Apparatus for sensing vehicle seat position

摘要

An apparatus (10) for sensing the position of a vehicle seat (12) movable between a forward position and a rearward position includes a Hall effect device (80) and a magnet (82) that produces a magnetic field that acts on the Hall effect device. A member (100) is constructed of a ferromagnetic material and has a portion positioned adjacent the magnet (82). The portion has a size that is unique for every different position of the vehicle seat (12) between the forward and rearward positions. The portion of the member (100) alters the flux path of the magnetic field which varies the portion of the magnetic field acting on the Hall effect device (80) to a degree that depends of the size of the portion of the member adjacent the magnet. The Hall effect device (80) provides a signal functionally related to the magnitude of the magnetic field acting on the Hall effect device.