Compliant shell for vehicle seat

A vehicle seat for use in a passenger vehicle, the vehicle seat comprising:

• a seat foundation adapted to be anchored to a vehicle floor of the passenger vehicle;
• an occupant-support base including a rigid pan-support frame coupled to the seat foundation and a variable-shape seat pan comprising a deformable seat shell and a compliant shell-motion controller located between the pan-support frame and the variable-shape seat pan and coupled to each of the pan-support frame and the variable-shape seat pan, wherein the compliant shell-motion controller is configured to provide means for elastically supporting the deformable seat shell for predictable shape-changing movement of the deformable seat shell relative to the pan-support frame from a first seat-shell shape to a second seat-shell shape sympathetically in response to a deformation force applied to the deformable seat shell in a direction toward the pan-support frame by a person sitting in the vehicle seat to engage the occupant-support base during a shift in position of the person sitting in the vehicle seat relative to the pan-support frame so that the deformable seat shell recovers its first seat-shell shape automatically after exposure of the deformable seat shell to the deformation force has ended,
• wherein the deformable seat shell is defined by a thin pliable contoured sheet made of a pliable plastics material and formed to include a plurality of slots extending laterally between a first side and an opposite second side of the deformable seat shell, and
• wherein the compliant shell-motion controller includes a stationary link foundation and a plurality of free-pivoting links coupled to the link foundation and to the deformable seat shell, the link foundation being coupled to the pan-support frame to lie in a fixed position relative to the seat foundation and relative to the pan-support frame during shape-changing movement of the deformable seat shell relative to the pan-support frame, and the free-pivoting links being arranged between and interconnecting the link foundation and the deformable seat shell.