Seat sliding device

Abstract

To provide a simple structure rotatably supporting a lock lever in the inside of an upper rail.SOLUTION: An upper rail of a seat slide device includes a lock lever and a support rod. The lock lever is rotatably supported in the inside of the upper rail. The lock lever is provided with a lock claw projecting from a claw hole of the upper rail and engaged with a lock groove. The support rod extends along a longitudinal direction and rotatably supports the lock lever. The support rod bends in a right angle at its one end, and also curves in a U-shape at its tip from the bent portion. A pair of support projections and a hook are provided on the inside surface of the upper rail. The pair of support projections are disposed so as to sandwich the lock lever. Each of the support projections is provided with a through hole through which the support rod is passed. The hook is disposed so as to be next to the pair of support projections along a longitudinal direction. The U-shaped end of the support rod is locked to the hook.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The technology disclosed in this specification relates to a seat slide device for sliding a seat in an automobile.

Background Art

[0002] The seat slide device includes a lower rail attached to the floor of an automobile and an upper rail attached to the seat and slidably engaged with the lower rail. The lower rail is provided with locking grooves arranged in the longitudinal direction, and inside the upper rail, a lock lever having claws engaged with the locking grooves is disposed. The lock lever rotates around an axis along the longitudinal direction of the upper rail. The upper rail is further provided with a spring for biasing the lock lever. The spring biases the lock lever so that the locking claws project toward the locking grooves. An example of such a seat slide device is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In the seat slide device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the structure for rotatably supporting the lock lever is complicated. In the seat slide device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the spring for biasing the lock lever is made of an elastic wire material, and the middle part is bent complicatedly, and this bent part is caught in the groove inside the upper rail so that the spring does not move in the longitudinal direction inside the upper rail.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] This specification provides a simple structure for rotatably supporting a lock lever inside an upper rail.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The seat slide device disclosed herein comprises a lower rail, which is mountable to the floor of a vehicle and has a plurality of locking grooves along its longitudinal direction, and an upper rail, which is mountable to a seat of a vehicle and is slidably engaged with the lower rail. The upper rail has at least one claw hole on its side facing the locking groove. The seat slide device further comprises a locking lever and a support rod. The locking lever is rotatably supported inside the upper rail. The locking lever has a locking claw that protrudes from the claw hole and engages with the locking groove. The support rod extends along its longitudinal direction and rotatably supports the locking lever. The support rod is bent at a right angle at one end and curves in a U-shape beyond the bend.

[0006] Inside the upper rail, there is a pair of support protrusions and a hook. The pair of support protrusions are positioned to sandwich the lock lever. Each support protrusion has a through hole through which the support rod passes. The hook is positioned alongside the pair of support protrusions along the longitudinal direction. The U-shaped end of the support rod is secured to the hook.

[0007] In the seat slide device disclosed herein, after passing a support rod through the through holes of a pair of support projections and a locking lever, one end of the support rod can be bent so that its U-shaped end can be hooked onto a hook. This structure allows the locking lever to be easily and rotatably supported inside the upper rail.

[0008] Details of the technology disclosed herein and further improvements are described in the following "Modes for Carrying Out the Invention". [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This is a side view of a seat sliding device mounted on the floor panel of an automobile. [Figure 2] A perspective view of the seat sliding mechanism (with the upper rail separated from the lower rail). [Figure 3]This is a perspective view of the upper rail from a diagonal angle below. [Figure 4] Disassembled perspective view of the upper rail (viewed from a diagonal angle below). [Figure 5] This is a side view of the upper rail (side view with the front side panel removed). [Figure 6] These are the top and front views of the lock lever. [Figure 7] This figure shows another example of a spring rod support structure. [Figure 8] This figure shows a cross-section of the upper rail in Figure 7. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The seat slide device 2 will be described with reference to the drawings. Figure 1 shows a side view of the seat slide device 2 attached to the floor panel 90 of an automobile. The seat slide device 2 consists of a lower rail 10 and an upper rail 20. The lower rail 10 is elongated. The upper rail 20 is attached to the lower rail 10 so as to be movable (slidable) in its longitudinal direction.

[0011] In the coordinate system shown in the diagram, the X direction corresponds to the longitudinal direction of the lower rail 10 and the upper rail 20. The longitudinal direction of the rail (X direction) will be referred to as the rail longitudinal direction below. In the coordinate system shown in the diagram, the Y direction corresponds to the short direction of the rail. The short direction of the rail will be referred to as the rail short direction below. In the coordinate system shown in the diagram, the +Z direction corresponds to "up", and the -Z direction corresponds to "down".

[0012] The lower rail 10 is fixed to the floor panel 90 of the vehicle body. The upper rail 20 is attached to the underside of the seat 91. The upper rail 20 is attached to the underside of the seat 91 via a frame (not shown). A pair of seat sliding devices 2 are attached to each seat 91. Each of the pair of upper rails 20 is attached to the left and right sides of the underside of the seat 91, respectively. Each of the pair of lower rails 10 is fixed to the floor panel 90 in accordance with each of the pair of upper rails 20.

[0013] Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the seat slide device 2. In Figure 2, the upper rail 20 is depicted separately from the lower rail 10. Also, both the upper rail 20 and the lower rail 10 are depicted with a portion of their length omitted.

[0014] The cross-sectional shape of the lower rail 10 when cut with a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the rail is groove-shaped. The lower rail 10 comprises a bottom plate 11, a pair of outer plates 14a and 14b extending upward from both ends of the bottom plate 11 in the short direction of the rail, and inner plates 12a and 12b parallel to the outer plates 14a and 14b between the pair of outer plates 14a and 14b. The upper ends of the outer plates 14a (14b) and the inner plates 12a (12b) are connected. The inner plates 12a and 12b are provided with lock grooves 13 aligned along the longitudinal direction of the rail. The lock grooves 13 are holes, but the lower edge of the hole may be open. In other words, the lock grooves 13 may be slits with an open bottom.

[0015] The upper rail 20 comprises a top plate 21, a pair of side plates 22a and 22b, and four rollers 29. The lower end of the inner plate 12a (12b) is curved in a U shape. The four rollers 29 are positioned at the four corners of the upper rail 20. The four rollers 29 fit into the space between the outer plate 14a (14b) and the inner plate 12a (12b) of the lower rail 10. The rollers 29 are in contact with the bottom plate 11. When the upper rail 20 moves in the longitudinal direction of the rail within the lower rail 10, the four rollers 29 rotate on the bottom plate 11, allowing the upper rail 20 to move smoothly. Alternatively, multiple ball bearings may be placed between the upper rail 20 and the lower rail 10 instead of the rollers 29.

[0016] The side plate 22a of the upper rail 20 is provided with a plurality of claw holes 23, and lock claws 32 protrude from each claw hole 23. The lock claws 32 advance and retreat in the short direction of the rail. When the lock claws 32 protrude from the side plate 22a, the lock claws 32 engage with the lock grooves 13 of the lower rail 10, and the upper rail 20 is fixed to the lower rail 10. In other words, the upper rail 20 is locked. When the lock claws 32 retract inside the side plate 22a, the engagement is disengaged, and the upper rail 20 can move with respect to the lower rail 10. The lock claws 32 are part of a lock lever 30 described later.

[0017] The structure of the upper rail 20 will be described in detail. FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the upper rail 20 as seen obliquely from below. In FIG. 3, for the sake of understanding, the side plate 22b of the upper rail 20 is omitted from the figure so that the components inside the upper rail 20 can be seen. FIG. 4 shows an exploded perspective view of the upper rail 20. FIG. 4 is a perspective view seen from the same viewpoint as FIG. 3. Also in FIG. 4, the side plate 22b of the upper rail 20 is omitted from the illustration.

[0018] Inside the upper rail 20, in addition to the lock lever 30 described above, a support rod 40 and a spring rod 50 are arranged. On the inner surface of the side plate 22a of the upper rail 20 (the inner surface of the upper rail), a pair of support protrusions 24a, 24b and a hook 25 are provided. The pair of support protrusions 24a, 24b and the hook 25 are arranged side by side in the longitudinal direction of the rail. Through holes are provided in each of the support protrusions 24a, 24b. The lock lever 30 is arranged between the pair of support protrusions 24a, 24b.

[0019] The lock lever 30 has a main body plate 31 that is long in the longitudinal direction of the rail, and flanges 33a and 33b provided at both ends of the main body plate 31 in the longitudinal direction of the rail. Through holes are also provided in the flanges 33a and 33b. The lock lever 30 is arranged such that the flange 33a faces the support projection 24a and the flange 33b faces the support projection 24b. A support rod 40 is inserted through the through holes of the flanges 33a and 33b and the through holes of the support projections 24a and 24b, and the lock lever 30 is rotatably supported by the upper rail 20. The lock lever 30 rotates about the support rod 40 extending in the longitudinal direction of the rail. A plurality of lock claws 32 are provided on one edge of the main body plate 31 of the lock lever 30 (the edge facing the side plate 22a of the upper rail 20). When the lock lever 30 swings about the support rod 40, the lock claws 32 protrude from or retract into the claw holes 23 of the side plate 22a.

[0020] One end (the rear end) of the support rod 40 is bent at a right angle, and the part from the bent portion is curved in a U-shape. The U-shaped part at the end of the support rod 40 is referred to as the U-shaped end 41. A hook 25 is provided on the inner surface of the upper rail. The U-shaped end 41 is locked to the hook 25, and the support rod 40 is attached to the upper rail 20.

[0021] Figure 5 shows a side view of the upper rail 20. In Figure 5, the side plate 22b is omitted, allowing the internal structure of the upper rail 20 to be seen. The support rod 40 has a length L1 between the support projection 24b closer to the hook 25 and the hook 25 that is longer than 1 / 3 of the length L2 between the pair of support projections 24a and 24b. The support rod 40 is a slender steel rod with a relatively low modulus of elasticity in the bending direction. In other words, the support rod 40 is cantilevered with the support projection 24b as a fixed point. The U-shaped end 41 is a free end, and when a force is applied to the U-shaped end 41 in the direction of the shorter side of the rail, the U-shaped end 41 is displaced in the direction of the shorter side of the rail. Therefore, as shown in Figure 5, after inserting the support rod 40 through the support projections 24a, 24b and the through holes in the flanges 33a, 33b, the U-shaped end 41 is displaced so that the entire hook 25 is positioned inside the U-shaped end 41 (state of support rod 40a in Figure 5). In that state, the U-shaped end 41 is moved inside the hook 25. When the force applied to the support rod 40 is released, the U-shaped end 41 is locked to the hook 25 (state of support rod 40b in Figure 5). The support rod 40 has flexibility (rigidity) in the bending direction and is locked to the hook 25 by the restoring force in the bending direction.

[0022] After passing the support rod 40 through the through holes in the pair of support protrusions 24a, 24b and flanges 33a, 33b, one end of the support rod 40 (U-shaped end 41) can be bent and hooked onto the hook 25. This structure allows the lock lever 30 to be easily and rotatably supported inside the upper rail 20.

[0023] Let's further explain the features of the lock lever 30. A V-shaped groove 31a is provided on the opposite edge of the main plate 31 of the lock lever 30 (the edge opposite to the edge on which the locking claw 32 is provided). Figure 6 shows a plan view and a front view of the lock lever 30. The V-shaped groove 31a is clearly visible in Figure 6. The V-shaped groove 31a tapers along the shorter direction of the rail. An enlarged view of the area around the V-shaped groove 31a is shown in the lower left of Figure 3. One end 51 of the spring rod 50 is locked into the V-shaped groove 31a.

[0024] The spring rod 50 is a slender steel rod, and both ends (one end 51 and the other end 52) are bent at a right angle. As mentioned earlier, one end 51 is locked into the V-shaped groove 31a of the main plate 31 of the lock lever 30. Inside the upper rail 20 (on the inner surface of the upper plate 21), there is a hook 26 and a projection 27, and the projection 27 has a V-shaped groove 27a. The V-shaped groove 27a tapers along the shorter direction of the rail. An enlarged view of the area around the V-shaped groove 27a is shown in the lower right of Figure 3. The other end 52 of the spring rod 50 is locked into the V-shaped groove 27a.

[0025] The spring rod 50 has one end 51 that is locked into the V-groove 31a of the lock lever 30, and the other end 52 that is locked into the V-groove 27a of the projection 27 of the upper rail 20. The middle of the spring rod 50 is locked into the hook 26. The spring rod 50 has torsional rigidity, and both ends are locked into the V-grooves 31a and 27a when twisted. The locking of the right-angled end 51 into the V-groove 31a of the lock lever 30 restricts the rotation of the spring rod 50 in one direction. The locking of the other end 52 into the V-groove 27a of the projection 27 of the upper rail 20 restricts the rotation of the spring rod 50 in the opposite direction. The torsional restoring force of the spring rod 50 biases the lock lever 30 so that the lock claw 32 protrudes outward from the claw hole 23 of the side plate 22a. The spring rod 50, due to its torsional rigidity, biases the lock lever 30 in the rotational direction around its axis (support rod 40).

[0026] The V-shaped grooves 27a and 31a taper when viewed from the short side of the rail. The width of the groove bottom of the V-shaped groove 31a (27a) is the same as the diameter of one end 51 (the other end 52) of the spring rod 50. Therefore, when the other end 52 of the spring rod 50 contacts the bottom of the V-shaped groove 27a, the spring rod 50 does not move in the longitudinal direction of the rail relative to the upper rail 20. Also, when one end 51 of the spring rod 50 contacts the bottom of the V-shaped groove 31a of the lock lever 30, the lock lever 30 does not move in the longitudinal direction of the rail relative to the spring rod 50. As a result, the lock lever 30 does not move in the longitudinal direction of the rail relative to the upper rail 20. When the upper rail 20 is locked to the lower rail 10, rattling of the upper rail 20 is prevented.

[0027] The spring rod 50 is secured at both ends by the V-shaped grooves 27a and 31a, and also secured in the middle by the hook 26. The spring rod 50 is secured at three points: both ends and in the middle. This structure makes it difficult for the spring rod 50 to come off the upper rail 20.

[0028] A projection 35 is provided on the opposite edge of the main plate 31 (the edge opposite to the edge on which the locking claw 32 is provided). The rear end of an operating lever (not shown) contacts the projection 35. The front end of the operating lever extends forward of the upper rail 20. The operating lever is rotatably supported inside the upper rail 20 on an axis extending in the direction of the shorter side of the rail. When the user lifts the front end of the operating lever, the rear end of the operating lever lowers. The rear end of the operating lever pushes down the projection 35 of the locking lever 30. As a result, the locking lever 30 rotates, the locking claw 32 retracts into the inside of the side plate 22a, and the engagement between the locking claw 32 and the locking groove 13 is released. In other words, the upper rail 20 is unlocked. When the user releases their hand from the operating lever, the biasing force of the spring rod 50 returns the locking lever 30 to its original position (with the locking claw 32 protruding from the side plate 22a). In other words, the upper rail 20 is locked to the lower rail 10 again.

[0029] The features of the seat slide device 2 are summarized below. The seat slide device 2 comprises a lower rail 10 and an upper rail 20. The lower rail 10 is attachable to the floor of a car and has a plurality of lock grooves 13 along its longitudinal direction. The upper rail 20 is attachable to the seat of a car and is slidably engaged with the lower rail 10. At least one claw hole 23 is provided on the side of the upper rail 20, facing the lock groove 13. Inside the upper rail 20 are a lock lever 30, a support rod 40, and a spring rod 50. The lock lever 30 is rotatably supported inside the upper rail 20. The lock lever 30 has at least one lock claw 32 that protrudes from the claw hole 23 and engages with the lock groove 13.

[0030] The support rod 40 is a metal rod extending along the longitudinal direction of the rail and provides rotational support for the lock lever 30. The lock lever 30 rotates around the support rod 40 as its axis. The support rod 40 has one end bent at a right angle, and the part beyond the bend is curved in a U-shape. The U-shaped portion at one end of the support rod 40 is the aforementioned U-shaped end 41.

[0031] The upper rail 20 is provided with a pair of support protrusions 24a and 24b and a hook 25. The pair of support protrusions 24a and 24b are positioned to sandwich the lock lever 30. The support protrusions 24a and 24b have through holes through which the support rod 40 passes. The hook 25 is positioned along the longitudinal direction of the rail, alongside the pair of support protrusions 24a and 24b, and the U-shaped end 41 of the support rod is locked into it.

[0032] The length of the support rod 40 will be described below. The length L1 of the support rod 40 between the support projection 24b closer to the hook 25 and the hook 25 is longer than 1 / 3 of the length L2 of the support rod 40 between the pair of support projections 24a and 24b. These features allow the support rod 40 that rotates and supports the lock lever 30 to be easily attached to the upper rail 20.

[0033] A spring rod 50 is positioned inside the upper rail 20. The spring rod 50 biases the lock lever 30 in its rotational direction so that the lock claw 32 protrudes from the claw hole 23. The spring rod 50 is also a long, slender metal rod, and both ends (one end 51 and the other end 52) are bent at a right angle. The lock lever 30 is provided with a V-shaped groove 31a (lever-side V-groove) into which one end 51 of the spring rod 50 is locked, and the inside of the upper rail 20 is provided with a V-shaped groove 27a (rail-side V-groove) into which the other end 52 of the spring rod 50, which is bent at a right angle, is locked. The width of the bottom of the V-shaped groove 31a (27a) is equal to the diameter of one end 51 (the other end 52). When the spring rod 50 comes into contact with the V-shaped grooves 31a and 27a, the lock lever 30 is restrained in the longitudinal direction of the rail. This structure suppresses rattling of the lock lever 30 relative to the upper rail 20 in the longitudinal direction of the rail.

[0034] In the seat slide device 2 of the embodiment, the spring rod 50 is supported on the back surface of the upper plate 21 of the upper rail 20. The spring rod 50 may also be supported on the back surface of the side plate 22a instead of the back surface of the upper plate 21, as shown in Figure 7. Figure 7 is a perspective view showing only the side plate 22a and spring rod 50 of the modified upper rail 120. The side plate 22b, the lock lever 30 supported by the side plate 22b, and the support rod 40 of the modified upper rail 120 are the same as those of the upper rail 20 shown in Figures 3 and 4. A hook 126 and a projection 127 are provided on the back surface of the side plate 22. The projection 127 is a plate bent at a right angle and has a hole 127b. A V-shaped groove 127a is formed at the lower end of the hole 127b. The other end 52 of the spring rod 50 is locked into the V-shaped groove 127a. Also, part of the spring rod 50 is locked into the hook 126. Although the lock lever 30 is not shown in Figure 7, one end 51 of the spring rod 50 is locked into the V-shaped groove 31a of the lock lever 30, as in Figures 3 and 4.

[0035] Figure 8 shows a cross-section obtained in Figure 7 by cutting through the V-groove 127b with a plane parallel to the YZ axis. Although not shown in Figures 7 and 8, one end 51 of the spring rod 50 is pressed against the lock lever 30, and the spring rod 50 is twisted in the direction of arrow A. The spring rod 50 generates a restoring force due to its torsional rigidity, and the base 52a of the other end 52 is pressed against the back surface of the projection 127, and the tip 52b of the other end 52 attempts to rotate in the direction of arrow B with the base 52a as the pivot point. As a result, the other end 52 is pressed against the bottom of the V-groove 127a.

[0036] The same mechanism as in Figures 3 and 4 is realized in the structures shown in Figures 7 and 8.

[0037] Although specific examples of the present invention have been described in detail above, these are merely illustrative and do not limit the scope of the claims. The technologies described in the claims include various modifications and changes to the specific examples illustrated above. The technical elements described in this specification or drawings exhibit technical usefulness individually or in various combinations, and are not limited to the combinations described in the claims at the time of filing. Furthermore, the technologies illustrated in this specification or drawings can achieve multiple objectives simultaneously, and achieving even one of these objectives itself constitutes technical usefulness. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0038] 2: Seat slide device 10: Lower rail 11: Bottom plate 12a, 12b: Inner plate 13: Lock groove 14a, 14b: Outer plate 20, 120: Upper rail 21: Top plate 22a, 22b: Side plate 23: Claw hole 24a, 24b: Support projection 25, 26, 126: Hook 27, 35, 127: Projection 27a, 31a, 127a: V-groove 29: Roller 30: Lock lever 31: Main plate 32: Lock claw 33a, 33b: Flange 40: Support rod 41: U-shaped end 50: Spring rod 127b: Hole

Claims

[Claim 1] A lower rail that can be attached to the floor of a car and has multiple locking grooves along its longitudinal direction, An upper rail that can be attached to the seat of the aforementioned automobile, is slidably engaged with the lower rail, and has at least one claw hole on its side facing the lock groove, A locking lever is provided, which is rotatably supported inside the upper rail and has a locking claw that protrudes from the claw hole and engages with the locking groove, A support rod extending along the longitudinal direction and rotatably supporting the lock lever, with one end bent at a right angle and the part beyond the bend curving into a U-shape, It is equipped with, Inside the upper rail, A pair of support protrusions arranged to sandwich the lock lever, each having a through hole through which the support rod passes; A hook is arranged along the longitudinal direction, alongside the pair of support protrusions, and the U-shaped end of the support rod is locked into it. It is provided. Seat sliding device.

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