Vehicle Seat Slide Device Roller Arrangement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing slide devices for vehicle seats face challenges in preventing rattling while ensuring smooth front-rear movement, especially during a vehicle frontal crash, and increasing the rigidity of the lower rail to address this issue leads to increased weight and cost.
Innovation Solution
A slide device with rollers arranged in tandem at three or more positions on the upper rail, where two rollers are fixed and one is pivotally supported to move vertically, preventing rattling and allowing smooth movement even when the lower rail is bent.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-generated harmful factors
If rollers are arranged in tandem at three or more positions on the upper rail to prevent rattling, then rattling prevention is improved, but smooth movement may be hindered when the lower rail is bent by impact
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the intermediate roller movable by allowing its shaft to move vertically within the upper rail. This dynamic configuration enables the roller to adapt its position: it contacts the bottom wall during normal operation to prevent rattling, but can move upward when the lower rail bends during impact, maintaining smooth movement without hindering the seat's front-rear motion.
2Strength
If the lower rail is made of highly rigid material to ensure supporting strength and prevent rattling, then supporting strength is improved, but weight and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of increasing the rigidity and weight of the lower rail, the patent introduces a movable intermediate roller that dynamically adjusts its position. This roller can move upward when impact occurs, allowing the lower rail to flex without compromising supporting strength, thereby avoiding the need for heavier, more rigid materials.
3Strength
If the lower rail is made of highly rigid material to ensure supporting strength and prevent rattling, then supporting strength is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a movable intermediate roller mechanism that allows the lower rail to maintain supporting strength without requiring highly rigid (and expensive) materials. The dynamic adjustment capability of the roller provides rattling prevention and impact absorption, reducing manufacturing costs by avoiding expensive materials while maintaining structural integrity.
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 solution effectively prevents rattling and ensures reliable front-rear movement of the seat body during a crash without the need for overly rigid lower rails, maintaining a lightweight and cost-effective design.
Implementation Method 1
an intermediate roller which is pivotally supported by a movable shaft that is allowed to move in a vertical direction on the upper rail
Implementation Method 2
rollers that are respectively attached to front and rear portions of the upper rail and supported so as to be rollable between a bottom wall and a top wall of the lower rail
Data Source
AI summary
A slide device for vehicle seat in which rollers are arranged at three positions on a lower rail including front and rear portions thereof. Among the rollers, the rollers located at the front and rear portions of the upper rail are pivotally supported by roller shafts and that are prohibited from moving on the upper rail, while the rollers located at the position other than the front and rear portions of the upper rail are pivotally supported by a roller shaft that is allowed to move downward on the upper rail.