Patents by Inventor Motohiko Ozawa

Motohiko Ozawa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230211708
    Abstract: A seat slide device includes a pair of sliders each including a fixed rail, a movable rail slidably guided by the fixed rail, a bracket on the movable rail configured so that front and rear sides swing opposite to each other in a vertical direction with a longitudinal-intermediate part as a fulcrum, a support bracket supported on the bracket via a hinge and configured to rotate in only one direction from a predetermined orientation about an lateral-direction axis relative to the bracket, a movement-restricting portion configured to restrict sliding of the movable rail while a rear part of the bracket is raised and to release the restriction while the rear part of the bracket is lowered; and a towel bar connecting each support bracket. The hinge part prohibits a rotation of the support bracket while the towel bar is lifted and permits the rotation while the towel bar is lowered.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 30, 2021
    Publication date: July 6, 2023
    Inventors: Motohiko Ozawa, Naoto Komiya, Atsunori Matsui, Yunxiao Li, Laxmikant Indi, Frederick L. Wilkinson, Sean M. Osinski, Valentin Muresan, Wenting Zhang
  • Patent number: 11318873
    Abstract: A headrest support structure has an upper panel, a collar and a sleeve. The upper panel extends in a width direction of a seatback frame at the upper part. The upper panel has a sleeve support part including upper and lower wall parts facing in a direction perpendicular to the width direction. The sleeve support part is in a U-shape open to a side opposite to a seating side in a longitudinal sectional shape. The upper and lower wall parts have upper and lower holes. The collar is in a tubular shape with a through hole. The collar is arranged between the upper wall part and the lower wall part to have the through hole communicate with the upper and lower holes. The sleeve is inserted through the upper hole, the through hole, and the lower hole. A rod-like leg portion of a headrest is insertable in the sleeve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: Adient US LLC
    Inventors: Motohiko Ozawa, Thomas D Novitsky
  • Publication number: 20210300222
    Abstract: A headrest support structure has an upper panel, a collar and a sleeve. The upper panel extends in a width direction of a seatback frame at the upper part. The upper panel has a sleeve support part including upper and lower wall parts facing in a direction perpendicular to the width direction. The sleeve support part is in a U-shape open to a side opposite to a seating side in a longitudinal sectional shape. The upper and lower wall parts have upper and lower holes. The collar is in a tubular shape with a through hole. The collar is arranged between the upper wall part and the lower wall part to have the through hole communicate with the upper and lower holes. The sleeve is inserted through the upper hole, the through hole, and the lower hole. A rod-like leg portion of a headrest is insertable in the sleeve.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 24, 2020
    Publication date: September 30, 2021
    Inventors: Motohiko OZAWA, Thomas D. NOVITSKY
  • Patent number: 11014472
    Abstract: A vehicle seat slide structure has a movable rail, a fixed rail supporting the movable rail, a slider interposed between the rails, a reinforcing plate fixed to the fixed rail and having a threaded hole having a female thread part, and a pin having a shaft portion, a neck portion, and a head portion. The fixed rail has a first through hole concentric with the threaded hole and having an inner diameter larger than a root diameter of the female thread part. The slider has a second through hole concentric with the first through hole and having an inner diameter larger than that of the first through hole. The shaft portion is inserted through the first through hole and has the male thread part screwed in the female thread part. The head portion supports a periphery part of the second through hole between the head portion and the fixed rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 25, 2021
    Assignee: Adient Engineering and IP GmbH
    Inventors: Motohiko Ozawa, Thomas D Novitsky
  • Patent number: 10889215
    Abstract: A mat attachment structure of a seatback includes: a guide wire attached to the mat and provided, at the distal end part, with a straight portion extending in a longitudinal direction of the seatback frame on a tip side of the seatback frame or its root side; and a through-hole formed in the seatback frame and through which the straight portion is insertable. The through-hole is provided with a protruding part which includes a high protruding portion and a low protruding portion formed adjacent to the high protruding portion. In a first movement of the mat, the straight portion moves in a de-insertion direction while coming into contact with the high protruding portion. As the amount of movement of the mat gets larger than the amount of movement of the first movement, a contact position between the straight portion and the protruding part moves toward the low protruding portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignees: Adient Engineering and IP GmbH, Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshimitsu Mizukoshi, Masaki Shimazu, Taiji Misono, Hiroyuki Yasui, Motohiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 10857921
    Abstract: A mat attachment structure of a seatback includes: a guide wire attached to the mat and provided with a width-direction extending part extending in s width direction of the seatback frame on a tip or root side of the seatback frame; and a holder having a base part which holds the width-direction extending part so as to be rotatable around an axis of the width-direction extending part and an attachment part attached to the seatback frame. When a force exceeding a predetermined value in a direction to separate from the seatback frame is applied from the width-direction extending part to the holder, the force being due to the force from the back of the occupant that the mat receives, the width-direction extending part departs from the base part or the holder departs from the seatback frame, so that the width-direction extending part is separated from the seatback frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2020
    Assignees: Adient Engineering and IP GmbH, Honda Motor Co, Ltd.
    Inventors: Toshimitsu Mizukoshi, Masaki Shimazu, Taiji Misono, Hiroyuki Yasui, Motohiko Ozawa
  • Patent number: 10569670
    Abstract: A seat lifter structure which can maintain the engagement of the gear of the sector and the pinion of the brake unit and prevent a fall down of the seat back to a front side, even when a large force to a front side is exerted with respect to the seat back is provided. It raises or lowers a cushion seat (ST1) by raising or lowering a side frame (2) built into the cushion seat (ST1) with respect to a fixing member (61).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2020
    Assignees: Adient Engineering and IP GmbH, HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Toshimitsu Mizukoshi, Masaki Shimazu, Taiji Misono, Hiroyuki Yasui, Motohiko Ozawa, Thomas D Novitsky
  • Publication number: 20190283631
    Abstract: A seat lifter structure which can maintain the engagement of the gear of the sector and the pinion of the brake unit and prevent a fall down of the seat back to a front side, even when a large force to a front side is exerted with respect to the seat back is provided. It raises or lowers a cushion seat (ST1) by raising or lowering a side frame (2) built into the cushion seat (ST1) with respect to a fixing member (61).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 16, 2018
    Publication date: September 19, 2019
    Inventors: Toshimitsu MIZUKOSHI, Masaki SHIMAZU, Taiji MISONO, Hiroyuki YASUI, Motohiko OZAWA, Thomas D. NOVITSKY
  • Patent number: 10358052
    Abstract: A seat lifter structure which can obtain a rotation of a sector with stable torques is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignees: ADIENT ENGINEERING AND IP GMBH, HONDA MOTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Toshimitsu Mizukoshi, Masaki Shimazu, Taiji Misono, Hiroyuki Yasui, Motohiko Ozawa, Thomas D Novitsky
  • Publication number: 20180264976
    Abstract: A vehicle seat back includes a lower seat back portion and including side frame members and an upper seat back portion including side frame members including a gear sector including a lower edge with sector gear teeth. Pivot connections pivotally connect the lower side frame members to the upper side frame members. A pinion gear with gear teeth is engaged with the sector gear teeth. A motor assembly is mounted to one or both of the lower side frame members and includes a motor and an output shaft driving the pinion gear in each of two rotational directions. The rotation of the motor in one direction, pivots the upper seat back relative to the lower seat back in a forward pivot direction and rotation of the motors in an opposite direction pivots the seat back relative to the lower seat back in a rearward direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 11, 2016
    Publication date: September 20, 2018
    Inventors: Thomas David NOVITSKY, Motohiko OZAWA
  • Patent number: 9067513
    Abstract: A seat slide position detection device for a vehicle includes: a fixed rail attached to a vehicle floor; a movable rail supported to the fixed rail slidably in a longitudinal direction of the fixed rail; a detected portion disposed in a predetermined area of the fixed rail extending in the longitudinal direction; and a position sensor attached to the movable rail and having a sensor detector in a position of the position sensor opposed to the detected portion. The position sensor includes a protrusion attached to the movable rail with an extremity portion of the protrusion in contact with the movable rail.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignees: Johnson Controls Technology Company, Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Motohiko Ozawa, Timothy J. Wieber, Paul J. Jefferies, Harutomi Nishide
  • Publication number: 20140008510
    Abstract: A seat slide position detection device for a vehicle includes: a fixed rail attached to a vehicle floor; a movable rail supported to the fixed rail slidably in a longitudinal direction of the fixed rail; a detected portion disposed in a predetermined area of the fixed rail extending in the longitudinal direction; and a position sensor attached to the movable rail and having a sensor detector in a position of the position sensor opposed to the detected portion. The position sensor includes a protrusion attached to the movable rail with an extremity portion of the protrusion in contact with the movable rail.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Publication date: January 9, 2014
    Inventors: Motohiko Ozawa, Timothy J. Wieber, Paul J. Jefferies, Harutomi Nishide