Upper thoracic support for vehicle seating assembly

US11027635B1 · kind B1 · utility

Assignee

• Ford Global Technologies, LLC · US

Inventors

• Vishal Vinayak Nageshkar · Farmington Hills, US
• Christian J. Hosbach · Taylor, US
• Sangram Tamhankar · Canton, US
• Patrick Maloney · Livonia, US
• John Wayne Jaranson · Dearborn, US
• Johnathan Andrew Line · Northville, US
• Marcos Silva Kondrad · Chesterfield Township, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 10, 2019
• Grant date: Jun 8, 2021
• Expiry date: Dec 10, 2039

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01L17/00
• WIPO field: Transport
• WIPO sector: Mechanical engineering

Abstract

A vehicle seating assembly including a seat and a seatback pivotably coupled to the seat. The seatback includes a frame, a sub-frame member, a carrier, a cushion, and an inflatable member. The sub-frame member is pivotably coupled to an occupant-facing surface of the frame by a bracket. The carrier is coupled to the frame such that the sub-frame member is positioned between the frame and the carrier. The cushion is coupled to an occupant-facing surface of the carrier. The inflatable member is positioned between the occupant-facing surface of the frame and an interior surface of the sub-frame member. The inflatable member is operable between a deflated state and an inflated state. The inflatable member initiates pivotable motion of the sub-frame member of an axis defined by the bracket.