JP6892112B2 - Plane heating element, steering wheel and vehicle seat - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a planar heating element, a steering wheel and a vehicle seat, and more particularly to a planar heating element having a simple structure and few irregularities, and a steering wheel and a vehicle seat using the planar heating element. is there.

In recent years, there are seats, back surfaces, and steering wheels for vehicle seats to which a planar heating element is attached. As a planar heating element of this type, for example, the one described in Patent Document 1 has been proposed, and the heating wire is fixed by using a needle thread and a bobbin thread sewn on a planar base material such as a non-woven fabric. ..

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-173860

However, in the one described in Patent Document 1, plover stitching (also referred to as "zigzag stitching") in which the needle thread and the bobbin thread are sewn in a zigzag pattern on the left and right so as to intersect with the heating wire arranged on the planar substrate The structure of mounting the heating wire is complicated. Further, since plover sewing requires more time than straight stitching in which the needle thread and the bobbin thread are sewn in a straight line, there is a problem that it takes time to attach the heating wire to the planar base material.
In addition, since the heating wire and the needle thread or the bobbin thread appear on the surface of the planar substrate, the unevenness due to the heating wire, the needle thread, and the bobbin thread appears conspicuously on the surface of the planar substrate, and the texture such as touch is obtained. Was bad.

The present invention has been made by paying attention to the above-mentioned problems, a planar heating element having a simple structure, quick installation, and less unevenness on the surface, and a steering wheel using the planar heating element. The subject is to provide wheels and vehicle seats.

The planar heating element according to the present invention is for locking a planar substrate having an insulating property, a heating wire provided on the back surface of the planar substrate, and a heating wire along the back surface of the planar substrate. A thread is provided, and the thread is arranged along the heating element on the surface of the planar substrate, and is pulled out to the back surface of the planar substrate at each position at predetermined intervals to lock the heating wire. is there.

According to the above configuration, since the heating wire is locked by using one locking thread, the heating wire to the planar substrate is compared with the conventional example in which both the needle thread and the bobbin thread are used. The mounting structure is simple and the number of parts is reduced. Further, by straight-sewn the locking thread and the heating wire, the time required for attachment is shortened as compared with the case of chidori sewing as in the conventional technique.
Further, since only the locking thread is arranged on the surface of the planar substrate and the heating wire is located on the back surface of the planar substrate, unevenness is less likely to appear on the surface of the planar substrate and the texture becomes soft. ..

In a preferred embodiment, the yarn is crossed with the heating wire at each position to lock the heating wire.

By crossing the thread with the heating wire, the heating wire can be firmly locked to the back surface of the planar substrate. In addition, since the thread and the heating wire can be sewn in a straight line (also called "lock stitch") with a sewing machine using the thread as the needle thread and the heating wire as the bobbin thread, the time required to attach the heating wire is shortened and the heating wire can be easily sewn. Can be locked to the planar substrate.

The steering wheel according to the present invention includes the above-mentioned planar heating element, an annular core material, and a covering member that covers the surface of the core material. The planar heating element includes at least a grip portion and a covering member of the core material. In between, the back surface of the planar base material is arranged so as to be on the core material side.

When a planar heating element is used for a steering wheel, in the prior art, so-called highlights appear on the covering member, in which the unevenness of the planar heating element emerges. Therefore, urethane foam is formed between the planar heating element and the covering member. Cushioning materials such as and neoplane rubber are placed to prevent highlights from appearing.
However, according to the present invention, since only the locking thread is arranged on the surface of the planar base material of the planar heating element, that is, the surface on the covering member side, the surface is planar on the surface of the covering member of the steering wheel. It is possible to prevent the unevenness of the heating element from appearing. Further, it is not necessary to sandwich a cushioning material between the planar heating element and the covering member.

The vehicle seat according to the present invention includes the above-mentioned planar heating element, a cushion member having a seat surface portion and a back surface portion, and a cover member covering the cushion member, and the planar heating element includes the seat surface portion of the cushion member and the seat surface portion of the cushion member. It is arranged between at least one of the back surface portions and the cover member so that the back surface of the planar base material is on the cushion member side.

According to the present invention, since only the locking thread is arranged on the surface of the planar base material of the planar heating element, that is, the surface on the cover member side, the planar heat generation is generated on the surface of the cover member of the vehicle seat. It is possible to prevent the unevenness of the body from appearing. Further, it is not necessary to sandwich a cushioning material between the planar heating element and the cover member.

According to the present invention, the structure for attaching the heating wire to the planar substrate is simple, and the time required for attachment is shortened. Further, since only the locking thread is arranged on the surface of the planar substrate, unevenness is unlikely to appear on the surface of the planar substrate.

It is sectional drawing of the planar heating element which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the steering wheel. It is a top view of a planar heating element. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 2 and an enlarged view thereof. It is a top view of the vehicle seat. It is a top view of a planar heating element. It is sectional drawing which follows the line BB of FIG.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a planar heating element 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The planar heating element 10 has an insulating planar base material 11, a heating wire 12 provided on the back surface 11a of the planar base material 11, and a heating wire 12 along the back surface 11a of the planar base material 11. It includes a thread 13 for locking.

The planar base material 11 was drilled into a needle punching non-woven fabric manufactured by the needle punching method, a foam forming body having a foam, a double Russell knitted fabric, a spunbonded non-woven fabric manufactured by the spunbond method, and a needle punching non-woven fabric. It is composed of any material such as perforated non-woven fabric. Further, it may be configured by connecting a plurality of the same material or different materials one by one.

Needle punching non-woven fabric is manufactured by a needle punching method in which a large number of needles with sharp tips and hooks on the sides are moved up and down at high speed to repeatedly pierce the fibers and entangle the fibers with each other. .. The needle punching non-woven fabric is mainly made of polyester and has a basis weight of 105 g or more and 300 g or less ( ^{mass per 1 m 2} is 105 g to 300 g) and a thickness of 0.7 mm or more and 1.0 mm or less. Needle punching non-woven fabrics are stiffer and harder than foamed bodies.

The foam-forming body is composed of a foam made from polyurethane, for example, called a urethane foam-forming body. The raw material of the foam may be a polyether resin. Further, the foam may be a soft foam or a hard foam. Further, a compressed foam or a high-density foam may be used.
On the foam, warp yarns having loops formed in the warp direction are arranged in the lateral direction, and a tricot knitting base material knitted so that adjacent warp yarns are entangled with each other is attached. The tricot knitted base material is mainly made of polyester and has a function of preventing the foam from tearing and maintaining the strength of the foam.

The double Russell knitted fabric integrates the outer and lining by moving connecting yarns back and forth between the outer and lining so that a gap is formed between the outer and lining to ensure breathability. It is a material woven by double lining knitting, and the material is mainly polyester. Double Russell knitted fabrics are more breathable, cushioned and lighter than spunbonded non-woven fabrics, needle punched non-woven fabrics and perforated non-woven fabrics.

The spunbonded non-woven fabric is mainly made of polyester, and is manufactured by a spunbonding method in which a large number of filaments are extruded from a large number of small holes provided in a spinning sprue, and the filaments are collected and bonded on a running belt. Since the spunbonded non-woven fabric is harder than the needle punching non-woven fabric, it is easier to sew the heating wire 12 than other non-woven fabrics, and even the heating wire 12 having a hardness that is difficult to sew with the needle punching non-woven fabric can be sewn with a sewing machine. it can. Since the perforated non-woven fabric is drilled into the needle-punched non-woven fabric, it has better breathability, lighter weight, and softer than the needle-punched non-woven fabric.

The double Russell knitted fabric, spunbonded non-woven fabric, and perforated non-woven fabric may contain a flame-retardant material.

The heating wire 12 is made of a metal wire, for example, an ETFE wire (copper nickel wire with a hyflon fluorine resin outer skin) and a copper magnesium stranded wire (copper-containing copper wire twisted with a polyurethane-coated wire). (Twisted wire), copper composite silver wire (twisted wire obtained by twisting a copper wire containing silver with a polyurethane coating), and the like, but the present invention is not limited to this. Further, since the heat generation temperature of the heating wire 12 changes according to the unit resistance value of these metal wires, the unit resistance value of the metal wire is selected so as to obtain the desired heating temperature of the heating wire 12. The diameter of the heating wire 12 is, for example, 0.05 mm or more and 1.2 mm or less.

The locking thread 13 for locking the heating wire 12 to the planar base material 11 is made of a tetron sewing thread, and threads having counts # 100, # 50, and # 30 are used. As the thread 13 of # 100, for example, a thread having 100% polyester, a composition of 56dtex / 1 × 2, a tensile strength of 700 gf, and an elongation of 20% may be used. As the thread 13 of # 50, a thread having 100% polyester, a composition of 78dtex / 1 × 3, a tensile strength of 1400 gf, and an elongation of 23% may be used. As the thread 13 of # 30, 100% polyester, 167dtex / 1 × 3, tensile strength of 2900 gf, and elongation of 23% may be used. A thread 13 thinner than the heating wire is selected. The thread 13 may be a thread obtained by twisting raw threads.

A thread 13 having appropriate tensile strength and elongation is selected according to the thickness of the planar base material 11. If the tensile strength of the thread 13 is too small with respect to the thickness of the planar base material 11, the thread 13 is likely to be cut during manufacturing or use, and if the tensile strength is too large, the planar base material is manufactured. 11 is easily damaged. Further, when the elongation of the thread 13 is too small with respect to the thickness of the planar base material 11, the thread 13 is easily cut during manufacturing or use, and when the elongation of the thread 13 is too large, the seam It may cause skipping when puckering or sewing. For example, the material of the planar base material 11 is a needle punching non-woven fabric, and for the planar base material 11 having a thickness of 0.7 mm, thread 13 of # 100 is used, and a planar group having a thickness of 1.1 mm is used. It is preferable that the thread 13 of # 30 is used for the material 11.

The planar heating element 10 is manufactured by straight-sewn to a planar base material 11 using a sewing machine with one of the heating wire 12 and the thread 13 as the upper thread and the other as the lower thread. At this time, the sewing machine is hung so that the heating wire 12 is located on the back surface 11a of the planar base material 11. As a result, the thread 13 is arranged on the front surface 11b of the planar base material 11 along the heating wire 12, and is pulled out to the back surface 11a of the planar base material 11 at each position at predetermined intervals to form the heating wire 12. It intersects and locks the heating wire 12.

According to the planar heating element 10 of the present invention, the heating wire 12 is locked by using the locking thread 13, and it is not necessary to use both the needle thread and the bobbin thread as in the prior art. The structure for attaching the heating wire 12 to the planar base material 11 is simple, and the number of parts is reduced. Further, since the locking thread 13 and the heating wire 12 can be sewn in a straight line, the time required for attachment is shortened as compared with the case where the chidori sewing is performed as in the conventional technique.
Further, since only the locking thread 13 is arranged on the surface 11b of the planar base material 11, unevenness is less likely to appear on the surface 11b of the planar base material 11, and the texture becomes soft.

2 to 4 show an embodiment in which the above-mentioned planar heating element 10 is used for the steering wheel 20.
As shown in FIG. 2, the steering wheel 20 includes an annular rim portion 21, a pad portion 22 located in a space surrounded by the rim portion 21, and connected to a steering shaft (not shown), and a pad portion 22. It includes spoke portions 23a, 23b, and 23c that connect the rim portion 21.

As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the rim portion 21 includes an annular core material 24 formed of a metal such as iron or aluminum or an alloy thereof, and a covering member 25 covering the surface of the core material 24. And have. A certain angle range on the left and right of the rim portion 21 constitutes grip portions 26, 26 gripped by the driver, and a surface is formed between the surface of the core material 24 of each grip portion 26 and the covering member 25, respectively. A heating element 10 is arranged. Each sheet heating element 10 is adhesively fixed so as to be wound around the surface of the core material 24 so that the back surface 11a of the surface base material 11 is on the core material 24 side. FIG. 3 shows the form of a pair of planar heating elements 10, and an appropriate notch is provided on the peripheral edge of the planar base material 11 to facilitate winding around the core material 24. The left and right planar heating elements 10 and 10 arranged on the left and right grips 26 and 26 each have a heating wire 12, and the electric wires 14 and 14 for supplying power are connected to each heating wire 12. There is. As shown in FIG. 2, each electric wire 14 is passed through the spoke portions 23a and 23b and the pad portion 22 and connected to the connector 15, and the connector 15 is connected to a power source (not shown).

As the heating wire 12, a copper magnesium stranded wire or a copper synthetic silver wire thinner than the ETFE wire is used. Further, as the locking thread 13, a thread having a count of # 100 is used. The planar heating element 10 is adhesively fixed to the surface of the core material 24 of the steering wheel 20, and even if the driver grips the grip portion 26, the position of the planar heating element 10 is displaced and the threads 13 and the heating wire 12 are displaced. Since it is not bent or pulled, it is possible to use a thin thread 13 and a heating wire 12. The other configurations of the planar heating element 10 are the same as those in the embodiment of FIG. 1, and the description thereof will be omitted by assigning the same reference numerals to the corresponding portions.

According to the above-mentioned steering wheel 20, only the locking thread 13 is arranged on the surface 11b of the planar base material 11 of the planar heating element 10, that is, the surface on the covering member 25 side, so that the steering wheel 20 It is possible to prevent so-called highlights, in which irregularities appear on the surface of the covering member 25, from appearing. Further, since it is not necessary to sandwich a cushioning material for preventing highlighting between the planar heating element 10 and the covering member 25, the number of parts is reduced and the manufacturing is facilitated.

5 and 7 show an embodiment in which the above-mentioned planar heating element 10 is used for a vehicle seat 30.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, the vehicle seat 30 is formed by covering each cushion member 31 of the seat surface portion 34 and the back surface portion 35 with a cover member 32 for the seat surface portion and a cover member 33 for the back surface portion. .. In the present embodiment, the planar heating element 10 is arranged between the seat surface portion cover member 32 and the cushion member 31, but even if it is arranged between the back surface portion cover member 33 and the cushion member 31. Good.

FIG. 6 shows the form of the planar heating element 10. The planar heating element 10 includes planar base materials 11A to 11C arranged so that the back surface 11a is on the cushion member 31 side. The planar base material 11A is located at the central portion 34a of the seat surface portion 34 of the vehicle seat 30. The planar base materials 11B and 11C are located on both side portions 34b and 34b of the seat surface portion 34 of the vehicle seat 30. The heating wire 12 is provided in one connection to all the planar base materials 11A to 11C. The planar base material 11A is provided with a connector 16 for supplying power, which is attached so as to be conductive with the heating wire 12.

As the heating wire 12, any one of ETFE wire, copper magnesium stranded wire, and copper synthetic silver wire is used. As the locking thread 13 located on the seat surface portion 34, a thread having a count # 30 having a large tensile strength is used. As the locking thread 13 located on the back surface 35, a thread having a tensile strength smaller than that of the number # 30 is used. The seat surface 34 uses a thick heating wire 12 and a thread 13 having a large tensile strength as compared with the back surface 35, because the seat surface 34 uses a thicker heating wire 12 and a thread 13 having a larger tensile strength when the occupant gets on and off the vehicle than the back surface 35. This is because strong pressure is applied. The other configurations of the planar heating element 10 are the same as those in the embodiment of FIG. 1, and the description thereof will be omitted by assigning the same reference numerals to the corresponding portions.

According to the vehicle seat 30 described above, since only the locking thread 13 is arranged on the surface 11b of the planar base material 11 of the planar heating element 10, that is, the surface on the cover member 32 side, the vehicle seat It is possible to prevent the appearance of so-called highlights in which irregularities are raised on the surface of the covering member 25 of 30. Further, since it is not necessary to sandwich the cushioning material between the planar heating element 10 and the cover members 32 and 33, the number of parts is reduced and the manufacturing is facilitated.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10 Heating element 11 Heating element 11 Surface base material 11a Back surface 11b Surface surface 12 Heating wire 13 Thread 20 Steering wheel 24 Core material 25 Covering member 26 Grip part 30 Vehicle seat 31 Cushion member 32, 33 Cover member 34 Seat surface part 35 Back surface

Claims (2)

A planar base material having an insulating property, a heating wire provided on the back surface of the planar base material, and a thread for locking the heating wire along the back surface of the planar base material are provided. The yarn is arranged along the heat generating line on the surface of the planar base material, and is pulled out to the back surface of the planar base material at each position at predetermined intervals to lock the heat generating line. and body,
With an annular core material
It is provided with a covering member that covers the surface of the core material.
The planar heating element is a steering wheel arranged between at least a grip portion of the core material and the covering member so that the back surface of the planar base material is on the core material side. The steering wheel according to claim 1, wherein the thread intersects the heating wire at each position to lock the heating wire.

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