L-Shaped Steel Pipe Seat Frame Heat Treatment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicle seats face challenges in manufacturing cost due to the need for complex press-forming of steel plates and difficulties in applying heat treatments like high frequency hardening and carburizing to closed loop shapes, as well as damage risks when bending pre-treated steel products.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle seat design featuring a seat frame made of general steel pipes bent into L-shapes, allowing for easy heat treatment at stress-concentrated areas and improved strength while maintaining cost-effectiveness, with lock members at corner portions for enhanced locking to the vehicle body.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If general steel pipes are bent into closed loop shape, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but heat treatment cannot be applied effectively
Solution Approach 1:
The seat frame is divided into multiple linear frame members rather than a single closed loop, allowing heat treatment to be applied to specific segments (corner portions) while maintaining the overall structure. This segmentation enables selective heat treatment of stress-concentrated areas without requiring the entire frame to be heat-treated.
Solution Approach 2:
Heat treatment is applied locally to corner portions of frame members where stress concentration occurs, rather than treating the entire frame uniformly. This local quality approach concentrates heat treatment resources at critical areas, achieving the necessary strength where needed while avoiding unnecessary treatment of other areas.
2Strength
If pre heat treated steel products are bent, then strength is improved, but bending becomes difficult and damage occurs
Solution Approach 1:
Heat treatment is applied to corner portions before final assembly, but the frame members remain in a bendable state during manufacturing. The preliminary heat treatment strengthens the material in preparation for assembly while allowing bending operations to be completed before the heat treatment sets the final structural properties.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of bending pre heat treated steel (which causes damage), the invention inverts the sequence by bending general steel pipes first, then applying heat treatment to specific corner portions. This reversal of the conventional sequence eliminates bending difficulties while still achieving the strength benefits of heat treatment.
3Strength
If complicated press-forming is used to achieve strength, then frame strength is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention uses general steel pipes instead of expensive high-tensile steel or complicated press-formed components. By accepting that general steel requires additional heat treatment for strength, the overall cost is reduced through using cheaper base materials, offsetting the heat treatment expense.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the material parameter from high-tensile steel to general steel, and compensates for the lower inherent strength through heat treatment parameter changes. This parameter substitution allows using cheaper materials while achieving the necessary strength through controlled heat treatment processes.
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 design reduces manufacturing costs, enhances strength by concentrating heat treatments at critical areas, and facilitates easy bending and heat treatment processes, achieving strength comparable to high tensile steels while maintaining affordability.
Implementation Method 1
it is made to be able to obtain a strength equivalent to high tensile steels by applying a heat treatment such as a high frequency hardening, a liquid carburizing, and a gas carburizing
Implementation Method 2
the seat frame has on an outer side a first frame member in which a first side portion provided vertically and an upper portion provided horizontally on an upper side are bent into L-shape at a first corner portion, and the first corner portion is provided with a lock member to be locked to a vehicle body
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
A seat (1) for a vehicle is equipped with a seat frame (20, 21) comprising general steel pipes, cushioning bodies suspended by the seat frame (20, 21), and a skin covering the cushioning bodies. The seat frame has on an outer side a frame member (21) in which a side portion (21b) provided vertically and an upper portion (21a) provided horizontally on an upper side are bent into L-shape at a corner portion (21 c), and the corner portion (21 c) is provided with a lock member to be locked to a vehicle body of said vehicle.