Disclosure of Invention
In the vehicle described above, there is a possibility that an occupant seated in the rear side seat collides with the backrest portion of the front side seat at the time of a frontal collision. In this case, from the viewpoint of occupant protection, it is desirable to be able to absorb well the impact applied to the occupant seated on the rear-side seat.
Various embodiments of an apparatus for solving the above problems are described. The invention provides a vehicle seat. The vehicle seat is provided on a vehicle so as to be aligned in a seating direction of an occupant. The vehicle seat includes a seat portion on which the occupant sits, a backrest portion provided on the seat portion, and a panel member that is plate-shaped and extends in a width direction of the backrest portion, and is interposed between an upper portion of a frame member constituting a framework of the backrest portion and a lower portion of the frame member so as to protrude and extend like to bulge toward a rear of the backrest portion.
In the above-described configuration, at the time of a collision of the vehicle, there is a possibility that an occupant (specifically, the head portion thereof) sitting on a seat on the rear side in the sitting direction (hereinafter, the rear side seat) collides with the rear surface of the backrest portion of a seat on the front side in the sitting direction (hereinafter, the front side seat).
In this regard, in the above-described structure, the panel member is provided to the frame member so as to protrude and extend so as to bulge rearward. Therefore, when the head of the occupant seated in the rear seat collides with the rear surface of the backrest portion of the front seat at the time of a vehicle collision, the head of the occupant can collide with the panel member. In this case, the panel member is deformed toward the front side, so that the energy associated with the collision of the occupant is absorbed, and the occupant can be received by the panel member. This can suppress the collision of the occupant against a member having high rigidity such as a frame member. According to the above configuration, a high occupant protection performance is exhibited by adopting such a manner.
In the vehicle seat described above, the panel member may have an upper panel that forms an upper portion and a lower panel that forms a lower portion, and the lower portion of the upper panel and the upper portion of the lower panel may be joined together in a state of being overlapped in the seating direction, or a joint portion that is a portion of the panel member joined together in the overlapped state may be disposed on a movement locus of the head of the occupant at the time of collision of the vehicle.
According to the above configuration, at the time of collision of the head of the occupant with the panel member at the time of collision of the vehicle, the head of the occupant can be blocked by the joint portion of the panel member, in other words, by the portion having moderately high rigidity. Accordingly, deformation of the portion of the panel member where the head of the occupant collides and the peripheral portion thereof can be appropriately suppressed, so that the amount of movement of the head of the occupant can be suppressed. In this case, a large deformation is allowed for a portion of the panel member different from the joint portion, in other words, for a portion having low rigidity because the portion is constituted only by the upper panel or the lower panel. Therefore, according to the above-described configuration, even though deformation of the joint portion of the panel member is suppressed, a function of absorbing energy accompanying collision of the occupant can be obtained by large deformation of a portion different from the joint portion.
In the vehicle seat, the panel member may have a through hole provided at a portion different from the joint portion. According to the above configuration, the rigidity of the different portion can be reduced by a simple configuration in which the through hole is provided in a portion (hereinafter, different portion) of the panel member different from the joint portion, and therefore the different portion can be deformed more greatly.
In the vehicle seat described above, the frame member may have a pair of side frames arranged at intervals in the width direction and extending in the up-down direction, and a wire member formed of a wire may be stretched between the pair of side frames so as to extend in a meandering shape, or at least one of an upper portion and a lower portion of the panel member may be fixed to the wire member.
According to the above configuration, the panel member can be firmly supported on the side frame via the wire member when the panel member is not deformed. In addition, although the panel member is supported by the wire member in such a manner, the wire member is deformed so as to reduce the degree of meandering during deformation of the panel member, whereby the panel member can be greatly deformed. In this way, according to the above-described structure, by providing the wire member having the meandering shape, it is possible to realize a function of firmly supporting the panel member when the panel member is not deformed, and a function of largely deforming the panel member when the panel member is deformed.
In the vehicle seat described above, the frame member may have a pair of side frames arranged at intervals in the width direction and extending in the up-down direction, and a connecting frame that extends in the width direction so as to connect the pair of side frames, and a wire member made of a wire may be stretched between the pair of side frames so as to extend in a meandering shape, or the lower portion of the panel member may be fixed to the wire member, and the upper portion of the panel member may be fixed to the connecting frame.
In order to reduce the amount of movement of the head of the occupant at the time of a vehicle collision, it is preferable to appropriately suppress deformation of the panel member at the initial stage of the collision period in which the head of the occupant collides with the panel member. Generally, the head of an occupant sitting in a vehicle seat moves forward and obliquely downward at the time of a collision of the vehicle. Thus, it can be said that the head of the occupant collides with the upper portion of the panel member at the initial stage of the collision period. Therefore, in order to reduce the amount of movement of the head of the occupant at the time of a vehicle collision, it is preferable that the upper portion of the panel member is less likely to be moderately deformed.
On the other hand, if the deformation of the panel member is suppressed across the entire collision period, there is a possibility that the energy accompanying the collision of the occupant cannot be absorbed well. In this way, it is preferable that the panel member be deformed relatively easily at a later stage of the collision period. At a later stage during a collision, deformation of the panel member may progress to a lower portion of the panel member. Accordingly, in order to appropriately absorb energy accompanying a collision of an occupant, it is preferable that the lower portion of such a panel member is relatively easily deformed.
In this regard, according to the above-described structure, since the upper portion of the panel member is fixed and supported by the connecting frame of the frame member having high rigidity, the upper portion of the panel member can be made difficult to deform moderately. This suppresses the amount of movement of the head of the occupant at the time of a vehicle collision. Further, since the lower portion of the panel member is fixed to the meandering wire member, the lower portion of the panel member can be deformed relatively easily. Accordingly, the panel member can be greatly deformed, and therefore energy associated with the collision of the occupant can be appropriately absorbed.
According to the present invention, a high occupant protection performance is exhibited.
Detailed Description
An embodiment of a vehicle seat will be described below. Hereinafter, the description will be given with the front-rear direction of the vehicle being the front-rear direction L, the width direction of the vehicle being the vehicle width direction W, and the up-down direction of the vehicle being the up-down direction H. The description will be given with respect to the front side and the rear side in the front-rear direction L being referred to as "front side" and "rear side", respectively, the right side and the left side in the vehicle width direction W being referred to as "right side" and "left side", respectively, and the upper side and the lower side in the up-down direction H being referred to as "upper side" and "lower side", respectively.
< Vehicle >
As shown in fig. 1, a plurality of seats 20 are provided in the vehicle 10. The plurality of seats 20 are arranged in a row in the front-rear direction L. In fig. 1, only two of the plurality of seats 20 are shown. The plurality of seats 20 are configured identically. In the present embodiment, the front-rear direction L coincides with the seating direction of each seat 20. In detail, each seat 20 is configured to be seated with the occupant M facing forward of the vehicle 10. Each of the plurality of seats 20 has a seat belt device 21.
< Seat >
The seat 20 has a seat portion 22 and a backrest portion 23. The seat portion 22 constitutes a portion on which the occupant M sits. The seat 22 has a frame member (not shown) constituting a skeleton. The frame member of the seat 22 is fixed to the floor 11 of the vehicle 10. Thereby, seat 22 is fixed to floor 11 of vehicle 10. In the present embodiment, the frame member of the seat 22 is provided inside the seat 22. Specifically, the frame member of the seat 22 is covered with a seat cushion made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam, a skin covering the seat cushion, or the like.
< Backrest portion >
As shown in fig. 1 to 3, the backrest portion 23 forms a portion for supporting the back of the occupant M seated in the seat 20. In the present embodiment, the width direction of the backrest portion 23 coincides with the vehicle width direction W.
As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the backrest portion 23 includes a frame member 30 constituting a skeleton. The frame member 30 is integrally formed by a member made of a metal material such as a metal pipe or a metal plate. The frame member 30 includes a pair of side frames 31R and 31L, a connecting frame 32, and a reinforcing member 34. The pair of side frames 31R, 31L are arranged at intervals in the vehicle width direction W so as to extend in the up-down direction H. A bracket 33 for attaching the seat belt device 21 is integrally provided to the right side frame 31R. The connecting frame 32 extends in the vehicle width direction W so as to integrally connect the upper end of the right side frame 31R and the upper end of the left side frame 31L. The reinforcing member 34 is made of a metal plate. One end of the reinforcing member 34 is welded and fixed to the lower portion of the right side frame 31R, specifically, to an intermediate position in the up-down direction H of the right side frame 31R. The other end of the reinforcing member 34 is welded and fixed to the lower portion of the left side frame 31L, specifically, to an intermediate position in the up-down direction H of the left side frame 31L. In this way, the reinforcing member 34 is installed between the right side frame 31R and the left side frame 31L so as to integrally connect the lower portion of the side frames 31R and 31L.
In the present embodiment, the lower portion of the frame member 30 of the backrest portion 23 is mounted and supported on the rear portion of the frame member of the seat portion 22. Thereby, the backrest portion 23 is provided on the seat portion 22.
The seat 20 of the present embodiment is provided with a panel member 40 and a wire member 50 for the purpose of protecting an occupant during a collision of the vehicle 10. Hereinafter, the panel member 40 and the wire member 50 will be described in detail.
The panel member 40 and the wire member 50 are provided on the frame member 30 of the backrest portion 23. In the present embodiment, the frame member 30, the panel member 40, and the wire member 50 are provided inside the backrest portion 23. Specifically, the frame member 30, the panel member 40, and the wire member 50 are covered with a seat cushion made of an elastic material such as polyurethane foam, a skin covering the seat cushion, or the like.
< Panel Member >
The panel member 40 has an upper panel 41 constituting an upper portion and a lower panel 43 constituting a lower portion.
The upper panel 41 is made of a metal plate. The upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 has a substantially flat plate shape extending in the front-rear direction L and the vehicle width direction W. A through hole 44 having a rectangular cross-sectional shape is provided in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 at the center in the extending direction. In the present embodiment, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 corresponds to a portion different from the joint portion. The lower portion 41B of the upper panel 41 has a substantially flat plate shape extending in the up-down direction H and the vehicle width direction W. The lower portion 41B of the upper panel 41 extends so as to protrude downward from the rear end of the upper portion 41U. The upper portion 41U and the lower portion 41B of the upper panel 41 extend so as to form an obtuse angle.
The lower panel 43 is made of a metal plate. The upper portion 43U of the lower panel 43 has a substantially flat plate shape extending in the up-down direction H and the vehicle width direction W. The upper portion 43U of the lower panel 43 is welded and fixed to the lower portion 41B of the upper panel 41 in a state of being overlapped in the front-rear direction L. The line LH in fig. 1 shows a movement locus of the head of the standard-sized occupant M in the case where the vehicle 10 has a frontal collision in the case where the occupant M is seated on the seat 20 in a correct posture in which the seat belt is worn. As is clear from fig. 1 to 3, the joint 45, which is a portion where the lower portion 41B of the upper panel 41 and the upper portion 43U of the lower panel 43 are joined together in an overlapped state, is arranged on the movement locus (refer to a line LH in fig. 1) of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10.
The intermediate portion 43M of the lower panel 43 in the up-down direction H has a substantially flat plate shape extending in the vehicle width direction W. The middle portion 43M of the lower panel 43 extends so as to protrude forward and obliquely downward from the lower end of the upper portion 43U. The upper portion 43U and the middle portion 43M of the lower panel 43 extend so as to form an obtuse angle.
The lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43 has a plate shape extending in the vehicle width direction W and the up-down direction H. The lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43 extends so as to protrude downward from the lower end of the intermediate portion 43M. The lower end portion of the lower portion 43B is opened at the lower sideExtending in a word-like manner.
< Metal wire Member >
The wire member 50 is constituted by a wire. The wire member 50 is bridged between the pair of side frames 31R, 31L. Specifically, one end of the wire member 50 is welded and fixed at an intermediate position in the up-down direction H of the right side frame 31R. The other end of the wire member 50 is fixed by welding at an intermediate position in the up-down direction H of the left side frame 31L. In the present embodiment, the wire member 50 is provided at an upper side than the reinforcing member 34. Further, the wire member 50 extends in a serpentine shape between the pair of side frames 31R, 31L. Specifically, the wire member 50 has a plurality of bent portions 51 that take on a shape bent substantially at right angles.
In the present embodiment, the panel member 40 is installed between the upper portion of the frame member 30 and the lower portion of the frame member 30. Specifically, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 constituting the upper portion of the panel member 40 is welded and fixed to the connecting frame 32 constituting the upper portion of the frame member 30. Further, a lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43 constituting a lower portion of the panel member 40 is welded and fixed to the wire member 50. Thus, the lower portion of the panel member 40 is fixed to the lower portion of the frame member 30 via the wire member 50, and more specifically, to an intermediate position in the up-down direction H of the side frames 31R, 31L. In the present embodiment, the panel member 40 is fixed to the frame member 30 in such a manner that the panel member 40 is protruded and extended between the upper portion and the lower portion of the frame member 30 so as to bulge rearward.
< Action >
Next, the operation of the seat 20 according to the present embodiment at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10 will be described. At the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the head of the occupant M seated in the seat 20 in a state where the seat belt is worn moves forward and obliquely downward as indicated by an arrow mark a in fig. 1. At this time, the head of the occupant M sitting on the rear seat 20 collides with the rear surface of the backrest portion 23 of the front seat 20.
In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 4, a plate-like panel member 40 extending in the vehicle width direction W is provided on the frame member 30 of the backrest portion 23 so as to protrude and extend like a bulge toward the rear. The joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 is arranged on a movement locus (refer to a line LH in fig. 4) of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10. Therefore, when the head of the occupant M collides with the back portion 23 of the front seat 20 during a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the head of the occupant M collides with the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 inside the back portion 23 via the seat cushion or the skin constituting the back portion 23. As shown in fig. 5, after that, the panel member 40 is deformed so as to be bent toward the front side by receiving a load generated by the head of the occupant M. In fig. 5, the panel member 40 after deformation is shown by a solid line, and the panel member 40 before deformation is shown by a one-dot chain line.
As shown in fig. 3 to 5, in the present embodiment, the lower portion 41B of the panel member 40 is fixed to the wire member 50. Therefore, when the panel member 40 is deformed to the front side by the load generated by the head of the occupant M, the wire member 50 is pressed to the front side by the panel member 40. At this time, the wire member 50 is deformed forward so that the degree of meandering becomes small, specifically, so that the degree of bending of each bending portion 51 becomes small. In the present embodiment, such a manner is adopted that the panel member 40 is deformed toward the front side while moving the fixed portion of the lower portion 41B of the panel member 40 toward the front side with the wire member 50.
According to the present embodiment, by deforming the panel member 40 to the front side at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10 in this manner, the head of the occupant M can be received by the panel member 40 while absorbing energy accompanying the collision of the head of the occupant M. This reduces the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M, thereby suppressing the head of the occupant M from moving to the lower portion of the frame member 30. Therefore, the head of the occupant M can be restrained from hitting the reinforcing member 34 provided at the lower portion of the frame member 30. According to the seat 20 of the present embodiment, a high occupant protection performance is exhibited by adopting such a manner.
Here, in order to reduce the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, it is preferable to appropriately suppress deformation of the panel member 40 at the initial stage of the collision period in which the head of the occupant M collides with the panel member 40. In this way, since the load generated by the head of the occupant M can be appropriately received by the panel member 40 at the initial stage of the collision period, the energy accompanying the collision of the head of the occupant M can be absorbed to some extent. This suppresses the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M.
In this regard, in the present embodiment, the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 is arranged on the movement locus of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10. Therefore, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, first, the head of the occupant M collides with the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40. Then, since the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 is constituted by the two panels 41, 43 that are overlapped together, the rigidity becomes higher in detail than the portion constituted by one of the two panels 41, 43 than the portion other than the joint portion 45 in the panel member 40.
According to the present embodiment, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the head of the occupant M is blocked by the joint portion 45 of such a panel member 40, in other words, by the portion having a moderately high rigidity. Thus, since deformation of the portion of the panel member 40 where the head of the occupant M collides and the peripheral portion thereof is moderately suppressed, the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M is suppressed.
As described above, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the head of the occupant M seated in the seat 20 moves forward and obliquely downward in a state where the seat belt is worn. Thus, it can be said that the head of the occupant M collides with the upper portion of the panel member 40 at the initial stage of the collision period. Therefore, in order to reduce the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, it is preferable that the upper portion of the panel member 40 be less likely to deform moderately.
In this regard, in the present embodiment, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 constituting the upper portion of the panel member 40 is directly fixed to and supported by the coupling frame 32 of the high-rigidity frame member 30. Thus, the upper portion of the panel member 40 is less likely to deform moderately than the lower portion of the panel member 40 fixed to the frame member 30 via the wire member 50 having lower rigidity. As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the portion where the head of the occupant M collides, that is, the upper portion of the panel member 40, is less likely to be deformed moderately in the early stage of the collision, the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M is suppressed.
Although the rigidity of the upper portion of the panel member 40 is preferably moderately high, if the rigidity of the upper portion of the panel member 40 is excessively high, the panel member 40 will not be sufficiently deformed, and the energy associated with the collision of the occupant M may not be well absorbed. In the present embodiment, the extending shape of the panel member 40, the shapes of the upper panel 41 and the lower panel 43, and the shape of the through-hole 44 are defined so as to appropriately increase the rigidity of the upper portion of the panel member 40 based on the results of various experiments or simulations performed by the inventors.
In the present embodiment, the panel member 40 is provided with the through-hole 44 in the portion constituted only by the upper panel 41, that is, in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41. By providing the through-hole 44, the rigidity of the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 is reduced. Therefore, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 is greatly deformed as compared with the case where the through hole 44 is not provided.
According to the present embodiment, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 can be greatly deformed by a simple structure in which the through hole 44 is provided in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41. Therefore, even if the deformation of the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 is suppressed, the larger deformation of the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41, which is a portion different from the joint portion 45, can obtain a function of absorbing energy accompanying the collision of the occupant M. Further, according to the present embodiment, the rigidity of the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 can be set with a higher degree of freedom than in a structure in which the through hole 44 is not provided in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41.
If the deformation of the panel member 40 is suppressed across the entire collision period, there is a possibility that the energy accompanying the collision of the occupant M cannot be well absorbed even if the panel member 40 is provided. Accordingly, it is preferable that the panel member 40 be deformed relatively easily at the later stage of the collision period. At a later stage during a collision, the deformation of the panel member 40 will progress until the lower portion of the panel member 40. Accordingly, in order to appropriately absorb energy associated with the collision of the occupant M by deforming the panel member 40, it is preferable that the lower portion of such panel member 40 is relatively easily deformed.
In this regard, in the present embodiment, the lower portion of the panel member 40, specifically, the portion below the joint portion 45 is constituted only by the lower panel 43. Thus, the lower portion of the panel member 40, specifically, the middle portion 43M and the lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43 are more easily deformed than the upper portion of the panel member 40 having the high-rigidity joint portion 45. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, even in the latter stage of the collision period, the panel member 40 can be appropriately deformed, so that the energy accompanying the collision of the occupant M can be appropriately absorbed.
In the present embodiment, the lower portion 41B of the lower panel 43 is fixed to the lower portion of the frame member 30 via the wire member 50 in the lower portion of the panel member 40. The wire member 50 extends in a meandering shape between the pair of side frames 31R and 31L. According to the present embodiment, when the vehicle 10 is not deformed by the front collision of the panel member 40, the panel member 40 is firmly supported by the side frames 31R and 31L via the wire member 50 having a meandering shape. When the panel member 40 is deformed during a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the wire member 50 is deformed so as to reduce the degree of meandering, and the panel member 40 can be deformed greatly in the forward direction. As described above, according to the present embodiment, by providing the wire member 50 having the meandering shape, the function of firmly supporting the panel member 40 when the panel member 40 is not deformed and the function of largely deforming the panel member 40 when the panel member 40 is deformed are realized.
< Effect >
According to the present embodiment, the effects described below can be obtained. The seat 20 has a plate-like panel member 40 extending in the vehicle width direction W. The panel member 40 is stretched between the upper portion of the frame member 30 and the lower portion of the frame member 30 so as to protrude and extend so as to bulge rearward of the backrest portion 23.
According to the present embodiment, the head of the occupant M can be restrained from moving to the lower portion of the frame member 30, and therefore the head of the occupant M can be restrained from striking the reinforcing member 34 provided at the lower portion of the frame member 30. According to the present embodiment, a high occupant protection performance is exhibited by adopting such a mode.
The engagement portion 45 of the panel member 40 is arranged on the movement locus of the head of the occupant M at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10. According to the present embodiment, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the head of the occupant M can be blocked by the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40, in other words, by the portion having moderately high rigidity. Accordingly, the deformation of the portion of the panel member 40 where the head of the occupant M collides and the peripheral portion thereof can be appropriately suppressed, and therefore the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M can be suppressed. In this case, a large deformation is allowed for a portion of the panel member 40 different from the joint portion 45, in other words, for a portion having low rigidity because it is constituted only by the upper panel 41 or the lower panel 43. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, even though the deformation of the joint portion 45 of the panel member 40 is suppressed, the function of absorbing the energy accompanying the collision of the occupant M can be obtained by the comparatively large deformation of the portion different from the joint portion 45.
The panel member 40 has a through hole 44 provided in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41. According to the present embodiment, the rigidity of the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 can be reduced by a simple structure in which the penetration hole is provided in the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41, which is a portion of the panel member 40 different from the joint portion 45. In this way, the upper portion 41U of the upper panel 41 can be deformed more greatly at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10.
The wire member 50 made of a wire is stretched between the pair of side frames 31R and 31L so as to extend in a meandering shape. The lower portion of the panel member 40 is fixed to the wire member 50. According to the present embodiment, the provision of the meandering-shaped wire member 50 can realize a function of firmly supporting the panel member 40 when the panel member 40 is not deformed and a function of largely deforming the panel member 40 when the panel member 40 is deformed.
The upper portion of the panel member 40 is fixed to and supported by the coupling frame 32 of the frame member 30 having high rigidity. Accordingly, the upper portion of the panel member 40, which is the portion where the head of the occupant M collides in the initial stage of the collision period, can be made moderately difficult to deform, so that the amount of movement of the head of the occupant M at the time of the frontal collision of the vehicle 10 can be suppressed. The lower portion of the panel member 40 is fixed to the wire member 50 having a meandering shape. Accordingly, the panel member 40 can be greatly deformed forward, and therefore energy associated with the collision of the occupant M can be appropriately absorbed.
< Modification example >
The above embodiment can be modified and implemented as follows. The above-described embodiments and the following modifications can be combined and implemented within a range that is not technically contradictory.
The panel member 40 may be constituted by a base panel and a sub-panel, and the sub-panel may be overlapped and joined to the base panel to constitute a joint portion constituted by a part of the base panel and the entire sub-panel.
As the panel member 40, a member such as a member formed of one metal plate, which does not have a portion to be joined together in a state where two metal plates are overlapped, that is, a joining portion, can be used. In the case where the panel member is formed of one metal plate, a through hole is provided at an arbitrary portion in the panel member, whereby a difference in rigidity can be added to each portion of the panel member.
The upper panel 41 or the lower panel 43 may be formed of a plurality of metal plates stacked on each other. The cross-sectional shape of the through holes 44 formed in the upper portion 41U of the upper plate 41 or the number of the through holes 44 can be arbitrarily changed. In short, the cross-sectional shape or the number of formed through holes 44 may be defined so that the upper portion of the upper plate 41 is easily deformed appropriately. If the upper portion of the upper panel 41 is easily deformed moderately, the through hole 44 may be omitted.
A through hole may be provided in the middle portion 43M or the lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43. According to this structure, by providing a simple structure such as a through hole, the rigidity of the middle portion 43M or the lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43, which is a portion of the panel member 40 different from the joint portion 45, can be reduced. Thus, at the time of a frontal collision of the vehicle 10, the middle portion 43M or the lower portion 43B of the lower panel 43 can be deformed more greatly.
The wire member 50 is not limited to a structure extending in a serpentine shape between the pair of side frames 31R and 31L, and may be a structure extending in a curved manner so as to protrude to the rear side, or a structure extending in a straight line.
The fixing manner of the panel member 40 can be arbitrarily changed. For example, a wire member that is bridged between the pair of side frames 31R, 31L can be provided on the upper portion of the frame member 30, and the upper portion of the panel member 40 can be fixed thereto. Further, a coupling frame extending in the vehicle width direction W may be provided on the lower portion of the frame member 30 so as to couple the pair of side frames 31R, 31L, and the lower portion of the panel member 40 may be welded and fixed to the coupling frame, or the like.
The shape of each portion of the upper panel 41 or the shape of each portion of the lower panel 43 is not limited to a flat plate shape, and may be arbitrarily changed to a curved shape curved to one side or the like. In other words, when the panel member 40 is installed between the upper portion of the frame member 30 and the lower portion of the frame member 30, the panel member 40 may be formed in a shape protruding and extending so as to bulge rearward of the backrest portion 23.
The vehicle seat according to the above embodiment can be applied to any vehicle seat that is provided on a vehicle so as to be aligned in the seating direction of an occupant, such as a vehicle seat that is arranged so as to be aligned in the vehicle width direction W so that the seating direction coincides with the vehicle width direction W.