JP2005065786A - Armrest device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an armrest device which has a wide adjustable range of tilting angle of an armrest arm, is miniaturized and made lightweight, and excellent in strength against load. <P>SOLUTION: The armrest device 1 of which the armrest arm 2 is held tilted at a desired angle. The armrest device 1 is provided with a ratchet gear 3, a latch 4 and an elastic member 5. The ratchet gear 3 is provided with a gear part 31, a first reset projection 321 and a second reset projection 322. The latch 4 is provided with a sliding surface 41, a pawl part 42, a first select groove 431 and a second select groove 432. When the elastic member 5 is engaged with the first select groove 431, the pawl part 42 energizes the latch 4 in a direction in which the latch 4 is engaged with the gear part 31 and a locked state is attained. When the elastic member 5 is engaged with the second select groove 432, the pawl part 42 energizes the latch 4 in a direction in which the latch 4 separates from the gear part 31 and an unlocked state is attained. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an armrest device that can hold an armrest arm rotatably attached to a seat body of an automobile or the like in a state where the armrest arm is tilted to a desired angle.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, some seats for automobiles and the like are provided with a retractable armrest arm. And there exists an armrest apparatus which can hold | maintain this armrest arm in the state inclined to the desired angle (patent document 1). The armrest device is configured to hold the armrest arm while adjusting the tilt angle by engaging a ratchet fixed to the armrest arm and a claw member attached to the seat body.

However, the armrest device requires a large number of parts in addition to the ratchet and the claw member. This causes problems such as a complicated structure, weight, and high cost.
Further, the armrest device has a narrow adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm. Conversely, if the adjustable range of the tilt angle is to be increased, the ratchet needs to be increased, and the size of the armrest device is increased.

Furthermore, since the claw member is supported by a thin pin (pivot), the pin may be deformed when a large load is applied to the armrest arm, and it may be difficult to obtain sufficient load resistance strength. There is.
Japanese Patent No. 2826046

  The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems, and provides an armrest device that has a large adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm, can be reduced in size and weight, and is excellent in load bearing strength. It is something to try.

The present invention provides an armrest device that can hold an armrest arm rotatably attached to a seat body in a state where the armrest arm is tilted to a desired angle.
The armrest device includes a substantially disc-shaped or substantially annular ratchet gear fixed to the seat body, a latch rotatably disposed between the ratchet gear and the armrest arm, and an armrest arm. An elastic member attached and engageable with the latch;
The ratchet gear has a gear part disposed in a substantially arc shape on a part of the outer periphery thereof, a first reset protrusion and a second reset protrusion protruding from the outer periphery,
The latch includes an arcuate sliding surface that slides with respect to the armrest arm, a claw portion that can be engaged with the gear portion of the ratchet gear, a first select groove that can be engaged with the elastic member, and Having a second select groove,
When the elastic member is engaged with the first select groove, the elastic member urges the latch in a direction in which the claw portion of the latch engages the gear portion of the ratchet gear, and the armrest arm It becomes a locked state that does not rotate downward,
When the elastic member engages with the second select groove, the elastic member urges the latch in a direction in which the claw portion of the latch moves away from the gear portion of the ratchet gear, and the armrest arm moves up and down. It will be in an unlocked state that can rotate to any of the
In the locked state, when the armrest arm is rotated so as to jump up, and the first end of the latch is brought into contact with the first reset protrusion and is lifted, the latch is rotated, The elastic member moves from the first select groove of the latch to the second select groove and enters the unlocked state.
In the unlocked state, when the armrest arm is rotated so as to be pushed down, the second end of the latch is brought into contact with the second reset protrusion, and the latch is rotated, An elastic member is configured to move from the second select groove to the first select groove so as to be in the locked state (claim 1).

Next, the effects of the present invention will be described.
Since the armrest device can be basically constituted by the ratchet gear, the latch, the elastic member, and the armrest arm, the number of parts can be reduced. Therefore, simplification of the structure, weight reduction, and cost reduction can be realized.

  The ratchet gear has a substantially disc shape or a substantially annular shape, and the gear portion is arranged in a substantially arc shape on the outer periphery thereof. Therefore, in order to increase the adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm, the formation range of the gear portion may be increased along the outer periphery of the ratchet gear, and the size of the ratchet gear itself is increased. There is no need. Therefore, the adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm can be increased without increasing the size of the armrest device.

  The latch slides with respect to the armrest arm on the sliding surface and is supported by the armrest arm and the ratchet gear. Therefore, the latch need not be pivotally supported by a pin or the like. For this reason, even if a large load is applied to the armrest arm, there is no possibility of causing a problem that the latch is released. Therefore, an armrest device having excellent load resistance can be obtained. Further, since a pin for pivotally supporting the latch is not necessary, the number of parts can be reduced.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an armrest device that has a large adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm, can be reduced in size and weight, and is excellent in load bearing strength.

In this invention (Claim 1), it is preferable that the nail | claw part in the said latch consists of a 1-4 gear teeth.
In this case, switching between the locked state and the unlocked state can be performed smoothly, and the latch and the ratchet gear can be reliably engaged with each other, so that a greater load resistance can be ensured. When the number of the gear teeth of the claw part exceeds 4, it may be difficult to smoothly switch between the locked state and the unlocked state.

The armrest device is preferably provided with a presser plate that covers the latch and the elastic member from the outside.
In this case, it is possible to reliably prevent the latch and the elastic member from coming out.

Further, it is preferable that the armrest arm is provided with a stopper that limits the rotation angle of the armrest arm by contacting the first reset protrusion and the second reset protrusion of the ratchet gear.
In this case, the cause of the failure of the armrest device can be eliminated by limiting the tilt angle of the armrest arm to a necessary range.

Moreover, it is preferable that the said elastic member consists of leaf | plate springs (Claim 3).
In this case, an inexpensive and simple armrest device can be obtained.

Moreover, it is preferable that the said gear part is formed in the range of 20 degrees or more of the outer periphery of the said ratchet gear.
In this case, the tilt angle at which the armrest arm can be held can be set within a sufficient range.

An armrest device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 9, the armrest device 1 of the present example can hold the armrest arm 2 rotatably attached to the seat body 6 in a state where the armrest arm 2 is tilted to a desired angle.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 8, the armrest device 1 is arranged so as to be rotatable between a substantially annular ratchet gear 3 fixed to the seat body 6 and between the ratchet gear 3 and the armrest arm 2. The latch 4 is provided, and the elastic member 5 is attached to the armrest arm 2 and can be engaged with the latch 4.

The ratchet gear 3 includes a gear portion 31 disposed in a substantially arc shape on a part of the outer periphery thereof, and a first reset protrusion 321 and a second reset protrusion 322 protruding from the outer periphery.
The latch 4 is engageable with the arcuate sliding surface 41 that slides with respect to the armrest arm 2, a claw portion 42 that can be engaged with the gear portion 31 of the ratchet gear 3, and the elastic member 5. A first select groove 431 and a second select groove 432.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 7, when the elastic member 5 is engaged with the first select groove 431, the elastic member 5 has a claw portion 42 of the latch 4 and a gear portion of the ratchet gear 3. The latch 4 is urged in the direction in which the armrest arm 2 is engaged, and the armrest arm 2 enters a locked state in which it does not rotate downward.

  As shown in FIG. 3, when the elastic member 5 is engaged with the second select groove 432, the elastic member 5 moves in the direction in which the claw portion 42 of the latch 4 is separated from the gear portion 31 of the ratchet gear 3. The latch 4 is energized, and the armrest arm 2 is in an unlocked state in which the armrest arm 2 can be rotated up and down.

  In the locked state, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the armrest arm 2 is rotated so as to jump upward, the first end 441 of the latch 4 comes into contact with the first reset protrusion 321. Get on. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the latch 4 is rotated, and the elastic member 5 is moved from the first select groove 431 of the latch 4 to the second select groove 432 to unlock the lock. It becomes a state.

  In the unlocked state, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the armrest arm 2 is rotated so as to be pushed downward, the second end 442 of the latch 4 abuts on the second reset protrusion 322. Get on. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the latch 4 is rotated, and the elastic member 5 is moved from the second select groove 432 to the first select groove 431 to be in the locked state.

The armrest arm 2 is provided with a stopper 21 that abuts on the first reset protrusion 321 and the second reset protrusion 322 of the ratchet gear 3 to limit the rotation angle of the armrest arm 2.
The elastic member 5 is made of a leaf spring and includes a fixing portion 51 fixed to the armrest arm 2 and an engaging portion 52 that engages with the first select groove 431 or the second select groove 432. The engaging portion 52 is bent and formed in a mountain shape so as to protrude toward the latch 4, and the top portion is curved.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the ratchet gear 3 is fixed to a fixing bracket 35 fixed to the seat body 6 with mounting bolts 36 by welding or the like. Further, the fixing bracket 35 is provided with a detent protrusion 351 for fixing the fixing bracket 35 and the ratchet gear 3 so as not to rotate with respect to the seat body 6 by biting into the seat body 6.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 8, the armrest arm 2 is formed with recesses 221 and 222 for receiving the ratchet gear 3 and the latch 4, respectively. A penetrating portion 23 for accommodating 35 is formed. The two recesses 221 and 222 are connected to each other.

The armrest arm 2 is provided with a presser plate 11 that covers the ratchet gear 3 and the latch 4 from the outside so that the ratchet gear 3 and the latch 4 do not come off from the recesses 221 and 222.
The stopper 21 is formed so as to protrude inward from the side surface of the recess 221.
Further, the claw portion 42 of the latch 4 includes two gear teeth 421.
The ratchet gear 3 and the latch 4 have a thickness of about 10 mm.

  The gear portion 31 is formed in a range of 20 ° or more on the outer periphery of the ratchet gear 3. Specifically, in this example, as shown in FIG. 1, the gear grooves 311 at both ends of the gear portion 31 are arranged in a positional relationship such that the central angle θ of the ratchet gear 3 is about 90 °.

Next, operation | movement of the armrest apparatus 1 concerning this example is demonstrated more concretely along FIGS.
First, as shown in FIG. 1, a description will be given from a locked state in which the armrest arm 2 is in a substantially vertical state. When the armrest arm 2 is rotated backward (in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 1) from this state, the first end 441 of the latch 4 is moved to the first reset protrusion 321 of the ratchet gear 3 as shown in FIG. Get in contact with the board.

As a result, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the latch 4 is rotated, and the elastic member 5 is moved from the first select groove 431 of the latch 4 to the second select groove 432 to unlock the lock. It becomes a state. At this time, the second end 442 of the latch 4 is configured not to interfere with the ratchet gear 3.
Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the stopper 21 of the armrest arm 2 abuts against the second reset protrusion 322 of the ratchet gear 3 so that the armrest arm 2 does not fall further backward.

In the unlocked state, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, when the armrest arm 2 is rotated so as to be pushed downward, the second end 442 of the latch 4 is brought into contact with the second reset protrusion 322 of the ratchet gear 3. Ride and ride. As a result, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the latch 4 is rotated, and the elastic member 5 is moved from the second select groove 432 to the first select groove 431 to be in the locked state.
Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the stopper 21 of the armrest arm 2 is in contact with the first reset protrusion 321 of the ratchet gear 3 so that the armrest arm 2 is not further rotated downward.

In the locked state, when the armrest arm 2 is rotated in the direction of jumping up, the engagement position between the claw portion 42 of the latch 4 and the gear portion 31 of the ratchet gear 3 moves by one gear tooth. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 1, the armrest arm 2 can be locked at a desired position by engaging the claw portion 42 with any gear tooth of the gear portion 31. That is, for example, the armrest arm 2 can be locked in a horizontal state (FIG. 5), an oblique state (FIG. 6), a vertical state (FIG. 1), or the like.
Further, from this locked state, the armrest arm 2 is pivoted backward until the first end 441 of the latch 4 reaches the first reset protrusion 321, thereby being unlocked again as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The armrest arm 2 can be rotated downward.

Next, the function and effect of this example will be described.
Since the armrest device 1 can basically be constituted by the ratchet gear 3, the latch 4, the elastic member 5, and the armrest arm 2, the number of parts can be reduced. Therefore, simplification of the structure, weight reduction, and cost reduction can be realized.

  The ratchet gear 3 has a substantially annular shape, and the gear portion 31 is disposed on the outer periphery thereof in a substantially arc shape. Therefore, in order to increase the adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm 2, it is only necessary to increase the formation range of the gear portion 31 along the outer periphery of the ratchet gear 3, and the size of the ratchet gear itself. There is no need to increase the size. Therefore, the adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm 2 can be increased without increasing the size of the armrest device 1.

  The latch 4 slides on the sliding surface 41 with respect to the armrest arm 2 and is supported by the armrest arm 2 and the ratchet gear 3. Therefore, the latch 4 does not need to be supported by a pin or the like. For this reason, even if a large load is applied to the armrest arm 2, there is no possibility that the latch 4 may be disengaged. Therefore, the armrest device 1 having excellent load resistance can be obtained. Further, since a pin or the like for pivotally supporting the latch 4 is unnecessary, the number of parts can be reduced.

Further, since the armrest arm 2 is provided with the stopper 21, the tilt angle of the armrest arm 2 can be limited to a necessary range, and the cause of failure of the armrest device 1 can be eliminated.
Further, since the elastic member 5 is made of a leaf spring, it is possible to obtain the armrest device 1 having an inexpensive and simple configuration.

Further, since the gear portion 31 is formed in a range of 20 ° or more on the outer periphery of the ratchet gear 3, a sufficient adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm 2 can be secured.
Moreover, since the said armrest apparatus 1 is provided with the said press board 11, it can prevent reliably that the said latch 4 and the said elastic member 5 remove | deviate outside.

  As described above, according to this example, it is possible to provide an armrest device that has a large adjustable range of the tilt angle of the armrest arm, can be reduced in size and weight, and is excellent in load bearing strength.

  In addition to those shown in the above embodiments, for example, other means such as a spring with a ball can be used as the elastic member 5 in place of the leaf spring. Moreover, the shape of the ratchet gear 3 can be substantially disk-shaped.

Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the locked state in which the armrest arm was hold | maintained in the substantially vertical position in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the state in the middle of shifting from the locked state to an unlocked state in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the unlocked state in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the state in the middle of shifting to the locked state from the unlocked state in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the locked state in which the armrest arm in the Example was hold | maintained in the substantially horizontal position. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the mode at the time of rotating an armrest arm upwards in a locked state in an Example. Explanatory drawing of the armrest apparatus showing the locked state in which the armrest arm in the Example was hold | maintained in the diagonal position. Explanatory drawing equivalent to the AA arrow cross section of FIG. The perspective view of the sheet | seat main body which attached the armrest apparatus in an Example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Armrest apparatus 2 Armrest arm 21 Stopper 3 Ratchet gear 31 Gear part 321 1st reset protrusion 322 2nd reset protrusion 4 Latch 41 Sliding surface 42 Claw part 431 1st select groove 432 2nd select groove 441 1st end 442 1st 2 ends 5 elastic member 6 sheet body

Claims (4)

In an armrest device that can hold an armrest arm that is rotatably attached to a seat body in a state of being tilted to a desired angle,
The armrest device includes a substantially disc-shaped or substantially annular ratchet gear fixed to the seat body, a latch rotatably disposed between the ratchet gear and the armrest arm, and an armrest arm. An elastic member attached and engageable with the latch;
The ratchet gear has a gear part disposed in a substantially arc shape on a part of the outer periphery thereof, a first reset protrusion and a second reset protrusion protruding from the outer periphery,
The latch includes an arcuate sliding surface that slides with respect to the armrest arm, a claw portion that can be engaged with the gear portion of the ratchet gear, a first select groove that can be engaged with the elastic member, and Having a second select groove,
When the elastic member is engaged with the first select groove, the elastic member urges the latch in a direction in which the claw portion of the latch engages the gear portion of the ratchet gear, and the armrest arm It becomes a locked state that does not rotate downward,
When the elastic member engages with the second select groove, the elastic member urges the latch in a direction in which the claw portion of the latch moves away from the gear portion of the ratchet gear, and the armrest arm moves up and down. It will be in an unlocked state that can rotate to any of the
In the locked state, when the armrest arm is rotated so as to jump up, and the first end of the latch is brought into contact with the first reset protrusion and is lifted, the latch is rotated, The elastic member moves from the first select groove of the latch to the second select groove and enters the unlocked state.
In the unlocked state, when the armrest arm is rotated so as to be pushed down, the second end of the latch is brought into contact with the second reset protrusion, and the latch is rotated, An armrest device, wherein an elastic member is configured to move from the second select groove to the first select groove to be in the locked state.   2. The armrest according to claim 1, wherein the armrest arm is provided with a stopper that restricts a rotation angle of the armrest arm by contacting the first reset protrusion and the second reset protrusion of the ratchet gear. apparatus.   3. The armrest device according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member is a leaf spring.   The armrest device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the gear portion is formed in a range of 20 ° or more of an outer periphery of the ratchet gear.

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