JP7107828B2 - Vehicle seat slide device - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vehicle seat slide device that slidably supports a seat mounted on a vehicle for adjusting the position of the seat, and more particularly to improvement of its locking mechanism.

As is well known, this type of vehicle seat slide device includes a lower rail fixed to the floor surface of the vehicle and an upper rail fitted to the lower rail so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction and on which the seat is mounted. , and a lock mechanism for locking and unlocking the position of the upper rail with respect to the lower rail.

As the structure of the lock mechanism, for example, those described in Patent Documents 1 to 3 have been proposed.

In the seat slide device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a lock member (lock lever) arranged in the upper rail is supported so as to be rotatable (swingable) around an axis along the longitudinal direction of the rail. A pair of front and rear balls are used to support the curled portion in a bearing, and a plate spring type spring member is used to bias the curled portion in the locking direction.

Further, in the seat slide device disclosed in Patent Document 2, an opening is formed in the side wall of the upper rail, and a lock member arranged across the inside and outside of the upper rail through the opening can swing along the edge of the opening. In addition, the structure is such that a single spring member obtains the pressing and supporting force of the locking member against the opening and the urging force of the locking member in the locking direction.

Further, in the seat slide device disclosed in Patent Document 3, the difference between the urging forces at the time of locking and unlocking is reduced as urging means for urging the lock member swingably supported in the upper rail in the locking direction. Therefore, the structure adopts so-called wire forms type lock springs in which a single wire rod is bent into a predetermined three-dimensional shape.

JP-A-2002-154356 DE 10 2005 003 032 (B4) Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-335104

However, in the structure described in Patent Document 1, although the overall compactness is achieved, the bearing structure uses a plurality of balls. There is a problem that the number of parts including the lock spring increases, and it takes time to assemble the lock mechanism.

In addition, although the structure described in Patent Document 2 does not require a separate part for bearing support as in Patent Document 1, it not only cannot ensure a large swing angle (rotation angle) of the lock member, but also If you try to increase the dynamic angle, there is a drawback that the operation stability is lacking.

Furthermore, in the structure described in Patent Document 3, although the space occupied by the lock spring can be reduced, it cannot contribute to the reduction in the number of parts of the lock mechanism, and there is still room for improvement.

The present invention has been made with a focus on such problems, and in order to contribute to further miniaturization and weight reduction of the seat rail, the support structure of the lock member is simplified, and in particular, the number of parts and the lock mechanism are reduced. An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle seat slide device in which the operational stability of members is improved.

The present invention is for a vehicle comprising a lower rail, an upper rail slidably fitted to the lower rail in the longitudinal direction, and a locking mechanism for locking and unlocking the upper rail when adjusting the position of the upper rail with respect to the lower rail. It is a seat slide device.

The lower rail includes a bottom wall portion, side wall portions extending upward from both sides of the bottom wall portion in the width direction, an upper wall portion formed by bending the upper ends of the side wall portions inward, and an inner end of the upper wall portion. and a downwardly bent downward flange portion.

The upper rail has a top wall, side walls extending downward from both sides of the top wall in the width direction, and upward flanges formed by bending the lower ends of the side walls outward and upward.

The lock mechanism is capable of swinging about an axis along the longitudinal direction of the rail, and engages and locks the downward flange portion of the lower rail and one side wall portion of the upper rail at an overlapping portion thereof. and a lock spring that biases the lock member at least in the locking direction.

Further, a bearing formed as an inner corner is provided at the lower end of one side wall of the upper rail, and a shaft functioning as a pivoting center of the lock member is placed on the bearing so as to be pivotally displaceable. It is

Further, the lock spring includes a seat portion that is seated on a portion of the upper rail, an intermediate locking portion that engages with an upper portion of the lock member and biases the lock member in a lock direction, and the lock member. and a lower engaging portion that engages with the lower portion of the shaft portion to bias the shaft portion against the bearing portion.

In a preferred mode for optimizing the arrangement of parts, the bearing portion is formed diagonally with respect to an upper inner corner formed by the other side wall portion of the upper rail and the top wall portion, and The lower locking portion of the lock spring biases the shaft portion against the bearing portion along a diagonal line connecting the bearing portion and the upper inner corner portion.

Preferably, the lock spring has a side engaging portion that regulates the position of the shaft portion relative to the bearing portion in the rail longitudinal direction. ing.

In a desirable mode for further reducing the number of parts, the lock spring extends from a seating portion seated at an upper inner corner formed by the other side wall portion of the upper rail and the top wall portion, and extends along the top wall portion. and an intermediate bent portion extending in the longitudinal direction of the rail from the seating portion and folded back in a substantially U shape, and the central portion in the longitudinal direction including the intermediate locking portion is bent into an arch shape. and a long bar-shaped portion extending downward from the intermediate bent portion and bent into a substantially S-shape or a substantially inverted S-shape, and a lower end serving as the lower locking portion. and a flexure.

As a more specific aspect of the lock spring, the compound curved portion cooperates with the intermediate bent portion to generate a spring force along a diagonal direction connecting the bearing portion and the upper inner corner. Based on this spring force, the shaft portion is urged in the direction of pressing against the bearing portion.

As a preferred mode for securing an operating space for an operation member for operating the lock member, the compound curved portion is continuous with the intermediate bent portion, and the portion other than the lower locking portion is the It is arranged along one side wall of the upper rail.

As a more desirable mode for restricting rattling and movement of the lock member in the longitudinal direction of the rail, a folded curved portion that is folded back in the rail width direction is formed continuously with each of the compound curved portions. A portion of the curved portion serves as the side locking portion, and an end portion of the folded curved portion is locked to a portion of the upper rail. The position of the lock member in the rail longitudinal direction is regulated by sandwiching it from both sides.

More specifically, as a mode, the end portion of the folded curved portion serves as a terminal engaging portion, and this terminal engaging portion is engaged with a hole formed in one side wall portion of the upper rail.

Therefore, in the present invention, the shaft portion of the lock member is mounted on the bearing portion formed as the inner corner portion of the lower end of one side wall portion of the upper rail, and the lock member is driven by the single lock spring in the lock direction. is biased toward the shaft portion and is biased in a direction to press the shaft portion against the bearing portion. The lock member is swingably displaceable about an axis along the longitudinal direction of the rail with the bearing portion as a swing fulcrum. Unlocked state is possible.

According to the present invention, the shaft portion of the lock member is supported by the bearing portion at the lower end of one side wall portion of the upper rail while being pressed by the lock spring. , so that the bearing structure of the lock member can be simplified and the number of parts can be reduced. In addition, the rocking motion of the lock member can be stabilized and the rocking angle of the lock member can be increased, resulting in high reliability.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of one seat rail of two seat rails used as a set, showing a first embodiment of a seat slide device according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the seat rail shown in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. 2; FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line aa of FIG. 3; FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing details of a Q portion in FIG. 1; The perspective view which looked at the inside of the upper rail shown in FIG. 4 from the left direction of the same figure. Sectional drawing along the cc line of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the lock spring shown in FIG. 1;

1 to 8 show a more specific first embodiment for carrying out the seat slide device according to the present invention, and in particular FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of one (right side) of a set of left and right seat rails. A pair of left and right seat rails have the same structure on each side, and are arranged side by side in the vehicle width direction so as to be parallel to each other.

2 is a cross-sectional view along the rail longitudinal direction of the seat rail 1 shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a main portion of FIG. Furthermore, FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the seat rail 1 shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 correspond to the bb line section of FIG. 4, and FIG. 4 corresponds to the aa line section of FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the seat rail 1 can be roughly divided into a lower rail 2 and an upper rail fitted and held so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction with respect to the lower rail 2. 3 and a lock mechanism 4 for locking and unlocking the upper rail 3 with respect to the lower rail 2 . A seat (not shown) is fixed on the upper rail 3 by bolts and nuts, etc., and the lower rail 2 is fixed to the floor of the vehicle body (not shown) by bolts and nuts. Inside the upper rail 3, a locking mechanism 4 having a locking member 9, which will be described later, as a main element is accommodated and arranged.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the lower rail 2 is formed by bending a metal plate to have a substantially deformed U-shaped cross section with an open upper surface. The lower rail 2 includes a bottom wall portion 2a, side wall portions 2b and 2c extending upward from both sides of the bottom wall portion 2a in the rail width direction, and upper ends of the side wall portions 2b and 2c that are bent inward. It has wall portions 2d and 2e and downward flange portions 2f and 2g formed by bending the inner ends of the upper wall portions 2d and 2e downward. In the present embodiment, as is clear from FIG. 2, in addition to the height and shape of the left and right side wall portions 2b and 2c, the shape of the left and right upper wall portions 2d and 2e and the downward flange portions 2f and 2g are different from each other. are different.

On the other hand, the upper rail 3, which is slidably fitted and held inside the lower rail 2, is formed by bending a metal plate to have a roughly U-shaped cross section with an open lower surface. The upper rail 3 includes a top wall portion 3a, left and right side wall portions 3b and 3c extending downward from both sides of the top wall portion 3a in the rail width direction, and lower ends of the side wall portions 3b and 3c directed outward and upward. and upwardly bent flange portions 3d and 3e. On the one side wall portion 3b side, a middle leg portion 3f is provided at the root portion side of the upward flange portion 3d in order to secure a rolling surface of a rolling element, which will be described later, between the side wall portion 3b and the upward flange portion 3d. is formed. In the present embodiment, as is clear from FIG. 2, the heights and shapes of the left and right upward flange portions 3d and 3e are different from each other.

When the upper rail 3 is slidably assembled to the lower rail 2, as shown in FIG. Similarly, the other downward flange portion 2g on the side of the lower rail 2 is fitted between the other side wall portion 3c and the upward flange portion 3e of the upper rail 3 so that the downward flange portion 2f is sandwiched between them. be. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the cross-sectional shape of the seat rail 1 (the cross-sectional shape perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the rail) formed by combining the lower rail 2 and the upper rail 3 is left-right asymmetrical. However, the cross-sectional shape of the seat rail 1 may be symmetrical depending on the required functions.

In addition, between the lower rail 2 and the upper rail 3, a plurality of steel rolling elements are held as rolling elements by retainers 5 (see FIG. 2), which are independent of each other on the left and right in the rail width direction and on the front and back in the rail longitudinal direction. A ball 6 is interposed. In order to hold these steel balls 6, ball rolling grooves 7a and 7b are formed in the middle leg portion 3f on the root side and the tip portion of the upward flange portion 3d on one side of the upward flange portion 3d of the upper rail 3, respectively. is formed. Steel balls 6 are interposed between the ball rolling grooves 7a and 7b and the upper and lower inner corners of the lower rail 2, respectively.

On the other hand, on the side of the other upward flange portion 3e of the upper rail 3, ball rolling grooves 8a and 8b are formed on the upper and lower surfaces thereof, respectively. Steel balls 6 are interposed between the ball rolling grooves 8a and 8b and the upper and lower inner corners of the lower rail 2, respectively. 4, illustration of the retainer 5 is omitted.

More specifically, a pair of left and right substantially rectangular retainers 5 are provided at the front and rear ends of the seat rail 1 shown in FIG. is retained. These steel balls 6 roll following the sliding movement of the upper rail 3, so that the upper rail 3 can move smoothly. Although each retainer 5 holding the steel balls 6 can slide following the movement of the upper rail 3, it may deviate from the range where the lower rail 2 and the upper rail 3 overlap in the longitudinal direction of the rail. The position is regulated so that there is no

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and FIGS. 3 and 4, a lock for locking and unlocking the position of the upper rail (seat) 3 with respect to the lower rail 2 in the front-rear direction is provided at the intermediate portion of the upper rail 3 in the longitudinal direction. A mechanism 4 is provided.

The lock mechanism 4 includes, as functional parts, a lock member 9 disposed inside the upper rail 3, and a lock member 9 disposed together with the lock member 9 inside the upper rail 3 so that the lock member 9 is attached at least in the lock direction as will be described later. A lock spring 10 as an urging means for urging, a square bar-shaped release lever 11 as an operation member disposed in front of the lock member 9 inside the upper rail 3, and a return spring for the release lever 11 (return spring). spring) 12; An operation handle (not shown) is connected to the release lever 11 so as to extend the release lever 11 toward the front side of the rail.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, an operation claw portion 11a is bent at the distal end of the release lever 11. This operation claw portion 11a, as shown in FIGS. facing upwards. As shown in FIG. 3, an engagement groove 11b is formed in the lower surface of the release lever 11, and a return spring 12 bent into a deformed U-shape is engaged in the engagement groove 11b. . Locking ends 12a on both sides of the return spring 12 are inserted and locked into locking holes 13 formed in both side walls 3b and 3c of the upper rail 3. As shown in FIG.

A substantially inverted T-shaped support leg portion 14 is formed so as to be cut downward from the top wall portion 3a of the upper rail 3, and the lower end surface of the support leg portion 14 is slightly wider than the locking groove 11b. The upper surface of the release lever 11 is in contact with the front position. The release lever 11 can be pivotally displaced around the support leg portion 14 as a fulcrum, and the intermediate portion of the return spring 12 is engaged with the upper end surface of the support leg portion 14 to move the release lever 11 to the rear side of the fulcrum. It is biased in the lifting direction. Therefore, the release lever 11 self-holds the state shown in FIG.

On the other hand, corresponding to the lock mechanism 4, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, one downward flange portion 2f of the lower rail 2 is provided with a large number of predetermined rectangular lock holes 15 along its longitudinal direction. are formed side by side at a pitch of

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the Q portion of the upper rail 3 shown in FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the inside of the upper rail 3 shown in FIG. 4 as seen from the left direction of the figure.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 in addition to FIG. For example, four lock holes 16 are formed. Further, in one of the upward flange portions 3d of the upper rail 3, four lock grooves 17 are formed in a so-called comb-teeth shape, for example, four lock grooves 17 so as to match the positions of the lock holes 16 in the middle portion in the rail longitudinal direction. . The pitches of the lock holes 16 and the lock grooves 17 are the same as the pitch of the lock holes 15 on the lower rail 2 side shown in FIG.

Therefore, the upper rail 3, which is slidable in the longitudinal direction with respect to the lower rail 2, matches the lock hole 16 and the lock groove 17 on the upper rail 3 side with the lock hole 15 on the lower rail 2 side at any position in the longitudinal direction. It is possible to

FIG. 7 shows a cross-sectional view along line cc of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 in addition to FIG. 4, below the four lock grooves 17 shown in FIGS. A pair of front and rear locking vertical wall portions 18 extending upward and a pair of front and rear locking bottom wall portions 19 projecting inwardly of the rail and spaced apart by a predetermined distance in the rail longitudinal direction are respectively formed.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pair of locking vertical wall portions 18 are formed by cutting upward a part of the middle leg portion 3f in which the ball rolling grooves 7a for the steel balls 6 are formed. there is On the other hand, the pair of locking bottom wall portions 19 are wider than the locking vertical wall portion 18, and are formed by cutting and raising the lower end portion of one side wall portion 3b until it becomes horizontal. As shown in FIG. 4, each pair of locking vertical wall portion 18 and locking bottom wall portion 19 forms a substantially right-angled inner corner shape when viewed from the front.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7, the longitudinal locking wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 on the front side, and the longitudinal locking wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 on the rear side are separated from each other in the longitudinal direction of the rail. Positionally, some of them overlap each other. As a result, the above angle of the area W where the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 on the front side and the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 on the rear side overlap with each other is formed. The space is an arc-shaped lower inner corner 20 with a predetermined curvature as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the lower inner corner portion 20 of the upper rail 3 is diagonal to the upper inner corner portion 21 formed by the ceiling wall portion 3a of the upper rail 3 and the other side wall portion 3c. The lower inner corner 20 and the upper inner corner 21 are diagonally opposed to each other.

5 and 6, one side wall portion 3b of the upper rail 3 is formed with a pair of openings 19a by cutting and raising the pair of locking bottom wall portions 19 inward. In addition, an oval locking hole 22 is formed adjacent to each opening 19a.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lock member 9, which is a constituent element of the lock mechanism 4 described above, is formed by three-dimensionally bending a plate-like component as a base material. As shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6, the lock member 9 has a flat base portion 23 in the middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the rail, and the front and rear portions of the base portion 23 are bent obliquely downward at two locations to form a pair of slanted rails. A shaped leg 24 is formed. A base portion of the leg portion 24 on the front side near the base portion 23 serves as a pressing operation portion 25 by the operation claw portion 11a of the release lever 11 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 and 4, a base portion 23 of the lock member 9 has four so-called comb-like lock claws 26 protruding in the rail width direction. The pitch of these four lock claws 26 matches the pitch of the lock holes 15, 16 on the lower rail 2 and upper rail 3 side shown in FIGS.

4 and 6, the base portion 23 of the lock member 9 has a single sideways locking piece 27 and its sideways locking piece 27 facing in the direction opposite to the locking claw 26. A pair of downward engaging pieces 28 that are bent obliquely downward are formed to protrude at the front and rear positions of the . As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the inner corners formed by the single lateral locking piece 27 and the pair of downward locking pieces 28 serve as a spring locking portion of a lock spring 10 to be described later with respect to the locking member 9. it will work.

Furthermore, as shown enlarged in FIGS. 4 and 7 in addition to FIG. 1, the tip portions of the pair of leg portions 24 of the locking member 9 are projecting portions projecting in opposite directions so as to widen only those portions. 29 is formed. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the ends of the pair of legs 24, including the projecting portion 29, are bent upward with a predetermined curvature into a semi-cylindrical shape or a U-shape to form a so-called incomplete curl shape. , the curled portion functions as the shaft portion 30 of the lock member 9. As shown in FIG.

The pair of shafts 30 are positioned on the same axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the rail and face the outside of one side wall 3b through the opening 19a shown in FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6, 7, in a region W (see FIG. 7) where the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 overlap in the longitudinal direction of the rail, Shafts 30 are individually bearing-supported at the lower inner corners 20 so as to be oscillatingly displaceable. Therefore, the pair of shaft portions 30 function as the center of swinging of the locking member 9 as will be described later, and the substantially right-angled lower inner corner portion formed by the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 is formed. 20 serve as bearings for a pair of shafts 30 . In place of the locking vertical wall portion 18 that forms the lower inner corner portion 20 for bearing-supporting the shaft portion 30, the root portion of the upward flange portion 3d shown in FIG. 4 can be used as it is. can.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lock spring 10, which is a component of the lock mechanism 4, is formed by bending a single wire rod made of spring steel into a three-dimensional shape that is symmetrical in the front and rear directions so as to exhibit a predetermined spring characteristic. , which are formed as single so-called wire forms.

FIG. 8 shows a single enlarged view of the lock spring 10 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the lock spring 10 generally includes a pair of overhanging curved portions 10a that greatly overhang in the longitudinal direction of the rail and are bent back to form a substantially U-shape in the vertical direction. , an intermediate bent portion 10b that is bent substantially at a right angle in plan view at the upper inner end portions of the pair of overhanging curved portions 10a, and an intermediate bent portion 10b that extends downward while continuing to the intermediate bent portion 10b, and is substantially S A pair of compound curved portions 10c that are curved to form a letter or an inverted S shape and a pair of compound curved portions 10c that are curved in the rail width direction so as to be folded back in the vicinity of the compound curved portions 10c. and a folded curved portion 10d. The intermediate bent portion 10b extends in the rail width direction between the overhanging curved portion 10a and the compound curved portion 10c so as to connect the two, and can be seen in plan view together with the end portions of the overhanging curved portion 10a and the compound curved portion 10c. It is roughly U-shaped. A long bar-shaped portion 10e, which is the lower portion of the projecting curved portions 10a and whose longitudinal central portion is smoothly curved into a substantially arched shape, connects the front and rear projecting curved portions 10a to each other. extending in the direction The curved shape of the pair of compound curved portions 10c may be a substantially crank-shaped curved shape instead of the substantially S-shaped or inverted S-shaped.

4 and 8, of the upper inner ends of the pair of overhanging curved portions 10a, the portion near the intermediate bent portion 10b is slightly bent from the bent portion 110 and is omitted from the plan view. The portion corresponding to the bent portion 110 functions as a seating portion P1 that rests on the upper inner corner portion 21 formed by the ceiling wall portion 3a of the upper rail 3 and the other side wall portion 3c. Further, of the elongated bar-shaped portion 10e, an intermediate portion in the rail longitudinal direction that is offset inward in the rail width direction is the inner corner formed by the lateral locking piece 27 and the downward locking piece 28 of the lock member 9. It functions as an intermediate locking portion P2 that is locked to the portion.

Similarly, in the lock spring 10, the lower portion of the pair of compound curved portions 10c curved in a substantially S-shape or an inverted S-shape is positioned below the intermediate locking portion P2 and on one side of the upper rail 3 in FIG. The lower end portions function as a pair of front and rear lower engaging portions P3 that are engaged with the inner peripheral surfaces of the pair of shaft portions 30 of the locking member 9. As shown in FIG. 6 and 7, the inner ends of the pair of folded curved portions 10d that are curved in a U shape are positioned forwardly or rearwardly of the pair of leg portions 24 of the lock member 9, as shown in FIGS. They function as a pair of side locking portions P4 to be locked. Furthermore, the end portions of the pair of folded curved portions 10d function as terminal locking portions P5 that are inserted into and locked to the locking holes 22 of one side wall portion 3b shown in FIGS.

By adopting such a lock spring 10, as shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6, the bent portion 110 of the overhanging curved portion 10a is seated on the inner and lower surfaces of the top wall portion 3a of the upper rail 3 as the seating portion P1, and The middle locking portion P2 of the elongated rod-shaped portion 10e is positioned at the inner corner formed by the horizontal locking piece 27 and the downward locking piece 28 of the locking member 9, and the lower locking portion P3 is positioned at the inner peripheral surface of each shaft portion 30. Further, the side engaging portion P4 is engaged with each leg portion 24, and the terminal engaging portion P5 is engaged with the engaging hole 22, respectively.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 4, the spring characteristics of the intermediate bent portion 10b and the compound curved portion 10c urge the seat portion P1 and the lower locking portion P3 in a direction to move away from each other. The portion P1 is held in a state of being locked by the upper inner corner portion 21, and the intermediate locking portion P2 is biased rightward in FIG. , is urged upward in the height direction of the upper rail 3 . That is, at the intermediate engaging portion P2, the spring characteristics are simultaneously exerted in the combined direction of the rail width direction and the height direction of the upper rail 3. As shown in FIG.

Therefore, the lock spring 10 is self-supported by the upper rail 3 in the state shown in FIG. As a dynamic fulcrum, it is biased in the clockwise direction in the figure, that is, in the locking direction. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, when the lock hole 15 on the lower rail 2 side and the lock hole 16 and the lock groove 17 on the upper rail 3 side overlap and match each other, a plurality of locks of the lock member 9 are prevented. The claw 26 passes through the lock holes 15 and 16 and also engages with the lock groove 17 to maintain the locked state.

At the same time, as shown in FIG. 4, in the locked state of the lock member 9, the pair of leg portions 24 of the lock member 9 are oriented in the diagonal direction connecting the lower inner corner portion 20 and the upper inner corner portion 21 of the upper rail 3. , and the slanted piece portion 10f of the lock spring 10 that is close to the lower engaging portion P3 extends parallel to the extending direction of the pair of leg portions 24 of the lock member 9. is doing. Therefore, the shaft portion 30 of the lock member 9 is pressed against the lower inner corner portion 20 formed by the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19, and the lock member 9 is rotated counterclockwise from the state shown in FIG. Even if the unlocking operation is performed by swinging in the direction, the state in which the shaft portion 30 of the locking member 9 is pressed against the lower inner corner portion 20 is continuously maintained.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, the substantially U-shaped side engaging portion P4 of the lock spring 10 is in contact with the end edges of the pair of front and rear shaft portions 30 of the lock member 9, and the lock member 9 are urged from the rail longitudinal direction (front-to-rear direction) with opposing forces. Therefore, the position of the lock member 9 in the longitudinal direction with respect to the upper rail 3 is regulated, and the rattling or movement of the lock claw 26 with respect to the lock holes 15 and 16 and the lock groove 17 and the generation of hammering noise due to vibration are prevented. It is designed to be prevented.

As described above, the lock spring 10 shown in FIG. 8 is formed into a complicated three-dimensional shape, so that the seat portion P1 of the lock spring 10 is held by the upper inner corner portion 21 by self-elastic force, and The biasing force of the plurality of lock claws 26 of the lock member 9 in the locking direction, the biasing force pressing the pair of shaft portions 30 functioning as swing fulcrums against the lower inner corner portion 20 as the bearing support portion, and the upper rail 3 The single lock spring 10 obtains the biasing force for position regulation in the front-rear direction. As a result, the lock spring 10 substantially functions as a compound spring capable of simultaneously obtaining three biasing forces acting in mutually different directions.

As shown in FIG. 8, the lock spring 10 is formed by bending a single wire many times. The shape is designed so that the wires do not interfere with each other.

3, 4 and 6 show the locked state of the seat slide device constructed in this way, so that the release lever 11 shown in FIG. As long as it is not granted, the lock state is stably maintained.

On the other hand, when an operating force is applied to the release lever 11 in the clockwise direction in FIG. 3 with the supporting leg portion 14 as a fulcrum, the release lever 11 swings in the same direction. As the release lever 11 swings, the operation claw 11a at the tip of the release lever 11 comes into contact with the pressing operation portion 25 at the base of the leg 24 on the front side of the lock member 9, thereby releasing the lock member 9. push down.

The locking member 9, which receives the downward force from the release lever 11, swings counterclockwise in FIG. dynamic displacement. As the lock member 9 swings, the plurality of lock claws 26 come out of the lock holes 15 and 16 and the lock groove 17 on the lower rail 2 and upper rail 3 sides to enter an unlocked (unlocked) state. As shown in FIG. 4, a stopper 39 for restricting the stroke when the lock member 9 is rotated in the unlocking direction is formed by cutting and bending the other side wall portion 3c of the upper rail 3 substantially horizontally.

As a result, the upper rails 3 are allowed to slide relative to the lower rails 2 for the first time, and the position of the seat (not shown) mounted on the upper rails 3 can be adjusted in the longitudinal direction.

In this unlocked state, of the lock spring 10, the long rod-shaped portion 10e including the intermediate locking portion P2 shown in FIGS. The portion of ( ) does not displace greatly and maintains the self-holding state shown in FIG. Therefore, even in the unlocked state, the locking member 9 is biased in the locking direction in the same manner as in the locked state, and both shafts 30 are pushed toward the lower inner corners 20 on the upper rail 3 side. A biasing force that presses the lock member 9 and a biasing force that regulates the position of the lock member 9 in the rail longitudinal direction are acting.

On the other hand, when the operating force applied to the release lever 11 of FIG. 3 is released, the release lever 11 returns to its original state by the return force (biasing force) of the return spring 12, while the lock member 9 is also locked. The urging force in the direction returns to the original locked state as shown in FIG.

Note that the type and shape of the lock spring 10 are not necessarily limited to those shown in FIG.

As described above, according to the seat slide device of the present embodiment, in the lock mechanism 4, the pair of shaft portions 30 functioning as the swing fulcrum of the lock member 9 are integrally formed with the lock member 9 itself. Since the shaft portions 30 are pressed against the lower inner corner portions 20 as bearing portions formed by the engaging vertical wall portion 18 and the engaging bottom wall portion 19 on the upper rail 3 side, the bearings are supported. In addition to the reduction in the number of parts, the structure of the bearing can be simplified, and the operational stability is excellent even if the rocking angle of the lock member 9 is increased.

The lock spring 10 has a function of urging the lock member 9 in the locking direction, a function of urging the pair of shaft portions 30 of the lock member 9 in a direction to press against the lower inner corner portion 20, and the lock member 9. and the function of regulating the position of the lock member 9 by biasing it from both sides in the longitudinal direction of the rail with opposing forces. This is advantageous in reducing the weight and size of the seat rail 1 .

Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, in addition to the above effects, there are advantages as listed below.

(1) As shown in FIG. 4, the lower inner corners 20 supporting the pair of shafts 30 are formed diagonally with respect to the upper inner corners 21 of the upper rail 3, and are locked. The spring 10 urges the shaft 30 against the lower inner corner 20 along the diagonal connecting the lower inner corner 20 and the upper inner corner 21 . Therefore, the arrangement of parts within the upper rail 3 can be optimized, which is more advantageous in reducing the weight and size of the seat rail 1 .

(2) As shown in FIG. 7, the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 forming the lower inner corner portion 20 partially overlap each other in the rail longitudinal direction of the upper rail 3. are formed so as to be offset from each other. Therefore, it is advantageous in ensuring the rigidity of the upper rail 3 in which the engaging vertical wall portion 18 and the engaging bottom wall portion 19 are cut and raised.

(3) As shown in FIG. 7, the pair of shafts 30 are provided at both ends of the lock member 9 in the longitudinal direction of the rail. On the other hand, the locking vertical wall portion 18 and the locking bottom wall portion 19 forming the lower inner corner portion 20 are provided at two locations in the longitudinal direction of the rail corresponding to the positions of the respective shaft portions 30. A pair of locking vertical wall portions 18 are arranged between a pair of locking bottom wall portions 19 . Therefore, of the upper rail 3, a pair of locking vertical wall portions 18 are formed by cutting and raising part of the middle leg portion 3f forming the ball rolling grooves 7a for the steel balls 6 shown in FIG. Even so, there is an advantage that the range in which the rolling of the steel balls 6 is restricted is small, and the rolling range of the steel balls 6 in the longitudinal direction of the rail can be secured as long as possible.

(4) As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the lock member 9 has a pressing operation portion 25 for swinging and displacing the lock member 9 downward when the unlocking operation is performed. A release lever 11 as an operation member for pressing is also arranged in the upper rail 3 together with the lock member 9 . That is, each of the lock member 9 including the pressing operation portion 25, the lock spring 10, and the release lever 11, which are components of the lock mechanism 4, includes both the lower rail 2 and the upper rail 3 and is perpendicular to the rail longitudinal direction. A part of the lock mechanism 4 does not protrude in the rail width direction. Therefore, it is more advantageous to reduce the weight and size of the seat rail 1 .

(5) In the lock spring 10, the pair of terminal locking portions P5 are engaged with the locking holes 22 of one side wall portion 3b, respectively, and the locking member 9 is biased from both sides in the longitudinal direction of the rail with opposing forces. Since the position of the lock member 9 is regulated, rattling and movement of the lock member 9, as well as generation of hammering noise due to vibration, can be effectively prevented.

(6) Of the lock spring 10, the intermediate bent portion 10b is arranged along the top wall portion 3a of the upper rail 3, and the compound curved portion 10c is arranged along one side wall portion 3b of the upper rail 3. . Therefore, in the narrow internal space of the upper rail 3, an operating space for the release lever 11, which is an operating member, can be effectively secured.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Seat rail 2... Lower rail 2a... Bottom wall part 2b, 2c... Side wall part 2d, 2e... Upper wall part 2f, 2g... Downward flange part 3... Upper rail 3a... Top wall part 3b, 3c... Side wall part 3d, 3e... Upward flange portion 3f Middle leg portion 4 Lock mechanism 9 Lock member 10 Lock spring 10b Intermediate bending portion 10c Compound curved portion 10d Folded curved portion 10e Elongated rod portion 11 Release lever (operating member)
20... Lower inner corner (bearing part)
21 Upper inner corner portion 22 Locking hole 26 Lock claw 30 Shaft 110 Bent portion P1 Seating portion P2 Intermediate locking portion P3 Lower locking portion P4 Side locking portion P5 Terminal locking portion stop

Claims (8)

A seat slide device for a vehicle, comprising: a lower rail; an upper rail slidably fitted to the lower rail in the longitudinal direction; ,
The lower rail includes a bottom wall portion, side wall portions extending upward from both sides in the width direction of the bottom wall portion, an upper wall portion formed by bending an upper end of the side wall portion inward, and an inner end of the upper wall portion. a downwardly bent downward flange,
The upper rail has a top wall portion, side wall portions extending downward from both sides in the width direction of the top wall portion, and upward flange portions formed by bending the lower ends of the side wall portions outward and upward,
The lock mechanism is capable of swinging about an axis along the longitudinal direction of the rail, and engages and locks the downward flange portion of the lower rail and one side wall portion of the upper rail at an overlapping portion thereof. and a lock spring that biases the lock member at least in the locking direction,
a bearing formed as an inner corner at the lower end of one side wall of the upper rail;
A shaft portion functioning as a swing center of the lock member is mounted on the bearing portion so as to be swingably displaceable,
The lock spring includes a seat portion that is seated on a portion of the upper rail, an intermediate locking portion that engages with an upper portion of the lock member and biases the lock member in a locking direction, and a lower portion of the lock member. A vehicle seat slide device, comprising: a single spring member including a lower locking portion that urges the shaft portion in a direction to press the shaft portion against the bearing portion. The bearing portion is formed diagonally with respect to an upper inner corner formed by the other side wall portion of the upper rail and the ceiling wall portion, and
The lower engaging portion of the lock spring biases the shaft portion against the bearing portion along a diagonal line connecting the bearing portion and the upper inner corner portion. Item 1. The vehicle seat slide device according to Item 1. 3. The vehicle seat slide device according to claim 2, wherein the lock spring includes a side engaging portion that regulates the position of the shaft portion relative to the bearing portion in the rail longitudinal direction. The lock spring is
an intermediate bent portion extending from a seating portion seated at an upper inner corner formed by the other side wall portion and the top wall portion of the upper rail and formed along the top wall portion;
a long bar-shaped portion extending in the longitudinal direction of the rail from the seating portion and folded back into a substantially U shape, the central portion of the longitudinal direction including the intermediate locking portion being bent in a bow shape;
a composite curved portion extending downward from the intermediate curved portion and bent into a substantially S-shape or a substantially inverted S-shape, and having a lower end serving as the lower locking portion;
4. The vehicle seat slide device according to claim 3, wherein the vehicle seat slide device is formed as a single spring member including: The compound bending portion cooperates with the intermediate bending portion to generate a spring force along a direction of a diagonal line connecting the bearing portion and the upper inner corner portion,
5. The vehicle seat slide device according to claim 4, wherein the spring force biases the shaft portion in a direction to press the bearing portion. 3. The compound curved portion is continuous with the intermediate bent portion, and the portion other than the lower engaging portion is arranged along one side wall portion of the upper rail. 6. The vehicle seat slide device according to 5. A folded curved portion that is folded back in the rail width direction is formed continuously with each compound curved portion,
A portion of the folded curved portion serves as the side locking portion, and an end portion of the folded curved portion is locked to a portion of the upper rail,
7. The vehicle seat slide according to claim 6, wherein the side locking portions sandwich the lock member from both sides in the rail longitudinal direction, thereby regulating the position of the lock member in the rail longitudinal direction. Device. An end portion of the folded curved portion is a terminal locking portion, and the terminal locking portion is locked to a hole formed in one side wall portion of the upper rail. The vehicle seat slide device described.

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