JP4763425B2 - Slide adjuster for vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a slide adjuster that slides a vehicle seat in the front-rear direction and positions the vehicle seat at a predetermined position, and particularly relates to a mechanism for locking the slide adjuster.

  Some conventional vehicle slide adjusters have a lock plate provided outside the lower rail in the lateral direction, and the upper rail is locked to the lower rail by the lock plate. However, since this configuration requires a relatively large space, recently, a lock plate is provided inside the upper rail to achieve space saving.

  As an example, a ball unit consisting of a ball and a holder is interposed between the upper rail and the lower rail, and the upper rail is slidably attached to the lower rail, and the lock lever is swingable inside the upper rail. The upper rail is locked or unlocked with respect to the lower rail by attaching and detaching the claw of the lock lever from the inside of the upper rail toward the rectangular engagement hole formed in each of the upper rail and the lower rail. It has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-154356 A (page 3, FIG. 4)

  However, in the slide adjuster described in Patent Document 1, the lock lever is engaged with a pair of front and rear bearing portions formed at both front and rear ends and extending in the lateral direction and formed into a substantially hemispherical shape from the front and rear. A pair of front and rear balls that come into contact with each other and a pair of front and rear curls that are formed in the upper rail and curved in a substantially cylindrical shape and press each ball against each bearing portion are swingably attached to the upper rail. In many cases, the structure is relatively complicated and causes an increase in cost.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle slide adjuster having a simple configuration with a small number of parts that can achieve space saving.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a vehicle slide adjuster in which an upper rail to which a seat is attached is slidably attached to a lower rail attached to a vehicle body. The upper rail has a pair of side wall portions in which a first lock member insertion hole is formed, and the lower rail is formed on the outside of the pair of side wall portions of the upper rail and on the inside of the pair of side wall portions. A plurality of lock claws formed, and forming an outward projecting portion on the pair of side wall portions of the lower rail, and facing the outer projecting portion on the pair of side wall portions of the upper rail. An inward projecting portion is formed, and a plurality of rolling members are interposed between the outer projecting portion of the lower rail and the inner projecting portion of the upper rail so as to freely roll, and the lock portion and the support shaft The lock portion of the lock member is loosely inserted into the lower rail through the first lock member insertion hole of the upper rail, and both ends of the support shaft are connected to the inner rail projecting portion of the upper rail and the lower rail. The plurality of lower rails are attached to lock holes formed in the lock portions by attaching the lock members so as to be swingable by being interposed between the outer projecting portions and urging the lock members by elastic members. The upper rail is locked with respect to the lower rail by inserting a part of the lock claw, and unlocking is performed by swinging the lock member against the urging force of the elastic member. It is characterized by.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the rolling member is constituted by a ball, and a cross-sectional shape passing through the center of the ball and a cross-sectional shape in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the support shaft of the lock member are substantially the same. And the center of the ball is positioned on an extension line of the axis of the support shaft of the lock member.

  Further, in the invention described in claim 3, the lower rail has a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and includes a bottom wall portion, an outer wall portion rising above both edges of the bottom wall portion, and the outer wall portion. The upper rail has a substantially inverted U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and includes an upper wall portion extending substantially horizontally toward the inner side from the upper edge of the upper wall and an inner wall portion suspended from the inner edge of the upper wall portion. An upper wall portion, an inner wall portion depending from both edges of the upper wall portion, a bottom wall portion extending substantially horizontally outward from a lower edge of the inner wall portion, and An outer wall portion that rises above an outer edge, and the outer projecting portion is formed on the outer wall portion of the lower rail, while the inner projecting portion is formed on the outer wall portion of the upper rail. In addition, the plurality of lock claws are formed on the inner wall portion of the lower rail.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a second lock member insertion hole is formed in the inner wall portion of the upper rail so as to oppose the first lock member insertion hole, and the lock member is connected to the first rail. It is loosely inserted from the lock member insertion hole toward the second lock member insertion hole.

  The invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that the elastic member is locked in the second lock member insertion hole.

  According to the present invention, the lock portion of the lock member is loosely inserted into the lower rail, and both ends of the support shaft of the lock member are interposed between the inward protruding portion of the upper rail and the outward protruding portion of the lower rail. As a result, the lock member is pivotably attached, so that the lock member is entirely accommodated in the cross section of the lower rail, and space saving of the slide adjuster can be achieved.

  In addition, since the support shaft of the lock member is pivotably mounted between the inner rail protruding portion of the upper rail and the outer rail protruding portion of the lower rail, there is no need for a separate part for swingably supporting the lock member. Thus, it is possible to realize a vehicle slide adjuster having a simple configuration with a small number of parts.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a vehicle seat S provided with a slide adjuster A according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows the slide adjuster A.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the slide adjusters A are disposed on both sides of the seat S, and are used to set the seat S at a desired position in the vehicle front-rear direction. The vehicle slide adjuster A includes a lower rail 2 and an upper rail 4 that is slidably attached to the lower rail 2 in the front-rear direction. The lower rail 2 is fixed to the vehicle body floor by a pair of front and rear brackets 6, 8. On the other hand, a side frame 10 constituting a seat cushion frame is attached to the upper rail 4.

  Since the pair of left and right slide adjusters A have a symmetrical structure, only the slide adjuster A on one side (right side as viewed from the seat occupant) will be described below with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lower rail 2 has a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and includes a bottom wall portion 2a, an outer wall portion 2b rising above both edges of the bottom wall portion 2a, and an outer wall portion 2b. The upper wall portion 2c extends substantially horizontally from the upper edge toward the inner side, and the inner wall portion 2d hangs down from the inner edge of the upper wall portion 2c. In addition, a large number of rectangular lock grooves 2e are formed at predetermined intervals on the lower edge of the inner wall portion 2d, and lock claws 2f that fit into lock holes of a lock plate described later are formed between the lock grooves 2e. Has been. In the example of FIG. 3, the lock claw 2 f may be formed on at least the inner wall portion 2 d located outside the sheet S. Furthermore, an outward projecting portion 2g extending in the longitudinal direction is formed at an intermediate portion in the height direction of the outer wall portion 2b.

  On the other hand, the upper rail 4 has a substantially inverted U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and includes an upper wall portion 4a, an inner wall portion 4b suspended from both edges of the upper wall portion 4a, and a lower edge of the inner wall portion 4b. The bottom wall 4c extends substantially horizontally toward the outside, and the outer wall 4d rises above the outer edge of the bottom wall 4c. Further, an inner projecting portion 4 e extending in the longitudinal direction is formed at an intermediate portion in the height direction of the outer wall portion 4 d so as to face the outer projecting portion 2 g of the lower rail 2. Further, a rectangular lock plate insertion hole 4f is formed in the middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the outer wall 4d, and a rectangular lock plate insertion opposite to the lock plate insertion hole 4f is formed in the inner wall 4b. A hole 4g is formed.

  The outer wall 2b of the lower rail 2 is located outside the outer wall 4d of the upper rail 4, the upper wall 2c of the lower rail 2 is located above the outer wall 4d of the upper rail 4, and the inner side of the lower rail 2 The wall 2d is located between the inner wall 4b and the outer wall 4d of the upper rail 4.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the lock plate insertion holes 4f and 4g of the upper rail 4 located on the opposite side of the lock pawl 2f of the lower rail 2 are integrally formed with a lock portion 12a and a support shaft 12b. The lock portion 12a of the lock plate 12 having the above is loosely inserted from the lock plate insertion hole 4f toward the lock plate insertion hole 4g, and both ends of the support shaft 12b are connected to the outer projecting portion 2g of the lower rail 2 and the upper rail 4 respectively. It is interposed between the projecting portion 4e.

  The lock plate 12 will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 7. The lock plate 12 is formed by integrally forming a lock portion 12a made of a substantially rectangular metal plate and a cylindrical resin support shaft 12b. A plurality of (for example, four) lock holes 12c into which the lock claws 2f formed on the lower rail 2 are fitted are formed at the same interval as the lock claws 2f. Further, both ends of the support shaft 12b have a spherical shape, and the diameter of the sliding contact portion of the spherical end portion with respect to the outer projecting portion 2g of the lower rail 2 and the inner projecting portion 4e of the upper rail 4 is intermediate between the support shaft 12b. It is set larger than the diameter of the part. That is, the spherical end portion of the support shaft 12b is supported in sliding contact with the outer projecting portion 2g of the lower rail 2 and the inner projecting portion 4e of the upper rail 4 before and after the lock plate insertion hole 4f of the upper rail 4. Therefore, sliding resistance is reduced. The spherical end of the support shaft 12b may be cylindrical.

  Furthermore, between the outer projecting portion 2g of the lower rail 2 and the inner projecting portion 4e of the upper rail 4 on both sides of the slide adjuster A, one roll is provided before and after the lock plate insertion hole 4f of the upper rail 4, respectively. Each rolling unit 14 includes two balls 16 and a retainer 18 that supports the two balls 16 so as to roll freely at a predetermined interval.

  It should be noted that both ends of the support shaft 12b of the lock plate 12 and the ball 16 of the rolling unit 14 are rotatable or rollable between the outer projecting portion 2g of the lower rail 2 and the inner projecting portion 4e of the upper rail 4. Since it is held movably, the cross-sectional shape in the direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the support shaft 12b of the lock plate 12 and the cross-sectional shape passing through the center of the ball 16 of the rolling unit 14 have substantially the same shape. The center of the ball 16 is located on the extension line of the axis of the support shaft 12b of the lock plate 12.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6B, an elastic member 20 formed by bending a metal wire is provided below the lock plate 12, and this elastic member 20 is formed at the center. The lock plate pressing portion 20a and the leg portions 20b formed before and after the lock plate pressing portion 20a, respectively. Concave portions 20c are formed on the left and right sides of each leg portion 20b, and the left and right concave portions 20c are engaged with the lower front edge or lower rear edge of the left and right lock plate insertion holes 4g of the upper rail 4, thereby elastic members 20 being engaged. Is attached to the upper rail 4 and constantly urges the lock portion 12a of the lock plate 12 upward.

  In addition, a lock plate operating member 22 is disposed in front of the lock plate 12, and the lock plate operating member 22 is interposed between the left and right inner wall portions 4 b of the upper rail 4 and has a free play at the center thereof. The upper rail 4 is swingably attached via the inserted pin 24. The rear end portion of the lock plate operating member 22 is located above the front portion of the lock portion 12a of the lock plate 12, and the front end portion of the lock plate operating member 22 is an operation member bent in a substantially U shape. 26, and the other end of the operation member 26 is connected to a front end portion of a lock plate operating member (not shown) of the slide adjuster A located on the opposite side.

  Further, an elastic member 28 formed by bending a metal wire is attached to the upper portion of the lock plate operating member 22, and the front end portion of the lock plate operating member 22 is always biased downward by this elastic member 28. Has been.

  In the vehicle slide adjuster A configured as described above, during operation of the vehicle, the lock plate 12 is urged by the elastic member 20, and some of the plurality of lock claws 2f of the lower rail 2 are fitted into the lock hole 12c. The upper rail 4 is held at a predetermined position with respect to the lower rail 2. FIG. 6A shows this locked state.

  When it is desired to adjust the front / rear position of the seat while the vehicle is stopped, when the operation member 26 provided below the front portion of the seat is lifted, the lock plate operating member 22 is resisted against the elastic force of the elastic member 28. 3 rotates in the direction of arrow B shown in FIG. As a result, the lock portion 12a of the lock plate 12 located below the rear end portion of the lock plate operating member 22 is pushed down against the elastic force of the elastic member 20, and the lock plate 12 has the support shaft 12b as a swing center. It swings in the direction of arrow C shown in FIG. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 6B, the lock hole 12 c of the lock plate 12 is detached from the lock claw 2 f of the lower rail 2, so that the upper rail 4 is unlocked with respect to the lower rail 2.

  In addition, although the elastic member 20 is illustrated in FIG.6 (b), the elastic member 20 is abbreviate | omitted in Fig.6 (a).

  Thereafter, when a load is applied in the front-rear direction of the seat, the upper rail 4 slides in the front-rear direction on the lower rail 2 via the balls 16 held by the retainer 18 so as to be freely rollable. When the hand is released, the lock plate operating member 22 swings in the direction opposite to the arrow B due to the weight of the operation member 26 and the elastic force of the elastic member 28, and the rear end of the lock plate operating member 22 is raised. As a result, the lock plate 12 rotates in the direction opposite to the arrow C due to the elastic force of the elastic member 20, and some of the plurality of lock claws 2f of the lower rail 2 are reinserted into the lock hole 12c. 2 is locked and the sheet is held in that position.

  A stopper 2h that restricts the sliding range of the upper rail 4 in the front-rear direction is formed at the front end portion and the rear end portion of the lower rail 2, and is provided in front of and behind the lock plate insertion hole 4f in the outer wall portion 4d of the upper rail 4. A pair of abutting portions 4h is formed, and the forward sliding of the upper rail 4 with respect to the lower rail 2 is restricted by the front abutting portion 4h of the upper rail 4 abutting against the front stopper 2h of the lower rail 2. On the other hand, rearward sliding of the upper rail 4 with respect to the lower rail 2 is restricted by the rear contact portion 4 h of the upper rail 4 coming into contact with the rear stopper 2 h of the lower rail 2. The stopper 2h of the lower rail 2 is formed by first forming slits on the front and rear sides thereof, and pressing the portion between the two slits toward the inside of the lower rail 2, while the contact portion 4h of the upper rail 4 is formed on the outer side. First, two slits are formed on the upper edge of the wall 4d, and a portion between the two slits is bent approximately 90 degrees inward.

  The vehicle slide adjuster according to the present invention can be applied to various automobiles and the like because the lock mechanism is provided in the section of the lower rail to achieve space saving and the number of parts constituting the lock mechanism is small.

It is a side view of the vehicle seat provided with the slide adjuster concerning this invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the slide adjuster shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of one of the slide adjusters of FIG. 2. It is a perspective view of the upper rail which comprises the slide adjuster of FIG. It is another perspective view of the upper rail which comprises the slide adjuster of FIG. 3A and 3B are cross-sectional views of the slide adjuster of FIG. 2, in which FIG. 2A shows a locked state, and FIG. 2B shows a locked state. It is a bottom view of the lock plate provided in the slide adjuster of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

2 Lower rail 2a Bottom wall part 2b Outer wall part 2c Upper wall part 2d Inner wall part 2e Lock groove 2f Lock claw 2g Outward projecting part 2h Stopper 4 Upper rail 4a Upper wall part 4b Inner wall part 4c Bottom wall part 4d Outer wall Part,
4e Inwardly projecting portion 4f, 4g Lock plate insertion hole 4h Contact portion 6, 8 Bracket 10 Side frame 12 Lock plate 12a Lock portion 12b Support shaft 12c Lock hole 14 Rolling unit 16 Ball 18 Retainer 20 Elastic member 20a Lock plate Press part 20b Leg part 20c Concave part 22 Lock plate operation member 24 Pin 26 Operation member 28 Elastic member A Slide adjuster S Vehicle seat

Claims (5)

In the vehicle slide adjuster in which the upper rail to which the seat is attached is slidably attached to the lower rail attached to the vehicle body,
The upper rail has a pair of side wall portions in which a first lock member insertion hole is formed, and the lower rail has a pair of side wall portions on the outside of the pair of side wall portions of the upper rail and an inner side of the pair of side wall portions. A plurality of locking claws formed on the pair of side walls of the lower rail and forming an outward projecting portion on the pair of side wall portions, and facing the outer projecting portion of the pair of side wall portions of the upper rail. An inward projecting portion is formed on the lower rail, and a plurality of rolling members are interposed between the outer projecting portion of the lower rail and the inner projecting portion of the upper rail so as to be freely rollable. The lock portion of the lock member having a shaft is loosely inserted into the lower rail through the first lock member insertion hole of the upper rail, and both ends of the support shaft are connected to the inwardly protruding portions of the upper rail and the With the outer protruding part of the lower rail The lock member is swingably attached by interposing it, and the lock member is urged by an elastic member, and a part of the plurality of lock claws of the lower rail is inserted into a lock hole formed in the lock portion. And the upper rail is locked to the lower rail, and the lock member is unlocked by swinging the lock member against the biasing force of the elastic member. . The rolling member is constituted by a ball, and a cross-sectional shape passing through the center of the ball and a cross-sectional shape in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the support shaft of the lock member are set to be substantially the same, and the center of the ball is locked to the lock The vehicle slide adjuster according to claim 1, wherein the slide adjuster is positioned on an extension line of an axis of the support shaft of the member. The lower rail has a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and is substantially horizontal toward the inner side from the upper edge of the bottom wall, the outer wall part rising above both edges of the bottom wall part, and the outer wall part. The upper rail is formed by an extending upper wall portion and an inner wall portion depending from the inner edge of the upper wall portion, and the upper rail has a substantially inverted U-shaped cross-sectional shape, and the upper wall portion and the upper wall An inner wall portion that is suspended from both edges of the inner wall portion, a bottom wall portion that extends substantially horizontally outward from the lower edge of the inner wall portion, and an outer wall portion that rises above the outer edge of the bottom wall portion. The outer projecting portion is formed on the outer wall portion of the lower rail, while the inner projecting portion is formed on the outer wall portion of the upper rail, and the plurality of locking claws are formed on the lower rail. 3. The vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle is formed on the inner wall portion. Ride adjuster. A second lock member insertion hole is formed in the inner wall portion of the upper rail so as to oppose the first lock member insertion hole, and the lock member is moved from the first lock member insertion hole to the second lock member. The vehicular slide adjuster according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the vehicular slide adjuster is loosely inserted toward the insertion hole. 5. The vehicle slide adjuster according to claim 4, wherein the elastic member is locked in the second lock member insertion hole.

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