Decorative structure of seat cover and method of manufacturing the same

Abstract

To provide a decorative structure of a seat cover and its manufacturing method which enhance ornamental design property by mounting a decorative skin to a seat cover by welding.SOLUTION: A decorative structure of a seat cover includes a back cover 5 on which an urethane slab pad 5b is laminated on a rear surface side of a fabric 5a, a decorative skin 6 which is disposed on a front side of the back cover 5 partially, a first resin seat 7 which is disposed between the decorative skin 6 and the back cover 5, and a second resin seat 8 thicker than the first resin seat 7, which is disposed on a rear surface side of the back cover 5. An outer peripheral edge part 61 of the decorative skin 6 is connected with the first resin seat 7, the back cover 5 and the second resin seat 8 by welding processing. The first resin seat 7 is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and disposed on the outer peripheral edge part 61. The second resin seat 8 is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and disposed on a peripheral edge part of the outer peripheral edge part 61 containing the outer peripheral edge part 61.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a decorative structure for a seat cover and a manufacturing method thereof, and more particularly to a decorative structure for a seat cover in which a decorative skin is attached by welding, and a manufacturing method thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, decorative effects have been produced by attaching a decorative skin to a seat cover, which is a skin material, by welding for automobile seats. Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for placing a decorative skin, which is a top sheet cut to a required shape, on a part of the upper surface of a mat base material for automobile floor mats, and performing high-frequency welding along the periphery of the top sheet. This technique allows the top sheet to be bonded to the mat base material and simultaneously forms a recessed groove on the periphery of the top sheet, thereby improving the design of automobile floor mats. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-254488 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, the mat base material has sufficient thickness and rigidity, so after high-frequency welding, the overlay sheet is formed to rise three-dimensionally from the grooves, resulting in a highly aesthetically pleasing design. However, when attempting to apply this technology to a flexible covering material with a small thickness and low rigidity, such as a seat cover, there is a problem in that the overlay sheet does not rise three-dimensionally from the grooves, making it difficult to enhance the design.

[0005] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a decorative structure for a seat cover in which a decorative skin is attached to the seat cover by welding to enhance the design, and a manufacturing method thereof. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The first invention of the present invention is a decorative structure for a seat cover, comprising a seat cover having a slab pad laminated to the back side of a skin made of fabric, nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather, a decorative skin made of fabric, nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather partially arranged on the front side of the seat cover, a first resin sheet arranged between the decorative skin and the seat cover, and a second resin sheet which is thicker than the first resin sheet and arranged on the back side of the seat cover, wherein at least the outer peripheral edge of the decorative skin is connected to the first resin sheet, the seat cover and the second resin sheet by welding, the first resin sheet is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and is arranged at least in the area to be welded, and the second resin sheet is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and is arranged on the periphery of the area to be welded including at least the area to be welded.

[0007] According to the first invention, the seat cover is thick because a slab pad is laminated to the back side of the fabric, nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather skin. In addition, a second resin sheet that is thicker than the first resin sheet is arranged on the periphery of the welding processing area including the welding processing area on the back side of the seat cover, thereby increasing rigidity. As a result, the decorative skin or the seat cover skin is formed in a three-dimensionally raised state from the recess formed by the welding processing, improving the design.

[0008] A second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the first aspect, the decorative skin is a suede-like artificial leather, which is a type of nonwoven fabric.

[0009] According to the second invention, the suede-like artificial leather does not have threads coming loose from the ends simply by cutting it into a specified shape, so that loss of design is prevented.

[0010] The third invention of the present invention is a manufacturing method for a decorative structure of a seat cover of the first invention or the second invention, characterized in that the first resin sheet is laminated on the back side of the decorative skin and cut to a predetermined shape, placed on the front side of the seat cover, and the second resin sheet is arranged on the back side of the seat cover to perform the welding process.

[0011] According to the third aspect of the present invention, the first resin sheet is laminated on the back side of the decorative skin and then cut to a predetermined shape, so that the first resin sheet is less likely to protrude from the portion to be welded, and loss of design can be suppressed. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of an automobile seat to which a decorative structure of a seat cover according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. [Diagram 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the seat cover of the automobile seat of FIG. 1 taken along line II-II. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part III in FIG. 2. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2 of another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] 1 to 3 show one embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is an example in which the present invention is applied to a seat back 3 of an automobile seat 1. In each figure, arrows indicate the various directions when the automobile seat 1 is installed in an automobile. In the following description, descriptions of directions will be made based on these directions. The automobile seat 1 of this embodiment includes a seat cushion 2 that serves as a seating portion, and a seat back 3 that serves as a backrest.

[0014] As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the seat cushion 2 is placed and fixed on a floor F that constitutes a part of the body of the automobile. The seat back 3 is formed by covering a back cover 5 that is a skin material with a back pad 4 placed on a back frame (not shown) that forms the skeleton. Here, the back cover 5 corresponds to the "seat cover" in the claims.

[0015] As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the back cover 5 is formed into a bag shape with a plurality of pieces connected by sewing and opening downward. Each piece includes a main lower piece 51 corresponding to the main lower part of the seat back 3 that mainly supports the waist of the seated occupant from the rear, and a main upper piece 52 corresponding to the main upper part of the seat back 3 that mainly supports the back of the seated occupant from the rear. Each piece also includes a side lower piece 53 corresponding to the side lower parts of the pair of left and right seat backs 3 that mainly supports the waist of the seated occupant from the left and right sides, and a side upper piece 54 corresponding to the side upper parts of the pair of left and right seat backs 3 that mainly supports the back of the seated occupant from the left and right sides. Furthermore, each piece includes a side rear piece 55 corresponding to the left and right side parts and the rear part of the seat back 3. Since the material composition of each piece is common, the right side upper piece 54 will be described as a representative example.

[0016] As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the back cover 5 is formed as a sheet-like three-layer structure in which a thin urethane slab pad 5b is laminated on the rear side (back side) of the fabric 5a, and a thin backing fabric 5c is further laminated on the rear side (back side) of the urethane slab pad 5b. The fabric 5a includes woven fabric and knitted fabric. The urethane slab pad 5b has a thickness of about 1 to 10 mm and provides a cushioning feel. The backing fabric 5c is a thin woven fabric, knitted fabric or nonwoven fabric, but can be omitted. The fabric 5a and the urethane slab pad 5b correspond to the "surface" and "slab pad" in the claims, respectively. Nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather made of PVC or urethane can also be used as the surface instead of the fabric 5a.

[0017] As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the side upper piece 54 is attached with a substantially U-shaped decorative skin 6 that opens toward the seat inner side when viewed from the front. The decorative skin 6 is made by punching out suede-like artificial leather (Alcantara: registered trademark) into a substantially U-shape. The decorative skin 6 is connected to the side upper piece 54 by high-frequency welding at an outer peripheral edge 61 that surrounds the outer periphery and has a width of about 3 to 7 mm. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 3, a first resin sheet 7 is disposed between the rear side of the outer peripheral edge 61 of the decorative skin 6 and the front side of the fabric 5a of the side upper piece 54, and a second resin sheet 8 is disposed on the rear side of the back base cloth 5c of the side upper piece 54, and high-frequency welding is performed in this state. The first resin sheet 7 is a transparent sheet made of PVC with a thickness of about 0.1 mm, and is cut to a width substantially the same as that of the outer peripheral edge 61. The second resin sheet 8 is a transparent or colored sheet made of PVC with a thickness of about 0.4 mm, and is cut to a width of about 1.5 to 4 times the width of the outer peripheral edge portion 61. The outer peripheral edge portion 61 and the first resin sheet 7 are placed on the side upper piece 54 in a state where they are overlapped, and the second resin sheet 8 is arranged on the lower side of the side upper piece 54 so that the position of the first resin sheet 7 in the left-right direction is approximately the center of the second resin sheet 8. In this state, the sheet is placed on a flat lower mold 9, and the outer peripheral edge portion 61 is pressed from above by an upper mold 10, and a high-frequency current is passed between the lower mold 9 and the upper mold 10. Then, the first resin sheet 7 melts and impregnates the outer peripheral edge portion 61 of the decorative skin 6 and the fabric 5a of the side upper piece 54, and the front portion of the second resin sheet 8 also melts and impregnates the back base fabric 5c of the side upper piece 54. The urethane slab pad 5b melts and softens, and is crushed in the thickness direction. In this state, when the upper die 10 is cooled and raised from the lower die 9, a groove 11 is formed on the front side of the side upper piece 54, and a recess 12 having a smaller depth than the groove 11 is formed on the rear side of the side upper piece 54. Here, the presence of the second resin sheet 8 maintains the depth of the groove 11, and the general part and fabric 5a of the decorative skin 6 are formed into a shape that is three-dimensionally raised from the outer peripheral edge 61, improving the design.If the second resin sheet 8 were not present, the fore-and-aft position of the outer peripheral edge 61 in the groove portion 11 would be near the center of the side upper piece 54 in the fore-and-aft direction, i.e., in the thickness direction, and the depth of the groove portion 11 would be shallow, resulting in a poor design.

[0018] The present embodiment configured as above has the following effects. The back cover 5 has a thickness because the urethane slab pad 5b is laminated on the back side of the fabric 5a. The second resin sheet 8, which is thicker than the first resin sheet 7, is arranged on the back side of the back cover 5 so that the position of the first resin sheet 7 in the left-right direction is approximately at the center of the second resin sheet 8, so that the rigidity of the peripheral portion of the portion to be high-frequency welded is increased. As a result, the decorative skin 6 or the fabric 5a of the back cover 5 is formed in a three-dimensionally raised state from the groove portion 11 formed by the high-frequency welding process, so that the design can be improved. In addition, since the decorative skin 6 is suede-like artificial leather (Alcantara: registered trademark), threads do not come loose from the terminal portion simply by cutting it into a predetermined shape, and the design can be prevented from being impaired. Furthermore, since the first resin sheet 7 is a transparent PVC sheet, even if it protrudes from the outer peripheral edge portion 61 of the decorative skin 6, it is not noticeable, and the design can be prevented from being impaired.

[0019] Another embodiment is shown in FIG. 4. The difference from the first embodiment is the portion that is high-frequency welded to attach the decorative skin 6 to the side upper piece 54. In this embodiment, the decorative skin 6 is connected to the side upper piece 54 not only on the outer periphery but also on the entire surface by high-frequency welding. Specifically, the decorative skin 6 is formed by laminating a first resin sheet 7A, which is a transparent PVC sheet with a thickness of about 0.1 mm, onto suede-like artificial leather (Alcantara: registered trademark), and then punching out the first resin sheet 7A into a substantially U-shape. The second resin sheet 8A is a transparent or colored PVC sheet with a thickness of about 0.4 mm, and is cut to a width that is about 70% larger than the left-right width of the decorative skin 6. The decorative skin 6 laminated with the first resin sheet 7A is placed on the side upper piece 54, and the second resin sheet 8A is arranged below the side upper piece 54 so that the position of the decorative skin 6 in the left-right direction is approximately at the center of the second resin sheet 8A. In this state, it is placed on a flat lower mold 9, and the entire surface of the decorative skin 6 is pressed from above by an upper mold 10A, and a high-frequency current is passed between the lower mold 9 and the upper mold 10A. Then, the first resin sheet 7A melts and impregnates the decorative skin 6 and the fabric 5a of the side upper piece 54, and the front part of the second resin sheet 8A also melts and impregnates the backing fabric 5c of the side upper piece 54. The urethane slab pad 5b melts and softens, becoming crushed in the thickness direction. In this state, when the upper die 10A is cooled and raised from the lower die 9, a groove 11A is formed on the front side of the side upper piece 54, and a recess 12A having a smaller depth than the groove 11A is formed on the rear side of the side upper piece 54. Here, the presence of the second resin sheet 8A maintains the depth of the groove 11A, and the fabric 5a of the side upper piece 54 is formed in a three-dimensionally raised shape from the decorative skin 6, improving the design.

[0020] The present embodiment configured as above has the following effects. The back cover 5 has a thickness because the urethane slab pad 5b is laminated on the back side of the fabric 5a. The second resin sheet 8A, which is thicker than the first resin sheet 7A, is arranged on the back side of the back cover 5 so that the position of the first resin sheet 7A in the left-right direction is approximately at the center of the second resin sheet 8A, so that the rigidity of the peripheral portion of the portion to be high-frequency welded is increased. As a result, the fabric 5a of the back cover 5 is formed in a three-dimensionally raised state from the groove portion 11A formed by the high-frequency welding process, and the design can be improved. In addition, since the decorative skin 6 is suede-like artificial leather (Alcantara: registered trademark), threads do not come loose from the end portion simply by cutting it into a predetermined shape, and the design can be prevented from being impaired. Furthermore, since the first resin sheet 7A is a transparent PVC sheet, even if it protrudes from the decorative skin 6, it is not noticeable and the design can be prevented from being impaired. In addition, since the first resin sheet 7A is laminated on the rear side of the decorative skin 6 before cutting to a predetermined shape, the first resin sheet 7A is less likely to protrude from the portion to be welded, preventing loss of design.

[0021] Although specific embodiments have been described above, the present invention is not limited to those external appearances and configurations, and various modifications, additions, and deletions are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the following can be mentioned.

[0022] 1. In the above embodiment, the decorative skin 6 is attached to the upper side piece 54 by high-frequency welding. However, it may also be attached by ultrasonic welding or vibration welding.

[0023] 2. In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to the side upper piece 54 of the back cover 5. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be applied to the main lower piece 51, the main upper piece 52, the side lower piece 53, or the side rear piece 55. Furthermore, the present invention may be applied to a cushion cover that is the covering material of the seat cushion 2.

[0024] 3. In the above embodiment, the first resin sheet 7 is cut to approximately the same width as the outer peripheral edge 61, and the outer peripheral edge 61 and the first resin sheet 7 are overlapped and placed on the side upper piece 54, and then high-frequency welding is performed. However, this is not limited to this, and the first resin sheet 7A may be punched out in a laminated state over the entire surface of the decorative skin 6, as in other embodiments, and only the outer peripheral edge 61 may be high-frequency welded.

[0025] 4. In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to an automobile seat, but it may also be applied to seats installed in airplanes, ships, trains, etc. [Explanation of symbols]

[0026] 1. Car seats 3 Seat back 5 Back cover (seat cover) 5a Fabric (surface) 5b Urethane slab pad (slab pad) 6 Decorative skin 7 First resin sheet 7A First resin sheet 8. Second resin sheet 8A Second resin sheet 11 Groove 11A Groove 54 Upper side piece 61 Outer periphery

Claims

1. A decorative structure for a seat cover, The seat cover has a slab pad laminated on the back side of a fabric, nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather skin, a decorative skin made of fabric, nonwoven fabric or synthetic leather partially disposed on the front side of the seat cover, a first resin sheet disposed between the decorative skin and the seat cover, and a second resin sheet thicker than the first resin sheet and disposed on the back side of the seat cover, At least an outer peripheral edge portion of the decorative skin is connected to the first resin sheet, the seat cover, and the second resin sheet by welding, The first resin sheet is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and is disposed at least in a portion to be welded, The second resin sheet is made of PVC, EVA or TPU and is disposed on at least the peripheral portion of the area to be welded, the peripheral portion including the area to be welded.

2. In claim 1, The decorative skin is a seat cover decorative structure made of suede-like artificial leather, which is a type of nonwoven fabric.

3. A method for manufacturing the decorative structure of the seat cover according to claim 1 or 2, A manufacturing method for a decorative structure of a seat cover, in which the first resin sheet is laminated on the back side of the decorative skin and cut to a predetermined shape, placed on the front side of the seat cover, and the second resin sheet is disposed on the back side of the seat cover and then welded.

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