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Seat track assembly with load pins

Seat track assembly with load pins description/claims

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/895,800, filed 20 Mar. 2007.

The present invention relates to vehicular seating devices.

More particularly, the present invention relates to track mounted seats for adjustment or movement.

In a further and more specific aspect, the present invention concerns adjustable track mechanisms for vehicular seats.

Vehicular seating devices generally include a seat bottom and a seat back (referred to hereinafter collectively as a “seat”) attached together either in a fixed or an adjustable position. In this context it will be understood that the term “vehicle” includes automobiles, buses, trucks, airplanes, and the like. One or more of the seating devices are generally mounted on the floor of the vehicle, depending upon the type of vehicle, by tracks that allow forward and rearward adjustment or movement

It will be understood that in many or even most of these track mounted vehicular seats the tracks include longitudinally (i.e. forward and rearward) extending sets of tracks attached to opposite sides of the seat, hereinafter referred to as inboard and outboard tracks. Each set of tracks includes an inner or lower track typically attached to the floor and an upper or outer track that is typically coupled to the seat. The outer track is constructed to at least partially surround the inner track and to be reciprocally movable along the inner track by employing some type of seat adjustment mechanism.

In previous tracks of this type, the outer track needs to be sufficiently strong to prevent failure. Typically, in failure, the outer track is peeled from the inner track (deformation and disengagement of the outer track from the inner track) upon the application of substantial forces. Substantial forces arise from events such as collisions wherein an individual sitting in the seat is thrown against the seat back in a rear end collision, or against a restraining device in a front end collision. The forces generated by these events are transmitted through the seat to the tracks. If the force is great enough, failure occurs, with undesirable results to the occupant.

Conventionally, to increase the amount of force a track can sustain, the outer track is fabricated of heavier, thicker material. Unfortunately, the problem with simply increasing the strength of the outer track to any desired level is the resulting compliance issues. Greater strength results in inner compliance impairing the ability of the vehicle manufacturer to install the tracks and adversely affecting the movement of the outer rail on the inner rail. Thus, a compromise must be achieved between strength and compliance.

It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved vehicular seat track assembly.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved vehicular seat track assembly with high moment strength and a design that substantially reduces or eliminates peal.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved vehicular seat track assembly that does not require heavy, thick upper tracks and does not impair the ability of vehicle manufacturers to install the tracks.

Briefly, to achieve the desired objects and advantages of the present invention in accordance with a preferred embodiment thereof, provided is an assembly for mounting a seat on a track in a vehicle, the track including inboard and outboard parallel spaced apart track portions with each track portion including a lower track affixed to the vehicle and an upper track at least partially enclosing the lower track and reciprocally movable therealong. The assembly includes a pair of seat mounting plates associated with each inboard and outboard track portion with each pair including parallel spaced apart plates affixed to the seat and formed to partially enclose the associated track portion. A set of load pins is associated with each pair of seat mounting plates and extends between the associated seat mounting plates with one load pin of the set positioned below the lower track and another load pin of the set positioned above the upper track.

In a preferred embodiment the set of load pins includes a pair of rearward load pins and a pair of forward load pins. The pair of rearward load pins includes a first rearward load pin positioned below the lower track proximate a forward end of the associated seat mounting plates and a second rearward load pin positioned above the upper track proximate a rearward end of the associated seat mounting plates and the pair of forward load pins includes a first forward load pin positioned below the lower track proximate a rearward end of the associated seat mounting plates and a second forward load pin positioned above the upper track proximate a forward end of the associated seat mounting plates. Also, in the preferred embodiment the second rearward load pin and the second forward load pin extend through an upwardly extending portion of the upper track and at least partially support the seat.

• Provisional Patent
• Utility Patent

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