JP2008295695A - Seat reclining device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a seat reclining device, even if once stopping a seat back at a forward-tilt position when the seat back is forward tilted, capable of easily rotationally turning the seat back to a forwardmost tilted position or a neutral position without requiring any lever operation from the forward-tilt position. <P>SOLUTION: This seat reclining device is provided with a suspension means, when an arm plate 2 is rotationally turned in the forward-tilting direction by a prescribed angle, retaining unlocking of the arm plate 2 by the locking mechanism 4 and suspending the arm plate 2 at a prescribed angle, wherein the suspension means consists of a spiral spring 8 for energizing the arm plate to a rearward-tilt side. This seat reclining device is so constituted that, after the arm plate is suspended at a prescribed angle by the spiral spring 8, the seat back is pushed against the spring force of the spiral spring 8 to be tilted forward, and, when the seat back is superposed on the seat cushion and folded substantially horizontally, the arm plate 2 is locked by the locking mechanism. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a seat reclining device in which a seat back is folded substantially horizontally on a seat cushion and can be used as a table.

  A seat reclining device for adjusting a seat back of a vehicle seat to an arbitrary inclination angle is supported by a base plate fixed on the seat cushion side, and an arm plate attached to the seat back is pivotally supported. A lock mechanism for locking the rotation of the arm plate is provided between the arm plate and the arm plate.

  By the way, such a seat reclining device is provided with a spiral spring that urges the arm plate forward and the arm plate, that is, the seat back automatically tilts forward when the arm plate is unlocked by the lock mechanism. There are the following seat reclining devices that employ this method.

  In Patent Document 1, a step portion is formed on the outer peripheral edge of the arm plate, and a release lever capable of contacting the step portion is provided on the base plate, and when the seat back is tilted forward via the operation lever, the step portion is formed. The seat comes into contact with the stopper of the release lever and the seat back stops temporarily without being tilted forward, and then the release lever is operated and the seat bias is fully tilted forward with the remaining biasing force. A seat reclining device has been proposed in which a seat is folded substantially horizontally on a seat cushion.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, when a seat back is folded substantially horizontally on a seat cushion and used as a table, a seat reclining is made such that a stopper disc provided on an arm plate comes into contact with a stopper lever to temporarily stop the seat back. A device has been proposed.

Further, Patent Document 3 discloses an operation for rotating the seat back from the neutral position (comfortable position) to the intermediate folding position, an operation for adjusting the comfort of the seat back, and the seat back rotating from the neutral position to the horizontal folding position. A technique has been proposed in which the operation is performed independently by three operation members.
JP 2000-047776 A JP 2004-058928 A JP 2003-159140 A

  However, in the seat reclining device proposed in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to operate the release lever in order to fold the seatback that has been paused further forward and fold it substantially horizontally, which is troublesome.

  Further, even in the configuration proposed in Patent Document 2, in order to further tilt the seat back forward as in Patent Document 1, it is necessary to operate the stopper lever, which is troublesome.

  Furthermore, in the configuration proposed in Patent Document 3, it is necessary to operate three operation members in accordance with each operation of the seat back, and thus there is a problem that the operation is complicated and troublesome.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and the object of the present invention is that even when the seat back is tilted forward, even if it is temporarily stopped at the forward tilt position, no lever operation is required from the forward tilt position. An object of the present invention is to provide a seat reclining device capable of easily rotating a seat back to a forward tilt position or a neutral position.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is configured such that an arm plate attached to a seat back is pivotally supported on a base plate fixed on the seat cushion side, and between the base plate and the arm plate, A locking mechanism that locks the rotation of the arm plate;
A return spring that biases the arm plate forward,
When the arm plate rotates by a predetermined angle in the forward tilt direction, a temporary stop means for maintaining the unlocking of the arm plate by the lock mechanism and temporarily stopping the arm plate at a predetermined angle;
In a seat reclining device comprising:
The temporary stop means comprises a spring that urges the arm plate to the rearward tilt side. After the arm plate is temporarily stopped at a predetermined angle by the spring, the seat back is further resisted against the spring force of the spring. The arm plate is configured to be locked by the locking mechanism when pushed and tilted forward, and the seat back is folded substantially horizontally with the seat back overlapped.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the temporary stop means is constituted by a spiral spring, one end of the spiral spring is fixed to the base plate, the other end is a free end, and the free end is The arm plate is configured to abut at a predetermined angular position.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, two spiral springs are arranged so as to overlap each other in the seat width direction, and one end of each of the spiral springs is associated with a common hook fixed to the base plate. It is characterized by having stopped.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the temporary stop means includes a lever pivotally supported on the base plate and a coil spring that biases the lever in a backward tilt direction. And the arm plate abuts on one end of the lever at a predetermined angular position.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the arm plate is temporarily stopped at the predetermined angular position by providing the spring for biasing the arm plate in the backward tilting direction in the temporary stopping means, the locking mechanism for the arm plate is provided. Since the rotation lock by is released, without pressing any lever operation, the seat back is held by pressing the seat back that has been paused and rotating it to the most forward tilt position to lock it. The cushion can be folded substantially horizontally on the cushion and used as a table, or the temporarily stopped seat back can be tilted back to the neutral position (use position) and locked.

  According to the invention of claim 2, when the arm plate is tilted forward to the temporary stop position, the arm plate comes into contact with the free end of the spiral spring of the temporary stop means and receives the urging force on the backward tilt side from the spiral spring. The same effect as that of the first aspect of the invention can be obtained.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, since the two spiral springs are arranged so as to overlap each other in the sheet width direction, each one end of both the spiral springs is locked to the common hook fixed to the base plate, so that space saving and parts can be obtained. The number of points can be reduced.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the arm plate is tilted forward to the temporary stop position, the arm plate comes into contact with the lever of the temporary stop means and receives the rearward biasing force from the coil spring. The same effect as the invention can be obtained.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<Embodiment 1>
1 is a side view showing a state in which a seat back of a seat reclining device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention is in a neutral position, and FIG. 2 is a side view of a vehicle seat showing a state in which the seat back is in a neutral position. 3 is a rear view of the seat reclining device (a view in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1), FIG. 4 is a side view of the seat reclining device showing a state in which the seat back is in the forward tilted position, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a side view of the seat reclining device showing a state in which the seat back is in the most forward tilt position, and FIG. 7 is a vehicle seat showing the state in which the seat back is in the most forward tilt position. 8 (a) to 8 (c) are front views of the locking mechanism of the seat reclining device, and FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 8 (a).

  The seat reclining device according to the present embodiment adjusts the inclination angle of the seat back Sb of the vehicle seat S shown in FIG. 2, and the base plate 1 is fixed on the seat cushion Sc side. On the base plate 1, an arm plate 2 attached to the seat back Sb is pivotally supported by a support shaft 3 so as to be able to rotate back and forth (left side in FIG. 1 is forward). As shown in FIG. 2, a pair of left and right upper rails 30 (only one is shown in FIG. 2) are attached to the lower surface of the seat cushion Sc of the vehicle seat S. These upper rails 30 are arranged on the floor surface. Is engaged with a pair of left and right lower rails 31 (only one is shown in FIG. 2) so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body (left and right direction in FIG. 2). Therefore, the vehicle seat S can slide in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body along the lower rail 31 and is always urged forward of the vehicle body (left side in FIG. 2) by a spring (not shown). The vehicle seat S is locked to slide in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body by a slide lock mechanism (not shown).

  By the way, between the base plate 1 and the arm plate 2, a lock mechanism 4 for locking the rotation of the arm plate 2 and the arm plate 2 tilted forward about the support shaft 3 (in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 1). Spiral springs 5 as return springs that are urged toward each other are respectively interposed around the support shaft 3. Here, the configuration of the lock mechanism 4 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The lock mechanism 4 is inserted into the center portion of the circular base bracket 16 and the arm bracket 17 that can rotate relative to each other, and communicates with the support shaft 3 in a space surrounded by the base bracket 16 and the arm bracket 17. The cam plate 18 that rotates integrally with the support shaft 3, the two lock teeth 19 provided at opposite locations around the cam plate 18, and the lock direction in which the cam plate 18 is engaged with the lock tooth 19. It incorporates two springs 20 and the like that apply a biasing force to the. An operation lever (not shown) is bound to the end of the support shaft 3 on the arm bracket 17 side.

  Here, the base plate 1 is bound to the base bracket 16, and the arm plate 2 is bound to the arm bracket 17. As shown in FIG. The brackets 16 and 17 are rotatably fitted in the inner peripheral portion of the concave portion 17, and are coupled so as not to be separated in the axial direction by a ring-shaped holder 21 fitted on the outer periphery thereof.

  By the way, the lock tooth 19 is supported so as to be able to tilt around a semicircular fulcrum 17a formed at two opposing positions on the inner peripheral surface of the arm bracket 17, and external teeth 19a are engraved on the outer periphery thereof. It is installed. The positions of the lock teeth 19 are restricted by the left and right guide protrusions 17b and 17c projecting from the inner surface of the arm bracket 17, and a part of the outer periphery thereof is formed on the outer periphery of the cam plate 18. The cam surface is in contact. Further, a prismatic protrusion 19b is integrally formed on the surface of each lock tooth 19 that faces the base bracket 16.

  On the other hand, inner teeth 16a are formed on the inner periphery of the concave portion of the base bracket 16, and the outer teeth 19a formed on the outer periphery of the lock tooth 19 are selectively meshed with the inner teeth 16a. The rotation of 17 and the arm plate 2 (that is, the seat back) is locked / unlocked (unlocked). Further, as shown in FIG. 8, two small diameter portions 16b and two large diameter portions 16c are alternately formed in the circumferential direction on the inner peripheral side of the inner teeth 16a of the base bracket 16, and the small diameter portions 16b and the large diameter portions 16c are formed. A step 16d is formed at the boundary.

  By the way, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, an inner hook 6 is fixed around the support shaft 3 of the base plate 1, and an outer hook 7 is attached to a position along the outer periphery of the lock mechanism 4 of the arm plate 2. Has been. Here, the inner hook 6 has locking projections 6a and 6b standing vertically at the upper and lower sides thereof and is formed in a horizontal U shape, and the outer hook 7 is formed in a substantially L shape. A locking projection 7a is formed standing upright. The inner end portion of the spiral spring 5 is locked by the upper locking projection 6 a of the inner hook 6, and the outer end portion of the spiral spring 5 is locked by the locking projection 7 a of the outer hook 7. .

  Further, the base plate 1 is formed with a stopper 1a for defining the most forward tilt position of the arm plate 2 (seat back) and a stopper 1b for defining the last tilt position, and the arm plate 2 (seat back) is set to the most forward tilt position. When reaching the last tilted position, the locking projections 7a of the outer hook 7 attached thereto are brought into contact with the stoppers 1a and 1b, respectively, and further rotation of the arm plate 2 (seat back) is prevented.

  Thus, in the seat reclining device according to the present embodiment, when the arm plate 2 rotates to the temporary stop position in the vicinity of the foremost tilt position, the spiral spring abuts against the arm plate 2 and urges it to the rear tilt side. The temporary stop means comprised by 8 is provided.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 3, the spiral spring 8 constituting the temporary stop means is arranged inside the spiral spring 5 so as to overlap the spiral spring 5 in the sheet width direction (left-right direction in FIG. 3). The inner end of the inner hook 6 is locked to the lower locking protrusion 6b.

  On the other hand, the outer end of the spiral spring 8 is a free end, and this free end is rotated to a temporary stop position, which is a forward tilt position where the arm plate is tilted forward from the vertical position by a predetermined angle θ as shown in FIG. Then, it is arranged at an angular position where the locking projection 7a of the outer hook 7 attached to the arm plate 2 contacts, and the position is regulated by the stopper 9 attached to the outer peripheral portion of the base plate 1, and the rearwardly tilting direction is controlled. The rotation is fixed. The spiral spring 8 constituting the temporary stop means is wound in a direction opposite to the winding direction of the spiral spring 5 that biases the arm plate 2 forward tilted, and a preset load is applied in the backward tilt direction. The spring constant is set smaller than the spring constant of the spiral spring 5.

  In the seat reclining device configured as described above, as shown in FIG. 9A, the arm plate 2 (seat back Sb) is in the neutral position (use position) as shown in FIGS. Further, the lock tooth 19 of the lock mechanism 4 is pressed against the base plate 16 by the urging force of the spring 20, and the protrusion 19 b protruding from the lock tooth 19 is engaged with the large diameter portion 16 c of the base bracket 16. In this state, since the external teeth 19a formed on the outer periphery of the lock tooth 19 mesh with the internal teeth 16a formed on the base bracket 16, the rotation of the arm bracket 17 and the arm plate 2 (seat back Sb) is locked. Yes. Further, the vehicle seat S slides in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body is locked by a slide lock mechanism (not shown).

  Thus, when adjusting the inclination angle of the seat back Sb, the operation lever (not shown) is rotated to resist the biasing force of the spring 20 and the cam plate 18 bound to the support shaft 3. , Each lock tooth 19 that contacts the cam surface of the cam plate 18 tilts radially inward about the fulcrum 17a, and the external teeth 19a formed on the outer periphery of the lock teeth 19 engage with the internal teeth 16a of the base bracket 16 Is released, and the protrusion 19b of the lock tooth 19 gets over the step 16d of the base bracket 16, so that the rotation lock of the arm bracket 17 and the arm plate 2 is released (unlocked).

  Then, the arm plate 2 (seat back) is rotated forward (in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 1) about the support shaft 3 by the urging force of the spiral spring 5 and the weight of the seat back.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 4, when the arm plate 2 is pivoted forward from the vertical state to the temporary stop position by an angle θ, the locking projection 7a of the outer hook 7 attached to the arm plate 2 is swirled. Since the spiral spring 8 is tightened in contact with the free end of the spring 8, an urging force in the backward tilt direction acts on the arm plate 2 as a reaction force from the spiral spring 8. Therefore, the arm plate 2 is temporarily stopped at the forward tilt position. Then, when the arm plate 2, that is, the seat back Sb is stopped at the temporary stop position as shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle by the slide lock mechanism (not shown) is moved forward by the seat back Sb to the temporary stop position. The slide lock of the vehicle seat S is released, and the vehicle seat S can slide in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle body.

  By the way, in the present embodiment, the two spiral springs 5 and 8 are arranged so as to overlap each other in the sheet width direction, and the inner end portions of the spiral springs 5 and 8 are fixed to the base plate 1 with a common inner hook 6. Since the locking projections 6a and 6b are respectively locked, space saving and the number of parts can be reduced.

  Thus, as shown in FIG. 4, after the arm plate 2 is tilted forward and the locking projection 7a of the outer hook 7 attached thereto is brought into contact with the free end of the spiral spring 8, it is shown in FIG. As described above, the locking of the outer end of the spiral spring 5 to the outer hook 7 is released, and the spiral spring 5 does not bias the arm plate 2 in the forward tilt direction. It should be noted that the arm plate 2 (seat back) after the arm plate 2 tilts forward and the locking projection 7a of the outer hook 7 attached to the arm plate 2 contacts the free end of the spiral spring 8 in the forward tilt direction. As shown in FIG. 6, the amount of rotation is regulated by the locking projection 7 a of the outer hook 7 coming into contact with the stopper 1 a of the base plate 1 at the most forward tilt position.

  Further, in this embodiment, after the arm plate 2 abuts on the free end of the spiral spring 8, the forward biasing direction by the spiral spring 5 is released, so the backward tilting direction by the spiral spring 8 is released. It is possible to set the spiral spring 8 having a small spring constant without canceling out the force by the forward biasing force of the spiral spring 5.

  By the way, while the operation lever is operated and the lock lock of the arm plate 2 by the lock mechanism 4 is released and the arm plate 2 is rotated to the temporary stop position shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9 (b), the protrusion 19 b that projects from the base bracket 16 engages with the small diameter portion 16 b of the base bracket 16 to move the lock tooth 19 inward in the radial direction. Since the state apart from the teeth 16a is maintained, the unlocked state of the arm plate 2 is maintained even after the operation lever (not shown) is returned to the original position.

  Therefore, without requiring any lever operation, the seat back Sb that has been paused can be tilted rearward as it is to return it to the neutral position (use position) shown in FIG. ), The protrusion 19b protruding from the lock tooth 19 of the lock mechanism 4 engages with the large-diameter portion 16c of the base bracket 16 to allow the lock tooth 19 to move radially outward. Is tilted about the fulcrum 17a by the urging force of the spring 20, and the external teeth 19a carved on the outer periphery thereof mesh with the internal teeth 16a of the base bracket 16, so that the arm bracket 17 and the arm plate 2 (seat back Sb) Is locked.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, since the rotation lock of the seat back Sb paused at the pause position is maintained, the seat back Sb is swirled without any operation of the operation lever. The spring 8 is pushed in the forward tilt direction against the urging force in the backward tilt direction, and the locking projection 7a of the outer hook 7 attached to the arm plate 2 is brought into contact with the stopper 1a of the base plate 1 as shown in FIG. If they are brought into contact with each other, as shown in FIG. 7, the seat back Sb is overlaid on the seat cushion Sc and folded substantially horizontally, and this can be used as a table. At this time, the protrusion 19b protruding from the lock tooth 19 of the lock mechanism 4 engages with the large diameter portion 16c of the base bracket 16 to allow the lock tooth 19 to move radially outward. The outer teeth 19a engraved on the outer periphery thereof are engaged with the inner teeth 16a of the base bracket 16, and the rotation of the arm bracket 17 and the arm plate 2 (seat back) is locked. Is done. At this time, the slide of the vehicle seat S is locked by a slide lock mechanism (not shown) by the forward tilting operation of the arm plate 2, that is, the seat back Sb.

  As described above, according to the seat reclining mechanism according to the present embodiment, the seat back Sb can be easily rotated to the most forward tilt position or the neutral position and locked without requiring any lever operation from the temporary stop position. Can do.

<Embodiment 2>
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 10 is a side view of the seat reclining device according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In FIG. 10, the same elements as those shown in FIGS. 1, 4 and 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, Hereinafter, description thereof will be omitted.

  In the present embodiment, when the arm plate 2 is tilted forward from the vertical state by the angle θ shown in the figure, a temporary stop means that abuts the arm plate 2 and urges the arm plate 2 to tilt backward is rotated around the base plate 1 by the support shaft 3. It is characterized by comprising a lever 10 that is pivotally supported and a coil spring 11 that urges the lever 10 in a backward tilt direction.

  Here, the lever 10 is at an angular position where the outer hook 7 attached to the arm plate 2 comes into contact when the arm plate 2 reaches a temporary stop position that is a forwardly tilted position as indicated by a chain line in FIG. The position is regulated by a stopper 12 projecting from the base plate 1, and the rotation in the tilt direction is fixed thereafter. The coil spring 11 is stretched between one end of the lever and a locking portion 13 provided on the base plate 1, and a preset load for urging the lever 10 and the arm plate 2 backward is applied to the coil spring 11. Has been.

  Thus, in the seat reclining device according to the present embodiment, when the arm plate 2 is unlocked by the lock mechanism 4 from the state where the arm plate 2 (seat back) is in the neutral position as shown by the solid line in FIG. The arm plate 2 (seat back) is rotated forward (in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 10) about the support shaft 3 by the urging force of the spiral spring 5 and the weight of the seat back.

  Then, as shown by the chain line in FIG. 10, when the arm plate 2 is rotated to the temporary stop position, the outer hook 7 bound to the arm plate 2 comes into contact with the tip (free end) of the lever 10 and In order to rotate the lever 10 around the support shaft 3 in the direction of the arrow b, the coil spring 11 connected to the lever 10 is stretched, and the arm plate 2 is moved in the backward tilt direction as a reaction force from the coil spring 11. An urging force acts via the lever 10. For this reason, the arm plate 2 is temporarily stopped at the temporary stop position.

  Further, similarly to the first embodiment, the seat back can be easily rotated to the most forward tilt position or the neutral position and locked without any lever operation from the temporary stop position.

It is a side view which shows the state which has the seat back of the seat reclining apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention in a neutral position. It is a side view of the vehicle seat which shows the state which has a seat back in a neutral position. It is a rear view (figure of the arrow A direction of FIG. 1) of the seat reclining apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a side view of a seat reclining device which shows the state where the seat back of the seat reclining device concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention exists in a forward tilt position. It is a side view of the vehicle seat which shows the state which has a seat back in a forward leaning position. It is a side view of a seat reclining device which shows the state where the seat back of the seat reclining device concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention exists in the foremost tilt position. It is a side view of the vehicle seat which shows the state which has a seat back in the foremost tilt position. (A)-(c) is a front view of the locking mechanism of the seat reclining device concerning Embodiment 1 of the present invention. It is the BB sectional drawing of FIG. It is a side view of the seat reclining device concerning Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Base plate 1a, 1b Stopper 2 Arm plate 3 Support shaft 4 Lock mechanism 5 Spiral spring 6 Inner hook 6a, 6b Inner hook engaging protrusion 7 Outer hook 7a Outer hook engaging protrusion 8 Spiral spring 9 Stopper 10 Lever 11 Coil spring 12 Stopper 13 Locking portion 14 Shaft 15 Pin 16 Base bracket 16a Inner teeth of base bracket 16b Small diameter portion of base bracket 16c Large diameter portion of base bracket 16d Step portion of base bracket 17 Arm bracket 17a Arm bracket fulcrum 17a, 17b Arm Bracket guide protrusion 18 Cam plate 19 Lock tooth 19a Lock tooth external teeth 19b Lock tooth protrusion 20 Spring 21 Holder 30 Upper rail 31 Lower rail S Vehicle chassis Door Sb seat back Sc seat cushion

Claims (4)

A lock mechanism that pivotally supports an arm plate attached to a seat back on a base plate fixed on the seat cushion side, and locks the rotation of the arm plate between the base plate and the arm plate;
A return spring that biases the arm plate forward,
When the arm plate rotates by a predetermined angle in the forward tilt direction, a temporary stop means for maintaining the unlocking of the arm plate by the lock mechanism and temporarily stopping the arm plate at a predetermined angle;
In a seat reclining device comprising:
The temporary stop means comprises a spring that urges the arm plate to the rearward tilt side. After the arm plate is temporarily stopped at a predetermined angle by the spring, the seat back is further resisted against the spring force of the spring. A seat reclining device, wherein the arm plate is configured to be locked by the locking mechanism when pushed and tilted forward and the seat back is overlapped on a seat cushion and folded substantially horizontally.   The temporary stop means is constituted by a spiral spring, one end of the spiral spring is fixed to the base plate, the other end is a free end, and the arm plate is in contact with the free end at a predetermined angular position. The seat reclining device according to claim 1.   3. The seat reclining device according to claim 2, wherein two spiral springs are arranged so as to overlap each other in the seat width direction, and one end of each of the spiral springs is locked to a common hook fixed to the base plate.   The temporary stop means includes a lever pivotally supported by the base plate and a coil spring that biases the lever in a backward tilt direction, and the arm plate is located at a predetermined angular position at one end of the lever. The seat reclining device according to claim 1, wherein the seat reclining device is configured to abut.

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