SEAT FOR A MOTOR VEHICLE

Abstract

A seat includes a back part and a seat part having a seat cover, padding, and a support structure. The seat cover delimits a seat area, which is divided into a central bearing area and two side support areas. An air bladder is located in each of the side support areas. The air bladders can be inflated or deflated for changing the vertical position of the seat area on the side support areas. A bearing part is arranged between the support structure and the air bladder. A fastener constructed as a latching connection is configured to fix the bearing part on the support structure.

Claims

1-15. (canceled)

16. A seat having a back part and a seat part including a seat cover delimiting a seat area that is divided into a central support area and two side support areas, the seat comprising: an air bladder disposed in each of the two side support areas, wherein the air bladder is inflatable and deflatable for changing the vertical position of the seat area on the side support areas; a bearing part arranged between a support structure of the seat and the air bladders; and a fastener proving a latching connection between the bearing part and the support structure.

17. The seat according to claim 16, wherein the latching connection comprises a latching lug and an elastically deformable catch.

18. The seat according to claim 17, wherein the latching lug is arranged inside a latching recess formed in the support structure, and the catch functions as a stop for positively blocking movement of the latching lug out of the latching recess.

19. The seat according to claim 18, wherein the catch comprises a manually accessible catch, wherein an elastic deformation of the catch is affected by a force manually applied to the catch such that the latching connection is movable out of the latching recess of the support structure in a destruction-free manner.

20. The seat according to claim 17, wherein the catch comprises a rod-shaped element.

21. The seat according to claim 16, wherein the support structure comprises a metal frame.

22. The seat according to claim 16, wherein the bearing part comprises a plastic bearing part.

23. The seat according to claim 22, wherein the plastic bearing part comprises a disc-shaped plastic bearing part.

24. The seat according to claim 16, wherein the bearing part bears directly against the support structure.

25. The seat according to claim 16, further comprising a padding and a lower intermediate part arranged between each of the air bladders and at least one of the seat cover and the padding.

26. The seat according to claim 25, further comprising an upper intermediate part arranged between each of the air bladders and at least one of the seat cover and the padding of the seat part.

27. The seat according to claim 16, further comprising a pneumatic pump and a valve for inflating and deflating each air bladder with air.

28. The seat according to claim 16, wherein each air bladder comprises a flat expandable part with an inlet opening and an outlet opening.

29. The seat according to claim 16, wherein the back part comprises a seat cover delimiting a back area, a support structure and padding.

30. A motor vehicle comprising bodywork, a drive motor, and at least one seat according to claim 16.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] The present disclosure will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements.

[0026] FIG. 1 shows a side view of a motor vehicle;

[0027] FIG. 2 shows a longitudinal section of a front seat of the motor vehicle;

[0028] FIG. 3 shows a cross section of a seat part of the front seat according to FIG. 2;

[0029] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a support structure of a seat part of the front seat according to FIG. 2 with two visible bearing parts and lower intermediate parts; and

[0030] FIG. 5 shows a simplified section through the bearing part and the support structure of a seat part of the front seat according to FIG. 2 in the region of a latching connection.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background of the invention or the following detailed description.

[0032] A motor vehicle 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 has bodywork 2 made from metal, particularly steel. The motor vehicle 1 is moved along by a drive motor 3, for example an electric motor 4 and/or an internal combustion engine 5. The bodywork 2 delimits an interior 15 and two front seats 7 are arranged as seat 6 and three rear seats 8 are arranged as seat 6 inside the interior 15. The three rear seats 8 are in this case combined to form a seat bench.

[0033] A longitudinal section through the front seat 7 is illustrated in FIG. 2. The front seat 7 includes a seat part 9 and a back part 10. The seat part 9 and the back part 10 in each case have a frame-like support structure 17 on which padding 11 made from foam and a seat cover 12, for example a fabric, leather or plastic seat cover 12 are fastened. A head rest 36 is furthermore fastened on the back part 10. The seat part 9 is fastened on a rail 18 by support feet 16 and the rail 18 is fastened on the bodywork 2. In this case, the entire front seat 7 can be moved horizontally in the longitudinal direction of the motor vehicle 1 by the support feet 16, which are fastened on the rail 18. The support structure 17 of the back part 10 is connected to the support structure 17 of the seat part 9 by connecting parts, which are not illustrated, so that as a result during the horizontal movement of the front seat 7, both the seat part 9 and the back part 10 also execute the horizontal movement together. The back part 10 can be pivoted about a pivot axis 19.

[0034] The seat part 9 of the front seat 7 has a seat area 13 for sitting for a person and the back part 10 of the front seat 7 as seat 6 has a back area 14 for resting a back of a person on the seat 6. The seat 6 is constructed as a sports seat 6 for the motor vehicle 1 and in this case, the seat area 13 is divided into a central supporting region 20 and two side support areas 21 (FIG. 3). The two side support areas 21 are elevated in a vertical direction 37 with respect to the central supporting area 20, so that as a result, during cornering with the motor vehicle 1, forces acting on the person in the seat 6 from the two side support areas 21 due to transverse acceleration during cornering, can be absorbed accordingly by the two side support areas 21.

[0035] The support structure 17 is constructed from metal, particularly steel, as a frame 17 and two plate-shaped bearing parts 25 made from plastic are in each case fixed laterally on a surface of the support structure 17. The bearing parts 25 are fixed to a fastener 26 as a latching connection 27 or latching connection device 27 at a latching recess 30 of the support structure 17. The latching connection 27 of each bearing part 25 includes a latching lug 28 and a rod-shaped catch 29 constructed on the latching lug 28. The latching connection 27, that is to say the latching lug 28 together with the catch 29, are in this case produced and constructed in one piece with the remaining bearing part 25, so that as a result, in an advantageous manner, the bearing part 25 can be produced in a particularly simple manner together with the latching connection 27 during injection molding from thermoplastic plastic using only one injection mold. To produce the connection as a positive connection between the support structure 17 and the bearing part 25, the latching lug 28 is to be introduced into the latching recess 30 (FIG. 5). As a result, an elastic deformation of the catch 29 occurs owing to the geometry of the catch 29. Subsequently, after the substantially complete introduction of the latching lug 28 together with the catch 29 into the latching recess 30 of the support structure 17, an elastic recovery of the catch 29 occurs, so that the correspondingly elastic recovered catch 29 realizes a stop for the latching lug 28 on the support structure 17 (FIG. 5). As a result, the latching lug 28 can no longer be moved out of the latching recess 30. During the installation of the seat 6, a particularly simple, cost-effective and reliable production of a positive connection between the bearing part 25 and the support structure 17 is therefore possible by the latching connection 27.

[0036] An air bladder 22 is located above the bearing part 25. The air bladder 22 is formed as a balloon-like article 24 by a flat expandable part 23. A lower disc-shaped intermediate part 31 is arranged above the air bladder 22. The lower intermediate part 31 is fastened on the support structure 17 using a fastener, and the lower intermediate part 31 is divided into a first section and a second section connected to the first section in a pivotable manner using a hinge. Only the first section of the lower intermediate part 31 is fastened on the support structure 17 using the fastener. As a result, the second section of the lower intermediate part 31 can be pivoted and thus moved relatively to the support structure 17 during a change of the volume of the air bladder 22. An upper intermediate part 32 made from foam is arranged above the lower intermediate part 31 made from essentially rigid plastic. The upper intermediate part 32 is therefore elastic. In this case, the upper intermediate part 32 is preferably integrated into the padding 11 or constructed as a separate component, supplementing the padding 11.

[0037] In FIG. 4, the air bladder 22 is covered by the lower intermediate part 31, so that in FIG. 4 the air bladder 22 cannot be seen. The padding 11 is located on the support structure 17 and on a spring mat 38 made from metal. A pneumatic pump 33 is additionally arranged in the seat 6 and the pneumatic pump 33 is driven by an electric motor, which is not illustrated. The pump 33 also includes a valve 34. From the pump 33 with the valve 34, two air hoses 35 are additionally guided to one air bladder 22 in each case. The motor vehicle 1 additionally includes a control and/or regulation unit, by which the pump 33 and/or the valve 34 can be controlled and/or regulated.

[0038] In the case of a sports driving style with the motor vehicle 1, air can therefore be pumped into the two air bladders 22 by the control and/or regulation unit and the pump 33, so that as a result, the position of the seat cover 12 on the two side support areas 21 is elevated in the vertical direction 37 to the position of the seat cover 12 on the central bearing area 20. Conversely, in the case of a less sporty driving style, air can be let out of the two air bladders 22 by the valve 34, so that as a result, the volume of the two air bladders 22 is reduced and thus the position of the seat cover 12 on the two side support areas 21 is reduced with respect to the position of the seat cover 12 on the central bearing area 20 with regards to the vertical direction 37. The vertical difference of the positions of the seat cover 12 is therefore changed between the two side support areas 21 on the one hand and the central bearing area 20 on the other hand.

[0039] Considered as a whole, substantial advantages are connected with the seat 6 according to the present disclosure and the motor vehicle 1 according to the present disclosure. When installing the seat 6, the bearing part 25 can securely and reliably be fastened on the support structure 17 using the latching connection 27. In the event of servicing, owing to the geometry of the support structure 17 and the latching connection 27, the positive connection between the bearing part 25 and the support structure 17 can furthermore be detached manually in a simple and destruction-free manner owing to the latching connection 27, in that an appropriate force is applied to the catch 29. As a result, the latching lug 27 and the elastically deformed catch 29 can be moved back out of the latching recess 30 in a destruction-free manner.

[0040] While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing an exemplary embodiment, it being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in an exemplary embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims and their legal equivalents.