Patent Publication Number: US-2021178939-A1

Title: Foldable Car Seat

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Non-provisional application Ser. No. 16/452,449, filed on Jun. 25, 2019, which claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/689,411 filed on Jun. 25, 2018, both of which are entirely incorporated by this reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     The present teachings relate to a foldable automobile seat that can accommodate children of different sizes. 
     SUMMARY 
     Children of different sizes need different car seats. Infants, toddlers, and bigger children all have different car seat needs. 
     As a child grows, the need to buy different car seats can become quite costly. And removing an old seat and installing a new one as a child grows is time-consuming and inconvenient. 
     The present teachings include an automobile seat with a car seat portion, a seat belt, a back portion, and a bottom portion. The secondary car-seat portion is foldable from the back portion to reveal a child seat. 
     The secondary car-seat portion suitable for a toddler can be deployed from the back portion of the automobile seat to reveal a front-facing position. In this position, the contact region, i.e., the part of the secondary car-seat portion in contact with the toddler or the toddler&#39;s back, is positioned so that the toddler is facing the front of the car. The secondary car-seat portion suitable for an infant has a rear-facing position. In this configuration, the contact region is positioned so that the infant faces the rear of the car. The back surface of the secondary car-seat portion suitable for an infant (in the rear-facing position) must be high enough for the infant&#39;s head to rest on the back surface in the rear-facing position. The distance between this back surface and the back portion should be sufficient for the infant to sit comfortably and be able to stretch their legs and arms. The width of this back surface should be greater than the width of the infant. The booster position, suitable for bigger children, also has a contact region that positions the child to face the front of the car. 
     For the car seat portions suitable for an infant and toddler (in the rear-facing position and front-facing position, respectively), a strap restrains the child&#39;s shoulders and pelvis. For the secondary car-seat portion suitable for a bigger child (in the booster position), a seat belt serves as the restraint in some versions. Because the seat configuration for the infant (rear-facing position) and toddler (front-facing position) differs, the strap is relocatable; it moves based on the seat configuration. 
     In the booster position, the child seat boosts the child higher. In some examples, the child&#39;s larger size combined with the vertically upward boost allows for the seat belt to safely restrain the larger child. 
     When in the stowed position, the secondary car-seat portion is pulled up and returned to the back portion. The seat bottom of the secondary car-seat portion is always in contact with the bottom portion of the automobile seat, regardless of whether the secondary car-seat portion is in the front-facing position, rear-facing position, or booster position. 
     In some examples, the child car seat does not have a lap bar, contracting piston, or padded bar restraint. 
     In another embodiment, when the secondary car-seat portion is deployed to reveal the forward-facing position, the part of the secondary car-seat portion that is parallel to the bottom portion of the automobile seat can be pulled or folded out to configure the rear-facing position. The automobile seat can be retrofitted into a vehicle or used as a standalone and placed on a conventional car seat in another embodiment. The option also exists for the secondary car-seat portion suitable for an infant (the rear-facing configuration) to be pulled out from the bottom portion of the automobile seat. Pushing the rear-facing car-seat portion down into the automobile seat&#39;s bottom portion stows. 
     In yet another embodiment, remote control functionality allows the secondary car-seat portion to be deployed automatically. Also, the automobile seat can be heated or cooled for the child&#39;s comfort. 
     This disclosure covers an automobile seat having a bottom portion, a back portion, a seat belt, and a secondary car-seat portion having a back. The car-seat portion is foldable among a user rear-facing position, a user front-facing position, a user booster position, and a stowed position. In some versions, the secondary car-seat portion sits inside the automobile seat in the stowed position. 
     The rear-facing position orients the user-contact region toward a car&#39;s back end. The booster position orients the user-contact region toward a car front end. And the front-facing position orients the user-contact region toward a car front end, as well. 
     Some versions use a shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap, which is sometimes adjustable to a user size. In these or other versions, the car-seat portion sits inside a front-facing portion of the back portion when stowed. And in some versions, when the secondary car-seat portion is in either of the rear-facing position, the front-facing position, or the booster position, the car-seat portion presses into the automobile seat bottom portion. 
     In some versions, the secondary car-seat portion doesn&#39;t have a lap bar, a contracting piston, a padded bar restraint, or a slide assembly. This portion can store inside the back portion of the automobile seat or sit within the automobile seat. 
     The booster position way orient the seat belt to restrain the user. 
     In some versions, the car-seat portion folds forward out of the back portion. In these or other versions, the car-seat portion connects to the automobile seat between a bottom edge of the back portion and an edge of the car seat bottom. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Those of skill in the art will understand that the drawings described below are only for illustrative purposes. The drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the present teachings in any way. 
         FIGS. 1A-B  are a side perspective view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion in the rear-facing position and a front perspective view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion in the front-facing position, with an infant in a rear-facing position ( 1 A) and a toddler in a front-facing position ( 1 B) with a strap restraining them at their shoulders and pelvis. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion in a stowed position. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion deployed in a front-facing position, with a strap restraining the shoulders and pelvis and a seat belt present. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective side view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion in a rear-facing position showing a strap that restrains the shoulders and pelvis. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective front view of an automobile seat with a secondary car-seat portion in a booster position, with a seat belt restraining a larger child. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Many aspects of the invention can be better understood with the references made to the drawings below. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. Instead, emphasis is placed on clearly illustrating the components of the present invention. Moreover, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts through the several views of the drawings. 
       FIG. 1A-B  shows an automobile seat  100  with a secondary car-seat portion  120  in the rear-facing position ( 1 A) and front-facing position ( 1 B). The infant  5  in  FIG. 1A  is facing toward the rear of the vehicle. In  FIG. 1B , the secondary car-seat portion  120  is in the front-facing position, with the toddler  10  facing toward the front of the vehicle. A shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  restrains the toddler&#39;s shoulders and pelvis. The secondary car-seat portion  120  is deployed from the back portion  125  of the automobile seat. The bottom portion  130  of the automobile seat  100  is in contact with the car seat bottom  135 . 
       FIG. 2  is a view of an automobile seat  100  with the secondary car-seat portion  120  disposed or stored in the back portion  125 . 
       FIG. 3  shows a view of an automobile seat  100  with a secondary car-seat portion  120  deployed in a front-facing position, with a shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  and a seat belt  140  ( FIG. 4 ) present. The shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  is relocatable; it can be moved depending on the child being transported. An infant  5  and toddler  10  can both be transported with the strap  115  since both children&#39;s sizes require restraint at the shoulders and pelvis. A larger child can be transported with the seat belt  140 . 
       FIG. 4  is a side view of an automobile seat  100  with a secondary car-seat portion  120  in a rear-facing position showing a shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  that restrains the shoulders and pelvis. Infant width panels  410  should be wide enough to accommodate an infant  5  comfortably (i.e., the infant  5  should not be spilling out of the infant width panels  410 ) and for the shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  to secure the infant  5 . The location of the shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  for an infant  5  differs from that for a toddler  10 , which is the reason why the shoulder- or pelvis-restraining strap  115  is relocatable. An infant headrest  415  should be high enough to support the head of an infant  5 . The head of an infant  5  should not extend above the headrest  415 . As seen in  FIG. 1A , the head of infant  5  is stabilized and not free to flop around. The distance between the headrest  415  and the back portion  125  should be large enough for an infant  5  to stretch its arms and legs without difficulty. 
       FIG. 5  views a big child  15  in a booster position, restrained by a seat belt  140 . In the booster position, the big child  15  is facing toward the front of the car. The secondary car-seat portion  120  is deployed from the back portion  125  and is returned to the back portion  125  for stowing purposes. In contrast to toddler  10 , the big child  15  can be retrained with a seat belt  140 ; restraint of the shoulders and pelvis is not as critical for the big child  15  because seat belt  140  can adequately restrain child  15 . The seat bottom  135  of the secondary car-seat portion  120  is in contact with the bottom portion  130  when the secondary car-seat portion  120  is in use. 
     Other Embodiments 
     The detailed description set-forth above is provided to aid those skilled in the art in practicing the present invention. However, the invention described and claimed herein is not limited in scope by the specific embodiments herein disclosed because these embodiments are intended to illustrate several aspects of the invention. Any equivalent embodiments are intended to be within the scope of this invention. Indeed, various modifications of the invention in addition to those shown and described herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description, which does not depart from the spirit or scope of the present inventive discovery. Such modifications are also intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims.