GB2128472A

GB2128472A - Vehicle seat slides

Info

Publication number: GB2128472A
Application number: GB08230116A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Frederick William Babbs
Original assignee: Lear Corp Nottingham Ltd
Current assignee: Lear Corp Nottingham Ltd
Priority date: 1982-10-21
Filing date: 1982-10-21
Publication date: 1984-05-02

Abstract

A slide assembly for a vehicle seat consists of outer and inner channels (11, 12) with the bases facing each other and with the sides of the inner channel defining races for balls (14) in extensions (9) of the sides of the outer channel. The balls (14) allow for easy relative sliding between the channels, while providing location in transverse directions. The bent-over edges (13) of the sides of the inner slide are spaced between portions (6, 7) of the outer slide when an occupant is in the seat, but come into contact with those portions respectively when the seat is unloaded and when it is loaded excessively in a crash. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Slide assembly for a vehicle seat This invention relates to a fore-and-aft slide assembly for a vehicle seat, for enabling the user to adjust the fore-and-aft position of the seat in the vehicle.

The kind of for-and-aft slide assembly to which this invention relates comprises a pair of relatively longitudinally slidabie slide members adapted to be fixed respectively to the seat and to the vehicle and releasable latch means for locking the slide members against relative longitudinal movement in chosen positions of adjustment.

An example of a fore-and-aft slide assembly of this kind is the subject of British Patent No.

1,295,044.

An object of the invention is to provide a slide which is easily manufactured, which slides easily, which has good resistance against excessive loads that might be experienced in a crash, and which does not easily rattle when no one is sitting in the seat.

According to the invention, a slide assembly comprises a pair of co-operating elongate slides each having a cross section generally in the form of a 'U' with a base and two sides, one slide being inside the other with the bases facing each other and each side of the inner slide being inside an extension of the corresponding slide of the outer slide which bends in and back towards the base of the other slide and defining with that extension a race for ball bearings which normally act to hold the slides located in relation to each other; the free end of the side of each inner slide having a flange which is normally between and out of contact with two spaced parts of the outer slide but which can come into contact with one or other of those spaced parts under extreme loads.

For locking the slide members against relative longitudinal movement in chosen positions of adjustment there may be a releasable latch means comprising a latch lever arranged to pivot about a pivotal axis fixed relative to one slide member and carrying at least one locking detent arranged to engage in and disengage from at least one of a series of notches arranged along the other slide member, the said other slide member having a lug which projects through an aperture in the latch lever large enough to permit pivotal movement of the latch lever, the portion of the lug which projects through the latch aperture providing an anchorage for a spring which both resiliently biases the latch lever towards the engaged position and retains the latch lever on the lug.

Preferably, the slide members comprise inner and outer channels with balls or rollers disposed between opposed surfaces of both channels, which surfaces define longitudinal races for the balls or rollers.

The invention may be carried into practice in various ways, and one embodiment is described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of a fore-and-aft seat slide assembly embodying the invention for a motor car, in the rearmost position of adjustment; FIGURE 2 is a plan view corresponding to Figure 1; and FIGURE 3 is an end view to an increased scale.

As shown in the drawings, the fore-and-aft slide assembly includes sheet steel outer and inner channel shaped members 11 and 12 (hereinafter called channels) of which the first, 11, is to be secured to the underside of a seat while the second 12, is to be secured to the floor of the car.

The inner channel 12 has the upper edges of its side walls bent outwards and downwards as shown at 1 3 in Figure 3, and the side walls themselves have inwardly curved sections to define with outwardly curved sections in the outer channel 11 longitudinal races for steel balls 1 4.

There are three balls in each longitudinal race, one ball at the front and two at the rear as shown in broken lines in Figure 2, making six balls in all.

The side wall of the upper outer channel 11 depends from the base (at the top) and then turns back and up as shown at 9 to the outwardly curved race section 8.

The sides of the two channels have to be sprung a little to get the balls 14 in, so that when assembled, the slides do not rattle. Normally - even with a passenger in the seat, contact is only between each channel and the balls, and not between channel and channel, so that sliding is very easy.

The edges 13 of the inner channel is closely spaced between two portions 6 and 7 of the outer channel so that under excessive loads which might be experienced in a crash, after local deformation at the balls, the channels come into contact with each other along a substantial length and there is then substantial resistance against further deformation.

The seat can be moved easily forwardly and rearwardly in relation to the floor by rolling of the balls along races with substantially rolling point or line contact between the balls and the channels.

The central web region of each channel has holes 1 5 for fixing bolts (not shown) for securing the channels to the seat and to the floor. The heads of such bolts being disposed in the interiors of the respective channels, do not limit the amount of permissible fore-and-aft movement.

The limits of forward movement are determined by indentations 16 and 17 in the inner channel 12, and 1 8 and 19 in the outer channel 11. The limits of rearward movement are determined by indentations 20 and 21 in the inner channel 12, .and 22 and 23 in the outer channel 11. It will be seen in Figure 2 that in the rearmost position as shown, the two rear balls in each longitudinal race are engaged between the indentations 21 of the inner channel and 23 of the outer channel, while the front ball in each race is engaged between the indentations 20 of the inner channel and 22 of the outer channel.In the foremost position the two rear balls are engaged between the indentations 17 of the inner channel and 1 9 of the outer channel, while the front ball is engaged between the indentations 1 6 of the inner channel and 1 8 of the outer channel.

The outer channel 11 to which the seat is attached is locked relative to the inner channel 12, fixed to the floor, in any desired position of adjustment by a latch lever 24 which is pivotally mounted at 25 on the side of the outer channel 11. The pivotal mounting 25 may comprise a cylindrical protuberance pressed out on the inner side of the latch lever and fitting into a hole formed in the side of the outer channel 11.

Alternatively, it could be a pin welded to the side of the channel which fits into a hole in the latch lever.

The latch lever 24 has a forward extension 26 for fitting into a removable release member 27 in the form of a cross piece extending below the front of the seat between a pair of similar foreand-aft slide assemblies, on either side of the seat.

At the middle, the latch lever has two parallel prongs, which are bent at right angles as shown in Figure 3, the two prongs forming a pair of spaced detents 28, which pass through slots 29 in the side wall of the outer channel 11 and into any adjacent two of a number of corresponding notches 30 spaced along the length of the side wall of the inner channel 12 in the edge 13.

The latch lever 24 has an aperture 31 through which extends a lug 32 bent out from the side wall of the outer channel 11. The vertical height of the aperture 31 is sufficiently larger than the thickness of the lug 32 to permit the necessary pivotal movement of the latch lever about the pivot 25, but the aperture is also small enough to prevent excessive pivotal movement.

The latch lever 24 is spring biased anticlockwise (Figure 1) towards the engaged position i.e. the position in which the detents 28 are urged into the notches 30 by a spring 33. The spring is arranged as a cantilever with its rear end portion 34 anchored to the lug 32 by being passed around the back of the lug, down through an aperture 35 in the lug and then up at the front of the lug, so that it engages the lug on opposite sides of the aperture 35 and at the front lower corner and the rear upper corner. The front end 36 of the spring engages in a notch in the upper edge of the forward extension 26 of the latch lever 24.

The spring is pre-stressed so as to tend to straighten out, that is to say, it is continually pressing down on the forward extension 26 and exerting a corresponding reaction on the lug 32.

To release the detents 28 from the notches 30 and so release the seat for sliding adjustment, the release member 27 is raised, thereby pivoting the latch lever clockwise and further stressing the spring 33.

The spring 33 has another function beside biasing the latch lever 24 towards the engaged position. It also serves to retain the latch lever 24 on the lug 32 and so hold the latch means in the assembled position.

Claims

1. A slide assembly comprising a pair of cooperating elongate slides each having a cross section generally in the form of a 'U' with a base and two sides, one slide being inside the other with the bases facing each other and each side of the inner slide being inside an extension of the corresponding side of the outer slide which bends in and back towards the base, and defines with that extension a race for ball bearings which normally act to hold the slides transversely located in relation to each other as well as permitting easy relative sliding.

2. An assembly as claimed in Claim 1 in which the free end of each side of the inner slide has a flange which is normally between and out of contact with two spaced parts of the outer slide but which can come into contact with one or other of those spaced parts under extreme loads.

3. An assembly as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2 including a releasable latch means comprising a latch lever arranged to pivot about a pivotal axis fixed relative to one slide member and carrying at least one locking detent arranged to engage in, and disengage from, at least one of a series of notches arranged along the other slide member

4. An assembly as claimed in Claim 3 in which the other slide member has a lug which projects through an aperture in the latch lever large enough to permit pivotal movement of the latch lever.

5. An assembly as claimed in Claim 4 in which the portion of the lug which projects through the latch aperture provides an anchorage for a spring which both resiliently biases the latch lever towards the engaged position, and retains the latch lever on the lug.

6. A slide assembly constructed and arranged substantially as herein specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7. A mounting for a vehicle seat comprising a pair of slide assemblies as claimed in any of the preceding claims, one at each side of the seat.

8. A seat mounting as claimed in Claim 7 in which each slide assembly has releasable latch means and there is a common member for operating the latch means of both slide assemblies.