JP2584939B2 - Seat equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a seat apparatus which can be adjusted to a thorax support position which gives a comfortable seating feeling to a driver of an automobile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Many studies have been made on the shape of a seat for providing a comfortable sitting feeling to a occupant. As shown in FIG. 6, the back of the person M when standing upright has a so-called S-shape in which the upper and lower parts of the waist are inside. Considering that it is the most natural to keep this posture and that the spine is not overreached, it is common to provide a lumbar support 2 that holds the back of the waist forward in the seat 1 as shown in FIG. And it was believed that it alone provided comfort and reduced fatigue.

On the basis of such a concept, attempts have been made to provide the seated person with as much freedom as possible, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 59-168816 and Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. Sho 62-159768. Various seat devices have been proposed.

[0004]

However, according to the study of the inventors, such a conventional technique is a theory biased to static observation in which the user merely sits, It has been found that it is not always adaptable to dynamic situations, such as a driver driving a car.

[0005] In other words, since the driver grasps the steering wheel and operates, it is common to raise the upper body as shown by the arrow in FIG. 8, so that the driver becomes a so-called stoop and fixes his waist. If it becomes stooped, the abdomen will be compressed and it will be painful, so the so-called ass shift phenomenon that brings the buttocks forward will occur, the back of the buttocks will separate from the seat back, and the body will hit too strongly against the lumbar support 2 There was a problem that it would compress the spine.

As described above, according to the above-mentioned theory of keeping the back of the person M in an S-shape when standing upright, in the case of the driver, the body is not supported and becomes unstable, or the conventional lumbar support is used. However, there is a problem that the spine is adversely affected, the spine is supported in a natural state, a stable seating feeling is obtained, and the driver cannot drive the vehicle.

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of such problems of the prior art. Even when a driver sits for a long time and performs a driving operation, the spine is not overloaded. It is an object of the present invention to provide a seat device that has a stable seating feeling and is hard to be tired.

[0008]

According to the research and research by the inventors, when the driver takes a driving posture for a long time, the back is rounded, and the posture in which the buttocks are slightly shifted forward is most difficult for the spine. Verification has been obtained that it is natural.
In other words, the seating sensation varies from person to person, and there are also time factors. Even if it is comfortable at first, the comfort does not always last.
According to the old theory, a driver is not always comfortable, and an unnatural posture continues for a long time to accumulate fatigue.

[0009] Then, as a result of studying what kind of posture is natural and the spine is not overreached by the driver, the hip point C is located at the position shown in FIG. 4 showing the curve of the vertebra of the seated person. In this case, it is comfortable to raise the upper body as shown in the range A at the upper part and become a stoop, and to lower the buttocks forward as shown at the range B at the lower part, and to put the person M in this state. It was concluded that holding as shown in FIG. 5 is the posture that is least likely to cause fatigue, and this state was called the thorax support posture.

The curve of the vertebrae of the seated person shown in FIG.
The case of the angle line D of the seat back having an angle most likely to be used most commonly is shown, and ranges A and B indicated by hatching are shown.
Indicates the range of the thorax support posture. The scale of the vertical and horizontal axes is 50 mm. This curve shows the curve at the most commonly used seatback angle.

In an actual use state, the angle of the seat back is used in a range of about 20 to 45 degrees from the vertical.
When the seat back falls down from the state of FIG. 4, the range of the thorax support posture becomes a more raised state at the upper part, a more protruding state at the lower part, and vice versa when the seat back occurs from the state of FIG. Becomes

Based on such conclusions, the gist of the present invention to achieve the above object is to provide a seat apparatus which can be adjusted to a thorax support position that gives a comfortable sitting feeling to a driver of an automobile, The upper part of the back where the upper part of the back of the driver touches the back cushion body (10)
And the back middle part (1
1) and the lower back portion (1
2) and the back frame (1
3) includes a back upper part (10) and a back lower part (1) when the back middle part (11) is moved back and forth.
A thorax adjusting mechanism (20) for tilting and displacing the 2) to a flat position flattened with the back intermediate portion (11) and an inclined position inclined forward with respect to the back intermediate portion (11). The thorax adjusting mechanism (20) has an upper end on the back frame (13).
An upper support member (21) pivotally attached to an upper portion of the back frame (10) to tiltably support the upper back portion (10); and a lower end pivotally attached to a lower portion of the back frame (13) to tilt the lower back portion (12). Lower support member (22) for freely supporting
And the upper support member (21) and the lower support member (2
And an intermediate support member (23) disposed between the intermediate support member (2) and the back intermediate portion (11), and is pivotably mounted on a side surface of the intermediate support member (23) so as to be human-powered. And a lower link of the upper support member (21), which is connected to the rotary link (31) driven by the drive source of (1), and which pushes the lower end of the upper support member (21) upward as the rotary link (31) rotates in the operation direction. The intermediate support member (2) so that the upper back portion (10) together with the upper support member (21) is tilted to a tilt position forming a thorax support posture.
Upper connection link (32) for connecting 3) to the lower end of the upper support member (21) via the rotation link (31).
And the upper end of the lower support member (22) is pushed downward as the rotary link (31) rotates in the operating direction, thereby lowering the lower support member (2).
The intermediate support member (23) is attached to the upper end of the lower support member (22) via the rotating link (31) so that the back lower portion (12) tilts to an inclined position forming a thorax support posture together with 2). And a lower connecting link (33) to be connected.

[0013]

[Function] The driver of the automobile is required to adjust the thorax adjustment mechanism (2
0) to operate the upper back (10) or lower back (1)
2) By tilting and displacing, the optimal thorax support posture is appropriately adjusted, and a comfortable sitting feeling can be obtained even when sitting for a long time.

That is, when the rotating link (31) is rotated in the operation direction by human power or the like, the upper connecting link (32)
Is pushed upward and the lower connecting link (33) is pushed downward, and the upper support member (21) and the lower support member (22) tilt while the intermediate support member (23) moves backward,
The entire upper support member (21), middle support member (23), and lower support member (22) are displaced so as to bend inward. The upper back (10) and lower back (1
2) is displaced from the flat position to the inclined position.

[0015] Therefore, the driver can adjust and hold the thorax support posture in which the driver has a rounded back and the buttocks slightly shifted forward, and furthermore, the optimum thorax support posture preferred by the driver.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, the seat device has a cushion body of a seat back, a back upper portion 10 corresponding to an upper portion of the back of the seated driver, a back intermediate portion 11 corresponding to an intermediate portion of the back of the driver, and a driver. And a back lower portion 12 which is a lower portion of the back of the seat. A thorax adjustment mechanism 20 for displacing the back upper portion 10, the back intermediate portion 11 and the back lower portion 12 is provided on a back frame 13 of the seat back.

As shown in FIG. 1, the thorax adjusting mechanism 20 has an upper support member 21 whose upper end is pivotally attached to the upper portion of the back frame 13 to support the back upper portion 10 in a tiltable manner.
A lower support member 22 having a lower end pivotally attached to a lower portion of the back frame 13 to support the back lower portion 12 so as to be tiltable;
Intermediate portion support member 23 disposed between upper support member 21 and lower support member 22 to support the back surface of back intermediate portion 11
A spur gear 31 (rotating link) that is swingably attached to the side surface of the intermediate support member 23 and is driven by human power in this case, and an upper connection link that connects the spur gear 31 and the lower end of the upper support member 21. 32, a lower connecting link 33 for connecting the spur gear 31 and the upper end of the lower support member 22, a small gear 34 meshing with the spur gear 31, and a small gear for driving the spur gear 31 via the small gear 34. And an operation knob 35 connected to the control knob 34.

The upper connecting link 32 has an upper end and a lower end pivotally connected to the upper support member 21 and the spur gear 31, respectively. A long hole 36 is formed in the middle of the upper connecting member 32. Is engaged with a pin-like body projecting from the side surface of the intermediate portion support member 23.

The elongated holes 36 and the pin-shaped members are provided for guiding the upper connecting link 32 to ensure the moving direction thereof. The upper connecting link 32 pushes the lower end of the upper support member 21 obliquely rightward and upward in FIG. 1 as the spur gear 31 rotates in the operating direction (in this case, the counterclockwise direction in the figure). The upper back portion 10 together with the support member 21 is set to be tilted to a forward position forming a thorax support posture.

The lower connecting link 33 has its upper end and lower end pivotally connected to the spur gear 31 and the lower support member 22, respectively, and has an elongated hole 37 formed in the middle thereof. Also, another pin-like body projecting from the side surface of the intermediate portion support member 23 is engaged.

The elongated hole 37 and the pin-like body are also for guiding the lower connecting link 33 to assure the moving direction, and the arrangement position of the elongated hole 37 and the pin-like body and the lower connecting link. The lower connecting link 32 pushes the lower end of the lower support member 22 obliquely downward and rightward in FIG. 1 as the spur gear 31 rotates in the operating direction (in this case, the counterclockwise direction in the figure). The back lower part 12 is set so as to be tilted to the front position forming the thorax support posture together with the support member 22.

Next, the operation will be described. With the above seat device, the driver of the automobile operates the thorax adjusting mechanism 20 to tilt and displace the upper portion 10 or the lower portion 12 of the seat back to an appropriate thorax support posture as appropriate, and sit for a long time. Also, a comfortable sitting feeling can be obtained.

That is, when the operation knob 35 is operated to rotate the spur gear 31 in the operation direction (counterclockwise), FIG.
The upper connecting link 32 is pushed upward and the lower connecting link 33 is pushed downward, as shown in FIG.
The upper support member 21 and the lower support member 22 tilt forward while moving in parallel to the back frame 13, and the entire upper back portion 10, the intermediate back portion 11, and the lower back portion 12 are displaced so as to bend inward.

Therefore, the driver can adjust and hold the thorax support posture in which the back is rounded and the buttocks are slightly shifted forward, and the driver's preferred thorax support posture.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but may have various modifications. For example, a brake unit may be provided to ensure that the posture is maintained after the adjustment. In this case, as the brake unit, for example,
A known structure of a rocking coil type used for a reclining device or the like is provided with the operation knob 35 and the small gear 34.
It should just be arranged between.

The rotary link may be configured to be rotated by a drive source such as a motor. In this case, if a reduction mechanism is provided on the motor side, the rotary link need not be a gear as described above.

[0027]

According to the seat apparatus of the present invention, the driver of the automobile operates the thorax adjusting mechanism to tilt and displace the upper or lower part of the main back to an appropriate optimal thorax support posture for a long time. Even when sitting, a comfortable sitting feeling can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a seat device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the seat device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing an operation state of the seat device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view for explaining a thorax support posture.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a thorax support posture.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a state of a spine of a human body in an upright posture.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining a support posture in a conventional seat device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a support posture in a conventional seat device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Back upper part 11 ... Back middle part 12 ... Back lower part 13 ... Back frame 20 ... Thorax adjustment mechanism 21 ... Upper support member 23 ... Middle part support member 22 ... Lower support member 31 ... Rotating link (spur gear) 32 ... Upper part Connection link 33: Lower connection link

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A seat device that can be adjusted to a thorax support position that gives a comfortable seating feeling to a driver of an automobile, comprising: a seat back cushion body; back middle portion intermediate portion hits the back of the person and is divided into a back lower part hits the bottom of the back of the driver, the back frame of the seat back, the back middle portion
When the back is moved back and forth,
Flat position where the lower part is flat with the back middle part
And an inclined position inclined forward with respect to the back intermediate portion.
Each result provided saw Lux adjusting mechanism for tilting displacement, the saw Lux adjusting mechanism includes an upper support member upper end for supporting the back upper are pivotally attached to the upper portion of the back frame of the seat back tiltably, lower A lower support member pivotally attached to a lower portion of the back frame to support the lower back portion in a tiltable manner; and a lower support member disposed between the upper support member and the lower support member to support a back surface of the intermediate back portion. An intermediate portion support member, a rotary link that is swingably attached to a side surface of the intermediate portion support member and driven by a driving source such as human power, and is connected to the rotary link and rotates the rotary link in an operation direction. wherein the lower end of the upper support member by pushing upward, the back upper together with the upper support member is tilted a saw Lux support posture in the form works Ru inclined position as the , Said during the
The upper support member through the rotation link
An upper connecting link connected to a lower end of the lower link, and an upper link of the lower supporting member connected to the rotating link and rotating the rotating link in the operating direction to push down,
So that the back bottom with the lower support member is tilted a saw Lux support posture in the form works Ru inclined position, wherein
An intermediate support member is connected to the lower support portion via the rotation link.
A seat device comprising: a lower connecting link connected to an upper end of a member .