Vehicle Seat Tilt Arm with Nested Plate Segmentation

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing tilt arms for vehicle seats with complex shapes are difficult to form and lack sufficient rigidity, making it challenging to achieve both ease of manufacturing and structural integrity.

Innovation Solution

A tilt arm design featuring a coupling arm portion and a leading-end-side arm portion with a closed sectional shape at the fixed portion, allowing for separate formation and improved rigidity through overlapping plate members, enhancing flexural and torsional rigidity while enabling complex shape formation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of manufacture

If the tilt arm is formed as a single piece by press working, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but the ability to form complex shapes is lost

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveease of formationVSAvoidshape complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The tilt arm is divided into multiple separate components (coupling arm portion and leading-end-side arm portion) that can be manufactured independently using standard press working processes. This segmentation allows each component to maintain simple manufacturing requirements while the assembled structure achieves complex functionality and geometry that would be impossible with a single-piece construction.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

2Device complexity

If the tilt arm is divided into multiple parts, then complex shapes can be formed, but manufacturing complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveshape complexityVSAvoidease of formation

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The tilt arm is divided into multiple separate components (coupling arm portion and leading-end-side arm portion) that can be manufactured independently using standard press working processes. This segmentation allows each component to maintain simple manufacturing requirements while the assembled structure achieves complex functionality and geometry that would be impossible with a single-piece construction.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The coupling arm portion and leading-end-side arm portion are designed with nested or interlocking geometries that allow them to fit together precisely. The coupling portion of one component nests within or alongside the corresponding portion of the other component, creating a stable assembled structure that maintains structural integrity while enabling complex overall shapes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

3Device complexity

If separate components are coupled, then complex shapes are achievable, but structural rigidity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveshape complexityVSAvoidrigidity

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The coupling arm portion and leading-end-side arm portion are designed with nested or interlocking geometries that allow them to fit together precisely. The coupling portion of one component nests within or alongside the corresponding portion of the other component, creating a stable assembled structure that maintains structural integrity while enabling complex overall shapes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

Solution Approach 2:

The plate members are coupled in overlapping relationships that extend into the thickness dimension, creating multi-layered coupling zones. This three-dimensional coupling arrangement distributes loads across multiple planes and interfaces, significantly enhancing the rigidity and strength of the joint while allowing the overall structure to achieve complex geometries that would be impossible with simple planar connections.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentUS10227022B2Tilt arm for seat and vehicle seat

Publication Date: 2019.03.12 TOYOTA BOSHOKU KK

AI summary

Provided is a tilt arm for a seat that is applied to a vehicle seat and that moves in a pivoting manner when changing an angle of inclination of a front end portion of a cushion pad. The tilt arm includes a coupling arm portion pivotably coupled to a side frame of a cushion frame, and a leading-end-side arm portion coupled and fixed to a leading end portion of the coupling arm portion. A sectional shape of a fixed portion, where the coupling arm portion and the leading-end-side arm portion are coupled and fixed to each other, is a closed sectional shape formed by a closed curve. A sectional shape of the coupling arm portion at the fixed portion and a sectional shape of the leading-end-side arm portion at the fixed portion are each an open sectional shape that is partially opened.