Driver Car Seat Motion Mechanism

[Yaniv Mordeha]

Hi All,

I'm working on a design of a seat for a simulator, the seat should include the motion mechanisms like the one in a car which Includes the slider, recliner, and the mechanism responsible for the vertical motion of the seat. So my question is
I want to buy these mechanisms and integrate them into my design to save costs and time, however I can't find the companies who manufacture the required components. I searched on the net for 'slider' and 'recliner' however it didn't get me results of manufacturers. Does anyone know the name of the manufacturers of the mechanisms or how can I get them?
Further, with regard to the mechanism responsible for the vertical motion of the seat, my biggest problem is that I don't know the technical name for this mechanism, if someone knows it will be very useful (to locate the manufacturers).

Thanks,
Yaniv

 

[xxChrisxx]

A 'simulator'? What are you trying to achieve by this 'simulator?

Are you simulating the movement of a car seat in a testing capacity, so just testing the acutal seat? Or is this a simulator to train a driver?

 

[Danger]

Yaniv, one of my favourite sources of motors/activators is power seat mechanisms. I get mine from a local boneyard who occasionally has an "all you can carry out for $25" sale. If such a thing exists in your area, it's worth investigating.

 

[Mech_Engineer]

I would look at existing designs for driving simulators before you design anything. You'll need to decide how many degrees of freedom you want, it can range from 2 to 6. The price of the simulator will rise dramatically based on the number of DOF.

Most 2 DOF simulators I've seen basically roll the driver left and right, and tip forward and back. These two DOF's basically simulate acceleration, braking, and turning left/right. A 2-DOF rig is usually pretty easy to put together with a pair of linear actuators (usually electric, pneumatic, or hydraulic cylinders) and a U-joint pivot point. From there, you'll have to keep statics/dynamics in mind if you're wanting more DOF.

A 6-DOF system would be set up with a Hexapod like a flight simulator. Probably overkill for a driving simulator (although there are a few). 2-DOF and 4-DOF are the most common kinds out there, 2-DOF can be <barely> affordable, 4-DOF cost as much as a car, 6-DOF cost as much as a house. Additionally, they're usually application-specific, meaning they only work with 1 or 2 racing games.

 

[Ranger Mike]

www.jegs.com

http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/KeywordSearchCmd?Ne=1%2b2%2b3%2b1147708%2b1&Ntt=driver+seat&langId=-1&Ntk=all&storeId=10001&Jnar=0&catalogId=10002&N=1010481&Nty=0

good start to find manufacturers..Scat is one