Ikeda Bussan Co. Ltd.

Masao Sebata

Isamu Chinomi

Tohru Isomura

Wataru Ishii

Teruaki Inoue

A seat slide device comprises a rail unit consisting of upper and lower guide rails and rollers disposed between the upper and lower guide rails. The upper guide rail includes a substantially channeled member consisting of a downwardly-opening, channeled portion, a vertical portion extending vertically and longitudinally from an upper wall of the downwardly-opening, channeled portion, and flanged portions formed at lower ends of both side walls of the downwardly-opening, channeled portion. The flanged portions of the upper guide rail are slidably engaged with the respective flanged portions of the lower guide rail when assembling. The vertical portion, the downwardly-opening, channeled portion, and the flanged portions of the upper guide rail are integrally formed by bending a piece of metal sheet. The vertical portion is formed by doubling over the metal sheet at an essentially center of the metal sheet. By caulking a flanged portion formed on one vertical wall section of the vertical portion doubled by burring or hole-flanging onto the perimeter of a circular hole formed on the other vertical wall section of the vertical portion doubled by punching, the opposing wall sections of the vertical portion are firmly secured to each other.

Seat slide device

A powered seat slide device comprises upper and lower guide rails slidably fitted to each other, and a rail drive mechanism with a reversible motor and a reduction gear box. The drive mechanism includes a screw-threaded shaft being rotatable about its axis through the motor and the gear box and installed on one of the upper and lower guide rails, and a nut member being installed on another rail and screwed into the screw-threaded shaft for a relative axial motion of said screw-threaded shaft with respect to said nut member. An elastic shock-absorbing damper assembly (including essentially annular elastomeric damper) is supported on the screw-threaded shaft in front and in rear of the nut member. The damper assembly includes at least a plastic washer interposed between the nut member and the damper. The plastic washer has a radially and inwardly tapered and circumferentially curved face to define a substantially frusto-conical hollow facing to the flat side wall of the damper, and thus provide an elastic-deformation permissible space of the damper.

Growing community of inventors

Ayase, Japan

Masao Sebata