Vehicle seat

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9877678-B2
Application number	US-201314395408-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 18, 2013
Priority date	Apr 19, 2012
Publication date	Jan 30, 2018
Grant date	Jan 30, 2018

Abstract

A respiration signal of a seated person is detected with high accuracy by using a vehicle seat that includes a seat cushion; and a sensor detecting a pressure signal from a load applied from a seated person. The sensor is provided to be along an edge of a contact portion between the seat cushion and buttocks of the seated person. The sensor transmits the detected pressure signal to an arithmetic operation device of the seated person. In a respiration measuring device, the arithmetic operation device computes the detected pressure signal detected by the sensor to obtain a respiration signal of the seated person.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vehicle seat comprising:
a seat cushion; and
a measuring device comprising:
at least one sensor that is provided in the seat cushion and that detects a pressure signal from a load applied from a seated person; and
an arithmetic operation device that computes the detected pressure signal to obtain a respiration signal of the seated person, the measuring device configured to measure respiration of the seated person, wherein:
the sensor is arranged on a back side of a back edge of a contact portion at a top portion of the seat cushion in a seated person buttocks region if a vehicle forward direction is a front direction and arranged along the back edge of the contact portion, and has a transmitter that transmits the detected pressure signal to the arithmetic operation device.

2. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor has a detection surface, a lengthwise length of the detection surface being different from a crosswise length, the detection surface being arranged so that a lengthwise direction of the sensor is along the back edge.

3. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein at least two sensors are provided on a front side and a back side, respectively, if a vehicle forward direction is a front direction.

4. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein at least a pair of sensors are arranged to be pivoted towards an axis between the pair of sensors in a front-to-back direction if a vehicle forward direction is a front direction.

5. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor has a curved shape.

6. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor is provided so that at least a part of the sensor is located backward of a region where a maximum load is applied to the seat cushion from the buttocks in a state in which the seated person is seated.

7. The vehicle seat according to claim 3 , wherein:
the sensor comprises a first sensor provided on the back side and a second sensor provided on the front side; and
the first sensor is arranged outward of the second sensor in a seat width direction.

8. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein:
a plurality of sensors are provided as the sensor; and
the measuring device measures the respiration of the seated person by selecting data that reflects the respiration from among data detected by the plurality of sensors.

9. The vehicle seat according to claim 1 , wherein the sensor is arranged to cross a centerline extending in a front-to-back direction in a region where a maximum load is applied to the seat cushion from the buttocks in a state in which the seated person is seated in a plan view.

Assignees

• Ts Tech Co Ltd
• Josho Gakuen Educational Found
• Univ Nihon

Inventors

• Sugiyama Shinji
• NAKANO Toyokazu
• Ohsuga Mieko
• Kageyama Ichiro
• Kuriyagawa Yukiyo
• Iida Shu

Classifications

• A61B5/0053

  by applying pressure, e.g. compression, indentation, palpation, grasping, gauging · CPC title

• B60N2/002

  Seats provided with an occupancy detection means mounted therein or thereon (detection means responsive to presence or absence of children B60N2/266) · CPC title

• A61B5/6893

  Cars · CPC title

• A61B2562/0261

  Strain gauges · CPC title

• A61B2562/0247

  Pressure sensors · CPC title