Lear Corporation
Vehicle seat assembly with impact energy management

Abstract:

A vehicle seat assembly is provided with a seat back frame. A bracket is provided with a substrate welded to the seat back frame. Two pairs of sidewalls extend from the substrate and are tapered with an enlarged region at an upper distal end. A pair of support plates are each supported by one of the two pairs of sidewalls and spaced apart from the substrate to provide a mounting surface. A pair of spaced apart tubes are each welded to the bracket mounting surface of one of the pair of support plates. A pair of head restraint posts are each received in one of the pair of tubes. A head restraint is supported upon the pair of head restraint posts, so that upon a rear vehicle impact, the bracket deforms as the pair of head restraint posts are translated toward the seat back frame.