DEVICE FOR SIDE COLLISION PROTECTION IN MOTOR VEHICLES WITH ADJUSTABLE SEATS

Abstract: A device in motor vehicles with a seat (1), which is adjustably arranged relative to the vehicle floor (8) and which, for side collision protection, is especially designed to absorb a load transversely to the vehicle. The device according to the invention is characterized in that between the vehicle floor (8) and the seat (1) force-transmitting means (14, 15, 19, 20), which are rigid in themselves, are arranged movable relative to each other longitudinally and/or vertically to the vehicle.

Description: Device for side collision protection in motor vehicles with adjustable seats The present invention relates to a device in motor vehicles with a seat which is adjustably arranged relative to the vehicle floor, and which, for side collision protection, is particularly adapted for absorbing a load transversely to the vehicle from an adjacent vehicle door or body side subjected to compressive loading. In order to protect occupants of a motor vehicle from injury in side collisions, it is known to rein- force the vehicle door and/or the body side to reduce the deformation of the side of the vehicle. A number of methods of achieving this reinforcement are known. One method is, on the one hand, to fill or almost fill the body side (vehicle door) in the area of the vehicle seats with energy converting elements or material and, on the other hand, to make the adjacent seat at a cooperating counteracting member as the body side is deformed into contact with the seat. The efficiency of the reinforcement and the side collision protection resultant therefrom is to an essential degree dependent on the efficiency of the counteracting member, i.e. the ability of the seat to transmit a generated load from the deformed vehicle side to the vehicle floor. It is important that the greatest possible mass of the impacted vehicle be engaged the very earliest phase of the deformation. Substantial partial masses are located in the front part of the vehicle (engine, gearbox, front chassis, etc) and in the rear part of the vehicle (rear axle, fuel tank, rear chassis, etc). The design of the vehicle floor is normally well suited for trans¬ mitting, via shearing loads to said partial masses, loads which are directed to the floor plate in the area under the vehicle seat. A vehicle seat is almost without exception arranged to be adjustable relative to the floor in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle and usually in modern vehicles also in the vehicle's vertical direction with another mechanism. Both of these adjust¬ ment mechanisms present difficulties to effectively transmitting large loads transversely to the vehicle from the load-absorbing means of the seat to the floor plate under the seat. The load-absorbing means can consist of buckle-resistant beams or pipes lying trans¬ versely to the seat frame. Due to their functional design and purpose, these mechanisms are normally poorly suited to such load transmission. In order to improve the lateral anchoring of the seat to the floor, it is known to make weight-increasing reinforcements of the mechanisms or to arrange abutments which support after a certain lateral deformation of the mechanism, and to build up heavy supports and beam-like means on the floor plate. In practice, however, such measures have proved to be insufficient for the seat to provide the counteracting member which an effective side colli¬ sion protection requires. In order to provide satisfac¬ tory counteraction on impact against one or the other side of the vehicle, arrangements extending across the entire width of the vehicle from side to side are known. These arrangements transmit a portion of the impact load to the vehicle floor and the rest to the other side of the vehicle. In such arrangements in vehicles with two separate seats, it is known to arrange a filler member between the seats, which arrangement, on the one hand, is anchored to the floor in order to transmit a load across the vehicle, and, on the other hand, is designed to transmit a compres- sive load from one seat to the other. Since the filler member must functionally accept the full adjustment range of the seat, this means in practice that it must have considerable dimensions both longitudinally and vertically. This can confine the freedom of locating the handbrake, a seat lever or a storage box between the seats, for example, and it can in general have a negative effect on the interior styling regardless of the dimensions of the filler member. The present invention intends not only to remove the above mentioned deficiencies and problems but also to provide a device in vehicles with side collision protection of the above mentioned type, which, without unnecessarily sacrificing deformation lengths in the loaded vehicle side, effectively and with simple struc¬ tural elements transmits the load to the vehicle floor to the required degree. This is achieved according to the invention by virtue of the fact that between the vehicle floor and the seat, force-transmitting means which are rigid in themselves, are arranged movable relative to each other longitudinally and/or vertically to the vehicle. The invention will be described below with reference to an embodiment shown in schematic form in the accompanying drawing. Fig 1 shows a seat frame in a motor vehicle with a device according to the invention as seen from above and a dash-dot contour of an adjacent vehicle side/door and, also as a dash-dot contour, a bumper belonging to another vehicle which is impacting the motor vehicle with its front end. Fig 2 shows in a view II-II in Fig 1, the seat frame, the device, the vehicle side and, with dash-dot contours, the floor of the vehicle as well as schema¬ tically indicated means for vertical and longitudinal adjustment of the seat. Fig 3 shows a horizontal section on a larger scale through the front portion of the seat frame and the device along the line III-III in Fig 2. Fig 4 shows a horizontal section on a larger scale through the rear portion of the seat frame and the device along the line IV-IV in Fig 2. Fig 5 shows a view corresponding to Fig 2, in which the device according to the invention covers a smaller portion of the width of the seat frame. Air- ducts under the seat are also shown with dash-dot lines. Fig 6 shows a view corresponding to Fig 2, in which the device according to the invention has been given a symmetrical triangular shape. Fig 7 shows a variant of the embodiment in Fig 6 with an asymmetrical triangular shape of the device. In Fig 1, 1 designates a seat frame, comprising side plates 2, a front tube 3 and a rear tube 4, inter¬ mediate and joined to the side plates. The tubes 3,4 are designed to be buckle-resistant in order to with¬ stand high compressive loads P~ and P b , which are generated by the bumper 5 of the impacting vehicle and which are transmitted by the intermediate portion of the vehicle side 6, which can be filled with a rigidi- fying and energy-converting material 7, for example cellular plastic. The purpose of the filler 7 in the vehicle side 6 and the compressive load-absorbing tubes 3,4 in the seat frame is that the vehicle side 6, in cooperation with the counteracting tubes 3, , will reduce the intrusion into the vehicle side by the impacting vehicle front. This is achieved by the increased resistance to deformation of the vehicle side. The reduced intrusion involves an essential advantage for a person sitting near the vehicle side because of the thereby lower velocity of the vehicle wall when striking the person. The velocity of the wall is of great importance for the occurrence of personal injury, since the impact energy of the wall is dependent on the square of the velocity. In order to achieve the most possible effective reactive forces R and R, , the tube 3 of the seat frame 1 is joined to the floor 8 by connecting means 9 (Fig 3) and an intermediate part 10, which is firmly fixed to both the tube 3 and the side plates 2 and is also joined to the connecting means 9. In a corresponding manner, the rear tube 4 of the frame is joined to the floor 8 by connec- ting means 11 (Fig 4) and an intermediate part 12, which is firmly fixed to the tube 4 and the side plates 2 and is also joined to the means 11. The seat frame 1 is in the usual manner adjustably arranged relative to the floor 8 by means of, on the one hand, a longitudi- dinal adjustment mechanism 13 and, on the other hand, a vertical adjustment mechanism 13a (Fig 2). With the aid of the adjustment mechanisms 13, 13a, the front portion of the seat frame 1 and thus the tube 3 are movable within the rectangular area, the corners of which are designated 3 1,32.3?,34 in Fig 3. In a corresponding manner, the rear portion of the seat frame and the tube 4 are movably arranged within the rectangle designated 4 1,42,4 ,44 in Fig 4. In order to be able to accept the adjustment of the seat, the connecting means 9 is divided into two rectangular force-transmitting means 14 and 15, which in themselves are rigid. The means 14 and 15 are pivotable relative to each other along one longside at a joint 16. Along the other longside the means 14 is pivotally joined to the front intermediate part 10 of the seat at a joint 17. The means 15 along its other longside is pivotally connected to the floor at a joint 18. In a corresponding manner, the connecting means 11 are divided into two rectangular force- transmitting means 19 and 20, rigid in themselves, which are pivotally arranged along one longside in relation to each other at a joint 21. The means 19 is pivotally connected along the other longside to the rear intermediate part 12 of the seat at a joint 22, while the means 20 along the other longside is pivo¬ tally connected to the floor structure of the vehicle at a joint 23. All of the force-transmitting means 14,15,19,20 are designed as essentially flat, rigid sheet metal elements with suitable reinforcements along the' edges to be particularly suited for transmitting substantial loads through shearing. The intermediate parts 10,12 have likewise a sheet metal construction serving to transmit heavy shear load. The joints 16,17,18,21,22,23 can be advantageously, in the embodiment shown, so- called piano hinges, which extend along the entire longside of the means and being dimensioned to corre¬ spond to the load. The compressive loads P and P fa generated by the impacting vehicle via the deformed vehicle side 6 to the seat frame tubes 3 and 4 are provided, thanks to the device described, with an immediate and effective counteraction by virtue of the fact that the tubes 3 and 4 directly produce reactive forces R f and R b , which via corresponding shear loads are transferred to the floor via force- transmitting means 14,15,19,20 and intermediate parts 10,12. Since the force-transmitting means are rigid in the loading direction and since the joints are without axial play, the counteracting forces R f and R, are generated without any loss of deformation length in the vehicle side. In order to decrease as much as possible the velocity of the deformed vehicle side when striking the person sitting next to it, it is of the greatest importance that the resistance to deforma¬ tion of the vehicle side, i.e. the counteraction, be engaged immediately upon loading without delay. in the example shown, the force-transmitting means 14,15,19,20 extend essentially across the entire width of the seat frame 1, which will provide the greatest force-transmitting effect for a certain sheet metal thickness of the transfer means. If the space between the underside of the seat frame and the floor in the practical application of the invention should have obstacles to the force-transmitting means (airducts, controls, the shape of the floor etc), the means can extend, while substantially retaining the force-transmitting effect, only across a lesser portion of the width of the seat frame (Fig 5). Furthermore, one of the force-transmitting means or both can be given a triangular shape with one base of the triangle connected to the seat or to the vehicle floor (Figs 6 and 7). Obviously, a joint at the point of the triangle must be given the dimensions required by the load concentration caused there. Depending on the performance requirements for the device, the force-transmitting means can be arranged as in the embodiment shown to both the front and rear tubes 3 > 4 of the seat frame or only to one of the tubes. For practical reasons, the joints 17,18,22,23 can be simply detachable to fulfill the requirements of assembly and service. Normally, the force-transmitting means should suitably be made in thin steel or light metal sheet metal. When the means extend substantially across the seat width, with consequent low shear stress per unit of length, a design in suitable plastics material can be advantageous. With extended load distribution, the joint connections could also be made in plastics material. Even though several embodiments of the invention have been described above and shown in the drawings, it is obvious that the invention must not be considered limited thereto. Rather it comprises any modification or application which the person skilled in the art can envision and which falls within the scope of the inventive idea disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. Device in motor vehicles with a seat (1), which is adjustably arranged relative to the floor (8) of the vehicle and which, for side collision protec¬ tion, is especially designed to absorb a load trans- 5 versely to the vehicle from a compressively loaded adjacent vehicle door or body side (6), characterized in that between the vehicle floor (8) and the seat (1) force-transmitting means, which are rigid in them¬ selves, are arranged movable relative to each other 10 longitudinally and/or vertically to the vehicle. 2. Device according to Claim 1, characterized in that the force-transmitting means are made as essentially flat elements, which are oriented trans¬ versely to the vehicle. -^ 3. Device according to Claim 2, characterized in that the elements are pairwise pivotally arranged relative to each other and pivotally joined to the floor and seat of the vehicle. 4. Device according to Claims 1-3, 20 characterized in that the force-transmitting means are joined to the seat at the front part of the seat and/or at the rear part of the seat. 5. Device according to Claims 1-4-, characterized in that the force-transmitting means 25 extend across the major portion of the width of the seat. 6. Device according to Claims 1-4, characterized in that the force-transmitting means extend across a lesser portion of the width of the 30 seat. 7. Device according to Claims 1-6, characterized in that the force-transmitting means have a rectangular shape. 8. Device according to Claims 1-6, characterized in that the force-transmitting means are triangular. 9. Device according to Claims 1-8, characterized in that the force-transmitting means and the connecting joints are made in metallic material or in plastic material with or without fibre reinforce¬ ments. 10. Device according to Claims 1-9, characterized in that the force-transmitting means are detachably connected to the seat and/or vehicle floor.

Inventors: BOHLIN NILS, BOHLIN, NILS
Applicants: VOLVO AB, AB VOLVO
Application year: 1987
Main classification: B60N1
IPC codes: B60N2, B60R19, B60R21