JP2633777B2 - Seat equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a seat apparatus which can be adjusted to a thorax support position which does not impose a burden on the spine of an automobile driver.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Many studies have been made on the shape of a seat for providing a stable seating feeling without imposing a load on the spine of a seated person. As shown in FIG. 6, the back of the person M when standing upright is a so-called S in which the upper and lower parts of the waist are inside.
It is shaped like a letter. Considering that it is the most natural to keep this posture and that the spine is not overreached, it is common to provide a lumbar support 2 that holds the back of the waist forward in the seat 1 as shown in FIG. And it was believed that it alone provided comfort and reduced fatigue.

On the basis of such a concept, attempts have been made to provide the seated person with as much freedom as possible, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 59-168816 and Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-159768. Various seat devices have been proposed.

[0004]

However, according to the study of the inventors, such a conventional technique is a theory biased to static observation in which the user merely sits, It has been found that it is not always adaptable to dynamic situations, such as a driver driving a car.

[0005] In other words, since the driver grasps the steering wheel and operates, it is common to raise the upper body as shown by the arrow in FIG. 8, so that the driver becomes a so-called stoop and fixes his waist. If it becomes stooped, the abdomen will be compressed and it will be painful, so the so-called ass shift phenomenon that brings the buttocks forward will occur, the back of the buttocks will separate from the seat back, and the body will hit too strongly against the lumbar support 2 There was a problem that it would compress the spine.

As described above, according to the above-mentioned theory of keeping the back of the person M in an S-shape when standing upright, in the case of the driver, the body is not supported and becomes unstable, or the conventional lumbar support is used. However, there is a problem that the spine is adversely affected, the spine is supported in a natural state, a stable seating feeling is obtained, and the driver cannot drive the vehicle.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the prior art. Even when a driver sits for a long time and performs a driving operation, the spine is not overloaded. It is an object of the present invention to provide a seat device that has a stable seating feeling and is hard to be tired.

[0008]

According to the research and research by the inventors, when the driver takes a driving posture for a long time, the back is rounded, and the posture in which the buttocks are slightly shifted forward is most difficult for the spine. Verification has been obtained that it is natural.
In other words, the feeling of sitting differs from person to person, and there are also time factors. According to the old theory, the driver is not always comfortable, and an unnatural posture continues for a long time, causing fatigue to accumulate.

[0009] Then, as a result of studying what kind of posture is natural and the spine is not overreached by the driver, the hip point C is located at the position shown in FIG. 4 showing the curve of the vertebra of the seated person. In the upper part, the upper part is raised and the cat stoops as shown in the area A, and the lower part is shifted out of the hips as shown in the area B in the lower part. It was concluded that holding the person M as shown in FIG. 5 in such a manner as to be the least fatigued posture was made, and this state was called a thorax support posture.

The curve of the vertebrae of the seated person shown in FIG.
The case of the angle line D of the seat back having an angle most likely to be used most commonly is shown, and ranges A and B indicated by hatching are shown.
Indicates the range of the thorax support posture. The scale of the vertical and horizontal axes is 50 mm. This curve shows the curve at the most commonly used seatback angle.

In an actual use state, the angle of the seat back is used in a range of about 20 to 45 degrees from the vertical.
When the seat back falls down from the state of FIG. 4, the range of the thorax support posture becomes a more raised state at the upper part, a more protruding state at the lower part, and vice versa when the seat back occurs from the state of FIG. Becomes

Based on the above conclusion, the gist of the present invention for achieving the above object is a seat apparatus (1) which can be adjusted to a thorax support position that does not impose a load on the spine of a motor vehicle, The cushion body of the back (10) includes an upper back portion (11) with which the upper part of the back of the driver comes into contact, a lower back portion (13) corresponding to the back of the driver's hips, and the upper back portion (11). A center back portion (12) between the lower back portion (13) and the back frame (2) for holding the cushion body.
0), a thorax adjusting mechanism (30) for displacing the cushion body is provided, and the thorax adjusting mechanism (30) is provided.
Comprises a back adjustment section (31) provided on the back side of the upper back section (11), a buttocks adjustment section (33) provided on the back side of the lower back section (13), and a drive section (40), The back adjustment section (31) is provided with the upper back section (11).
The upper back support panel (32) tiltably pivotably mounted on the upper portion of the back frame (20) so as to maintain the driver in a thorax support position in which the upper back of the driver is displaced relatively forward from the back position. Having the butt adjuster (33)
When taking the thorax support posture, the lower frame (2) is displaced so that the lower back portion (13) is relatively moved forward, and the rear frame (2) is held so as to hold the driver's hips from behind.
Bottom support panel (3) pivotally attached to the bottom of
4), wherein the driving part (40) is attached to the middle support panel (35) holding the center back part (12) so as to extend in the vertical direction thereof, and a screw member (41) that is driven to rotate. Is screwed relatively rotatably to the upper end side and the lower end side of the screw member (41),
Operating members (42, 43) that move up and down by rotation of the screw member (41);
In conjunction with the rotation of 1), the upper back support panel (3)
An operating member (42) screwed on the upper side of the screw member (41) is attached to a lower end of the upper back support panel (32) so that the rear support panel (32) and the buttocks support panel (34) are tilted to the thorax support position. A seat wherein the operating member (43) screwed to the lower side of the screw member (41) is connected to the upper end of the butt support panel (34) so as to be able to be pushed and pulled while being connected so as to be able to be pushed and pulled. It resides in the device (1).

[0013]

[Function] The driver of the car can use the Thorax adjustment mechanism (3
0), the seat back (10) is displaced to adjust the seat back support posture, and the upper back support panel (32) and the back support panel (3) are driven by the drive unit (40).
4) By holding each state by suppressing the tilting, it is possible to obtain a stable seating feeling that does not burden the spine even when sitting for a long time.

When the screw member (41) of the drive section (40) attached to the mid-back support panel (35) is rotationally driven, the screw member (41) is rotatably screwed to the upper end and the lower end thereof, respectively. Matching operating members (4
2, 43) move up and down.

At this time, in the back adjusting portion (31), the operating member (42) screwed to the upper end side of the screw member (41).
The upper support panel (32), which is connected to the moving member (42), tilts with the vertical movement of the operating member (42). When the upper end side of the upper back support panel (32) is tilted forward, the upper back portion (11) of the cushion body is displaced so as to be relatively forward from the back position, and the upper back portion (11) is moved. Become a lux support posture.

Also, in the buttocks adjusting portion (33), the buttocks support panel (34) connected to the operating member (43) screwed to the lower end of the screw member (41) is moved up and down of the operating member (43). Tilt with movement. When the lower end side of the buttocks support panel (34) is tilted forward, it is displaced so that the lower back portion (13) is relatively forward.
A thorax support posture that holds the driver's buttocks from behind.

The cushion body of the seat back (10)
The state is maintained unless the drive section (40) is operated. Therefore, the cushion body holds the driver's back and buttocks in a state where a load is not applied to the driver's spine, and the driver can comfortably sit in the thorax support posture and drive the automobile.

[0018]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 3 show one embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the seat device 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a thorax adjustment mechanism 30 on a back frame 20 that holds a cushion body 10 a of a seat back 10, and the cushion body is mounted on the back frame 20 by an automobile. 4 and 5 which do not impose a burden on the driver's spine.

The cushion body constituting the seat back 10 has an upper back portion 11 with which the upper part of the driver's back comes into contact.
And a lower back portion 13 corresponding to the back of the driver's buttocks,
It comprises a center back portion 12 between the upper back portion 11 and the lower back portion 13. The cushion body is, for example, foam-formed from urethane foam or the like.

Back frame 2 for holding the cushion body
0 indicates both side portions 21 and 21 and both side portions 21 and 21
And an upper portion 22 connecting the upper ends of the upper portion 21 with each other. The lower end of each side part 21 is provided via a reclining device 25,
It is supported by the rear end of the seat cushion 14.

Support brackets 23 and 24 are integrally provided at the upper and lower ends of each side portion 21, respectively. An upper support panel 32, which will be described later, is pivotably attached to the support bracket 23 at the upper end of the side portion 21.
On the other hand, the support bracket 24 at the lower end of the side portion 21 includes
A butt support panel 34, which will also be described later, is pivotally attached to the tiltable panel.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the thorax adjusting mechanism 30 includes a back adjusting portion 31 provided on the back side of the upper back portion 11, a back adjusting portion 33 provided on the back side of the lower back portion 13, and a center. Drive unit 40 provided on the back side of back unit 12
It is composed of

The back adjustment section 31 has an upper back support panel 32 pivotally attached to the upper portion of the back frame 20 via a support bracket 23. More specifically, the upper back support panel 32 is connected to the support bracket 23 at a substantially central portion on the rear surface side, and the upper and lower edges are tilted in the front-rear direction about the substantially central portion as the center of rotation. The upper back support panel 32 pivotally mounted on the upper surface of the cushion body displaces the upper back portion 11 of the cushion body so as to protrude relatively forward from the back surface of the center back portion 12 together with the tilting. This is to make the support posture. In this case, the tilt angle range of the upper back support panel 32 is set such that the upper back portion 11 forms the thorax support posture shown in the range A in FIG.

The butt adjuster 33 has a butt support panel 34 pivotally attached to the lower portion of the back frame 20 via the support bracket 24 so as to be tiltable. More specifically, the buttocks support panel 34 is connected to the support bracket 24 at a substantially central portion on the back side thereof, and the upper and lower edges of the back frame 20 are tilted in the front-rear direction about the substantially central portion as a rotation center. Such a butt support panel 34 which is pivotally attached displaces the lower back portion 13 of the cushion body so as to swell relatively forward from the back surface of the center back portion 12 together with the tilting thereof, and assumes a thorax support posture. It is to let. In this case, the tilt angle range of the buttocks support panel 34 is set so that the lower back portion 13 forms the thorax support posture shown in the range B in FIG.

The drive section 40 includes an electric motor 44 fixed to side edges of the mid-back support panel 35 holding the center back section 12 via mounting brackets 45, 45, and a vertical direction of the mid-back support panel 35. Screw member 41 arranged to extend and driven to rotate by electric motor 51
And the upper and lower ends of the screw member 41 are relatively rotatably screwed with the electric motor 44 therebetween,
Operation members 42 and 43 which move up and down by the rotation of the screw member 41 are provided.

The thread winding direction on the upper end side of the screw member 41 extending above the electric motor 44 and the electric motor 44
The screw winding direction on the lower end side of the screw member 41 extending downward is opposite to each other, and when the screw member 41 rotates in one direction, the upper operation member 42,
The lower operation member 43 is provided so as to move up and down with respect to each other.

In conjunction with the rotation of the screw member 41, the upper operating member 42 is moved so that the upper support panel 32 and the rear support panel 34 are tilted to the thorax support position.
Is pivotally supported by the lower end of the upper back support panel 32 so as to be able to be pushed and pulled, while the lower operating member 43 is pivotally supported by the upper end of the hip support panel 34 so as to be able to be pushed and pulled.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a thorax sensor 50 is provided at the lower end of the middle support panel 35.
Is provided. The thorax sensor 50 is a sensor that detects that the upper back portion 11 and the lower back portion 13 have moved to a range forming the thorax support posture by detecting the front and rear positions of the lower operation member 43, and specifically, For example, a limit switch can be used.

Next, the operation will be described. As shown in FIG.
The driver of the vehicle operates the thorax adjusting mechanism 30 to displace the seat back 10 to adjust the seat back to the thorax support position.
The tilt of each of the second and buttocks support panels 34 is suppressed and held in this state, and a stable seating feeling that does not impose a load on the spine even when sitting for a long time can be obtained.

As shown in FIG. 2, before the thorax adjustment, the upper back portion 11 held by the upper back support panel 32, the center back portion 12 held by the middle back support panel 35, and the back support panel 34. The rear surfaces of the lower back portion 13 held by the above are substantially on the same plane, and the inclination of the rear surface coincides with the inclination of the angle line D shown in FIG.

The seat back 20 in the normal state shown in FIG.
Drive unit 4 to adjust the
The electric motor 51 is started to rotate the screw member 41 in one direction. When the screw member 41 rotates, the upper operation member 42 and the lower operation member 43 screwed relatively rotatably to the upper end side and the lower end side, respectively.
Move upside down.

At this time, in the back adjustment section 31, the upper back support panel 32 connected to the upper operation member 42 screwed to the upper end side of the screw member 41 is connected to the upper operation member 42.
With the upward and downward movement of the support bracket 23, the support bracket 23 tilts around the tip end thereof. When the upper end side of the upper back support panel 32 is tilted forward to protrude as shown in FIG. 3, the upper back portion 11 of the cushion body is displaced so as to protrude relatively forward from the back position, and the upper back portion 11 becomes Become a lux support posture.

Also, in the buttocks adjusting portion 33, the buttocks support panel 34 connected to the lower operating member 43 screwed to the lower end side of the screw member 41, the tip of the support bracket 24 as the lower operating member 43 moves up and down. Tilt about the center of rotation. When the lower end side of the butt support panel 34 is tilted forward, the lower back portion 13 is displaced relatively forward so as to assume a thorax support position for holding the driver's butt from behind. The middle support panel 35 retreats with the tilting of the upper support panel 32 and the rear support panel 34, and the center back portion 12 held by the middle support panel 35 is displaced so as to be relatively retracted slightly.

Further, at this time, when the lower back portion 13 moves to a position forming the thorax support posture, the lower operation member 43 swings to the detection range of the thorax sensor 50, and a signal from the thorax sensor 50 is output. Since the output is output, if an appropriate display is given to the driver or the like based on this signal, the driver or the like can objectively judge that the driver is in the thorax posture. This eliminates a problem that the driver is not adjusted to the thorax support position due to inexperience or an illusion of the driver, and the adjustment to the thorax support position is reliably performed.

After the adjustment, the state is maintained unless the electric motor 44 is operated. In such a thorax support posture, the body pressure distribution of the seated driver is appropriately dispersed, so that the driver can comfortably sit and drive. On the other hand, when the electric motor 44 of the drive unit 50 is rotated in the reverse direction to return to the normal state in the thorax support position, the upper back support panel 32 and the buttocks support panel 34 gradually rise from the tilted position, and accordingly the cushion body Also returns to the original state.

In the above-described embodiment, the above-mentioned thorax sensor 50 is provided in order to ensure the adjustment to the thorax support position, but instead or together with this configuration, the thorax sensor 50 is provided at an appropriate position on the surface of the apparatus. Upper back part 1
A scale or an indicating line indicating a preferable angle range of the first and lower back portions 13 may be formed.

[0037]

According to the seat device of the present invention, when the screw member constituting the driving portion of the thorax adjusting mechanism is rotationally driven, the upper back portion is displaced so that the driver's back is relatively forward. At the same time, the lower back part moves forward and holds the driver's hips from behind, so that the driver can easily adjust to the Soluxe support position where fatigue does not accumulate even if the driver of the vehicle sits for a long time. The driver can sit and drive the car in a stable state without giving a load to the spine in the lux support posture.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a seat device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a seat device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory view showing a seat device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view for explaining a thorax support posture.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a thorax support posture.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a state of a spine of a human body in an upright posture.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining a support posture in a conventional seat device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a support posture in a conventional seat device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Seat apparatus 10 ... Seat back 11 ... Upper back part 12 ... Center back part 13 ... Lower back part 20 ... Back frame 30 ... Thorax adjustment mechanism 31 ... Back adjustment part 32 ... Upper back support panel 33 ... Butt adjustment part 34 ... Butt support panel 40 ... Driving unit 41 ... Screw member 42,43 ... Operating member

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A seat device that can be adjusted to a thorax support position that does not impose a burden on the spine of a motor vehicle, wherein a cushion body of the seat back has an upper back portion with which an upper portion of the back of the driver abuts, A lower back portion corresponding to the back of the lower back portion and a center back portion between the upper back portion and the lower back portion, and a back frame holding the cushion body is provided with a thorax adjusting mechanism for displacing the cushion body. The thorax adjustment mechanism includes a back adjustment section provided on the back side of the upper back section, a buttocks adjustment section provided on the back side of the lower back section, and a drive section, wherein the back adjustment section includes the upper back section. Part can be tilted to the upper part of the back frame in order to hold the driver in a thorax support position in which the upper back of the driver is displaced forward relative to the back position. An upper back support panel pivotally attached to the butt adjuster, when taking a thorax support position, displaces the lower back portion so as to be relatively forward, so as to hold the driver's butt from behind. A back support panel pivotally attached to the lower portion of the back frame so as to be tiltable, wherein the driving unit is attached to a middle support panel holding the center back unit so as to extend in the up-down direction, and is a screw that is driven to rotate. A member and an operating member which is relatively rotatably screwed to an upper end side and a lower end side of the screw member, and has an operating member which moves up and down by rotation of the screw member. An operating member screwed on the upper side of the screw member is moved to the upper back so that the upper back support panel and the back support panel are tilted to the thorax support position. While push pull coupled to the lower end of port panels, seating apparatus, characterized in that the operating member screwed on the lower side of the screw member, and linked to push pull the upper end of the butt support panel.