Stacked Seat Air Bladder Cells for Stable Support Control
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Vehicle seat air bladders exhibit undesirable compliance due to the nonlinear relationship between displacement and pressure, leading to springiness or bounciness when not fully inflated, which affects the customized comfort setting for occupants.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a vehicle seat with interconnected inflatable cells within an air bladder system, featuring directional pressure valves and a biasing mechanism to control inflation and deflation, allowing for controlled displacement and customized support settings.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a single air bladder is used in a vehicle seat, then the structure is simple, but the comfort and support customization is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The air bladder system is divided into multiple interconnected cells (first cell, second cell, third cell, etc.) that can be independently controlled. Each cell can be inflated or deflated separately to provide localized support and customization for different body regions, transforming a single undifferentiated bladder into a segmented system capable of independent control for enhanced comfort adaptation.
2Reliability
If air bladders are not fully inflated, then the seat provides some support, but undesirable compliance and springiness occur
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the air bladder into multiple cells, the system can provide stable support through partial inflation of specific cells rather than requiring full inflation of the entire bladder. This segmentation allows the seat to achieve reliable support stability by selectively inflating only the necessary cells to match the occupant's needs, eliminating the springiness that occurs in partially inflated single bladders.
Solution Approach 2:
The air bladder system incorporates dynamic control through inflation and deflation mechanisms that allow real-time adjustment of cell volumes. This dynamic capability enables the system to transition between different support states, providing stable support when needed while maintaining ease of operation through controlled inflation/deflation cycles of individual cells.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple air bladders are added to provide customization, then comfort control improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple air bladder cells are merged into a single integrated system with shared control mechanisms. The cells are interconnected and can be controlled by a unified control system that manages inflation and deflation of individual cells based on occupancy detection, providing enhanced support control without proportionally increasing overall system complexity through integration rather than separate independent systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The air bladder system is designed with multi-functionality where the same basic cell structure and control mechanism can serve multiple purposes - providing support, comfort, and customization across different seating positions and occupant types. This universal design approach allows enhanced adaptability without linearly increasing device complexity, as the same components perform multiple functions.
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
This solution reduces or eliminates undesirable compliance, providing a more stable and customizable support system for vehicle occupants by allowing for precise control over the inflation and deflation of air bladders, enhancing comfort and support.
Implementation Method 1
The cells are inflatable cells used to inflate the outer casing from a deflated condition to an inflated condition
Data Source
AI summary
A seat includes a seat portion with an air bladder having an outer casing. Multiple fluidly interconnected cells are disposed within a cavity of the outer casing and are configured to inflate the outer casing from a deflated condition to an inflated condition. The cells may be arranged within the air bladder so as to provide a directional inflation of the air bladder from a first portion of the air bladder towards a second portion. First and second support substrates may be disposed within the seat portion, wherein the air bladder is positioned between the first and second substrates. The air bladder may be configured to inflate and displace the first and second substrates relative to one another from an at-rest position to an actuated position. A biasing mechanism may be coupled to at least one of the first and second substrates for biasing the substrates towards the at-rest position.