VEHICLE SEAT WITH A FOOTREST

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a vehicle seat with a footrest according to the preamble of claim 1. It further relates to a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle, with at least one such vehicle seat.

[0002] The increasing comfort in vehicles, especially cars, is driving the demand for reclining seats with footrests. Particularly in future autonomous vehicles, passengers will be able to use travel time for rest and relaxation and will expect such comfortable seats. Maximum comfort is achieved when the legs are fully supported, allowing the feet to rest on the footrest. If the support is only limited to the calves, fatigue can quickly set in. Often, the adjustment range of a footrest located directly on the seat base is insufficient to achieve the necessary position for resting the feet, or the mechanism would have to be very robust, resulting in significantly higher costs and added weight.

[0003] From DE 10 2010 012 767 A1, a vehicle seat with a footrest is known, which has a support plate for the feet of a passenger seated on the vehicle seat, arranged in front of the vehicle seat and movable relative to the vehicle floor. The support plate is tiltable about a transverse axis located at its seat-side end with its end facing away from the seat. A slide is slidably guided on the longitudinal sides of the support plate and is connected to the vehicle seat via a flexible support element for the lower legs of the passenger.

[0004] From DE 10 2005 013 170 A1, a footrest for a vehicle, comprising support plates for the lower legs of a passenger sitting on a vehicle seat, is known, which is arranged in front of the vehicle seat and can be pivoted from a vertical storage position under the front edge of the vehicle seat into a horizontal support position, in which the support plates can be extended telescopically.

[0005] DE 10 2004 050 730A1 shows and describes a vehicle seating arrangement with vehicle seats arranged one behind the other in an aircraft, wherein a flexible support element arranged under a front seat and which can be extended backwards in a roller blind-like manner can be attached to the seat base of a seat located behind it and, in the state attached there, forms a support for the feet and lower legs of a passenger sitting on the rear seat.

[0006] FR 2 906 770 A1 shows and describes a vehicle seat with a footrest which can be telescopically extended forward from a stowage position under the vehicle seat by means of a rail arrangement arranged under the seat and can be tilted about a transverse axis.

[0007] DE 10 2010 030 553 A1 and DE 87 08 102 U1 each disclose a vehicle seat with a leg rest that, when not in use, is stowed under the vehicle seat and extends forward into an operating position when needed. In the extended position, the leg rest hovers in front of the vehicle seat, and the forces acting on the leg rest are supported by the actuating mechanism and transferred under the vehicle seat into the seat structure and the vehicle structure. The levers and joints of the actuating mechanism must therefore be designed to be particularly robust in order to transmit high bending moments.

[0008] The object of the present invention is to provide an improved vehicle seat with a footrest that is weight-optimized and can be stored under the vehicle seat in a space-saving manner when not in use.

[0009] This problem is solved by the features of claim 1.

[0010] In a vehicle seat solving this problem, comprising a footrest, a seat base with a seat surface which is preferably longitudinally displaceable and can be coupled or connected to a vehicle structure, and a seat back with a backrest surface, wherein the footrest, which is provided with a support surface, is movable between a stowable position and an operating position by means of an actuating mechanism and is arranged in front of the seat base in the operating position, wherein the footrest has a first edge facing away from the seat base and a second edge facing the seat base, the invention provides that a left-side actuating mechanism and a right-side actuating mechanism are provided, each having an upper guide rail.which is arranged in front of the seat base in the stowage position and in the deployment position and extends away from the seat base and is pivotably mounted at its end near the seat relative to the vehicle structure or relative to the seat base about a third transverse axis, that the footrest has at least one longitudinal beam extending from the first edge to the second edge, that the at least one longitudinal beam is connected in the area of ​​the first edge to a first guide element of the actuating mechanism which is guided longitudinally displaceably in the guide rail, that the at least one longitudinal beam is pivotably connected in the area of ​​the second edge to an actuating lever belonging to the actuating mechanism about a first transverse axis, and that the actuating lever is pivotably mounted relative to the vehicle structure or relative to the seat base about a second transverse axis and can be pivotally actuated about the second transverse axis by means of an actuator device,that a lower guide rail is arranged in front of the seat base below the upper guide rail, extending longitudinally away from the seat base, and that a guide lever is provided which is pivotably coupled relative to the longitudinal beam in the area of ​​its first end and which is provided in the area of ​​its second end with a second guide element which is guided longitudinally displaceably in the lower guide rail.

[0011] The footrest according to the invention is arranged under or in front of the front area of ​​the vehicle seat, in particular the seat base, when retracted. The support surface of the footrest can be moved far away from the vehicle seat in the longitudinal direction of travel, for example forward, via the guide rail into the operating position. According to the invention, the weight of a leg resting on the leg rest is transferred from the upper guide rail, which is arranged in front of the seat base in both the stowed and operating positions, via the guide lever into the lower guide rail and from there into the vehicle structure.

[0012] Further preferred and advantageous design features of the vehicle seat according to the invention are the subject of dependent claims 2 to 6.

[0013] It is advantageous if the first guide element, which is arranged to be longitudinally displaceable in the upper guide rail, can be moved along the upper guide rail by means of an actuator device driven by a drive element.

[0014] The longitudinal adjustment of the support surface can thus be carried out non-manually using the actuator device.

[0015] Preferably, the drive element is formed by an electric motor and the actuator by a spindle drive. This spindle drive preferably has a spindle drive with a spindle driven by the electric motor.

[0016] It is particularly advantageous if the lower guide rail is shorter than the upper guide rail, with the end of the lower guide rail closest to the seat being further away from the seat base than the end of the upper guide rail closest to the seat. This geometry of the guide rails ensures that the guide lever pivots around a transverse axis when the footrest is extended, thereby pivoting the upper guide rail and lifting the front end of the support surface furthest from the seat base.

[0017] If the actuating lever is designed as a telescopic rod that is adjustable in its longitudinal extension, then, in addition to the adjustability with the lever mechanism, further adjustment options for the position and inclination of the support surface can be advantageously achieved.

[0018] An advantageous embodiment is one that can be combined with other embodiments of the invention, in which the footrest is provided on each of its two longitudinal sides with a longitudinal support and an associated actuating mechanism.

[0019] The invention is also directed to a vehicle, in particular a motor vehicle, with at least one vehicle seat according to the invention.

[0020] Preferred embodiments of the invention with additional design details and further advantages are described and explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawing.

[0021] It shows: Fig. 1A a side view of a schematically represented vehicle seat with a footrest according to the invention in a stow position, Fig. 1B the vehicle seat made of Fig. 1A with the footrest fully extended in its operating position and Fig. 2 a top view of the schematically depicted vehicle seat from Fig. 1B with the footrest fully extended.

[0022] Fig. 1A and Fig. 1B Figure 1 shows a schematic representation of a vehicle seat 1 from the left side, with a seat base 10 having a seat surface 11 and a seat back 12, usually tiltable, which has a backrest surface 13. A passenger P sitting on the vehicle seat 1 is also shown schematically. The vehicle seat is mounted on the interior floor 20 of the vehicle structure 22 of a vehicle 2 via a seat console 14, which is known per se and shown schematically only in dashed lines in the figure, preferably being longitudinally displaceable. The vehicle seat 1 can be a single seat or it can be part of a bench seat.

[0023] A footrest 3 is associated with the vehicle seat 1 and is arranged on the seat base 10, on the seat console 14, or—preferably—on the interior floor 20 of the vehicle 2, as described below. The footrest 3 has a support plate 30 with an upper contact surface 31 and two lateral longitudinal members 32, 32', which are connected to the support plate 30 on its two opposite longitudinal sides and extend from a first edge 33 facing away from the seat base 10 and a second edge 34 facing the seat base 10.

[0024] The footrest 3 is, as will be described below, movable between a stowable position under the seat base 10 and the operating position shown in Fig. 1BC, in which the support plate 30 of the footrest 3 is arranged in front of the seat base 10.

[0025] Below is a Fig. 1 The left-hand actuating mechanism 4 shown is described, by means of which the support plate 30 of the footrest 3 can be extended from the stowed position into the operating position and retracted back into the stowed position. As shown in Fig. 2 As can be seen, a right-hand actuating mechanism 4' is also provided, which is constructed in the same way as the left-hand actuating mechanism 4, so that the following explanations regarding this also apply analogously to the right-hand actuating mechanism 4', which is why only the left-hand actuating mechanism is described here. The two actuating mechanisms 4, 4' operate synchronously and are preferably driven by a common drive unit 5.

[0026] The longitudinal member 32 is connected in the region of the first edge 33 to a first guide element 35, which is guided longitudinally in an upper guide rail 40 of the actuating mechanism 4, arranged in front of the seat base 10 and extending away from the seat base 10. In the region of the second edge 34, the longitudinal member 32 is pivotably connected to an actuating lever 42 belonging to the actuating mechanism 4 about a first transverse axis y1. The actuating lever 42 is pivotably mounted relative to the vehicle structure 22 or relative to the seat base 10 about a second transverse axis y2 and can be actuated about the second transverse axis y2 by means of an actuator assembly 44, which is driven by a drive element 45, as described below.In the example shown, a bearing block 41 connected to the vehicle structure 22 is provided, on which a first vehicle-fixed bearing 43, defining the second transverse axis y2, is formed for pivoting the actuating lever 42. The actuating lever 42 is preferably designed as a telescopic rod, which is adjustable in its longitudinal extension. This allows the distance between the two transverse axes y1 and y2 forming the pivot axes to be increased or decreased, thereby creating additional adjustment options for the position and inclination of the support plate 30 and thus the contact surface 31. The drive element 45 for the actuator assembly 44 is also mounted in or on the bearing block 41. Furthermore, a second vehicle-fixed bearing 46 is provided on the bearing block 41, which defines a third transverse axis y3 and in which the seat-adjacent end 40A of the upper guide rail 40 is pivotably mounted relative to the vehicle structure 22.

[0027] The actuator assembly 44 comprises a spindle shaft 47 running in or alongside and parallel to the guide rail 40, which can be driven rotationally by the drive element 45, and a spindle nut 48 that engages the spindle shaft 47 in threaded engagement. In the example shown, the spindle nut 48 is connected to or integrally formed with the first guide element 35. The spindle shaft 47 and the spindle nut 48 thus form a spindle drive. The first guide element 35, arranged in this way to be longitudinally displaceable in the guide rail 40, can be moved along the upper guide rail 40 by the drive element 45. The drive element 45 is preferably an electric motor.

[0028] Below the upper guide rail 40, a lower guide rail 50 is arranged in front of the seat base 10, extending longitudinally X away from the seat base 10 and parallel to the upper guide rail 40. A guide lever 52 is pivotably connected at its first end to the first guide element 35 about a fourth transverse axis y4 and is thus pivotally coupled to the longitudinal beam 32. At its second end, the guide lever 52 is provided with a second guide element 54, which is guided longitudinally displaceably in the lower guide rail 50. The lower guide rail 50 is shorter than the upper guide rail 40, with the seat-adjacent end 50A of the lower guide rail 50 being further from the seat base 10 than the seat-adjacent end 40A of the upper guide rail 40.

[0029] When the first guide element 35 is moved forward from its stowed position, i.e., away from the seat base 10, by means of the spindle shaft 47, it carries the first (front) edge 33 of the support plate 30 with it, whereby the support plate 30 pivots clockwise about the fourth transverse axis y4. Simultaneously, a relative pivoting occurs between the support plate 30 and the actuating lever 42 about the first transverse axis y1, which, as the guide element 35 continues to move forward, pivots the actuating lever 42 counterclockwise about the second transverse axis y2 until the end section 42' of the actuating lever 42 furthest from the transverse axis y1 abuts an inner lower stop surface 41' of the bearing block 41. Since the lower guide rail 50 is shorter than the upper guide rail 40 in the manner described above, the guide lever 52 is in the Fig. 1A In the stowage position shown, the lower guide rail 50 is inclined downwards from the seat base 10. This inclination causes the second guide element 54, guided in the lower guide rail, to reach the end stop 51 at the front, seat-remote end 50B of the lower guide rail 50 before the first guide element 35 reaches the end stop 49 at the front, seat-remote end 40B of the upper guide rail 40. If the first guide element 35 is moved further away from the seat base 10 by means of the spindle shaft 47, the guide lever 52 pivots counterclockwise about a fifth transverse axis ys formed by the second guide element 54, thereby lifting the front end 40B of the upper guide rail 40. The upper guide rail pivots clockwise about the third transverse axis y3 and simultaneously lifts the front, seat-remote edge 33 of the support plate 30 upwards.In this operating position, the telescopic actuating lever 42 is extended, i.e., the distance between the transverse axes y 1 and y 2 is lengthened, as shown in . Fig. 1B As symbolically represented by the arrow T and the dashed line, the support plate 30 pivots counterclockwise about the transverse axis y4, and the angle of inclination of the support plate 30 changes, and thus also the angle of inclination of the upper support surface 31 of the footrest 3. When the footrest 3 is retracted from the operating position ( Fig. 1B ) into the stowing position ( Fig. 1A The movements described above are performed in the opposite direction.

[0030] The invention is not limited to the above embodiment, which merely serves to generally illustrate the core concept of the invention. Within the scope of protection, the device according to the invention can also assume other embodiments than those described above. In particular, the device can have features that represent a combination of the respective individual features of the claims.

[0031] Reference numerals in the claims, description and drawings serve only to improve understanding of the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of protection. Bezugszeichenliste

[0032] 1 Vehicle seat 2 Vehicle 3 Footrest 4 Left-side actuating mechanism 4' Right-side actuating mechanism 5 Drive unit 10 Seat base 11 Seat surface 12 Seat backrest 13 Backrest surface 14 Seat console 20 Interior floor 22 Vehicle structure 30 Support panel 31 Upper support surface 32 Longitudinal beam 32' Longitudinal beam 33 Far edge 34 Near edge 35 First guide element 40 Upper guide rail 40A Seat-near end of 40 40B Seat-far end of 40 41 Bearing block 41' Inner lower stop surface of 41 42 Actuating lever 42' Lower end section of 42 43 First fireproof bearing 44 Actuator assembly 45 Drive element 46 Second vehicle-mounted bearing 47 Spindle shaft 48 Spindle nut 49 Front end stop furthest from the seat of 40 50 Lower guide rail 50 A Seat-near end of 50 50 B Seat-far end of 50 51 Front end stop furthest from the seat of 50 52 Guide lever 54 Second guide element Passenger y1 first transverse axis y2 second transverse axis y3 third transverse axis y4 fourth transverse axis y5 fifth transverse axis

Claims

1. Vehicle seat with a footrest (3), a seat base (10) having a seat surface (11) that can be or is coupled, preferably longitudinally displaceably, with a vehicle structure (22), and a seat backrest (12) having a backrest surface (13), wherein the footrest (3) provided with a support surface (31) is movable by means of an actuation mechanism (4, 4') between a stowed position and a deployment position and is arranged in the deployment position in front of the seat base (10), wherein the footrest (3) has a first edge (33) facing away from the seat base (10) and a second edge (34) facing the seat base (10), characterized in that a left-side actuation mechanism (4) and a right-side actuation mechanism (4') are provided, each having an upper guide rail (40) which is arranged in the stowed position and in the deployment position in front of the seat base (10) and extends away from the seat base (10) and which is pivotally mounted at its seat-proximal end (40A) relative to the vehicle structure (22) or relative to the seat base (10) about a third transverse axis (y3), that the footrest (3) has at least one longitudinal support (32, 32') extending from the first edge (33) to the second edge (34), that the at least one longitudinal support (32, 32') is connected in the region of the first edge (33) to a first guide element (35) of the actuation mechanism (4, 4') which is longitudinally displaceably guided in the guide rail (40), that the at least one longitudinal support (32, 32') is pivotally connected in the region of the second edge (34) to an actuation lever (42) belonging to the actuation mechanism (4) about a first transverse axis (y1) and that the actuation lever (42) is pivotally mounted relative to the vehicle structure (22) or relative to the seat base (10) about a second transverse axis (y2) and can be pivotally actuated about the second transverse axis (y2) by means of an actuator device (44), that a lower guide rail (50) is arranged in front of the seat base (10) below the upper guide rail (40), which extends in the longitudinal direction (X) away from the seat base (10), and that a guide lever (52) is provided which is pivotally coupled to the longitudinal support (32, 32') in the region of its first end and which is provided in the region of its second end with a second guide element (54) which is longitudinally displaceably guided in the lower guide rail (50).

2. Vehicle seat with a footrest according to claim 1, characterized in that the first guide element (35) arranged longitudinally displaceably in the upper guide rail (40) is movable along the upper guide rail (40) by means of the actuator device (44) which can be driven by a drive element (45).

3. Vehicle seat with a footrest according to claim 2, characterized in that the drive element (45) is formed by an electric motor and the actuator device (44) is formed by a spindle gear.

4. Vehicle seat with a footrest according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lower guide rail (50) is shorter than the upper guide rail (40), wherein the seat-proximal end (50A) of the lower guide rail (50) is further away from the seat base (12) than the seat-proximal end (40A) of the upper guide rail (40).

5. Vehicle seat with a footrest according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the actuation lever (42) is designed as a telescopic rod which is adjustable in its longitudinal extension.

6. Vehicle seat with a footrest according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the footrest (3) is provided on each of its two longitudinal sides with a longitudinal support (32, 32') and an associated actuation mechanism (4, 4').

7. Vehicle, in particular motor vehicle, with at least one vehicle seat (1) according to one of the preceding claims.