JP2004210174A - Power slide seat for automobile with position sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the degradation of sensor performance or the generation of damage by an external factor while reducing the number of parts, to enhance positional accuracy in mounting and the sensor performance by reducing a clearance, and to enable size and weight reduction. <P>SOLUTION: This power slide seat for an automobile with a position sensor comprises a magnet piece 2b for generating a magnetic field, and a magnetism detecting sensor 2a for generating a seat position signal which responds or does not respond to the magnetic field as a position sensor 2. The magnetism detecting sensor 2a is mounted on the top 100 of a predetermined position in the longitudinal direction of an upper rail 1a. The magnet piece 2b is mounted on the board surface of a bracket plate 4 positioned on the protruding end side of a lead screw 3 and is arranged on the bottom of a lower rail 1b. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a power slide seat for an automobile, which is movably mounted on a slide rail driven by a motor in the front-rear direction in a vehicle, and more particularly to a position sensor for detecting a position of the power seat and generating a position signal of the seat. The present invention relates to a power slide sheet for an automobile having:
[0002]
[Prior art]
For example, when the steering wheel is equipped with an airbag module as an occupant restraint device, when the position of the slide seat S is ahead of the steering wheel H as shown in FIG. On the other hand, when it is behind, the operation of the airbag module is controlled so as to delay the deployment start timing of the airbag E.
[0003]
Conventionally, since it is necessary to control the airbag module, it has been proposed to equip the slide rail R with a position sensor P for detecting the relative position of the slide sheet S with respect to the airbag module.
[0004]
As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a magnetic actuator 10a such as a magnet piece or an electromagnet and a magnetic detection sensor 10b such as a limit switch or a Hall element which reacts with a magnetic field are opposed to each other as shown in FIGS. There is provided a sensor unit 10 assembled therein and a magnetic blocking plate 11 for blocking a magnetic field generated from a magnetic actuator 10b from acting on a magnetic detection sensor 10b.
[0005]
The sensor unit 10 is attached by a bracket plate 13 projecting from a predetermined position in the longitudinal direction of the lower rail 12. On the other hand, the magnetic shielding plate 11 is attached so as to protrude from a predetermined position of the upper rail 14 to the side of the front region extending in the longitudinal direction (Reference Document 1).
[0006]
Conversely, there has been proposed a sensor in which a magnetic sensor is attached to a side of an upper rail so as to protrude therefrom, and a magnetic shield plate is attached to a side of a predetermined area extending in a longitudinal direction of a lower rail (Patent Document 2). ).
[0007]
The position sensor determines whether the magnetic detection element 10b is positioned at the relative distance between the magnetic actuator 10a and the magnetic detection element 10b with the movement of the seat. The circuit is designed to detect the relative position of the airbag module and generate a control signal for controlling the operation of the airbag module.
[0008]
[Patent Document 1]
US Patent No. 6,053,529 [Patent Document 2]
US Pat. No. 5,967,549
Each of the position sensors is mounted on the outside on the side of the slide rail. For this reason, it is easily affected by an article such as a metal product inserted between the seat cushion and the vehicle body floor, dust or the like, and may cause malfunction. In addition, there is a possibility that problems such as deformation and damage due to insertion of an umbrella or a long object may occur.
[0010]
To solve the problem, a cover or a wire frame for guarding the position sensor may be attached to the side of the slide rail. However, this increases the number of parts and also restricts the space around the slide rail, which is not preferable.
[0011]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention can reduce the number of parts, prevent the sensor performance from deteriorating or damage due to external factors, increase the positional accuracy at the time of mounting, stably mount, and improve the sensor performance from the decrease in clearance Further, it is an object of the present invention to provide a power slide seat for a vehicle with a position sensor which can be reduced in size and weight.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The power slide seat for a vehicle with the position sensor according to claim 1 of the present invention has an upper rail attached to a lower portion of a seat cushion and a lower rail attached to a vehicle body floor as slide rails, and a lead screw provided by a bracket plate. Is mounted on the bottom surface of the lower rail by holding the bearing at the shaft end side, and a gear that moves relatively on the axis of the lead screw by the drive motor is attached to the upper rail, and the seat is driven by the motor in the front and rear direction in the vehicle It is equipped with a position sensor that is installed movably on the slide rail, detects the position of the seat, and issues a position signal of the seat,
A magnet piece that emits a magnetic field, and a magnetic detection sensor that emits a sheet position signal that reacts or does not react with the magnetic field is provided as a position sensor, and the magnetic detection sensor is attached to the top surface at a predetermined position in the longitudinal direction of the upper rail, The magnet piece is mounted on the plate surface of the bracket plate located on the tip end side of the lead screw and arranged on the bottom surface of the lower rail.
[0013]
In the power slide seat for a vehicle with a position sensor according to claim 2 of the present invention, the magnet piece is provided on the upper surface of the magnet holder, and the magnet holder is mounted on the plate surface of the bracket plate to attach the magnet piece to the bottom surface of the lower rail. It is constituted by arranging in.
[0014]
In the power slide seat for a vehicle with the position sensor according to claim 3 of the present invention, the latching piece provided on the fixing plate portion of the bracket plate is inserted into a slit provided on the lower side of the magnet holder, and the magnet holder is attached to the bracket plate. It is constituted by attaching and fixing on a plate surface with a retaining piece.
[0015]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7. The illustrated embodiment is a power slide seat movably mounted on a slide rail 1 driven by a motor in the front-rear direction in the vehicle, and the power slide seat is provided. The slide rail 1 is provided with a position sensor 2 for detecting the position of the seat and issuing a control signal for controlling the operation of the occupant restraint device based on the relative position of the seat to the occupant restraint device as shown in FIG. Have been.
[0016]
As shown in FIG. 1, the slide rail 1 is assembled from an upper rail 1a attached to a lower portion of a seat cushion and a lower rail 1b attached to a vehicle body floor side. The lower rail 1b is installed in the front-rear direction in the vehicle over the moving distance of the seat. The upper rail 1a is provided with rollers (not shown) on the lower side in the longitudinal direction and is supported by the lower rail 1b so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction.
[0017]
The upper rail 1a has a substantially U-shaped cross section from the top surface 100 and the left and right side surfaces 101 and 102, and the outer bending flanges 103 and 104 rise in an L shape from the lower ends of the side surfaces 101 and 102. And is formed by bending. The upper rail 1a is provided with an opening 105 for mounting a magnetic detection sensor described later on the top surface 100.
[0018]
The lower rail 1b has a substantially upward U-shaped cross section that is relatively larger than the upper rail 1a from the bottom surface 110 and the left and right side surfaces 111 and 112, and the outer bending flanges 103 and 104 of the upper rail 1a are positioned inside. The receiving L-shaped inward bending flanges 113 and 114 are formed by bending the upper side of the side surfaces 111 and 112.
[0019]
A lead screw 3 is attached to the inside of the lower rail 1b in the longitudinal direction. The lead screw 3 is mounted at a position higher than the bottom surface 110 of the lower rail 1b by holding each shaft end side in the longitudinal direction (only one side is shown) with a bracket plate 4 installed on the bottom surface 110 of the lower rail 1b. Have been. The bracket plate 4 is provided with a fixed plate portion 40 attached to the bottom surface 110 of the lower rail 1b and a bearing plate portion 41 of the lead screw 3 bent into an L shape.
[0020]
A gear 5 is provided on the axis of the lead screw 4 so as to be screwed relatively movably. The gear 5 meshes with a gear (not shown) mounted on an operation shaft of a drive motor 6 (see arrow), and is screwed and mounted so as to be relatively movable on the axis of the lead screw 4. Further, the entire seat is accommodated in a gear box 7 attached to the top surface 100 of the upper rail 1a so that the entire seat can be moved along the longitudinal direction of the lead screw 3.
[0021]
The position sensor 2 includes, as a set, a magnetic detection sensor 2a that emits a reaction or a non-reaction with a magnetic field as a control signal, and a substantially quadrangular magnet piece 2b.
[0022]
The magnetic detection sensor 2a is configured to have the sensor housing portion 21 facing downward via the overhang flange 20 and the connector portion 22 connecting to the signal cable facing upward. As the magnetic detection sensor 2a, a sensor in which a Hall element or a Hall IC for extracting the strength of a magnetic field by an electric signal based on the Hall effect is incorporated in the sensor housing 21 may be provided.
[0023]
The magnetic detection sensor 2a is located inside the sensor housing 21 by fitting it into the receiving hole 105 of the upper rail 1a, covering the receiving hole 105 with the overhanging flange 20 having a large external shape, and from the outside of the upper rail 1a to the upper surface 100. It is attached and fixed to. The magnetic detection sensor 2a is disposed on the upper inner surface of the upper rail 1a at substantially the middle in the longitudinal direction.
[0024]
The magnet piece 2 b is provided on the upper surface of the magnet holder 8. The magnet holder 8 is attached to a fixed plate portion 40 of the bracket plate 4 located on the tip end side of the lead screw 3. Thus, the magnet piece 2b is stably disposed on the bottom surface 110 of the lower rail 1b in proximity to the magnetic detection sensor 2a attached to the top surface 100 of the upper rail 1a.
[0025]
Examples of the occupant restraint device include an airbag module provided inside a steering wheel and an airbag module provided inside an instrument panel. The control mode is configured with a CPU including a CPU so that the deployment start timing of the airbag is advanced when the position of the seat is forward, and the deployment start timing of the airbag is delayed when the seat is behind.
[0026]
In the power slide seat with the position sensor configured as described above, the area where the magnetic detection sensor 2a reacts to the magnetic field generated from the magnet piece 2b while the entire seat moves on the slide rail 1 in the area between the front most and the rear most. Since the magnet piece 2b is not provided, the magnetic detection sensor 2a is divided into a region in which the magnetic detection sensor 2a does not react with the magnetic field.
[0027]
Since either the reaction or non-reaction of the magnetic field by the magnetic detection sensor 2a is transmitted to the CPU as a control signal, the start of deployment of the airbag is advanced assuming that the position of the seat is ahead in the reaction region, In the non-reaction area, the operation of the airbag of the airbag module can be controlled so that the deployment start time of the airbag is delayed assuming that the seat is located rearward.
[0028]
In the position sensor 2, the magnetic detection sensor 2a is mounted and fixed on the upper inner surface of the upper rail 1a, and the magnet piece 2b is mounted on the fixed plate portion 40 of the bracket plate 4 for mounting and fixing on the lower inner surface of the lower rail 1b. Position accuracy at the time can be improved. In addition, since the magnet piece 2b is mounted close to the magnetic detection sensor 2a mounted on the top surface 100 of the upper rail 1a by the magnet holder 8, the clearance can be kept small inside the slide rail 1 having a small relative distance. Sensor performance can also be improved.
[0029]
In particular, since the magnetic detection sensor 2a is mounted downward inside the upper rail 1a, it is possible to prevent a decrease in sensor performance due to dust or the like adhering to the magnetic detection sensor 2a.
[0030]
In addition, since the magnetic detection sensor 2a is provided inside the slide rail 1 together with the magnet piece 2b, it is hardly affected by external factors such as metal products inserted between the seat cushion and the vehicle body floor. Also, it is possible to prevent a deformation or damage caused by the insertion of an umbrella or a long object, thereby maintaining a normal operation state. Further, since a guard cover, a wire frame, and the like for the position sensor are not required, the number of parts can be reduced, and the size and weight can be reduced.
[0031]
In the above-described embodiment, the airbag module provided inside the steering wheel and the airbag module provided inside the instrument panel have been described as the occupant restraint device. The present invention can also be applied to a case where the positional relationship between the airbag module and the seat is determined. Further, the front of a tip-up seat or the like in which a seat cushion is flipped up to a seat back in a standing position and a rear seat is moved behind a front seat can also be applied as a position sensor for detecting a strike or rearmost.
[0032]
As a control form by the position sensor, the front most side is set to the magnetic field non-reaction area and the rear most side is set to the magnetic field reaction area. However, the setting can be reversed.
[0033]
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the magnet holder 8 described above is provided with a concave portion 80 for fitting and adhering a substantially quadrangular magnet piece 2b on an upper surface, and a nut for fixing the shaft end of the lead screw 3 to the shaft. 9 provided on the side surface thereof. In addition, a latching piece 42 is provided by standing up from the fixed plate portion 40 of the bracket plate 4 in an inverted L-shape, and a slit 82 extending in the front-rear direction of the lower rail 1 b is provided on the lower side of the magnet holder 8. Is inserted into the slit 82, so that the magnet holder 8 can be stably attached and fixed to the fixing plate portion 40 of the bracket plate 4 by the retaining piece 42.
[0034]
In the structure, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a latching piece 42 'that rises upright from the fixed plate portion 40 of the bracket plate 4 is provided, and a slit 82' that extends upward from the bottom of the magnet holder 8 is provided. The design can be changed. Also, the concave portion 81 ′ provided on the side surface of the magnet holder 8 has an arch-shaped concave portion 81 a ′ for receiving the nut 9 for fixing the shaft and a concave portion 81 b ′ for receiving the shaft end of the lead screw 3. The design can be changed to provide.
[0035]
In the case of the concave portion 81 ′, as shown in FIG. 6, an overhanging edge 81 c ′ 81 d ′ for receiving the shaft end side of the lead screw 3 from below is provided, and the arc portion 81 e ′ corresponding to the shaft end diameter of the lead screw 3 is provided. The magnet holder 8 is attached to the bracket plate 4 by fitting the magnet holder 8 to the inside of the circular arc portion 81e from the protruding edge 81c '81d' by fitting the shaft end of the lead screw 3 to the inside of the circular arc portion 81e. The fixing plate portion 40 can be attached more stably.
[0036]
The magnet piece 2b is provided with a frame-shaped stop ring 83 as shown in FIG. The retaining ring 83 is provided with snap legs 83b and 83c directed downward from the relative sides of the frame edge 83a, and has inverted claw-shaped locking claws 83d (only one side is shown) in the plane of the snap legs 83b and 83c. And attached to the upper side of the magnet holder 8. Corresponding to the retaining ring 83, the magnet holder 8 is provided with concave portions 84 on both sides for fitting the snap legs 83b and 83c, and a retaining groove 85 for engaging the retaining claws 83c is formed on the surface of the concave portion 84. Provided within.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the power slide seat for a vehicle with the position sensor according to the first aspect of the present invention, the magnet piece that emits a magnetic field and the magnetic detection sensor that emits a seat position signal that reacts or does not react with the magnetic field. Provided as a position sensor, the magnetic detection sensor is attached to the top surface at a predetermined position in the longitudinal direction of the upper rail, and the magnet piece is attached to the plate surface of the bracket plate located at the tip end side of the lead screw and attached to the bottom surface of the lower rail. Since it is arranged, it is hardly affected by external factors such as metal products inserted between the seat cushion and the vehicle body floor, it can prevent deformation and damage due to the insertion of umbrellas and long objects, and dust adheres And maintain a normal operating condition, increase the mutual positional accuracy and reduce the clearance. It is possible to improve the sensor performance from the fact that maintained clause. At the same time, since a guard cover and a wire frame for the position sensor are not required, the number of components can be reduced, and the size and weight can be reduced.
[0038]
According to the power slide seat for a vehicle with the position sensor according to claim 2 of the present invention, the magnet piece is provided on the upper surface of the magnet holder, and the magnet holder is mounted on the plate surface of the bracket plate to attach the magnet piece to the lower rail. The magnet piece is stably mounted on the plate of the upper rail with the magnet holder because it is arranged on the bottom surface, and it is mounted close to the magnetic detection sensor, so it can be used inside the narrow gap between the slide rails. Sensor performance can be improved by keeping the clearance small.
[0039]
According to the power slide seat for a vehicle with the position sensor according to claim 3 of the present invention, the latch piece provided on the fixing plate portion of the bracket plate is inserted into the slit provided on the lower side of the magnet holder, and the magnet holder is mounted on the bracket. By attaching and fixing the magnet pieces on the plate surface of the plate with the hook pieces, the magnet pieces can be more stably attached to the plate surface of the upper rail by the magnet holder.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an explanatory view mainly showing a position sensor and a magnet holder together with a slide rail of an automotive power slide sheet according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a fixing unit according to an example when the magnet holder of FIG. 1 is attached to a bracket plate of a lead screw.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a developing means for fixing a magnet holder to a bracket plate of a lead screw in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a fixing unit according to another example when the magnet holder of FIG. 1 is attached to a bracket plate of a lead screw.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing, in a developed manner, means for fixing the magnet holder to the bracket plate of the lead screw of FIG. 4;
6 is an explanatory view showing a concave portion for receiving a shaft end of a lead screw provided on a side surface of the magnet holder of FIG. 4;
FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a stopper ring for holding down the magnet piece of FIG. 1 on a magnet holder.
FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a slide sheet for a vehicle with a position sensor according to a general example.
FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram mainly showing a slide rail and a position sensor of an automobile slide sheet according to a conventional example.
FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a slide rail and a position sensor of FIG. 9;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Slide rail 1a Upper rail 100 Upper rail top surface 1b Lower rail 110 Lower rail bottom surface 2 Position sensor 2a Magnetic detection sensor 2b Magnet piece 3 Power slide lead screw 4 Bracket plate 40 Bracket plate fixing plate 41 Bracket plate Bearing plate part 42 Bracket plate retaining piece 5 Power slide gear 6 Drive motor 7 Gear box 8 Magnet holder 82 Magnet holder slit

Claims (3)

The upper rail attached to the lower side of the seat cushion and the lower rail attached to the vehicle body floor are provided as slide rails, and the lead screw is held on the shaft end side by the bracket plate and installed on the bottom surface of the lower rail, A gear that relatively moves on the axis of the lead screw by the drive motor is attached to the upper rail, and the seat is installed so that it can be moved by the slide rail driven by the motor in the front-rear direction in the vehicle, and the position of the seat is detected. In a power slide seat for a vehicle having a position sensor that emits a seat position signal,
A magnet piece that emits a magnetic field, and a magnetic detection sensor that emits a sheet position signal that reacts or does not react with the magnetic field is provided as a position sensor, and the magnetic detection sensor is attached to the top surface at a predetermined position in the longitudinal direction of the upper rail, A power slide seat for a vehicle with a position sensor, wherein a magnet piece is mounted on a plate surface of a bracket plate located on a tip end side of a lead screw and disposed on a bottom surface of a lower rail. The vehicle with a position sensor according to claim 1, wherein the magnet piece is provided on an upper surface of a magnet holder, and the magnet holder is mounted on a plate surface of a bracket plate, and the magnet piece is disposed on a bottom surface of the lower rail. Power slide sheet. 3. A locking piece provided on a fixing plate portion of the bracket plate is inserted into a slit provided on a lower side of the magnet holder, and the magnet holder is mounted and fixed on the plate surface of the bracket plate with the locking piece. A power slide seat for a vehicle with a position sensor according to the item.

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