Vehicle Seat Backrest Orientation Control During Turns
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle seats lack the ability to dynamically adjust their rest surface orientation in response to the occupant's situation, such as during turns, autonomous driving modes, and changes in wakefulness, which can affect comfort and safety.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat with an actuator system and controller that adjusts the rest surface orientation based on real-time data from sensors, including lateral acceleration, wakefulness detection, and driving modes, to enhance comfort and safety by aligning the seat with the vehicle's direction and alerting the driver to potential turns or drowsiness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the rest surface orientation is made adjustable to improve comfort during turns, then the device complexity increases due to adding actuators and control systems
Solution Approach 1:
The rest surface orientation is made dynamically adjustable through actuators that respond to vehicle turning conditions. The seat backrest can change its lateral inclination angle in real-time based on detected vehicle dynamics, allowing the surface to adapt to the occupant's body movement during turns and maintain optimal support.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system uses feedback from vehicle sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes, steering angle sensors) to detect turning conditions and automatically adjusts the rest surface orientation accordingly. The system continuously monitors vehicle state and modifies the seat position to maintain comfort during dynamic driving conditions.
2Ease of operation
If the rest surface orientation is changed to support occupant posture during turns, then the ease of operation is improved, but the loss of time for adjustment occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The control system performs preliminary detection of turning conditions using vehicle sensors before the occupant actually experiences the turn. By anticipating the turn based on steering angle or vehicle dynamics data, the rest surface orientation is adjusted in advance, eliminating the need for manual operation and reducing adjustment time to near-zero.
Solution Approach 2:
The seat system automatically detects and responds to turning conditions without requiring manual input from the occupant. The control unit processes sensor data and autonomously actuates the positioning mechanism to maintain optimal posture support, making the system self-regulating and eliminating manual adjustment time.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the actuator is designed to move the entire seat for orientation change, then the adaptability is improved, but the weight of the moving object increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of moving the entire seat assembly, the system segments the adjustment function to only the necessary components - specifically the seat backrest or cushion portion that contacts the occupant. This localized adjustment reduces the mass that the actuator must move while still achieving the orientation change needed for comfort during turns.
Solution Approach 2:
The orientation adjustment is applied locally to the rest surface that directly supports the occupant's body, rather than moving the entire seat structure. This localized quality change achieves the adaptability goal with minimal moving mass, as only the critical support surface needs repositioning.
Data Source
AI summary
A car seat includes an actuator capable of changing an orientation of a rest surface of a seat back laterally by turning and moving at least a side portion frame that is part of the car seat frontward and rearward, and a controller configured to exercise control over the actuator. The controller includes a run-time posture support unit configured to execute a run-time posture support control under which when a car makes a turn, the actuator is regulated to cause the rest surface of the seat back to be oriented in a direction of the turn. The run-time posture support unit is configured to regulate the actuator in accordance with a placement of the seat in the car, when the run-time posture support unit executes the run-time posture support control.