Ball Bushing Slide Block Assembly for Curved Seat Rail Travel
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional long-slide devices for vehicle seats face issues with play and jamming between the slide guide and seat cart, especially in curved sections, leading to vibration, noise, and limited manual operation capabilities, and require additional space for left-right movement, hindering seat functionality and safety.
Innovation Solution
A slide block assembly with a ball bushing bearing made of elastic plastic material, featuring a guide receiving part and ball bushing bearing that allows sliding and rolling contact, reducing friction and preventing play and jamming through a complex shape and elastic support, with a rotating body and pinion gear for smooth operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a linear lower rail and linear left-right rail are installed to enable seat movement and avoid rear wheel housings, then the seat can move forward-backward and left-right, but the device complexity increases and manual operation becomes sequential rather than simultaneous
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the lower rail and left-right rail into a single integrated curved rail structure. The seat bogie contains both lower and left-right slide blocks that travel along different sections of the same rail, eliminating the need for separate linear rails and enabling simultaneous movement in multiple directions through a unified mechanical system
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a curved rail instead of linear rails, allowing the seat to move along a curved path that naturally accommodates both forward-backward and left-right movements. The curved geometry enables the seat to navigate around rear wheel housings while maintaining smooth continuous motion without requiring sequential manual operation
2Adaptability or versatility
If left and right rails are applied inside the seat to enable lateral movement, then the seat can move left and right during forward-backward movement, but the seating height increases due to additional space requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the functions of lower and left-right rails into a single curved rail structure positioned outside the seat. This eliminates the need for additional internal space within the seat for rail mechanisms, thereby maintaining the original seating height while still enabling lateral movement through the integrated rail system
3Reliability
If a gap between the seat bogie and slide guide is reduced to prevent play, then backlash is minimized, but the gap becomes too narrow and causes jamming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a ball bushing bearing as an intermediary element between the slide block and the curved rail. This ball bushing contains small balls that roll between the sliding surfaces, reducing friction and enabling smooth movement with minimal clearance. The ball bearing acts as a mediator that prevents both play and jamming by maintaining optimal contact between the moving and stationary components
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the friction parameter by introducing ball bearings, which transform sliding friction into rolling friction. This parameter change allows the system to operate with minimal clearance without experiencing jamming, as rolling contact significantly reduces the resistance that would otherwise cause binding in tight clearances
4Device complexity
If conventional sliding contact is used between the slide block and curved rail, then the structure is simple, but friction causes play and jamming in curved sections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a ball bushing bearing as an intermediary component between the slide block and curved rail. The ball bushing contains multiple small balls that roll between the sliding surfaces, converting high-friction sliding contact into low-friction rolling contact. This intermediary mechanism enables smooth travel through curved sections while maintaining relatively simple overall structure
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the conventional sliding friction mechanism with a rolling friction mechanism using ball bearings. This substitution fundamentally changes the type of mechanical contact from sliding to rolling, dramatically reducing friction and eliminating the play and jamming problems that occur in curved sections while maintaining structural simplicity
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution prevents play and jamming, reduces vibration and noise, enhances support for the seat and occupant, and improves durability and assembly, enabling smooth travel in both linear and curved sections.
Implementation Method 1
a ball bushing bearing of which the inner surface is formed so as to correspond to the slide guide so as to be capable of making sliding contact with the slide guide, and the outer surface is formed so as to correspond to the guide receiving part so as to be capable of making rolling contact with the guide receiving part by means of a ball method
Implementation Method 2
a ball bushing bearing made of elastic plastic material, as well as can firmly support the seat, occupants, and external forces
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a slide block, the slide block assembly having a ball bushing bearing may include: a slide block which has formed at one side thereof a guide receiving part capable of receiving a slide guide of which at least a portion is formed as a linear section or a curved section; and a ball bushing bearing of which the inner surface is formed so as to correspond to the slide guide so as to be capable of making sliding contact with the slide guide, and the outer surface is formed so as to correspond to the guide receiving part so as to be capable of making rolling contact with the guide receiving part by means of a ball method.