CN219312586U - Headrest for vehicle seat - Google Patents

Abstract

The utility model relates to a headrest for a vehicle seat, comprising: a cover including a first portion adapted to support a head of an occupant in a longitudinal direction of the headrest and elastically deformable, and a second portion disposed opposite to the second portion in the longitudinal direction; a deployable bladder received in the interior space for attachment to the first portion, the bladder being adapted to not interact with the first portion in an undeployed configuration and to pull the first portion toward the second portion in a deployed configuration such that the first portion is elastically deformed to have a preset shape adapted to support a head of an occupant; an inflation and deflation device coupled to the bladder, adapted to inflate or deflate the bladder to transition the bladder between an undeployed configuration and a deployed configuration; and an actuation device adapted to actuate the inflation and deflation device. The headrest for a vehicle seat provided by the utility model is suitable for supporting the heads of different passengers.

Description

Headrest for vehicle seat

Technical Field

The utility model relates to the technical field of vehicle interior trim, in particular to a headrest for a vehicle seat.

Background

Headrests for vehicle seats have long provided support for the head of an occupant (including the driver and passengers) seated in the vehicle seat in the event of normal travel of the vehicle, and may also provide protection for the head of the occupant in the event of an accident with the vehicle. It follows that it is desirable that a headrest for a vehicle seat can be compatible with both comfort and safety. However, in the related art, at least in the case where the vehicle is running normally, the shape of the headrest itself is relatively fixed, which makes the headrest not fully adaptable to the head of different occupants, because the heads of different occupants often have different skull characteristics from person to person, or have different hair styles, or wear various hats, hair ornaments, or the like. Thus, a relatively fixed shape headrest does not provide the same degree of comfort and safety to the head of all occupants, and may even give discomfort to the head of some relatively special occupants and thus present a safety hazard.

Disclosure of Invention

The present utility model aims to provide a headrest for a vehicle seat, which is suitable for supporting the heads of different passengers, which often have different skull characteristics from person to person, or have different hairstyles, or are worn with various hats, hair accessories, etc.

According to one aspect of the present utility model, there is provided a headrest for a vehicle seat, comprising: a cover including a first portion and a second portion partially defining an internal space, the first portion being configured to be adapted to support a head of an occupant in a longitudinal direction of the headrest and to be elastically deformable, and the second portion being disposed opposite to the second portion in the longitudinal direction; a deployable bladder received in the interior space for attachment to the first portion, the bladder being configured to be adapted to not interact with the first portion in an undeployed configuration and to pull the first portion toward the second portion in a deployed configuration such that the first portion elastically deforms to have a preset shape adapted to support a head of an occupant; an inflation and deflation device connected to the bladder configured to be adapted to inflate or deflate the bladder to transition the bladder between an undeployed configuration and a deployed configuration; and an actuation device configured to actuate the inflation and deflation device.

Optionally, the bladder spans the first portion along its length in the interior space, and the bladder is configured to be adapted to assume a collapsed, contracted, depressed, or pleated state over the first portion in an unexpanded configuration, and to be stretched along its length to bend toward the second portion in an expanded configuration to pull the first portion toward the second portion.

Optionally, the headrest further comprises a guide member rotatably mounted to the cover in the interior space, the guide member constraining each of the two ends of the bladder, and the guide member being configured and adapted to rotate toward the second portion during transition of the bladder from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration such that the stretched bladder is guided to bend toward the second portion.

Optionally, the headrest further comprises a gear member fixedly mounted to the cover in the interior space, the gear member being configured to abut against the guide member in a state in which the bladder is in an undeployed configuration to prevent rotation of the guide member away from the second portion during transition of the bladder from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration.

Optionally, the guide member has a rest position inclined towards the second portion in a state in which the bladder is in an undeployed configuration, such that the guide member tends to rotate towards the second portion during transition of the bladder from an undeployed configuration to a deployed configuration.

Optionally, the guide member is tubular or plate-like.

Optionally, each of the two ends of the bladder is slidably received in the guide member; or each of the two ends of the bladder is connected to the guide member.

Optionally, the actuation means comprises an operating button mounted on or near the cover, or on the lower part of the vehicle seat, or integrated on the vehicle's instrument display, so that the occupant actuates the inflation and deflation means by pressing the operating button.

Optionally, the cover is at least partially made of an elastically deformable fabric or the first portion is made of an elastically deformable fabric.

According to another aspect of the present utility model, there is provided a vehicle seat comprising a headrest for a vehicle seat as described above.

The headrest for a vehicle seat provided by the utility model is elastically deformed by pulling the first part of the covering by means of the deployable bladder, so that the first part can have a preset shape suitable for supporting the head of an occupant, to ensure that the occupant can rest his head, in particular his rear head, against the headrest comfortably, anytime and anywhere.

Other features of the present utility model and its advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the utility model, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the utility model and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the utility model.

Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a headrest for a vehicle seat according to one embodiment of the utility model.

Fig. 2 is a top cross-sectional view of a headrest for a vehicle seat according to one embodiment of the utility model, with a first portion of the cover in an undeployed configuration.

Fig. 3 is another top cross-sectional view of the headrest for a vehicle seat of fig. 2, with the first portion of the cover in a deployed configuration.

Fig. 4 is a top cross-sectional view of a headrest for a vehicle seat according to another embodiment of the utility model, with a first portion of the cover in an undeployed configuration.

Fig. 5 is another top cross-sectional view of the headrest for a vehicle seat of fig. 4, with the first portion of the cover in a deployed configuration.

Detailed Description

Various exemplary embodiments of the present utility model will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that: the relative arrangement of the components and steps, numerical expressions and numerical values set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present utility model unless it is specifically stated otherwise.

Techniques and equipment known to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art may not be discussed in detail, but should be considered part of the specification where appropriate.

In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values should be construed as merely illustrative, and not a limitation. Thus, other examples of exemplary embodiments may have different values.

It should be noted that: like reference numerals and letters denote like items in the following figures, and thus once an item is defined in one figure, no further discussion thereof is necessary in subsequent figures.

Referring to fig. 1, a common vehicle seat includes: a backrest (not shown), a headrest 8, and a support bracket 9 for adjustably mounting the headrest 8 above the backrest. In general, the support bracket 9 is configured to be displaceable or rotatable relative to the backrest in the longitudinal direction X, the transverse direction Y, and/or the vertical direction Z of the headrest/backrest/vehicle to be suitable for supporting the heads of different occupants to some extent, as the heads of different occupants typically have different heights and different occupants may want to lift the heads at different angles. However, in the prior art, at least in the case where the vehicle is running normally, the shape of the headrest itself is relatively fixed, which makes the headrest not fully adaptable to the head of different occupants, because the head of different occupants often also has a head bone characteristic that varies from person to person, or has a different hairstyle, or is worn with various hats, hair accessories, or the like. For example, some occupants are accustomed to tying long hair into a ponytail or a hair coil to create an aesthetically pleasing hairstyle while also avoiding obstruction of the view by hair during driving. However, the head of the occupant may be formed with a bulge at the rear side of the head of the occupant, and the bulge may not conform to the shape of a common headrest, which may cause limited movement of the head and neck of the occupant, thereby causing discomfort to the head and neck of the occupant. In this case, the occupant cannot effectively alleviate the uncomfortable feeling due to the mismatch between the occupant's hairstyle and the headrest by adjusting the mounting of the headrest with respect to the backrest, and in the case where the occupant is a driver, such uncomfortable feeling may cause a certain safety hazard.

Referring to fig. 2 and 3, according to one embodiment of the present utility model, a headrest for a vehicle seat is provided, which is adapted to support the head, particularly the rear head, of different occupants. The exemplary headrest has substantially the same appearance as the headrest 8 of a conventional vehicle seat, and is also adjustably mounted above the backrest by a support bracket. The exemplary headrest comprises a cover 10, the cover 10 comprising a first portion 10a and a second portion 10b partially defining an interior space 12, the first portion 10a being configured to be adapted to support the head of an occupant resting on the first portion 10a in a longitudinal direction X of the headrest 8 (whether the vehicle seat is arranged in a vehicle facing forward or rearward, i.e. whether the occupant is seated in the vehicle facing forward or rearward), in particular the rear head and being elastically deformable, while the second portion 10b is arranged opposite the second portion 10b in the longitudinal direction X of the headrest 8. In addition to the first and second portions 10a, 10b, the headrest 8 may further include a lateral portion 10c connecting the first and second portions 10a, 10b, the lateral portion 10c together with the first and second portions 10a, 10b defining the interior space 12. It will be appreciated that the cover 10 may be a one-piece article, for example, the cover 10 is made from a single piece of fabric that is elastically deformable and has a first stretchability such that the first portion 10a is elastically deformable and has a first stretchability. Alternatively, the cover 10 may be formed from a plurality of pieces of material joined together, wherein the first portion 10a is made from a piece of fabric that is elastically deformable and has a first stretchability. It will also be appreciated that the cover 10 need not be the outermost surface of the headrest 8, as the outermost surface of the headrest 8 may also be other flexible shells that enclose the cover 10. In addition, the support bracket 9 may be partially inserted into the inner space 12 to effect the mounting of the support bracket 9 relative to the headrest 8.

The exemplary headrest further comprises: an expandable bladder 14, bladder 14 being received in interior space 12 and being interlockably attachable to first portion 10a; and inflation/deflation device 16, which is in fluid communication with/connected to bladder 14 and configured to be adapted to inflate or deflate bladder 14, such that bladder 14 transitions between an undeployed configuration and a deployed configuration, inflation/deflation device 16 may comprise, for example, any known air pump or high pressure air source already in the vehicle, inflation/deflation device 16 may be located within interior space 12, or inflation/deflation device 16 may be located outside interior space 12 and in fluid communication with bladder 14 via flexible and/or rigid tubing. For example, at least one segment of bladder 14 is made of an elastic material having a second stretchability that corresponds to or is substantially equal to the first stretchability such that bladder 14 is stretchable/extensible/lengthened/contracted along its length. The at least one segment of bladder 14 may be at least partially woven to first portion 10a, or bladder 14 may be attached to first portion 10a by an additional plurality of attachment members, or bladder 14 may be attached to first portion 10a by means of a thermoplastic welding technique. It can be seen that the manner in which bladder 14 is attached to first portion 10a is not limited.

As shown in fig. 2, bladder 14 is interlockingly attachable to first portion 10a such that when inflation and deflation device 16 is not inflating bladder 14 or deflating bladder 14, bladder 14 is in or transitions from an undeployed configuration to an undeployed configuration so as not to interact with first portion 10a. In the undeployed configuration, bladder 14 attached to first portion 10a spans at least a portion of the width of first portion 10a along its length in interior space 12 in a lateral direction Y of headrest 8, or spans at least a portion of the height of first portion 10a along a vertical direction Z of headrest 8, or spans at least a portion of the dimension of first portion 10a along any direction on a plane formed by vertical direction Z and lateral direction Y of headrest 8, to enable bladder 14 to act on first portion 10a in a desired manner. Regardless, bladder 14 does not interact with first portion 10a in an undeployed configuration such that bladder 14 assumes a collapsed, contracted, depressed, or pleated state over first portion 10a.

When inflation and deflation device 16 is not deflating bladder 14 or inflating bladder 14, bladder 14 is in or transitions from the expanded configuration to the unexpanded configuration, as shown in fig. 3. In the expanded configuration, bladder 14 is stretched along its length by the gas that bladder 14 must flex in its entirety toward second portion 10b as indicated by arrow a in fig. 3 to remain contained within interior space 12. The curved bladder 14 will pull the first portion 10a such that the first portion 10a elastically deforms to have a preset shape suitable for supporting the head of an occupant. It will be appreciated that a plurality of bladders 14 may be provided in interior space 12 in various orientations across first portion 10a to cooperate with one another. By independently controlling the inflation or deflation of each bladder 14 of the plurality of bladders 14, a variety of preset shapes of the first portion 10a may be achieved to accommodate the head of different occupants. It will also be appreciated that while bladder 14 is stretchable along its length and also expandable along its cross-section, generally bladder 14 stretches primarily along its length when inflated to become an elongated tubular bladder that bends toward second portion 10b, the maximum of the area of the cross-section of such elongated tubular bladder being controlled to a relatively small extent. In general, the degree to which bladder 14 is expandable along its cross-section may be limited by embedding rigid wires in bladder 14 or setting the weft yarns used to weave the warp and weft yarns of bladder 14 to be rigid.

In addition, the direction in which bladder 14 bends when inflated, in other words, the need for bladder 14 to bend toward second portion 10b when inflated, may be controlled in a variety of ways. In fig. 2-5, the exemplary headrest further comprises a guide member in the interior space 12, for example, the guide member is two guide cylinders 20a,20b, the two guide cylinders 20a,20b being rotatably mounted to a lateral portion 10c of the cover 10, or to other fixed attachments located in the interior space 12, such that in the undeployed configuration of the bladder 14, the two guide cylinders 20a,20b are mutually aligned in the transverse direction Y of the headrest 8. The two guide cylinders 20a,20b may each constrain each of the two ends of bladder 14 along its length. For example, each of the two ends of bladder 14 may be slidably received in a respective one of the two guide cylinders 20a,20b, alternatively or additionally, each of the two ends of bladder 14 may also be connected to a respective one of the two guide cylinders 20a,20 b.

Although in fig. 2-5, the guide member is shown as two guide cylinders 20a,20b of tubular shape to slidably receive/house each of the two ends of bladder 14, respectively, it will be appreciated that the guide member may have other shapes, for example, the guide member may be two pairs of guide tabs of plate shape, each pair of guide tabs being opposed to each other to sandwich one end of bladder 14.

In addition, since each of the two ends of bladder 14 may be slidably received in the guide member, the length in the guide member is longer in each end of bladder 14 in the unexpanded configuration of bladder 14 and shorter in each end of bladder 14 in the expanded configuration of bladder 14.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 2 and 3, the exemplary headrest further comprises a gear component in the interior space 12, for example, the gear component being two flaps 21a, 21b fixedly mounted to the lateral portion 10c of the cover 10, or to other fixed attachments located in the interior space 12, such that the flaps 21a, 21b are also mutually aligned in the transverse direction Y of the headrest 8, the flaps 21a, 21b being configured to be adapted to abut against the two guide cylinders 20a,20b in a state in which the bladder 14 is in an undeployed configuration, to prevent the two guide cylinders 20a,20b from rotating away from the second portion 10b during a transition of the bladder 14 from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration. In other words, during the transition of bladder 14 from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration, bladder 14, as inflated by inflation and deflation device 16, stretches along its length and expands along its cross-section, bladder 14 after stretching and expanding is no longer positioned over first portion 10a in the collapsed, contracted, depressed, or collapsed state, but rather tends to bend in a direction in limited interior space 12, as both guide cylinders 20a,20b are blocked from rotating toward first portion 10a and only toward second portion 10b by the two flaps 21a, 21b, bladder 14 guided by both guide cylinders 20a,20b also being able to bend only toward second portion 10 b.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 4 and 5, the two guide cylinders 20a,20b have a resting position inclined towards the second portion 10b with the bladder 14 in the undeployed configuration, as shown in fig. 4, such that the two guide cylinders 20a,20b tend to rotate towards the second portion 10b during the transition of the bladder 14 from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration, the bladder 14 guided by the two guide cylinders 20a,20b also tending to bend towards the second portion 10b, as shown by arrow a in fig. 5. The resting position of the two guide cylinders 20a,20b may be achieved by loading springs on the two guide cylinders 20a,20 b.

Returning to fig. 1, the exemplary headrest further comprises an actuation device 18, the actuation device 18 being configured to be adapted to actuate the air charge and discharge device 16 and comprising an operating button 22, the operating button 22 being mountable on the covering 10 or in the vicinity of the covering 10, so that an occupant can actuate the air charge and discharge device 16 by pressing the operating button 22 anywhere and anytime, for example immediately after boarding or during driving, so that the first portion 10a is elastically deformed to have one of a plurality of alternative preset shapes, which are adapted to support the occupant's head, i.e. to feel comfortable to the occupant. It will be appreciated that the operating button 22 may also be located in various suitable locations within the vehicle, for example, the operating button 22 may be located in the lower portion of the vehicle seat as with the control components of the backrest, or the operating button 22 may be integrated on a meter Display (DIM) with a user interface.

Although some specific embodiments of the present application have been described in detail by way of example, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above examples are for illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present application. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the above embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the present application. The scope of the application is defined by the appended claims.

Claims (10)

1. A headrest for a vehicle seat, comprising:

a covering (10) comprising a first portion (10 a) and a second portion (10 b) partially defining an interior space (12), the first portion (10 a) being configured to be adapted to support a head of an occupant in a longitudinal direction of the headrest and being elastically deformable, and the second portion (10 b) being disposed opposite the second portion (10 b) in the longitudinal direction;

-an expandable bladder (14) housed in said internal space (12) to be attached to the first portion (10 a), and said bladder (14) being configured to be adapted to not interact with the first portion (10 a) in an unexpanded configuration, and to pull the first portion (10 a) towards the second portion (10 b) in an expanded configuration, so as to elastically deform the first portion (10 a) to have a preset shape suitable for supporting the head of an occupant;

an inflation and deflation device (16) connected to the bladder (14) configured and adapted to inflate or deflate the bladder (14) to transition the bladder (14) between an undeployed configuration and a deployed configuration; and

-actuation means (18) configured to actuate said inflation and deflation means (16).

2. Headrest for vehicle seats according to claim 1, characterized in that the bladder (14) spans the first portion (10 a) in the interior space (12) along its length, and that the bladder (14) is configured to be adapted to assume a collapsed, contracted, depressed or folded state over the first portion (10 a) in an unexpanded configuration, and to be stretched along the length of the bladder (14) to bend towards the second portion (10 b) in an expanded configuration, in order to pull the first portion (10 a) towards the second portion (10 b).

3. Headrest for vehicle seats according to claim 2, characterized by further comprising a guiding member rotatably mounted to the cover (10) in the interior space (12), the guiding member constraining each of the two ends of the bladder (14), and the guiding member being configured to be adapted to rotate towards the second portion (10 b) during the transition of the bladder (14) from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration, such that the stretched bladder (14) is guided to bend towards the second portion (10 b).

4. A headrest for a vehicle seat according to claim 3, further comprising a gear member fixedly mounted to the cover (10) in the interior space (12), the gear member being configured to abut against the guide member in a state in which the bladder (14) is in an undeployed configuration to prevent rotation of the guide member away from the second portion (10 b) during transition of the bladder (14) from an undeployed configuration to a deployed configuration.

5. A headrest for a vehicle seat according to claim 3, characterized in that the guide member has a rest position inclined towards the second portion (10 b) in the state in which the bladder (14) is in the undeployed configuration, so that the guide member tends to rotate towards the second portion (10 b) during the transition of the bladder (14) from the undeployed configuration to the deployed configuration.

6. A headrest for a vehicle seat according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the guide member is tubular or plate-like.

7. Headrest for vehicle seats according to any of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that each of the two ends of the bladder (14) is slidably received in the guide member; or (b)

Each of the two ends of the bladder (14) is connected to the guide member.

8. Headrest for vehicle seats according to any of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the actuation means (18) comprise an operating button (22), which operating button (22) is mounted on the covering (10), or in the vicinity of the covering (10), or in the lower part of the vehicle seat, or integrated on the vehicle's instrument display, so that the occupant actuates the inflation and deflation means (16) by pressing the operating button (22).

9. Headrest for vehicle seats according to any of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the covering (10) is at least partly made of an elastically deformable fabric or the first portion (10 a) is made of an elastically deformable fabric.

10. A vehicle seat, characterized by comprising a headrest for a vehicle seat according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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