Chairs and seats – Movable back – Tiltable
Reexamination Certificate
2001-10-05
2003-03-04
Brown, Peter R. (Department: 3636)
Chairs and seats
Movable back
Tiltable
C297S374000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06527342
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to seating devices.
More particularly, the present invention relates to adjustment mechanisms for seating devices.
In a further and more specific aspect, the present invention concerns adjustment mechanisms for vehicle seating.
2. The Prior Art
Within the art of recliner mechanisms for vehicle seating, many and diverse devices have been developed. These devices often function satisfactorily for the actual reclining function, but function poorly in the area of safety. Typically, when a force of a specific magnitude, such as from a collision, is applied to a seat back, the seat has a catastrophic failure. In other words, the seat back remains more or less rigid and supportive until a certain level of force is exceeded. When this level is reached, the recliner mechanism breaks, letting the seat back pivot unrestrained. When this failure occurs, injury to the occupant of the seat can result. In many automobiles, the space allocated for a recliner mechanism is very limited. By reducing size and cost, current recliner mechanisms are often less than robust and fail at the application of relatively low forces. With the increase of restraint belts, which attach to the seat back, forces applied to the seat back in a collision will only increase.
It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
Accordingly, it is an object the present invention to provide a recliner mechanism which is extremely rugged and which fixedly holds the seat back relative to the seat portion.
It is another object the present invention to provide an embodiment of the recliner mechanism which clutches under a specified load.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly, to achieve the desired objects of the present invention in accordance with a preferred embodiment thereof, provided is a recliner mechanism for a seat frame including a back portion and a seat portion. The recliner mechanism includes an internal conically shaped element attached to either the back portion or the seat portion and a mating external conically shaped element attached to the other of the back portion and the seat portion. The inner and outer surfaces of the internal and external conically shaped elements, respectively, can have mating gears formed therein to provide positive braking action or the outer surfaces can be smoother to provide a clutching action. Cam surfaces are provided on an axle for the external conically shaped element and a recliner lever moves the cam surfaces to cam the external conically shaped element into engagement with the internal conically shaped element in a first or locked position and out of engagement in a second or reclining position.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5685610 (1997-11-01), Minai
patent: 916263 (1954-08-01), None
patent: 1914528 (1970-06-01), None
patent: 200 00 950 (2001-06-01), None
patent: 51624 (1977-04-01), None
Elio Paul A.
Glaspie Robert E.
Sankaranarayanan Hariharan K.
Brown Peter R.
Elio Engineering Inc.
Goltry Michael W.
Parsons Robert A.
Parsons & Goltry
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