Structure for operational portion in vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11104255-B2
Application number	US-201715835118-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 7, 2017
Priority date	Dec 20, 2016
Publication date	Aug 31, 2021
Grant date	Aug 31, 2021

Abstract

A structure 1 for an operational portion in a vehicle provided at a side of a driver seat in a vehicle, comprising: a touch pad 14 having a contacted operational surface 14a receiving contact as an input operation; a rest surface formation portion 15 including a palm rest portion 21 provided behind the touch pad 14 and used for operation of the touch pad 14 and an arm rest portion 22 forming a rest surface 15a continuous to the palm rest portion 21; and an audio switch 16 provided between the touch pad 14 and the arm rest portion 22 in a front and back direction of the vehicle, the audio switch 16 operating an audio device equipped in the vehicle.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A control interface for a vehicle provided at a side of a driver seat in the vehicle, comprising:
a base portion including a touch pad configured to receive user input;
an audio switch housing that:
is stacked on top of the base portion and protrudes upward with respect to the base portion;
includes at least one button or wheel disposed on a side portion thereof,
is disposed behind the touch pad along a front and back direction of the vehicle;
is disposed above all portions of the touch pad; and
is configured to operate an audio device equipped in the vehicle; and

a rest portion stacked on top of the audio switch housing, the rest portion being disposed behind the touch pad along the front and back direction of the vehicle, the rest portion having, in a plan view, a tapered shape formed by a side portion at a passenger seat side that is parallel with the front and back direction of the vehicle, and a side portion at a driver seat side that is slanted with respect to the front and back direction of the vehicle, such that the rest portion decreases in width closer to a front side of the vehicle,
wherein a frontal edge of the audio switch housing protrudes farther than a frontal edge of the rest portion along the front and back direction of the vehicle, such that the frontal edge of the audio switch housing is closer to the touch pad and a front of the vehicle than the frontal edge of the rest portion, in the plan view.

2. The control interface according to claim 1 ,
wherein the rest portion includes a flexible skin portion, an inner layer cushion portion, and an inner layer rigid portion that is more rigid than the inner layer cushion portion.

3. The control interface according to claim 1 ,
wherein:
the rest portion includes a flexible skin portion, and an inner layer, at least a portion of the inner layer being flexible,
the inner layer includes an uneven shape portion, and
the uneven shape portion includes a section in which at least one of an evenness height or an evenness pitch is different with respect to other portions of the uneven portion.

4. The control interface according to claim 1 ,
wherein a recess configured to receive a palm of the driver is formed on an upper surface of the rest portion.

5. The control interface according to claim 1 ,
wherein a recess configured to receive a thumb of the driver is provided on a side surface portion at the driver seat side of the rest portion.

6. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the audio switch housing has two opposing lateral sides that extend straight and are non-parallel with respect to each other in the plan view.

7. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the audio switch housing includes at least one button or wheel disposed on each of three sides thereof.

8. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein:
the side portion on which the at least one button or wheel is disposed on the audio switch housing faces the driver seat, and
a second button or wheel is disposed on a frontal side portion of the audio switch housing that faces toward the front of the vehicle.

9. The control interface according to claim 8 , wherein the at least one button or wheel disposed on the side portion that faces the driver seat is a first button, and the second button or wheel disposed on the frontal side portion is a second button.

10. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the base portion includes a cup holder disposed forward of the touch pad along the front and back direction of the vehicle.

11. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the base portion includes a shift lever disposed adjacent to the touch pad in a vehicle horizontal direction.

12. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein a top surface of the audio switch housing is devoid of buttons or wheels.

13. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the rest portion further comprises an arm rest portion disposed behind the tapered shape along the front and back direction of the vehicle, the arm rest portion having a constant width in the plan view along a vehicle horizontal direction.

14. The control interface according to claim 1 , wherein the audio switch housing includes the wheel disposed on the side portion thereof, the wheel having a rotational axis that is parallel to a longitudinal direction of the side portion.

Assignees

• Toyota Jidosha Kyushu Kk
• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Shirota Shohei
• Urabe Yoichi
• Kimura Shinya

Classifications

• B60K35/60

  Instruments characterised by their location or relative disposition in or on vehicles (arrangements of lighting devices on dashboards B60Q3/10) · CPC title

• B60K35/22

  Display screens · CPC title

• B60K35/80

  Arrangements for controlling instruments · CPC title

• B60K35/10

  Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor · CPC title

• B60K37/00

  Dashboards (as road-vehicle superstructure sub-units B62D25/14) · CPC title