Seat assembly

Abstract

The invention relates to a seat assembly. The seat assembly is provided in a vehicle and includes: a seat having a seat cushion portion and a backrest portion, a front end of the seat cushion portion being fixed at a first predetermined position via a folding lever and a rear end being pivotally connected at a second predetermined position via a pivot shaft; wherein one end of the folding rod is connected to the seat cushion part through a locking piece, one part of the locking piece is fixedly connected with the folding rod, and the other part of the locking piece is fixedly connected with the seat cushion part; the seat assembly further comprises a cutting device, and the cutting device is used for cutting the locking piece to break the locking piece under a preset condition, so that the connection between the folding rod and the seat cushion part is released.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of vehicles, and in particular to a seat assembly in a vehicle. Background Art

[0002] The comfort and safety of car seats have become important criteria for people to choose cars. Generally, the seat back of a vehicle seat can be rotated relative to the seat cushion of the vehicle seat, and the passenger can select an angle at which his back can rest comfortably on the back by adjusting the angle of the backrest relative to the seat cushion; in addition, the seat cushion of the vehicle can be rotated around its pivot axis (usually located near the backrest, i.e., the rear side of the seat cushion), and the passenger can select an angle at which his lower limbs can rest comfortably on the seat cushion by adjusting the angle of the seat cushion relative to the horizontal plane, so as to reduce the supporting force on the passenger's lower limbs.

[0003] Considering that the passenger's spine is subjected to a large supporting force provided by the seat cushion in some cases, this may cause the passenger's spine to be injured due to excessive force. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a seat that can reduce the supporting force on the passenger's spine. Summary of the invention

[0004] The object of the present invention is to provide a seat assembly which can reduce the support force provided by the seat to the spine of a passenger, so as to provide higher safety by reducing the force on the spine of the passenger in the event of a collision, especially a frontal collision.

[0005] The present invention provides a seat assembly, which is arranged in a vehicle.

[0006] The seat assembly comprises:

[0007] A seat having a seat cushion portion and a backrest portion, wherein a front end of the seat cushion portion is fixed at a first predetermined position via a folding rod, and a rear end thereof is pivotally connected at a second predetermined position via a pivot shaft;

[0008] in,

[0009] One end of the folding rod is connected to the seat cushion portion via a locking member,

[0010] wherein the locking member is configured such that a portion thereof is fixedly connected to the folding rod, and another portion thereof is fixedly connected to the seat cushion portion;

[0011] The seat assembly further includes a cutting device for cutting the locking member to break it under a predetermined condition, thereby releasing the connection between the folding rod and the seat cushion portion.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the cutting device comprises a piston and a piston cavity limiting the linear motion of the piston, and the locking member is positioned to pass through the piston cavity and be located on the path of the linear motion of the piston.

[0013] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the folding rod includes a first rod, a second rod and a third rod which are pivotally connected in sequence, an end of the third rod is fixed to the lower side surface of the front end of the seat cushion part, and an end of the first rod is pivotally fixed at the first predetermined position.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a pre-tensioning device for pulling the seat cushion portion downward is further included, the pre-tensioning device comprising a cable and a driving member, one end of the cable is fixed to the seat cushion portion, and the driving member is used to apply force at the other end of the cable to drive the cable to move downward.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present invention, one end of the folding rod is fixed to the cushion frame of the seat cushion portion via the locking member.

[0016] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first predetermined position and the second predetermined position are configured to be located at different positions of the seat mounting frame, and the seat mounting frame is further provided with a stopper, the stopper being located between the seat cushion frame and the seat mounting frame.

[0017] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the seat mounting frame is configured as a pair of slide rails, and a pair of the folding rods are connected to both sides of the seat cushion portion via corresponding locking members, respectively.

[0018] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the piston has a sharp cutting end, and the cutting end is configured to be opposite to the locking member to cut the locking member.

[0019] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined condition includes detecting that the deceleration of the vehicle is greater than a predetermined value, and a pyrotechnic actuator arranged inside the piston chamber actuates the piston in response to the predetermined condition;

[0020] The driver is configured to apply a force at the other end of the cable in response to a second predetermined condition, wherein the second predetermined condition is arranged to be associated with the predetermined condition.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the angle of the backrest portion relative to a horizontal plane is set within a range of 115 degrees to 155 degrees. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] The features, advantages and technical effects of the exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, the same symbols indicate the same elements, wherein:

[0023] Figure 1 A seat assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0024] Figure 2 A seat assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.

[0025] Figure 3 Partial components of a seat assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention are schematically shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The following will describe the specific implementation of the seat assembly according to the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The following detailed description and the accompanying drawings are used to exemplarily illustrate the principles of the present invention. The present invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments described. The various embodiments described in the present invention can be used alone or in any combination. The protection scope of the present invention is defined by the claims.

[0027] In addition, spatially relative terms (such as "upper", "lower", "left", and "right") are used to describe the relative positional relationship of an element shown in the drawings to another element. Therefore, the spatially relative terms can be applied to directions different from those shown in the drawings when used. Obviously, although for ease of description, all of these spatially relative terms refer to the directions shown in the drawings, those skilled in the art will understand that directions different from those shown in the drawings can be used.

[0028] Figure 1 A seat assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 1 A seat assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is described.

[0029] like Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a seat assembly 1, which is arranged in a vehicle for passengers to sit. The seat assembly 1 includes a seat 10, which, as known, has a seat cushion portion 11 and a backrest portion 12. The passenger can adjust the angle of the backrest portion 12 relative to the seat cushion portion 11 to select an angle at which the back can rest comfortably on the backrest portion 12; and the passenger can also adjust the angle of the seat cushion portion 11 relative to the horizontal plane to select an angle at which the lower limbs can rest comfortably on the seat cushion portion 11, so as to reduce the supporting force on the lower limbs of the passenger.

[0030] In the seat assembly 1 of the present invention, the seat cushion portion 11 can be connected to predetermined positions of the vehicle via two different parts of the lower side (e.g., the left part and the right part), for example, the front end of the seat cushion portion 11 is fixed at a first predetermined position via a folding rod 20, and the rear end thereof is pivotally fixed at a second predetermined position via a pivot shaft. It should be noted that the "front end" and "rear end" of the seat cushion portion are named with reference to the front-rear direction of the vehicle, that is, in the front-rear direction of the vehicle, the end of the seat cushion portion facing forward is defined as the front end, and the end of the seat cushion portion facing backward is defined as the rear end. In one example of the present invention, the seat assembly 1 also includes a seat mounting frame 60 for fixing the seat 10, the first predetermined position and the second predetermined position can be configured to be located at different positions of the seat mounting frame 60, the seat mounting frame 60 is configured, for example, as a pair of slide rails, and a pair of folding rods 20 connect the seat 10 to the seat mounting frame 60 on both sides of the seat cushion portion 11. It can be understood that the structure in which a pair of folding rods provide supporting force to the seat cushion portion on both sides of the seat cushion portion ensures that the seat cushion portion is subjected to uniform force, which is conducive to extending the service life of the folding rods and the seat cushion portion.

[0031] As an example of the present invention, a stopper 30 is also provided on the seat mounting frame 60. The stopper 30 is located between the seat cushion frame 110 of the seat cushion portion 11 and the seat mounting frame 60. It can be understood that when the seat cushion portion 11 is Figure 1 When the seat cushion portion 11 is pivoted downward about the pivot axis located at the rear side thereof in the orientation shown in the figure, the seat cushion portion 11 may continue to pivot downward for a certain distance after pivoting to the horizontal position. The above situation is not expected to occur because when the seat cushion portion 11 is excessively pivoted, the passenger may slide off the seat cushion portion 11. In an embodiment of the present invention, when the seat cushion portion 11 is pivoted downward from the orientation shown in the figure, the stopper 30 is provided so as to be able to abut against the seat cushion portion 11 (for example, the seat cushion frame of the seat cushion portion), and the seat cushion portion 11 stops pivoting under the action of the abutting force, thereby preventing the seat cushion portion 11 from pivoting excessively and causing the risk of the passenger being separated from the seat cushion portion 11. In one example, the stopper 30 is provided as a strip (for example, a square tube), which spans the gap between a pair of slide rails and is fixed to the surface of the slide rails, and is thereby positioned on the pivot path of the seat cushion portion 11. The size of the stopper 30, especially the size in the height direction, is designed according to the minimum safe pivot angle of the seat cushion portion. The minimum safe pivot angle refers to an angle relative to a horizontal plane when the seat cushion portion 11 pivots to abut against the stopper 30 .

[0032] Continue to refer to Figure 1 And combined with Figure 3 The seat assembly 1 of the present invention is described. Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown, one end of the folding rod 20 ( Figure 1 The upper end) is connected to the locking member 43 (see Figure 3 ) is connected to the seat cushion portion 11 (for example, the seat cushion frame 110), and the locking member 43 is constructed so that a portion thereof is fixedly connected to the folding rod 20, and another portion thereof is fixedly connected to the seat cushion portion 11 (for example, the seat cushion frame 110). In one example, the locking member 43 may be constructed as a pin, and its two ends are fixedly connected to the seat cushion portion 11 and the folding rod 20 respectively by riveting. Of course, this is only an example, and the locking member is not limited to being fixed to the seat cushion portion and the folding rod by riveting. For example, other fixing methods such as welding and threaded connection may be used to replace the riveting method; and the locking member is not limited to being fixed to the seat cushion portion and the folding rod respectively at both ends, and two different parts of the locking member may be fixed to the seat cushion portion and the folding rod respectively.

[0033] As an embodiment of the present invention, the folding rod 20 may include three rods, that is, a first rod ( Figure 1 The lower rod in the middle), the second rod ( Figure 1 The middle pole) and the third pole ( Figure 1 The upper rod in the middle), the upper end of the third rod is fixed to the lower side of the front end of the seat cushion portion 11 (for example, the seat cushion frame 100) via a locking member 43, the lower end is pivotally connected to the second rod, the lower end of the second rod is pivotally connected to the upper end of the third rod, and the lower end of the first rod is pivotally fixed at a first predetermined position. The length of the folding rod 20 varies by the angle change between the various rods (in other words, the degree of folding). For example, when the three rods are connected end to end and extended until they are located on the same straight line, the length of the folding rod 20 is the largest. At this time, the seat cushion portion 11 is Figure 1 The orientation shown in FIG is pivoted upward to be located at a position forming a maximum angle with the horizontal plane; conversely, when the three rods form a broken line configuration (ie, Figure 1 When the seat cushion portion 11 forms a small angle relative to the horizontal plane, the seat cushion portion 11 forms a small angle relative to the horizontal plane. Of course, this is only an example, and the number of rods included in the folding rod can be set according to actual conditions, for example, including two rods or four rods or more.

[0034] Continue to refer to Figure 1 and Figure 3 The seat assembly 1 further comprises a cutting device 40. The cutting device 40 is used to cut the locking member 43 to break it under a predetermined condition, thereby releasing the connection between the folding rod 20 and the seat cushion portion 11.

[0035] In one example, if Figure 3As shown, the cutting device 40 includes a piston 41 and a piston chamber 42 that limits the linear motion thereof, and a locking piece 43 is positioned to pass through the piston chamber 42 and be located on the linear motion path of the piston 41. In order to cut off the locking piece 43 with less force, the end of the piston 41 opposite to the locking piece 43 is configured as a sharp cutting end. In order to achieve a quick response, a pyrotechnic driver is also provided inside the piston chamber 42 to quickly drive the piston 41 to move to the left.

[0036] It should be noted that, since the cutting device can be directly added to the existing components in the vehicle, the seat assembly of the present invention has good versatility.

[0037] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the predetermined condition includes detecting that the deceleration of the vehicle is greater than a predetermined value, for example, a situation where the vehicle has a head-on collision.

[0038] Figure 2 A seat assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown. Figure 2 A seat assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention is described. Figure 2 The embodiment shown is Figure 1 The differences between the illustrated embodiments and the similarities will not be described again to avoid redundancy.

[0039] like Figure 2 As shown, the seat assembly 1 further includes a pre-tightening device 50 for pulling the seat cushion portion 11 downward, the pre-tightening device 50 includes a cable 52 and a driving member 51, one end of the cable 52 ( Figure 3 The upper end of the cable 52 is fixed to the seat cushion portion 11, and the driving member 51 is used to drive the other end of the cable 52 ( Figure 3 The driving member 51 is configured to apply a force at the lower end of the cable 52 in response to the second predetermined condition. As an example, the driving member can also be configured as a pyrotechnic driver to quickly drive the cable in response to the second predetermined condition. And, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the second predetermined condition is configured to be associated with the predetermined condition. For example, the second predetermined condition is configured to be the time when the predetermined condition is satisfied plus a predetermined time value to ensure that after the cutting device 40 cuts off the locking member 43, the cable 52 is driven to move downward, thereby dragging the cushion portion 11 from Figure 2 The orientation shown is pivoted downward.

[0040] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the angle of the backrest 12 relative to the horizontal plane is set to be within the range of 115 degrees to 155 degrees. This is because according to the current seat structure, if the angle of the backrest relative to the horizontal plane is too large, it will adversely affect the comfort of the passengers, and the existing safety devices on the vehicle cannot reliably restrain the passengers on the seat, thereby reducing safety.

[0041] The following description Figure 1 The embodiments shown and Figure 2 The illustrated embodiment is applicable to the scenario.

[0042] First, Figure 1 The seat assembly in the illustrated embodiment is defined as being suitable for a passive pivoting scenario of the seat cushion portion, and Figure 2 The seat assembly in the illustrated embodiment is defined to be suitable for a scenario in which the seat cushion portion actively pivots.

[0043] The active pivoting scenario refers to the following scenario, that is, the vehicle determines that the possibility of a collision is particularly high based on the detected driving parameters related to the vehicle, the driving parameters related to other vehicles, the road conditions, etc. Based on the above determination, it is determined that the above predetermined conditions have been met, so that the time when the seat cushion part and the folding rod are disconnected is earlier than the time when the collision occurs. Therefore, the seat cushion part is no longer supported by the folding rod at an earlier time. This active pivoting scenario can provide protection for passengers in a gentle manner, and it wins a longer protection time. However, considering that the pre-tightening device is set, the cost of the seat assembly is relatively high. The setting of the pre-tightening device solves the following problem: because the inertia force on the seat is very small when no collision occurs, it is impossible to drive the seat cushion part to rotate quickly by relying solely on the inertia force. The pyrotechnic driver in the pre-tightening device can quickly drive the cable to tighten and drive the seat cushion part to rotate. Optionally, the pyrotechnic driver and cable in the pre-tightening device can use existing products (seat belt pre-tightening device) to save design costs.

[0044] The passive pivoting scenario refers to the following scenario, that is, based on the collision event that has occurred, it is determined that the above-mentioned predetermined conditions have been met, so that the time when the seat cushion portion and the folding rod are disconnected is earlier than the time when the collision occurs. Therefore, the time when the seat cushion portion is no longer supported by the folding rod is later. Since the seat cushion assembly in this scenario has fewer parts, the manufacturing cost is lower, and the risk of misoperation is lower.

[0045] It should be noted that after the folding rod is disconnected from the seat cushion, the folding rod no longer provides support force to the seat cushion, so no matter whether the pivot direction of the seat cushion is pivoted upward or pivoted downward based on the orientation shown in the figure, the seat cushion is no longer supported by the folding rod (generally, in the active pivoting scenario, the folding rod will be folded to pivot the seat cushion downward; in the passive pivoting scenario, the folding rod will extend to pivot the seat cushion upward). In this case, the spine of the passenger sitting on the seat is also not supported by the folding rod, so the seat assembly of the present invention can have higher safety by reducing the force on the passenger's spine.

[0046] As mentioned above, although the exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned specific embodiments, and the protection scope of the present invention should be defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A seat assembly (1) arranged in a vehicle, The seat assembly (1) comprises: A seat (10), the seat (10) comprising a seat cushion portion (11) and a backrest portion (12), the front end of the seat cushion portion (11) being fixed at a first predetermined position via a folding rod (20), and the rear end thereof being pivotally connected at a second predetermined position via a pivot shaft; It is characterized in that One end of the folding rod (20) is connected to the seat cushion portion (11) via a locking member (43). The locking member (43) is constructed such that a portion thereof is fixedly connected to the folding rod (20), and another portion thereof is fixedly connected to the seat cushion portion (11); The seat assembly (1) further comprises a cutting device (40) for cutting the locking member (43) to break it under a predetermined condition, thereby releasing the connection between the folding rod (20) and the seat cushion portion (11).

2. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein: The cutting device (40) includes a piston (41) and a piston chamber (42) that limits the linear motion of the piston, and the locking member (43) is positioned to pass through the piston chamber (42) and be located on the path of the linear motion of the piston (41).

3. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 2, wherein: The folding rod (20) comprises a first rod, a second rod and a third rod which are pivotally connected in sequence, the end of the third rod is fixed to the lower side of the front end of the seat cushion part (11), and the end of the first rod is pivotally fixed at the first predetermined position.

4. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein: It also includes a pre-tightening device (50) for pulling the seat cushion portion (11) downward, the pre-tightening device (50) includes a cable (52) and a driving member (51), one end of the cable (52) is fixed to the seat cushion portion (11), and the driving member (51) is used to apply force at the other end of the cable (52) to drive the cable (52) to move downward.

5. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 4, wherein: One end of the folding rod (20) is fixed to the seat cushion frame (110) of the seat cushion portion (11) via the locking member (43).

6. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 5, wherein: The first predetermined position and the second predetermined position are configured to be located at different positions of the seat mounting frame (60), and a stopper (30) is also provided on the seat mounting frame (60), wherein the stopper (30) is located between the seat cushion frame (110) and the seat mounting frame (60).

7. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 6, wherein: The seat mounting frame (60) is constructed as a pair of slide rails, and a pair of folding rods (20) are respectively connected to both sides of the seat cushion portion (11) via corresponding locking members (43).

8. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 2, wherein: The piston (41) has a sharp cutting end, and the cutting end is configured to be opposite to the locking piece (43) to cut the locking piece (43).

9. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 4, wherein: The predetermined condition includes detecting that the deceleration of the vehicle is greater than a predetermined value, and a pyrotechnic actuator arranged inside the piston chamber (42) actuates the piston (41) in response to the predetermined condition; The driver (41) is configured to apply a force at the other end of the cable (52) in response to a second predetermined condition, wherein the second predetermined condition is arranged to be associated with the predetermined condition.

10. The seat assembly (1) according to claim 1, wherein: The angle of the backrest portion (12) relative to the horizontal plane is set within a range of 115 degrees to 155 degrees.

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