Rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure for automotive vehicle

• US 3,877,749 A
• Filed: 04/23/1973
• Issued: 04/15/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Katsuo Sakurai, Takeshi Yamawaki
• Original Assignee: Katsuo Sakurai, Takeshi Yamawaki
• Inventors: Sakurai, Katsuo, Yamawaki, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Zugel, Francis K.
• Application Number:
  US05/353,702
• Time in Patent Office: 722 Days
• Field of Search: 297/216,390,384,452,460
• US Class Current: 297/216.14
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4221 due to impact coming from the front
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4256 the shape of the seat being specially adapted for a particular purpose or for particular vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/42709 involving residual deformation or fracture of the structure
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/682 Joining means
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/686 Panel like structures

Abstract

A seat back structure in an automobile or the like for protecting a passenger on a rear seat, comprising a main frame board of a front seat back, an upper buffer body secured integrally to the upper part of the main frame board and projecting towards the rear seat, and a lower buffer board secured integrally to the lower part of the main frame board, said lower part having an opening. When, in case of a collision of the automobile or the like, the knees of the passenger violently collides against that part of the rear of the front seat back which corresponds to the lower buffer board, said lower buffer board undergoes a plastic deformation towards the opening, thereby to absorb the impact load of the knees. When the breast and head of the passenger violently collide against that part of the front seat back which corresponds to the upper buffer body, said upper buffer body undergoes a plastic deformation, and subsequently the main frame board undergoes a frontward plastic deformation, thereby to absorb the impact load of the breast and head.

Claims

1. A rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a main frame board of a front seat back positioned on lower supporting arms with an opening portion in the lower part of said main board, an upper buffer body having a semicircular shape which is integrally secured to and disposed on an upper part of said main frame board so as to swell out from the rear surface of said main frame board, and a lower buffer board which is spaced from said main frame board and secured only to said lower supporting arms by bolts, said lower buffer board being positioned adjacent the rear of said opening portion at a lower part of said main frame board, the various constituent members being constructed so that they can undergo plastic deformations when subjected to impact loads exceeding predetermined set values, respectively.

2. The rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure as defined in claim 1, wherein said main frame board of said front seat back is formed of at least one absorbing material selected from the group consisting of a steel plate material and a steel pipe material.

3. The rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure as defined in claim 1, wherein said upper buffer body and said lower buffer board are formed of at least one absorbing material selected from the group consisting of a steel plate material, a synthetic resin material and a rubber material.

4. The rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure as defined in claim 1, wherein said upper buffer body is formed to be substantially semicircular in longitudinal section, and is provided with a number of penetrating apertures from a flat surface towards an arcuate surface of said upper buffer body.

5. A rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a main frame board of a front seat back, said main frame board of said front back having an upper frame board and a lower frame board integrally joined with each other, said upper frame board and said lower frame board having an upper right member and an upper left member, being bilaterally symmetric, and a lower right member and a lower left member, also being bilaterally symmetric, integrally formed on a center line in the longitudinal direction of said main frame board as extends from the upper end to the lower end of said main frame board, penetrating slots of appropriate width and length are provided at positions bilaterally symmetric with respect to said center line of said main frame board in the vicinity of the joining part between a lower end edge of said uppeR frame board and an upper end edge of said lower frame board and in a manner to extend in a direction orthogonal to said joining part, an upper buffer body which is integrally secured to and disposed on an upper part of said main frame board so as to swell out from the rear surface of said main frame board, and a lower buffer board which is secured to and disposed on the rear of an opening portion which is of a large size and is formed at a central part of the lower part of said main frame board, the various constituent members being constructed so that they can undergo plastic deformations when subjected to impact loads exceeding predetermined set values, respectively.

6. A rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a main frame board of a front seat back, an upper buffer body which is integrally secured to and disposed on an upper part of said main frame board so as to swell out from the rear surface of said main frame board, said upper buffer body being formed to be semicircular in longitudinal section, and having a plurality of individual members integrally combined into which the swelling portion of said upper buffer body is divided by a longitudinal center line of said upper buffer body and a lateral center line orthogonal to said longitudinal center line, a plurality of penetrating apertures being provided in the arcuate portion of said upper buffer body, and a lower buffer board which is secured to and disposed on the rear of an opening portion at a lower part of said main frame board, the various constituent members being constructed so that they can undergo plastic deformations when subjected to impact loads exceeding predetermined set values, respectively.

7. The rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure as defined in claim 6, wherein said upper buffer body is formed at upper and lower ends with flange portions.

8. A rear seat passenger-protecting seat back structure for an automotive vehicle comprising:

a main frame board of a front seat back positioned on lower supporting arms with an opening portion in the lower part of said main board, an upper buffer body having a semicircular shape which is integrally secured to and disposed on an upper part of said main frame board so as to swell out from the rear surface of said main frame board, and a lower buffer board which is spaced from said main frame board and secured to said lower supporting arms by bolts, said lower buffer board being positioned adjacent the rear of said opening portion at a lower part of said main frame board, the various constituent members being constructed so that they can undergo plastic deformations when subjected to impact loads exceeding predetermined set values, respectively, said lower buffer board is formed in such manner that bilaterally symmetric members of a lower right buffer piece and a lower left buffer piece are integrally combined on a longitudinal center line of said lower buffer board, and at least two penetrating grooves are provided at upper parts of said lower buffer board in a manner to extend orthogonally to said longitudinal center line and to be parallel with an appropriate spacing therebetween.