Horizontal vibration device for a vehicle seat

• US 10,065,541 B2
• Filed: 08/05/2016
• Issued: 09/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Grammer AG (Ningbo Jifeng Auto Parts Co.,Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Grammer AG (Ningbo Jifeng Auto Parts Co.,Ltd.)
• Inventors: Haller, Erwin
• Primary Examiner(s): Millner, Monica E
• Application Number:
  US15/229,443
• Publication Number:
  US 20170043693A1
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• Field of Search: 248550
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/509 Seat guided by slides or the like
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/527 using liquids

Abstract

The invention relates to a horizontal vibration device for a vehicle seat, comprising a damper module which damps horizontal vibrations between a seat-side upper part and a body-side lower part in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and/or in the width direction of the vehicle, and comprising a regulating/control module for regulating and/or controlling the damper module, said damper module being arranged in an interspace between the seat-side upper part and the body-side lower part. The horizontal vibration device is further characterized in that the damper module comprises at least one hydraulic vibration damper, said at least one hydraulic vibration damper being fluidically connected to a volume equalizing module.

Claims

1. A horizontal vibration device for a vehicle seat, comprising:

a damper module which damps horizontal vibrations between a seat-side upper part and a body-side lower part, wherein the seat-side upper part is arranged in a height direction (Z) of a vehicle above the body-side lower part, and wherein the height direction (Z) of the vehicle, a longitudinal direction (X) of the vehicle, and a width direction (Y) of the vehicle are substantially perpendicular to each other, and

a regulating/control module for regulating and/or controlling the damper module, said damper module being arranged in an interspace between the seat-side upper part and the body-side lower part, wherein the damper module comprises at least one hydraulic vibration damper, said at least one hydraulic vibration damper being fluidically connected to a volume equalising module, and said at least one hydraulic vibration damper being oriented in a horizontal plane defined by the longitudinal direction and the width direction of the vehicle.

2. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one hydraulic vibration damper is a monotube damper, said monotube damper comprising a double-acting hydraulic cylinder which is divided by a piston having a piston rod into an annular chamber and a piston chamber, a damping valve being arranged in the piston and/or between the at least one hydraulic vibration damper and the volume equalising module, wherein the damping valve is configured to fix a flow resistance.

3. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 2, wherein the volume equalising module is fluidically connected to the piston chamber of the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, wherein a hydraulic fluid displaced in a compression stage of the at least one hydraulic vibration damper is delivered to the volume equalising module and the hydraulic fluid is delivered to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper from the volume equalising module in a rebound stage of the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, the volume equalising module and the piston chamber being fluidically connected by a pressure line, said pressure line being connected to a first connection element of the piston chamber and to a connection element of the volume equalising module.

4. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein a hydraulic fluid, displaced in a compression stage of the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, is delivered to the volume equalising module, as a result of which a pretensioning element in the volume equalising module is compressed, wherein the hydraulic fluid which is driven by the now expanding pretensioning element is delivered to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper from the volume equalising module in a rebound stage of the at least one hydraulic vibration damper.

5. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 4, wherein the volume equalising module comprises a cylinder having a first chamber and a second chamber, said first chamber and second chamber being divided by a piston arranged such that the piston moves in the cylinder, wherein the hydraulic fluid delivered to the volume equalising module is delivered to the first chamber, as a result of which the pretensioning element, arranged in the second chamber is compressed.

6. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the regulating/control module is arranged outside the interspace between the seat-side upper part and the body-side lower part, the regulating/control module being fluidically connected to an annular chamber and to a piston chamber, the regulating/control module being connected by pressure lines to a second connection element of the piston chamber and to a second connection element of the annular chamber.

7. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the regulating/control module comprises a valve arrangement which is operatively connected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, the valve arrangement being fluidically interconnected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, such that the power of a compression stage and/or of a rebound stage is modulated by this valve arrangement, wherein the valve arrangement is controlled by a control/evaluation means.

8. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the regulating/control module comprises a hydraulic rectifier circuit which is configured as a full bridge having four non-return valves and is operatively connected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, a valve arrangement fluidically interconnected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper such that the power of a compression stage and/or of a rebound stage is modulated by this valve arrangement, wherein the valve arrangement is controlled by a control/evaluation means, two non-return valves, connected in series being arranged in a respective branch of the full bridge, being oriented in an opposed manner.

9. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the regulating/control module comprises a hydraulic fluid conveying means which is operatively connected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, said hydraulic fluid conveying means being fluidically interconnected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper such that the power of a compression stage and/or of a rebound stage is modulated by the hydraulic fluid conveying means, the hydraulic fluid conveying means having a controllable bidirectional pump and a motor for the pump.

10. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 8, wherein the hydraulic fluid conveying means and also a valve arrangement and/or a hydraulic rectifier circuit, configured as a full bridge, are operatively connected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper, the hydraulic fluid conveying means, the valve arrangement and/or the rectifier circuit being fluidically interconnected to the at least one hydraulic vibration damper such that the power of the compression stage and/or of the rebound stage is modulated thereby in combination.

11. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the horizontal vibration device comprises at least one sensor means, said sensor means having a position sensor configured to measure the position of the seat-side upper part relative to the body-side lower part in at least one spatial direction, the sensor means having a speed sensor configured to measure the speed of the seat-side upper part relative to the body-side lower part in at least one spatial direction, the sensor means having an acceleration sensor configured to measure the acceleration of the seat-side upper part relative to the body-side lower part in at least one spatial direction, the regulating/control module comprising a control/evaluation means configured to evaluate the data of the sensor means and configured to control a valve arrangement and/or a hydraulic fluid conveying means.

12. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 11, wherein the sensor means comprises a basic body and a measuring arm which is arranged rotatably on the basic body, the basic body being arranged on the seat-side upper part and the measuring arm being arranged on the body-side lower part, or vice versa, the sensor means determining data such as position, speed and acceleration from the change in an angle of rotation of the measuring arm.

13. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein the damper module comprises a first and a second hydraulic vibration damper, the first and the second hydraulic vibration damper being arranged in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and/or in the width direction of the vehicle, an annular chamber of the first hydraulic vibration damper being fluidically connected to an annular chamber of the second hydraulic vibration damper, a piston chamber of the first hydraulic vibration damper being fluidically connected to a piston chamber of the second hydraulic vibration damper and to the volume equalising module.

14. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 1, wherein arranged in the interspace between the seat-side upper part and the body-side lower part is a guide system, by which the seat-side upper part is displaceably mounted on the body-side lower part.

15. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 7, wherein the valve arrangement is a proportional flow control valve.

16. The horizontal vibration device according to claim 8, wherein the valve arrangement is a proportional flow control valve arranged in a bridge diagonal of the full bridge.