WO2007115889A2 - coussin de siège réglable - Google Patents

coussin de siège réglable Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2007115889A2
WO2007115889A2 PCT/EP2007/052405 EP2007052405W WO2007115889A2 WO 2007115889 A2 WO2007115889 A2 WO 2007115889A2 EP 2007052405 W EP2007052405 W EP 2007052405W WO 2007115889 A2 WO2007115889 A2 WO 2007115889A2
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
cushion
cable
seat
bolsters
support portion
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/EP2007/052405
Other languages
English (en)
Other versions
WO2007115889A3 (fr
Inventor
Bhavesh Champaneri
Matthew Kitchen
Neal Parkhurst
Steve Martin
Original Assignee
Nissan Motor Manufacturing (Uk) Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from GBGB0607064.3A external-priority patent/GB0607064D0/en
Priority claimed from GB0611272A external-priority patent/GB2438827A/en
Application filed by Nissan Motor Manufacturing (Uk) Ltd filed Critical Nissan Motor Manufacturing (Uk) Ltd
Publication of WO2007115889A2 publication Critical patent/WO2007115889A2/fr
Publication of WO2007115889A3 publication Critical patent/WO2007115889A3/fr

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60N—SEATS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES; VEHICLE PASSENGER ACCOMMODATION NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B60N2/00—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles
    • B60N2/90—Details or parts not otherwise provided for
    • B60N2/986—Side-rests
    • B60N2/99—Side-rests adjustable
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
    • B60N—SEATS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR VEHICLES; VEHICLE PASSENGER ACCOMMODATION NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B60N2/00—Seats specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement or mounting of seats in vehicles
    • B60N2/90—Details or parts not otherwise provided for
    • B60N2/986—Side-rests

Definitions

  • This invention relates to a seat cushion and seat for a vehicle, such as a car, a van, a minibus or a bus, and, more particularly, to a seat cushion having adjustable bolsters.
  • the seat occupant effectively to adjust the seat size by moving the side bolsters towards or away from the central support portion through increasing or decreasing the tension of the cable associated with each bolster.
  • a smaller occupant can ensure that he or she is well supported at either side by tensioning the cable in the bolsters using the tensioning mechanism to draw the bolsters towards the support portion.
  • the cable also acts to retain the bolsters in the desired position when the weight of the occupant is placed upon the seat cushion.
  • the tensioning mechanism with which the cable co-operates holds the cable at the selected length against the force exerted by the occupant.
  • the invention resides in a seat for a vehicle, the seat comprising a seat cushion having a central support portion, bolsters along opposing side edges of the support portion and at least one cable extending along the outer side edge of each bolster, and a tensioning mechanism connected to the at least one cable for tensioning the cable to force the bolsters towards the support portion.
  • one end of the cable will be fixed to the seat, such as by means of a bolt secured to a fixing bracket most conveniently located at the rear of the seat, and the other end will be connected to the tensioning mechanism.
  • the tensioning mechanism is preferably mounted on a rigid part of the seat, such as on the seat base, and ideally includes an actuator by means of which the cable tension is controlled.
  • the actuator should be easily accessible, such as by locating it alongside any existing seat rake and height adjustment controls.
  • An example of a tensioning mechanism suitable for use in conjunction with the present invention comprises a cable winding device associated with a winding handle.
  • the adjustable seat cushion of the invention may form, or be part of, the seat bottom such that bolsters act as side supports for the thighs, or in another embodiment may form, or be a part of, the seat back, for example to provide side support to the upper torso of the seat occupant.
  • both the seat bottom and seat back may include cables for tensioning as herein described.
  • Each bolster may have one or more cables associated with it separate from the cable(s) on the other bolster, thereby making each bolster independently adjustable.
  • the or each cable acts on both bolsters. In this way, tensioning of the or each cable causes movement of both bolsters simultaneously. If the bolsters are formed of the same material, and have the same profile, then symmetrical adjustment of the bolsters will generally result.
  • One means of enabling a single cable to alter the position of both bolsters simultaneously is to extend the cable around the perimeter of the seat cushion, or at least around three sides including both bolster sides.
  • Twin cable pullers such as the PulmaflexTM cable puller utilised in existing seat lumbar support systems, are well suited for this purpose.
  • 180° of handle rotation produces about 30 mm lateral movement of each bolster, so a total of 60 mm lateral movement is possible by running two cables in opposing directions.
  • the cable housing or sheath may, for example, run along the inside or the outside of the seat cover. If external, the housing or sheath will usually be selected to match or tone with the seat covering, thereby helping to make the cable run less obtrusive.
  • a preferred housing or sheath for the cable(s) comprises a webbing material secured to the seat cover, for example by sewing, and through which the cable(s) may be pulled or pushed during assembly.
  • the use of webbing to route the cable is particularly advantageous in that it permits the transfer of the force of the tensioned cable over a larger area. Spreading the force in this way reduces the possibility of localised crushing of the bolster.
  • a webbing material such as of the type used in the manufacture of seatbelts is particularly suitable, having a high degree of flexibility combined with strength.
  • tensioning of the cable(s) will result in a compressive force being applied against either or both of the front and rear edges (which in the case of a seat back will comprise the upper and lower edges) of the seat cushion in addition to the bolster side edges.
  • this may cause undesirable crushing of the seat cushion along those front and rear edges at the expense of compression of the side bolsters.
  • the seat cushion comprising the central support portion and bolsters will be formed as an integral unit, typically from a foam material and using a foam moulding process.
  • a desired section of reduced strength may then be created by removing some of the foam from the regions that mark the boundary between the support portion and the bolster. This may be achieved by removing an entire length of foam to create a groove along the boundary, with the result that the bolster collapses and/or folds around the groove during tensioning of the cable(s), or by removing shorter lengths or "cut outs" of foam to create an intermittent groove to achieve a similar effect.
  • Both the depth and width of the groove formed between the central support portion and the bolsters will generally be selected to achieve a preferred bolster profile during the tensioning process.
  • the groove profile may not necessarily be uniform along its length. For example, in order to provide greater movement of the bolster towards the rear of the seat (that is, in the region around the hip or lower torso of the occupant), a greater amount of foam will be removed, or a deeper cut will be made, or both, as compared to further along the groove towards the front or upper end of the cushion.
  • the seat cushion Since it is usual for the seat cushion to be supported on a seat pan or base, which is typically in the form of a pressed sheet of metal having a profile which matches the underside of the cushion, the weight of the occupant will remain supported from beneath despite any weakening of the cushion in the region of the support portion/bolster boundary.
  • the invention resides in a vehicle incorporating a seat cushion or a seat according to the first and second aspects of the invention.
  • Figure 1 illustrates a vehicle seat in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention indicating the path of the tensioning cable
  • Figure 2 is a side view of the base of a seat of Figure 1 , showing the tensioning cable formed within a length of webbing;
  • Figure 3 is a plan view of the seat cushion illustrating the movement of the sides when placed under tension;
  • Figure 4 illustrates the translational and rotational movement of the seat cushion when tension is applied to the cable;
  • Figure 5 is a lateral vertical cross-section through the cushion foam
  • Figure 6 is a longitudinal vertical cross-section through the cushion foam
  • Figure 7 is a plan view of the seat cushion
  • Figure 8 illustrates a fixing bracket for the tensioning cables.
  • a vehicle seat 1 comprises a seat back 2 and a seat cushion 3 forming the seat bottom, each of which is made from foam material.
  • the seat cushion 3 comprises a central support portion 4 and two side bolsters 5.
  • the seat cushion 3 is provided with a pair of cables 6 running around the upper half of the outer side of each bolster 5 and the front and back of the central support portion 4 and which are retained within a length of webbing 7 in the manner of a Bowden cable, the webbing 7 being sewn to the seat cover.
  • the cables 6 are tensioned by means of a tensioning system (not shown), such as that marketed under the name PulmaflexTM. The tension is adjusted by rotating a lever 8 on the side of the base of the seat 1.
  • Figure 3 illustrates how the sides of the cushion seat 3 are moved inwards under the influence of the tensioning system.
  • the solid lines indicate the edge of the seat cushion 3 with no tension applied, and the dotted lines indicate the sides of the seat cushion 3 when the seat is under tension. It can be seen from this figure that there is a greater degree of inward movement of the bolsters 5 towards the rear of the seat cushion 3.
  • the tensioning serves not only to move the bolsters 5 inwards in a translational movement, but also to rotate about the grooves 9. This results from the tensioning cables 6 being positioned in the upper half of the sides of the seat cushion 3.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
  • Transportation (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Seats For Vehicles (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un coussin de siège réglable (3) pour un siège de véhicule (1) comprenant une partie de support central (4) et des traversins (5) le long des bords latéraux opposés de la partie de support (4), le coussin (3) comprend en outre un ou plusieurs câbles (6) s'étendant le long du bord latéral externe de chaque traversin (5) pour coopérer avec un mécanisme tendeur pour tendre le ou les câbles (6) et pousser les traversins (5) vers la partie de support (4). Une section de résistance réduite peut être introduite le long de la bordure entre la partie de support (4) et chaque traversin (5) de sorte que la compression des traversins (5) a lieu de préférence à la compression des bords avant et arrière du coussin (3) lorsque le câble (6) est tendu.
PCT/EP2007/052405 2006-04-07 2007-03-14 coussin de siège réglable WO2007115889A2 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GB0607064.3 2006-04-07
GBGB0607064.3A GB0607064D0 (en) 2006-04-07 2006-04-07 Improvements relating to vehicles and vehicle features
GB0611272A GB2438827A (en) 2006-06-08 2006-06-08 Adjustable vehicle seat cushion with movable bolsters
GB0611272.6 2006-06-08

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2007115889A2 true WO2007115889A2 (fr) 2007-10-18
WO2007115889A3 WO2007115889A3 (fr) 2008-01-10

Family

ID=37944978

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/EP2007/052405 WO2007115889A2 (fr) 2006-04-07 2007-03-14 coussin de siège réglable

Country Status (1)

Country Link
WO (1) WO2007115889A2 (fr)

Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3727980A (en) * 1970-04-06 1973-04-17 Gulf & Western Metals Forming Seat construction
GB2154446A (en) * 1984-02-24 1985-09-11 Hoover Universal Encapsulated bolster
FR2761310A1 (fr) * 1997-03-25 1998-10-02 Peugeot Siege pour vehicule automobile comprenant des bourrelets lateraux de rigidite automatiquement reglable

Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3727980A (en) * 1970-04-06 1973-04-17 Gulf & Western Metals Forming Seat construction
GB2154446A (en) * 1984-02-24 1985-09-11 Hoover Universal Encapsulated bolster
FR2761310A1 (fr) * 1997-03-25 1998-10-02 Peugeot Siege pour vehicule automobile comprenant des bourrelets lateraux de rigidite automatiquement reglable

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2007115889A3 (fr) 2008-01-10

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