Chairs and seats – Crash seat
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-09
2003-12-23
Cuomo, Peter M. (Department: 3636)
Chairs and seats
Crash seat
C297S344150
Reexamination Certificate
active
06666508
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims priority of International application number PCT/DE00/00851, filed Mar. 17, 2000, which in turn claims priority to German patent application number 199 11 786.1, filed Mar. 17, 1999.
DESCRIPTION
The invention relates to a crash locking mechanism for adjustment devices of automobile seats.
Adjustment devices of automobile seats have to meet high safety requirements in order that the permissible extent of seat movement is not exceeded in the event of a crash, which would otherwise lead to a considerably increased risk of danger. Particularly great are the forces which have to be absorbed in the event of a front impact crash through a so-called belt-integrated seat because the forces which emanate from the seat user are introduced into the seat frame structure through one or more belt connecting points. In the case of motorized adjustable seats the gears therefore have to be dimensioned for an extreme crash case, which leads to considerable extra expense.
A seat of this generic kind is known from DE 44 08 219 A1. It combines the height adjustment device with an arrester device which is to prevent the adjustment device from moving beyond a certain maximum extent. The solution described is indeed suitable to prevent the seat from leaving a predetermined characteristic field in the event of a front impact crash but one and the same arrester device cannot be used at the same time also to restrict the consequences of a rear impact crash. Furthermore the arrester device only acts at the limit of displacement of the adjustment device.
From DE 36 42 349 C2 a height adjustable vehicle seat is known with a belt attachment on the top rail of the horizontal seat adjuster. The relevant belt plate is formed in two parts displaceable relative to each other with the part fixed on the top rail having a saw-tooth like serration into which the positive locking elements of the other part which is fixed on the seat frame and is displaceable relative thereto can engage in the event of a crash. During normal operation guide elements prevent undesired engagement of the positive locking elements. In the event of a crash there results a swivel movement of the part of the belt plate fixed on the seat frame so that the guide elements become destroyed and the positive locking elements move into engagement.
The drawback here is that the security device only comes into effect after considerable belt forces have already occurred. Furthermore the device cannot produce any effect in the event of a rear-impact crash and stresses caused by loaded goods.
From DE 196 52 946 C1 a detent device is known for locking an incline-adjustable backrest of a motor vehicle seat in dependence on exceeding an acceleration value which appears in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, wherein an eccentric flywheel weight is guided on a threaded section on the rotationally secured swivel axis of an articulated joint which consists of a part fixed on the seat and a part fixed on the backrest. In the event of a crash the flywheel weight moves through displacement on the threaded section to adjoin projections of a pressure plate which is axially displaceable on the swivel axis and whose projections pass with keyed engagement through the part of the joint fixed on the seat. Detent members provided on the pressure plate thereby come into engagement with detent means on the part of the joint fixed on the backrest so that the joint provided between the seat part and backrest is locked in the event of a crash.
The object of the invention is to develop a crash locking mechanism for adjustment devices of motor vehicles which by utilising the inertial forces which occur in the event of a crash has increased functioning reliability and can be adapted to different adjustment devices of a motor vehicle seat. Furthermore the new crash locking device is to be designed where necessary so that only one single device can act for both a front impact crash and a rear impact crash.
The solution according to the invention provides a crash locking mechanism for adjustment devices in motor vehicles which by utilising the inertial forces which occur in the event of a crash has an increased functioning reliability, can be adapted to different adjustment devices of an automobile seat and which can be designed where necessary so that only one single device of this kind can be effective for both a front impact crash and a rear impact crash.
According to the solution according to the invention the triggering mechanism of the crash locking mechanism can be uncoupled from the or each locking element on exceeding a predetermined crash load, wherein the locking elements are spring elastically pre-stressed in the locking direction and after their uncoupling from the triggering mechanism automatically and irreversibly produce the locking state.
The triggering mechanism has a triggering body which as a result of the inertial forces which occur in the event of a crash can leave its rest position and thereby control a retaining element associated with the locking element and to which the spring force of the pre-stressed locking element is applied. If the retaining element is shifted to inoperative then the crash locking mechanism becomes activated as a result of the spring tension acting on the locking element.
The retaining element is preferably connected in keyed engagement with the locking element, with the keyed connection being releasable, controlled by the triggering body.
Basically the triggering conditions can be set to correspond with each other for a front impact crash or a rear impact crash. In order to differentiate between a front impact crash and rear impact crash to trigger the crash locking mechanism the triggering mechanism and/or the connection between the triggering mechanism and the retaining element is formed so that the triggering energy or triggering time can be changed in dependence on the site of impact, namely a rear impact crash or a front impact crash.
The positive locking connection between the retaining element and the triggering body can be formed either in a fixed connection between retaining element and triggering body, in particular by designing the retaining element as an integral constituent part of the triggering body, or by mutual locking of the retaining element and triggering body.
Accordingly in a first embodiment the triggering mechanism has a connecting link which has in relation to the axis of rotation of the swivel mounted triggering body areas with radially changing spacing. The maximum or minimum area thereby formed is adjoined by areas with lesser or greater distance from the axis of rotation. This connecting link is allocated a resilient holding element which in the rest position of the triggering body engages in the maximum or minimum area of the connecting link. If now the triggering body swivels out of its rest position as a result of a sufficiently large inertial force then it is guided under the increase of the spring force acting on the connecting link over the area of the connecting link adjoining the maximum or minimum area.
It is hereby additionally reached that through a suitably shaped contour of the connecting link (and the spring force corresponding thereto for the holding element which is to be pre-stressed as well as the dimensioning of the acceleration-sensitive triggering body) it is possible to produce a deliberate influence on the triggering force and the triggering timing. This provides the invention with the possibility of being able to meet practically any requirement and thus to reduce the risk of injury for the seat user.
If the described connecting link is provided on each side of the maximum or minimum areas with adjoining areas through which the resilient holding element can be guided in dependence on the direction of the crash forces and the triggering body is mounted to swivel in both directions, then one and the same crash locking mechanism can then become active to secure the seat adjustment device in the event of front and re
Hofmann Jochen
Kroener Gregor
Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Co. KG Coburg
Christie Parker & Hale LLP
Cuomo Peter M.
Edell Joseph
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