Seating apparatus for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9511689-B2
Application number	US-201314396561-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 26, 2013
Priority date	Apr 24, 2012
Publication date	Dec 6, 2016
Grant date	Dec 6, 2016

Abstract

A seating apparatus for a vehicle, in which a seat cushion supported on the vehicle body by a link member can be flipped up toward the front of the vehicle from a use position and which includes a locking mechanism that operates only when the seat cushion is acted upon by an inertial force greater than a predetermined force in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle, to temporarily prevent the seat cushion from flipping up. The locking mechanism includes a locking plate supported on the seat cushion and rockable in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle between a normal position and a rocked position, and a spring for urging the locking plate toward the normal position. The locking plate locks the seat cushion to the link member when it is moved inertially to the rocked position against the force of the spring, to prevent the seat cushion from flipping up, and the locking plate unlocks the seat cushion when it is located in the normal position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A seating apparatus for a vehicle, in which a seat cushion is flipped up toward a front of the vehicle from a use position allowing a passenger to sit on the seat cushion, the seating apparatus comprising:
a link member which is pivotable in a manner such that the seat cushion is flipped up from the use position toward the front of the vehicle; and
a locking device associated with the seat cushion and capable of restricting pivotal movement of the link member,
wherein the locking device includes
a rocking member supported on the seat cushion and rockable between a normal position permitting the pivotal movement of the link member and a rocked position restricting the pivotal movement of the link member, and
an urging member which urges the rocking member toward the normal position,
wherein the rocking member includes
a weight which, in response to backward inertial force acting upon the seat cushion, rocks from the normal position to the rocked position due to the inertial force, against force of the urging member, and
a pawl which rocks from the normal position to the rocked position along with the weight and engages with the link member to restrict the pivotal movement of the link member,
wherein the link member extends in a longitudinal direction of the vehicle and has a front end coupled to the vehicle body so as to be pivotable in the longitudinal direction and a rear end coupled to the seat cushion so as to be pivotable in the longitudinal direction,
wherein forward rocking motion of the seat cushion from the use position about the front end of the link member is restricted by a restricting device, and the seat cushion is rocked forward by raising a front of the seat cushion from the use position about the rear end of the link member and then rocking the seat cushion forward about the front end of the link member, and
wherein the seat cushion includes an engaging device capable of elastically engaging with and disengaging from the link member in the use position, and
the engaging device is disengaged from the link member by moving the front of the seat cushion upward.

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Motors Corp
• Tachi S Co

Inventors

• Mabashi Yohei
• Shimomura Yoshiyuki
• Fujino Shigeya
• Sasaki Katsuhiko
• Imayou Kazuya
• Igarashi Toshiki
• Ishihara Masao

Classifications

• B60N2/3065 Primary

  in a longitudinal-vertical plane · CPC title

• B60N2/68 Primary

  Seat frames · CPC title

• B60N2/06

  slidable (B60N2/12 {, B60N2/2209} take precedence) · CPC title

• B60N2/309

  rods · CPC title

• B60N2/70

  Upholstery springs {; Upholstery} · CPC title