Vehicle seat with a seat carrier and with a buckle of a safety belt positioned at said seat carrier

• US 6,659,548 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2001
• Issued: 12/09/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adient Luxembourg Holding S.A R.L. (Adient plc)
• Original Assignee: C ROB Hammerstein GmbH & Company KG (Johnson Controls International plc)
• Inventors: Becker, Burckhard, Hennicke, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Nelson, Jr., Milton
• Application Number:
  US09/924,933
• Publication Number:
  US 20020024242A1
• Time in Patent Office: 853 Days
• Field of Search: 297/216.1, 297/216.19, 297/216.2, 297/216.17, 297/216.16, 297/480, 297/469, 297/470, 297/479, 297/344.15, 297/325, 297/330, 297/344.17, 280/804, 280/806
• US Class Current: 297/216.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0276 reaction to emergency situations, e.g. crash
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/1615 Parallelogram-like structure
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/165 Gear wheel driven mechanism
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/4221 due to impact coming from the front
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/42781 mechanical triggering
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/43 Safety locks for back-rests B60N2/433
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/1951 characterised by arrangements in vehicle or relative to seat belt
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/1952 Transmission of tensioning power by cable; Return motion locking means therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60R 22/26 secured to the seat

Abstract

The vehicle seat of a vehicle has a seat carrier with a side part, a buckle of a safety belt positioned thereon and a vertically adjustable underframe. The underframe is provided with a sector gear. An engaging element is arranged on the seat carrier and is designed to cooperate with the sector gear. During normal, non-accidental circumstances, the sector gear is in a rest position in which the engaging element is free from the sector gear. The buckle is connected to an upper end of a rope that cooperates with the engaging element. In an accident situation the engaging element engages the sector gear. A tightening unit for the belt has a driving cylinder. The rope is deflected in its direction at a point of deflection. A lower portion of the rope runs substantially in longitudinal direction of the side part. The other end of the rope is arranged on the driving cylinder. A holder for the tightening unit is provided on the side part.

Claims

1. Vehicle seat of a vehicle, the vehicle seat comprising a seat carrier having a side part, a buckle of a safety belt positioned on the seat carrier, and a vertically adjustable underframe, said underframe being provided with, a sector gear, an engaging element being arranged on the seat carrier, which engaging element cooperates with the sector gear and which engaging element under normal, non-accidental circumstances of the vehicle is in a position of rest in which the engaging element is free from the sector gear, a means with tensile strength being provided, that is connected with the engaging element and has an upper end and a lower end, the buckle being connected to the upper end, in an accident situation of the vehicle, when the means with tensile strength is pulled, the engaging element blocks the sector gear, wherein a tightening unit for the belt is provided that has a driving cylinder, the other end of the means with tensile strength being arranged on the driving cylinder, a holding means for the tightening unit is provided on the side part, a point of deflection for the means with tensile strength is provided in which the means with tensile strength is deflected in its direction, a lower portion of the means with tensile strength running substantially in a longitudinal direction of the aide part.

2. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the point of deflection for the means with tensile strength is arranged on the engaging element at a bolt or at a hinge bolt.

3. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the tightening unit has a housing that is pivotally fixed and hinged about a bolt to the side part of the seat carrier.

4. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein a control unit having an acceleration detector is provided and the tightening unit is connected to the control unit.

5. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the tightening unit is non-rotatably connected to the engaging element.

6. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein a holding device is provided on the side part and the driving cylinder has a rear end that is turned away from the lower end of the means with tensile strength, the holding device being arranged at the rear end.

7. The vehicle seat according to claim 6, wherein a holding device is a stop face provided on the side part.

8. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein a positioning means is provided, which is overcome in the event of an accident situation of the vehicle, the engaging element being additionally connected to the seat carrier by the positioning means.

9. The vehicle seat according to claim 8, wherein the positioning means is one of an elastic means and a destructible means.

10. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the underframe has two swivelling props hinged on the seat carrier, one of the two swivelling props being located on a tunnel side of the seat, the other of the two swivelling props being located on the other side of the vehicle seat, a transverse bar is provided, the two swivelling props being non-rotatably connected to each other by way of the transverse bar and a locking device is provided for an angular adjustment of the swivelling props on one side of the seat only.

11. Vehicle seat according to claim 10, wherein the locking device is provided on the side of the seat which is opposite to the tunnel side.

12. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the sector gear has the form of a sword that is supported on the underframe and has an axis, so as to be capable of freely pivoting about the axis of the sword.

13. The vehicle seat according to claim 12, wherein the sector gear which has the form of a sword is supported on a seat rail of the underframe.

14. Vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the sector gear exhibits a course that is concentric with an axis about which a rear swivelling prop of the underframe is connected to the seat carrier.

15. The vehicle seat according to claim 14, wherein the sector gear is configured integral with a rear swivelling prop.

16. The vehicle seat according to claim 1, wherein the point of deflection for means with tensile strength is arranged on the engaging element and the deflection of the direction of the means with tensile strength occurs through an angle ranging from 60°

to 180°

.

17. The vehicle seat according to claim 16, wherein the deflection of the direction of the means with tensile strength occurs through an angle ranging from 90°

to 135°

.