CN112901741A

CN112901741A - Electric angle adjuster adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment

Info

Publication number: CN112901741A
Application number: CN202110334185.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 王其良; 黎聪
Original assignee: Keiper Seating Mechanisms Co Ltd
Current assignee: Keiper Changshu Seating Mechanisms Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-03-29
Filing date: 2021-03-29
Publication date: 2021-06-04
Anticipated expiration: 2041-03-29
Also published as: CN112901741B

Abstract

The invention relates to an electric angle adjuster adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment, wherein a shell is provided with a first pivot axis and a second pivot axis which are parallel and spaced, a clutch mechanism is rotatably arranged in the shell around the first pivot axis, a driving mechanism is arranged on the shell, the tail end of the driving mechanism extends into the shell and is connected with the clutch mechanism, an output mechanism is rotatably arranged in the shell around the second pivot axis, and an angle adjuster is connected with the clutch mechanism through the output mechanism so as to realize the adjustment of the angle adjuster through the driving mechanism in the connection state of the clutch mechanism and realize the manual adjustment of the angle adjuster through external force in the disconnection state of the clutch mechanism. According to the adjusting mechanism of the electric angle adjuster, manual adjustment is realized through the clutch mechanism integrated in the electric actuating mechanism, other independent mechanisms are not additionally arranged, the backrest can be manually adjusted after the power of the seat is cut off, and other systems cannot be influenced while the safety is guaranteed.

Description

Electric angle adjuster adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment

Technical Field

The invention relates to an automobile seat, in particular to an electric angle adjuster adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment.

Background

Along with the development of automobile electromotion, the application of the electric adjusting seat is more and more extensive, and the traditional electric adjusting seat can not be manually adjusted after power failure under the common condition, because the electric actuating mechanism is a self-locking mechanism, the electric actuating mechanism can only be positively driven by a self-contained motor, and the external torque can not be input for adjustment. As shown in fig. 9, the conventional power adjusting seat has a power actuator for adjusting the seat back by driving the continuous recliner, and the power actuator includes a worm wheel G and a worm W which are engaged, and the power actuator is self-locked because the worm wheel G can drive the worm wheel G and the worm wheel G cannot drive the worm W. In the case of power failure, the electric actuator cannot achieve backrest adjustment (i.e., does not have a manual adjustment function) due to the self-locking. Such a design may present a safety hazard: if meet vehicle collision or drowned accident and take place the back, when personnel need promptly to withdraw from the cabin, because the motor outage, unable regulation seat back, the space is limited, will influence the passenger under the extreme condition and flee.

To solve this problem, it is usually necessary to design a mechanism that can adjust the backrest after power failure. The main solution in the market is to additionally design a set of mechanism, and under a specific condition, the mechanism can be operated to enable the backrest to be freely adjusted without being bound by the electric angle adjuster. But the mechanism has the advantages of complex structure, more parts, low modularization degree and higher cost; in addition, the mechanism is arranged on a main stress path of the whole seat, so that the high strength requirement and the comfort requirement are met, and the design difficulty is high. Another way to solve the above problem is to use a non-self-locking adjusting mechanism, which is based on the principle that the whole adjusting mechanism can be driven reversely by changing the design of the worm and gear. However, in general, the motor is short-circuited after the power failure of the seat, electromagnetic force still exists in the adjusting mechanism as large resistance, if the angle adjuster is manually adjusted, large electromagnetic resistance needs to be overcome, which can not be realized by ordinary people, so that a device needs to be designed in the system to automatically break the short-circuit state of the motor after the power failure so as to eliminate the electromagnetic resistance; even so, systems without electromagnetic resistance still require a large adjustment torque to back drive, and manual adjustment can be relatively laborious. And the non-self-locking adjusting mechanism can also bring hidden troubles: because the system is not self-locking, the angle adjuster easily wriggles in the jolting process to perform self-adjustment, so that the angle of the backrest of the seat is changed, and potential safety hazards are brought.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to solve the problems of complex structure and the like of the manual adjustment angle adjuster independent of the electric actuating mechanism in the prior art, the invention provides an adjusting mechanism of the electric angle adjuster, which can realize manual adjustment.

The invention relates to an electric recliner adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment, which comprises a shell, a clutch mechanism, a driving mechanism and an output mechanism, wherein the shell provides a first pivot axis and a second pivot axis which are spaced in parallel, the clutch mechanism is rotatably arranged in the shell around the first pivot axis, the driving mechanism is arranged on the shell, the tail end of the driving mechanism extends into the shell and is connected with the clutch mechanism, the output mechanism is rotatably arranged in the shell around the second pivot axis, and the recliner is connected with the clutch mechanism through the output mechanism so as to realize the adjustment of the recliner through the driving mechanism in a connection state of the clutch mechanism and realize the manual adjustment of the recliner through external force in a disconnection state of the clutch mechanism.

Preferably, the clutch mechanism comprises a plug pin, a first compound gear and a second compound gear, wherein the plug pin is mounted on the housing in an axially movable manner along a first pivot axis, the first compound gear connected with the drive mechanism is sleeved on the plug pin so as to be rotatable around the plug pin, the second compound gear connected with the output mechanism is sleeved on the plug pin so as to be rotatable around the plug pin and axially movable along the first pivot axis with the plug pin, the first compound gear and the second compound gear are engaged to define a connected state of the clutch mechanism, and the first compound gear and the second compound gear are disengaged to define an disconnected state of the clutch mechanism.

Preferably, the plug pin comprises a first cylindrical section, a second cylindrical section and a third cylindrical section, wherein the second cylindrical section is located between the first cylindrical section and the third cylindrical section and has a larger diameter.

Preferably, the first compound gear has a first through hole in its center, the second cylindrical segment of the plug pin is received in the first through hole, the second compound gear has a second through hole in its center, the third cylindrical segment of the plug pin extends through the second through hole, and the second compound gear abuts against the second cylindrical segment to push the second compound gear by axial movement of the second cylindrical segment.

Preferably, the clutch mechanism further comprises a return spring which is sleeved on the third cylindrical section of the plug pin, and two ends of the return spring act on the shell and the second compound gear so that the second compound gear always abuts against the second cylindrical section.

Preferably, the first through hole of the first compound gear has an inner conical tooth section therein, the exterior of the second compound gear has an outer conical tooth section, the outer conical tooth section is engaged with the inner conical tooth section to define a connection state of the clutch mechanism, and the outer conical tooth section is disengaged from the inner conical tooth section to define a disconnection state of the clutch mechanism.

Preferably, the drive mechanism is an electric motor which is inserted into the housing in a direction perpendicular to the first pivot axis and is connected to the clutch mechanism by means of a worm.

Preferably, the first compound gear has an external helical tooth section which meshes with the worm.

Preferably, the output mechanism is a flower-shaped gear, and a driving rod of the angle adjuster is inserted into a flower-shaped hole of the flower-shaped gear to be meshed with the flower-shaped hole.

Preferably, the outer portion of the second compound gear has a straight tooth section that meshes with the outer gear of the spline gear.

Preferably, the housing comprises a casing and a cover connected by fasteners and defining a cavity with opposed surfaces thereof for receiving the clutch mechanism and the output mechanism.

According to the electric angle adjuster adjusting mechanism capable of realizing manual adjustment, the manual adjustment is realized through the clutch mechanism integrated in the electric actuating mechanism, and the function of manually adjusting the backrest after the seat is powered off in an emergency can be realized without additionally adding other independent mechanisms, so that the safety is ensured, and other systems are not influenced.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a motorized recliner adjustment mechanism for enabling manual adjustment according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural view of a plug pin of the recliner adjustment mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a first compound gear of the power recliner adjustment mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural view of a second compound gear of the power recliner adjustment mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5A is a schematic view of the motorized recliner adjustment mechanism of FIG. 1 in an assembled state with the housing omitted;

FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 6A is an enlarged partial view of FIG. 5B showing a self-locking condition of the recliner adjustment mechanism;

FIG. 6B is an enlarged partial view of FIG. 5B showing a non-self-locking state of the recliner adjustment mechanism;

FIG. 7 shows a hand wheel for manually adjusting the power recliner adjustment mechanism;

FIG. 8 shows a hand wheel mounted to the side of a seat;

fig. 9 is a mechanism diagram of a prior art electric actuator.

Detailed Description

The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in fig. 1, the manually adjustable power recliner adjusting mechanism according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 1, a clutch mechanism 2, a driving mechanism 3 and an output mechanism 4, wherein the housing 1 provides a first pivot axis 1a and a second pivot axis 1b which are spaced apart in parallel, the clutch mechanism 2 is rotatably mounted inside the housing 1 about the first pivot axis 1a, the driving mechanism 3 is mounted on the housing 1 and has its distal end extending into the housing 1 to be connected with the clutch mechanism 2, the output mechanism 4 is rotatably mounted inside the housing 1 about the second pivot axis 1b, the recliner is connected with the clutch mechanism 2 via the output mechanism 4, to enable adjustment of the recliner by means of the drive mechanism 3 in the connected state of the clutch mechanism 2 and manual adjustment of the recliner by means of external forces in the disconnected state of the clutch mechanism 2.

In the present embodiment, the housing 1 includes a housing 11 and a cover 12, which are connected by a fastener (e.g., a bolt) and define a cavity with opposite surfaces thereof to accommodate the clutch mechanism 2 and the output mechanism 4. The driving mechanism 3 is an electric motor, which is inserted into the housing 1 in a direction perpendicular to the first pivot axis 1a to be connected with the clutch mechanism 2. Specifically, the drive mechanism 3 has a worm 31 (see fig. 5A) that is engaged with the clutch mechanism 2 and that protrudes into the housing 1. The output mechanism 4 is a spline gear, and a drive rod of the recliner is inserted into a spline hole 41 (see fig. 6A) of the spline gear to be engaged therewith.

The clutch mechanism 2 includes a plug pin 21, a first compound gear 22 and a second compound gear 23, wherein the plug pin 21 is axially movably mounted on the housing 1 along the first pivot axis 1a, the first compound gear 22 connected to the driving mechanism 3 is fitted over the plug pin 21 to be rotatable about the plug pin 21 (i.e., about the first pivot axis 1a), the second compound gear 23 connected to the output mechanism 4 is fitted over the plug pin 21 to be rotatable about the plug pin 21 and axially movable with the plug pin 21 along the first pivot axis 1a, the first compound gear 22 and the second compound gear 23 are engaged to define a connected state of the clutch mechanism 2, and the first compound gear 22 and the second compound gear 23 are disengaged to define an disconnected state of the clutch mechanism 2.

As shown in fig. 2, the plug pin 21 includes a first cylindrical section 211, a second cylindrical section 212 and a third cylindrical section 213, wherein the first cylindrical section 211 is inserted into the corresponding cavity of the housing 11, and the second cylindrical section 212 is located between the first cylindrical section 211 and the third cylindrical section 213 and has a larger diameter.

As shown in fig. 3, the first compound gear 22 has a first through hole 221 at the center thereof, and the second cylindrical section 212 of the plug pin 21 is received in the first through hole 221, as shown in fig. 5B. Returning to fig. 3, the portion of the first through hole 221 remote from the housing 11 has an internally tapered tooth section 221 a. The first compound gear 22 has a helical tooth section 222 on the outside thereof, which meshes with the worm 31 as the electric motor of the drive mechanism 3, as shown in fig. 5A.

As shown in fig. 4, the second compound gear 23 has a second through hole 231 at the center thereof, and the third cylindrical section 213 of the plug pin 21 extends through the second through hole 231, as shown in fig. 5B. Returning to fig. 4, the exterior of the second compound gear 23 has an outer conical tooth section 232 adjacent to the housing 11 and a straight tooth section 233 adjacent to the cover 12, wherein the outer conical tooth section 232 is engaged with the inner conical tooth section 221a of the first compound gear 22 to perform the "engaging" function of the clutch mechanism 2, and the straight tooth section 233 is engaged with the outer gear as the flower gear of the output mechanism 4, as shown in fig. 5A. As shown in fig. 5B, the end surface of the second compound gear 23 adjacent to the housing 11 abuts against the second cylindrical section 212 so that the axial movement of the second cylindrical section 212 (i.e., the plug and pull pin 21) can push the second compound gear 23 toward the cover 12 to disengage the outer tapered teeth section 232 and the inner tapered teeth section 221a to realize the "off" function of the clutch mechanism 2. The clutch mechanism 2 further comprises a return spring 24 which is fitted over the third cylindrical section 213 of the plug pin 21 and whose two ends act on the end faces of the cover 12 and the second compound gear 23 adjacent to the cover 12 so that the second compound gear 23 always abuts against the second cylindrical section 212. Therefore, through the clutch mechanism 2, the invention can control the connection and disconnection of the output mechanism 4 (namely the angle adjuster) and the driving mechanism 3, and realizes the free switching of the adjusting mechanism of the electric angle adjuster under the self-locking state and the non-self-locking state with lower cost.

Fig. 6A shows the self-locking state of the recliner adjustment mechanism. In the normal electric driving state, the external bevel gear section 232 of the second compound gear 23 is meshed with the internal bevel gear section 221a of the first compound gear 22, and with reference to fig. 5A, the electric motor as the driving mechanism 3 transmits torque to each gear through the worm 31 to drive the recliner to rotate. In a non-adjusting state, as the helical tooth section 222 of the first compound gear 22 is meshed with the worm 31, the second compound gear 23 is meshed with the first compound gear 22 and is meshed with the second compound gear 23 as a flower-shaped gear of the output mechanism 4, the whole system is self-locking and cannot be driven by the outside. Since the drive lever of the recliner is inserted into the flower hole 41 of the flower gear as the output mechanism 4 and the flower gear is locked, the drive lever of the recliner is locked, and thus the recliner is effectively prevented from creeping to change the backrest angle in this state.

Fig. 6B shows the non-self-locking state of the recliner adjustment mechanism. When emergency occurs and the backrest needs to be manually adjusted to escape, the plug pin 21 is pulled (or pushed) by an external force F along the arrow direction, and a specific actuating mechanism can be realized in various forms, such as a pull rod or a pull wire, and is not described in detail since the actuating mechanism does not belong to the protection scope of the invention. The plug pin 21 will move the second compound gear 23 to the left along the axis under the action of the external force F, compressing the return spring 24 until the external tapered section 232 of the second compound gear 23 is completely disengaged from the internal tapered section 221a of the first compound gear 22. At this time, since the second compound gear 23 is already separated from the worm gear (i.e. the first compound gear 22 and the worm 31) which generates self-locking, the second compound gear can rotate freely around the plug pin 21, i.e. the spline gear which is meshed with the second compound gear 23 and is used as the output mechanism 4 is also unlocked, the whole mechanism system is in a non-self-locking state, the hand wheel 5 on the driving rod of the angle adjuster can be manually adjusted to apply torque T, as shown in fig. 7, the operation torque and the system friction resistance of the angle adjuster are overcome, so that the backrest rotation is adjusted, and the escape function is realized, as shown in fig. 8. Returning to fig. 6B, when the external force F is removed, the second compound gear 23 will move under the spring force of the return spring 24 to mesh with the first compound gear 22 and push the plug pin 21 back to the initial position, and the whole mechanism system returns to the self-locking state again.

The adjusting mechanism of the electric angle adjuster supports the first compound gear 22 and the second compound gear 23 through the plug pin 21, so that the running stability of the two gears is ensured; the first compound gear 22 is meshed with a worm 31 of an electric motor serving as a driving mechanism 3 to transmit torque, and the self-locking performance is guaranteed through a worm gear structure formed by the two gears which are always meshed; the torque is transmitted by the engagement of the second compound gear 23 with the first compound gear 22 and the spline gear as the output mechanism 4, and the self-locking state is changed to the non-self-locking state by the separation of the second compound gear 23 from the first compound gear 22 by the axial movement of the plug pin 21.

In a word, the adjusting mechanism of the electric angle adjuster has simple structure, easy mass production and wide applicability, and can be used for various electric seats and various electric continuous angle adjusters. On the basis of the traditional electric actuating mechanism with the driving mechanism 3 and the output mechanism 4, the manual adjustment of the electric angle adjuster can be realized only by adaptively adjusting the structure of the shell 1 and additionally arranging the clutch mechanism 2, the parts are small in change amount, easy to produce and low in cost, the modified shell 1 and the newly added clutch mechanism 2 are simple in structure, easy to manufacture in batches and low in input cost, and no influence is caused on an external interface due to the fact that the modified shell 1 and the newly added clutch mechanism 2 are only changed inside the electric actuating mechanism.

The above embodiments are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, which are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and various changes may be made in the above embodiments of the present invention. All simple and equivalent changes and modifications made according to the claims and the content of the specification of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present patent application. The invention has not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the invention.

Claims

1. An adjustment mechanism for a power recliner capable of manual adjustment, the adjustment mechanism comprising a housing, a clutch mechanism, a drive mechanism and an output mechanism, wherein the housing provides a first pivot axis and a second pivot axis spaced apart in parallel, the clutch mechanism is rotatably mounted within the housing about the first pivot axis, the drive mechanism is mounted on the housing and has a distal end extending into the housing for connection with the clutch mechanism, the output mechanism is rotatably mounted within the housing about the second pivot axis, and the recliner is connected to the clutch mechanism via the output mechanism for adjustment of the recliner by the drive mechanism in a connected state of the clutch mechanism and manual adjustment of the recliner by an external force in a disconnected state of the clutch mechanism.

2. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 1 wherein the clutch mechanism includes a plug pin, a first compound gear and a second compound gear, wherein the plug pin is axially movably mounted on the housing along the first pivot axis, wherein the first compound gear coupled to the drive mechanism is disposed on the plug pin so as to be rotatable about the plug pin, wherein the second compound gear coupled to the output mechanism is disposed on the plug pin so as to be rotatable about the plug pin and axially movable with the plug pin along the first pivot axis, wherein the first compound gear and the second compound gear are engaged to define the connected state of the clutch mechanism, and wherein the first compound gear and the second compound gear are disengaged to define the disconnected state of the clutch mechanism.

3. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 2 wherein the plug pin includes a first cylindrical segment, a second cylindrical segment and a third cylindrical segment, wherein the second cylindrical segment is located between the first cylindrical segment and the third cylindrical segment and has a larger diameter.

4. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 3 wherein the center of the first compound gear has a first through hole in which the second cylindrical segment of the plug pin is received and the center of the second compound gear has a second through hole through which the third cylindrical segment of the plug pin extends, the second compound gear bearing against the second cylindrical segment to urge the second compound gear by axial movement of the second cylindrical segment.

5. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 4 wherein the clutch mechanism further includes a return spring that is disposed over the third cylindrical section of the plug pin and has two ends that act on the housing and the second compound gear such that the second compound gear always abuts the second cylindrical section.

6. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 4 wherein the first through bore of the first compound gear has an internally tapered gear section therein and the second compound gear has an externally tapered gear section thereon, the externally tapered gear section engaging the internally tapered gear section to define the connected state of the clutch mechanism and the externally tapered gear section disengaging the internally tapered gear section to define the disconnected state of the clutch mechanism.

7. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 2 wherein the drive mechanism is an electric motor inserted into the housing in a direction perpendicular to the first pivot axis and connected to the clutch mechanism by a worm.

8. The recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 7 wherein the first compound gear has externally thereof a helical gear segment in meshing engagement with the worm.

9. The mechanism of claim 2 wherein the output mechanism is a spline gear and the drive rod of the recliner is inserted into a spline hole of the spline gear for engagement.

10. The power recliner adjustment mechanism of claim 9 wherein the outer portion of the second compound gear has a straight tooth segment that meshes with the outer gear of the flower gear.