Manual seat adjuster clutch assembly

Abstract: A cluch assembly (20) for a manual seat adjusting is provided which includes a stationary cylindrical housing (84) in which is disposed a pair of coil cluch springs (68,70). The springs (68,70) are biased to expand radially outwardly into frictional engagement with the housing (84) whereby rotation of the springs is prevented. A torsion tube (24) extending concentrically through said housing (84) is coupled to the springs (68,70) so that rotation of the torsion tube (24) is prevented when the springs are fictionally engaging the housing (84). A release handle (56) is provided to selectively release one spring or the other enabling rotation of the torsion tube (24) in one direction. The manual seat adjuster linkage (20) is coupled to the torsion tube (24) to raise and lower the seat upon rotation of the torsion tube.

Description: BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention pertains to a four-way manual seat adjuster and in particular to a clutch assembly for holding a seat in position after it has been adjusted in the vertical direction. Conventional vehicle seat assemblies are manually adjustable in the fore and aft direction to accommodate occupants of various sizes. A six way power adjustable seat is also available in which the seat can be raised and lowered and pivoted forward and rearward about a lower rear axis in addition to being adjustable fore and aft. A power adjustable seat however, requires a relatively complex adjustment mechanism and one or more electric motors. Four way adjustable seats have recently been developed that provide for a manual adjustment to raise and lower the seat in addition to the typical fore and aft adjustment. However, the operating controls for many four way manually adjustable seats have an relatively cumbersome to use. For example, one mechanism includes an operating lever that is raised and lowered to move the seat and is laterally deflected to engage a pin extending from the operating lever in and out of selected openings in an adjacent frame to hold the seat in place. It may be difficult, when the seat is loaded, to disengage the pin from the frame to make an adjustment and furthermore, the mechanism only provides fixed adjustment positions rather than infinite adjustment. DE-A-3,525,374 corresponding to the preamble of claim 1 discloses a clutch arrangement involving clutch springs normally biased outwardly to engage the inner walls of a housing so as to provide a braking force. It is an object of the present invention to provide a clutch assembly for use in a four way manual seat adjuster to hold the seat in position and which is simple in operation and provides infinite seat adjustment. This object is solved by the features of the single independent claim. The seat adjuster includes two torque tubes extending laterally between opposite sides of the seat assembly. The torque tubes are pivotally connected to the upper sliding rails of the seat assembly for fore and aft movement. A bell crank is coupled to the forward torsion tube and a link is pivotally coupled at one end to the bell crank and to the rear torsion tube through a crank arm enabling both torsion tubes to rotate in unison. A riser plate is also pivotally connected to the bell crank at its forward end and connected to the rear torsion tube through a second crank arm at its rear end. Rotation of the torsion tubes will raise or lower the riser plate. The seat cushion and seat back are carried by the riser plate for vertical motion. The clutch assembly of this invention is used to hold the front torsion tube stationary and prevent its rotation. The clutch assembly includes a cylindrical housing which is concentric about the forward torsion tube and fixed to the sliding rail to hold it stationary. The clutch assembly includes two coil clutch springs having a relaxed diameter slightly less than the inside diameter of the housing. A biasing means engages the ends of the springs, forcing the springs to expand radially outward to frictionally engage the clutch housing to prevent rotation of the clutch springs. The forward torsion tube is also coupled to the springs to prevent rotation of the torsion tube when the clutch springs are frictionally engaging the housing. An operating handle for the clutch assembly includes a shaft portion parallel to the forward torsion tube and a handle portion extending generally radially from the shaft portion. The shaft portion rotates about the longitudinal axis of the torsion tube and releases the clutch spring biasing means to enable the torsion tube to rotate in the direction of rotation of the handle thus raising or lowering the seat assembly. Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following description and the appended claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of the vertical adjustment portion of a four way manual seat adjuster with the clutch assembly of the present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the clutch assembly of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a partial sectional and partial elevational view of the clutch assembly of Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is a sectional view of the clutch assembly as seen from substantially the line 4-4 of Figure 3; Figure 5 is a sectional view of the clutch assembly as seen from substantially the line 5-5 of Figure 3; Figure 6 is an exploded fragmentary perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the clutch assembly; Figure 7 is an exploded perspective view of another embodiment of the clutch assembly; Figure 8 is a partial sectional and partial elevational view of the clutch assembly shown in Figure 7; and Figure 9 is a sectional view of the clutch assembly as seen from substantially the line 9-9 of Figure 8. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The four-way manual seat adjuster clutch assembly of the present invention is shown in Figure 1 and designated generally at 20. Only the right hand portion of the seat adjuster is shown in Figure 1. The seat adjuster includes a sliding rail 22 which is movable fore and aft upon a stationary rail (not shown) fixed to the vehicle floor pan in a conventional manner. A similar sliding rail is positioned along the opposite side of the seat assembly. A front torsion tube 24 extends laterally across the seat between the sliding rails adjacent the forward edge of the seat assembly. Likewise, a rear torsion tube 26 extends laterally between the two sliding rails near the rear of the seat assembly. A solid rod 28, shown in Figure 4, extends through the front torsion tube 24 and is affixed to the sliding rails at its ends. Rod 28 provides support for the torsion tube 24. Torsion tube 24 is freely rotatable with respect to the rod 28. A bell crank 30 is fixed to the torsion tube 24 and has two radially spaced pivots 32 and 34, see Figure 4. A link 36 is coupled to bell crank 30 by pivot 34 and extends rearwardly to torsion tube 26 where it is pivotally connected to a crank arm 38 extending radially from the rear torsion tube. A seat riser 40 is connected to the bell crank through pivot 32 and connected through a pivot 42 and crank arm 44 to torsion tube 26. Counterclockwise rotation of the bell crank 30, as shown in Figure 1, results in counterclockwise rotation of torsion tube 24 as indicated by arrow 46. Link 36 in turn causes torsion tube 26 to rotate in a clockwise direction as shown by arrow 48. This results in lowering of seat riser 40. Clockwise rotation of bell crank 30 results in raising of seat riser 40. Seat riser 40 is used to support a conventional seat assembly including a generally horizontal seat cushion and an upright seat back (not shown). As the seat riser 40 is raised and lowered so is the seat assembly. Likewise, as the sliding rail 22 is moved fore and aft, the seat assembly is also moved fore and aft to provide the four way seat adjustment. Radial crank arms 50 and 52 extending from the torsion tubes 24 and 26 respectively are coupled together with a coil assist spring 54 that is stretched when the seat riser at 40 is lowered and assists in raising the seat assembly. A handle 56 is used to operate the clutch assembly 20 and includes a handle or grip portion 58 and a shaft portion 60. In the embodiment of the clutch assembly shown in Figure 1, the shaft portion extends into the clutch assembly as will be described below and also passes through a radial notch 62 in the bell crank 30. When the handle is raised or lowered releasing the clutch assembly 20, the shaft portion 60 engages the bell crank to rotate the crank and thereby raise or lower the seat assembly. The clutch assembly 20 is shown in detail with reference to Figures 2 through 5. At the longitudinal center of the clutch assembly is a torsion disc 64 which is fixed to the front torsion tube 24. The torsion disc has a peripheral portion 66 comprising a segment of a circle. Positioned on either side of the torsion disk 64 are clutch springs 68 and 70. Clutch spring 68 is the lowering clutch spring in that it acts to prevent the seat assembly from being lowered unless the clutch spring 68 is first released. Spring 70 is the raising clutch spring and prevents the seat assembly from being raised without first being released. The periphery 66 of the torsion disc is helical in shape and the axial direction so that when the two clutch springs are positioned on opposite sides of the torsion disc 64, the radial wall surface 72 of the torsion disc contacts the end 74 of clutch spring 68. Likewise, the other radial wall surface 76 of the torsion disc engages the end 78 of clutch spring 70. The helical offset of the torsion disc is best seen in Figure 3. When the clutch springs are stacked against the torsion disc, the peripheral portion 66 of the disc acts as a continuation of the spring coils from one spring to the other. Spring ends 74 and 78 are referred to as the axially inner ends of the torsion springs in that they are at the inside ends of the springs relative to the axis of the torsion tube 24. Spring ends 80 and 82 of the clutch springs 68 and 70, respectively, are correspondingly referred to as the axially outer spring ends. A cylindrical housing 84 houses the torsion disc and the two clutch springs. Hubs 86 and 88 are positioned at each end of the housing 84 and engage the outer coils of the two clutch springs. The hubs are identical to one another and include an axial extending spacer 90, which, when the clutch is assembled, are closely fitting to the sides of the torsion disc 64 as shown in Figure 3. The inner surface of the hubs 86 and 88 about the periphery of the hubs includes an engaging surface 92 for engagement with the outer coil of the clutch springs. A notch 94 in hub 86 engages the outer end 80 of coil spring 68. Likewise, a notch 96 in hub 88 engages the outer end 82 of spring 70. The coil springs 68 and 70, in their relaxed states have outside diameters slightly less than the inside diameter of cylindrical housing 84 such that the coil springs freely rotate within the housing. However, when the hubs 86 and 88 are biased rotationally against the outer ends of the clutch springs, the springs, being anchored at their inner ends, are urged to expand radially outwardly against the inside surface of the cylindrical housing 84. When expanded outwardly, the friction between the clutch springs and the cylindrical housing 84 prevents relative rotation between the springs and the housing. The torsion disc, due to its engagement with the inner ends of the clutch springs, is also held stationary relative to the housing 84. The housing 84 is fixed to the sliding rail 22 as described below. As a result of the clutch springs frictionally engaging the housing 84 and preventing rotation of the torsion disc 64, the torsion tube 24 is now held stationary preventing movement of the seat assembly in the vertical direction. A torsional biasing spring 98 engages the two hubs 86 and 88 to rotationally bias the hubs against the coil spring outer ends to urge the springs outward into frictional engagement with the cylindrical housing. The inner surface of the hub 86 includes a generally radial slot 100 while the inner surface of the hub 88 includes an identical radial slot 102. One end 104 of biasing spring 98 extends radially outward and into slot 100 of hub 86. The coils 106 of biasing spring 98 are positioned to one side of the torsion disc 64 while the other end of the biasing spring includes an axial portion 108 extending through the opening 110 in the torsion disc and terminating in a radially outwardly extending end 112 seated in the slot 102 of hub 88. The relaxed position of biasing spring 98 is shown in the solid lines in Figure 2. The phantom line position of spring end 112 illustrates the relative positions of the biasing spring ends when the clutch springs 68 and 70 are at rest. After positioning the spring ends 104 and 112 into the slots in the hubs, the biasing spring urges the hub 88 clockwise in the direction of arrow 114 and urges the hub 86 counterclockwise in the direction of arrow 116. This rotation of the hubs forces the hub notch 94 against spring end 80 causing clutch spring 68 to expand while the notch 96 of hub 88 engages outer spring end 82 causing spring 70 to expand outward against the housing 84. Actuating handle 56 is used to selectively release the clutch springs to permit rotation of the torsion tube 24. The shaft portion 60 of handle 56 includes a flattened terminal portion 118. The terminal portion 118 is closely fitted to the opening 120 in the clutch release arms 122 and 124 positioned at both ends of the clutch assembly. Release arm 122 is seated against the shoulder 126 formed in the handle at the transition between the round shaft portion and the flattened terminal portion 118. The terminal portion 118 of the handle extends through opening 128 in hub 88, through the interior of the clutch assembly, past the torsion disc 68 between the two radial wall surfaces 72 and 76 and finally through the aperture 130 in hub 86. Release arm 124 is held onto the end of handle 56 by screw 132 threaded into bore 134 in the handle end or by other similar attaching means. The two clutch release-arms hold the clutch assembly together in the axial direction. The clutch release arms 122 and 124 form semi-circular notches 136 that fit over the torsion tube 22 to position the release arms and handle relative to the torsion tube. The outer surfaces of hubs 86 and 88 include a screw block 138 each having an aperture 140 therethrough for set screws 142. Set screws 142 are positioned so as to engage the surfaces 144 of the clutch release arms. The set screws are necessary to compensate for manufacturing tolerances of the clutch assembly components. With proper adjustment, the release arms engage the set screws in the respective hubs. To lower the seat assembly, the handle 156 is rotated generally clockwise in the direction of arrow 146. This pushes the clutch release arm 124 against set screw 142 in hub 86 rotating hub 86 in opposition to the biasing spring 98, moving the notch 94 away from outer spring end 80 thus enabling the spring 68 to relax and disengage from the inner surface of housing 84. Clutch spring 68 is now free to rotate relative to the housing enabling the torsion disc and torsion tube 24 to also rotate clockwise as shown by arrow 46. As the handle continues to rotate, the shaft portion 60 of the handle will engage the notch 62 in the bell crank 30, rotating the bell crank and lowering the seat. When the seat has been repositioned and the handle 56 released, the biasing spring 98 will again bias the two hubs 86 and 88 in opposite directions as previously described, engaging the clutch springs with the cylindrical housing. To raise the seat assembly, the handle 56 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction as shown by arrow 148 in Figure 2. This in turn rotates hub 88 in opposition to biasing spring 98, moving notch 96 away from outer spring end 82. This releases spring 70 from the housing, enabling the torsion disc and tube to rotate counterclockwise. Continued rotation of the handle causes the handle to engage the notch 62 in the bell crank 30 rotating the bell crank in the direction to raise the seat assembly. The clutch assembly thus provides an easy to use vertical adjustment mechanism for a seat adjuster and provides infinite adjustment. A modified embodiment of the clutch assembly 20 is shown in Figure 6 and designated as 20a. This embodiment is permanently adjusted during assembly. The handle 56a has a two piece terminal portion 118a forming a generally U-shaped yoke. The legs 152 and 154 of the yoke terminate with notches 156 that fit over the torsion tube 24 and serve as the release arms. The two yoke halves 150 and 151 are positioned so that the legs engage the blocks 158 and 160 of hubs 86a and 88a without the use of a set screw. Once placed in position engaging the tabs, the two yoke halves are connected by weld 162 to permanently position the handle. Clutch assembly 20a has the benefit of being permanently adjusted, eliminating the need for re-adjustment during the service life of the clutch assembly. Figures 7, 8 and 9 illustrate another embodiment of the clutch assembly which also requires no adjustment. Clutch assembly 180 operates similarly to the clutch assembly 20 previously described. Clutch assembly 180 includes a torsion disc 182, fixed to the torsion tube 24, the peripheral portion 184 of which forms a segment of a circle and is also helical in the axial direction of the torsion tube. The peripheral portion 184 ends in two radial wall surfaces 186 and 188. Clutch springs 190 and 192 are positioned on opposite sides of the torsion disc 182 with the axially inner ends of the springs contacting the radial wall surfaces of the torsion disc as described above with respect to clutch assembly 20. A cylindrical clutch housing 194 covers the clutch springs and again is sized slightly larger than the springs. When relaxed, the springs are freely rotatable within the clutch housing. The housing 194 is coupled to a bracket 196 secured to the solid rod 28. A coupling 192 attaches the rod and bracket 196 to the sliding rail 22 as shown in Figure 8. The housing 84 of clutch assembly 20 is secured to the sliding rail in a similar manner. A brace 199 is welded to the shaft portion 226 of the release handle. Brace 199 is rotatably mounted to rod 28 by screw 201. This secures the handle to the seat adjuster and provides for rotation of the shaft portion 226 about the rod 28 and torsion tube 24. The handle of clutch assembly 20 is similarly coupled to the seat adjuster. Identical clutch release hubs 200 and 202 are positioned at both ends of the cylindrical housing 194. The inner surface of the hubs include notches 204 and 206 which engage the axially outer ends of the clutch springs 190 and 192. The notches 204 and 206 are formed in an axially extending sleeve portion 208 of the hubs positioned at the radial periphery of the hubs. A spacer 210 extends axially inwardly from the hubs toward the torsion disc 182. A slot 212 is formed in the spacers 210. A biasing spring 214 surrounds the torsion tube 24 and has radially extending ends 216 projecting through the slots 212. Biasing spring 214 rotates the two hubs in opposite directions against the clutch springs forcing the springs to expand radially outwardly against the cylindrical housing 194 holding the torsion tube 24 in place. The clutch assembly 180 as discussed so far is essentially the same as clutch assembly 20. Clutch assembly 180 differs in the mechanism used to release the clutch to rotate torsion tube 24. The release handle terminates in a generally U-shaped yoke 218 having legs 220 each defining a U-shaped notch 222. The notches 222 are designed to fit over the torsion tube 24 as the yoke surrounds the clutch assembly. An elongated pin 224 extends through the two legs 220 and the yoke and is threaded into the shaft portion 226 of the release handle. The pin 224 extends through the center of release pawl 228. Release pawl 228 is cradled by a self-adjusting spring 230. Spring 230 is mounted on fingers 232 extending upwardly from the torsion disc 182. The bottom surface 234 of the release pawl forms a cam surface for sliding motion against the self-adjusting spring 230. The release pawl 228 is symmetrical about its center. Raised teeth 236 and 238 are formed at each end of the pawl extending generally upwardly and being positioned on opposite sides of the pawl longitudinal center line. The axially extending sleeves 208 at the periphery of each release hub includes arcuate tooth portions 240 and 242 on the radially innerside of the sleeves 208. Clutch assembly 180 is released by rotation of the handle in one direction or the other. Rotation of the handle clockwise in the direction of arrow 244 as shown in Figure 7 results in clockwise rotation or movement of the pin 224 about the center rod as viewed in Figure 9. This movement of the pin 224 pushes the release pawl 228 against the leg 246 of the spring 230 causing the release pawl to rotate in a counterclockwise direction until the raised teeth 236 engage the teeth 240 in release hub 200. Continued rotation of the handle in the clockwise direction will rotate the hub 200 clockwise releasing the clutch spring 190 and enabling rotation of the torsion tube 24 as described previously. With continued rotation of the handle, the seat assembly will be lowered. Rotation of the handle in the opposite direction will rotate the release pawl 228 in the opposite direction, engaging the teeth 238 with the teeth 242 in hub 202, releasing clutch spring 192 and enabling the torsion tube 24 to rotate in the direction to raise the seat assembly. Clutch assembly 180 does not require any adjustment during assembly for proper operation. The biasing spring 214 will rotate the two release hubs until the release hubs have sufficiently expanded the clutch springs 190 and 192 into engagement with housing 194. The angular extent of the teeth 240 and 242 on the release hubs is sufficient to ensure that the teeth of the release pawl will always be opposite the teeth in the hubs. As a result, the clutch assembly will begin to release once the release pawl has rotated the small amount necessary to engage the release hub. Clutch assembly 180, like clutch assembly 20, provides an easy to operate vertical adjustment for a seat assembly while providing infinite seat adjustment. It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact construction or method illustrated and described above, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

Claims: A clutch assembly, comprising: a stationary generally cylindrical housing (84); a pair of coil clutch springs (68, 70) disposed within said housing, said springs being disposed axially adjacent one another and each spring having an axially inner end (74, 78) and an axially outer end (80, 82) characterised in that: said springs, when unstressed, being freely rotatable within said housing about the axis thereof, and by: bias means (98) associated with said spring outer ends for applying loads to said springs circumferentially to expand said springs radially outwardly to frictionally engage said housing to prevent rotation of said springs relative to said housing; an elongated torque transmitting member (24) extending through said housing and substantially concentric therewith; means (66) fixed to said torque transmitting member for engaging the inner ends of said springs to prevent rotation of said torque transmitting member relative to said housing when said clutch springs are extended radially outwardly into frictional engagement with said housing; and means (56, 122, 124) associated with said biasing means for selectively releasing said clutch springs from said housing to enable rotation of said torque transmitting member. The clutch assembly of Claim 1 wherein said torque transmitting member (24) acts against one spring through said engaging means (66) to resist rotation in one direction and against the other spring to resist rotation in the opposite direction, said release means including a handle (56) rotatable in one direction to release one spring enabling said torque transmitting member to rotate in one direction and said handle being rotatable in the opposite direction to release the other spring, enabling said torque transmitting member to rotate in the opposite direction. The clutch assembly of Claim 2 further comprising a crank arm (30) fixed to said torque transmitting member (24) and extending radially therefrom, said handle (56) being engageable with said crank arm to rotate said crank arm and said torque transmitting member after release of one of said clutch springs.

Inventors: HUSTED DAVID M, JONES WILLIAM H, TIGHE WILLIAM R, HUSTED, DAVID M., JONES, WILLIAM H., TIGHE, WILLIAM R.
Applicants: HOOVER UNIVERSAL, HOOVER UNIVERSAL INC.
Application year: 1992
Main classification: B60N2
IPC codes: B60N2