Chairs and seats – Bottom or back with means to alter contour – Providing support for lower back region
Reexamination Certificate
2002-12-02
2004-02-17
Cranmer, Laurie K. (Department: 3636)
Chairs and seats
Bottom or back with means to alter contour
Providing support for lower back region
C297S284400
Reexamination Certificate
active
06692074
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
None.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable.
APPENDIX
Not Applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of adjustable ergonomic supports for seats, especially automobile seats.
2. Related Art
A variety of adjustable ergonomic supports for seating are known. These systems involve movement of an ergonomic support towards and away from the seat occupant in order to support various portions of the seat occupant's body. Many such ergonomic support devices, especially lumbar supports, also move vertically, so that apex of a lumbar supporting arch may be adjusted up and down so that the supports may be custom adjusted to particular individuals spine.
Such lumbar supports may be roughly divided into four classes. There is an arching basket type, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,063; a push paddle type see, e.g., U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/798,657; a tensioning strap type, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,769,490; and pneumatic systems, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,637,076, all incorporated by reference herein. All of these various types may be mounted on vertical slides so that they can be adjusted vertically. It is common for arching pressure surface type lumbar supports to be mounted on vertical guide rods. A pressure surface may be flexed or bowed outwards to provide a lumbar support, generally through the application of traction via a cable. The release of cable traction allows the natural bias of the pressure surface, usually stamped metal or molded plastic, to flatten it into a rest position, which action is augmented by the weight of the seat occupant.
There is not any natural bias or external force that helps the arching pressure surface type lumbar support to move in either vertical direction however. Prior art lumbar supports have achieved vertical movement of the arching pressure surface by biasing it towards a rest position, usually a bottom position, with springs. Vertical movement into a higher position has been achieved by attaching a single traction cable to the arching pressure surface. This mechanism requires a traction cable and an actuator for applying traction to the cable that are of a heavy enough gauge and great enough power can overcome the opposing tensioning force of the spring.
In the lumbar support field, as in auto parts in general, there is a continuing need for reducing costs, complexity and expense and also a continuing need for increasing durability, simplicity, compactness and ease of assembly. There is a need in the lumbar support arts for achieving vertical movement for a lumbar support in a manner that avoids the expense, complexity and weight of prior art single cable and spring apparatuses.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is a two cable system for vertical movement of a lumbar support.
In an arching pressure surface lumbar support with vertical adjustment capability, an arching pressure surface is mounted on vertical guide rails so that the entire pressure surface may slide vertically on the rails, either when the pressure surface is flat or bowed outwards to provide lumbar support. At one end of the pressure surface a traction cable is disposed to pull the pressure surface upwards. Another end of a traction cable is disposed to pull the pressure surface downwards.
In alternative embodiments, two separate traction cables may be used, or a single traction cable disposed in a loop fashion may be used.
Traction cables, such as the commonly used Bowden cable, are coaxial mechanical devices having a conduit or sleeve inside of which a wire is disposed to slide axially. In all embodiments, an end of a Bowden cable sleeve (or wire) is mounted to a fixed, non-moving support bracket and an end of the Bowden cable wire (or sleeve) is fixed to the arching pressure surface. An actuator at the other end of the Bowden cable applies traction, drawing the wire into the cable. At the first end of the Bowden cable the wire, now under traction, draws the pressure surface to which it is attached towards the fixed mounting of the Bowden cable sleeve end. The pressure surface slides vertically along the guide rails. The second Bowden cable sleeve end is also fixedly mounted to a bracket and a second Bowden cable wire end is also attached to the pressure surface and disposed to pull the pressure surface in the opposite vertical direction when tension is applied to the second Bowden cable wire. The fixed mounting of the Bowden cable sleeves may be on opposite vertical ends of the pressure surface. Alternatively, the fixed mounting of the Bowden cable sleeves may be on the same vertical end of the arching pressure surface, with the direction of one end of one of them redirected 180° by a pulley or other deflection apparatus fixedly mounted on the opposite end of the lumbar support. The two Bowden cable sleeve ends and wire ends may be opposite ends of a single Bowden cable, with an actuator remotely engaged thereto in order to pull it in either direction. Alternatively, two separate Bowden cables may be used. Two separate Bowden cables may be driven by a single actuator capable of bi-directional action, or by two separate actuators.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4316631 (1982-02-01), Lenz et al.
patent: 4909568 (1990-03-01), Dal Monte
patent: 5026116 (1991-06-01), Dal Monte
patent: 5050930 (1991-09-01), Schuster et al.
patent: 5174526 (1992-12-01), Kanigowski
patent: 5197780 (1993-03-01), Coughlin
patent: 5217278 (1993-06-01), Harrison et al.
patent: 5397164 (1995-03-01), Schuster et al.
patent: 5449219 (1995-09-01), Hay et al.
patent: 5474358 (1995-12-01), Maeyaert
patent: 5518294 (1996-05-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 5609394 (1997-03-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 5638722 (1997-06-01), Klingler
patent: 5651583 (1997-07-01), Klingler et al.
patent: 5651584 (1997-07-01), Chenot et al.
patent: 5704687 (1998-01-01), Klingler
patent: 5762397 (1998-06-01), Venuto et al.
patent: 5791733 (1998-08-01), Van Hekken et al.
patent: 5823620 (1998-10-01), Le Caz
patent: 5857743 (1999-01-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 5911477 (1999-06-01), Mundell et al.
patent: 5913569 (1999-06-01), Klingler
patent: 5984407 (1999-11-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 5988745 (1999-11-01), Deceuninck
patent: 6007151 (1999-12-01), Benson
patent: 6036265 (2000-03-01), Cosentino
patent: 6045185 (2000-04-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 6050641 (2000-04-01), Benson
patent: 6079783 (2000-06-01), Schuster, Sr. et al.
patent: 6152531 (2000-11-01), Deceuninck
patent: 6158300 (2000-12-01), Klingler
patent: 6227618 (2001-05-01), Ligon, Sr. et al.
patent: 6254186 (2001-07-01), Falzon
patent: 6270158 (2001-08-01), Hong
patent: 6296308 (2001-10-01), Cosentino et al.
patent: 6334651 (2002-01-01), Duan et al.
patent: 0563709 (1993-10-01), None
patent: 0 485 483 (1994-01-01), None
patent: 0 540 481 (1995-12-01), None
patent: 0 702 522 (1997-03-01), None
patent: 2 013 487 (1979-08-01), None
patent: WO 00/00064 (2000-01-01), None
Benson Joseph
Blendea Horia
Kopetzky Robert
Cranmer Laurie K.
Haldiman, Esq. Robert C.
Husch & Eppenberger LLC
Kang, Esq. Grant D.
L & P Property Management Company
LandOfFree
Apparatus and method for bi-directional cable adjustment of... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Apparatus and method for bi-directional cable adjustment of..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Apparatus and method for bi-directional cable adjustment of... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3281294