ACTIVE VEHICLE SEAT ARRANGEMENT FOR INERTIA COMPENSATION IN MOTOR VEHICLES

Abstract

An active vehicle seat assembly (20) for a motor vehicle (10) having a vehicle body with a base plate (44), the vehicle body having mutually orthogonal longitudinal, transverse and vertical axes, the active vehicle seat assembly (20) comprising: an occupant chair (22) having a backrest portion (24) and a seat portion (26) connected to the backrest portion (24); a motion sensor (38) connected to the occupant chair (22) and configured to detect movement of the occupant chair (22) and output signals indicative thereof; an automated platform (28) located below the seat portion (26) and configured to movably attach the passenger chair (22) to the vehicle body, the automated platform (28) including: a tilt plate (40) configured to pivot with respect to the transverse axis; a tilt actuator (48) connected to the tilt plate (40) and configured to selectively pivot the tilt plate (40); a roller plate (46) configured to pivot with respect to the longitudinal axis; a rolling actuator (50) connected to the rolling plate (46) and configured to selectively pivot the rolling plate; a four-bar roller linkage (76) having first and second roller actuating plates (78, 80) and first and second sets of roller pivot joints (82, 84), wherein the first set of roller pivot joints (82) is configured to pivotally couple first ends of the roller actuating plates (78, 80) to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body, and the second set of roller pivot joints (84) is configured to pivotally couple second ends of the roller actuating plates (78, 80) to the roller plate (46), and wherein the roller actuator (50) includes one electronically actuable linear actuator having an electric motor (64) rotatably coupled at a first end thereof to the roller plate (46) and configured to pivotally couple at a second end thereof to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body; and a four-bar tilt linkage (66) having first and second tilt actuation plates (68, 70) and first and second sets of tilt pivots (72, 74), wherein the first set of tilt pivots (72) pivotally couples first ends of the tilt actuation plates (68, 70) to the roll plate (46), and the second set of tilt pivots (74) pivotally couples second ends of the tilt actuation plates (68, 70) to the tilt plate (40), and wherein the tilt actuator (48) includes one electronically actuatable linear actuator having an electric motor (64) rotatably coupled at a first end thereof to the tilt plate (40) and configured to rotatably couple at a second end thereof to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body; and an on-board controller (36) communicatively connected to the motion sensor (38), the tilt actuator (48), and the roll actuator (50), the on-board controller (36) being operable to respond to a motion signal from the motion sensor (38) indicative of an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat (22) and to output a control signal to the tilt and / or roll actuator (48, 50) to selectively pivot the tilt and / or roll plate (40, 46) and thereby counteract the inertial motion disturbance.

Description

INTRODUCTION

[0001] The present disclosure generally relates to seating assemblies for motor vehicles. More specifically, aspects of this disclosure relate to active vehicle seating systems and control methods for operating the same to isolate occupants from inertial forces generated by the operation of a motor vehicle.

[0002] Current production motor vehicles, such as the modern automobile, are originally equipped with driver-side, passenger-side, and rear bench seat assemblies for comfortable seating of the vehicle's occupants. A vehicle seat assembly may consist of an internal skeletal seat frame attached to the vehicle body, for example, via a longitudinal slide rail arrangement. Foam cushions overlie and attach to complementary wire suspension segments of the frame to separate the occupant from the rigid seat frame. Flexible coverings, such as fabric, leather, or vinyl, conceal highly visible segments of the frame and foam cushions, thus forming the occupant-friendly outer surfaces of the seat. Driver- and passenger-side front seat assemblies may be typified by an upper, generally vertical back section that is tiltable relative to a lower, generally horizontal seat section.

[0003] During vehicle operation, the driver and passengers may be exposed to undesirable inertial forces resulting from the vehicle's acceleration, deceleration, and cornering. Road-induced vibrations may also be perceived by an occupant via a seating arrangement during driving, for example, when negotiating irregular road surface displacements such as potholes and speed bumps. Epidemiological studies have shown that prolonged exposure to these exciting forces can have adverse effects on the operator and passengers. For example, the motion disturbances induced by the operation of these vehicles can increase driver fatigue and lead to significant occupant discomfort over extended driving periods.It is often desirable to minimize motion disturbances otherwise transmitted through a vehicle seating arrangement in order to enhance the occupant experience during vehicle operation.

[0004] DE 199 59 411 A1 discloses a device for adjusting a vehicle seat. Three lifting elements are provided on a frame structure consisting of two side panels and a cross member connecting them. The first lifting element is located centrally below the cross member, and the other two lifting elements are arranged at the respective rear ends of the side panels. SUMMARY

[0005] The object of the invention is to provide an improved active vehicle seat arrangement for a motor vehicle.

[0006] To achieve this object, an active vehicle seat arrangement having the features of claim 1 is provided. Advantageous embodiments of the invention can be found in the dependent claims, the description, and the drawings.

[0007] Disclosed herein are active vehicle seating architectures for motor vehicles, methods of making and methods of using such vehicle seating assemblies and systems, and motor vehicles having an active vehicle seating assembly for isolating an occupant from road-borne vibrations and inertial forces generated during vehicle operation. By way of example, and not limitation, a novel active seating assembly is presented that is mounted to the vehicle body via an articulated suspension and isolation platform. The system utilizes an accelerometer (e.g., a single-axis accelerometer or a 3-axis accelerometer), a gyroscope (e.g., a 3-axis gyroscope), an occupant proximity sensor (e.g., capacitive proximity sensors, piezoresistive silicon pressure sensors, etc.), and / or other sensor devices that communicate sensor data to a processor.This processor executes the control algorithms stored in memory to automate seat movement in real time, thereby counteracting or otherwise isolating the occupant from inertial forces and road-induced vibrations. Forward (longitudinal) rectilinear movement and inward and outward (lateral) rectilinear movement can be achieved by an automated sliding frame mounted on longitudinal and transverse slide rails, respectively. The opposing movements of pitch, roll, and yaw can each be automated with a dedicated actuator that controls the pivoting movement of an actuator plate.

[0008] The occupant isolation function can be achieved by rotating and / or moving the seat in at least one, preferably two and up to three axes.

[0009] Some embodiments focus on a configuration where X-axis rotation is provided by the articulation of the passenger compartment as a whole and Y-axis rotation is provided by the articulation of the seat. One or more of the disclosed configurations omit controlled Z-axis (yaw) rotation and related motions. This contributes to package compactness and an overall vehicle size comparable to existing vehicles. At least some of the disclosed configurations utilize simple folding motions with a rotation axis coincident with or near the estimated hip point (H point), driven by a linear actuator to isolate or otherwise offset pitch (y-axis), roll (x-axis), and yaw (z-axis) motions.Optionally or alternatively, a four-bar linkage with a virtual center at or around the H-point, driven by a diagonally oriented linear actuator, can be used to isolate or otherwise offset pitch, roll, and (if desired) yaw motions.

[0010] The advantages of at least some of the disclosed concepts lie in increased compactness compared to other available active seating architectures. Disclosed embodiments enable chair heights (e.g., measured in the vertical Z-direction, from H-point to heel) that are within the normal ranges of conventional vehicles, typically between approximately 275 mm and approximately 425 mm, and can therefore accommodate most occupants. In comparison, many previously known active seating configurations require unusually high chair heights to provide additional underlying packaging space for implementing larger automated system architectures. Furthermore, previous known designs are designed to maintain a pivot point around an occupant's head, nominally to prevent the head from shifting in space as the seat undergoes rotational movements.This, in turn, requires seat actuators with sufficient force to lift the entire mass of the occupant and chair during rotation. Recognizing that this translational movement is both probable (since the H-point-to-head dimension varies with the size of individual occupants) and generally of small magnitude, the center rotation about the H-point is disclosed, which roughly corresponds to the center of mass and does not vary significantly with occupant size. This enables actuator motors that are smaller, less expensive, and more responsive, as they do not need to lift the occupant mass, but only rotate it. Many of the disclosed designs are suitable for incorporating an optional pyrotechnic piston actuator for quickly repositioning the occupant to a recumbent position to handle accelerations during impact events.

[0011] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to vehicle-controlled active vehicle seating assemblies for motor vehicles, with particular applicability for counteracting inertial motion disturbances induced by acceleration, deceleration, and cornering of an autonomous vehicle. For example, an active vehicle seating assembly for a motor vehicle is disclosed. The active vehicle seating assembly includes an occupant seat having a generally horizontal seat portion connected (e.g., adjustable) to a generally vertical seatback portion. One or more motion sensors, each connected to the occupant seat, detect movement of the occupant seat, such as translational or rotational displacement, velocity, and / or acceleration, and provide corresponding output signals.An automated platform below the seat section movably mounts the passenger seat to the vehicle body. The automated platform includes a tilt plate that pivots relative to the lateral (tilt) axis of the vehicle body, and a tilt actuator connected to and selectively pivoting the tilt plate. Also included is a roll plate that pivots relative to the longitudinal (roll) axis of the vehicle body, and a roll actuator connected to and selectively pivoting the roll plate. An on-board controller is communicatively connected to the motion sensor, the tilt actuator, and the roll actuator.This controller is capable of responding to a motion signal from the motion sensor indicative of an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat and outputting a control signal to the tilt actuator and / or the roll actuator to selectively pivot the tilt plate and / or the roll plate to counteract the inertial motion disturbance.

[0012] Other aspects of the present disclosure relate to motor vehicles having one or more vehicle-controlled active vehicle seating assemblies. A "motor vehicle," as used herein, may include all relevant vehicle platforms, such as passenger cars (internal combustion engine (ICE), hybrid, electric, fuel cell vehicles, etc.), commercial vehicles, industrial vehicles, tracked vehicles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), agricultural equipment, boats, trains, aircraft, spacecraft, etc. A "motor vehicle," as used herein, may also include driver-controlled automobiles rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as Level 0, fully autonomous, "driverless" NHTSA Level 4 rated automobiles, and any variation in between.In one example, a motor vehicle is disclosed that includes a vehicle body having a passenger compartment, a base plate disposed within the passenger compartment, and an occupant seat supported on the base plate. The occupant seat consists of a backrest portion, a seat portion connected to the backrest portion, and a pair of slide rails connected to the underside of the seat portion. The motor vehicle also includes a 3-axis acceleration sensor that detects the movement of the occupant seat and outputs signals indicative of an on-board control.

[0013] Below the seating section is an automated platform that movably attaches the passenger seat to the base plate of the vehicle body. This automated platform includes a tilt plate with a pair of sliding seat rails connected to the sliding rails of the passenger seat, and a roller plate arranged between the tilt plate and the base plate. A four-bar (tilt) linkage pivotally connects the tilt plate to the roller plate, allowing the tilt plate to pivot about two different tilt axes running parallel to a transverse axis of the vehicle body. Likewise, a four-bar (roller) linkage pivotally connects the roller plate to the base plate, allowing the roller plate to pivot about two different roll axes running parallel to a longitudinal axis of the vehicle body.An electronically actuated linear actuator (tilt actuator) is connected to the tilt plate and is operable to selectively pivot the tilt plate forward and backward about the two tilt axes. Another electronically actuated linear actuator (roll actuator) is connected to the tilt plate and is operable to selectively pivot the roll plate inward and outward about the two roll axes. The on-board control system receives one or more motion signals from the acceleration sensor indicating an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat and outputs one or more control signals to the tilt and / or roll actuators to pivot the tilt and / or roll plates to counteract the inertial motion disturbance.

[0014] Further aspects of this disclosure relate to methods of manufacturing and methods of using vehicle-controlled active vehicle seating assemblies for motor vehicles. For example, a method of manufacturing an active vehicle seating assembly for a motor vehicle having a vehicle body with a base plate is disclosed. The method includes, in any order and in any combination: providing a passenger seat with a seat portion secured to a back portion; attaching a motion detector to the passenger seat, the motion detector configured to detect movement of the passenger seat and output corresponding output signals;Attaching an automated platform to the seat portion, the automated platform configured to be movably mounted to the vehicle body, the automated platform including: a tilt plate configured to pivot with respect to the transverse axis; a tilt actuator connected to the tilt plate and configured to selectively pivot the tilt plate; a roll plate configured to pivot with respect to the longitudinal axis;and communicatively connecting an on-board controller to the motion sensor, the tilt actuator, and the roll actuator. This on-board controller is capable of responding to a motion signal from the motion sensor indicating an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat and outputting a control signal to one or both of the tilt and roll actuators to selectively pivot one or both of the tilt and roll plates to counteract the inertial motion disturbance.

[0015] The above summary is not intended to represent every embodiment or aspect of the present disclosure. Rather, the above summary merely illustrates some of the novel aspects and features set forth herein. The above features and advantages, as well as other features and advantages of the present disclosure, will be readily apparent from the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiments and representative modes for carrying out the present disclosure, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the appended claims. Furthermore, the present disclosure expressly includes all combinations and subcombinations of the foregoing elements and features set forth above and below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of a representative motor vehicle with an inset side view of an active vehicle seating assembly according to aspects of the present disclosure. Fig. 2 is an enlarged front perspective view of the representative vehicle seating arrangement of Fig. 1, illustrating the seat portion attached to the vehicle body via an automated suspension and isolation platform in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Fig. 3 is a rear perspective view of the automated suspension and isolation platform of the active vehicle seating assembly of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a flowchart for an algorithm or control scheme corresponding to instructions executed by control logic on the motor vehicle according to aspects of the disclosed concepts.

[0016] Various modifications and alternative forms are susceptible to the present disclosure, and some exemplary embodiments are shown herein by way of example only with reference to the drawings. It should be understood, however, that the novel aspects of this disclosure are not limited to the particular forms shown in the accompanying drawings. Rather, this disclosure encompasses all modifications, equivalents, combinations, subcombinations, and alternatives that fall within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] This disclosure is suitable for a variety of embodiments. Representative embodiments of the disclosure are illustrated in the drawings and described in detail herein. This disclosure is to be considered as illustrating the principles of the disclosure and not as limiting the various aspects of the disclosure to the illustrated embodiments. Accordingly, elements and limitations disclosed, for example, in the summary, abstract, and detailed description sections, but not explicitly recited in the claims, should not be incorporated into the claims, individually or collectively, by inference, inference, or otherwise.For the purposes of this Detailed Description, unless expressly disclaimed: the singular form includes the plural form and vice versa; the words "and" and "or" are both joinder and disjointer; the word "all" means "all and any"; the word "any" means "all and any"; and the words "including" and "including" mean "including without limitation." In addition, for example, words of approximation such as "about," "nearly," "substantially," "approximately," and the like may be used herein to mean "at, near, or nearly," or "within 3-5% of," or "within acceptable manufacturing tolerances," or any logical combination thereof.

[0018] With reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like features in the several views, Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a representative automobile, generally designated 10, illustrated herein for purposes of discussing a two-door coupe passenger vehicle. An active vehicle seating assembly 20 is mounted adjacent a front end of the vehicle 10, e.g., rearward of the engine compartment 12, adjacent a driver-side vehicle door 16 within the passenger compartment 14. The illustrated automobile 10—also referred to herein for short as a "motor vehicle" or "vehicle"—is merely one exemplary application with which the novel aspects and features of this disclosure may be practiced. In this sense, implementation of the present concepts in a driver-side individual seating assembly should also be understood as an exemplary application of the novel concepts disclosed herein.Accordingly, it is understood that the aspects and features of the present disclosure may be applied to other passenger seating arrangements and used for any logically relevant motor vehicle type. Finally, the drawings depicted herein are not necessarily to scale and are for guidance purposes only. Thus, the specific and relative dimensions of the drawings are not to be considered limiting.

[0019] In order to comfortably yet functionally support at least one occupant OC1 during operation of the automobile 10, the seating arrangement 20 is provided with a shell-shaped occupant chair 22 in Fig. 1, which is designed to keep the driver safely in place during, for example, speed changes and maneuvering maneuvers. The occupant chair 22 includes a generally vertical backrest portion 24 (also referred to as the "seat back" or "backrest") connected to a generally horizontal seat portion (also referred to as the "seat base" or "seat") 26, both of which receive underlying support from an automated platform assembly 28. Both the backrest 24 and the seat 26 may include vehicle-specific components and features, such as cushions of various designs, materials, and firmness levels (e.g., Shore A or OO), as well as any necessary internal or external support structures.Furthermore, the passenger seat 22 may have an "electric seat configuration" in which the heights, angles, and / or longitudinal positions of the backrest portion 24 and the seat portion 26 are individually and / or collectively adjustable, e.g., by a motorized seat adjustment system 30. Whether automated or manual, the passenger seat 22 may be moved into any desired longitudinal position relative to the vehicle 10 by laterally arranged slide rails 32 (. Fig. 2). These slide rails 32 are mounted below the seat section 26 and slidably coupled to a pair of longitudinal seat rails 34 mounted on a tilt plate 40 of the platform assembly 28.

[0020] The vehicle-controlled active seating assembly 20 (or simply "seating assembly") is designed to isolate an occupant OC1 from undesirable inertial forces, such as those encountered during acceleration, deceleration, and cornering of the vehicle 10. This functionality may generally be provided through collaborative operation between the automated platform assembly 28 and an on-board controller 36 connected (wired or wirelessly) to one or more sensing devices. According to the illustrated example, a motion sensor 38 connected to the occupant seat 22, e.g., packaged in a headrest portion 25, detects the movement of the occupant seat 22 and outputs electrical signals indicative thereof.For at least some preferred embodiments, the motion sensor 38 is a three-axis, low-voltage analog accelerometer that senses orientation, shaking, knocking, dropping, tilting, moving, positioning, shock, or vibration, or any combination thereof, along the longitudinal axis A. LO , the transverse axis A LA , and the vertical axis A VEof the vehicle 10. A position sensor 42, which may be in the nature of a linear taper potentiometer packaged beneath the seat 26 on or adjacent the seat rails 34, is operable to sense the current position of the occupant chair 22 relative to the automated platform 28 and output an electrical signal indicative thereof to the on-board controller 36. Many other types of sensing devices may be employed, such as acoustic sensing devices such as ultrasonic sensors; optical sensing devices such as light-based and laser-based sensors; capacitive sensing devices such as capacitive proximity sensors; pressure sensors such as silicon piezoresistive pressure sensors; etc. Furthermore, the specific location of each sensor may vary from that shown in the drawings.

[0021] The automated platform 28 is located below the seat portion 26 and is provided for movably attaching the passenger seat 22 to the vehicle body, such as a rigid base plate 44 defined by or rigidly connected to the floor of the passenger compartment 14. By rotating and / or translating the passenger seat 22 with respect to at least one, desirably two, and up to three vehicle axes, an isolating function can be achieved by mitigating or canceling out undesirable inertial disturbances. According to the representative example of the Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the automated platform 28 consists of an inclination plate 40 which, with respect to the transverse axis A LA the vehicle body, and a rolling plate 46 which pivots with respect to the longitudinal axis A LOof the vehicle body. The two plates 40, 46, when in the neutral (inactive) position, may be generally parallel and vertically spaced from the base plate 44. Although not shown, the automated platform 28 may further include a yaw plate that pivots with respect to the vertical axis A VE of the vehicle body. It is also contemplated that the tilt and roll plates 40, 46 may be combined into a single plate configuration. Although illustrated as square polyhedral panels, the tilt and roll plates 40, 46 may also include other shapes, sizes, and structural configurations (e.g., rigid cross members) within the scope of this disclosure.

[0022] The selective longitudinal tilt of the occupant seat 22 is achieved by activating a tilt actuator 48, which is mechanically coupled to the tilt plate 40. Accordingly, the selective inward-outward roll of the occupant seat 22 is realized by actuating a roll actuator 50, which is mechanically coupled to the roll plate 46. By way of example and not limitation, the tilt and roll actuators 48, 50 are low-voltage linear actuators with electronically controlled DC motors (e.g., 12V; 2 to 4 inches of travel; 200 to 300 lbs. rated). Alternative configurations may utilize linear and nonlinear actuators or transducers of other designs, including hydraulic, pneumatic, pyrotechnic, piezoelectric, and other electromechanical designs.A first end of the "plate coupling" of each actuator 48, 50 is rotatably coupled to the corresponding plate 40, 46, while a second end of the "base coupling" of each actuator 48, 50 is rotatably coupled to the base plate 44 of the vehicle body. The linear actuator (tilt actuator) 48, for example, includes a reciprocating piston 52 with a ball joint 54 at its distal end. This ball joint 54 is rotatably coupled to a pair of elongated flanges 56 that project downward from the underside of the tilt plate 40 through a cutout slot (not visible) in the roll plate 46, as shown in FIG. Fig. 3. At the opposite end of the actuator 48 from the ball joint 54 is a rolling hinge 58 that rotatably connects a cylinder 62 and an electric motor 64 of the linear actuator (tilt actuator) 48 to the base plate 44. Similarly, the linear actuator (rolling actuator) 50 also includes a reciprocating piston 52 with a ball joint 54 at its distal end. This ball joint 54 is rotatably connected to a pair of elongated flanges 60 that are welded to the underside of the rolling plate 46 and project downwardly, as shown in Fig. 2. At the opposite end of the actuator from the ball joint 54 is a rolling hinge 58 which rotatably connects a cylinder 62 and an electric motor 64 of the linear actuator (rolling actuator) 50 to the base plate 44.

[0023] With reference to the Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the tilt plate 40 is selectively controllable via the on-board control 36 by transmitting control signals to the linear actuators 48 in order to compensate for rotational inertia disturbances about the transverse axis A LA to compensate or otherwise improve. A four-bar (tilt) linkage that is Fig. 2, generally designated 66, is a movable, closed chain linkage that mechanically connects the tilt plate 40 to the roll plate 46. For at least some preferred configurations, the four-bar linkage 66 consists of at least the first and second (tilt) actuating plates 68 and 70, and the first and second sets of (tilt) pivots 72 and 74. The first set of tilt pivots 72 is illustrated herein as tubular roller hinges and couples the first (front) ends of the tilt actuating plates 68, 70 to the roll plate 46, while the second set of pivots 74 couples the second (rear) ends of the tilt actuating plates 68, 70 to the tilt plate 40. These pivots 72, 74 cooperatively define the first and second tilt axes A P1 and A P2 , each parallel to the side axis A LAof the vehicle 10. In this architecture, the tilt plate 40 pivots with respect to the vehicle 10 about the first tilt axis A P1 when tilting in a first (forward) direction and around the second tilt axis A P2 when tilting in a second (backward) direction.

[0024] With continued reference to the Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, the rolling plate 46 is selectively controllable via the on-board control 36 by transmitting control signals to the linear actuator 50 in order to compensate for rotational inertia disturbances about the longitudinal (roll) axis A LO to compensate or otherwise improve. A four-bar (rolling) rod, which in Fig. 2, generally designated 76, is a movable, closed chain linkage that mechanically connects the rolling plate 46 to the base plate 44. For at least some preferred configurations, the four-bar linkage 76 consists of at least the first and second (rolling) actuation plates 78 and 80, and the first and second sets of (rolling) pivot joints 82 and 84, respectively. Similar to the four-bar linkage 66 described above, the rolling pivot joints are illustrated herein as pivot roller hinges, with the first set of rolling pivot joints 82 hinge-coupled to the base plate 44 by the first ends of the rolling actuation plates 78, 80, while the second set of pivot joints 84 hinge-coupled to the second ends of the rolling actuation plates 78, 80, by the second ends of the rolling plate 44. These pivot joints 82, 84 define the first and second rolling axes A R1 and A R2 , each parallel to the longitudinal axis A LOof the vehicle 10. The rolling plate 46 pivots about the first rolling axis A R1 when rolling in a first (inner) direction and pivots around the second roll axis A R2 when rolling in a second (outer) direction relative to the vehicle 10. It is contemplated that the roll and pitch actuation plates, although illustrated as square plates, may include other shapes, sizes, and structural configurations (e.g., rigid cross members) within the scope of this disclosure.

[0025] The on-board controller 36, which is communicatively connected to the various sensors and actuators, implements processor-executable instructions (e.g., those described in Fig. 4 and stored, for example, in resident memory) to receive and process one or more motion signals from one or more motion sensors (e.g., accelerometer 38) indicative of an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat 22. In response to the motion signal(s), the controller 36 sends or outputs a control signal to one or both of the pitch and roll actuators 48, 50 to selectively pivot the pitch and roll plates 40, 46 and thereby counteract (i.e., relocate or mitigate) the inertial motion disturbance. Due to limitations of the vehicle packaging and overall driving motions, the illustrated example may omit elements that directly counteract yaw axis motions.It may be desirable for the folding movement described above to position the tilt axes at or around the estimated hip point (H-point) or a representative vehicle occupant OC1. Disclosed embodiments allow for chair heights (e.g., measured in the vertical Z direction, from the H-point to the heel) that are within a range found in current vehicles to accommodate most occupants, e.g., 275 mm and 425 mm.

[0026] Aspects of the present disclosure are also directed to a vehicle architecture that utilizes n-by-wire controls in conjunction with a partitioned passenger compartment to enable an enhanced driving experience applicable to both autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles. Unpleasant accelerations during autonomous operation (e.g., from spilling a hot beverage), unpleasant vehicle motions (e.g., body roll during cornering), and undesirable vehicle accelerations in the Z-axis (e.g., road irregularities) can be mitigated. To perform X-axis (roll) rotations, the vehicle interior can be hinged to the vehicle frame. This can help prevent interior packaging requirements from becoming prohibitively large, as a pair of driver and passenger seat assemblies swinging laterally within a passenger compartment requires additional clearance at the sides of the vehicle interior.The articulation of the passenger compartment can be controlled independently of the movement of the wheels relative to the chassis. Thus, the vehicle's chassis can roll outward due to centrifugal forces, while the passenger compartment rolls inward due to actuators driven by an on-board control system based on data from vehicle-mounted accelerometers. This allows for the decoupling of suspension performance related to chassis isolation from driving performance related to body movements. An articulated passenger compartment also allows for the inclusion of a new degree of control freedom (the rotation of the body around the X-axis), separate from that of the vehicle's suspension system.This also allows for the decoupling of body roll experienced by the occupants through the suspension setup, which can eliminate the inherent trade-off between ride quality (which favors a soft suspension) and body motion control (which favors a firm suspension). Separating the body roll compensation from the seat to the body, thus maintaining the size of the interior package, helps eliminate the need for excessive space around the occupant to accommodate the seat's roll joints.

[0027] The articulation of the vehicle seats and the vehicle interior can be controlled in response to one or more accelerometers mounted on one or more of the seats. In contrast, many previously known systems use an accelerometer mounted on the vehicle body. Incorporating accelerometers on the seat rather than the body can enable a simpler, more elegant control system by enabling a closed-loop control architecture. The control system interprets the accelerometer data and, using the sensor data, provides control signals to the seat and / or body actuators.

[0028] By attaching an accelerometer to the seat assembly instead of the vehicle body, a closed-loop control system is enabled in which the overall direction of the accelerations experienced by the seat (represented by a normalized unit vector [x,y,z]) is compared to a reference unit vector (represented by vector [ij,k]), and a dot product is calculated. Since friction can ultimately be limited to approximately 1.0 g, this means that an angle between these two vectors is approximately 45 degrees. The dot product value can then be used to scale the magnitude of the speed request sent to the actuator motors. As the actuator motors articulate the seat assembly and / or the passenger compartment, the two vectors become increasingly collinear until they correspond, at which point the motors are no longer actuated. This control system is easily amenable to custom tuning.By changing a constant proportionality between the dot product of the vectors and the motor signal, the "quickness" of the system's response can be easily adjusted. Likewise, by adjusting the hysteresis limits, the system's sensitivity can be easily adjusted. Because these tuning elements are both orthogonal and limited, they are easily adjustable by the user. In contrast, previous configurations use a system of accelerometers on the body to measure the vehicle's overall motion and orientation, and then calculate which seat movements should counteract them. This in turn requires detailed knowledge of the seat geometry and the travel and position of all actuators, a computationally more difficult undertaking.

[0029] Referring to the flowchart of Fig. 4, an improved method of operating an active vehicle seating arrangement to protect an occupant from inertial forces and road-related vibrations occurring during operation of a motor vehicle, such as the one shown in Fig. 1, is generally described as 100 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 may be representative of an algorithm corresponding to at least some instructions that may be stored, for example, in main or auxiliary memory and executed, for example, by the CPU or a vehicle-side control system to perform some or all of the functions described above or described below associated with the disclosed concepts.

[0030] The method 100 begins at block 101 with an introduction process ("power-on"), whereby the automated chair system is put into operation. At this time, all values ​​stored in memory from a previous use may be erased. At block 103, a return operation is performed, e.g., after the user has adjusted parts of the occupant chair 22 for comfort, a reference position is set, and the system can read values ​​from the X-, Y-, and Z-axis accelerometers. During the Fig.4, the "Calculate Unit Reference Vector" step, designated 105 in FIG. 4, combines the values ​​stored during the "Set Reference Position" procedure at block 103 and normalizes them to a unit vector, which can then be stored in memory and used as a reference point in subsequent steps. This may involve communicating information with three accelerometers (or a single three-axis accelerometer)—accelerometer X, accelerometer Y, and accelerometer Z—which may be part of a sensor feed for a single-seat sensor array. After the initial processes in these first three steps are completed, the main loop of the control algorithm begins at block 107.

[0031] At block 109, the process 100 "Read Sensor(s)" is executed. For example, when the vehicle is moving and experiencing accelerations, the system periodically reads the accelerometer data with a sampling time on the order of fractions of a second. The sensor values ​​are filtered through a moving-average filter or other low-pass filter at block 111, e.g., to condition the data and remove the effects of short-term spikes in accelerometers. The conditional sensor data are summed and normalized to a unit vector, denoted at block 113 (Calculate Unit Acceleration Vector = |(X,Y,Z)|+ (x,y,z)). The method 100 continues to block 115, where the vector (x,z) is a cross product multiplied by the vector (i,k), resulting in a value representing the discrepancy between the target value and the net longitudinal and vertical acceleration of the vehicle (M = (i,k) (x,z) ).This discrepancy value M is then evaluated at block 117. At the same time, at block 119, the vector (y,z) is multiplied by (j,k) to obtain a value representing the discrepancy between the target value and the net lateral acceleration of the vehicle (N = (j,k) .(y,z) ). This discrepancy value N is then evaluated at block 121.

[0032] If a discrepancy value previously determined at block 117 exceeds a threshold value C, a command signal is issued at block 123 and / or 125 to initiate the automated platform arrangement, e.g., translating the seat in a transverse vehicle (roll) rotation to eliminate the discrepancy between the setpoint and measured acceleration values. Physically, this may correspond to tilting the seat until the vehicle's acceleration vector matches the original setpoint vector. Commands to tilt the seat are executed via the voltage control of the DC linear (roll) actuator. The motor voltage / speed can be modulated at block 127 (motor voltage / speed V α |M| ). Output commands can be issued to the Y- and X-axis actuators or to other seat motor actuators.Likewise, if a discrepancy value previously determined at block 119 is evaluated at block 121 to exceed a threshold D, a command signal is triggered at blocks 129 and / or 131 to activate the automated platform assembly, e.g., adjusting the seat in a forward-backward (tilt) rotation to eliminate the discrepancy between the setpoint and the measured acceleration values. Commands to tilt the seat are executed via the voltage control of the DC linear actuator (DC tilt actuator). The motor voltage / speed may be modulated at block 133 (motor voltage / speed V α |M| ). The method 100 may be continuously repeated at block 135, which is a closed-loop control system that maintains the seat in an orientation reflecting a desired setpoint position, as previously determined.

[0033] In some embodiments, method 100 includes at least the steps listed above. Also within the scope of the present disclosure are the omission of steps, the combination of steps, the segmentation of steps, the inclusion of additional steps, and / or the alteration of the order presented above. It should further be noted that method 100 represents a single control sequence for a single active vehicle seating assembly. However, it is assumed that method 100 is applied systematically and repetitively. For example, if multiple active seats are present in a vehicle, each seat may be provided with its own sensor feed and controller for real-time execution of the illustrated control scheme.In embodiments with a tiltable passenger compartment to compensate for roll movements, each seat can be equipped with its own tilt actuator, while the roll actuator is shared by all seats due to the articulated passenger compartment. It should also be noted that some of the parameters shown in the flowchart are adjustable control limits to modulate stationary seat movements.

[0034] Aspects of this disclosure may, in some embodiments, be implemented by a computer-executable program of instructions, such as program modules, commonly referred to as software applications or application programs, executed by an onboard computer. The software may include, by way of non-limiting examples, routines, programs, objects, components, and data structures that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The software may provide an interface to allow a computer to respond according to an input source. The software may also interact with other code segments to initiate a variety of tasks in response to data received in association with the source of the received data. The software may be implemented on any of a variety of storage media, such as CD-ROM, magnetic disk, bubble memory, and semiconductor memory (e.g.,different types of RAM or ROM).

[0035] Furthermore, aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced with a variety of computer system and computer network configurations, including multiprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers, and the like. Additionally, aspects of the present disclosure may be practiced in distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices connected by a communications network. In a distributed computing environment, program modules may be located on both local and remote computer storage media, including storage devices. Aspects of the present disclosure may therefore be implemented in conjunction with various hardware, software, or a combination thereof in a computer system or other processing system.

[0036] Each of the methods described herein may include machine-readable instructions for execution by: (a) a processor, (b) a controller, and / or (c) any other suitable processing device. Any algorithm, software, or method disclosed herein may be embodied in software stored on a tangible medium, such as flash memory, a CD-ROM, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a digital versatile disk (DVD), or other storage devices, however, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the entire algorithm and / or portions thereof may alternatively be executed by a device other than a controller and / or implemented in firmware or dedicated hardware in a well-known manner (e.g.,It may be implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), a field-programmable logic device (FPLD), discrete logic, etc.). Although specific algorithms are described with reference to the flowcharts presented herein, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily recognize that many other methods for implementing the exemplary machine-readable instructions may alternatively be used. For example, the order of execution of the blocks may be changed, and / or some of the described blocks may be changed, eliminated, or combined.

[0037] Although some aspects of the present disclosure have been described in detail with reference to the illustrated embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that many changes may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure is not limited to the precise construction and composition disclosed herein; any and all modifications, alterations, and variations apparent from the foregoing descriptions are within the scope of the disclosure as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

[1] An active vehicle seat assembly (20) for a motor vehicle (10) having a vehicle body with a base plate (44), the vehicle body having mutually orthogonal longitudinal, transverse and vertical axes, the active vehicle seat assembly (20) comprising: an occupant chair (22) having a backrest portion (24) and a seat portion (26) connected to the backrest portion (24); a motion sensor (38) connected to the occupant chair (22) and configured to detect movement of the occupant chair (22) and output signals indicative thereof; an automated platform (28) located below the seat portion (26) and configured to movably attach the passenger chair (22) to the vehicle body, the automated platform (28) including: a tilt plate (40) configured to pivot with respect to the transverse axis; a tilt actuator (48) connected to the tilt plate (40) and configured to selectively pivot the tilt plate (40); a roller plate (46) configured to pivot with respect to the longitudinal axis; a rolling actuator (50) connected to the rolling plate (46) and configured to selectively pivot the rolling plate; a four-bar roller linkage (76) having first and second roller actuating plates (78, 80) and first and second sets of roller pivot joints (82, 84), wherein the first set of roller pivot joints (82) is configured to pivotally couple first ends of the roller actuating plates (78, 80) to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body, and the second set of roller pivot joints (84) is configured to pivotally couple second ends of the roller actuating plates (78, 80) to the roller plate (46), and wherein the roller actuator (50) includes one electronically actuable linear actuator having an electric motor (64) rotatably coupled at a first end thereof to the roller plate (46) and configured to pivotally couple at a second end thereof to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body; and a four-bar tilt linkage (66) having first and second tilt actuation plates (68, 70) and first and second sets of tilt pivots (72, 74), wherein the first set of tilt pivots (72) pivotally couples first ends of the tilt actuation plates (68, 70) to the roll plate (46), and the second set of tilt pivots (74) pivotally couples second ends of the tilt actuation plates (68, 70) to the tilt plate (40), and wherein the tilt actuator (48) includes one electronically actuatable linear actuator having an electric motor (64) rotatably coupled at a first end thereof to the tilt plate (40) and configured to rotatably couple at a second end thereof to the base plate (44) of the vehicle body; and an on-board controller (36) communicatively connected to the motion sensor (38), the tilt actuator (48), and the roll actuator (50), the on-board controller (36) being operable to respond to a motion signal from the motion sensor (38) indicative of an inertial motion disturbance of the occupant seat (22) and to output a control signal to the tilt and / or roll actuator (48, 50) to selectively pivot the tilt and / or roll plate (40, 46) and thereby counteract the inertial motion disturbance. [2] The active vehicle seat assembly (20) of claim 1, wherein the roll pivots (82, 84) define first and second roll axes parallel to the longitudinal axis of the vehicle body, the roll plate (46) pivoting about the first roll axis when rolling in a first direction and pivoting about the second roll axis when rolling in a second direction opposite to the first direction. [3] The active vehicle seat assembly (20) of claim 1, wherein the linear actuator comprises a piston (52) with a spherical joint (54) defining the first end rotatably connected to the roller plate (46). [4] The active vehicle seat assembly (20) of claim 3, wherein the linear actuator includes a rolling hinge (58) defining the second end configured to rotatably couple to the base plate (44). [5] The active vehicle seat assembly (20) of claim 1, wherein the tilt pivots (72, 74) define first and second tilt axes parallel to the transverse axis of the vehicle body, the tilt plate (40) pivoting about the first tilt axis when tilted in a first direction and pivoting about the second tilt axis when tilted in a second direction opposite the first direction. [6] The active vehicle seat assembly (20) of claim 1, wherein the linear actuator comprises a piston (52) with a spherical joint (54) defining the first end rotatably coupled to the recline plate (40).

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