JP2011057077A - Handle holding structure of seat track device, and holding structure of turn operating member - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a handle holding structure of a seat track device obtainable inexpensively with a small number of parts. <P>SOLUTION: The seat track device includes a slide locking mechanism for regulating and permitting the slide of an upper rail with respect to a lower rail; and a lock release handle supported turnably with respect to the upper rail. The handle holding structure includes a holding spring made of a single wire material which has a first coil portion allowing the lock release handle to be insertedly held; and a second coil portion having an axis intersecting the first coil portion and supported turnably by an axial projection disposed on the upper rail. The lock release handle is pivotally supported to the upper rail through the holding spring in the handle holding structure. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a handle holding structure of a seat track device and a holding structure of a rotation operation member.

  A so-called loop handle is frequently used as an operation member for unlocking a slide lock mechanism that restricts sliding in a seat track device that can slide a seat in the front-rear direction. As a holding structure of the loop handle, a structure that is rotatably supported with respect to an upper rail that constitutes a seat track as in Patent Document 1 is known. By rotating the loop handle in a predetermined direction, the components of the slide lock mechanism can be pressed and unlocked.

JP 2007-50829 A

  When the rotation operation member for unlocking is plate-shaped, it is possible to support the shaft with a simple structure such as a hinge pin. However, a loop handle having a cylindrical outer surface shape tends to be complicated in its holding structure. There was a problem. For example, in the seat track device of Patent Document 1, a loop handle is inserted into a holding hole formed in a handle holding bracket (subframe), and the handle holding bracket and the loop handle are coupled by a spring member (linear member). Yes. The loop handle is formed with a notch for fitting the spring member, and the spring member is prevented from rattling between the loop handle and the handle holding bracket in the fitted state to the notch. Energize. Further, in order to enable the loop handle to rotate with respect to the upper rail, the handle holding bracket is pivotally supported on the upper rail via a hinge pin (shaft). As described above, at least a handle holding bracket, a spring member, and a hinge pin are required to support the loop handle so as to be able to rotate while suppressing rattling, and processing for forming a notch in the loop handle is also required. It was. In addition, it has been desired to reduce the number of parts and the labor of processing to reduce the cost of the handle holding structure. Further, not only in the seat track apparatus but also in a structure in which a rod-like or cylindrical turning operation member is rotatably held, the simplification of the configuration and the cost reduction have been desired.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a handle track holding structure and a rotation operation member holding structure for a seat track apparatus which can be obtained at a low cost with a small number of parts.

  The present invention includes a slide lock mechanism that restricts and allows sliding of the upper rail with respect to the lower rail, and a lock release handle that is supported rotatably with respect to the upper rail and that unlocks the slide lock mechanism by a rotation operation in a predetermined direction. In the seat track apparatus provided, the first coil portion for inserting and holding the unlocking handle, the second coil portion and the axis intersecting with the first coil portion, are supported rotatably by a shaft protrusion provided on the upper rail. A holding spring made of a single wire having a coil portion is provided, and the unlocking handle is pivotally supported on the upper rail via the holding spring.

  The first coil portion of the holding spring causes a change in shape of the first coil portion in response to insertion of the unlocking handle, and friction between the inner surface of the first coil portion and the outer surface of the unlocking handle. It is preferable to have a deformation inducing portion that increases resistance.

  The second coil portion of the holding spring has an arm portion that extends in the outer diameter direction and engages with the rotation restricting portion on the upper rail to restrict the rotation, and the arm portion serves as a fulcrum. It is preferable that the second coil portion is held at a specific position in the rotation direction by the bending restoring force.

  A pair of shaft support cylinders which are provided with two sets of lower rails and upper rails spaced apart in the width direction of the seat, and the unlocking handle is rotatably supported by both upper rails via holding springs; A loop handle having a connecting tube portion that connects the pair of shaft support tube portions is preferable because the holding strength is increased.

  According to the present invention, in the holding structure for rotatably supporting the rotation operation member with respect to the support member, the first coil portion for inserting and holding the rotation operation member, and the first coil portion and the axis intersect. And a holding spring made of a single wire having a second coil portion rotatably supported by a shaft projection provided on the support member, and the rotation operation member is used as the support member via the holding spring. It is characterized by being pivotally supported.

  According to the above-described holding structure of the unlocking handle or the rotating operation member of the seat track device according to the present invention, the holding spring as a single member can be used to hold the unlocking handle and the rotating operation member and Since rotation support is performed, the holding structure can be configured with a minimum number of parts, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. In particular, the first coil portion of the holding spring is configured to increase the frictional resistance by inserting a lock release handle or a rotation operation member, thereby achieving reliable holding. In addition, by providing the second coil part with resilience to a specific angular position (functioning as a moment generating part), it is possible to obtain a reliable operation and an excellent operational feeling by suppressing the backlash of the pivot support part. Can do.

It is a single-piece | unit perspective view of the holding spring which comprises the holding structure by this invention. It is the II arrow directional view of FIG. 1 of the holding spring. It is the III arrow directional view of FIG. 1 of the holding spring. FIG. 4 is a view of the holding spring taken along arrow IV in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows the principal part of the seat track apparatus of the state which made the loop handle pivotally support to the upper rail with the holding spring. It is a figure which shows the 1st form of the assembly | attachment structure of the holding spring with respect to an upper rail. It is a figure which shows the 2nd form of the assembly | attachment structure of the holding spring with respect to an upper rail.

  The holding spring 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is formed based on a coil spring made of a single wire, and the coil spring is bent at a substantially right angle by a bent portion 13 at an intermediate position in the axial direction. The coil part 11 and the 2nd coil part 12 are comprised. The axis 11x of the first coil part 11 and the axis 12x of the second coil part 12 are substantially orthogonal to each other. A semicircular inclined loop portion (deformation inducing portion) 14 is formed at an end portion of the first coil portion 11 located on the opposite side to the bent portion 13. As shown in FIG. 4, the inclined loop portion 14 extends in an oblique direction (diagonally downward) with respect to the plane including the axis 11x and the axis 12x, and as can be seen from FIG. 2, the first coil portion in a free state. When 11 is viewed from the front, the inclined loop portion 14 is positioned closer to the inner diameter side than the first coil portion 11. The second coil portion 12 is formed with a linear terminal arm portion 15 that protrudes toward the outer diameter direction at an end located on the side opposite to the bent portion 13.

  FIG. 5 shows a configuration in which the holding spring 10 is applied to the loop handle holding structure of the seat track device 20. The seat track device 20 includes a lower rail 21 fixed to the floor surface side, and an upper rail (support member) 22 supported so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction with respect to the lower rail 21, and the upper rail 22 is a seat surface portion of the seat. (Not shown) is supported. FIG. 5 shows only one set of seat tracks (lower rail 21 and upper rail 22), but another set of seat tracks (not shown) (lower rail 21 and upper rail 22) is separated in the width direction of the seat. They are provided substantially in parallel. Hereinafter, with respect to the width direction of the sheet, the direction in which the two sets of sheet tracks face each other is referred to as the inside of the sheet, and the opposite direction is referred to as the outside of the sheet. Further, the structure described below is also provided in a left-right symmetric shape on a seat track on the side not shown in FIG.

  A plurality of lock recesses 23 are intermittently formed in the lower rail 21 in the longitudinal direction. The upper rail 22 supports a slide lock mechanism 24 including a lock member having a claw portion that can be engaged and disengaged with respect to the lock recess 23. The slide lock mechanism 24 is supported on the surface of the upper rail 22 on the outer side of the seat, and most of the slide lock mechanism 24 is not visible in FIG. 5, but its basic configuration is the same as that of Patent Document 1. The slide lock mechanism 24 includes a lock interlocking member 25 that is moved up and down in conjunction with the lock member on the inner surface of the upper rail 22, and a slide lock state in which the claw portion of the lock member engages with the lock recess 23. The lock interlocking member 25 is held in the raised position (position shown in FIG. 5). The lock member is biased in the locking direction, and the lock member can be unlocked by pushing the lock interlocking member 25 downward against this biasing force.

  The lock interlocking member 25 is pushed in the unlocking direction by a loop handle (unlocking handle, rotating operation member) 30. The loop handle 30 is formed of a hollow cylindrical body, and a pair of shaft support cylinder portions 31 (only one is shown in FIG. 5) extending along the inner surface of the left and right upper rails 22; A U-shape having a connecting cylinder portion 32 that connects the front end portions of the pair of shaft supporting cylinder portions 31 is formed. The loop handle 30 is pivotally supported with respect to the upper rail 22 via the holding spring 10 so as to be rotatable. The holding structure will be described.

  The holding spring 10 is supported on the side surface of the upper rail 22 by the structure shown in FIG. A shaft support piece (shaft protrusion) 35 and a pair of spring hooks (rotation restricting portions) 36 and 37 are formed on the upper rail 22 by cutting and raising. Reference numerals 38, 39 and 40 in FIG. 6 are holes formed in the upper rail 22 as the shaft support piece 35 and the spring hooks 36 and 37 are cut and raised. The shaft support piece 35 protrudes toward the inside of the seat and has a substantially uniform V-shaped cross-sectional shape. The spring hook 36 and the spring hook 37 are slightly projected toward the inside of the seat, and then the tip is bent in a direction along the wall surface of the upper rail 22. The portion 36 and the spring hook portion 37 are reversed. The second coil portion 12 of the holding spring 10 is supported on the shaft support piece 35. The second coil portion 12 is supported by abutting its annular inner peripheral portion against three top portions of the shaft support piece 35 having a V-shaped cross section, and the second coil portion 12 (holding in the supported state) is supported. The spring 10) can rotate with respect to the shaft support piece 35 about the axis 12x. Further, the terminal arm 15 is engaged with the spring hook 36 and the spring hook 37. In this engaged state, the movement of the terminal arm 15 in the direction away from the shaft support piece 35 is restricted by the spring hook portion 36, and the movement in the direction of approaching the shaft support piece 35 is restricted by the spring hook portion 37. In other words, the rotation of the terminal arm portion 15 around the shaft support piece 35 is restricted. Therefore, when the second coil portion 12 rotates, the second coil portion 12 bends in the rotation direction with the terminal arm portion 15 whose movement is restricted as a fulcrum, and the second coil portion 12 is held at a specific angular position. The resilience to try to make it work. Thereby, the play of the holding spring 10 is suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the shaft handle of the loop handle 30 is supported on the first coil portion 11 of the holding spring 10 rotatably supported on the side portion of the upper rail 22 via the second coil portion 12 in this manner. The cylinder part 31 is inserted and held. The first coil part 11 has a front projection shape of a substantially perfect circle as shown in FIG. 2 in its free state except for the inclined loop part 14, and the inner diameter size thereof is the outer diameter size of the shaft support tube part 31. Slightly larger than. When the shaft support tube portion 31 is inserted, first, the shaft support tube portion 31 is extended with respect to the inclined loop portion 14 that extends forward of the first coil portion 11 and is located on the inner diameter side of the first coil portion 11. The tip of the is stuck. When the insertion operation of the shaft support tube portion 31 is continued in this state, the bent portion 13 pushed by the outer surface of the shaft support tube portion 31 is tilted in the diameter expansion direction F1 shown in FIG. 11 falls in the axial direction F2. Then, the front projection shape of the first coil portion 11 changes from a substantially perfect circle shape as shown in FIG. 2 to an ellipse shape, and the width in the minor axis direction becomes narrow according to the tilt of the tilt loop portion 14. Due to the shape change of the first coil portion 11, the frictional resistance between the inner surface of the first coil portion 11 and the outer surface of the shaft support tube portion 31 inserted therein increases, and the first coil portion 11 and the shaft support are supported. The cylinder part 31 is couple | bonded. In addition, insertion support of the axial support cylinder part 31 to the 1st coil part 11, and the 2nd coil part 12 and the terminal arm part 15 to the axial support piece 35 on the upper rail 22, the spring hook part 36, and the spring hook part 37 are shown. Assembling may be performed first.

  As described above, the loop handle 30 is assembled and held so as to be rotatable with respect to the upper rail 22 via the holding spring 10, and the vicinity of the end portion of the shaft support cylinder portion 31 becomes the lock interlocking member 25 in the assembled and held state. It contacts from above. As described above, the lock interlocking member 25 is held at the raised position shown in FIG. 5 by the urging force of the lock member, and when the loop handle 30 is rotated in the direction of pulling up the connecting tube portion 32, the shaft support tube The part 31 pushes down the lock interlocking member 25 and the engagement between the claw part of the lock member and the lock recess 23 is released. When the rotation in the pulling direction with respect to the loop handle 30 is released, the lock member returns to the engagement position with the lock recess 23 by the urging force, and the lock interlocking member 25 and the loop handle 30 return to the positions shown in FIG.

  FIG. 7 shows a different embodiment of the support of the holding spring 10 with respect to the upper rail 22. In this embodiment, a cylindrical shaft support pin (shaft protrusion) 41 is used as a support portion for the second coil portion 12 of the holding spring 10. The pivot pin 41 includes a large diameter portion 42 and a small diameter portion 43, and the small diameter portion 43 is inserted and fixed in a hole formed in the side surface of the upper rail 22. In the fixed state, the large-diameter portion 42 of the pivot pin 41 protrudes toward the inside of the seat, and the second coil portion 12 of the holding spring 10 is rotatably fitted to and supported by the large-diameter portion 42. The structure in which the terminal arm 15 is engaged and supported by the spring hook 36 and the spring hook 37 is the same as that in the embodiment of FIG.

  As described above, according to the handle holding structure to which the present invention is applied, the insertion and holding of the loop handle 30 and the rotation support to the upper rail 22 are performed by the two coil portions 11 and 12 of the holding spring 10 formed of a single wire. For this reason, the loop handle 30 can be held with a smaller number of parts than before, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. More specifically, since the first coil portion 11 is deformed by using the inclined loop portion 14 due to the insertion of the shaft support tube portion 31 and increases the frictional resistance, the loop handle is not provided with a separate retaining means. 30 can be securely coupled. In addition, since the second coil portion 12 can generate a moment in the rotation direction by engaging the terminal arm portion 15 with the spring hook portions 36 and 37, the backlash of the second coil portion 12 is not required. You can reduce the date.

  In the above, the application example of the seat track device 20 to the holding structure of the loop handle 30 has been described. However, the holding spring 10 moves the rotation operation member corresponding to the loop handle 30 to the support member corresponding to the upper rail 22. Therefore, any structure other than the seat track apparatus can be applied as long as the structure is held so as to be rotatable.

  In the illustrated embodiment, the axis 11x of the first coil portion 11 and the axis 12x of the second coil portion 12 in the holding spring 10 are substantially orthogonal to each other, but the axes of the two coil portions are at least crossed with each other. The present invention is established even if the relationship is not strictly orthogonal.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Holding spring 11 1st coil part 12 2nd coil part 13 Bending part 14 Inclined loop part (deformation induction part)
15 Terminal Arm 20 Seat Track Device 21 Lower Rail 22 Upper Rail (Support Member)
23 Lock recess 24 Slide lock mechanism 25 Lock interlocking member 30 Loop handle (lock release handle, rotation operation member)
31 Axle support cylinder part 32 Connection cylinder part 35 Axle support piece (shaft protrusion)
36 37 Spring hook (rotation restricting part)
41 Shaft support pin (shaft protrusion)
42 Large diameter part 43 Small diameter part

Claims (5)

A slide lock mechanism that restricts and allows sliding of the upper rail with respect to the lower rail, and a lock release handle that is rotatably supported with respect to the upper rail and that unlocks the slide lock mechanism by a rotation operation in a predetermined direction. In the seat track device,
A first coil part that inserts and holds the unlocking handle; and a second coil part that intersects the axis of the first coil part and is rotatably supported by a shaft protrusion provided on the upper rail. A handle holding structure for a seat track apparatus, comprising: a holding spring made of a single wire, wherein the lock release handle is pivotally supported by the upper rail via the holding spring. 2. The handle holding structure for a seat track device according to claim 1, wherein the first coil portion of the holding spring causes a change in shape of the first coil portion in response to insertion of the lock release handle. A handle holding structure for a seat track apparatus having a deformation inducing portion that increases a frictional resistance between the inner surface of the coil portion of the coil and the outer surface of the unlocking handle. 3. A handle holding structure for a seat track device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second coil portion of the holding spring extends in an outer diameter direction and rotates by engaging with a rotation restricting portion on the upper rail. A handle holding structure for a seat track apparatus, which has an arm portion that is restricted, and wherein the second coil portion is held at a specific position in the rotational direction by a bending restoring force with the arm portion as a fulcrum. The handle holding structure for a seat track device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising two sets of the lower rail and the upper rail spaced apart in the width direction of the seat, wherein the unlocking handle is attached to both the upper rails. Handle holding structure of a seat track device which is a loop handle having a pair of shaft support tube portions rotatably supported via the holding springs and a connection tube portion connecting the pair of shaft support tube portions . In the holding structure for rotatably supporting the rotation operation member with respect to the support member, the first coil portion for inserting and holding the rotation operation member, the first coil portion and the axis intersect, and the support A holding spring made of a single wire having a second coil portion rotatably supported by a shaft protrusion provided on the member, and the rotation operating member is pivoted to the support member via the holding spring. Rotating support structure characterized by being supported.

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