Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Thomas B Blake

Hans J Borlinghaus

James Peter Nini

Gary R Kurtti

Jennifer P Lawall

Lloyd W Rogers

Regis V Pilarski

Reginald Leo McDonald

Hans Juergen Borlinghaus

Joseph T Galea

A seat assembly includes a seat and a headrest connected to the seat and movable between a first position and a second position with respect to the seat. The seat assembly also includes a biasing element biasing the headrest toward the second position. A releasable headrest restraining mechanism restrains the headrest in the first position when the seat is unoccupied and releases the headrest to permit movement of the headrest via the biasing element to the second position when the seat is occupied. A method of moving the headrest is also provided.

Occupant detecting seat assembly with headrest and method of moving headrest

A six-way powered seat adjuster slide unit which in a preferred embodiment includes a top rail with first and second ends for mounting a vehicle seat; a bottom rail with first and second ends for supporting the top rail; a floor rail for slidably mounting the bottom rail in a fore and aft position; a first forward powered jack screw unit pivotally connected to the bottom rail and having a rotative shaft, the first jack screw unit having an upper pivotal axis in a position axially fixed with respect to the first end of the top rail; an elevator arm pivotally connected adjacent to the second ends of the top and bottom rails; a second rearward powered jack screw unit with a rotative shaft having a pivotal axis with the bottom rail and the elevator arm; and a motor fixed with the bottom rail allowing a gear to mesh with a portion of the bottom rail for providing selective fore and aft adjustment of the adjuster slide unit.

Chuckless power seat adjuster slide

A powered seat adjuster slide unit is providing including a top rail for mounting a vehicle seat; a bottom rail for supporting the top rail; a guide rail pivotally joined to the top and bottom rails along generally opposite ends to stabilize the top rail; a first forward jack screw unit with a powered extendable jack screw, the first jack screw unit having pivotal axes in positions fixed with respect to the top and bottom rails; and a second rearward jack screw unit with a powered extendable jack screw, the second jack screw unit having pivotal axes in positions fixed with respect to the top and bottom rails.

A vehicular bench seat is supported on two spaced adjustment tracks in a vehicle for fore and aft position adjustment. A seat belt buckle moves with the seat during position adjustment. The buckle is connected to a slider-body which, in turn, is slideably carried along a track attached to the underbody of the vehicle. When a load is applied to the seat belt buckle, the slider body is pivoted into engagement with a tooth bar adjacent the track to lock the slider body and the buckle relative to the underbody. A drag link pivotally extends from the slider body and connects to the seat bottom for moving the slider body and the attached buckle in unison with the seat during fore and aft position adjustment.

Seat belt load transfer mechanism for bench seat

A vehicle seat is mounted on the vehicle floor by a seat adjusting mechanism permitting fore and aft adjusting movement of the seat. A grooved rod is mounted on the vehicle floor. A locking device connected to the seat belt buckle houses a jaw sleeve which surrounds and is normally freely slidable along the grooved rod during seat adjustment. The jaw sleeve is slotted at one end to form a plurality of tooth members having a ramped outer surface. A collar formed integral with the jaw sleeve is threaded to receive a bolt attach to the seat adjuster and provides the connection of the locking device with the seat adjuster. The collar is moveable within a recess in the housing of the locking device from the normal, unlocked position in which the tooth members clear the grooves of the rod to a locked position in which the housing acts on the ramped surface of the tooth members to deflect the tooth member into a rod groove to lock the locking device on the rod under the imposition of a substantial occupant restraint load on the locking device by the seat belt. The seat belt attachment bracket is pivotable about the locking device housing to allow variable positioning of the belt buckle assembly during seat adjustment.

Omni locking adjustable seat belt load transfer mechanism

A seat adjuster has upper and lower tracks slidably inter-engaged with the seat carried by the upper track. A bar extends along side the upper track and has a rearward end pivotally mounted on the vehicle floor. A lock member which carries the seat belt is attached to the upper track and slides freely along the bar during normal fore and aft adjusting movement of the seat. The lower track is mounted on the vehicle floor by yieldable legs. Upon rapid vehicle deceleration, the forward momentum of the seat mass induces yielding of the yieldable legs and forward canting of the seat causing the lock member to be canted relative the bar and lock therewith so that the occupant restraint loads imposed on the seat belt are transmitted through the lock member and bar to the vehicle floor. In addition, when the seat is adjusted full rearwardly, the upper track is cantilevered rearwardly from the lower track so that the upper track yields and bends to further cant the lock member and contribute to the locking engagement of the lock member with the bar.

Seat belt anchor for vehicle seat

A power seat adjuster which allows a seat to be adjusted to a desired elevation and pitch replaces a lift plate of a lift assembly with a lift bar. The lift bar is slid into grooves on an upper channel of a top plate, and the top plate is connected to a rigid link. Jack screws with shafts that have a nonround portion are provided to take up torque and keep the lift bars from binding with the top plate so that there is no interference in the operation of the power seat adjuster.

Lift bar for power seat adjuster

According to the present invention a seat belt reel is mounted on a housing by a reel shaft. A locking mechanism for the reel includes a housing of electrically conductive material mounted on the retractor housing and defining a closed cavity communicating with the end of the reel shaft. A disc shaped electrode is located in the cavity of the housing and is attached on the end of the reel shaft by an electrically insulating connector. An electro-rheological fluid fills the cavity to fill the space between the electrode and the housing. An electrical circuit including an inertia sensor and a high voltage source applies a voltage differential between the electrode and the housing upon the occurrence of a vehicle deceleration condition so that the electro-rheological fluid changes to a solid to fix the electrode to the housing and thereby lock the reel shaft against rotation to fix the length of the seat belt.

Retractor with electro-rheological lock

In a seat belt retractor winding prevention mechanism, the winding prevention pawl is mounted upon a collapsible support mechanism which is collapsed by the onset of a sensed vehicle deceleration condition so that force imposed on the pawl by the windup spring shifts the pawl against a cam which moves the pawl axially out of engagement with the ratchet teeth carried by the reel to thereby release the winding prevention mechanism so that the windup spring will rewind the belt to a taut condition about the occupant.

Growing community of inventors

Mt. Clemens, MI, United States of America

Thomas B Blake