The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Apr. 04, 2000
Filed:
Dec. 04, 1998
Timothy R Butt, Plymouth, MI (US);
Kurt A Siebold, Dearborn Heights, MI (US);
Joseph P Vitale, South Lyon, MI (US);
Vasudeva Murthy, Ann Arbor, MI (US);
Christopher E Woon, Farmington Hills, MI (US);
Johnson Controls Technology Company, Plymouth, MI (US);
Abstract
A back frame for a vehicle seat assembly having an upright frame member capable of supporting compressive and tensile loading and a secondary, tensile load carrying member capable only of supporting significant loads in tension. The tensile load carrying member is attached to the upright frame member at the upper end of the back frame and extends downward behind the upright frame member and is attached to a base at the lower end of the back frame. The upright frame member is also attached to the base at the lower end of the back frame. The result is a triangular truss formed by the upright frame member, the tensile load carrying member and the base. During a frontal vehicle collision forward loading applied to the back frame results in a tensile load in the tensile load carrying member which reduces the bending loading in the upright frame member thus providing a significant increase in the forward load carrying capability of the back frame with only a slight increase in the back frame weight as compared to conventional seat assembly back frames not having a tensile load carrying member.