Lear Corporation

Methods, tools, and component designs that facilitate the efficient and robust manufacturing, assembly, and attachment of vehicle seat structures, covers, and internal mechanisms.

Seat designs and mechanisms that allow for dynamic adjustment, folding, removal, or repositioning of seats or seat components to adapt to various passenger, cargo, or vehicle usage scenarios.

Systems and methods for preparing, organizing, and electrically connecting individual conductors or cable bundles to connector terminals, ensuring reliable contact and strain relief.

Integration of mechanisms, sensors, and actuators to provide dynamic adjustments for user comfort, such as lumbar support, reclining positions, massage functions, or controlled movement.

Non-core functionalities or convenience items directly integrated into or associated with vehicle seats, such as adjustable pillows, fitness devices, audio systems, or tray tables.

Integrated systems within vehicle seats that provide heating, cooling, ventilation, or air treatment (e.g., scenting) to enhance occupant comfort and well-being.

Design of contact elements and their interaction to ensure stable, low-resistance electrical connection under various mechanical and environmental conditions, including spring forces and material choices.

Connectors specifically designed for high current or voltage applications, often incorporating features for power delivery, thermal management, or combining power and signal lines.

Mechanical features or components integrated into connector housings or mating interfaces to ensure secure engagement and prevent accidental disengagement.

Techniques for combining multiple materials or layers, often with specialized surface treatments, coatings, or assembly methods, to create functional or aesthetically enhanced plastic articles, including consumer goods and encapsulated electronics.

Technologies specifically designed for securing children in vehicles, including child safety seats, impact absorption features, and mechanisms to ensure correct installation or detect misuse.

Focuses on novel circuit configurations for DC-DC, DC-AC, or AC-DC conversion, often involving resonant operation, multi-level structures, or switched capacitors to improve efficiency, power density, or voltage conversion ratios.

Safety features built into or around vehicle seats to protect occupants during various accident scenarios, including airbags, pre-crash positioning, and blast attenuation.

Technologies for efficiently delivering power to electric vehicles, encompassing fast charging, wireless charging, and smart grid integration, alongside vehicle-side control and management of the charging process.

Design and assembly of power conversion, distribution, and protection modules, focusing on compact form factors, efficient electrical connections, and robust protective measures for electronic systems, often in high-power applications.

Conductive bars or plates used for efficient power distribution within electrical apparatus, often featuring specific designs for connection, thermal management, or modularity to reduce material costs and increase rigidity.

Integration and control of electronic components within the vehicle, including power distribution, thermal management for integrated circuits, and advanced user interfaces such as voice assistants, often involving specialized housings or trim.

Devices and structural elements within the vehicle cabin or attached to the vehicle body designed to organize, secure, or support various articles, equipment, or even pets, often featuring customizable compartments or robust attachment mechanisms.

Systems and methods for detecting the presence, position, characteristics (e.g., weight, pressure, contact area), or state of vehicle occupants, often used for safety, comfort, or system control.

Innovations in mattresses, pillows, and other soft furnishings designed to improve user comfort, support, temperature regulation, or provide therapeutic benefits.

Methods for forming complex and lightweight structures from composite materials, typically involving fibrous reinforcement (e.g., carbon fiber) embedded in a resin matrix, for applications requiring high strength-to-weight ratios like aerospace or wind energy.

Methods and structures for integrating and enclosing electronic components into compact, multi-functional modules, often involving embedded components, multi-layer substrates, and electromagnetic shielding for performance and miniaturization.

Methods and components for optimizing the performance, efficiency, and control of electric motors, inverters, and power converters within electric vehicle and hybrid vehicle drivetrains.

Techniques and circuits designed to regulate output, manage input variations, mitigate resonance, or ensure stable operation of power converters under diverse load and source conditions. This includes adaptive, predictive, or fault-tolerant control schemes.

Design principles and connection methods that facilitate the easy assembly, disassembly, reconfiguration, or integration of functional modules and components in furniture systems.

Software, algorithms, and associated hardware for monitoring, controlling, and optimizing battery performance, safety, and lifespan, including charge/discharge cycles, thermal regulation, and system integration.

Handheld or motorized tools designed for efficiently removing insulation (stripping) or severing (cutting) electrical wires and cables during installation or maintenance processes.

Tools and machinery specifically designed to facilitate the installation of cables by pulling, pushing, or laying them over distances or through conduits, often employing mechanical advantage or specialized vehicles.

Systems designed to manage the temperature of multiple components in electric or hybrid vehicles, such as batteries, electric motors, power electronics, and the passenger cabin, often using shared or interconnected cooling/heating circuits.

Design and control of power supply architectures that combine multiple power sources (e.g., AC grid, DC battery, generators) or modular battery units, often featuring switching, conversion, and redundancy for enhanced reliability and flexibility.

Design techniques and components within connectors to minimize signal degradation, crosstalk, and impedance mismatches for high-frequency data transmission.

Techniques for building three-dimensional metal objects layer-by-layer using metal powders, including powder bed fusion, binder jetting, and directed energy deposition. This theme encompasses process mechanics, equipment design, and operational control for AM systems.

Methods and equipment for continuously shaping plastic materials by forcing them through a die, often involving screw extruders, heating elements, and downstream calibration.

Focuses on the structural integrity, housing, mounting, and physical integration of battery cells into robust and protected packs within electric vehicles, including manufacturing considerations.

Integration of power converters with energy storage devices (batteries, supercapacitors) or grid interfaces, often involving AC/DC conversion, power flow management, and fault handling for hybrid power systems or specific applications like EVs or PV.

Technologies that enable automated or mobile device-controlled access to a vehicle, including keyless entry, remote functions, and power-assisted steps or pedals designed to facilitate easier ingress and egress.

Methods and materials used to construct robust and protective enclosures for electronic devices, focusing on structural integrity, impact resistance, thermal dissipation, and specialized material properties for enhanced durability.

Systems and methods for transferring electrical energy without physical contact, often utilizing inductive or resonant coupling, including antenna design, resonance tracking, and control mechanisms for efficient power delivery.

Methods and tooling for forming structural components from fibrous materials impregnated with resin, involving processes like prepreg handling, resin infusion, and co-bonding during curing.

Specialized manufacturing processes and material compositions for producing various components of tires, focusing on properties such as weight reduction, self-sealing capabilities, or structural reinforcement, often involving winding or layering techniques.