1988-03-01 | Redundant seat locking mechanism |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000560520A CA1280351C (en) | 1988-03-01 | 1988-03-01 | Redundant seat locking mechanism |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1280351C true CA1280351C (en) | 1991-02-19 |
Family
ID=4137563
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000560520A Expired - Lifetime CA1280351C (en) | 1988-03-01 | 1988-03-01 | Redundant seat locking mechanism |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1280351C (en) |
Cited By (2)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN107444203A (en) * | 2016-05-27 | 2017-12-08 | 丰田纺织株式会社 | Seat adjuster and seat for vehicle |
| CN110884399A (en) * | 2018-09-10 | 2020-03-17 | 福雷亚自动模式有限公司 | Motor vehicle seat |
-
1988
- 1988-03-01 CA CA000560520A patent/CA1280351C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
Cited By (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN107444203A (en) * | 2016-05-27 | 2017-12-08 | 丰田纺织株式会社 | Seat adjuster and seat for vehicle |
| CN110884399A (en) * | 2018-09-10 | 2020-03-17 | 福雷亚自动模式有限公司 | Motor vehicle seat |
| CN110884399B (en) * | 2018-09-10 | 2023-08-25 | 福雷亚自动模式有限公司 | Motor vehicle seat |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry | ||
| MKEX | Expiry |
Effective date: 20080301 |