Patent ID: 11904732
Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 10:
11. A method of adjusting a passenger compartment arrangement of a vehicle, the method comprising:
providing the vehicle with a first seating assembly, a second seating assembly being positioned rearward of the first seating assembly, a third seating assembly positioned rearward of the first seating assembly and laterally adjacent to the second seating assembly, the first seating assenbly, the second seating assembly, and the third seating assembly, each comprising a seat and a seatback that define a seating surface configured to receive an occupant, and the vehicle having a plurality of access doors that separate the passenger compartment from a vehicle-exterior environment;
receiving a request from a user interface to transition an arrangement of the passenger compartment of the vehicle from a first arrangement to a second arrangement, wherein the second arrangement is a child care arrangement;
determining with an occupancy sensor of the second seating assembly whether the second seating assembly is unoccupied prior to initiation of the transition from the first arrangement to the second arrangement;
detecting a first current seat position of the seat of the first seating assembly with a first seat position sensor;
comparing the first current seat position of the first seating assembly to a first desired seat position and determining a first seat positional difference;
detecting a second current seat position of the seat of the second seating assembly with a second seat position sensor;
comparing the second current seat position of the second seating assembly to a second desired seat position and determining a second seat positional difference;
in response to the second seat positional difference, activating a seat actuator of the second seating assembly to align the seat of the second seating assembly with the second desired seat position, the second desired seat position being an upwardly-stowed position of the seat of the second seating assembly;
detecting a first current rail position of the first seating assembly along a rail system within the passenger compartment of the vehicle with a first rail sensor;
comparing the first current rail position of the first seating assembly with a first desired rail position and determining a first rail positional difference; and
in response to the first rail positional difference, activating a first translation actuator of the first seating assembly to align the first seating assembly with the first desired rail position, the first desired rail position resulting in the first and second seating assemblies being positioned in a central region of the passenger compartment.