Head restraint assembly
AssigneeLear Corporation
InventorsGabriel Estrada, Mercedes Castelo, Luis Otero, Thomas J. Fowler, Ernesto E. Blanco, H. Winston Maue
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A head restraint assembly includes a curved support member for upwardly and forwardly deploying a headrest. The support member is selectively locked and unlocked to alternately maintain the headrest in a retracted position or deploy the headrest. A vehicle impact sensor signals the release of the support member when a vehicle impact is sensed. The headrest is deployed quickly and effectively until it reaches its potential full deployment, or until an occupant's head contacts the headrest.
Claims22
A vehicle seat and headrest assembly, comprising:
- a seat back;
- a headrest moveably supported with respect to the seat back on a pair of curved guide tubes, said guide tubes movable along a plurality of guide elements, wherein the headrest is movable between a retracted position closely adjacent to the seat back, and an extended position extending away from the seat back and forwardly toward the head of a seated occupant;
- and
- wherein the headrest has a deployment mechanism biasing the headrest in an upward direction for deploying the headrest from the retracted position to the extended position, and includes a locking device for selectively locking at least one of the guide tubes in order to allow the headrest to move in a desired vertical position, said locking device being disengageable in the event of a vehicle impact to allow rapid movement of the headrest to the extended position.
A vehicle seat and headrest assembly, comprising:
- a seat back;
- a headrest movable between a retracted position closely adjacent to the seat back, and a deployed position extending away from the seat back and forwardly toward the head of a seated occupant;
- first and second curved support tubes connected to each other by a brace and connected to the headrest for supporting the headrest and moving it between the retracted position and the deployed position;
- a plurality of guide elements for supporting the support tubes and for piloting their movement while they move the headrest;
- a tension spring having a first end connected to a portion of the seat and a second end connected to the brace for moving the support tubes to deploy the head rest;
- and
- a friction lock for selectively locking the first support tube thereby stopping movement of the headrest, and releasing the first support tube thereby facilitating movement of the headrest.
A vehicle seat and headrest assembly, comprising:
- a seat back;
- a headrest capable of being deployed upward and toward an occupant from a retracted position to a deployed position;
- a curved support member connected to the headrest for supporting the headrest and for selectively moving the headrest between the retracted and the deployed positions;
- a plurality of guide elements for carrying the support member and for piloting its movement during movement of the headrest;
- a spring deployment mechanism for deploying the headrest;
- a friction lock having a closed position for locking the support member thereby stopping deployment of the headrest, and an open position for releasing the support member thereby facilitating deployment of the headrest;
- a solenoid operatively connected to the friction lock for selectively opening and closing the friction lock;
- a vehicle impact sensor electrically connected to the solenoid for signaling the solenoid to open the friction lock when a vehicle impact is sensed;
- and
- an occupant sensor electrically connected to the solenoid and disposed within the headrest for signaling the solenoid to close the friction lock when the occupant's head contacts the headrest.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.