Abstract: A parallel acting vehicle seat lift uses a single jack screw unit at the front and a passive linkage at the rear. The linkage is located such its inherent play or looseness is continually taken up by the constant weight force of the occupant acting downwardly at the rear of the seat cushion. The jack screw unit, which is inherently tight, is attached at the bottom to the vehicle floor and at the top to the seat cushion frame by close fitting pivots, so there is no perceptible looseness. The passively acting linkage uses two bell cranks, each centrally pivoted to the floor, the first of which is attached at one arm the seat cushion frame by a close fitting pivot. The second bell crank is attached to the rear of the seat cushion frame by a lost motion connection, and the two facing arms of the bell cranks are connected together by a second lost motion connection.

Abstract: A quick release clutch interposed between the handle and rod of a manual seat adjuster uses a piezoelectric element to create a rapid disconnect on the selective application of an electrical signal. A resilient bearing on one side of a shoulder interface maintains frictional contact between two clutch members, while an expandable piezoelectric stack on the other side pushes the shoulders apart.

Abstract: A manual seat adjuster with easy entry mode and position memory has an improved means to hold the spring loaded lock bar out of engagement with the locking teeth during the return trip of the front seat. At the beginning of the easy entry mode, as a rear seat entering passenger begins to slide the front seat forward, the lock bar initially rotates open, while the memory marker remains fixed in place. A window on a carrier arm rotatable with the lock bar circumferentially aligns itself with a keeper on a stationary latch, but the latch keeper is temporarily pushed to the side and out of the aligned window by engagement with a stop member on the stationary memory marker. As the seat begins to move forward, the latch moves away from the stop member and the keeper moves into the carrier window, where it can catch and hold the carrier arm to hold the lock bar open during the return trip of the front seat.

Abstract: A vehicle seat (10) has a lower seat frame (14) and a seat back (16) pivoted about a recliner axis (20). An occupant (22) restraining shoulder belt (26) has an upper attachment point provided by a sliding belt guide (40) fixed to the top of a resilient, flexible elongated tower (36) attached to one side of the seat back (16). The tower (36) is normally unflexed, with the same orientation as the seat back (16), but is capable of bending with the belt guide (40) down and forwardly relative to the seat back and closer to the recliner axis (20) when a forward and downward force is applied to the belt guide (40). An inertially locking belt retractor (24) is rigidly fixed to the seat (10) below the belt guide (40). The retractor (24) provides a reserve length of belt (50) that extends up along the back of the tower (36) and over the belt guide (40) and then continues into the shoulder belt (26).

Abstract: A floor mounted auxiliary support rail of rail for a wide, bench type seat, provides extra load support intermediate the conventional, outboard seat adjuster tracks, as well as providing dynamic anchoring for the seat back and for a traveling seat belt support. A traveling seat belt support is slidably mounted to an auxiliary support rail by a pair of side by side rollers. Beneath the rollers, a pair of locking pins rest below a series of teeth in a rail slot. The rear locking pin is fixed to the seat belt support, while the front locking pin is fixed to an inboard seat back bracket support. The seat back bracket support is pivoted to the head of the forward roller, and the weight of the seat back continually holds the seat back bracket support, as well as the forward roller, down against the upper rail edge, and also holds both pins away from the teeth. A spring pulls the seat belt support back relative to the seat back bracket support, so that the rear roller is held down on the rail edge, as well.

Abstract: A six-way powered seat adjuster slide unit which in a preferred embodiment includes a top rail with first and second ends for mounting a vehicle seat; a bottom rail with first and second ends for supporting the top rail; a floor rail for slidably mounting the bottom rail in a fore and aft position; a first forward powered jack screw unit pivotally connected to the bottom rail and having a rotative shaft, the first jack screw unit having an upper pivotal axis in a position axially fixed with respect to the first end of the top rail; an elevator arm pivotally connected adjacent to the second ends of the top and bottom rails; a second rearward powered jack screw unit with a rotative shaft having a pivotal axis with the bottom rail and the elevator arm; and a motor fixed with the bottom rail allowing a gear to mesh with a portion of the bottom rail for providing selective fore and aft adjustment of the adjuster slide unit.