SEAT SLIDE STRUCTURE FOR VEHICLE

• US 20110079699A1
• Filed: 09/24/2010
• Published: 04/07/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Delta Kogyo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Delta Kogyo Company Limited
• Inventors: Tarusawa, Makoto, Umezaki, Kiyonori
• Granted Patent: US 8,820,694 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 248/430
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/067 by linear actuators, e.g. linear screw mechanisms

Abstract

A lower rail or an upper rail has a first wall provided at a position on a first one of opposite sides in a widthwise direction thereof, and a second wall provided at a position on the other, second, side in the widthwise direction and disposed opposed to the first wall. At least one of the first wall and the second wall has an opening. At least one of an outer portion of the holding member in the widthwise direction and an outer portion of the nut member in the widthwise direction is inserted in the opening and disposed opposed to an inner side-surface of the opening facing in a frontward-rearward direction.

Claims

1. A seat slide structure for a vehicle, comprising:

a lower rail fixed to a vehicle body to extend a frontward-rearward direction of the vehicle body;

an upper rail fixed to a seat and adapted to be relatively movable with respect to the lower rail in the frontward-rearward direction;

a screw rod provided in one of the lower rail and the upper rail;

a nut member screwed with the screw rod in a relatively rotatable manner with respect to the screw rod; and

a holding member provided in a remaining one of the lower rail and the upper rail to hold the nut member,

wherein;

the remaining one of the lower rail and the upper rail has a first wall provided at a position on a first one of opposite sides in a widthwise direction thereof, and a second wall provided at a position on the other, second, side in the widthwise direction and disposed opposed to the first wall, at least one of the first wall and the second wall having an opening; and

at least one of a part of the holding member and a part of the nut member is inserted in the opening and disposed opposed to an inner side-surface of the opening facing in the frontward-rearward direction.

2. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the holding member has a holding-member body located between the first wall and the second wall, and an insertable portion located outward of the holding-member body in the widthwise direction to serve as the part of the holding member;

the opening includes a holding-member insertion hole adapted to allow the insertable portion to be inserted thereinto; and

the insertable portion is disposed opposed to an inner side-surface of the holding-member insertion hole facing in the frontward-rearward direction.

3. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 2, wherein:

the holding-member body includes a pair of plate-shaped first and second holding pieces disposed opposed to each other with a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction, the first holding piece being adapted to hold a front end of the nut member, the second holding piece being adapted to hold a rear end of the nut member;

the insertable portion includes two plate-shaped first protruding pieces protruding from the first holding piece toward respective ones of the first and second sides in the widthwise direction, and two plate-shaped second protruding pieces protruding from the second holding piece toward respective ones of the first and second sides in the widthwise direction; and

the holding-member insertion hole is comprised of a plurality of slits each adapted to allow a respective one of the protruding pieces to be inserted thereinto.

4. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 3, wherein:

the remaining one of the lower rail and the upper rail further has a third wall connecting between respective base ends of the first wall and the second wall, the third wall having a locking hole adapted to lock the holding member;

the holding-member body further includes a connection piece connecting between respective base ends of the first holding piece and the second holding piece, the holding-member body being adapted to be elastically deformable in the frontward-rearward direction; and

the holding member further has a first lockable portion located at a distal end of the first holding piece, and a second lockable portion located at a distal end of the second holding piece, the first lockable portion and the second lockable portion being adapted, under a condition that a force against an elastic force of the holding member is applied thereto to narrow a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction, to become insertable into the locking hole, and, under a condition that the force against the elastic force is released after the insertion into the locking hole, to be locked in the locking hole while pressing respective inner side-surfaces of the locking hole facing in the frontward-rearward direction.

5. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the opening includes a nut-receiving hole adapted to allow the part of the nut member to be inserted thereinto; and

the nut member is disposed such that an axial direction thereof is oriented in the frontward-rearward direction to have a frontwardly-facing front surface and a rearwardly-facing rear surface,

and wherein the part of the nut member to be inserted into the nut-receiving hole includes a part of the front surface and a part of the rear surface, the part of the front surface being disposed opposed to a front inner side-surface of the nut-receiving hole, the part of the rear surface being disposed opposed to a rear inner side-surface of the nut-receiving hole.

6. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 5, wherein:

the part of the front surface is disposed opposed to the front inner side-surface of the nut-receiving hole through a minute gap; and

the part of the rear surface is disposed opposed to the rear inner side-surface of the nut-receiving hole through a minute gap.

7. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 5, wherein:

the nut-receiving hole is provided in each of the first wall and the second wall; and

the nut member has a large-diameter portion with an outer diameter greater than a distance in the widthwise direction between respective inner surfaces of the first wall and the second wall, the large-diameter portion including the front surface and the rear surface, a region of the large-diameter portion on the first side in the widthwise direction being inserted in the nut-receiving hole of the first wall, a region of the large-diameter portion on the second side in the widthwise direction being inserted in the nut-receiving hole of the second wall.

8. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 7, wherein:

the holding member has a plate-shaped first holding piece adapted to hold a front end of the nut member, a plate-shaped second holding piece disposed opposed to the first holding piece with a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction and adapted to hold a rear end of the nut member, two plate-shaped first protruding pieces protruding from the first holding piece toward respective ones of the first and second sides in the widthwise direction, and two plate-shaped second protruding pieces protruding from the second holding piece toward respective ones of the first and second sides in the widthwise direction; and

the opening further includes a pair of holding-member insertion hole provided in the first wall on respective ones of opposite sides of the nut-receiving hole thereof in the frontward-rearward direction to allow respective ones of the first protruding piece protruding toward the first side and the second protruding piece protruding toward the first side to be inserted thereinto, and a pair of holding-member insertion hole provided in the second wall on respective ones of opposite sides of the nut-receiving hole thereof in the frontward-rearward direction to allow respective ones of the first protruding piece protruding toward the second side and the second protruding piece protruding toward the second side to be inserted thereinto.

9. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 8, wherein:

the remaining one of the lower rail and the upper rail further includes a third wall connecting between respective base ends of the first wall and the second wall, the third wall having a locking hole adapted to lock the holding member; and

the holding member further includes a connection piece connecting between respective base ends of the first holding piece and the second holding piece, the holding member being adapted to be elastically deformable in the frontward-rearward direction, the holding member further having a first lockable portion located at a distal end of the first holding piece and a second lockable portion located at a distal end of the second holding piece, the first lockable portion and the second lockable portion being adapted, under a condition that a force against an elastic force of the holding member is applied thereto to narrow a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction, to become insertable into the locking hole, and, under a condition that the force against the elastic force is released after the insertion into the locking hole, to be locked in the locking hole while pressing respective inner side-surfaces of the locking hole facing in the frontward-rearward direction.

10. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the remaining one of the lower rail and the upper rail has a locking hole adapted to lock the holding member; and

the holding member has a first lockable portion and a second lockable portion disposed opposed to each other with a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction, the holding member being adapted to be elastically deformable in the frontward-rearward direction, the first lockable portion and the second lockable portion being adapted, under a condition that a force against an elastic force of the holding member is applied thereto to narrow a distance therebetween in the frontward-rearward direction, to become insertable into the locking hole, and, under a condition that the force against the elastic force is released after the insertion into the locking hole, to be locked in the locking hole while pressing respective inner side-surfaces of the locking hole facing in the frontward-rearward direction.

11. The seat slide structure as defined in claim 1, which further comprises:

a worm adapted to be rotated by drive means; and

a worm support member which rotatably supports the worm,

wherein;

the nut member has a worm wheel portion provided in an outer periphery thereof and meshed with the worm; and

the worm support member is supported by the holding member in such a manner as to maintain the meshed state between the worm wheel portion and the worm.