Seat rail pair for a vehicle seat

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11299072-B2
Application number	US-201716334130-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 21, 2017
Priority date	Sep 21, 2016
Publication date	Apr 12, 2022
Grant date	Apr 12, 2022

Abstract

A seat rail pair for a vehicle seat is disclosed. The seat rail pair may have a lower rail and an upper rail. The upper rail may be moved relative to the lower rail via mutually engaged profiles. The lower rail may have a substantially C-shaped profile and the upper rail may have a substantially U-shaped profile. Roller members may be arranged between the upper rail and the lower rail to facilitate relative movement.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A seat rail pair for a vehicle seat, the seat rail pair comprising:
a lower rail;
an upper rail displaceably guided relative to the lower rail in a longitudinal direction, wherein the upper rail and the lower rail mutually engage with each other, wherein the lower rail has a substantially C-shaped profile and downwardly bent end portions, and wherein the upper rail has a substantially U-shaped profile and upwardly bent end portions;
a plurality of roller members arranged between the upper rail and the lower rail, wherein at least one of the plurality of roller members is arranged in a first lower roller member raceway in a first outer profile portion of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail, wherein at least one of the plurality of roller members is arranged in a second lower roller member raceway in a second outer profile portion of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail, wherein at least one of the plurality of roller members is arranged in a first upper roller member raceway in the first outer profile portion of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail, wherein at least one of the plurality of roller members is arranged in a second upper roller member raceway in the second outer profile portion of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail, wherein each of the upwardly bent end portions of the upper rail defines a planar support face, wherein each of the planar support faces contacts the at least one of the plurality of roller members arranged in a respective one of the first and second lower roller member raceways, and wherein the first and second lower roller member raceways are raised relative to a substantially planar base of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail via steps formed by the first and second outer profile portions of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail; and
a locking plate adapted to be vertically displaced with respect to the upper and lower rails and extending into the upper rail, wherein longitudinal displaceability of the upper rail relative to the lower rail is limited via a cooperation of an end stop which is arranged in extension of one of the downwardly bent end portions of the lower rail with a stop element which is arranged in a transition region between the substantially U-shaped profile and one of the upwardly bent end portions of the upper rail, wherein the end stop is bent outward and downward, wherein the upper rail has two cutting edges formed therein to limit downward movement of the locking plate, and wherein the two cutting edges are each located above and outside a respective bending radius of the upper rail.

2. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein each of the planar support faces is positioned at an angle in a range from 15° to 25°, with respect to the substantially planar base of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail.

3. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein at least one of the planar support faces is oriented tangentially with respect to a notional circular path about a center point of an outer bend of the substantially U-shaped profile of the upper rail.

4. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the locking plate is adapted to be vertically displaced between a position that locks the upper rail to the lower rail and a position that unlocks the upper rail with respect to the lower rail.

5. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the locking plate continuously extends in an uninterrupted fashion through a hollow space created by the upper rail.

6. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the locking plate abuts the downwardly bent end portions of the lower rail.

7. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the locking plate extends parallel to a substantially planar base of the substantially U-shaped profile of the upper rail.

8. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a diameter of the at least one of the plurality of roller members arranged in the first lower roller member raceway is substantially equal to a diameter of the at least one of the plurality roller members arranged in the second lower roller member raceway.

9. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a diameter of the at least one of the plurality of roller members arranged in the first lower roller member raceway is substantially equal to a diameter of the at least one of the plurality roller members arranged in the first upper roller member raceway.

10. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a diameter of the at least one of the plurality of roller members arranged in the second lower roller member raceway is substantially equal to a diameter of the at least one of the plurality roller members arranged in the second upper roller member raceway.

11. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a diameter of the at least one of the plurality of roller members arranged in the first upper roller member raceway is substantially equal to a diameter of the at least one of the plurality roller members arranged in the second upper roller member raceway.

12. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of roller members has a diameter in a range from 4 mm to 6 mm.

13. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising:
a plurality of roller member cages, wherein each of the plurality of roller member cages includes an upper retention portion and a lower retention portion, and wherein each of the plurality of roller members is retained in a respective one of the upper and lower retention portions of a respective one of the plurality of roller member cages.

14. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the first and second outer profile portions of the substantially C-shaped profile of the lower rail are upwardly bent outer profile portions, wherein the substantially planar base has a plurality of sides each adjoined by a respective one of the upwardly bent outer profile portions, wherein each of the upwardly bent outer profile portions merges, opposite the substantially planar base, into a respective one of the downwardly bent end portions.

15. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the upwardly bent end portions of the upper rail are guided in a space defined between the upwardly bent outer profile portions of the lower rail.

16. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the upper rail is constructed symmetrically with respect to an axis of symmetry.

17. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the upper rail has twelve bends with a maximum bending angle of 90°.

18. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the lower rail is constructed symmetrically with respect to an axis of symmetry.

19. The seat rail pair as claimed in claim 18 , wherein the lower rail has fourteen bends with a maximum bending angle of 90°.

Assignees

• Adient Luxembourg Holding Sarl
• Keiper Seating Mechanisms Co Ltd

Inventors

• Quast Ingo
• Sprenger Erik
• Goettel Udo
• Turan Turgay
• Zacharias Michael
• Flick Joachim

Classifications

• B60N2/0715 Primary

  C or U-shaped · CPC title

• B60N2/073

  Reinforcement members preventing slide dislocation · CPC title

• B60N2/0727

  Stop members for limiting sliding movement · CPC title

• B60N2/0818

  inside the rail · CPC title

• B60N2/0705

  omega-shaped · CPC title