Seat assembly with inner seat back movable with a seat cushion

Abstract

A seat assembly includes a seat cushion and a seat back. The seat cushion has opposite front and rear ends. The seat cushion is selectively height adjustable relative to the floor of the vehicle. The seat back has nested outer and inner support members. The outer support member has an upper portion extending between spaced apart side bolsters. The inner support member is disposed between the side bolsters and below the upper portion of the outer support member. The inner support member is operatively coupled to the seat cushion for movement therewith relative to the outer support member. The inner support member remains below the upper portion of the outer support member to provide continuous support to the lower portion of the occupant's back during adjustment of the seat cushion relative to the floor of the vehicle.

1 . A seat assembly for supporting an occupant above a floor of a motor vehicle, the seat assembly comprising: 
 a seat cushion having opposite front and rear ends;    an adjuster mechanism operatively coupled between the floor of the motor vehicle and the seat cushion, the adjuster mechanism allowing selective horizontal and vertical adjustment of the seat cushion relative to the floor; and    a seat back assembly having: 
 an outer frame;  
 an inner frame having an upper end slidably and pivotally coupled to the outer frame, the inner frame having a lower end pivotally coupled to the rear end of the seat cushion;  
 an outer foam pad fixedly secured to the outer frame, the outer foam pad having an upper portion extending between spaced apart side bolsters;  
 an inner foam pad disposed between the side bolsters and below the upper portion of the outer foam pad, the inner foam pad being fixedly secured to the inner frame for vertical and pivotal movement relative to the outer foam pad in response to corresponding vertical and pivotal movement of the seat cushion relative to the floor.  
   
     
     
         2 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein the outer frame includes a pair of side members that are generally parallel and spaced apart, at least one of the side members having a track fixedly secured thereto and slidably engaged with the inner frame.  
     
     
         3 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 2  including a suspension extending between generally parallel and spaced apart sides of the inner frame for movement therewith relative to the outer frame.  
     
     
         4 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein both sides of the inner frame are pivotally coupled to the seat cushion by a pivot rod.  
     
     
         5 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 1  including a head restraint slidably coupled to the outer frame for selective height adjustment relative to the upper portion of the outer foam pad.  
     
     
         6 . A seat assembly for supporting an occupant above a floor of a motor vehicle, the seat assembly comprising: 
 a seat cushion having opposite front and rear ends, the seat cushion being selectively height adjustable relative to the floor of the vehicle;    a seat back with nested outer and inner support members, the outer support member having an upper portion extending between spaced apart side bolsters, the inner support member being disposed between the side bolsters and below the upper portion of the outer support member, the inner support member being operatively coupled to the seat cushion for movement therewith relative to the outer support member, the inner support member remaining below the upper portion of the outer support member to provide continuous support to the lower portion of the occupant's back during height adjustment of the seat cushion relative to the floor of the vehicle.    
     
     
         7 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 6 , wherein a lower end of the inner support member is pivotally coupled to the seat cushion.  
     
     
         8 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 7 , wherein the seat cushion is independently horizontally adjustable relative to the outer support member of the seat back.  
     
     
         9 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 8 , wherein an upper end of the inner support member is slidably and pivotally coupled to the outer support member accommodating movement of the inner support member together with the seat cushion during height and horizontal adjustment of the seat cushion relative to the outer support member.  
     
     
         10 . The seat assembly as set forth in  claim 6  including a head restraint supported by the outer support member of the seat back.