Seat device for vehicle

• US 10,173,552 B2
• Filed: 09/10/2014
• Issued: 01/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TS Tech Company Limited
• Original Assignee: TS Tech Company Limited
• Inventors: Sugiyama, Shinji
• Primary Examiner(s): Cass, Jean Paul
• Application Number:
  US14/916,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20160221475A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,581 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0244 with logic circuits
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0268 using sensors or detectors for adapting the seat or seat part, e.g. to the position of an occupant
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0277 characterised by the calculation method or calculation flow chart of sensor data for adjusting the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/04 the whole seat being movable
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/14 rotatable, e.g. to permit easy access B60N2/10 , B60N2/2869 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/22 the back-rest being adjustable B60N2/2878 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/39 Seats tiltable to compensate for roll inclination of vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/72 Attachment or adjustment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2002/022 the seat or seat part turning about or moving along a vertical axis
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2210/50 Inertial sensors

Abstract

A vehicle seat apparatus includes a seat, an actuator, and a controller in which a posture control unit exercises a seat posture control over the actuator based on a lateral acceleration and a steering velocity, to change an orientation of at least a portion of the seat. The posture control unit is configured to activate the seat posture control when a magnitude of the lateral acceleration becomes greater than a first acceleration threshold value, as well as to activate the seat posture control on conditions that the steering velocity has a magnitude greater than a steering velocity threshold value and when the magnitude of the lateral acceleration becomes greater than a second acceleration threshold value of which a magnitude is smaller than the first acceleration threshold value and a direction is laterally opposite to a direction of the steering velocity.

Claims

1. A vehicle seat apparatus comprising:

a seat including a seat cushion and a seat back, the seat back including a shaft, and

the seat cushion including a bearing portion configured to allow the shaft to be rotatably supported therein, wherein the seat back is configured to be capable of swiveling to a left or to a right relative to the seat cushion;

an actuator capable of changing an orientation of an entire body of the seat back to the left or to the right relative to the seat cushion; and

a controller configured to control the actuator,

wherein the controller includes;

a lateral acceleration acquisition unit configured to acquire a lateral acceleration;

a steering velocity acquisition unit configured to acquire a steering velocity; and

a posture control unit configured to exercise a seat posture control over the actuator based on the lateral acceleration acquired by the lateral acceleration acquisition unit and the steering velocity acquired by the steering velocity acquisition unit, to change the orientation of the entire body of the seat back to the left or to the right relative to the seat cushion,

the posture control unit is configured;

to activate the seat posture control when a magnitude of the lateral acceleration becomes greater than a first acceleration threshold value, as well as

to activate the seat posture control on conditions that the steering velocity has a magnitude greater than a steering velocity threshold value and a direction of the lateral acceleration is opposite to a direction of the steering velocity and when the magnitude of the lateral acceleration becomes greater than a second acceleration threshold value which is smaller than the first acceleration threshold value,

the actuator is configured to move an entire assembly of the seat cushion and the seat back of the vehicle seat relative to a vehicle in which the vehicle seat is installed,

the lateral acceleration acquisition unit is configured to acquire the lateral acceleration by computation based on a vehicle velocity and a steering angle,

the lateral acceleration acquisition unit is configured to compute the lateral acceleration GC by;

R=(1+AV²)/(L/φ

)

GC=V²/R

where

A;

Stability factor, a vehicle-specific constant

V;

Vehicle velocity

L;

Wheelbase of a vehicle

φ

;

Steering angle

R;

Turning radius, and

the seal cushion is configured to be adjusted based on the lateral acceleration formula R=(1+AV²)/(L/φ

).

2. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second acceleration threshold value is smaller than a half of the first acceleration threshold value.

3. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the steering velocity threshold value is in a range of 100 to 150 deg/s.

4. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the posture control unit is configured to bring the seat posture control to an end when the magnitude of the lateral acceleration becomes smaller than a reset threshold value during the seat posture control.

5. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a magnitude of the second acceleration threshold value is smaller than a magnitude of the reset threshold value.

6. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the steering velocity threshold value is variable through an operation of a user.

7. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the controller includes a nonvolatile memory in which the steering velocity threshold value is storable.

8. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seat back includes a central portion for allowing a back of an occupant to rest thereagainst, and side portions disposed at left and right sides of the central portion and jutting frontward farther than the central portion, and

wherein the actuator is configured to actuate the central portion.

9. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seat back includes a central portion for allowing a back of an occupant to rest thereagainst, and side portions disposed at left and right sides of the central portion and jutting frontward farther than the central portion, and

wherein the actuator is configured to actuate the side portions.

10. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seat back includes a seat back frame and a seat back pad,

wherein the vehicle seat apparatus further comprises a pressure-receiving member supported by the seat back frame at a position rearward of the seat back pad, and configured to be movable rearward by a rearward motion load acted on the seat back from an occupant, and

wherein the actuator is configured to actuate the pressure-receiving member.

11. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lateral acceleration acquisition unit is configured to acquire values of the lateral acceleration from a lateral acceleration sensor.

12. The vehicle seat apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lateral acceleration acquisition unit is configured to acquire values of the lateral acceleration from an electronic control unit provided in a vehicle.