High retention seat back

In an automotive vehicle having a floor and a seat assembly supported by said floor, said seat assembly comprising a seat unit having a seat frame and a back rest unit having a back rest frame,

• support means including energy absorbing means carried by said seat frame and connected with said back rest frame for supporting said back rest unit in a normal upright position and maintaining said back rest unit in a first position relative to said seat unit during usual operating conditions of the vehicle, said energy absorbing means allowing said back rest unit to move generally horizontally rearward relative to said seat unit toward a second position when an occupant imposed rearward load in excess of a predetermined magnitude is imposed thereon in response to the vehicle being crashed into from the rear,
• wire retention means attached to one of said seat frame and vehicle floor and connected to said back rest frame at a location above the center of occupant loading against the back rest unit, said wire means being slack and lying along the opposite sides of said seat frame and back rest frame when said back rest unit is in said one position,
• said wire retention means becoming taut to form a triangulated support between its connections with one of said seat frame and vehicle floor and said back rest frame and the connection of said back rest frame to said energy absorbing means when said back rest unit is moved from its first position toward its second position by the occupant imposed load during a rearward crash into said vehicle to limit rearward deflection of said back rest unit relative to said seat unit.

In an automotive vehicle having a floor and a seat assembly supported by said floor, said seat assembly comprising a seat unit and a back rest unit having upper and lower ends, said seat unit including a seat frame having a pair of spaced sides and forward and rearward ends, said back rest unit including a back rest frame having a pair of spaced sides,

• support means including energy absorbing means carried by the sides of said seat frame for pivotally supporting said back rest unit via a pivot means on said seat frame,
• said energy absorbing means maintaining said back rest unit in a first position relative to said rearward end of said seat frame during usual operating conditions of the vehicle, said energy absorbing means allowing said pivot means and back rest unit to move rearward relative to said rearward end of said seat frame toward a second position when an occupant imposed rearward load in excess of a predetermined magnitude is imposed thereon in response to the vehicle being crashed into from the rear,
• wire retention means attached to a fixed support and connected to the sides of said back rest frame at a location above the center of occupant loading against the back rest unit, said wire means being slack and lying along the sides of said seat frame and sides of said back rest frame and normally hidden from view when said back rest unit is in said one position,
• said wire means becoming taut and forming a triangle between said fixed support, side of back rest frame and said pivot means when said back rest unit is moved from its first position toward its second position by the occupant imposed load during a rearward crash into said vehicle to limit deflection of said back rest unit relative to said seat unit.