Seat slide device

• US 4,821,991 A
• Filed: 04/07/1987
• Issued: 04/18/1989
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/1986
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ohi Seisakusho Co., Ltd. (Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company Limited), Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Ohi Seisakusho Co., Ltd. (Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company Limited), Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Muraishi, Masakazu, Aihara, Tsutomu
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramirez, Ramon O.
• Application Number:
  US07/035,428
• Time in Patent Office: 742 Days
• Field of Search: 248/420, 248/424, 248/429, 248/430, 312/341 R, 384/48, 384/47, 296/65 R
• US Class Current: 248/430
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/071 T-shaped
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0715 C or U-shaped
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0732 Attachment of seat frame to the slide, e.g. eyelets
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0825 outside the rail
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0843 about a longitudinal axis

Abstract

A seat slide device is disclosed which comprises a stationary rail having an angularly C-shaped cross section and a movable rail having a reversed T-shaped cross section. The movable rail is coupled with the stationary rail in such a manner that the enlarged head portion of the movable rail is spacedly received in the stationary rail thereby to define below the enlarged head portion a single elongate space in which rollers are rotatably received and above the enlarged head portion two parallel elongate spaces in which ball bearings are rotatably received. Inward sides of the stationary rail and the outward ends of the enlarged head portion of the movable rail are bent at generally right angles in order to hold the ball bearings in the two parallel elongate spaces.

Claims

1. A seat slide device for sliding a seat relative to a floor, comprising:

a stationary rail including an elongate flat base portion adapted to be mounted on the floor, side wall portions extending upwardly from opposed sides of the base portion, upper flat wall portions extending toward each other from the upper ends of the side wall portions, and hanging down portions extending downwardly from the inward ends of the upper flat wall portions leaving therebetween an axially extending clearance;

a movable rail including an elongate base portion, lower flat wall portions each extending outwardly from the lower end of said elongate base portion and raised up portions extending upwardly from the outward ends of the lower flat wall portions, said movable rail being coupled with said stationary rail in such a manner that the lower flat wall portions are received in said stationary rail having the elongate base portion extending upwardly through said axially extending clearance of the stationary rail, said movable rail including two elements of generally L-shaped cross section which are secured to each other in back-to-back manner, one of said two elements being formed with a plurality of raised up portions which are arranged along a longitudinal axis of the movable rail leaving a given space between each raised up portion and one of said upper flat wall portions of the stationary rail;

a plurality of rollers rotatably received in said stationary rail and putting thereon said lower flat wall portions of the movable rail; and

a plurality of ball bearings rotatably received in two parallel elongate spaces of generally rectangular cross section each being defined by one of the upper wall portions and one of the hanging down portions of the stationary rail and one of the lower flat wall portions and one of the raised up portions of the movable rail,

said seat slide device further comprising a latch mechanism which comprises;

means defining a plurality of notches in the stationary rail, said notches being arranged along the axis of the stationary rail at evenly spaced intervals;

a control shaft supported by said movable rail in a manner to be rotatable about the axis thereof;

a latching plate secured to said control rod to rotate therewith, said latching plate having pawls which are engageable with some of said notches to latch said movable rail to said stationary rail;

biasing means for biasing said control shaft in a direction to engage the pawls of the latching plate with the notches of the stationary rail; and

a reinforcing plate which is secured to said movable rail in the vicinity of said latching plate, said reinforcing plate being formed with notches with which leading ends of the pawls of the latching plate are engaged when said pawls are engaged with the notches of the stationary rail.

2. A seat slide device as claimed in claim 1, in which the width of each notch of the reinforcing plate is the same as that of the notch of the stationary rail.

3. A seat slide device for sliding a seat relative to a floor, comprising:

a stationary rail adapted to be mounted on the floor, said stationary rail having a generally C-shaped cross section and having opposed side wall portions;

a movable rail axially movably engaged with said stationary rail, said movable rail having a reversed T-shaped cross section and engaged with said stationary rail in such a manner that the laterally extending head portion of the movable rail is received in an elongate channel defined in said stationary rail;

movement smoothing means for smoothing the axial movement of the movable rail relative to said stationary rail; and

a latch mechanism which comprises;

means defining a plurality of notches in one of the side wall portions of the stationary rail, said notches being arranged along the axis of the stationary rail at evenly spaced intervals;

a control shaft supported by said movable rail in a manner to be rotatable about the axis thereof;

a latching plate secured to said control shaft to rotate therewith, said latching plate having pawls which are engageable with said notches to latch said movable rail to said stationary rail;

biasing means for biasing said control shaft in a direction to engage the pawls of the latching plate with the notches of the stationary rail; and

a reinforcing plate secured to said laterally extending head portion of said movable rail in the vicinity of said latching plate, said reinforcing plate being formed with notches with which leading ends of the pawls of the latching plate are engaged when said pawls are engaged with the notches of the stationary rail.