Patent ID: 7614597

Claim:
A seat slide for a vehicle, comprising: a lower rail fixed to a floor of the vehicle, the lower rail having a channel structure; an upper rail fixed to a seat of the vehicle, the upper rail being slidably engaged with the lower rail and having a channel structure cooperating with the channel structure of the lower rail to define an inner space therebetween; a lock plate disposed within the inner space between the lower and upper rails and secured to the lower rail, the lock plate extending in a fore-and-aft direction of the vehicle; a latch lever with a pawl, the latch lever being disposed within the inner space between the lower and upper rails and pivotally supported by the upper rail so as to be movable between a lock position where the pawl is engaged with the lock plate and an unlock position where the pawl is disengaged from the lock plate; a position sensor for detecting a position of the upper rail relative to the lower rail by sensing the lock plate, the position sensor being mounted to the upper rail such that a sensing portion thereof is disposed within the inner space between the lower and upper rails and opposed to the lock plate; and a controller connected with the position sensor, wherein an output from the position sensor is determined by sensing the presence or absence of the lock plate, wherein the controller reads the output from the position sensor and detects the position of the upper rail relative to the lower rail on the basis of the output from the position sensor to determine a position of the seat.