Vehicle seat incorporated with an occupant sensor
First Claim
1. A vehicle seat, comprising:
- a seat frame;
a spring assembly supported by said seat frame; and
an upholstery assembly covering at least part of said seat frame and spring assembly;
said spring assembly including a central support member adapted to support at least most of a load of a vehicle occupant seated in said seat, a plurality of spring members supporting said central support member relative to said seat frame, and a plurality of displacement sensors each for detecting a displacement of a selected point of said central support member relative to said seat frame;
at least one of said displacement sensors being arranged in parallel with one of the spring members to measure a change in the distance between the corresponding selected point of said central support member relative to a corresponding part of said seat frame.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
In a vehicle seat, a central support member typically consisting of wire mesh or grid and supports most of the load of the vehicle occupant via spring members, and undergoes a relatively large displacement when the occupant is seated in the seat. Thus, by detecting the displacements of various parts of the central support member, preferably peripheral parts thereof, the magnitude of the total load and distribution of the load can be evaluated both reliably and accurately. Additionally, displacement sensors for measuring such large displacements are relatively inexpensive and easy to handle. Also, such sensors would not interfere with the existing seat designs, and would not be adversely affected by the equipment of the seat such as seat heaters.
59 Citations
19 Claims
-
1. A vehicle seat, comprising:
-
a seat frame;
a spring assembly supported by said seat frame; and
an upholstery assembly covering at least part of said seat frame and spring assembly;
said spring assembly including a central support member adapted to support at least most of a load of a vehicle occupant seated in said seat, a plurality of spring members supporting said central support member relative to said seat frame, and a plurality of displacement sensors each for detecting a displacement of a selected point of said central support member relative to said seat frame;
at least one of said displacement sensors being arranged in parallel with one of the spring members to measure a change in the distance between the corresponding selected point of said central support member relative to a corresponding part of said seat frame. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
Specification