Vehicle seat flip-up mechanism and vehicle seat

• US 9,216,671 B2
• Filed: 03/29/2012
• Issued: 12/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TS Tech Company Limited
• Original Assignee: TS Tech Company Limited
• Inventors: Watanabe, Masato
• Primary Examiner(s): GABLER, PHILIP F
• Application Number:
  US14/008,633
• Publication Number:
  US 20140049083A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,363 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/3013 the back-rest being hinged on the vehicle frame
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/304 by rotation only
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/3065 in a longitudinal-vertical plane
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/309 rods
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/366 characterised by the locking device
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/859 specially adapted for rear seats

Abstract

Provided is a vehicle seat flip-up mechanism that may be stably fixed to a vehicle body floor and may stably support an occupant load. In a vehicle seat flip-up mechanism that is provided to switch a posture of a seat cushion between a normal sitting posture and a stowed posture where the seat cushion is stowed while being inclined forward, the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism includes: links that extend in the front to back direction while being separated from each other in the seat width direction; a mounting bracket that is attached to the ends of the links and supports a seat cushion; a connection member that is installed in the mounting bracket; a support mechanism that rotatably supports the links; and mounting plates that are disposed below the support mechanism and are locked to the vehicle body floor, in which the mounting plate extends rearward relative to the link.

Claims

1. A vehicle seat flip-up mechanism that is capable of switching a posture of a seat cushion between a normal sitting posture and a stowed posture where the seat cushion is stowed while being inclined forward, the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism comprising:

a pair of links that is formed by elongated bodies extending in a front to back direction while being separated from each other in a seat width direction;

a pair of mounting brackets that is attached to ends of the pair of links and supports the seat cushion;

a connection member that is installed in the pair of mounting brackets;

a pair of support mechanisms that rotatably supports the pair of links; and

a mounting plate that is disposed below the pair of support mechanisms and is locked to a vehicle body floor,

wherein;

the mounting plate extends rearward relative to the links and comprises;

a fixing member that extends in the seat width direction; and

a mounting member that;

overlaps with one end of the fixing member;

is disposed along an extension direction of the link; and

comprises a mounting surface portion that contacts the vehicle body floor; and

an intersection point in a top view between the connection member and an imaginary line connecting an apex at an inside of a rear end of the mounting surface portion in the seat width direction and an apex not overlapping the mounting member in a rear end of the fixing member is disposed nearer an other end of the fixing member compared to a center portion of the connection member in an extension direction.

2. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 1,

wherein one end of the mounting member is trapped between the fixing member and the vehicle body floor.

3. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 2, wherein:

at least one of the pair of support mechanisms includes a spiral spring that is attached onto the fixing member and biases the link; and

a portion overlapping the fixing member in the mounting member is disposed at an outside in the seat width direction relative to an attachment position of the spiral spring.

4. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising:

a guide member that is formed by an elongated body attached to at least one of the pair of mounting brackets and disposed in parallel to the link.

5. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 4,

wherein when the seat cushion is held at the stowed posture, an end attached to the mounting bracket in the guide member is disposed at a lower side relative to the connection member.

6. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 4, wherein:

a rotation shaft is provided at a lower end of the link; and

the mounting bracket is attached to an upper end of the link and has a striker fixed thereto to regulate a flip-up operation of the seat cushion.

7. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 6,

wherein the link and the guide member are attached to a part opposite to an attachment surface for the striker in the mounting bracket and are disposed at an inside in the seat width direction.

8. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 6, wherein:

the striker includes a hook portion which is bent in a horizontal direction; and

the hook portion is disposed between the end of the link attached to the mounting bracket and the end of the guide member attached to the mounting bracket.

9. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 1, wherein:

the pair of mounting brackets is attached to upper ends of the pair of links to support the seat cushion; and

the pair of links is formed so that a distance between the upper ends is larger than a distance between lower ends.

10. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 9, wherein:

the mounting plate includes a fixing member that is fixed to the vehicle body floor and extends in the seat width direction; and

a reinforcement collar is integrally formed with an outside of the lower end of the link in the seat width direction and a base bracket that is fixed to the fixing member is attached to an outside of the reinforcement collar in the seat width direction.

11. The vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 10, further comprising:

a guide member that is formed by an elongated body attached to at least one of the pair of mounting brackets and is substantially disposed in parallel to the link,

wherein;

the base bracket includes a fixing portion fixed to the fixing member and an upright wall portion bent from the fixing portion; and

the guide member is disposed at an inside of the upright wall portion in the seat width direction.

12. A vehicle seat comprising:

the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism according to claim 1; and

a cover member that covers the flip-up mechanism.

13. The vehicle seat according to claim 12, wherein:

a stowed position in which the seat cushion is held in the stowed posture is located at a front side relative to a sitting position in which the seat cushion is held at the sitting posture;

the flip-up mechanism includes a biasing member that biases the link and performs an operation of rotating the link forward by a biasing force of the biasing member as an operation of moving the seat cushion from the sitting position toward the stowed position; and

the cover member includes a biasing member cover portion that covers the biasing member.

14. The vehicle seat according to claim 13,

wherein the biasing member cover portion is mounted to be rotatable forward along with a forward rotation of the link.

15. The vehicle seat according to claim 14, further comprising:

a biasing spring that biases the biasing member cover portion,

wherein;

the link contacts the biasing member cover portion during the forward rotation;

when a forward direction is set as a first direction and a rearward direction is set as a second direction in a rotation direction of the biasing member cover portion, the biasing spring biases the biasing member cover portion in the second direction; and

when the link further rotates forward while contacting the biasing member cover portion, the link presses the biasing member cover portion in the first direction to rotate the biasing member cover portion forward against a biasing force of the biasing spring.

16. A vehicle seat flip-up mechanism that is capable of switching a posture of a seat cushion between a normal sitting posture and a stowed posture where the seat cushion is stowed while being inclined forward, the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism comprising:

a pair of links that is formed by elongated bodies extending in a front to back direction while being separated from each other in a seat width direction;

a pair of mounting brackets that is attached to ends of the pair of links and supports the seat cushion;

a connection member that is installed in the pair of mounting brackets;

a pair of support mechanisms that rotatably supports the pair of links; and

a mounting plate that is disposed below the pair of support mechanisms and is locked to a vehicle body floor,

wherein;

the mounting plate extends rearward relative to the links and comprises;

a fixing member that extends in the seat width direction; and

a mounting member that;

overlaps with one end of the fixing member;

is disposed along an extension direction of the link; and

comprises a mounting surface portion that contacts the vehicle body floor;

the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism further comprising;

a guide member that is formed by an elongated body attached to at least one of the pair of mounting brackets and disposed in parallel to the link; and

wherein;

the mounting bracket comprises;

a seat cushion mounting surface portion to which the seat cushion is attached; and

a side surface flange portion which is formed to be bent from the seat cushion mounting surface portion, and

an end of the connection member and an end of the guide member are attached to the side surface flange portion and a concave portion is provided between a portion to which the end of the connection member is attached and a portion to which the end of the guide member is attached.

17. A vehicle seat flip-up mechanism that is capable of switching a posture of a seat cushion between a normal sitting posture and a stowed posture where the seat cushion is stowed while being inclined forward, the vehicle seat flip-up mechanism comprising:

a pair of links that is formed by elongated bodies extending in a front to back direction while being separated from each other in a seat width direction;

a pair of mounting brackets that is attached to ends of the pair of links and supports the seat cushion;

a connection member that is installed in the pair of mounting brackets;

a pair of support mechanisms that rotatably supports the pair of links; and

a mounting plate that is disposed below the pair of support mechanisms and is locked to a vehicle body floor,

wherein;

the mounting plate extends rearward relative to the links and comprises;

a fixing member that extends in the seat width direction; and

a mounting member that;

overlaps with one end of the fixing member;

is disposed along an extension direction of the link; and

comprises a mounting surface portion that contacts the vehicle body floor;

the pair of mounting brackets is attached to upper ends of the pair of links to support the seat cushion;

the pair of links is formed so that a distance between the upper ends is larger than a distance between lower ends;

an intermediate portion of the link in a longitudinal direction is provided with a bent portion which widens the distance between the upper ends of the pair of links;

the vehicle seat further includes a headrest; and

the pair of links is formed so that a distance between the upper ends is larger than a width of the headrest and a distance from the lower end to the bent portion is larger than a thickness of the headrest.