Patent Publication Number: US-2007108789-A1

Title: Vehicle seat

Description:
This invention relates to a seat for use in a vehicle, particularly but not exclusively where the vehicle forms part of a mass transit or underground train.  
      There may be equipment mounted underneath such seats, and it may therefore be desirable for the under-seat space to be boxed in. For example, in the case of underground trains, parts of the door-opening mechanism may be installed under the seats. This ensures that such under-seat equipment is not accidentally damaged, for example by being knocked by passengers&#39; luggage; and if the box is substantially waterproof it provides the further benefit that the floor of the vehicle can be washed down without risk of water getting onto or into the equipment. However, such a box makes access to the equipment, for maintenance or replacement, less convenient.  
      According to the present invention there is provided a seat for use in a vehicle, the seat comprising side members, a seat member hingedly connected to a support along its top edge and supported by the side members, and a front panel hingedly connected to the underside of the front edge of the seat member, so that the space below the seat member is enclosed by the side members and front panel.  
      Since the seat member is connected to the support by a hinge, it can be raised up, and the front panel raised with it and pivoted so as to lie underneath the seat member, so as to provide comparatively unrestricted access to the space below the seat member.  
      Preferably the front panel locates onto a locating member attached to the floor of the vehicle, and it may be secured to the locating member. The locating member may define a slot into which the bottom edge of the front panel fits, or vice versa. Preferably the front panel is sealed to the locating member, for example by a sealing strip along the bottom edge of the front panel. And preferably both the hinge connecting the front panel to the seat member, and the hinge connecting the seat member to the support, are provided with seals. Similarly, seals are preferably provided between the seat member and the side members, and between the side members and the front panel, so that the space below the seat member is enclosed in a substantially watertight fashion.  
      The side members are preferably panels. They may be connected to the seat member, for example by another hinge, but more typically would be fixed to the floor of the vehicle. The support to which the seat member is connected might be a transverse partition within the vehicle, or might be the wall of the vehicle.  
      Preferably the seat member includes a backrest, and is preferably padded on its upper surface for comfort. It may also incorporate arm rests.  
      Preferably the seat member, and the front panel, and the hinge connection between them comprise extruded elements. The hinge connection between the seat member and the support is preferably also formed of extruded elements. 
    
    
      The invention will now be further and more particularly described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:  
       FIG. 1  shows a sectional view, in a vertical plane, through a bench seat of the invention; and  
       FIGS. 2   a  and  2   b  show views corresponding to that of  FIG. 1  to illustrate raising the seat. 
    
    
      Referring to  FIG. 1 , a bench seat  10  is shown for use in an underground train, attached to a wall of the vehicle. The structural components of the bench seat  10  are formed from interlocked aluminium extrusions  12 - 17 , as follows. A support rail  12  is attached to the wall  20  by bolts  22 . A top rail  13  forms the top of the seat back, and is hingedly connected to the support rail  12 . A back plate  14  is attached along its top edge to the top rail  13 , and is attached along its bottom edge to a hollow corner rail  15 . The front edge of the hollow corner rail  15  is connected to a seat panel  16 . And a front panel  17  is hingedly connected to the underside of the seat panel  16  near its front edge. The bottom edge of the front panel  17  locates on a base strip  18  attached to the floor  24 .  
      Considering these structural components in more detail, the support rail  12  has two opposed arcuate projections  23  and  24  along its outer face; these are each part-cylindrical, and concentric, but the radii of curvature are different. A strip of rubber  25  is attached along the lower face of the support rail  12 . The top rail  13  defines two arcuate slots into which the projections  23  and  24  engage; it also defines a flat surface which rests against the rubber strip  25 ; and it defines a pair of ridges and slots  26  along its bottom edge which mate with a corresponding pair of ridges and slots  27  along the top edge of the back plate  14 . Similarly, the corner rail  15  defines a pair of ridges and slots  28  along its top edge which mate with a corresponding pair of ridges and slots  29  along the bottom edge of the back plate  14 , and defines a pair of ridges and slots  30  along its front edge which mate with a corresponding pair of ridges and slots  31  along the back edge of the seat panel  16 . The seat panel  16  has three longitudinal L-shaped flanges  32  to enhance its rigidity. Along its front edge the seat panel  16  curves downwardly and has a downward-facing inclined flange  34 , alongside which is a flat area on which is a rubber sealing strip  35 , and on its lower surface is a projection defining a C-shaped slot  36 . The front panel  17  has a forwardly-projecting box flange  37  which rests against the sealing strip  35 , and an inclined forwardly-projecting flange  38  which rests against the flange  34 ; it also has a backwardly-projecting C-shaped flange  40  which locates in the slot  36 . It has two longitudinal L-shaped flanges  41  to enhance its rigidity, and a base flange  42  resting on a rubber seal  44  on the base strip  18 .  
      These structural components  12 - 17  are assembled by sliding the ridges or projections into the slots or grooves. The pairs of ridges and slots  26  and  27 ,  28  and  29 ,  30  and  31  provide substantially rigid joints, and after assembling these joints they are spot welded, and a bead of sealant is applied along the front edge. The projections  23  and  24  engaging with the slots at the back of the top rail  13  allows the top rail  13  (and consequently the rest of the seat) to hinge about the support rail  12  through an angle of just over 90°. Similarly the C-shaped flange  40  in the slot  36  enables the front panel  17  to hinge about the seat panel  16  through an angle of about 75°. The rubber strips  25  and  35  ensure that the hinged joints are also watertight (when the seat is in the position shown). The front panel  17  may also be provided with a locking mechanism (not shown) by which it is secured to the base strip  18 .  
      At each end the seat  10  is provided with a support plate  45  with a sealing strip (not shown) along its outer edge, the support plate  45  being fixed to the wall  20  and floor  24  and abutting the rear and under surfaces of the structural components  12 - 17  when in the position shown. The support plate  45  may be of cast aluminium. It provides support to the seat panel  16  in carrying the weight of the passengers. The flanges  41  on the front panel  17  are cut off 25 mm from each end, so as to present a flat surface up against the support plate  45 .  
      The seat panel  16  and the back plate  14  are provided with upholstery. Considering the seat panel  16 , each passenger position along the bench seat  10  is upholstered separately, being provided with a rectangular steel tray  50  with ridges or corrugations in its base, upstanding walls along the sides with slots at their base, and an upstanding wall along the back with a turned-over edge  51 . This tray  50  rests on the seat panel  16  with its front edge secured by a screw  52 , and a projecting part of its base locating in a groove in the corner rail  15 . The tray  50  is covered by a foam pad  54 , and this is covered with a fabric cover  56  secured by means of plastic J-strips sewn onto the fabric, these engaging with the turned-over edge  51  at the back, with the slots along the side walls, and with the flange  34  along the front edge of the seat panel  16 .  
      Similarly each passenger position is provided with a steel tray  60  to fit the back plate  14 , the steel tray  60  having a flange with a turned over edge  61  at its bottom, and slots along the side edges. The lower half of each tray  60  tapers slightly so there is a tapered gap between adjacent trays to fit an arm rest  65 . The tray  60  is placed up against the back plate  14 , with a projecting part of its base locating in a groove in the corner rail  15 , and secured by a screw  62  near the top. The tray  60  is covered by a foam pad  64 , and this is covered with a fabric cover  66  secured by means of J-strips, these engaging with the turned-over edge  61  at the bottom, with the slots along the sides, and with a flange  69  on the top rail  13 .  
      The arm rest  65  has a projecting part which fits in the tapered gap in between adjacent trays  60 , and is attached to the back plate  14  by bolts (not shown) passing through holes drilled between adjacent L-shaped flanges  70  on the back plate  14 .  
      The upstanding walls on the trays  50  are separated only by two layers of fabric  56 , so there is substantially no gap into which rubbish or hazardous objects may be pushed.  
      The seat structure is substantially watertight because of the rubber sealing strips  25  and  35  adjacent to the hinged joints, the seal around the support plate  45 , and the seal  44  along the bottom of the front panel  17 , so that dust and litter are kept out of the under-seat space during normal operations, and water is kept out during cleaning operations.  
      Referring now to  FIG. 2   a , a gas strut  80  is provided between pivot points on the back of the seat  10  and the support plate  45 . When maintenance on equipment in the under-seat space is required, the locking mechanism would be release, and as shown in  FIG. 2   b  the seat  10  can be swung up, pivoting about the hinge between the support rail  12  and the top rail  13 . As it does so, the front panel  17  swings down so as to lie up against the underside of the seat panel  16 . This provide substantially unrestricted access to the under-seat space.  
      It will be appreciated that a seat may be modified in various ways, while remaining within the scope of the invention. The seat may be of various different lengths, typically being designed to carry between one and six seated passengers. For longer seats, for example to accommodate twelve seated passengers, it would be desirable to provide one or more intermediate supports to the seat panel  16  along its length. Such intermediate supports may be of any convenient shape, as they do not need to seal to the rear surface of the seat  10 , and would typically be arranged in such positions as not to impede access to under-seat equipment.  
      Where upholstery is provided, it may differ from that shown, and for example might include springs in place of, or in addition to, foam padding. The trays carrying the upholstery might differ from those shown, and might for example be secured against sliding forwards by abutting an upward flange on the front edge of the seat panel  16  instead of or in addition to the securing screws  52 . Alternatively the upholstery might be replaced by a moulded plastic bench, or individual moulded plastic seats attached for example by bolts to the seat panel  16  and the back panel  14 ; such plastic seats might be of polyethylene.  
      It will also be appreciated that, where the seat structure is made of extruded components, these may differ from those described. For example the components defining the rigid part of the seat, i.e. components  13 - 16 , might instead be a single integral extrusion, or might be formed of a different number of extrusions, for example components  13  and  14  might be integral with each other, and components  15  and  16  might be integral with each other.  
      As another modification, the front panel  17  may be of a different height to that described above, and might rest on a sill or wall attached to the floor (or integral with the floor), rather than resting on the floor itself.