Headrest device

• US 8,596,715 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2011
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NHK Spring Company Limited
• Original Assignee: NHK Spring Company Limited
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Hiroyoshi, Hasegawa, Makoto, Ito, Takeshi, Shimizu, Eiji, Yasuda, Kenzou, Nishikido, Satoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): MCPARTLIN, SARAH BURNHAM
• Application Number:
  US13/071,089
• Publication Number:
  US 20110233974A1
• Time in Patent Office: 985 Days
• Field of Search: 297/216.12, 297/408, 297/391
• US Class Current: 297/216.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0276 reaction to emergency situations, e.g. crash
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/862 with means for maintaining a desired position when the seat-back is adjusted, e.g. parallelogram mechanisms
• 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: B60R 21/0132 responsive to vehicle motion parameters , e.g. to vehicle longitudinal or transversal deceleration or speed value

Abstract

A headrest device comprises a headrest body which includes a headrest rear portion supported with respect to a seatback of a seat on which a passenger of a vehicle sits, and a headrest front portion that is movable within a predetermined range from a fully closed position that is closest to the headrest rear portion to a fully open position that is farthest from the headrest rear portion; a detection unit which detects a running state or an operation state of the vehicle; a prediction unit which predicts a possibility of a rear vehicle collision with the vehicle on the basis of the running state or the operation state of the vehicle detected by detection unit; and a control unit which controls, in a case in which the possibility of the rear vehicle collision is predicted by the prediction unit, movement of a position of the headrest front portion so that a backset becomes smaller than a backset at the time of the prediction, the backset being a horizontal distance between the headrest front portion and a head of the vehicle passenger.

Claims

1. A headrest device comprising:

a headrest body which includes a headrest rear portion supported with respect to a seatback of a seat on which a passenger of a vehicle sits, and a headrest front portion configured to move within a predetermined range from a fully closed position closest to the headrest rear portion to a fully open position farthest from the headrest rear portion;

a detection unit configured to detect a running state or an operation state of the vehicle;

a prediction unit configured to predict a possibility of a rear vehicle collision with the vehicle on the basis of the running state or the operation state of the vehicle detected by the detection unit;

a control unit configured to control a movement of a position of the headrest front portion such that a backset becomes smaller than a backset at the time of the prediction if the possibility of the rear vehicle collision is predicted by the prediction unit, the backset being a horizontal distance between the headrest front portion and a head of the vehicle passenger; and

an angle detection unit configured to detect an angle of the seatback, wherein

an angle of the seatback is configured to change with respect to the seat such that if;

(1) the prediction unit predicts a low possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle, the control unit controls the position of the headrest front portion to move at a first speed such that the backset becomes a predetermined value on the basis of the angle of the seatback detected by the angle detection unit, and

(2) the prediction unit predicts a high possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle, the control unit controls the backset to become smaller than the predetermined value, and controls the headrest front portion to move at a second speed faster than the first speed.

2. The headrest device according to claim 1, wherein

if the prediction unit predicts a low possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle, the control unit controls the position of the headrest front portion such that the backset becomes larger than the backset at the time of the prediction of the possibility of the rear vehicle collision.

3. The headrest device according to claim 1, wherein

the detection unit is configured to detect an accelerator opening degree of the vehicle as the operation state of the vehicle, and

the prediction unit predicts a high possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the accelerator opening degree of the vehicle is a predetermined value or less, and predicts a low possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the accelerator opening degree of the vehicle is larger than the predetermined value.

4. The headrest device according to claim 1, wherein

the detection unit is configured to detect a speed of the vehicle as the running state of the vehicle, and

the prediction unit predicts a low possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the speed of the vehicle is maintained within a predetermined range for a predetermined time, and predicts a high possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the speed of the vehicle is outside of the predetermined range or if the speed of the vehicle is not maintained within the predetermined range for the predetermined time.

5. The headrest device according to claim 1, wherein

the detection unit is configured to detect an operation amount of a brake pedal of the vehicle as the operation state of the vehicle, and

the prediction unit predicts a high possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the operation amount of the brake pedal is a predetermined operation amount or more, and predicts a low possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle if the operation amount of the brake pedal is less than the predetermined operation amount.

6. The headrest device according to claim 1, wherein

if the prediction unit predicts the possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle, the control unit controls the headrest front portion to move to the fully open position or to a position at which the headrest front portion contacts the head of the passenger.

7. The headrest device according to claim 5, wherein

if the prediction unit predicts the possibility of the rear vehicle collision with the vehicle, the control unit controls the headrest front portion to move to the fully open position or to a position at which the headrest front portion contacts the head of the passenger.