Vehicle Seat Buckle Retention via Displaceable Support Plate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vehicle seat designs face challenges in ensuring the buckle main body remains securely inserted while allowing smooth insertion and pull-out of the buckle, particularly due to the narrow slit in the locking plate, which hampers workability during installation and removal.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat configuration featuring a support plate that is displaceable between overlapping and non-overlapping states with the holding plate, allowing the buckle main body to be supported without detaching, while enabling the coupling portion and attachment members to pass through, ensuring easy insertion and pull-out.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the slit of the holding plate is narrowed to prevent the buckle main body from detaching, then the reliability of buckle retention is improved, but the ease of operation deteriorates because the buckle and attachment members cannot pass through the slit
Solution Approach 1:
The holding plate is designed to be movable between a first state where it overlaps the insertion hole to retain the buckle, and a second state where it does not overlap to allow insertion and pull-out operations. This dynamic reconfiguration resolves the contradiction by providing both secure retention during use and easy access during installation/removal.
Solution Approach 2:
A support plate is introduced as an intermediary component that provides continuous support for the buckle main body during insertion and pull-out operations. This allows the holding plate to be moved to a non-obstructing position while maintaining buckle support through the support plate, thus enabling easy operation without compromising reliability.
2Reliability
If the holding plate is fixed in position to support the buckle, then the reliability of buckle support is improved, but the device complexity increases due to the need for movable support structures
Solution Approach 1:
The support plate is designed to perform multiple functions: it supports the buckle main body during insertion and pull-out operations, and can be positioned to work in conjunction with the holding plate during retention. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated components, thereby managing complexity while maintaining reliability.
3Manufacturing precision
If the support plate is positioned to overlap the holding plate, then the finishability of the seat cover is improved by allowing proper routing of attachment members, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to restricted access to the insertion hole
Solution Approach 1:
The support plate is designed to be movable between different positions: it can be placed in an overlapping position with the holding plate to enable proper routing of attachment members and cables for seat cover finishability, or moved to a non-obstructing position to facilitate easy access for insertion and pull-out operations. This dynamic positioning resolves the contradiction between manufacturing precision and ease of operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle seat includes a seat pad, an insertion hole that passes through the seat pad, a covering portion that covers an inner wall of the insertion hole, a holding plate that holds a distal end of the covering portion, a buckle for a seat belt, and a support plate. In the vehicle seat, the buckle includes a buckle main body, a coupling portion, and an attachment member. The support plate is displaceable between a first state and a second state, the holding plate includes an insertion window portion, and the support plate includes a passage portion that allows the coupling portion to pass through the passage portion but does not allow the buckle main body to pass through the passage portion in a state where the support plate overlaps with the insertion window portion.