Patent Publication Number: US-2023146328-A1

Title: Semi-Active Seat Suspension System

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/276,252, filed Nov. 5, 2021, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates generally to vehicle seats and, more particularly, to a seat system that uses a spring and computer-controlled damper suspension system. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Seat suspension systems in vehicles typically consist of a mechanical constraint system (e.g., scissor system, 4-bar linkage, etc.). This constraint system consists of rigid structural elements, bearings, hardware, and lubrication to allow the seat, and thus a seated occupant, to move vertically, relative to the vehicle itself within the constraints of the seat suspension. Typically, such suspensions only allow vertical travel and not side-to-side or fore-aft travel. 
     SUMMARY 
     The following introduces a selection of concepts in a simplified form in order to provide a foundational understanding of some aspects of the present disclosure. The following is not an extensive overview of the disclosure, and is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the disclosure or to delineate the scope of the disclosure. The following merely presents some of the concepts of the disclosure as a prelude to the more detailed description provided thereafter. 
     The present disclosure provides a means for producing a seat system that minimizes vibration and energy transmission from a vibration/energy source, such as a motor vehicle, to a seated occupant by means of a spring and computer-controlled damper suspension system. Using a variety of sensors to determine an ideal damping rate at a given point in time, the computer adjusts said damping rate in real time to provide the best, safest and least injurious possible ride to the occupant given the constraints of the system. This is accomplished to a degree not previously demonstrated in over-the-road vehicles by means of a very low friction mechanical suspension and a damper system and geometry of very low minimum damping. As such, both above-resonance vibration and on-resonance energy transmission to the occupant are minimized by means of appropriate damping rate application. 
     In an embodiment, a seat suspension system for a vehicle comprises: a top plate; a bottom plate; a scissor assembly arranged between the top plate and the bottom plate and moveably connecting the top plate with the bottom plate, wherein the scissor assembly is adapted to move the top plate relative to the bottom plate; a semi-active damper; an air spring; a height adjustment manifold; a height adjustment controller configured to control the height adjustment manifold to add or remove air from the air spring; and a damper controller configured to control the semi-active damper to apply damping to the suspension system. 
     Further scope of applicability of the systems and apparatuses of the present disclosure will become apparent from the more detailed description given below. However, it should be understood that the following detailed description and specific examples, while indicating embodiments of the systems and apparatuses are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the concepts disclosed herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
       While the appended claims set forth the features of the present techniques with particularity, these techniques may be best understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which: 
         FIG.  1    is a front perspective view of a seat suspension system according to an embodiment described herein. 
         FIG.  2    is a side elevation view of the seat suspension system shown in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  3    is a back elevation view of the seat suspension system shown in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  4    is a back perspective view of the seat suspension system shown in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  5    is a side elevation view of the seat suspension system shown in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  6    is a back perspective view of the seat suspension system shown in  FIG.  1   . 
         FIG.  7    is a block diagram illustrating electrical system components of a seat suspension system according to an embodiment described herein. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Various examples and embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described. The following description provides specific details for a thorough understanding and enabling description of these examples. One of ordinary skill in the relevant art will understand, however, that one or more embodiments described herein may be practiced without many of these details. Likewise, one skilled in the relevant art will also understand that one or more embodiments of the present disclosure can include other features and/or functions not described in detail herein. Additionally, some well-known structures or functions may not be shown or described in detail below, so as to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the relevant description. 
     With vertical travel allowed, the most common means of occupant weight suspension is by air spring. Mechanical springs such as coil, torsion, or leaf springs may also be used. In addition to the spring element, a damper or shock absorber or mechanical dashpot is generally also used to slow down suspension and occupant movement in large energy input instances or instances of high vibration. With both of these spring and damper elements as passive devices, there are significant trade-offs to be made between performance and occupant safety. With performance defined as the softness and comfort of the user experience, and occupant safety and health centered around both the prevention of hard bottom-out and top-out events and the shock to the human body that can result, as well as the minimization of whole-body vibration energy imparted to the occupant, typical passive seat suspension design must prioritize safety often at the expense of performance. 
     The use of semi-active damper systems in seat suspensions allows a greater design space for engineers to improve performance while maintaining safety. However, existing commercially available semi-active damper systems have limitations all their own. One particular limitation is that of a “sticking” of the damper at change of stroke direction, or in technical terms, a non-zero damping rate at zero damper velocity. The result of this limitation is the feeling of a “hitch” or sticking of the suspension at any change of direction, which happens quite often as a result of vehicle motion. The effect of this hitch or sticking is the perception of reduced performance and comfort by the seat occupant. 
     In view of the aforementioned limitations of existing damper systems in seat suspensions, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a means for producing a seat system that minimizes vibration and energy transmission from a vibration/energy source, such as a motor vehicle, to a seated occupant by means of a spring and computer-controlled damper suspension system. Using a variety of sensors to determine an ideal damping rate at a given point in time, the computer adjusts said damping rate in real time to provide the best possible ride to the occupant given the constraints of the system. This is accomplished to a degree not previously demonstrated in over-the-road vehicles by means of a very low friction mechanical suspension and a damper system and geometry of very low minimum damping. As such, above-resonance vibration is transmitted only minimally to the occupant and on-resonance energy transmission is minimized by means of appropriate damping rate application. 
     Referring to  FIGS.  1 - 6   , a semi-active seat suspension system  100  is illustrated. In at least one embodiment, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  includes a top plate  102  and a bottom plate  104 . One or both of the top plate  102  and the bottom plate  104  may be a weldment (assembly of components welded together). A nested scissor mechanism (assembly) is used in the semi-active seat suspension system  100 , including an outer scissor assembly comprising outer scissor arms  106   a  and  106   b , an inner scissor assembly comprising inner scissor arms  108   a  and  108   b , a lower slewing arm assembly  110 , and an upper slewing arm assembly  112 . Such a nested scissor mechanism allows for low collapsed height but high total travel. Ring clips may be used on the ends of the rods for minimum package width with maximum suspension stability/stance, in an embodiment. The lower slewing arm assembly  110  may include a pair of bearing rods  114   a , each supported by a corresponding pair of bearings  116   a . The upper slewing arm assembly  112  may include a pair of bearings rods  114   b  supported by a pair of bearings  116   b . The outer scissor arm  106   a  and the inner scissor arm  108   a  may be connected via a scissor center pin  118   a  supported by a bearing  116   c , and the outer scissor arm  106   b  and the inner scissor arm  108   b  may be connected via a scissor center pin  118   b  supported by a bearing  116   c . Bearing rods may also connect the scissor assembly to the slewing arms and top and bottom plates. 
     The semi-active seat suspension system  100  also includes an air spring  140  (shown without the bladder), an air spring bottom mount screw  138 , and a semi-active damper  120 . The semi-active damper  120  is mounted to the top plate  102  by a left top mount  122   a  and a right top mount  122   b . In some embodiments, the left top mount  122   a  and the right top mount  122   b  together form a compliant damper mount housing. The left top mount  122   a  and the right top mount  122   b  may each contain or be connected to the damper by an engineered polymer damper mount, in an embodiment. Also mounted to the top plate  102 , but also optionally mounted elsewhere, is a height adjustment manifold  124 . Mounted to the bottom plate  104 , but also optionally mounted elsewhere, is a height adjustment electronic control unit (ECU)  126 . A bump stop  132  is also mounted to the bottom plate  104  in an embodiment. 
     In an embodiment, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  may receive inputs from a user interface switch (e.g., one of user interface switch  206  and  210  in the example system shown in  FIG.  7   , described in more detail below), which may be mounted elsewhere in the seat or seat system. The user interface switch may be configured to allow the seat occupant to select from a plurality of operation modes for the seat suspension system  100 . For example, the occupant may be able to select (via the user interface switch) between a centering mode, a wide band adjustment mode, and a full height adjustment mode. It should be noted that regardless of the height adjust system position, the damper ECU (described in greater detail below) may be always running and attempting to optimize ride quality. This may be intentional in order to provide the best possible ride to the user at all times, even when the user may think that the system is “off” (e.g., in “full height adjustment mode”, below). 
     A first mode of operation (which may be referred to as the “centering mode” or “centering mode of operation”) is configured to maintain the suspension at its mid-travel height no matter what. The suspension system is allowed to oscillate around this center position, but if it deviates from center for more than a prescribed amount of time (e.g., one second, two seconds, etc.), the height adjustment ECU  126  directs the height adjustment manifold  124  to add or remove air from the air spring  140 . This could happen due to a change of occupant, increase of occupant weight on the seat (e.g., lifting of legs, etc.), and the like. 
     A second mode of operation (which may be referred to as the “wide band adjustment mode” or “wide band adjustment mode of operation”) is configured to allow the user to adjust the height of the suspension away from center, but not fully to the end stops. This allows the damper ECU  136  to still have some benefit if the user wants to ride the suspension relatively low or high. In an example, settings for the wide band adjustment mode may be to keep the user 1-1.5 inches away from the end stops. 
     A third mode of operation (which may be referred to as the “full height adjustment mode” or “full height adjustment mode of operation”) allows the user to set the height to any desired position, including riding the system on the full bottom end stop with the air spring  140  fully deflated or fully topped out with the air spring  140  fully inflated to max vehicle system pressure. 
     The height adjustment ECU  126  is configured to implement a height adjust control algorithm, in an embodiment. In an example, the height adjustment ECU  126  monitors a suspension position sensor  128  (described in below) and the user interface switch. Based on inputs from the position sensor  128  and the user interface switch, with the mode of operation (described further below) determined by the user interface switch, the height adjustment ECU  126  directs the height adjustment manifold  124  to increase air pressure to the air spring  140  or to exhaust excess air pressure from the air spring  140 . In doing so, the height adjustment ECU  126  is configured to control the height of the suspension to within a precise range, such as +/−0.25 inch (e.g., for the centering mode of operation). In the centering mode of operation, if the system drifts more than this predefined threshold from center (¼ of an inch in this example), air is either added to or exhausted from the system to re-establish equilibrium within the required setpoints. The same algorithm is applied in the wide band mode of operation, but the acceptable adjustment range is much wider. 
     The semi-active seat suspension system  100  may also receive inputs from an occupant seat sensor (not shown here and typically installed in or below the seat cushion). This sensor provides a signal to the height adjustment ECU  126  to disable the automatic height adjustment of the system when the seat is unoccupied. This is not required for proper function of the seat when occupied, but rather is a convenience feature that prevents the height adjustment ECU  126 , if in centering mode or wide band mode from commanding the height adjustment manifold  124  to release air pressure in the air spring  140  when the seat is unoccupied. If this were to happen, when the seat were to be occupied again, the reduced air pressure would cause the occupant to compress the suspension near to or close to the full bottom position, after which the height adjustment ECU  126  would command to add air to the air spring  140  via the height adjustment manifold  124 . The occupant seat sensor removed the need for this cycle when the seat become unoccupied and then reoccupied. 
     In one or more embodiments, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  may include one or more integrated electronic sensors or actuators. For example, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  may include one or more position sensors  128 . Although not shown, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  may also include one or more pneumatic pressure sensors, top and bottom pan accelerometers, pneumatic solenoid valves (e.g., for airbag control), connecting hoses and tubing, connecting wiring and connectors, and/or other sensors or actuators as appropriate. The position sensor  128  is optionally attached to the bottom plate  104  and includes a position sensor armature linkage  130 , which is attached at one end to the position sensor  128  and attached at an opposite end to the outer scissor assembly  106   a . The position sensor  128  is configured to measure the position of the top plate  102  of the suspension relative to the bottom plate  104 . In other words, the position sensor  128  is configured to measure how “open” or “closed” the nested scissor mechanism is. The armature linkage  130  is specifically designed to provide a sufficiently large range of motion to provide the fidelity of signal to the height adjustment ECU  126  required for the precise damper control embodied by the present invention. The information (e.g., measurements) obtained by the position sensor  128  is used by a damper ECU  136  to determine how much damping to apply to the system. For example, when the top plate  102  and the bottom plate  104  are nearing the furthest distance apart from one another (the scissor mechanism is almost fully “open”), the damper ECU  136  may determine, based on the measurement data provided by the position sensor  128 , to apply increased damping to prevent a hard top. Similarly, when the top plate  102  and the bottom plate  104  are nearing the shortest distance apart from one another (the scissor mechanism is almost fully “closed”), the damper ECU  136  may determine, based on the measurement data provided by the position sensor  128 , to apply increased damping to prevent a hard bottom out. 
     In accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  is very low friction. Each of bearing rods  114   a  and  114   b  may be full-width bearing rods, which allows for increased assembly speed and increased system mechanical stability. A specialized design and weld pattern may be used in manufacturing the system  100  so as to minimize heat distortion and provide for maximized component and bearing alignment and system performance. 
     In an embodiment, the compliant damper top mount  122   a  and  122   b  may be an engineered polymer damper mount with tuned compliance to overcome parasitic friction inherent with all dampers, but of particular importance in applications such as the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the semi-active seat suspension system  100  may provide for the ability to tune resistance by tightening or loosening the mounting screws. 
     In at least one embodiment, the damper ECU  136  is connected by a plurality of wires  134  to various other components in the vehicle. The damper ECU  136  is configured with various safety features. For example, the damper ECO  136  may be configured for redundant actuation of pneumatics, protected (secure) actuation of pneumatics, and/or failsafe MR damper driver. 
       FIG.  7    is a block diagram illustrating components of an electrical system  200  for a semi-active seat suspension system, in accordance with an embodiment described herein. As shown, the electrical system  200  may include a height adjustment ECU  212  (which may be the same as height adjustment ECU  126  shown in  FIGS.  1 - 6    and described above) and a damper ECU  214  (which may be the same as damper ECU  136  shown in  FIGS.  1 - 6    and described above). Each of the height adjustment ECU  212  and the damper ECU  214  may receive electrical input power from, for example, a battery or other power source of the vehicle. 
     In an embodiment, the height adjustment ECU  212  may be in electrical connection with an occupancy sensor  202 , a position sensor  204 , a user interface switch  206 , a height adjustment manifold  216 , and a system expansion/vehicle integration/diagnostics interface  218 . The position sensor  204  and height adjustment manifold  216  may be the same as position sensor  128  and height adjustment manifold  124 , respectively, shown in  FIGS.  1 - 6    and described above, in one example. In an embodiment, the damper ECU  214  may be in electrical connection with a position sensor  208 , a user interface switch  210 , a semi-active damper  220 , and a system expansion/vehicle integration/diagnostics interface  222 . The position sensor  208  and semi-active damper  220  may be the same as position sensor  128  and semi-active damper  120 , respectively, shown in  FIGS.  1 - 6    and described above, in an example. In one embodiment, the position sensor  208  may be integrated with the damper ECU  214 . In another embodiment, the position sensor  208  may be a separate component from the damper ECU  214 . In some embodiments, one or more accelerometers (not shown) may also be integrated with or in wired connection with one or both of height adjustment ECU  212  and damper ECU  214 . In some embodiments, position sensor  204  and position sensor  208  may be the same component, while in other embodiments, position sensor  204  and position sensor  208  may be separate components. 
     For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the disclosure, reference has been made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language has been used to describe these embodiments. However, no limitation of the scope of the disclosure is intended by this specific language, and the disclosure should be construed to encompass all embodiments that would normally occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. Descriptions of features or aspects within each embodiment should typically be considered as available for other similar features or aspects in other embodiments unless stated otherwise. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing the particular embodiments and is not intended to be limiting of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure. In the description of the embodiments, certain detailed explanations of related art are omitted when it is deemed that they may unnecessarily obscure the essence of the disclosure. 
     The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. Numerous modifications and adaptations will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in this art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims. Therefore, the scope of the invention is defined not by the detailed description of the invention but by the following claims, and all differences within the scope will be construed as being included in the invention. 
     No item or component is essential to the practice of the invention unless the element is specifically described as “essential” or “critical”. It will also be recognized that the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “has,” and “having,” as used herein, are specifically intended to be read as open-ended terms of art. The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In addition, it should be understood that although the terms “first,” “second,” etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms, which are only used to distinguish one element from another. Furthermore, recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein.