Patent Publication Number: US-2011049925-A1

Title: Fold and tumble release mechanism for a vehicle seat

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to fold and tumble mechanisms for vehicle seating assemblies. 
     2. Background Art 
     Vehicle seat assemblies may be configured to move between use positions and collapsed or stowed positions. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,932,409 and 7,152,900 disclose examples of such seat assemblies. 
     SUMMARY 
     A fold and tumble mechanism according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may be used with a vehicle seat having a seat bottom, a seat back that is pivotable with respect to the seat bottom, and a latch associated the seat bottom for coupling the seat to a vehicle body. The fold and tumble mechanism may include a seat back recliner mechanism adapted to pivotally mount the seat back to the seat bottom, a recliner release lever, and a fold and tumble release lever. The recliner release lever is associated with the seat back recliner mechanism and is movable to selectively release the seat back recliner mechanism to allow the seat back to pivot. The fold and tumble release lever includes a cam that is engageable with the recliner release lever. Furthermore, the fold and tumble release lever is operable to move the recliner release lever to release the recliner mechanism, and is further operable to unlatch the latch. 
     While exemplary embodiments in accordance with the invention are illustrated and disclosed, such disclosure should not be construed to limit the claims. It is anticipated that various modifications and alternative designs may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a vehicle seat assembly having a fold and tumble mechanism according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a side view of the fold and tumble mechanism of  FIG. 1  in a use position; 
         FIG. 3A  is a side view of the fold and tumble mechanism of  FIG. 2  in a folded position; 
         FIG. 3B  is a side view of the fold and tumble mechanism of  FIG. 2  in a folded position and unlatched from the vehicle body; 
         FIG. 4  is an exploded perspective view of the fold and tumble mechanism of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 5  is an enlarged perspective view of an inboard portion of the fold and tumble mechanism of  FIGS. 1-3 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of the vehicle seat assembly of  FIG. 1  in a seating position; 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the vehicle seat assembly of  FIG. 1  in a folded position; 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the vehicle seat assembly of  FIG. 1  in a tumbled position; and 
         FIG. 9  is an exploded perspective view of a fold and tumble mechanism according to an alternate embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale; some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of the particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for the claims and/or as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention. 
       FIG. 1  shows a vehicle seat assembly  10  in accordance with the present disclosure, which may be coupled to a vehicle body  12  in any suitable manner. For example, the seat assembly  10  may be attached directly or indirectly to a floor  14  of the vehicle body  12 . In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 , the seat assembly  10  is pivotally attached to a support structure  16  that is mounted on the floor  14 . 
     The seat assembly  10  includes a generally horizontal seat bottom  22  and a generally vertical seat back  24  that is pivotable with respect to the seat bottom  22 . The seat bottom  22  and seat back  24  may each include any suitable cushioning material (not shown), such as a foam cushion, and any suitable cover material (not shown), such as cloth, leather and/or vinyl. 
     The seat assembly  10  may also include one or more latches  26 , such as floor latches, that are configured to releasably couple the seat assembly  10  to the vehicle body  12 . In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , the seat assembly  10  is provided with outboard and inboard floor latches  26   a  and  26   b , respectively (only the outboard floor latch  26   a  is visible in  FIG. 1 ) that are coupled with the seat bottom  22  and that are each engageable with an engaging member, such as a striker  28 , that is attached to the floor  14  of the vehicle body  12 . When the latches  26   a,b  are released or unlatched from the vehicle body  12 , the seat bottom  22  and seat back  24  may pivot relative to the support structure  16  about a pivot axis  30 , which may extend through a tumble pivot mount  32  of the support structure  16 , for example. 
     As another example, the seat assembly  10  may be provided with one or more latches that are each engageable with a side portion of the vehicle body  12 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1-4 , the vehicle seat assembly  10  also includes a fold and tumble mechanism or apparatus  33  having a seat back recliner mechanism  34  connected to the seat bottom  22  and seat back  24 . For example, the recliner mechanism  34  may include a first bracket  36 , such as a lower bracket, connected to a seat bottom frame of the seat bottom  22 , and a second bracket  38 , such as an upper bracket, connected to a seat back frame of the seat back  24 . The recliner mechanism  34  further includes a recliner device  40  connected to the brackets  36  and  38  in any suitable manner, such as by welding. The recliner device  40  is configured to selectively lock the second bracket  38  and seat back  24  in one or more use or seating positions, and is further configured to enable the second bracket  38  and seat back  24  to pivot with respect to the first bracket  36  and seat bottom  22 , as explained below in detail. While the recliner mechanism  34  may be any suitable mechanism, in one embodiment, the recliner mechanism  34  is a disk recliner mechanism including a disk recliner device. 
     The recliner mechanism  34  has a locked state, in which the seat back  24  is inhibited from pivoting relative to the seat bottom  22 , and an unlocked or released state, in which the seat back  24  may be pivoted relative to the seat bottom  22  between one or more use positions and a folded position. For example,  FIG. 6  shows the seat back  24  locked in a substantially upright use position, and  FIG. 7  shows the seat back  24  in a folded position in which the seat back  24  is generally horizontally disposed relative to the floor  14 . 
     Returning to  FIGS. 1-4 , the fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include a movable recliner release lever  42  associated with the seat back recliner mechanism  34  for releasing the recliner mechanism  34 . In the illustrated embodiment, the recliner release lever  42  is connected to the recliner mechanism  34  with a spline-keyed shaft  44 , and is rotatable clockwise to place the recliner mechanism  34  in the unlocked state. For example, if the recliner mechanism  34  is a disk recliner mechanism, the recliner release lever  42  may rotate about a central axis of the recliner mechanism  34  to release the recliner mechanism  34  and thereby allow one disk or plate of the recliner device  40  to pivot with respect to another disk or plate. More specifically, the recliner device  40  of the recliner mechanism  34  may include a guide plate  46  connected to the first bracket  36 , a pivot plate  47  pivotally connected to the guide plate  46  and fixedly connected to the second bracket  38 , and one or more locking elements (not shown) that are movably guided by the guide plate  46  between a locked position, in which the locking elements are engaged with internal gear teeth (not shown) on the pivot plate  47 , and a disengaged position, in which the locking elements are disengaged from the gear teeth of the pivot plate  47 . The locking elements may each have a cam engagement surface (not shown) that is engageable with an internal cam (not shown) of the recliner device  40 . The internal cam may be connected to the recliner release lever  42  such that rotation of the recliner release lever  42  causes the internal cam to rotate, which causes the locking elements to move between the locked position and the disengaged position. Additional details of a disk recliner mechanism may be found in U.S. Patent Application Publication 2009/0140565, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference. 
     As another example, the recliner mechanism  34  may be a pawl-and-sector type recliner mechanism including a generally circular sector gear (not shown) having engagement teeth (not shown), and a movable pawl (not shown) having teeth (not shown) configured to engage the sector gear. When the teeth on the pawl and the engagement teeth on the sector gear are engaged, the recliner mechanism may be in a locked position such that the seat back  24  is prevented from pivoting with respect to the seat bottom  22 . As the recliner release lever  42  is moved, the recliner release lever  42  may act on the pawl to pivot the pawl through a disengagement angle and disengage the pawl from the sector gear, thereby placing the recliner mechanism in an unlocked state. Additional details of a pawl-and-sector recliner mechanism may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,749,625 to Robinson, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference. 
     The fold and tumble apparatus  33  also includes a fold and tumble release lever  48  that is movable between first and second positions for allowing a user to release the recliner mechanism  34  and to unlatch the latches  26   a,b . The fold and tumble release lever  48  includes a cam  50  that is engageable with the recliner release lever  42  to move the recliner release lever  42  as the fold and tumble release lever  48  is moved. As a result, the fold and tumble release lever  48  may be moved from the first position to an intermediate position located between the first and second positions to cause the recliner release lever  42  to release the recliner mechanism  34 . The fold and tumble release lever  48  may be further moved from the intermediate position to the second position to cause the latches  26   a,b  to unlatch from the vehicle body  12  to allow the seat assembly  10  to be tumbled or stowed, as explained below in detail. According to one embodiment, the fold and tumble release lever  48  may have a limited travel path for unlocking the recliner mechanism  34  and releasing the latches  26   a,b.    
     In one embodiment, the cam  50  may be snap fit onto a body of the fold and tumble release lever  48 . Alternatively, the cam  50  may be connected to the body of the fold and tumble release lever  48  in any suitable manner, or the cam  50  may be integrally formed with the fold and tumble release lever body. 
     In the illustrated embodiment, the cam  50  includes a dwell surface  52  that is configured to slidingly contact the recliner release lever  42  as the fold and tumble release lever  48  is moved from the intermediate position to the second position. With such a configuration, the fold and tumble release lever  48  may continue to be moved after the recliner mechanism  34  has been released. In at least one embodiment, the cam  50  includes a flange or lip  53 . As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the lip  53  may extend from a main body of the cam  50  and is configured to engage the recliner release lever  42  along a side of the recliner release lever  42  to prevent the recliner release lever  42  from axial movement away from the recliner mechanism  34 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3A , for example, the fold and tumble release lever  48  may be pivoted through a first angle α to move the recliner release lever  42  to a release position and release the recliner mechanism  34 . As the recliner release mechanism is released, the seat back  24  may pivot automatically to a folded position (best shown in  FIG. 7 ). Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , a clock spring  54  may be connected to the second bracket  38  and an anchor pin  56  on the first bracket  36  to bias the seat back  24  forwardly to automatically pivot the seat back  24  to the folded position shown in  FIG. 7 . The second bracket  38  may also include a back stop rivet  57  configured to engage the first bracket  36  when the second bracket  38  is in the folded position to prevent the second bracket  38  from further pivoting. 
     As the fold and tumble release lever  48  is pivoted through a second angle β, as shown in  FIG. 3B , the fold and tumble release lever  48  may cause the latches  26   a,b  to unlatch while the recliner release lever  42  engages the dwell surface  52  of the cam  50 . The seat assembly  10  may then automatically pivot forward about the pivot axis  30  to the tumbled position, illustrated in  FIG. 8 , by means of springs (not shown) or gas-charged struts (not shown) acting on the seat bottom  22 , for example. 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the fold and tumble release lever  48  may be connected to the outboard latch  26   a  with a cable or cable assembly  58 , such as a Bowden cable, such that movement of the fold and tumble release lever  48  causes the outboard latch  26   a  to unlock or unlatch. In addition, the fold and tumble apparatus  33  may include a latch release lever  60  that is associated with the inboard latch  26   b  for releasing or unlatching the inboard latch  26   b . For example, the latch release lever  60  may be connected to the inboard latch  26   b  with a cable or cable assembly  61 , such as a Bowden cable, such that movement of the latch release lever  60  causes the inboard latch  26   b  to unlock or unlatch. 
     The latch release lever  60  may also be associated with the fold and tumble release lever  48 , such that movement of the fold and tumble release lever  48  may cause the latch release lever  60  to move. For example, with reference to  FIG. 4 , the latch release lever  60  may include a stop  62  that is engageable with the fold and tumble release lever  48 , such that the levers  48  and  60  may move together after the fold and tumble release lever  48  has engaged the stop  62  to thereby unlatch both latches  26   a,b . Furthermore, the latch release lever  60  may be pivotally connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  and recliner mechanism  34  with a fastener, such as a cam pivot rivet  64 . The latch release lever  60  and fold and tumble release lever  48  may be coaxially aligned with and pivot about cam pivot rivet  64 . As another example, the release lever  60  may be connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  in any suitable manner. 
     Still referring to  FIG. 4 , the fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include a cable mount bracket  66  that is fixedly connected to the first bracket  36  by one or more fasteners, such as the anchor pin  56  and the cam pivot rivet  64 . The cable mount bracket  66  may retain an outer casing that surrounds an inner cable of the cable assembly  58 , and the inner cable may be connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  with a fastener, such as a nail head rivet  68 . With such a configuration, the inner cable may travel relative to the outer casing as the fold and tumble release lever  48  moves, thereby exerting a force on the outboard latch  26   a  that causes the outboard latch  26   a  to unlatch. 
     Similarly, the fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include an additional cable mount bracket that is integrally formed with the first bracket  36  or fixedly connected to the first bracket  36  with one or more fasteners. The additional cable mount bracket may retain an outer casing that surrounds an inner cable of the cable assembly  61 , and the inner cable may be connected to the latch release lever  60 . With such a configuration, the inner cable may travel relative to the outer casing as the latch release lever  60  moves, thereby exerting a force on the inboard latch  26   b  that causes the inboard latch  26   b  to unlatch. 
     In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the latch release lever  60  also includes a tab, such as a flange  70 , that extends through an opening  71  in the first bracket  36  and engages the second bracket  38  when the seat back  24  is in one of the use positions, such that movement of the latch release lever  60  is inhibited. As a result, the latch release lever  60  and fold and tumble release lever  48  are prevented from rotating sufficiently to unlatch the latches  26   a,b  from the vehicle body  12  when the seat back  24  and second bracket  38  are in one of the use positions. 
     The second bracket  38  may include a notch  72  that is alignable with the flange  70  of the latch release lever  60  when the seat back  24  and second bracket  38  are in the folded position, such that the latch release lever  60  may be permitted to sufficiently travel to an unlatched position to unlatch the inboard latch  26   b  from the vehicle body  12 . More specifically, when the seat back  24  and second bracket  38  are in the folded position shown in  FIG. 3A , the notch  72  on the second bracket  38  is aligned with the opening  71  of the first bracket  36 , such that the flange  70  may move upward along the opening  71  and into the notch  72 . 
     The fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include a biasing member, such as a spring  73 , that urges the flange  70  toward the unlatched position. In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 4 , the spring  73  is a torsion spring having one end engaged with the fold and tumble release lever  48  and another end engaged with the latch release lever  60  to cause the two levers to be biased in rotationally opposite directions. However, any suitable spring or other biasing member may be used. 
     By action of the spring  73 , disengagement of the flange  70  from the notch  72  may be prevented when the seat assembly  10  is not latched to the vehicle body  12 . This prevents pivoting of the seat back  24  from the folded position to one of the seating or use positions when the latches  26   a,b  are unlatched from the vehicle body  12 . 
     In the embodiment illustrated, the latch release lever  60  is connected to the inboard latch  26   b  by the cable assembly  61 , and the inner cable of the cable assembly  61  travels during relatching of the inboard latch  26   b  and with respect to the outer casing that surrounds the inner cable, thereby pulling the latch release lever  60  against the bias of the spring  73 . More specifically, when the inboard latch  26   b  is relatched to the vehicle body  12 , the flange  70  of the latch release lever  60  is pulled away from the notch  72  in opposition to the urging of the spring  73 . As a result, the flange  70  is automatically disengaged from the notch  72  when the inboard latch  26   b  is relatched to the vehicle body  12 , such that the second bracket  38  is permitted to pivot out of the folded position. 
     The fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include a handle  74  for allowing a user to rotate the fold and tumble release lever  48  manually. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated, the fold and tumble release lever  48  and the handle  74  are integrally formed. However, any suitable means for securing or otherwise associating the fold and tumble release lever  48  with the handle  74  are contemplated for use with the present disclosure. Furthermore, rotation of the handle  74  through an angle may also cause rotation of the fold and tumble release lever  48  through the same angle. 
     With reference again to  FIGS. 2-4 , the fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also include an additional handle, such as a side handle  75 , connected to or otherwise associated with the fold and tumble release lever  48 . In the illustrated embodiment, for example, the side handle  75  is pivotally mounted on the seat bottom  22  and is connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  by a handle linkage  76 . The handle linkage  76  may allow the side handle  75  to drive the fold and tumble release lever  48  and handle  74 , such that rotation of the side handle  75  through an angle also causes rotation of the fold and tumble release lever  48  through the same or a different angle. An occupant or user may thus rotate the more convenient of the handle  74  and side handle  75  to begin a fold and tumble operation. 
     According to one embodiment, the side handle  75  and the handle linkage  76  may be connected to a spindle  77 , which may be connected to the seat bottom  22  as illustrated in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 A and  3 B. As illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the spindle  77  may be connected to the first bracket  36  by a fastener, such as a spindle pivot pin  78 , that allows the spindle  77  to pivot relative to the first bracket  36 . The handle linkage  76  may be connected to the side handle  75  and/or the spindle  77  by a fastener, such as a link rivet  79 . The handle linkage  76  may also be connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  by, for example, another link rivet  79 . 
     The spindle  77  and side handle  75  may be configured to return to their original positions after the side handle  75  is pivoted and released. For example, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 , the spindle  77  may be biased by a biasing member, such as a spindle spring  80 , that is connected between the first bracket  36  and the spindle  77 . The side handle  75  and spindle  77  may be rotated against the bias of the spindle spring  80 , as shown in  FIGS. 3A and 3B . When the side handle  75  is released, the spindle spring  80  causes the side handle  75  and the spindle  77  to return to their original positions shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     The fold and tumble apparatus  33  may also be configured to be actuated automatically. In the embodiment shown in  FIG. 9 , for example, the fold and tumble apparatus  33  includes an electric motor  81  that is configured to automatically move the fold and tumble release lever  48 . While the electric motor  81  may be connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  in any suitable manner, in the embodiment illustrated, the electric motor  81  is connected to the fold and tumble release lever  48  with a cable or cable assembly  82 , such as a Bowden cable that includes an inner cable attached at eyelet  83  of the fold and tumble release lever  48 . The electric motor  81  pulls the inner cable of the cable assembly  82  to move the lever  48 . According to at least one embodiment, the electric motor  81  may be activated and controlled by means of one or more switches (not shown) that may be mounted on a side wall of the vehicle body  12 , for example. As another example, the electric motor  81  may be activated and controlled by any suitable means. 
     The electric motor  81  may be used to automatically move the fold and tumble release lever  48  through the first angle α to cause the recliner mechanism  34  to unlatch and allow the seat back  24  to automatically pivot forward, as discussed above in detail. In addition, the electric motor  81  may automatically move the fold and tumble release lever  48  through the second angle β to unlatch the latches  26   a,b  and allow the seat assembly  10  to automatically pivot forward to the tumbled position. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2-8 , operation of the seat assembly  10  will now be described in detail. When a user desires to move the seat assembly  10  from a use position, such as shown in  FIG. 6 , to a stowed or fold and tumbled position, such as shown in  FIG. 8 , a user may rotate either handle  74  or side handle  75  to cause rotation of the fold and tumble release lever  48 . When the fold and tumble release lever  48  is moved through the first angle α, as shown in  FIG. 3A , the cam  50  causes the recliner release lever  42  to move to the release position and release the recliner mechanism  34  so that the seat back  24  and second bracket  38  may pivot to the folded position shown in  FIG. 7 . While the first angle α may be any suitable angle, in one embodiment, the first angle α is in the range of twenty to forty degrees. For example, the first angle α may be thirty degrees. 
     When the fold and tumble release lever  48  is rotated through the first angle α, the latch release lever  60  may remain stationary. For example, the flange  70  on the release lever  60  may engage the second bracket  38 , thereby preventing movement of the latch release lever  60 . As a result, release of one or both of the latches  26   a,b  may be prevented when the seat back  24  and second bracket  38  are in one of the use positions. This ensures that the vehicle seat assembly  10  is in the folded position before beginning the tumbling operation. Furthermore, the fold and tumble release lever  48  may engage the stop  62  on the latch release lever  60  at the end of travel through the first angle α, so that the levers  48  and  60  may move together beyond the first angle α. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3-5  and  7 , when the seat back  24  is in the folded position and the flange  70  of the latch release lever  60  is aligned with the notch  72  of the second bracket  38 , the handle  74  or side handle  75  may be further rotated to cause the levers  48  and  60  to move together through the second angle β to cause the latches  26   a,b  to unlatch from the vehicle body  12 . While the second angle β may be any suitable angle, in one embodiment, the second angle β is in the range of fifteen to forty degrees. For example, the second angle β may be twenty-five degrees. 
     Furthermore, as the fold and tumble release lever  48  is rotated through the second angle β, the dwell surface  52  of the cam  50  slidingly contacts the recliner release lever  42 . The dwell surface  52  may be configured so that as the fold and tumble release lever  48  travels through the second angle β, the recliner release lever  42  remains actuated to keep the recliner mechanism  34  in the released state. The dwell surface  52  may therefore prevent the seat back  24  from being locked in one of the use or seating orientations when the fold and tumble release lever  48  is rotated through the second angle β. 
     When the fold and tumble release lever  48  and the latch release lever  60  are rotated through the second angle β, the latch release lever  60  pulls on the inner cable of the cable assembly  61  and the fold and tumble release lever  48  pulls on the inner cable of the cable assembly  58 , thereby causing the latches  26   a,b  to unlatch. As a result, the seat assembly  10  may be pivoted about the tumble pivot mount  32  to the tumbled position shown in  FIG. 8 . 
     The seat assembly  10  may then be returned to the use position by moving the seat assembly  10  back toward the floor  14  and reengaging the latches  26   a,b  with the vehicle body  12 . As a result, the flange  70  of the latch release lever  60  will automatically disengage from the notch  72  in the second bracket  38 , so that the seat back  24  may then be pivoted back to the use position shown in  FIG. 6 . 
     According to another embodiment, the latch release lever  60  may move with the fold and tumble release lever  48  at all times, such that the fold and tumble release lever  48  and the latch release lever  60  each move through the same or similar angles. With such a configuration, as the fold and tumble release lever  48  is moved through the first angle α and the second angle β, the latch release lever  60  may also move through the same angles. For example, the fold and tumble release lever  48  and latch release lever  60  may be integrally formed or fixedly connected together, with the fold and tumble release lever  48  configured to release the recliner mechanism  34  as described above in detail. The latch release lever  60  may also be connected to a cable or cable assembly, such as cable assembly  61 , that is configured to exert an unlatching force on inboard latch  26   b  only after the fold and tumble release lever  48  and the latch release lever  60  have traveled beyond the first angle α. 
     The embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 9  may be operated in a similar manner as described above with respect to the embodiment of  FIGS. 2-8 . However, a user may begin the fold and tumble operation of the seat assembly of  FIG. 9  using, for example, one or more switches (not shown) to activate the electric motor  81 . As discussed above, upon activation, the electric motor  81  may pull on the inner cable of the cable assembly  82 , for example, to move the fold and tumble release lever  48 . In one embodiment, one switch may be used to move the fold and tumble release lever  48  to unlatch the recliner mechanism  34 , and another switch may be used to move the fold and tumble release lever  48  further to unlatch the latches  26   a,b . In another embodiment, a single switch may be used to effect an entire folded and tumble operation. The seat assembly  10  may then be manually returned to the use position in a similar manner as described above with respect to the embodiment of  FIGS. 2-8 . 
     The fold and tumble apparatus components can be made of any suitable material and in any suitable manner. For example, the brackets  36 ,  38  and  66 , recliner device components, levers  42 ,  48  and  60 , handles  74  and  75 , and handle linkage  76  may be stamped from sheet steel or aluminum. As another example, components such as the cam  50  may be made of molded plastic, such as injection molded acetal or nylon, or molded composite material, such as glass filled nylon. As another example, the springs  54  and  73  may be made of a suitable metal, such as stainless steel or spring steel. 
     While embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is not intended that these embodiments illustrate and describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, a seat assembly according to the present disclosure may include a single latch that is unlatched directly by a fold and tumble release lever, or through a latch release lever that is moved by the fold and tumble release lever.