JP2002067767A - Rear seat armrest device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a rear seat armrest from jumping out at the time of sudden braking, and eliminate need of increasing strength of an armrest installation part. SOLUTION: A containing recess D is formed at a front side center of a seat back C in a rear seat A, and the armrest 20 is supported to be rotatable around a lateral axis O positioned at a lower part in the containing recess D for enabling the armrest 20 to be raised and laid between a contained state where the armrest 20 is positioned in the containing recess D and a usage state where it is protruded forward from a lower part of it. Between the armrest 20 and an armrest hinge 15 to rotatably support it, a damper 40 to provide viscosity friction resistance to rotation of the armrest 20 is provided. The damper 40 is disc-shaped comprising a stator 41 installed on the armrest hinge 15 and a rotor 45 which rotates with the armrest 20, and it is favorably disposed between the armrest hinge 15 and the armrest 20 to be coaxial with the lateral axis O.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rear seat armrest having one end mounted on a seatback frame of a rear seat so as to be able to undulate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 1, for example, a rear seat armrest of this type is provided at one end of an armrest at a lower portion in a storage recess D formed in the center of a seatback C of a rear seat A. Is rotatably supported, and as shown by the arrow Y, can be raised and lowered between a storage state located in the storage recess D and a use state protruding forward from a lower portion thereof. In a normal state, this type of armrest is held at that position by a frictional force between the outer surface and the inner surface of the storage recess D in the storage state. Since such an armrest has a small holding force and is unstable in the stowed state, there is a problem in that the armrest rotates around the rotation center and jumps forward during sudden braking. Since this protrusion is due to the inertial force applied to the armrest, such a protrusion frequently occurs in the case of a multifunctional armrest having a large weight.

In order to solve this problem, it is sufficient to provide a lock device for locking the armrest in the stowed state. However, since the operability of the armrest deteriorates, an inertial lock device for automatically locking only during sudden braking is provided. Has also been done. According to this, it is possible to prevent the armrest from jumping out due to sudden braking without deteriorating the operability of the armrest.

[0004]

However, since the inertial lock device has a complicated structure, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost of the armrest device increases. In addition, when the weight is large as in the case of a multifunctional armrest, the force applied to the inertial locking device is increased, so that the strength of the locking device itself and the mounting portion of the locking device (the frame of the armrest and its support bracket) are increased. There is also the problem of having to do it. An object of the present invention is to solve each of these problems.

[0005]

A rear seat armrest device according to the present invention includes a seatback pad provided on the front side of a seatback frame of a rear seat and a seatback cover covering the seatback pad, and a storage recess is formed at the front center of the seatback. The armrest is rotatably supported about a horizontal axis located at a lower portion in the storage recess, and the armrest can be raised and lowered between a storage state located in the storage recess and a use state protruding forward from the lower portion. In the rear seat armrest device, a damper that gives viscous friction resistance to rotation of the armrest is provided between the armrest and the seatback frame. At the time of sudden braking, the armrest tends to rotate rapidly about the horizontal axis due to inertia, but the viscous frictional resistance of the damper is extremely large against the rapid rotation, so that the armrest hardly rotates. When the armrest is manually moved in and out, the rotational speed is low, and therefore the viscous frictional resistance due to the damper is small.

According to the invention of the preceding paragraph, an armrest hinge for rotatably supporting the armrest is attached to the seatback frame, and the armrest is rotatably supported on the armrest hinge via a hinge pin fixed to the insert frame coaxially with the transverse axis. The damper is preferably disposed between the armrest hinge and the insert frame as a disk having a stator hooked to the armrest hinge and a rotor connected to rotate with the hinge pin.

[0007] The invention described in the preceding aspect is also directed to a first working disk in which the stator is integrally connected to a frame disk hooked to an armrest hinge and a plurality of first annular projections are formed coaxially with the lateral axis. A rotor having a boss portion rotatably connected with the hinge pin and a plurality of annular projections integrally coupled to the boss portion and relatively rotatably engaged with the first annular projections with a certain gap therebetween. It is preferable that the first and second annular projections be provided with a viscous fluid between the first and second annular projections.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the embodiments shown in FIGS. Rear seat A to which the rear seat armrest device of this embodiment is applied
Is a bench type as shown in FIG. 1, and a storage recess D is formed in the center of a seat back C rising from the rear of the seat cushion B. The armrest 20 has one end located at a lower part in the storage recess D and has a lateral axis O
(See FIG. 2) It is supported so as to be rotatable around, and can be raised and lowered between a storage state located in the storage recess D and a use state protruding forward from a lower portion thereof as shown by an arrow Y. The rear seat armrest device according to this embodiment includes an armrest 20, an armrest hinge 15 that rotatably supports the armrest 20, and a damper 4 that is provided between the two members 15, 20 and applies viscous frictional resistance to rotation of the armrest 20.
0 is a main component.

As shown mainly in FIG. 2, a seat back pad 12 provided on the front side of a frame 10 (only a part of the center is shown) of a seat back C has a seat back having a peripheral portion attached to the seat back frame 10. Cover 11
And a storage recess D is formed at the front center. The seat back pad 12 is a molded product such as a flexible polyurethane foam.
A slab material made of a flexible polyurethane foam having a thickness of several millimeters is sewn together with a three-layered sheet in which a surface material such as fabric or synthetic leather and a backing fabric such as polyester fiber are laminated on the front and back surfaces.

The armrest hinge 15 for rotatably supporting the armrest 20 is mainly provided as shown in FIG.
It is made of sheet metal whose planar shape is bent in a substantially U-shape. The armrest hinge 15 is located at a lower portion in the storage recess D, and a center portion thereof is fixed to the seat back frame 10 via two welded mounting bolts 16 and nuts 17, and both side portions 15a, 15b thereof Extend forward along both inner side surfaces of the storage recess D. Each side 15a, 15b
At the front of the bush 32, 3 coaxially with the transverse axis O.
7 is formed.

The armrest 20 is an elongated box having an open upper side, and a pad member 23 made of a flexible polyurethane foam or the like is provided outside an insert frame 21 made of sheet metal or the like.
Is molded and the outer peripheral surface thereof is covered with a soft skin 22 such as a fabric. Armrest 2
The armrest lid 20a provided on the upper side of the armrest 20 is also provided with a pad material on the upper side of an insert frame made of sheet metal or the like and covered with a flexible skin. It is attached to open and close freely. Although the armrest 20 of the illustrated embodiment has the accessory compartment whose upper opening is opened and closed by the armrest lid 20a, the armrest 20 may be closed at the upper side without such an accessory compartment, or various operation switches may be used. May be provided.

On one side of the rear part of the insert frame 21,
A hinge pin 30 protrudes and is fixedly coaxial with the horizontal axis O. This hinge pin 30 is formed by integrally and coaxially forming a flange portion 30a, a square bar portion 30b, a round bar portion 30c, and a screw portion 30d in order from one end.
The flange portion 30a is fixed to the inner surface of the insert frame 21 by welding so that Ob to 30d protrude from a small hole provided on one rear side. A nut 36 is also provided on the inner surface on the other side of the rear of the insert frame 21 on the horizontal axis O.
Are fixed by welding, and small holes are provided. Hinge pin 3
The pad material 23 around 0 is cut out in a circular shape so as to provide a space for mounting a damper 40 described later, so that the skin 22 approaches the outer surface of the insert frame 21. The pad material 23 on the opposite side is also circularly cut around the lateral axis O so that the skin 22 approaches the outer surface of the insert frame 21.

Next, the damper 40 will be described mainly with reference to FIGS. The damper 40 is made of a viscous fluid interposed between the stator 41 and the rotor 45 and both members, and is formed in a disk shape as a whole. The stator 41 includes a frame disk 42 having a central hole 42 b formed by an axial flange, a shallow hat-shaped cover 43 having a hole at the center, and a first operating disk 44. A boss portion 46 having a square hole 46a at the center which is slidably engaged with the square rod portion 30b, and a second working disk 47 integrally formed with the boss portion 46 and protruding in the radial direction. . Four first and second annular projections 44 each of which engage with each other so as to be relatively rotatable with a slight gap therebetween are provided on each of the opposing side surfaces of the first and second working disks 44 and 47.
a and 47a are a central hole 42b and a square hole 46a, respectively.
Are formed coaxially with the respective central axes (therefore, both are coaxial with the horizontal axis O). Further, a bolt 49 projecting in parallel with the central axis of the central hole 42b is fixed by welding to a portion near the outer edge of the frame disk 42 in advance.

In order to assemble the damper 40, first, the rotor 45 is placed on the frame disk 42 such that the respective central axes of the central hole 42b and the square hole 46a are aligned and the respective second annular projections 47a face outward. A viscous fluid having a large viscosity such as silicone oil is put between the second annular projections 47a.
Next, on the second working disk 47 of the rotor 45, the first
The first working disk 44 is placed so that the annular projection 44a and the second annular projection 47a are engaged with each other, and the cover 43 is covered so as to cover the first operating disk 44. Then, the first working disk 44 is inserted into the four round holes 43 b of the cover 43.
While engaging the four circular projections 44b on the upper surface of the frame disk 42, the six notches 43a on the hem are engaged with the six bent protrusions 42a on the outer periphery of the frame disk 42, and the bent protrusions 42a
Is further bent inward, so that 3
The members 42 to 44 are integrally connected. During this assembly,
The inner peripheral portion of the second working disk 47 and the frame disk 42
The first working disk 44 is rotatably sealed by O-rings 48a and 48b, respectively, and the outer circumferential portion of the first working disk 44 and the frame disk 42 are sealed by O-rings 48c. As a result, the damper 40 in which a viscous fluid that gives viscous frictional resistance is sealed in a liquid-tight manner between the respective annular projections 44a and 47a of the relatively rotatable stator 41 and the rotor 45 is assembled.

The armrest 20 is connected to the armrest hinge 1
2, the square bar portion 30b of the hinge pin 30 protruding from one rear portion of the insert frame 21 is provided with a square hole 46a of the rotor 45 of the damper 40, as shown in FIG.
Are fitted and inserted in advance. The round bar 30c at the tip of the hinge pin 30 of the armrest 20 thus sub-assembled.
Is inserted into a bush 32 attached to a hole in one side 15a of the armrest hinge 15, a nut 31 is screwed into a screw portion 30d, and a hinge pin 30 is inserted through the bush 32.
Is rotatably supported by the side portion 15a. At the same time as this assembling, the bolts 49 of the stator 41 are inserted into holes (not shown) formed in the side portions 15 a, and nuts 39 are used to insert the side portions 1.
5a.

Next, the round bar 35a of the hinge screw 35 is inserted into the bush 37 attached to the hole of the other side 15b of the armrest hinge 15 from the outside, and the nut 36 is screwed into the threaded portion 35c at the tip. The hinge screw 35 is rotatably supported on the side portion 15b through the intermediary of the hinge screw 35. As a result, the armrest 20 is connected to the hinge pin 3
The armrest hinge 15 supports the armrest hinge 15 so as to be rotatable about the horizontal axis O through the hinge screw 35 and the hinge screw 35.
When the armrest 20 rotates with respect to the armrest hinge 15, the stator 41 and the rotor 45 rotate relatively, and viscous friction resistance is given. Armrest hinge 1
A stopper (not shown) is provided between the armrest 20 and the armrest 20 to limit the rotation range of the armrest 20 between the storage state located in the storage recess D and the use state protruding forward from the lower part of the storage recess D. ing.

In the rear seat armrest device of the above-described embodiment, if rapid braking is performed in a state where the armrest 20 is stored, the armrest 20 suddenly rotates around the horizontal axis O due to inertia and attempts to jump forward. However, the viscous frictional resistance of the damper 40 is extremely large against rapid rotation, and the time of such rapid braking is extremely short, so that the armrest 20 hardly rotates. Therefore, even if the weight of the armrest is large, there is no problem because the rotation angle of the armrest is small. Also, in this case, if the degree of sudden braking becomes stronger and the generated inertial force increases, the rotation angle of the armrest automatically increases accordingly, thereby suppressing the increase in the inertial force. There is only a small increase in the force applied to the portion 40 itself and to the mounting portion of the damper 40, and it is not necessary to increase the strength of these portions.

When the armrest 20 is manually moved in and out, the rotational speed is slow and the viscous frictional resistance of the damper 40 is reduced, so that the armrest is operated with an appropriate resistance. Further, if the armrest 20 is pulled out of the storage state to some extent and then released, the viscous frictional resistance of the damper 40 causes the armrest 20 to move.
Falls down to a use state at a substantially constant speed and stops. As a result, the rear seat armrest device of this embodiment has a high-class feel.

In the above-described embodiment, the damper 40 has a disk shape and is disposed in a narrow space between the armrest hinge 15 and the insert frame 21, so that there is no useless space, and the supporting portion of the armrest 20 is formed in a small size. be able to. Further, the first working disk 44 of the stator 41 and the second working disk 47 of the rotor 45 are provided with a first annular projection 44a and a second annular projection 47a which are rotatably engaged with each other. As a result, the opposing area between the first and second annular projections 44a, 47a is large, and therefore the viscous friction resistance is large, so that the support portion of the armrest 20 is further reduced in size.

In the above-described embodiment, the hinge pin 30 and the rotor 45 are connected so as to rotate together by the square bar portion 30b and the square hole 46a. However, the hinge pin 30 and the rotor 45 may be connected by a key and a key groove, or may be connected by a spline. May be connected. The fastening of the stator 41 to the armrest hinge 15 is not limited to the bolt 49, but may be performed by a pin or other projecting object.

[0021]

According to the present invention, the viscous frictional resistance of the damper is extremely large at the time of sudden braking, so that even when the weight of the armrest is large, the rotation angle of the armrest is small, and there is no problem. Also, in this case, if the generated inertial force increases, the rotation angle of the armrest automatically increases accordingly, thereby suppressing the increase of the inertial force, so that the damper itself and the mounting portion of the damper are not required. The increase in applied force is small, so there is no need to increase the strength of these parts. When the armrest is manually moved in and out, the armrest is operated with moderate resistance.
A luxury armrest can be obtained.

In the above invention, the armrest is rotatably supported on the armrest hinge by a hinge pin coaxially fixed to the insert frame of the insert frame, and the damper rotates together with the stator fixed to the armrest hinge and the hinge pin. According to the configuration in which the rotor is connected between the armrest hinge and the insert frame as a disk shape, the damper is disposed in a narrow space between the armrest hinge and the insert frame, so that there is no useless space. Therefore, the support portion of the armrest can be made small.

In the above-mentioned invention, the stator is a first working disk in which a plurality of first annular projections are formed coaxially with the transverse axis, and the frame disk is hooked to the armrest hinge and integrally connected to the frame disk. The rotor has a second boss formed with a boss connected to rotate with the hinge pin and a plurality of annular projections formed integrally with the boss and rotatably engaged with the first annular projections. According to the working disk, and a viscous fluid that gives viscous resistance interposed between the first and second annular projections, the damper is located between the first and second annular projections in comparison with the volume. Since the facing area of the armrest is large, the viscous frictional resistance is large, so that the size of the support portion of the armrest can be further reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a rear seat provided with an embodiment of a rear seat armrest device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view of a damper used in the rear seat armrest device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Seat back frame, 11 ... Seat back cover, 12 ... Seat back pad, 15 ... Armrest hinge, 20 ... Armrest, 21 ... Insert frame, 30 ... Hinge pin, 40 ... Damper, 41 ... Stator 41, 42 ... Frame disk, 44: first working disk, 44a: first annular projection, 45: rotor, 46: boss portion, 47: second operating disk, 47a: second annular projection,
A: rear seat, C: seat back, D: recess, O
... horizontal axis.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A storage recess is formed in the center of the front side of a seat back by a seat back pad provided on the front side of a seat back frame of a rear seat and a seat back cover that covers the seat back pad. A rear seat armrest device that rotatably supports an armrest around the armrest between a storage state in which the armrest is located in the storage recess and a use state in which the armrest protrudes forward from a lower part thereof; A rear seat armrest device, wherein a damper for providing frictional resistance is provided between the armrest and the seatback frame. 2. An armrest hinge rotatably supporting the armrest is attached to the seatback frame, and the armrest is rotatable with the armrest hinge via a hinge pin coaxially secured to the insert frame with the transverse axis. Wherein the damper is disposed between the armrest hinge and the insert frame as a disk having a stator hooked to the armrest hinge and a rotor connected to rotate with the hinge pin. The rear seat armrest device according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The stator according to claim 1, wherein the stator is integrally formed with a frame disk hooked to the armrest hinge, and the first working disk has a plurality of first annular protrusions formed coaxially with the lateral axis. The rotor includes a boss portion rotatably connected to the hinge pin and a plurality of second boss portions integrally coupled to the boss portion and relatively rotatably engaged with the respective first annular protrusions with a certain gap therebetween. 3. The rear seat armrest device according to claim 2, comprising a second working disk having an annular projection formed thereon, and a viscous fluid for providing a viscous resistance is interposed between the first and second annular projections. .