Case with seat

A case (1), such as a suitcase or trolley case, with a seat (6) is disclosed. The case has a channel (7A, 7B) provided near or along a surface (such as the rear surface 4B) of the case, and the seat is movable between a first stowed position in which the seat is held within the channel and a second seating position in which at least part of the seat lies substantially flat along the top surface (4C) of the case. The seat may be stowed within a pocket (5) along the surface of the case, with the channel being housed inside the pocket. Alternatively, the surface of the seat may also act as the case surface when the seat is in the stowed position.

This application is a National Stage completion of PCT/GB2004/002085 filed May 14, 2004 which claims priority from British Application Serial No. 0311256.2 filed May 16, 2003.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a case, such as a suit, trolley, travelling, cabin, or carry-on case. More particularly, the present invention relates to a case having a seat that allows a user to sit on the case.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

With the proliferation of travel routes and travel options, more people than ever before are travelling long distances. Typically, such travellers carry a suitcase (also called a trolley case or traveller's case) to hold personal items such as clothing, documents, and other sundries. While travelling there are periods during which it is desirable to sit down, e.g., at an airport or train station, but no convenient seat is available. In view of this inconvenience, various mechanisms for combining a suitcase and a seat have been proposed.

For instance, International Patent Publication Nos. WO03/099056 and WO98/03096 describe suitcases with foldable chairs that can be unfolded when a user desires to sit. Unfortunately, these foldable chairs are relatively complex and expensive to manufacture, and they are also fairly bulky and cumbersome when in use. German Patent No. DE4221215 more simply proposes to affix a seat having a smooth sitting surface onto the top surface of a suitcase. The seat is formed from a separate moulded part that is riveted and/or screwed to the suitcase. However, the seat in DE4221215 is likely to undesirably detract from the aesthetic look, quality and design of the suit case, and it may further impair the suitcase's ability to fit into constrained spaces like luggage racks and/or to comply with carry-on luggage size restriction guides.

In a similar vein, solutions for altering a suitcase to act as a tram or stroller for a child have also been proposed. For example, International Patent Publication No. WO99/60882 discloses a travel case mounted on a collapsible trolley that includes a seat for seating an infant. The seat may include a vertical wall support of flexible sheet material for supporting the infant, the support having a pair of openings through which the legs of the infant can pass. This seat support is suspended from an inverted U-shaped safety bar. A backrest of stiff, apertured sheet material is fixed to and extends between two longitudinal members that are slidably displaceable (via a handle) along the back of the case. In a first embodiment of WO99/60882, no separate seat rest or platform other than the case's top surface is provided to support the rear end of the infant. This may degrade the structural reliability of the case and/or provide insufficient support, particularly if a heavier load such as an adult or larger child would occupy the seat. Furthermore, the use of a top suitcase surface as a seat may be uncomfortable for a user as that surface typically lies above parts of the suitcase frame and/or is not entirely flat.

In a second embodiment of WO99/60882, the upper surface of the case has a flat surface area permanently formed on it to provide added support for a sitting infant. However, again, such a permanently affixed seat surface may undesirably detract from the aesthetic look, quality and design of the suit case. Furthermore, as already indicated, such a permanently affixed seat surface (as well as other bulky elements, such as additional wheels, that protrude from the case) may impair the case's ability to fit into constrained spaces like luggage racks as well as the case's ability to comply with carry-on luggage size restriction guides.

European Published Patent Application No. EP1402797A discloses a wheeled suitcase with a fold-away seat (suitable for receiving a small child) placed in a fixed or removable manner on the top surface of the suitcase. The telescopic shaft or shafts of the suitcase can provide a means of support for the back of the child or, alternatively, a handle for the child to hold on to. The seat comprises a seat base part that rests on the top wall of the suitcase and at least one backrest part that is hinged to the seat base and that can be vertically positioned for use. When the seat is in use the back rest part lies against, and may be temporarily fixed to, the telescopic shafts that can be extended from the frame of the suitcase via a retractable handle. When the seat is not in use, the back rest part is folded down and both the seat base and back rest parts remain resting on the top wall of the suitcase. Alternatively, the assembly of the seat base and back rest parts can be rotated on the hinges and placed against the lowered telescopic shafts. Again, however, the seat base and back rest parts in EP1402797A undesirably detract from the aesthetic features and also significantly impair the case's ability to fit into constrained or restricted spaces.

Consequently, there is clearly a need for a suitcase with a seat that can provide sufficient support for an adult while not significantly detracting from the compactness or the aesthetic appearance of the suitcase when the seat is not in use.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention aims to resolve these drawbacks by providing a case with a seat as set out in the appended claims.

More particularly, the invention provides a case comprising a seat connected to the case. The case has a channel provided near or along a surface of the case, and the seat is movable between a first stowed position in which the seat is held within the channel and a second seating position in which at least part of the seat lies substantially flat along the top surface of the case. The surface near or along which the seat is stowed is preferably the rear surface of the case, but may also be another surface of the case such as a side surface. In one embodiment, the seat is stowed within a pocket along the stowing surface of the case, and in this case the channel is housed inside the pocket. In an alternative embodiment, the surface of the seat also acts as the corresponding surface for the case when the seat is in the stowed position. The channel preferably comprises first and second channel guide sections, with each channel guide section having a slot formed therewithin. The seat also preferably comprises a pair of lugs at one end thereof, and the lugs are slidably engageable within the channel guide slots. The case may also further comprise a retractable handle having two vertically extendible members, each vertically extendible member having a slot formed therewithin and the lugs of the seat also being slidably and pivotably engageable within the handle member slots.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention,FIGS. 1 and 2are back and front perspective views respectively of a case1with a seat6connected to the case. Case1is preferably a suitcase (the terms suitcase, trolley case, travelling case, cabin case, and carry-on case are used interchangeably herein), but it may generally comprise any other type of case such as a case for carrying shopping or other goods.

Case1may have a frame covered with a flexible material such as fabric or leather; however case1may also comprise a rigid material such as plastic or aluminium (in which case a frame may not be necessary). In the illustrated embodiment ofFIGS. 1 and 2, case1has a body2defined by an internal case frame3that is generally in the form of a rectangular box. Case frame3is partly indicated in broken lines inFIG. 1. Case body2has a front surface4A, a rear surface4B, a top surface4C, a lower surface4D, and two side surfaces4E and4F. In a preferred embodiment, seat6is stowed in or along rear surface4B of case1.

In accordance with this preferred embodiment and as shown inFIG. 1, when the seat is not in use, seat6is stowed in a pocket5along rear surface4B. In the stowed position, seat6is at least predominantly covered by pocket5and therefore the aesthetic look and design of case1is not significantly altered when the seat is in this position. Furthermore, since seat6lies along the surface4B when stowed and since the seat has a similar (or smaller) area to that of the rear case surface, the compactness of case1is also not significantly affected when the seat is not in use.

When a user desires to use seat6, the seat is withdrawn from pocket5and placed in a seating position (shown in solid line inFIG. 2) in which seat6lies substantially flat upon top surface4C of case1. Like a conventional firm seat base, seat6may be formed from plastics or from a fabric-covered metal frame. Seat6serves to spread the force of a sitting user over substantially the entire frame3of case1, and in this manner is better able to support heavier loads than many prior art case/seat combinations—in particular those that are only suitable for supporting infants or small children. As shown, seat6may also have a recess6A near one end thereof to facilitate the removal of the seat from pocket5.

In a preferred embodiment, case1further includes a retractable U-shaped handle10. U-shaped handle10comprises two telescoping (i.e., vertically extendible) members10A and10B coupled together at their top ends by a horizontal bar10C. Members10A and10B and bar10C may be formed as a single piece, as illustrated, or as separate pieces that are subsequently connected together. Horizontal bar10C may also comprise a grip (not shown) to facilitate its manipulation by a user.

As best seen inFIG. 2, at or near the sides of rear surface4B, case frame3includes a channel formed from two channel guide sections7A and7B each having a slot8A and8B (respectively) formed therein. The channel is generally housed inside of pocket5, and seat6includes a pair of lugs9A and9B at one end that engage slidably within slots8A and8B while seat6is in pocket5. In the illustrated embodiment, telescoping members10A and10B of handle10further include slots10D and10E (respectively) in which lugs9A and9B are also slidably and pivotably engageable. The top ends of slots8A and8B are open-ended and the width of slots10D and10E is similar to that of slots8A and8B. In this manner, as seat6is stowed in pocket5, lugs9A and9B slide down slots8A/10D and8B/10E until they reach a bottom end (not shown) of one or both pairs of those slots. At this point, seat6reaches the fully stowed position. As seat6is pulled into the seating position, lugs9A and9B are slid up slots8A/10D and8B/10E eventually leaving slots8A and8B as shown inFIG. 2. Thus, in this embodiment, when seat6has been removed from pocket5and is in or near its seating position, lugs9A and9B are held only in slots10D and10E and seat6can then be pivoted so that it lies substantially flat upon top surface4C.

Case1, seat6, and the length of slots8A,8B and/or10D,10E are preferably dimensioned so that seat6is fully covered by pocket5when in the stowed position. Furthermore, the length of slots10D and10E may be dimensioned so that when handle10is partly or fully extended, the bottom ends of slots10D and10E are brought into contact with lugs9A and9B to partially lift seat6so that the end of seat6with recess6A protrudes from pocket5. In this manner, by extending handle10, recess6A becomes more easily accessible to a user. Conversely, when handle10is returned to its fully retracted position, the top ends of slots10D and10E may serve to force lugs9A and9B downward, returning seat6to the fully stowed position.

In another embodiment, illustrated in the side view ofFIG. 3, seat6moves only within slots8A and8B (in channel guides7A and7B), and slots8A and8B are closed at both their top and bottom ends. The retractable handle10(not shown inFIG. 3) is independent of the mechanism for moving seat6between the seating and stowed positions, and therefore handle10can be dispensed with in this embodiment. Referring toFIG. 3, seat6comprises a main seat portion6B and a base seat portion6C pivotably connected to one another at6D by a hinge or the like. This enables main seat portion6B to lie substantially flat on top surface4C of case1even though lug9B can only climb to a lower height at the top of slot8B within channel guide7B. In this embodiment, to ensure ready access to seat6, recess6A (not shown inFIG. 3) preferably protrudes slightly from pocket5even when seat6is in the fully stowed position.

Referring back toFIGS. 1 and 2, case frame3may optionally include a retractable ground support member11that extends from the bottom end of front surface4A when in use and retracts into a recess within case1when not. When extracted from frame3, support member11helps to further stabilise case1, preventing the case from toppling over when a person sits on seat6. A mechanical linkage (not shown) may be provided to extract support member11automatically when seat6is placed in the seating position. Additionally or alternatively, a retractable ground support member (not shown) that extends from the bottom end of rear surface4B may also be used for added stability.

Like a conventional suitcase, case1may further include a carrying handle12and wheels13A and13B, as shown. Wheels13A and13B may lock when seat6is in the seating position and/or when a significant load is placed on seat6.

In an alternative embodiment (not shown), no pocket5is provided, and instead the surface of seat6comprises all or part of the rear surface4B of case1. In this case, rear surface4B is slidable along a channel (similar to the one formed by channel guides7A and7B above) so that all or part of rear surface4B can be slid upward and then pivoted forward to lie substantially flat on the top surface4C of the case. This embodiment may be particularly suitable for cases made of a rigid material. The internal surface of case1that is exposed at the back of the case (when the rear surface4B is moved into the seating position) may comprise a flexible or a rigid material, although preferably the appearance of this internal surface is the same as or similar to that of rear surface4B.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments, it is evident that numerous alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. For example, seat6could be stowed along (or could comprise) other surfaces of the case such as front surface4A or side surfaces4E or4F.