JP2005104251A - Armrest for vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the improper operation of an on-vehicle device by careless operation of an operation switch for the on-vehicle device provided in a rotatable armrest. <P>SOLUTION: The armrest A is attached to a seat back 1 rotatably, and the operation switch 10 for operating the on-vehicle device is provided in the armrest 1. A rotary switch 14 permitting/cutting off the conductivity between the operation switch 10 and a control unit is arranged in the attachment part of the armrest A to the seat back 1. It permits the conductivity to enable the operation of the operation switch 10 when the armrest A is in use, and cuts off the conductivity to disable the operation of the operation switch 10 when the armrest A is positioned other than the in-use position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an armrest attached to a seat of a vehicle, particularly an automobile.

  Conventionally, it is known to provide an operation switch of an in-vehicle device such as an air conditioner on an armrest attached to a seat of an automobile. (For example, refer to Patent Documents 1 and 2 below.) The purpose of providing the operation switch on the armrest is to improve the operability such that the occupant can operate the switch quickly without moving the arm placed on the armrest largely. can give.

JP 2002-293182 A JP 2002-193010 A

  When the operation switch for the in-vehicle device is provided on the armrest as described above, there is a problem that an in-vehicle device may accidentally contact the operation switch and the in-vehicle device is erroneously operated. In particular, when the armrest is attached to the seat so that it can be rotated in the vehicle longitudinal direction so that a position other than the use state (state where the occupant places the arm) and the use state can be selected, the rotation At this time, the operation switch may come into contact with the occupant or the skin of the seat, or the occupant may accidentally contact the operation switch when the armrest is in a position other than the use state. It is done.

  In order to solve this problem, as disclosed in Patent Document 2, a lid that covers the operation switch may be attached. However, in this structure, even if the operation switch is operated when the armrest is used, this lid is used. It is necessary to perform troublesome operations such as opening the door, operating the operation switch, and closing the lid again.

  In addition, a switch that cancels (disables) the operation of the operation switch may be provided on the armrest or in another position so that the in-vehicle device does not operate even if the operation switch on the armrest is operated. Even in this structure, in order to operate the in-vehicle device by the operation switch on the armrest, it is necessary to operate the cancel switch in advance to make the operation of the operation switch effective. is necessary.

  On the other hand, in recent years, an electric parking brake (hereinafter simply referred to as EPB) that operates a parking brake that has been manually operated by an electric motor or the like has been put into practical use. It has been adopted. In a vehicle adopting EPB, the conventional manual lever for operating the parking brake is abolished, and instead, an operation switch for operating and releasing the EPB is arranged on the center console, for example. It is conceivable that the operation switch of this EPB is provided on an armrest attached to the seat of the driver's seat so that an occupant can easily operate, but in this case, the above-mentioned problem also occurs.

  In the present invention, in order to solve the above problems, for example, an operation switch of an in-vehicle device such as an EPB is provided, and the operation switch is inadvertently operated by being rotatably attached to the vehicle front-rear direction. Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an armrest device that can prevent this malfunction without damaging the operability of the operation switch when the armrest is used in an armrest that is highly likely to malfunction the vehicle-mounted device.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, the first configuration of the present invention is an armrest device that is attached to a vehicle seat and provided with an operation switch that operates an in-vehicle device. A rotation position detecting means for detecting the rotation position of the armrest portion; and a canceling means having a function of invalidating the operation of the operation switch. The rotation position of the armrest portion detected by the rotation position detection means is When the occupant's elbow is in use, the cancel means does not invalidate the operation of the operation switch, and the rotation position of the armrest portion detected by the rotation position detection means is in the use state. The canceling means invalidates the operation of the operation switch.

  According to the above configuration, when the armrest is in the use position, if the operation switch of the in-vehicle device is operated, the in-vehicle device operates according to this operation, while the armrest is rotated upward, for example. When it is not in the position of the state, that is, when the operation of the operation switch is considered to be inadvertent and not intended by the occupant, the operation of the operation switch is invalidated, thus effectively preventing malfunction of the in-vehicle device be able to. Further, unlike the case where the operation switch is covered with a lid or a switch for canceling is separately provided, the operability of the operation switch in the armrest use state is not impaired.

  The second configuration of the present invention is characterized in that the armrest portion is attached to a side portion on the vehicle center side of a seat back in an independent seat having a seat structure in which left and right seats are independent.

  According to the above configuration, the operation switch for the armrest on the vehicle center side moves forward and backward as the occupant passes between the left and right independent seats, for example, when the armrest is not in the use position and is rotated upward, for example. There is a high possibility that the passenger will be inadvertently operated due to contact, but even in this case, malfunction of the in-vehicle device can be prevented.

  The third configuration of the present invention is characterized in that at least one of the on-vehicle devices is an electric parking brake that operates the parking brake by electromagnetic force.

  According to said structure, since the operation switch of EPB is provided on the armrest, the operability of EPB can be improved and the malfunction of EPB important as a vehicle function can be prevented.

  According to a fourth configuration of the present invention, the armrest portion is a rear seat of the vehicle, and is attached to the center in the vehicle width direction of the seat back of the seat arranged so that the left and right seats are continuous in the vehicle width direction. The seat back is provided with a storage portion that rotates and stores the armrest.

  According to the above configuration, when the armrest is stored in the seat back storage portion, an occupant's hand carelessly touches the operation switch, or the operation switch is pressed against the skin of the seat back around the storage portion. In addition, it is possible to effectively prevent a possibility that the in-vehicle device malfunctions due to the operation switch coming into contact with the partition wall due to a large vibration of the vehicle during the storage state.

  According to the present invention, the operability of the in-vehicle device can be improved by providing the operation switch of the in-vehicle device on the armrest, while the operation of the operation switch is invalidated when the armrest is not in the use state. The malfunction of the in-vehicle device can be prevented without impairing the operability of the operation switch in the use state.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described.

A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1st Embodiment of this invention applies the armrest apparatus of this invention to the driver's seat of a motor vehicle, and respond | corresponds to Claims 1-3.

  FIG. 1 shows a vehicle interior viewed from the front. The driver's seat D on the left side is separated from the passenger seat P, and an armrest A is attached to the vehicle center side of the seat back 1 of the driver's seat D so as to be rotatable in the vehicle front-rear direction. Yes. Although the trim side armrest 2a is also provided inside the door trim 2, this is not intended for the present invention. The rear seat R is a so-called bench-type seat in which left and right seats are continuously provided in the vehicle width direction.

  FIG. 2 shows an EPB switch 10 that operates at the front end of the armrest A and operates the EPB. The EPB switch 10 is housed in a recess 12 provided below the front end portion of the armrest A, and is rotatably attached so that the lower end portion thereof is pulled out by the occupant's finger F. The EPB switch 10 is a so-called pull-on type, and a parking brake (not shown) is operated at the position where the EPB switch is pulled out as shown in FIG. 2 (b), and the inside of the recess 12 as shown in FIG. 2 (a). In the position accommodated in the parking brake, the parking brake is released.

  Thus, since the EPB switch 10 is housed in the recess 12 and is a pull-on type, the parking brake does not operate unless the occupant pulls it out with intention. Further, since the drawn EPB switch 10 is below the front end portion of the armrest A, the EPB switch 10 is inadvertently pressed to release the parking brake as compared with the case where it is provided on the upper surface of the armrest A or the like. Is less likely to end up. When the EPB switch 10 is pulled out in this way, the operation of operating the parking brake is similar to the conventional operation that the driver is accustomed to pulling the manual lever and operating the parking brake. It is desirable in terms of operability.

  FIG. 3 shows an armrest A (solid line) that is in a use state and an armrest A (dashed line) that is not in use and is rotated upward. In the figure, the EPB switch 10 is pulled out and the parking brake is activated. As shown in the figure, after the EPB switch 10 is pulled out, the armrest A is rotated upward. For example, the driver parks the vehicle and operates the EPB switch 10 to activate the parking brake. Thereafter, the armrest A is rotated upward to walk through the driver seat D and the passenger seat P and move to the rear seat R. At this time, as shown by a broken line, when the armrest A is not in the use position, the occupant may contact and push down the EPB switch 10 pulled out, and the parking brake may be inadvertently released. .

  In order to eliminate such a possibility, the operation of the EPB switch 10 may be invalidated when the rotation position of the armrest A is other than the use state. In the present embodiment, in the mounting structure of the armrest A to the seat back 1, the rotary switch 14 is provided, and the rotary switch 14 blocks or allows conduction to the EPB switch 10 according to the rotation position of the armrest A. Has realized this.

  FIG. 4 schematically shows a circuit for operating the EPB in this embodiment. The circuit includes a control unit that outputs an operation signal to the EPB, an EPB (electric parking brake device), an EPB switch 10, and a rotary switch 14 that allows or blocks conduction to the EPB switch 10.

  The rotary switch 14 corresponds to the rotation position detecting means and the canceling means in claim 1, and the contact is closed when the armrest A is in the use state, so that the operation of the EPB switch 10 is an electric signal as a control unit. EPB is actuated or released, but when the armrest A is in a position other than the use state, the contact is separated, so even if the EPB10 switch is operated, the electric signal is not transmitted to the control unit. The previous operating state is maintained. This will be described in detail below.

  FIGS. 5 and 6 show the structure of the attachment portion of the armrest A to the seat back 1, which shows a portion related to the present invention. This mounting portion structure basically includes an armrest mounting bracket 5 welded to the seat back frame 4, a seat side contact ring 13 fitted into the spacer 6, and a rotary switch 14 including an armrest side contact ring 15. The armrest body 20 and the mounting bolt 16 are included.

  The present attachment structure will be described from the seat back 1 side toward the armrest A side. A press-molded armrest mounting bracket 5 is welded to a seatback frame 4 which is a strength member of the seatback 1. The armrest mounting bracket 5 is welded with a nut 5d to which the mounting bolt 16 is fastened, and has a pair of positioning holes 5a with which the pair of pin portions 6a of the spacer 6 are engaged.

  The spacer 6 is made of resin and is formed in an annular shape, and includes a pair of pin portions 6 a and a notch portion 6 b through which a harness 13 d extending from the seat side contact ring 13 is passed. The spacer 6 is locked by fitting the pin portion 6 a into the positioning hole 5 a of the armrest mounting bracket 5. This locking is for preventing the spacer 6 from rotating in the circumferential direction as the armrest A rotates, and the fitting may be loose.

  The seat-side contact ring 13 is made of resin and is formed in an annular shape, and has metal contacts 13b and 13c on the plane portion on the armrest A side, and is engaged with the pin portion 6a in the spacer 6 at the peripheral portion. A pair of notches 13a are provided. A pair of harnesses 13 d are soldered to the metal contacts 13 b and 13 c, and the harnesses 13 d are routed so as to extend from the peripheral portion of the contact ring 13. The contact ring 13 is supported by the seat back frame 5 with a predetermined phase because the pair of notches 13 a are inserted into the spacer 6 so as to engage with the pin portions 6 a of the spacer 6. The harness 13d is connected to the control unit via the inside of the driver seat D.

  Similarly, the armrest side contact ring 15 is made of resin and is formed in an annular shape, and includes metal contacts 15b and 15c on the plane portion on the seat back 1 side, and the armrest body 20 on the plane portion on the armrest A side. A pair of key grooves 15 a for engaging with a pair of key portions 23 provided in the first recess 21 are formed. A pair of harnesses 15d are soldered to the metal contacts 15b and 15c, and the harnesses 15d are routed so as to extend from the armrest A side plane portion of the contact ring 15. In the assembled state, the contact ring 15 is rotatably inserted into the spacer 6 and is inserted into the first recess 21 of the armrest A so that the key groove 15a engages with the key portion 23 on the armrest A side. Therefore, the armrest A is supported with a predetermined phase. The harness 15 d is routed inside the armrest A through the insertion hole 24 of the armrest body 20 and connected to the EPB switch 10.

  The armrest body 20 is made of resin and has a two-part structure such as Monaca. The first recess 21 is formed on the seat hack 1 side, the second recess 22 is formed on the opposite side, and the center of these recesses is formed. A bolt insertion hole 25 through which the mounting bolt 16 is inserted is formed.

  The assembled state will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the mounting bolt 16 is inserted through each of the above components and fastened to the armrest mounting bracket 5, whereby the armrest body 20 is mounted to the seat back 1. When the armrest A is rotated, the outer peripheral surface of the spacer 6 and the bottom surface portion (ring shape) on the armrest A side, the sleeve portion and the flange portion of the mounting bolt 16 are respectively the inner peripheral surface and the bottom surface of the first recess 21 of the armrest body 20. And the inner peripheral surface of the bolt insertion hole 25 and the bottom surface portion of the second recess 22. Therefore, since the load applied to the armrest body 20 is transmitted to the seat back frame 4 through a plurality of engagements of these members, the attachment rigidity of the armrest body 20 to the seat back 1 can be increased.

  A seat side contact ring 13 and an arm rest side contact ring 15 constituting the rotary switch 14 are inserted into the spacer 6, and the metal contacts 13 a and 13 b and the metal contacts 15 a and 15 b are in accordance with the rotation position of the arm rest. The seat-side harness 13d and the armrest-side harness 15d are brought into conduction or non-conduction by contact or separation. Since the axial length of the spacer 6 is set to be longer than the sum of the axial lengths of the seat side contact ring 13 and the armrest side contact ring 15, the axial compression of the spacer 6 can be achieved even if the mounting bolt 16 is tightened. Since the spacer 6 takes charge of the force, the contact rings 13 and 15 are not excessively crimped, and the function of each metal contact is not impaired. Moreover, since both the contact rings 13 and 15 will be protected from the outside by the spacer 6, it is preferable also on the reliability of each metal contact.

  FIG. 7 schematically shows the shapes and positional relationships of the metal contacts 13 b and 13 c of the seat side contact ring 13 and the metal contacts 15 b and 15 c of the armrest side contact ring 15 as viewed from the direction in which the mounting bolt 16 is inserted. . The positions of the metal contacts 13b and 13c on the sheet side are fixed, and the positions of the metal contacts 15b and 15c on the armrest side rotate as the armrest A rotates. Since the sheet-side metal contact 13b is formed in an arc shape of about 90 degrees, the continuity with the armrest-side metal contact 15b is maintained regardless of whether the armrest A is used or not. On the other hand, since the other metal contact 13c on the seat side is formed short, in the position where the armrest is used, conduction with the metal contact 15c on the armrest side is maintained, but when the armrest A is rotated about 5 degrees or more. The metal contact 15c becomes non-conductive. Therefore, when the armrest A is in use, the operation of the EPB switch 10 is electrically transmitted to the control unit. However, when the armrest A is rotated from the use state to any other position, the operation of the EPB switch 10 is performed. Can not be electrically transmitted to the control unit, so that malfunction of the EPB can be prevented.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, when the armrest A is in a use state where the occupant's elbow is placed, the operation of the EPB switch is allowed to improve the operability of the parking brake. On the other hand, when the armrest A is at a position other than the use state where the operation of the EPB switch is likely to be an inadvertent operation, the rotary switch 14 cuts off the conduction between the EPB switch and the control unit. Even if the switch 14 is operated, the EPB does not operate. Therefore, it is possible to effectively prevent malfunction of the EPB while maintaining the operability of the EPB when the armrest is used. Furthermore, according to the first embodiment, the detecting means for detecting the rotational position of the armrest A and the canceling means for invalidating the operation of the operation switch 14 are integrally formed as the rotary switch 14. Compared to the case of providing a separate structure, the structure is simple, the cost is low, and the reliability is high.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIG. This embodiment corresponds to claim 4.

  FIG. 8 shows the rear seat R as seen from diagonally forward. The rear seat R is configured such that the seat back 7 and the seat cushion 8 are continuous over the left and right seats, and the armrest B is pivoted to the lower portion of the armrest storage portion 7a disposed in the center of the seatback 7 in the vehicle width direction. It is attached as possible. The structure of the mounting portion 30 uses the mounting portion structure of the first embodiment (see FIGS. 5 and 6), and the armrest mounting bracket 5 of the first embodiment is erected on the rear floor 31. The structure is replaced with the armrest mounting bracket 32. On the upper surface of the front end portion of the armrest B, for example, an operation switch 11 for operating an in-vehicle device such as a rear seat air conditioner or a reclining device is provided. At the rear part of the armrest storage part 7a, a partition wall 7b that partitions the vehicle compartment and the cargo compartment is provided. A trim-side armrest 9a is also provided on the inner side of the door trim 9, but this is not intended for the present invention.

  When the armrest B is not used, the armrest B is rotated and stored in the armrest storage portion 7a. However, when the armrest B is stored, the occupant's hand accidentally hits the operation switch 11 or the skin of the seat back 7 is covered. There is a possibility that the in-vehicle apparatus may malfunction due to the operation switch 11 being pressed or the operation switch 11 coming into contact with the partition wall 7b due to a large vibration of the vehicle during storage.

  Even in this case, if the same mounting portion structure as that of the first embodiment is adopted in the mounting portion 30 of the armrest B, the operability of the operating switch 11 in the armrest used state is obtained by attaching a lid that covers the operating switch 11 or the like. The possibility of malfunction of the in-vehicle device can be effectively prevented without impairing the power.

  Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. .

It is the figure which looked down at the vehicle interior of the motor vehicle provided with the driver's seat to which the armrest device of the present invention was applied from the front.

The operation switch of EPB arrange | positioned at the front-end part of an armrest is shown

The armrest (solid line) in the position of use is shown, and the armrest (dashed line) in the position rotated upward without being in use.

1 schematically shows a circuit for operating an EPB in the present embodiment.

The component of the attachment part structure to the seat back of an armrest is shown.

The cross section of the attachment part structure to the seat back of an armrest is shown.

The aspect of the metal contact of the seat side contact ring of a rotary switch and an armrest side contact ring is shown typically.

It is the figure which looked down at the vehicle interior of the motor vehicle provided with the armrest of the backseat to which the armrest device of the present invention was applied from the side.

Explanation of symbols

A Armrest of driver seat B Armrest of rear seat R Rear seat 1 Seatback of driver seat 5 Armrest mounting bracket 6 Spacer 10 EPB switch 11 Operation switch 13 Seat side contact ring 14 Rotary switch 15 Armrest side contact ring 16 Installation Bolt 20 Armrest fuselage

Claims (4)

In an armrest device attached to a vehicle seat and provided with an operation switch for operating an in-vehicle device, an armrest portion attached so as to be rotatable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body, and a rotation for detecting a rotation position of the armrest portion A position detecting means and a canceling means having a function of invalidating the operation of the operation switch, and the rotation position of the armrest portion detected by the rotation position detecting means is in a use state where the elbow of the occupant is placed. In some cases, the canceling unit does not invalidate the operation of the operation switch, and when the rotation position of the armrest portion detected by the rotation position detection unit is other than the use state, the cancellation unit An armrest device that disables operation of an operation switch. 2. The armrest device according to claim 1, wherein the armrest portion is attached to a vehicle central side portion of a seatback in an independent seat having a seat structure in which left and right seats are independent. The armrest device according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the on-vehicle devices is an electric parking brake that operates the parking brake by electromagnetic force. The armrest portion is a rear seat of the vehicle, and is attached to the center in the vehicle width direction of the seat back of the seat arranged so that the left and right seats are continuous in the vehicle width direction, and the seat back rotates the armrest. The armrest device according to claim 1, further comprising a storage portion that moves and stores the armrest device.

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