MOUNTING FOR CHILD-RESTRAINT SYSTEM IN VEHICLE

Abstract: A child-restraint system is mounted in relation to a seat of a motor vehicle by mounting means which includes a base portion secured to the vehicle structure and a mounting portion which extends to an accessible position upon the seat where it may be engaged by the restraint system, the mounting portion being able to be moved from its position on the seat when it is not required to be engaged by the child-restraint system.

Description: Title: MOUNTING FOR CHILD-RESTRAINT SYSTEM IN VEHICLE Description of Invention This invention relates to a mounting of a child-restraint system in a vehicle. The invention has been devised in relation to such mounting in a road vehicle, and will hereafter be described in such a context, but it will be appreciated the invention may be more broadly applicable to other vehicles. Safety considerations and, in some areas, legislation, require that small children travelling in motor vehicles be restrained by equipment designed specifically for this pmpose. The safety belts or other appliances usually provided in motor vehicles for assisting the safety of adults travelling in the vehicle by restraining them and preventing them from being thrown about within the vehicle in the event of an accident are not suitable for restraining children smaller than a certain size. The item of equipment most commonly used for child-restraint in motor vehicles is a so-called "child's safety seat", which is fitted in the vehicle in one of the seats thereof and provides seating accommodation of a size to accept a small child and is provided with restraining straps or the like to hold the child in the safety seat. It is, of course, important that such a child's safety seat should be securely held in position in the vehicle. There have been cases where injury to a child has resulted from a safety seat breaking free when the vehicle has been involved in an accident. Fixing of a safety seat by use of the safety belts provided for adult resti'aint is not adequate. Accordingly there is a requirement for providing a seat of a vehicle with mounting means with which a child-restraint system can be engaged, the mounting means being sufficiently strong and rigid to hold the child- restraint system in place if the vehicle should suffer an accident. At the same time, the mounting means should not interfere with the comfort and/or convenience of the seat when it is not in use for securing a child-restraint system. In particular, there is a draft international standard known as ISOFLX for standardised universal attachment of child-restraint systems to vehicles. ISOFLX Scheme D employs two lower rigid (or semi-rigid) anchorages in a defined area of the seat biι*ht (i.e. the region of intersection of the surfaces of the seat cushion and backrest portions), and an additional anchorage for use with a tether strap. The lower anchorages are designed to be used with tether hooks, small push-button buckles, or ISOFLX connectors. The dimensions and disposition of the lower anchorages are laid down. It is broadly the object of the present invention to meet the above- described requirements as far as possible, in providing ISOFLX lower anchorages. According to the one aspect of the present invention, we provide a vehicle including a seat and a mounting means for mounting a child-restraint system in relation to said seat, said mounting means comprising a base portion secured to the vehicle structure and/or seat and a mounting portion extending to an accessible position upon the seat and adapted for engagement by the restraint system, such mounting portion being able to be removed from its position upon the seat when it is not required to be used. According to another aspect of the invention, we provide a mounting means for mounting a child-restraint system in relation to a vehicle seat, comprising a base portion adapted to be secured in relation to the vehicle structure and a mounting portion adapted to extend to an accessible position upon the seat and removable from said position upon the seat when not required to be used. Preferably the base portion of the mounting means is connected or adapted for connection to the vehicle structure, e.g. to the floor pan of the vehicle, beneath the lower end of a backrest portion of the seat and at the rear of a cushion portion of the seat, whilst the mounting portion is arranged to extend between the backrest and cushion portion of the seat for engagement by the resti'aint system above the rear of the cushion portion and at the bottom of the backrest portion, i.e. adjacent the bight of the seat. The mounting portion may be completely removable from the base portion, or alternatively may be movably, e.g. pivotably, connected thereto so as to be movable between operative and stowed positions. In the case of a mounting means whose mounting portion is completely removable from the base portion thereof, the portions may have engagement by a releasable fastening, for example of a type analogous to that used for the fastening buckles for vehicle safety belts. To engage the mounting portion to the base portion, the mounting portion may be simply pushed through the "bight-line" between the backrest and cushion portions of the seat until it cooperates with the base portion and snaps into engagement between the mounting and base portions. Removal may require operation of a catch-releasing element, e.g. a push-button, of the fastening means. In the case of a mounting means whose mounting portion is pivotable relative to the base portion, this will in general require to be used with a seat which is able to be folded. Such seats characteristically used as the rear seats in passenger cars of the hatchback or estate car type but also in some saloon cars, have a seat cushion portion which can be pivoted forwardly and upwardly about an axis adjacent its front edge, whilst the backrest portion of the seat is pivotable about an axis adjacent its lower edge relative to the vehicle structure. When the cushion has been pivoted forwardly and upwardly, the mounting portion will be able to be moved either to or from its operative position in which it extends between the back and cushion portions of the seat, after which the seat cushion can be returned to its normal position. Preferably the mounting portion is pivotable forwardly and downwardly from its operative position to its stowed position, in which latter position it is disposed beneath a rear part of the seat cushion portion. The mounting portion preferably affords two mounting elements in the form of anchorages of the configuration and disposition specified by ISOFLX, spaced laterally of the seat, for cooperation with corresponding fastening means on a child-restraint system. The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:- Figure 1 is a diagrammatic elevation of a first embodiment of the invention, shown in relation to part of a seat of a vehicle; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic perspective view of the device shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a view as Figure 1 but of a further embodiment of the invention; Figure 4 is a perspective view of the embodiment of Figure 3. Referring firstly to Figure 1 of the drawings, this shows a lower rear part of a vehicle seat, the seat comprising a cushion portion 10 and a backrest portion 11. Each of these portions comprises upholstery materials disposed on a rigid frame: part of the frame of the cushion portion is indicated at 12 and part of the frame of the backrest portion at 13. The upholstered rearmost part of the cushion portion 10 and lowermost part of the backrest portion 11 approach or touch one another but it will be appreciated that by virtue of the resilient nature of the upholstery on each of these portions it is possible for a component to be inserted therebetween, as will be described hereafter. The cushion portion 10 may be tiltable upwardly and forwardly about an axis, not shown, adjacent its front end: in the course of such movement of the cushion portion the frame member 12 moves in an arcuate path of movement as indicated by the line 14. Part of a floor portion of the vehicle structure is indicated at 15. To provide for mounting of a child-restraint system to the seat, there is provided mounting means in the form of a base portion indicated generally at 16 and a mounting portion indicated generally at 17. The base portion 16 comprises a plate 18 which may be secured to the vehicle floor 15 by bolts as indicated at 19, whilst a wall portion 20 is upstanding from the plate 18 in the direction towards the contacting parts of tlie seat cushion and backrest portions. The mounting portion 17 extends between the adjacent parts of the seat cushion and backrest portions to engage the base portion 16. The mounting portion 17 comprises a body 22 having a slot 23 into which the wall portion 20 is closely engagable, and there is provided releasable fastening means for holding them in such engagement. Such fastening means may be similar or analogous to the fastening means commonly used in the buckles of vehicle safety belts, and include a catch member engagable with an opening 20a in the wall portion, and spring biasing means so that when placed together the cooperating parts snap into engagement with one another and are thereafter held in engagement. They may be released by operation of a push-button or the like which preferably is disposed in a pail 24 of the body 22 which is accessible in use above die rear of the seat cushion portion. The body further is provided with two spaced mounting elements or anchorages each in the form of generally U-shaped metal element 25. These are spaced and dimensioned as laid down by ISOFLX to be engagable by a child- restraint system such as a child's safety seat, to secure the latter to the seat of the vehicle. Such engagement will be by way of suitable releasable fastening means. It will be appreciated that normally such a child-restraint system will be further secured to the seat of the vehicle by at least one further mounting device in addition to that illustrated. Referring now to Figures 3 and 4 of the drawings, these show a further embodiment of the invention. There is a seat arranged as above described, but the mounting means for the child safety system comprises a base portion 30 and mounting poition 31 which are pivotably secured to one another for angular movement about an axis 32. The base portion 30 is fitted to the floor structure of the vehicle as above described, whilst the mounting poition 31 is able to be pivoted between the operative position in which it is shown in full lines in Figure 3, wherein it extends between the cushion portion and backrest portion of the seat so that mounting elements 33 are accessible, and an inoperative or stowed position in which it is shown in broken lines in Figure 3. In the latter position the part of the mounting poition 31 having the mounting elements 33 lies against the floor of the vehicle immediately beneath the rear of the seat cushion portion. In order to move the mounting portion between such positions, the cushion portion of the seat must be pivoted forwardly and upwardly such as indicated by the line 14 in Figure 1, until it is clear of both the mounting portion 31 and the backrest portion of the seat. The resilience of the upholsteiy of the seat enables the seat cushion portion to be moved past the mounting portion 31 when the latter is in its operative position. In some vehicle seat systems, a pivotable blade-like mounting portion may be utilised in conjunction with a seat which does not fold in the manner above described. Although the invention will usually be used in relation to a rear seat of a passenger-carrying motor vehicle, it will be appreciated that in certain circumstances it may be used in relation to a front seat of such a vehicle, or more broadly in relation to a seat of any vehicle. The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following claims, or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means for peifoiming the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately or in any combination of such features, be utilised for realising the invention in diverse forms thereof.

Claims: CLALMS 1. A vehicle including a seat and a mounting means for mounting a child- restraint system in relation to said seat, said mounting means comprising a base poition secured to the vehicle structure and/or seat and a mounting portion extending to an accessible position upon the seat and adapted for engagement by the restraint system, such mounting portion being able to be removed from its position upon the seat when it is not required to be used. 2. A mounting means for mounting a child-restraint system in relation to a vehicle seat, comprising a base poition adapted to be secured in relation to the vehicle structure and a mounting poition adapted to extend to an accessible position upon the seat and removable from said position upon the seat when not required to be used. 3. A vehicle or mounting means according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the base poition of the mounting means is connected or adapted for connection to the vehicle structure beneath the lower end of a backrest poition of the seat and at the rear of a cushion poition of the seat, whilst the mounting poition is arranged to extend between the backrest and cushion poition of the seat for engagement by the restraint system above the rear of the cushion poition and at the bottom of the backrest poition. 4. A vehicle or mounting means according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the mounting poition is completely removable from the base poition. 5. A vehicle or mounting means according to any one of Claims 1 to 3 wherein the mounting poition is movably connected to the base poition so as to be movable between operative and stowed positions. 6. A vehicle or mounting means according to Claim 5 wherein the mounting poition is pivotably connected to the base poition. 7. A vehicle or mounting means according to Claim 4 wherein the base and mounting portions have engagement by a releasable fastening. 8. A vehicle or mounting means according to Claim 7 wherein said releasable fastening provides for snap engagement between the mounting and base portions. 9. A vehicle or mounting means according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the mounting poition affords two mounting elements spaced laterally of tire seat, for cooperation with corresponding fastening means on a child- restraint system.

Inventors: ALLAN IAN LEONARD, SAUER JENS, ALLAN, IAN, LEONARD, SAUER, JENS
Applicants: ALLAN IAN LEONARD, JOHNSON CONTROLS AUTOMOTIVE UK, SAUER JENS, ALLAN, IAN, LEONARD, JOHNSON CONTROLS AUTOMOTIVE (UK) LIMITED, SAUER, JENS
Application year: 1998
Main classification: B60N2
IPC codes: B60N2, B60R22