JP2024071174A - Vehicle seat structure - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] In conventional vehicle seat structures, when an occupant sits down, the lower part of the buttocks may feel uncomfortable, and improvements were needed to improve the seating comfort. [Solution] This vehicle seat structure is equipped with a seat member 2 for preventing the submarine phenomenon of an occupant M seated in a vehicle seat 1, and the seat member 2 is structured to have a lower leg receiving surface 8 on its upper part that faces the contact area of the occupant's thighs on the seating surface of the seat 1 via a cushion material 5, thereby ensuring the function of preventing the submarine phenomenon for the occupant M and improving the seating comfort in normal times. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle seat structure, and in particular to a vehicle seat structure equipped with a seat member for preventing a submarine phenomenon of an occupant seated in a vehicle seat.

A conventional vehicle seat structure as described above is, for example, that described in Patent Document 1. The vehicle seat structure described in Patent Document 1 includes a frame and a panel frame, and the panel frame has a high section in front of the lower seat support section, forming a shape that prevents the submarine phenomenon. The submarine phenomenon is a phenomenon in which the buttocks of an occupant wearing a seat belt slide forward while sinking in during an emergency such as a collision. The above vehicle seat structure prevents the occupant from submarining by having a structure in which a stiffening member made of a rod material is integrally installed and fixed between the panel frame and a curved rear inclined surface that is continuous with the lower seat support section on the back side thereof.

Patent No. 4859196

However, in the conventional vehicle seat structure described above, an inclined surface is formed from the front to the bottom of the seat support, which can cause an uncomfortable feeling under the buttocks of an occupant when seated, and improvements were needed to improve seating comfort.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned conventional situation, and aims to provide a vehicle seat structure that can improve seating comfort under normal conditions while ensuring the function of preventing the submarine phenomenon for occupants.

The vehicle seat structure of the present invention is a vehicle seat structure equipped with a seat member for preventing the submarine phenomenon of an occupant seated in a vehicle seat. This vehicle seat structure is characterized in that the seat member has, at its upper part, a lower leg receiving surface that faces the contact area of the occupant's thighs on the seating surface of the seat via a cushioning material.

The vehicle seat structure of the present invention employs a seat member having a lower leg receiving surface that faces the contact area of the occupant's thighs via a cushioning material, so that when the occupant sits down, the lower part of the buttocks is not made to feel uncomfortable, and the seat member itself does not make the occupant feel uncomfortable, allowing the occupant to maintain a stable seated posture. In the event of an emergency such as a collision, the vehicle seat structure supports the occupant's buttocks, which move forward, with the seat member, preventing the occupant from becoming submarine.

In this way, the vehicle seat structure described above can improve seating comfort under normal conditions while ensuring the prevention of the submarine phenomenon for occupants.

1 is a cross-sectional explanatory view showing an embodiment of a vehicle seat structure. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a seat member. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a seat member. FIG. 2 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a state in an emergency such as a collision.

First Embodiment
The vehicle seat structure shown in Fig. 1 includes a seat member 2 for preventing a submarine phenomenon of an occupant M seated in a vehicle seat 1. Fig. 1 shows the seat 1 when the occupant M is not seated, and a portion from the buttocks to the knees of the occupant M (dotted line).

The seat 1 is placed in the rear seat, is fixed to the floor panel 3 of the vehicle, and has a backrest 4. The seat 1 has a structure in which a cushioning material 5 is wrapped in a covering material 6, and has a storage space 7 for the seat member 1 under the thighs of the occupant M, that is, in a position toward the front of the vehicle on the left side in FIG. 1.

The seat member 2 has a lower leg receiving surface 8 at its upper part, which faces the contact area of the thighs of the occupant M on the seating surface (upper surface) of the seat 1 via the cushion material 5. The lower leg receiving surface 8 in the illustrated example is an inclined surface with an upward slope toward the front of the vehicle, and is approximately parallel to the seating surface of the seat 1 and to the thighs of the occupant M seated in the seat 1. Note that although there are naturally individual differences among occupants M, for example, the average body type of an adult can be taken into consideration.

As shown in FIG. 2, the seat member 2 has a cross-sectional shape that has a cavity 9 that is open toward the front of the vehicle in a cross section along the vehicle front-rear direction, and the front end of the upper wall 22C of the cavity 9 is a free end 10.

The seat member 2 in this embodiment includes a lower member 21 that is fixed to the floor panel 3, and an upper member 22 that is disposed above the lower member 21. The materials of the lower member 21 and the upper member 22 are not limited, but are typically formed by pressing a metal plate-shaped member.

The lower member 21 is fixed to the floor panel 3 by welding or the like. The upper member 22 has the lower leg receiving surface 8, the cavity 9, and the free end 10 described above, and is fixed to the upper side of the lower member 21 by a number of bolts 11.

More specifically, the upper member 22 has a base 22A that abuts against the top surface of the lower member 21, a vertical wall portion 22B that rises from the end of the base 22A on the vehicle rear side (right side in FIG. 2), and an upper wall portion 22C that extends in the vehicle front direction from the upper end of the vertical wall portion 22B. The upper wall portion 22C has a lower leg receiving surface 8 on the vehicle rear side, a horizontal wall 22D that is continuous with the lower leg receiving surface 8 on the vehicle front side, and a free end 10. As a result, the upper member 22 forms a space 9 that is open in the vehicle front direction between the base 22A, the vertical wall portion 22B, and the upper wall portion 22C.

As shown in FIG. 3, the vehicle seat structure of this embodiment has a seat 1 with a left seat (area L), a center seat (area C), and a right seat (area R). In contrast, the seat member 2 is elongated across the width of the vehicle and is disposed in the range from the left seat L to the right seat R.

Furthermore, the seat member 2 in this embodiment has a stepped shape in which the area corresponding to the center seat C is displaced upward. In this case, the seat member 2 in the illustrated example has only the upper wall portion 22C in the area corresponding to the center seat C in the upper member 22, and the upper wall portion 22C is installed between the left and right seats L and R. Therefore, in the area of the upper member 22 corresponding to the center seat C, the space 9 is open in the fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle, and can be used, for example, for routing cables.

Furthermore, the upper member 22 of the seat member 2 has ribs 12 that divide the space 9 in the vehicle width direction on both sides of the seating area for the occupant M, i.e., on both sides of the left seat L, the center seat C, and the right seat R. The upper member 22 in this embodiment is open at both ends in the vehicle width direction, and the ribs 12 are provided to close both ends.

The vehicle seat structure with the above configuration employs a seat member 2 having a lower leg receiving surface 8 that faces the contact area of the thighs of the occupant M via a cushioning material 5, so that when the occupant M sits down, the lower part of the buttocks is not made to feel uncomfortable, and the seat member 2 itself does not cause any discomfort, allowing the occupant M to maintain a stable seated posture.

In the event of an emergency such as a collision, the seat structure for a vehicle prevents the submarine phenomenon of the occupant M by supporting the buttocks of the occupant M who moves forward with the seat member 2, as shown in FIG. 4. In FIG. 4, the occupant M normally seated in the seat 1 is shown by a dotted line, and the occupant M who has moved forward is shown by a virtual line. In reality, the occupant M and the seat member 2 do not come into contact with each other, since a compressed cushion material 5 is interposed between the occupant M and the seat member 2.

In this way, the vehicle seat structure described above can ensure the prevention of the submarine phenomenon for occupant M while improving seating comfort under normal conditions.

In addition, in the above vehicle seat structure, the seat member 2 has a cavity 9 that is open toward the front of the vehicle, and the vehicle front end of the upper wall 22C of the cavity 9 is the free end 10, so that the upper wall portion 22C provides cushioning due to its elasticity. As a result, even if a large load is momentarily applied when the occupant M sits down, the upper wall portion 22C can flex to absorb the impact. Moreover, the seat 1 has a two-layer structure with soft cushioning on the upper side provided by the cushioning material 5 and hard cushioning on the lower side provided by the upper wall portion 22S, which further improves the seating comfort for the occupant M.

Furthermore, in the above vehicle seat structure, the seat member 2 has ribs 12 on both sides of the seating areas L, C, and R of the occupant M, so in addition to the above-mentioned cushioning properties, the rigidity of the seat member 2 can be ensured, further improving the function of preventing the submarine phenomenon.

Furthermore, in the above vehicle seat structure, the seat member 2 is arranged in the range from the left seat L to the right seat R, and has a stepped shape with the range corresponding to the center seat C displaced upward, so that the comfort of the center seat C is improved in the same way as the left and right seats L and R, and good comfort can be uniformly ensured throughout the entire rear seat.

Furthermore, in the above vehicle seat structure, the seat member 2 includes a lower member 21 fixed to the floor panel 3, and an upper member 22 having a lower leg receiving surface 8 and fixed to the upper part of the lower member 21 with a bolt 11, so that the upper member 22 can be detached from the lower member 21. As a result, the vehicle seat structure can secure a working space by removing the upper member 22 when performing work such as fuel pump maintenance, for example, which can contribute to improved maintainability.

The vehicle seat structure according to the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and can of course also be applied to the front seats of a vehicle.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 seat 2 seat member 3 floor panel 5 cushioning material 8 lower leg support surface 9 cavity 10 free end 11 bolt 12 rib 21 lower member 22 upper member 22C upper wall C center seat L left seat M passenger R right seat

Claims (5)

A vehicle seat structure having a seat member for preventing a submarine phenomenon of an occupant seated in a vehicle seat,
A vehicle seat structure, characterized in that the seat member has, at its upper part, a lower leg receiving surface that faces a contact area of the seating surface of the seat with the thighs of an occupant via a cushion material. The vehicle seat structure according to claim 1, characterized in that the seat member has a cross-sectional shape that has a cavity that is open in the vehicle front direction in a cross section along the vehicle front-rear direction, and the vehicle front end of the upper wall of the cavity is a free end. The vehicle seat structure according to claim 2, characterized in that the seat member has ribs on both sides of the seating area for the occupant that divide the space in the vehicle width direction. The seats include a left seat, a center seat, and a right seat,
2. The vehicle seat structure according to claim 1, wherein the seat member is disposed in a range extending from the left seat to the right seat, and has a stepped shape in which the range corresponding to the center seat is displaced upward. the seat member has a lower member fixed to a floor panel of the vehicle and an upper member fixed to an upper portion of the lower member by a bolt,
2. The vehicle seat structure according to claim 1, wherein the upper member has the lower leg receiving surface.

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