EP0052606A1

EP0052606A1 - Control device for the continuous and relative motion of articulated parts

Info

Publication number: EP0052606A1
Application number: EP81900455A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Vincenzo Perrone
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-05-28
Filing date: 1981-02-17
Publication date: 1982-06-02
Also published as: IT8148523A0; WO1981003415A1; BR8003322A; IT1142774B

Abstract

Dispositif de controle du mouvement angulaire continu et relatif de pieces articulees, s'appliquant de preference a la commande et au reglage de l'inclinaison de sieges de vehicules, ce dispositif consistant essentiellement en un engrenage d'entrainement (1) qui peut etre integral ou partiel, et un pignon (2) avec un filetage avant, applique respectivement sur les pieces articulees ou bras (3, 4) de l'unite ou mecanisme auquel il est destine, l'engrenage d'entrainement (1) etant pourvu d'un anneau peripherique ou seulement d'un secteur annulaire de dents helicoidales (6), et etant bloque par un dispositif de verrouillage, depuis le bras articule correspondant (3), tandis que le pignon (2) possede un filetage saillant en spirale (12) qui constitue le filetage avant, et est maintenu applique avec les spirales s'adaptant les unes dans les autres seulement d'un cote, c'est-a-dire: avec un seul alignement radial du filetage, le pignon (2) est, a son tour, applique sur l'autre bras (4) de la paire articulee, et etant pourvu en outre d'un gantelet externe (14) qui est assemble avec lui, ou tout autre moyen de commande pour son mouvement.Device for controlling the continuous and relative angular movement of articulated parts, preferably applying to the control and adjustment of the inclination of vehicle seats, this device consisting essentially of a drive gear (1) which can be integral or partial, and a pinion (2) with a front thread, applied respectively to the articulated parts or arms (3, 4) of the unit or mechanism for which it is intended, the drive gear (1) being provided with 'a peripheral ring or only an annular sector of helical teeth (6), and being blocked by a locking device, from the corresponding articulated arm (3), while the pinion (2) has a projecting spiral thread ( 12) which constitutes the front thread, and is held applied with the spirals fitting into each other only on one side, that is to say: with a single radial alignment of the thread, the pinion (2) is, in turn, applied to the other arm (4) of the articulated pair, and being further provided with an external gauntlet (14) which is assembled with it, or any other means of control for its movement.

Description

Descriptive Report of the Invention Patent for a "CONTROL DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS AND RELATIVE MOTION OF ARTICULATED PARTS" .

As per what is general knowledge, there are countless and diversified mechanisms which, being essentially made up of two separate parts, which are., however, articulated together, one of them should be kept in a fixed position, while the other, also nor¬ mally held in a fixed position, while, however, it may whenever desired be deviated from its position to one direction or the other, and all this in ri¬ gorously determined limiting positions.

A typical examplo of such mechanisms is found in the front seats of vehicles, and particu- larly when the latter are only provided with two side doors at the front, for the access of passen¬ gers, both from the front seats and from the rear seats. And these front seats naturally have their seats fixed, but with parts of the backs articulat- ed, so that, when in use, they can be reclined not only forwards, with a view to allowing passengers to go into or out of the rear seats, but also back¬ wards, aiming at making a more confortable using position possible. Naturally, several types of devices for the above function are well-known, and this func¬ tion is: while keeping the articulated parts in a normal fixed position, they allow one of them to have an angular motion in both directions, as per what is the case with reclinable seats of vehicles in general. And these devices consist of, in the most sim pie and common form of their being made, a locking me¬ chanism which, when engaged, keeps the reclinable part fixed, thus offering a firm and stable back for the us er to lean into, and, when it is released, allows the angular motion of same for the effects intended and mentioned as per above.

More recently, and with a view to a better using condition of the units equipped with the devices under cosnideration, which up till then have only allow ed large angular movements of the articulated part,even with stops stabilized at intermediate positions, but with no possibility of adjusting the chosen position, a device has been developed for the former, and incorpo - rated into same, for controlling the continuous angular movement and for adjusting to the intended position, with the help of which, once a certain inclination of the articulated part has been roughly chosen, one may add or deduct to same small angular fractions, as per what the user desires and/or finds most confortable.

However, and particularly in the case of the application of said devices to the vehicle's reclinable seats, the present way of carrying their construction out nearly always errs because of excessive complexity of structure, and also because of the great number of components, and, furthermore, because they are complica ed to assemble, and because of a series of other factors all of which contribute to their easily tending to brea down, seizing up and other irregularities, as well as se vere criticism as far as their actual funtioning is con cerned.

In the face of such circumstances, therefore, and with the purpose of overcoming them, the design was made of the control device for the continuous and relati ve angular motion of articulated parts, the object of this invention, which device is outstanding precisely because of the extraordinary simplicity of construct¬ ion, yet highly ingenious and practical, and the re - suit of which are extreme conditions of perfection,r gularity and efficiency in operation for the units to which it is applied.

And, from the point of view of what is es¬ sential, the said device practically consists of only two principal components, which are: a drive gear, which can be integral and even partial, but with a special configuration of the cogs, and a pinion with a front thread, coupled with the cogs of the said dri ve gear, said components being conveniently applied to the articulated parts which are to be controlled, in such a manner that the direct control of turning on one of them brings about, by means of its being coupl¬ ed to the other one, a continuous angular motion of the part to which it is applied, thus adjusting its p£ sition, and that in a fine and sensitive manner.

As for the possible applications for the said device, they are countless and differentiated, with very spacial emphasis given to the control of the reclinability of the seats of vehicles, in such a man¬ ner that, once the seat is put at any intermediate an¬ gle-level, the fine adjustment of its inclination may be proceeded to, according to what its user intends for his greater comfort.

It is, furthermore, added, as a special par¬ ticularity of the device referred to, that, according to its conception and carrying out, it permits a relati. ve angular motion of 360° between the articulated parts, which range has formerly not been obtained in any conge_ niσal device.

The enclosed drawings illustrate this invent ion, in which : Fig.l, shows a side and internal view, the control device referred to, applied to the usual pair of articulated arms, fix__ laterally and espectively to the seat and .backrest of a car seat, for the ef fects of control on its reclinability;

Fig,2 is a sectional view along A-A, indi- cated in Fig.^'l;

Fig.3 is a sectional view along B-B, also indicated in Fig.l; Fig.4 repeats the sectional view of the fo regoing figure, but with a variant-way of carrying out the said device; and Fig.5 is a side view of the seat of a vehi. cle, with the illustration of the move ments of the respective backrest, con- trolled by the device referred to.

As per what is illustrated by the figures listed above, the control device for the continuous and relative angular motion of the articulated parts, which is the object of this invention, comprises es - sentially two principal components, which are : one drive gear 1 and one pinion 2 with a front thread (Fig.l), which components are conveniently applied to the parts or articulated arms 3 and 4, belonging to the unit whose continuous and relative angular motion it is intended to control, whether it be the seat of a vehicle, or any other mechanism.

As for the said drive gear 1, which may be integral (Figs.l, 2 and 3) or partial (Fig.4), it con¬ sists of a disc 5, with one side provided with a peri- pherical ring of cogs 6 sticking out, formed by heli - coidal segments (Fig.l) , or, then, of only one annular sector of the said cogs (Fig.4), which disc is assembl_¬ ed conveniently fixed into a corresponding housing or opening 7 provided for on the arm 3 itself of the art^L culated supporting pair, which is blocked by means of some locking device, such as, for example, that which is formed by a pair of articulated locks 8, with a cl i.ng spring 9, and applied against the peripherical cut: ting out of a cam-lid 10, co-axially to and jointed to the said disc 5 of the drive gear 1.

In its turn, the drive gear 2 with a front thread also consists of a disc 11, with one side pro - vided with a spiral thread 12, consisting of a front thread, with the width and gauge respectively equiva - lent to the gauge and width of the cogs 6 of the said drive gear 1, which is kept with its spirals always fit: ted into the cogs 6 of same, said disc 11- being also ap_ plied into an opening or housing 13 formed on the other arm 4 of the articulated supporting pair, and furthermo re equipped with an external and coaxial gauntlet 14,be ing joined to it by means of a central bolt 15 and an eccentric pin 14.

It is furthermore added that the coupling of the front thread 12 of the pinion 2 with the peripheri¬ cal cogs 6 of the drive gear 1 should be made only on one side, which is to say, according to a single radial alignment of the thread, for which reason, when it is a matter of the drive gear provided with a complete peri¬ pherical ring with cogs 6 (Fig.3) , the planes of the dri_ ve gear 1 and of the pinion 2 should not be parallel, but, rather, making and intermediary limit of an angle sufficient to avoid the coupling also to occur on the other side, which is to say, according to another oppo¬ site radial alignment, while, when it is a matter of the drive gear with only one peripherical sector with cogs (Fig.4) said planes may perfectly well be parallel, con sidering that the non-exitence of cogs on the other si. de prevents other couplings, which, perchance may arise.

This being the case, and the assemblage being duly assembled, the direct turning control on the gaunt let 14 and, consequently, on the pinion 2 joined to it, brings it about that, by the coupling of its spiral thread

12 with the peripherical cogs 6 of the drive gear 1, the latter be loaded with a relative rotational

naturally slower than that of the pinion itself 2, said motion being transmitted to the corresponding articulat: ed arm 3, to which it is blocked by the locking device (8, 9, 10) . However, in the case of applying the device to a vehicle-seat, in which the arm 3 is joined to the seat-part of same (Fig.5) , consequently being fixed,and considering the impossibility of the drive gear 1 turn¬ ing, for it is blocked by the fixed arms 3 of the seat, that slow motion which would be transmitted to it by the front thread 12 of. pinion 2 then passes on to the arm 4 itself, and, consequently, to the back of the seat.

Evidently, as far as the turning control on pinion 2 is concerned, with its front thread 12, it can be manual, by means of the gauntlet 14 for example, as per illustrated in the enclosed drawings , or electric, hydraulic or of any nature, always, naturally, as per what would be more appropriate and convenient to the pa ticular case of its application.

Furthermore, as far as the application of th device referred to, and besides the preferential one al ready mentioned above, which is that of control of the reclinability of vehicle-seats, said device may also se ve, with identifical efficiency, to control speed—reduc ers, or even the movements of moveable arms of draughts man^'s tables or other prefessional ones, as well as to control the moveable arms of garage doors, block and ta ckle, and a great number of other mechanisms.

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Claims

1. "CONTROL DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS AND RELATIVE ANGULAR MOTION OF ARTICULATED PARTS", pre - ferentially applicable to the control and adjustment of the reclinability of vehicle-seats, characterized by comprising essentially two principal components, which are : a drive gear (1) which can be integral or partial, and a pinion (2) with a front thread, said components being applied respectively to the articu - lated parts or arms (3 and 4) , belonging to the unit whose continuous angular motion it is intended to con trol..

2. "CONTROL DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS AND RELATIVE ANGULAR MOTION OF ARTICULATED PARTS", as per what is claimed in 1, characterized by the fact that the drive gear (1) consists of a disc (5) , with one side provided with a peripherical ring of cogs in he- licoidal segments (6) , or even only an annular sector of the said cogs, said disc being fitted into a hous- ing or opening (7) provided for in the arm (3) itself of the articulated supporting pair, from which it is blocked by any locking device (8, 9, 10) .

3- "CONTROL DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS AND REGULAR ANGULAR MOTION OF ARTICULATED PARTS", as per claimed -up to 2, characterized by the fact that the pinion (2) with a front thread also consisting of a disc (11) , with one supplied with a spiral thread (12) making up the front thread, with width and gauge equi¬ valent respectively to the gauge and width of the cogs (6) of the said drive gear (1) , and kept with the spi¬ rals fitted into only one side, which is to say, accord ing to one single radial alignment of the between the cogs (6) of same, said disc being equally applied to an opening or housing (13) , formed in the other arm (4) of the articulated supporting pair, and, furthermore equipped with an external and coaxial gaunt: let (14) , rigidly joined to same, or another means of controlling its motion.

4. "CONTROL DEVICE FOR THE CONTINUOUS AND RELATIVE ANGULAR MOTION OF ARTICULATED PARTS", as per claimed up to 3, characterized by the fact that, in the case of the drive wheel (1) having a whole peripherical ring of cogs (6) , its plane is not parallel to that of the pinion (2) with a front thread, but,rather, outlin ing an intermediary angle, sufficient to prevent the coupling between the respective cogs (6) and spiral threads (12) , according to another opposite radial alig ment of the said thread, while in the case of the drive gear having cnly one sector with cogs, said planes are parallel.

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