Dual-Stage Vehicle Seat Armrest for Stable Smartphone Viewing
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Solution Overview
Problem
When viewing smartphone screens with an elbow on a vehicle seat armrest during travel, hand-held smartphones often swing due to vibrations, making screen viewing difficult and reducing operability, while also increasing the risk of neck pain and car sickness.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat armrest system with a first armrest that rotates from the seatback to the front and a second armrest that deploys obliquely from the first armrest, supporting the elbow and back of the hand at an appropriate angle to stabilize the smartphone.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional single-level armrest is used, then the structure is simple, but the hand-held display medium swings during vehicle travel making viewing difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The armrest is divided into multiple segments: a first armrest body and a second armrest body that can be deployed independently. The second armrest body is rotatably coupled to the first, allowing it to be positioned at different angles to provide stable support for the elbow and hand-held display medium, preventing swinging during vehicle travel.
Solution Approach 2:
The second armrest body is designed to be deployable and rotatable relative to the first armrest body. This dynamic configuration allows the armrest to adapt to different usage scenarios - remaining compact when not in use and extending to provide stable support when needed, thus improving reliability without permanent complexity.
2Reliability
If the second armrest extends horizontally, then it provides support, but it occupies excessive space in the vehicle
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of extending the second armrest body horizontally which would occupy excessive space, it is designed to extend in an upward direction at an angle relative to the first armrest body. This vertical/diagonal orientation provides the necessary support stability while minimizing the horizontal footprint and occupied space in the vehicle interior.
Solution Approach 2:
The second armrest body is positioned to extend upward rather than horizontally, concentrating the support function in a compact vertical space. This localized positioning provides stable support for the elbow and hand-held device without unnecessarily occupying horizontal space in the vehicle cabin.
3Ease of operation
If the armrest is extended for display viewing, then viewing is possible, but the armrest cannot be retracted
Solution Approach 1:
The second armrest body is rotatably coupled to the first armrest body, enabling it to be deployed to an extended position for comfortable display viewing and then retracted back to a compact position when not in use. This dynamic mechanism provides both viewing capability and adaptability to different usage states.
Solution Approach 2:
The armrest system allows the second armrest body to be temporarily deployed for display viewing purposes and then recovered back to its compact stowed position. This enables the armrest to provide viewing capability when needed while maintaining adaptability by returning to a space-efficient configuration when the function is no longer required.
Data Source
AI summary
The armrest of a vehicle seat is provided with a first armrest and a second armrest. The first armrest includes a first end portion rotatably supported by a side portion of a seatback, and selectively adopts a not-in-use position in which the first armrest is positioned so as to extend toward a seat upper side at the seatback side portion, and an in-use position in which the first armrest is positioned so as to be rotated from the seatback side portion toward a seat front side, so as to extend toward the seat front side. The second armrest includes a first end portion rotatably supported by a second end portion of the first armrest and, in the in-use position, selectively adopts a stowed position in which the second armrest is positioned at an upper surface side of the first armrest, and a deployed position in which the second armrest is positioned so as to be rotated from the upper surface side of the first armrest toward the seat front side, so as to extend obliquely toward a seat upper side in side view and so as to extend obliquely toward a seat width direction inside in plan view.