Vehicle seat provided with a headrest

• US 6,199,947 B1
• Filed: 04/28/2000
• Issued: 03/13/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: BAIC Hong Kong Investment Corp. Ltd. (BAIC Motor Corp. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Saab Automobile AB (China Evergrande Group)
• Inventors: Wiklund, Kristina
• Primary Examiner(s): Brown, Peter R.
• Application Number:
  US09/560,251
• Time in Patent Office: 319 Days
• Field of Search: 297/216.17, 297/391, 297/408
• US Class Current: 297/216.12
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/809 vertically slidable
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/838 Tiltable
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/865 providing a fore-and-aft movement with respect to the occupant's head
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/888 with arrangements for protecting against abnormal g-forces, e.g. by displacement of the head-rest
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/891 with the head-rest being comma-shaped in side view

Abstract

A vehicle chair has a neck support (4), which by means of a support mechanism (5) is mounted movable relative to the back (3) of the chair, so that during rear end collisions with the help of the back of the traveller and a maneuvering means (10) in the chair to be forced forwards in order to meet and intercept the head of the traveller. This maneuvering means (10) is connected to the frame (9) in the back of the chair by means of a link mechanism (11), wherein the connection (13) of the link mechanism (11) to the frame (9) is situated higher than the connection (14) of the link mechanism (11) to the maneuvering means (10).

Claims

1. A vehicle chair comprising:

a chair back;

a support mechanism at the chair back;

a neck support mounted on the support mechanism;

a neck support maneuvering means arranged in the back of the chair to be pressed rearwardly by a person sitting in the chair and being connected to the neck support to move the neck support forward and upward to meet the head of a person in the chair in the event of a collision with the vehicle;

the support mechanism is between the neck support and the maneuvering means;

support means on the frame to which the support mechanism is mounted;

the maneuvering means having a lower end facing away from the neck support and the maneuvering means being articulately connected to the frame in the back of the chair, a link mechanism between the maneuvering means and the frame for providing the articulated connection, the link mechanism being connected to the frame and to the maneuvering means wherein the connection of the link mechanism to the frame is situated higher than the connection of the link mechanism to the maneuvering means, and the maneuvering means having a normal position when the neck support is held in the rest position.

2. The vehicle chair of claim 1, wherein the connection of the link mechanism to the frame is also situated forward of the connection of the link mechanism to the maneuvering means.

3. The vehicle chair of claim 2, further comprising a spring loading the maneuvering means to the normal position.

4. The vehicle chair of claim 3, wherein the spring is connected to the link mechanism to spring load the maneuvering means to the normal position.

5. The vehicle chair of claim 4, wherein the link mechanism comprises a first and a second link arm, each on a lateral side of the maneuvering means, each link arm being connected to the frame on the one hand and to the maneuvering means on the other hand.

6. The vehicle chair of claim 5, further comprising a spring attachment on each link arm between the connection points to the frame and the maneuvering means, a respective one of the springs attached to each of spring attachments on the one hand and to the frame on the other hand for loading the link arm and thereby loading the maneuvering means to a position where the neck support is held in the rest position.

7. The vehicle chair of claim 5, wherein each spring is a tension spring having an end which is fastened in the frame at a location lower than the link arm associated with the tension spring.

8. The vehicle chair of claim 5, wherein the maneuvering means includes a frame shaped as an inverted U having arms;

back supporting means between the arms of the U.

9. The vehicle chair of claim 8, wherein each arm of the U has an end and the end of each arm is connected to a respective one of the link arms at that side of the frame.

10. The vehicle chair of claim 1, wherein the maneuvering means includes a frame shaped as an inverted U having arms;

back supporting means between the arms of the U.

11. The vehicle chair of claim 1, wherein the support mechanism comprises two elongated holders attached above the maneuvering means, the neck support being supported upon the elongated holders;

supports on the frame in the back of the chair for the elongated holders and supporting the holders for being movable in order to permit the support mechanism and the neck support to move relative to the back of the chair.

12. The vehicle chair of claim 11, wherein the supports in the chair are positioned further back and higher up on the frame than the link mechanism.

13. The vehicle chair of claim 11, wherein the frame has an upper edge and the supports are attached to the frame at a level under the upper edge of the frame.