Motor Vehicle Seat

• US 20070236065A1
• Filed: 06/20/2005
• Published: 10/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Company KG Coburg
• Original Assignee: Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Company KG Coburg
• Inventors: Hofmann, Jochen, Kroner, Gregor, Quast, Ingo
• Granted Patent: US 7,578,555 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 297/344.100
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/085 about a transversal axis
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/43 Safety locks for back-rests B60N2/433

Abstract

A motor vehicle seat comprising a seat frame, a backrest, a longitudinal rail guide, a fixing device for locking the longitudinal rail guide in a pre-set longitudinal seating position, a coupling mechanism which is able to move together with the seat frame in the longitudinal rail direction, a memory unit, means for adjusting the memory unit and a locking device for the memory unit for the locking of a set memory position is provided. The locking device for locking the memory unit compring a locking element which may be brought into engagement with at least one locking point of the locking rail associated with the fixing device.

Claims

1-34. -34. (canceled)

35. A motor vehicle seat with

a seat frame,

a backrest which is pivotably mounted on the seat frame and may be folded down in the direction of a seat surface of the seat frame,

a longitudinal rail guide with which the seat frame may be moved in a longitudinal rail direction for adjusting the longitudinal seating position,

a fixing device for locking the longitudinal rail guide in a pre-set longitudinal seating position with at least one movably mounted locking element to which a locking rail, extending along the longitudinal rail direction with a plurality of locking points which are successively arranged in the longitudinal rail direction, is associated, with which locking points the locking element is able to be brought into engagement for locking the longitudinal rail guide,

a coupling mechanism which is able to move together with the seat frame in the longitudinal rail direction and which unlocks the fixing device when the backrest is folded down onto the seat surface,

a memory unit by means of which the seat frame is able to be automatically stopped in a predeterminable longitudinal seating position, defined as the memory position, when movement occurs in the longitudinal rail direction,

means for adjusting the memory unit with which the memory position may be adjusted in the longitudinal rail direction and

a locking device for the memory unit for the locking of a set memory position,

wherein the locking device for locking the memory unit comprises a locking element which may be brought into engagement with at least one locking point of the locking rail associated with the fixing device.

36. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the locking points are formed by locking apertures.

37. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35 or 36, wherein the locking element has an engagement region via which it may be brought into engagement with the locking rail and in that the engagement region is configured such that it selectively may engage in one locking point or two adjacent locking points.

38. The motor vehicle seat of claim 37, wherein the engagement region comprises two latching teeth which may both be selectively introduced into one locking point or into two adjacent locking points, for locking the memory unit.

39. The motor vehicle seat of claim 38, wherein the engagement region comprises stop faces, in particular in the form of oblique faces, via which the engagement region may bear without clearance against the edge of the respectively associated locking aperture.

40. The motor vehicle seat of claim 39, wherein the latching teeth are of conical configuration so that they may bear without clearance with their latching edges formed by oblique faces against the edge of the respectively associated locking aperture.

41. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the locking element may be pivoted in order to be brought into and out of engagement with the locking rail.

42. The motor vehicle seat of claim 41, wherein the locking element in the locked state has a variable angular position depending on whether the engagement region thereof engages in one locking point or two locking points of the locking rail.

43. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the locking element has a stop with which a counter stop of a structural unit, which may be displaced together with the seat frame, may be brought into contact in order to stop the seat frame when reaching the memory position.

44. The motor vehicle seat of claim 43, wherein the locking element has two stop faces spaced apart from one another, of which the one stop face may come into contact with the counter stop when the engagement region is engaged in a locking point of the locking rail, and of which the other stop face may come into contact with the counter stop when the engagement region is engaged in two adjacent locking points of the locking rail.

45. The motor vehicle seat of claim 44, wherein the two stop faces are arranged above one another transversely to the longitudinal rail direction.

46. The motor vehicle seat of claim 45, wherein the two stop faces are arranged successively in the longitudinal rail direction.

47. The motor vehicle seat of claim 44, wherein the stop faces are configured such that the counter stop acts against the lifting of the locking element out of the locking rail when it bears against one of the stop faces.

48. The motor vehicle seat of claim 47, wherein the stop face of the locking element respectively cooperating with the counter stop, extends at an angle to the longitudinal rail direction, when the locking element engages in the locking rail.

49. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, further comprising a control element with which the bringing of the locking element into and out of engagement with the locking rail may be controlled, depending on whether the backrest is located in a substantially upright position of use or in a position folded-down onto the seat surface.

50. The motor vehicle seat of claim 49, wherein the control element cooperates with the backrest, in particular via a Bowden cable so that it may be actuated when folding the backrest down.

51. The motor vehicle seat of claim 49, wherein the control element is formed by a control lever which may be pivoted upon actuation.

52. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the backrest may be locked in its position folded-down onto the seat surface by means of a locking mechanism.

53. The motor vehicle seat of claim 52, wherein the locking mechanism of the backrest may be unlocked by means of a release element which is actuated when reaching the memory position and which is coupled to the locking mechanism of the backrest so that the locking mechanism may be unlocked when reaching the memory position.

54. The motor vehicle seat of claim 53, wherein the release element is coupled to the locking mechanism of the backrest via a Bowden cable.

55. The motor vehicle seat of claim 53, wherein the release element is formed by a pivotably mounted release lever.

56. The motor vehicle seat of claim 53, wherein the control element and the release element are pivotably mounted on the same axis.

57. The motor vehicle seat of claim 56, wherein the axis is arranged on a structural unit which may be displaced together with the seat frame in the longitudinal rail direction.

58. The motor vehicle seat of claim 53, further comprising a ramp of the means for adjusting onto which the release element may move upward, when reaching the memory position, whereby the release element is actuated to unlock the locking mechanism.

59. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the locking element is mounted on a sliding element displaceable in the longitudinal rail direction and serving as a means for adjusting the memory unit.

60. The motor vehicle seat of claim 49, wherein the control element may be brought into positive engagement with the locking element and/or the means for adjusting, in order to drive the means for adjusting and the locking element for readjusting the memory position, when the seat frame is displaced in the longitudinal rail direction, the control element preferably being pretensioned in the direction of the engagement.

61. The motor vehicle seat of claim 60, wherein the control element comes into positive engagement with the means for adjusting and/or the locking element when it is brought into a position in which it acts on the locking element in order to lift said locking element out of the locking rail.

62. The motor vehicle seat of claim 49, wherein, when reaching the memory position with the backrest folded upward, the control element slides over control surfaces of the means for adjusting and of the locking element for lifting the locking element out of the locking rail and thus comes into positive engagement with the means for adjusting so that, during a further adjustment of the seat frame, with the backrest folded upward, the control element may drive the means for adjusting in at least one spatial direction parallel to the longitudinal rail direction.

63. The motor vehicle seat of claim 60, wherein on a structural unit which is displaceable together with the seat frame in the longitudinal rail direction, an additional drive element is arranged which may be brought into engagement with the locking element when the locking element is lifted out of the locking rail in a memory position of the seat frame.

64. The motor vehicle seat of claim 63, wherein the locking element has a drive surface via which it may be brought into engagement with the drive element when it bears with its engagement region against the locking rail, without being engaged in a locking aperture, so that the locking element may be driven by the drive element during a displacement of the seat frame in the longitudinal rail direction, until it engages in at least one locking point.

65. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the means for adjusting consist of plastics.

66. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the means for adjusting is longitudinally displaceably guided on a slide rail consisting of plastics.

67. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the fixing device forms a counter stop which, during displacement of the seat frame into the memory position, comes into engagement with a stop of the memory unit.

68. The motor vehicle seat of claim 35, wherein the locking points are provided in or on a guide rail of the longitudinal rail guide to be arranged fixed to the bodywork.