Energy-absorbing seat arrangement

Claim 1

An energy-absorbing seat arrangement, comprising: a first structure including two parallel, generally vertical pillars, said pillars being elongated and having axes; a second structure including a frame mounted for sliding movement on said pillars, said frame having, for each pillar, a respective collar embracing the pillar slidably and a respective portion embracing the pillar slidably at a position spaced apart from the respective collar; means for affixing a seat pan to one of said structures; means for affixing the other of said structures to a vehicle; and connecting means for connecting said first and second structures, said connecting means including at least one plastically deformable metal member arranged to undergo controlled, predetermined plastic deformation, in the event that the force acting between said first and second structures in at least one predetermined direction exceeds a predetermined value, in such a way as to allow controlled, energy-absorbing movement to take place between said structures under action of said force, wherein said connecting means includes, for each pillar, a respective cap mounted at the end of the pillar so that the axis of the pillar runs through the respective cap, the cap being positioned nearer the respective collar of the frame than the respective portion thereof, and a plurality of respective energy absorbing devices supportively connecting the respective cap and collar, each energy absorbing device being elongated and including a plastically deformable metal member and a deforming member arranged to prevent sliding movement of said frame longitudinally relative to said pillars in at least one predetermined direction except by drawing of the plastically deformable metal member relative to the deforming member and consequent energy-absorbing deformation of the deformable member by the deforming member, one of said members being secured to said respective cap and the other of said members being secured to said respective collar, said plurality of respective energy absorbing devices being arranged symmetrically about the axis of the pillar and being parallel therewith, so that in the event that the force acting between the pillars and the frame in said predetermined direction parallel with the pillars exceeds a predetermined value, said frame will move slidingly along said pillars so as to draw the collars away from the respective caps and draw the deformable members relative to the deforming members.