Patent ID: 7134716

Claim:
An automotive seat assembly comprising: a primary seat structure including a seatbase portion and a seatback portion; a headrest support assembly including an upper headrest support section and a lower headrest support section, said headrest support assembly rotatable about a headrest pivot point positioned between said upper headrest support section and said lower headrest support section; and an energy absorbing deformable plate mounted to said lower headrest support section at an upper plate end and mounted to said primary seat structure at a lower plate end, said energy absorbing deformable plate deforming in a first direction only during a rear-end collision and thereby moving said lower headrest support section such that said upper headrest support section is rotated in a second direction opposite said first direction, said energy absorbing deformable plate absorbing passenger momentum energy during rear-end collision; wherein said energy absorbing deformable plate increases in rigidity as it deforms in said first direction.