Rear Seat Hat Shelf Stowage Using Seat-Floor Gap Fixation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing motor vehicles with rear seat benches and storage compartments face a complex stowing process for adjustable hat shelves, particularly in vehicles with hatchbacks or coupes, due to the intricate mechanism required to transition the hat shelf from its usage to non-usage position.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves creating a predefined gap between the rear seat bench and the storage compartment floor, allowing the hat shelf to be inserted and fixed in its non-usage position using a simple fixation device, such as an elastic band or magnetic elements, which securely holds the hat shelf against the rear seat bench.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a complex mechanism is used to adjust the hat shelf between usage and non-usage positions, then the hat shelf can be securely fixed in both positions, but the stowing process becomes complex and difficult to operate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the hat shelf from its traditional fixed position and allows it to be removed and stored in the storage compartment. The hat shelf can be completely taken out from the passenger compartment and placed in the storage compartment below, eliminating the need for complex adjustment mechanisms while maintaining secure fixation in both positions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a dynamic system where the hat shelf can transition between three states: fixed in the usage position, removed entirely, and stored in the non-usage position within the storage compartment. This dynamic approach replaces complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms with a simpler remove-and-store system that maintains reliability while improving ease of operation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the hat shelf is designed to be adjustable between usage and non-usage positions, then it provides versatile functionality, but the adjustment mechanism becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the hat shelf from a fixed installation and makes it a removable component that can be completely taken out and stored in the storage compartment. This extraction approach provides versatility through multiple position options without requiring complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms, as the hat shelf simply needs to be removable and storable.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the hat shelf system into separable components: the hat shelf itself and the storage compartment. This segmentation allows the hat shelf to be independently removed and stored, providing adaptability without the need for integrated complex adjustment mechanisms. The system is divided into functional modules that can operate independently.
3Device complexity
If a fixed hat shelf design is used, then the structure is simple, but the storage space utilization is reduced and functionality is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the fixed hat shelf into a dynamic, removable component that can be stored in the storage compartment when not in use. This dynamic design maintains structural simplicity while significantly improving storage utilization, as the storage compartment can now accommodate both cargo and the stored hat shelf, maximizing space efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the storage compartment multi-functional by enabling it to serve both as a cargo storage space and as a storage location for the hat shelf. This universality improves storage utilization without increasing structural complexity, as the same space serves multiple purposes depending on the hat shelf's position.
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
This approach simplifies the adjustment and fixation of the hat shelf, allowing it to be easily transitioned between usage and non-usage positions without the need for complex mechanisms, thereby enhancing user convenience and reducing stowing complexity.
Implementation Method 1
the fixation device comprises an elastic band (13) with fixation elements (14, 15) at its longitudinal ends, wherein the elastic band (13) biases, when tensioned, the hat shelf (6) against the rear side (10) of the rear seat bench (2)
Implementation Method 2
the fixation device comprises a magnetic element (23) and a ferromagnetic element (24)
Data Source
AI summary
A motor vehicle has a rear seat bench, a storage compartment arranged behind the rear seat bench in the direction of travel, and a storage compartment floor. A hat shelf is positionable behind the rear seat bench in a usage position such that it separates a passenger compartment from the storage compartment. In order to thereby provide an easily actuatable hat shelf which is also sturdy when in its non-usage position in the motor vehicle, a gap is provided between the rear seat bench and the storage compartment floor. The hat shelf and the gap interact such that the hat shelf can be inserted into the gap in a non-usage position and can be fixed to the rear seat bench via a fixation device such that, in its non-usage position, the hat shelf adjoins a rear side of the rear seat bench.