Patent ID: 8894142
Filing Date: 2014-11-25
Classification: B60N

Abstract:
1. A headrest adapted for use with a rear seat, said headrest comprising: an exterior shell movably coupled to the seat, and defining a first position relative to the seat; an interior space having a fixed volume defined by the exterior shell; a mechanical linkage system affixed to any of the shell or the seat, the mechanical linkage system including a plurality of track sections, at least one of which is fixedly coupled to the seat and at least one other of which is slidably translatable with respect to the at least one track section, the mechanical linkage system being operable to extend and retract the shell; a nub fixedly attached to the at least one other track section; an actuator disposed within the space, wherein the actuator includes at least one active material element drivenly coupled to the shell so as to selectively cause or enable the headrest to move to a second position when the element is exposed to or occluded from an activation signal, wherein the active material element is a shape memory alloy (SMA) wire having two ends, the SMA wire being in a bow-string configuration where i) each end is fixedly attached to the at least one track section, and ii) a portion of the SMA wire is retained by the nub; and a power source communicatively coupled to the actuator, and operable to generate the signal; wherein the seat defines a cavity operable to retain at least a portion of the shell, and the at least the portion is disposed within the cavity when the shell is in the second position.