Equipped with motors and sensors. Apple develops adaptive electric car seats

In 1886, German Daimler invented the earliest car seat. Like a regular household seat, the chair consists of a backrest and a seat cushion, with soft fillings such as cotton underneath.

Over the past century, the development of automobiles has seen a continuous evolution in seat technology, with patents mainly focusing on electric adjustment, ergonomics, riding safety, etc. Except for Volvo's introduction of a head and neck protection system in 1998, all technological innovations are basically led by suppliers. Patents are mainly concentrated in the hands of companies such as Toyota Boshoku and Faurecia.

Interestingly, as a technology and digital company, Apple recently released a patent for car seats. Rumors of Apple making cars have been around for a long time, and an internal project called "Project Titan" has been an open secret. Apple is tight-lipped about the details of the project, whether it is making cars or autonomous driving, and the outside world is constantly speculating.

Regardless of whether Apple Car exists or not, what is certain is that Apple has ambitions in the automotive business. Judging from this recent seat patent, Apple's technology is no longer limited to the field of automotive digitization, and its tentacles have gradually extended to automotive hardware.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at what kind of patent this is.

As we all know, in order to disperse the force, traditional car seats are mainly divided into seat cushions, headrests, backrests, wings, leg rests and other parts. The interior is filled with soft fillings such as sponges, and the surface is covered with wrapping materials such as leather and fabrics. Different areas are pieced together into a whole through tortuous stitching. Despite this, the seats are prone to collapse after long-term use, especially the wings, which are particularly prone to collapse due to repeated friction when getting on and off the car.

Apple's new patent is expected to solve this problem.

首先，苹果在座椅结构上进行了创新，最显著的部分就是取消掉了护翼，只保留坐垫、头枕、靠背三个主要部分，三部分表面平整，没有任何起伏。

Experienced drivers will ask, how about the wrapping? You may not believe it, this is a set of real "sports seats".

Although Apple has removed the physical wrapping of the seats, the seat padding has hidden secrets. In addition to the conventional adjustment motor, new motors and sensors are added inside to form an adaptive seat suspension system and an electric retractor system, so that the seat cover surface can adaptively control the tension and provide corresponding support.

Let's talk about the working principle briefly. When you sit down, the tension sensor detects the increase in tension, and the motor drives the spool to rotate. At this time, the tightened excess coverings such as leather and fabric will be released, and the tension on the seat surface will be reduced by increasing the force-bearing area. And vice versa.

At the same time, after receiving the corresponding signal, the adaptive seat suspension system drives the motor to release or retract the flexible suspension pad inside the seat. The pad will cooperate with the surface covering to change the shape of the seat according to different scenarios, and even a certain bulge. When you get on and off the car, it reduces the friction between your limbs and the seat, and when the vehicle is turning or driving at the limit, it provides you with enough wrapping through deformation.

So this can be called a set of "sports seats".

In fact, in May 2019, Apple released a similar seat patent. At that time, the sensor sent a signal to the internal spring of the seat to adjust the stiffness of the spring to adapt to different road conditions and ensure the comfort of passengers.

In fact, the technology of controlling the shape of seats through motors is not uncommon, such as electric lumbar support, seat massage and other configurations, but the brilliance of Apple's patent lies in the fact that automation does not need to be actively turned on, and adaptive changes can be made through sensors. Moreover, this perception and control is subtle and requires a very high degree of precision.

Recently, Apple has also launched a series of in-car technologies, such as a new generation of in-car lighting and image projection systems.

The new technology uses infrared sensors to help cars detect obstacles in front of the car, such as pedestrians, animals, etc. in low-light environments. The system then projects the image onto the head-up display to alert the driver.

The new in-vehicle lighting technology is mainly used inside the car. The lighting system can be integrated into fabric seats, door panels, dashboards and even any corner, and can project patterns or text on any surface. Its biggest use is to make it easier for drivers and passengers to take items in the car at night.

Although there has been no news about Apple Car, Apple's accumulation in the automotive field is obvious to all. First, it used CarPlay to become your second car computer, and now it has started to develop a number of in-vehicle hardware. The new iOS 13.4 beta version also added an interface for the Car key sensing function. Its independently developed self-driving car has been running on public roads in California for a long time.

Apple seems to have the dual potential of being a car manufacturer and a supplier. If Apple combines the two potentials, then becoming the second Tesla is likely to be just a matter of money and time.