Thermoplastic Composite Seatback Frame with Vacuum-Formed Cover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional seatback frames in vehicles are heavy due to the use of steel, leading to increased weight and manufacturing costs, while also being prone to damage and deformation during collisions or sudden stops, which compromises passenger safety and comfort.
Innovation Solution
A seatback frame made of thermoplastic fiber-reinforced composite materials with a reinforcing member and a cover sheet, where the cover sheet is coupled to the frame using a vacuum-suctioned and heated process, enhancing coupling force and eliminating the need for additional boards, resulting in a lightweight, rigid, and cost-effective structure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If steel is used to manufacture seatback frame, then strength and rigidity are improved, but weight and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by combining thermoplastic resin with continuous or long fibers to create a fiber-reinforced composite material. This composite structure provides steel-level strength and rigidity while maintaining significantly lower weight, directly resolving the contradiction between strength requirements and weight reduction goals for the seatback frame
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material parameters by transitioning from metallic steel to polymer-based fiber-reinforced composites. This parameter change involves selecting specific fiber types (glass, carbon, aramid), resin matrices, and fiber orientations to achieve the required mechanical properties at reduced weight, thereby resolving the strength-weight tradeoff
2Strength
If steel is used to manufacture seatback frame, then strength is improved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes material parameters from expensive steel to cost-effective fiber-reinforced thermoplastics. The use of injection molding and vacuum forming processes further reduces manufacturing complexity and cost while maintaining structural integrity, directly addressing the cost reduction goal without sacrificing strength
3Stability of the object's composition
If conventional steel frame is used, then structural rigidity is maintained, but susceptibility to damage and deformation in collisions increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs fiber-reinforced composite materials that combine the rigidity needed for structural stability with the damage tolerance characteristics of composite structures. The fiber reinforcement provides crack propagation resistance and energy absorption capabilities during impact, improving reliability in collision scenarios while maintaining structural rigidity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by strategically orienting fibers and designing varying material distributions in different regions of the seatback frame. This allows optimization of both rigidity in critical load-bearing areas and damage resistance in impact-prone zones, resolving the contradiction between structural stability and collision reliability
4Strength
If additional boards are coupled to seatback frame for reinforcement, then strength is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the reinforcement function directly into the seatback frame structure through fiber reinforcement integrated during the molding process. This eliminates the need for separate reinforcement boards and their associated coupling mechanisms, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining or improving strength characteristics
Solution Approach 2:
The fiber-reinforced composite material serves multiple functions simultaneously: it provides structural rigidity, strength, damage resistance, and weight reduction all in a single integrated component. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for additional separate reinforcement elements, reducing overall structural complexity
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 provides a lightweight, rigid, and cost-effective seatback frame that maintains strength and safety standards, reducing the risk of deformation during vehicle collisions and improving manufacturing efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a heated cover sheet is pressurized in a vacuum suctioned state and is coupled to the body frame
Implementation Method 2
a heated cover sheet is pressurized in a vacuum suctioned state and is coupled to the body frame
Implementation Method 3
a heated cover sheet is pressurized in a vacuum suctioned state and is coupled to the body frame
Data Source
AI summary
A seat back frame for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a frame body consisting of a thermoplastic fiber reinforced composite material; a reinforcing agent joined to the inside of the frame body; and a cover sheet joined to the outside of the frame body. According to the present invention, the frame is lightweight while maintaining rigidity and strength like a steel frame, and a cover sheet is joined thereto, thereby enabling a board which is further joined to the seat back frame to be omitted, which leads to the achievement of a slimmed and fabric-integrated seat back frame for a vehicle. Also, a cover sheet is joined to a body frame by using a vacuum adsorption scheme, which leads to the achievement of a method for manufacturing a seat back frame for a vehicle having improved joining force and increased merchantability.