Patents by Inventor Shinji Awata

Shinji Awata 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).

  • Patent number: 9616791
    Abstract: A seat configuration member and a vehicle seat employing the seat configuration member are provided that are capable of covering reclining mechanism components and maintaining a high quality external appearance of the vehicle seat, and are moreover capable of achieving a reduction in the number of components. A lower side coupling and fixing portion disposed on a seat width direction outer side of a seat back board that is made from resin is integrally formed with an attachment portion that is L-shaped in plain view. A side airbag device is attached to a horizontal wall portion of the attachment portion. A seatback pad and a cover are mounted to the seat back board configured as described above, and the seat back board is assembled to side frames of a seatback frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori
  • Patent number: 9505329
    Abstract: A vehicle seat and a seat back board are obtained in which a seat cover can easily be anchored to a resin spring. In a seat back board, clips attached on a cover side are engaged with vertical clip engagement portions of the seat back board, thereby enabling the cover to be anchored to a back spring section of the seat back board. An anchoring operation of the cover to the back spring section can accordingly be made easier than in conventional anchoring structures employing for example hog rings. Moreover, since only pairs of openings are formed to the back spring section of the seat back board in order to provide the vertical clip engagement portions, any detriment to the moldability of the back spring section can be avoided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2011
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2016
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hisaya Mori, Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi
  • Patent number: 9108552
    Abstract: A vehicle seat is obtained that allows good assembly operation characteristics of a side airbag device to a side-frame of a seatback frame. In a vehicle seat, stud bolts and nuts that fasten and fix a side airbag device to a side-frame are covered by a frame attachment section of a resin seatback spring. However, the frame attachment section is formed with openings at positions facing the stud bolts and the nuts. During manufacture of the vehicle seat, it is accordingly possible to perform a fixing operation of the side airbag device to the side-frame through the openings even in cases where the resin seatback spring is assembled to a seatback frame before assembling the side airbag device to the side-frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hisaya Mori
  • Patent number: 9073467
    Abstract: A vehicle seat includes a seat back frame that has a pair of side frames, and that forms a skeleton member of a seat back, a back board portion that is formed by a resin plate, and that is disposed at a back side of the seat back frame, and a back spring section that is at least partially formed of resin, and that is integral with the back board portion, and that spans between the pair of side frames so as to be directly supported, and that is formed so as to be able to flexurally deform in a load application direction due to load toward a seat back rear side being applied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2015
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori
  • Patent number: 8979204
    Abstract: In a seat backboard, a backboard section is formed with a size that enables it to pass through between left and right side frames of a seatback frame. Coupling fixing sections are also provided at the two seat width direction sides of the backboard section, the coupling fixing sections engaging with the front side of the side frames and supported by the side frames. The seat backboard can thereby be attached to the seatback frame from the seat front side, and the degrees of freedom for design can be increased. The seat backboard is also provided with a cover anchor section to which outer periphery anchor portions provided to a seat cover are anchored.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori
  • Publication number: 20140225352
    Abstract: A vehicle seat is obtained that allows good assembly operation characteristics of a side airbag device to a side-frame of a seatback frame. In a vehicle seat, stud bolts and nuts that fasten and fix a side airbag device to a side-frame are covered by a frame attachment section of a resin seatback spring. However, the frame attachment section is formed with openings at positions facing the stud bolts and the nuts. During manufacture of the vehicle seat, it is accordingly possible to perform a fixing operation of the side airbag device to the side-frame through the openings even in cases where the resin seatback spring is assembled to a seatback frame before assembling the side airbag device to the side-frame.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2011
    Publication date: August 14, 2014
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hisaya Mori
  • Publication number: 20140084661
    Abstract: In a seat backboard, a backboard section is formed with a size that enables it to pass through between left and right side frames of a seatback frame. Coupling fixing sections are also provided at the two seat width direction sides of the backboard section, the coupling fixing sections engaging with the front side of the side frames and supported by the side frames. The seat backboard can thereby be attached to the seatback frame from the seat front side, and the degrees of freedom for design can be increased. The seat backboard is also provided with a cover anchor section to which outer periphery anchor portions provided to a seat cover are anchored.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2011
    Publication date: March 27, 2014
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori
  • Publication number: 20140070594
    Abstract: A seat configuration member and a vehicle seat employing the seat configuration member are provided that are capable of covering reclining mechanism components and maintaining a high quality external appearance of the vehicle seat, and are moreover capable of achieving a reduction in the number of components. A lower side coupling and fixing portion disposed on a seat width direction outer side of a seat back board that is made from resin is integrally formed with an attachment portion that is L-shaped in plain view. A side airbag device is attached to a horizontal wall portion of the attachment portion. A seatback pad and a cover are mounted to the seat back board configured as described above, and the seat back board is assembled to side frames of a seatback frame.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 18, 2011
    Publication date: March 13, 2014
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori
  • Publication number: 20140049090
    Abstract: A vehicle seat and a seat back board are obtained in which a seat cover can easily be anchored to a resin spring. In a seat back board, clips attached on a cover side are engaged with vertical clip engagement portions of the seat back board, thereby enabling the cover to be anchored to a back spring section of the seat back board. An anchoring operation of the cover to the back spring section can accordingly be made easier than in conventional anchoring structures employing for example hog rings. Moreover, since only pairs of openings are formed to the back spring section of the seat back board in order to provide the vertical clip engagement portions, any detriment to the moldability of the back spring section can be avoided.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2011
    Publication date: February 20, 2014
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hisaya Mori, Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi
  • Publication number: 20130134749
    Abstract: A vehicle seat includes a seat back frame that has a pair of side frames, and that forms a skeleton member of a seat back, a back board portion that is formed by a resin plate, and that is disposed at a back side of the seat back frame, and a back spring section that is at least partially formed of resin, and that is integral with the back board portion, and that spans between the pair of side frames so as to be directly supported, and that is formed so as to be able to flexurally deform in a load application direction due to load toward a seat back rear side being applied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 29, 2011
    Publication date: May 30, 2013
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shinji Awata, Hideki Kobayashi, Hisaya Mori