JP2015009589A - Seat slide device of vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a seat slide device of a vehicle which moves a seat without requiring a seating person to conduct lock release operation when a vehicle is in a predetermined state.SOLUTION: A seat slide device 5 of a vehicle 1 includes: a seat 6 on which a driver is seated; a seat support mechanism 7 which supports the seat 6 so that the seat 6 may slide in a fore-and-aft direction; a lock mechanism 8 which restricts slide movement of the seat; an electromagnetic clutch 9; a motor 10; a position sensor 11; and an ECU 12. The ECU 12 receives a signal from the position sensor 11 and then brings the electromagnetic clutch 9 into a connection state, drives the motor 10, and releases the restriction of the lock mechanism 8 when a shift position is set to a predetermined position.

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle seat slide device.

  Patent Document 1 describes a locking device for a seat slide mechanism including an upper rail attached to a seat frame and a lower rail fixed to the vehicle side. The lock device includes a handle supported by the upper rail, and when the grip portion of the handle is pulled up, the upper rail is slidable with respect to the lower rail, and movement of the seat in the front-rear direction is allowed.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 63-133425

  In the apparatus of Patent Document 1, the seat is maintained at a desired position by the lock device unless a handle pull-up operation (lock release operation) is performed.

  However, when the vehicle is not traveling forward, it is not always preferable for the seated person to maintain the seat in a desired position. For example, a driver who visually recognizes the rear when the vehicle is moving backward may want to retract the seat in order to secure a space for twisting the upper body without difficulty. In this case, the driver has to perform an unlocking operation to retract the seat, which is complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a seat slide device that allows a seated person to move a seat without performing an unlocking operation when the vehicle is in a predetermined state. Objective.

  In order to achieve the above object, a vehicle seat slide device of the present invention includes a seat, a seat support mechanism, a slide restricting means, and a control means. The seat support mechanism supports the seat slidably with respect to the vehicle compartment floor of the vehicle. The slide movement restricting means maintains a locked state that restricts the sliding movement of the seat and releases the locked state in accordance with an unlocking operation from the seat occupant to allow the seat to move. The control means releases the lock state of the slide restricting means when the shift position of the vehicle is a predetermined position set in advance.

  The predetermined position is at least one of shift positions set when the vehicle is not traveling forward, for example, a parking position, a neutral position, a reverse position, or the like. The parking position and the neutral position are shift positions that are used when the vehicle is stopped, and the reverse position is a shift position that is used when the vehicle is moved backward. Note that positions other than the predetermined position include, for example, a drive position used when the vehicle moves forward. Thus, by setting the shift position to a predetermined position, the vehicle is in a predetermined state (a state other than during forward traveling).

In the above configuration, when the seat occupant changes the shift position to the predetermined position, the control unit releases the lock state of the slide regulating unit, and the sliding movement of the seat is allowed. That is, the seat occupant can slide the seat to a desired position by simply changing the shift position to a predetermined position without requiring an unlocking operation on the slide restricting means.
Thus, when the vehicle is in a predetermined state, the seated person can move the seat without performing the unlocking operation.

  Further, a driver who performs a steering operation of the vehicle and a change operation of the shift position of the vehicle may be seated on the seat, and the seat may be disposed behind a steering wheel that receives the steering operation of the vehicle from the driver. The shift position includes a reverse position for moving the vehicle backward, and the seat support mechanism supports the seat so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction, and the predetermined position may be the reverse position.

  In the above configuration, when the driver changes the shift position to the reverse position, the control unit releases the locked state of the slide regulating unit, and the sliding movement of the seat in the front-rear direction is allowed. That is, the driver seated on the seat can move the seat backward away from the steering wheel by simply changing the shift position to the reverse position without requiring an unlocking operation on the slide restricting means. Therefore, a driver who sets the shift position to the reverse position and visually recognizes the rear of the vehicle in order to reverse the vehicle, retracts the seat without requiring a complicated operation, and does not interfere with the steering wheel. A space for twisting can be secured between the steering wheel.

  According to the present invention, when the vehicle is in a predetermined state, the seated person can move the seat without performing the unlocking operation.

It is a side view of a vehicle provided with a seat slide device concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a principal part expansion perspective view of the seat slide apparatus of FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view in the left-right direction in FIG. 2, where (a) shows a locked state and (b) shows an unlocked state. It is a block diagram of the seat slide apparatus of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows a motor drive process.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the figure, FR indicates the front of the vehicle, UP in the figure indicates the upper side of the vehicle, and IN in the figure indicates the inner side in the vehicle width direction. Further, in the following description, the front-rear direction means the front-rear direction of the vehicle, and the left-right direction means the left-right direction in a state of facing the front of the vehicle.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a steering wheel 2, a shift lever 3, and a seat 6 are provided in the vehicle interior of the vehicle 1 according to the present embodiment. A steering wheel 2 that receives a steering operation of the vehicle 1 is arranged in front of the seat 6, and a shift lever 3 that is operated when changing the shift position is arranged in front of or side of the seat 6. A driver who performs a steering operation of the vehicle 1 and a shift position changing operation is seated on the seat 6 facing forward. A seat support mechanism 7 is fixed to the floor panel 4 that partitions the floor surface of the passenger compartment, and the seat support mechanism 7 supports the seat 6 from below.

  Further, the shift position is set when the vehicle 1 is moved backward, the reverse position set when the vehicle is stopped, the neutral position where the engine is separated from the driving wheel, and the vehicle 1 when the vehicle 1 is moved forward. Including drive position.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the seat slide device 5 of the present embodiment includes the seat 6, the seat support mechanism 7, a lock mechanism (slide restricting means) 8, an electromagnetic clutch 9, and a motor 10. A position sensor 11 and an ECU (control means) 12.

  The seat support mechanism 7 includes a pair of left and right slide rails 50 extending in parallel with each other along the front-rear direction. Since the left and right slide rails 50 have the same configuration, only the right side will be described below, and the description on the left side will be omitted. The slide rail 50 includes a lower rail 13 that is fixed to the floor panel 4, an upper rail 14 that is fixed to the seat 6, and a roller 15.

  The lower rail 13 integrally has a flat plate-like left and right flange portion 16, a flat plate-like left and right vertical portion 17, and a flat plate-like bottom surface portion 18, and extends linearly along the front-rear direction. The left and right flange portions 16 extend substantially horizontally at the top. The left and right vertical portions 17 are bent at substantially right angles from the inner ends in the vehicle width direction of the left and right flange portions 16 and extend downward. The bottom surface portion 18 bends in a direction opposite to the flange portion 16 from the lower ends of the left and right vertical portions 17 and extends substantially horizontally to connect the left and right vertical portions 17.

  The upper rail 14 integrally has a flat upper plate 19, flat left and right side plates 20, and flat left and right lower plates 21, and extends linearly in the front-rear direction. The upper plate 19 extends substantially horizontally at the upper portion, and the upper surface 19 a of the upper plate 19 is fixed to the sheet 6. The left and right side plates 20 are bent at substantially right angles from both ends of the upper plate 19 in the vehicle width direction and extend downward. The left and right lower plates 21 bend in the same direction as the upper plate 19 from the lower ends of the left and right side plates 20 and extend substantially horizontally.

  In the lower rail 13 and the upper rail 14, the left and right vertical portions 17 of the lower rail 13 are positioned between the left and right lower plates 21 of the upper rail 14, and the lower rail 13 is positioned between the upper plate 19 and the lower plate 21 of the upper rail 14. It arrange | positions so that the flange part 16 may be located.

  A plurality of rollers 15 are arranged in the front-rear direction between the left and right vertical portions 17 and are supported from the left and right by the vertical portion 17 of the lower rail 13 so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft (not shown) along the vehicle width direction. . The upper part of the roller 15 protrudes upward from the upper ends of the left and right vertical parts 17 and rotates while coming into contact with the lower surface 19b of the upper plate 19 of the upper rail 14 from below. Thereby, the lower rail 13 and the upper rail 14 are engaged so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. That is, the seat support mechanism 7 supports the seat 6 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction with respect to the floor panel 4.

  The lock mechanism 8 is provided on the right slide rail 50 and includes a lower lock member 25, an upper lock member 26, a lock plate 27, a bracket 37, a handle shaft 35, and a coil spring 24. The lock mechanism 8 maintains a locked state that restricts the sliding movement of the seat 6 and releases the locked state in accordance with the unlocking operation from the driver to allow the sliding movement of the seat 6.

  The lower lock member 25 integrally includes a flat horizontal portion 28, a flat inclined portion 29, and a flat first lock portion 30, and extends along the front-rear direction. The horizontal portion 28 is fixed to the lower surface 18 a of the bottom surface portion 18 of the lower rail 13. The inclined portion 29 bends from one end on the inner side in the vehicle width direction of the horizontal portion 28 and extends to the vicinity of the lower end of the side plate 20. The first lock portion is bent from one end on the inner side in the vehicle width direction of the inclined portion 29 and extends substantially horizontally in a direction opposite to the horizontal portion 28, and a large number of protrusions 31a are integrally provided at the left end.

  The upper lock member 26 integrally has a flat plate-like fixing portion 32 and a flat plate-like second lock portion 33 and extends along the front-rear direction. The fixing portion 32 is fixed to the left surface 20a of the left side plate 20 of the upper rail 14, and extends in the vertical direction. The second lock portion 33 is bent at a substantially right angle from the lower end of the fixed portion 32 and extends to the left substantially parallel to the first lock portion 30, and a large number of protrusions 31 b are integrally provided at the left end.

  The lock plate 27 is formed in a rectangular plate shape, and is fixed near the center in the front-rear direction of a handle shaft 35 described later. The lock plate 27 has two lock holes 34 that are formed in a rectangular shape and are arranged in the front-rear direction. The length in the front-rear direction of the lock hole 34 is set longer than the length in the front-rear direction of the protrusions 31a and 31b. The lock plate 27 restricts the relative movement of the lower rail 13 and the upper rail 14 in the front-rear direction by inserting the protrusion 31 a of the first lock portion 30 and the protrusion 31 b of the second lock portion 33 into the lock hole 34. Then, the locked state that restricts the sliding movement of the seat 6 is maintained.

  A plurality of brackets 37 are arranged side by side in the front-rear direction, and each bracket 37 is fixed to the left surface 32a of the fixing portion 32 of the upper lock member 26, and the main body portion extends leftward from the fixing surface 37a. 37b. The main body portion 37b is provided with a support hole 37c having a substantially circular cross section penetrating in the front-rear direction. The bracket 37 inserts a handle shaft 35, which will be described later, into the support hole 37c, and rotatably supports the handle shaft 35.

  The handle shaft 35 is formed in a bar shape having a substantially circular cross section, is supported by a bracket 37 on the left side of the upper rail 14, and extends in the front-rear direction. The handle shaft 35 is bent inward in the vehicle width direction in front of the upper rail 14, and has a handle lever 36 at the end of the bent end. The handle shaft 35 has a first flange 38 and a second flange (not shown). The first flange 38 and the second flange are fixed to the handle shaft 35 so as to sandwich the foremost bracket 37 among the plurality of brackets 37 in the front-rear direction, and the relative relationship between the handle shaft 35 and the upper rail 14 via the bracket 37. Restrict movement.

  The coil spring 24 is supported by the handle shaft 35 in a state in which the handle shaft 35 is inserted through the inner diameter portion thereof. One end of the coil spring 24 is fixed to the upper rail 14, the other end is fixed to the lock plate 27, and the lock plate 27 is urged in a direction from the unlock position (see FIG. 3b) to the lock position (see FIG. 3a). To do. That is, the coil spring 24 biases the handle shaft 35 to the locked state via the lock plate 27. The means for biasing is not limited to the coil spring 24, and may be other means such as a leaf spring.

  The motor 10 has a drive shaft 39, and the drive shaft 39 is connected to the handle shaft 35 via the electromagnetic clutch 9. The operations of the motor 10 and the electromagnetic clutch 9 are controlled by an ECU 12 described later.

  The position sensor 11 detects the shift position of the shift lever 3 operated by the driver, and outputs the detected shift position to the ECU 12 as a position signal.

  The ECU 12 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 40, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 41, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 42. The CPU 40 functions as a control unit by reading a program stored in the ROM 41 and executing a motor driving process described later at predetermined time intervals. The RAM 42 functions as a storage area for the shift position detected by the position sensor 11 and a temporary storage area for the calculation result of the CPU 40.

  The ECU 12 receives the position signal output from the position sensor 11 and releases the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 when the shift position of the vehicle 1 is a predetermined position (reverse position in the present embodiment). That is, the ECU 12 enables power transmission from the motor 10 to the handle shaft 35 with the electromagnetic clutch 9 in a connected state in a predetermined case. Then, the motor 10 is driven to rotate the handle shaft 35 in the direction of arrow a in FIG. If the mechanical resistance of the motor 10 when the motor 10 is not driven does not become a load on the operator when performing unlocking operation by pulling up the handle lever described later, the electromagnetic clutch 9 is omitted. Also good.

  Next, the motor drive process executed by the ECU 12 will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. The motor driving process is repeatedly executed every predetermined time.

  When this process is started, the ECU 12 determines whether or not the shift position is the reverse position (step S1). If the shift position is the reverse position (step S1: YES), the ECU 12 places the electromagnetic clutch 9 in the connected state and drives the motor 10 (step S2). The ECU 12 ends the present process after setting the electromagnetic clutch 9 to the connected state and driving the motor 10. When the shift position is not the reverse position (step S1: NO), the ECU 12 disconnects the electromagnetic clutch 9 and does not drive the motor 10 (step S3). If the shift position is not the reverse position, the process proceeds to step S1.

  Next, the unlocking operation for the locking mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. When the driver performs a pulling-up operation (unlocking operation) of the handle lever 36, the handle shaft 35 rotates in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 3A against the biasing force of the coil spring 24. When the handle shaft 35 rotates, the lock plate 27 fixed to the handle shaft 35 moves from the lock position to the lock release position. Thereby, the protrusion 31a of the lower lock portion 25 comes out of the lock hole 34, and the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released. That is, the upper rail 14 and the lower rail 13 can be moved relative to each other, and the seat 6 can be moved forward and backward. When the operation of the handle lever 36 is finished, the lock plate 27 is moved from the unlocked position to the locked position by the urging force of the coil spring 24 to restrict the sliding movement of the seat 6.

  In addition, when the driver operates the shift lever 3 and sets the shift position to the reverse position, the ECU 12 that receives the output from the position sensor 11 places the electromagnetic clutch 9 in the connected state and drives the motor 10. Let When the motor 10 is driven, the handle shaft 35 is rotated by the driving force, and the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released as described above.

  According to the present embodiment, when the seated person of the seat 6 changes the shift position to a predetermined position, the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released. That is, the seated person of the seat 6 can slide the seat 6 only by changing the shift position to a predetermined position without requiring the handle lever 36 to be lifted. The predetermined position is at least one of shift positions set when the vehicle 1 is not traveling forward. For example, there are a reverse position used when the vehicle 1 moves backward, a parking position used when maintaining a stopped state, a neutral position, and the like. Note that the positions other than the predetermined position include, for example, a drive position used when the vehicle 1 moves forward. Thus, by setting the shift position to a predetermined position, the vehicle 1 is in a predetermined state (a state other than during forward traveling). Therefore, when the vehicle 1 is in a predetermined state, the seated person of the seat 6 can move the seat 6 without performing the unlocking operation.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, when the driver changes the shift position to the reverse position and the vehicle 1 is in the reverse drive state, the seat 6 is allowed to slide in the front-rear direction. The person can move the seat 6 backward away from the steering wheel 2 only by changing the shift position to the reverse position without requiring the handle lever 36 to be lifted. Therefore, the driver who visually recognizes the rear of the vehicle 1 for the backward movement of the vehicle 1 moves the seat 6 backward without requiring a complicated operation, and easily twists the upper body without interfering with the steering wheel 2. Can be secured between the steering wheel 2 and the steering wheel 2.

  As mentioned above, although the embodiment to which the invention made by the present inventor is applied has been described, the present invention is not limited by the discussion and the drawings that form part of the disclosure of the present invention according to this embodiment. That is, it is needless to say that other embodiments, examples, operation techniques, and the like made by those skilled in the art based on this embodiment are all included in the scope of the present invention.

  For example, in the above embodiment, the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released when the shift position is the reverse position, but the shift position where the lock state is released is not limited to the reverse position. The shift position at which the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released may be at least one of the shift positions set when the vehicle 1 is not traveling forward. Even if it is a parking position, it is a neutral position. Also good. Further, the shift position at which the lock state of the lock mechanism 8 is released is not limited to one, and a plurality of shift positions may be provided.

  In the above embodiment, the seat 6 on which the driver is seated has been described. However, the present invention is applicable to a seat on which a driver other than the driver is seated, and is not limited to the seat 6 on which the driver is seated.

  In the above embodiment, the handle shaft 35 is driven by the motor 10, but may be driven by an actuator other than the motor 10. The actuator drive source is not limited to electric power.

  In the above embodiment, the lock mechanism 8 is provided on the right slide rail 50, but may be provided on the left slide rail 50. Moreover, you may provide in the slide rail 50 of both right and left sides.

  The present invention is widely applicable to vehicles having a seat slide device.

1: Vehicle 2: Steering wheel 3: Shift lever 4: Floor panel (vehicle compartment floor)
5: Seat slide device 6: Seat 7: Seat support mechanism 8: Lock mechanism (slide regulating means)
9: Electromagnetic clutch 10: Motor 11: Position sensor 12: ECU (control means)
13: Lower rail 14: Upper rail 25: Lower lock member 26: Upper lock member 27: Lock plate 35: Handle shaft 36: Handle lever

Claims (2)

Sheet,
A seat support mechanism for slidably supporting the seat with respect to the vehicle compartment floor of the vehicle;
A slide restricting means for maintaining the lock state for restricting the slide movement of the seat and allowing the slide movement of the seat by releasing the lock state according to an unlocking operation from a seated person of the seat;
Control means for releasing the lock state of the slide restricting means when the shift position of the vehicle is a predetermined position set in advance. The vehicle seat slide device according to claim 1,
A driver performing a steering operation of the vehicle and a change operation of the shift position of the vehicle is seated on the seat,
The seat is disposed behind a steering wheel that receives a steering operation of the vehicle from the driver,
The shift position includes a reverse position for moving the vehicle backward,
The seat support mechanism supports the seat slidably in the front-rear direction,
The vehicle seat slide device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined position is the reverse position.

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