Patent Publication Number: US-2022212575-A1

Title: Child safety seat and related spin lock mechanism

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/888,876, filed on Jun. 1, 2020, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/860,398, filed on Jun. 12, 2019, and the entire contents of this application are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a child product, and more particularly, to a child safety seat and a spin lock mechanism thereof. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     With development of the economy and advancement of the technology, there are more and more consumer goods available in the market for bringing convenience in people&#39;s life. A child safety seat is one of the consumer goods for securing a child when traveling in a vehicle. Some child safety seats in the market offer an ability to rotate between a front-facing position and a rear-facing position. In order to position the child safety seat at the front-facing position or the rear-facing position, a spin lock mechanism is required to restrain or allow rotation of the child safety seat. However, the conventional spin lock mechanism has complicated structure, which is not convenient in use. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Therefore, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a child safety seat and a spin lock mechanism thereof for solving the aforementioned problem. 
     In order to achieve the aforementioned objective, the present invention discloses a child safety seat. The child safety seat includes a base, a seat body and a spin lock mechanism. The base is installed on a seat of a vehicle. The seat body is movably disposed on the base and for accommodating a child. The seat body is switchable relative to the base between a forward facing position and a rearward facing position. The spin lock mechanism is for allowing and restraining switching movement of the seat body relative to the base. The spin lock mechanism includes a pivoting component and a locking component. The pivoting component is pivotally connected to one of the base and the seat body. A driving slot is formed on the pivoting component. The locking component is movably connected to the pivoting component and slidably passes through the driving slot. The locking component is for engaging with and disengaging from another one of the base and the seat body. The pivoting component drives the locking component to slide relative to the driving slot to switch from a locking position to a releasing position when the pivoting component pivots. The locking component engages with the another one of the base and the seat body for restraining the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base when the locking component is located at the locking position, and the locking component disengages from the another one of the base and the seat body for allowing the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base when the locking component is located at the releasing position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component and at least one linking component. The at least one linking component is connected to the operating component and the pivoting component, and the operating component drives the pivoting component to pivot by the at least one linking component when the operating component is operated. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component coupled to the pivoting component for driving the pivoting component to pivot when the operating component is operated. The pivoting component includes a first portion and a second portion. The first portion extends along a first direction. The second portion extends along a second direction different from the first direction. The first portion is pivotally connected to the one of the base and the seat body. The driving slot is formed on the second portion. The second portion of the pivoting component drives the locking component to slide relative to the driving slot to switch from the locking position to the releasing position when the pivoting component pivots. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a pin and a washer. The locking component includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end and the second end are located at two sides of the second portion. A through hole is formed on the first end. The pin passes through the through hole. The washer is disposed between the pin and the second portion, and the second portion of the pivoting component drives the locking component to switch from the locking position to the releasing position by abutment of the washer and the pin when the pivoting component pivots. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the locking component further includes a protruding rim adjacent to the second end, and the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component abutting against the protruding rim for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the pivoting component further includes a pivoting shaft rotatably engaging with the one of the base and the seat body. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component and at least one linking component. The at least one linking component is connected to the operating component and the pivoting component, and the operating component drives the pivoting component to pivot around the pivoting shaft by the at least one linking component when the operating component is operated. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     In order to achieve the aforementioned objective, the present invention further discloses a spin lock mechanism for allowing and restraining switching movement of a seat body relative to a base between a forward facing position and a rearward facing position. The spin lock mechanism includes a pivoting component and a locking component. The pivoting component is pivotally connected to one of the base and the seat body. A driving slot is formed on the pivoting component. The locking component is movably connected to the pivoting component and slidably passes through the driving slot. The locking component is for engaging with and disengaging from another one of the base and the seat body. The pivoting component drives the locking component to slide relative to the driving slot to switch from a locking position to a releasing position when the pivoting component pivots. The locking component engages with the another one of the base and the seat body for restraining the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base when the locking component is located at the locking position, and the locking component disengages from the another one of the base and the seat body for allowing the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base when the locking component is located at the releasing position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component and at least one linking component. The at least one linking component is connected to the operating component and the pivoting component, and the operating component drives the pivoting component to pivot by the at least one linking component when the operating component is operated. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component coupled to the pivoting component for driving the pivoting component to pivot when the operating component is operated. The pivoting component includes a first portion and a second portion. The first portion extends along a first direction. The second portion extends along a second direction different from the first direction. The first portion is pivotally connected to the one of the base and the seat body. The driving slot is formed on the second portion. The second portion of the pivoting component drives the locking component to slide relative to the driving slot to switch from the locking position to the releasing position when the pivoting component pivots. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a pin and a washer. The locking component includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end and the second end are located at two sides of the second portion. A through hole is formed on the first end. The pin passes through the through hole. The washer is disposed between the pin and the second portion, and the second portion of the pivoting component drives the locking component to switch from the locking position to the releasing position by abutment of the washer and the pin when the pivoting component pivots. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the locking component further includes a protruding rim adjacent to the second end, and the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component abutting against the protruding rim for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the pivoting component further includes a pivoting shaft rotatably engaging with the one of the base and the seat body. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes an operating component and at least one linking component. The at least one linking component is connected to the operating component and the pivoting component, and the operating component drives the pivoting component to pivot around the pivoting shaft by the at least one linking component when the operating component is operated. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the spin lock mechanism further includes a resilient component for biasing the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     In summary, in the present invention, when the pivoting component pivots, the pivoting component drives the locking component to disengage the seat body from the base for allowing switching movement of the seat body relative to the base between the forward facing position and the rearward facing position. Furthermore, the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base can be restrained by engagement of the seat body and the base with the locking component. Therefore, the present invention has advantages of simple structure and easy operation. 
     These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a child safety seat according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a partial diagram of the child safety seat according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is another partial diagram of the child safety seat according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a partial exploded diagram of the child safety seat according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a partial sectional diagram of the child safety seat according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  are partial diagrams of the child safety seat at different states according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a schematic diagram of a child safety seat according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a partial section diagram of the child safety seat according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. In this regard, directional terminology, such as “top,” “bottom,” “front,” “back,” etc., is used with reference to the orientation of the Figure (s) being described. The components of the present invention can be positioned in a number of different orientations. As such, the directional terminology is used for purposes of illustration and is in no way limiting. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive. Also, the term “couple” is intended to mean either an indirect or direct electrical/mechanical connection. Thus, if a first device is coupled to a second device, that connection may be through a direct electrical/mechanical connection, or through an indirect electrical/mechanical connection via other devices and connections. 
     Please refer to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a child safety seat  1  according to a first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  is a partial diagram of the child safety seat  1  according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 3  is another partial diagram of the child safety seat  1  according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 4  is a partial exploded diagram of the child safety seat  1  according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 5  is a partial sectional diagram of the child safety seat  1  according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 5 , the child safety seat  1  includes a base  11 , a seat body  12  and a spin lock mechanism  13 . The base  11  is installed on a seat of a vehicle, which is not shown in the figures. The seat body  12  is movably disposed on the base  11  and for accommodating a child. The seat body  12  is switchable relative to the base  11  between a forward facing position and a rearward facing position in a rotating manner. The spin lock mechanism  13  is for allowing and restraining switching movement, i.e., rotating movement, of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11 . 
     The spin lock mechanism  13  includes a pivoting component  131  and a locking component  132 . The pivoting component  131  is pivotally connected to a middle base  121  of the seat body  12 , which is installed in an accommodating chamber  111  formed on the base  11  and rotatable relative to the base  11 . The locking component  132  is movably connected to the pivoting component  131  and for engaging with or disengaging from the base  11 . The pivoting component  131  drives the locking component  132  to switch from a locking position to a releasing position when the pivoting component  131  pivots. The locking component  132  engages with the base  11  for restraining the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  when the locking component  132  is located at the locking position, and the locking component  132  disengages from the base  11  for allowing the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  when the locking component  132  is located at the releasing position. 
     Specifically, in this embodiment, the pivoting component  131  includes a first portion  1311  and a second portion  1312  connected to the first portion  1311 . The first portion  1311  extends along a first direction R 1 , and the second portion  1312  extends along a second direction R 2  different from the first direction. The first portion  1311  is pivotally connected to the middle base  121  of the seat body  12 . A driving slot  1313  is formed on the second portion  1312 . The locking component  132  slidably passes through the driving slot  1313 , and the second portion  1312  of the pivoting component  131  drives the locking component  132  to slide relative to the driving slot  1313  to switch from the locking position to the releasing position when the pivoting component  131  pivots. Preferably, in this embodiment, the first direction R 1  can be perpendicular to the second direction R 2 , and the pivoting component  131  can further include a pivoting shaft  1314  disposed on the first portion  1311  away from a connection of the first portion  1311  and the second portion  1312 , and the pivoting shaft  1314  rotatably engages with at least one pivoting notch  1211  formed the middle base  121  of the seat body  12 . However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, in another embodiment, the first direction also can intersect with the second direction, and the pivoting shaft and the pivoting notch can be respectively disposed on the middle base of the seat body and the first portion of the pivoting component. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the pivoting component can be pivoted to the base by the pivoting shaft, and the locking component can be configured to engage with or disengage from the seat body. 
     Furthermore, the spin lock mechanism  13  further includes a pin  133  and a washer  134 . The locking component  132  includes a first end  1321  and a second end  1322  opposite to the first end  132 . The first end  1321  and the second end  1322  are located at two sides of the second portion  1312  when the locking component  132  passes through the driving slot  1313 . A through hole  1323  is formed on the first end  1321 . The pin  133  passes through the through hole  1323 . The washer  134  is disposed between the pin  133  and the second portion  1312 , and the second portion  1312  of the pivoting component  131  drives the locking component  132  to switch from the locking position to the releasing position by abutment of the washer  134  and the pin  133  when the pivoting component  131  pivots. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, in another embodiment, two protruding portions, e.g. flanges or nuts, can be disposed on the locking component and spaced apart from each other, and the locking component slidably passes through the driving slot to locate the second portion between the two protruding portions, so that the pivoting component can drive the locking component to switch from the locking position to the releasing by abutment of the second portion and the upper protruding portion when the pivoting component pivots along a first pivoting direction, or switch from the releasing position to the locking position by abutment of the second portion and the lower protruding portion when the pivoting component pivots along a second pivoting direction opposite to the first pivoting direction. 
     In order to position the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  at the forward facing position and the rearward facing position by engagement of the locking component  132  and the base  11 , two positioning slots  112  are formed on the base  11  and symmetrical to each other relative to a rotating axis of the seat body  12 . The locking component  132  is aligned with one of the two positioning slots  112  when the seat body  12  is located at the forward facing position. The locking component  132  is aligned with the other one of the two positioning slots  112  when the seat body  12  is located at the rearward facing position. 
     Besides, the spin lock mechanism  13  further includes an operating component  135  and two linking components  136 . The operating component  135  is disposed on the base  11 . Preferably, the operating component  135  can be disposed on a front portion of the base  11 . However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In another embodiment, the operating component can be disposed on a lateral portion or a rear portion of the base. The two linking components  136  are connected to the operating component  135  and the pivoting component  131  and are parallel to each other, and the operating component  135  drives the pivoting component  131  to pivot by the two linking components  136  when the operating component  135  is operated. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, in another embodiment, the spin lock mechanism can include only one linking component connected between the operating component and the pivoting component. Alternatively, in another embodiment, the operating component and the linking component can be omitted, and the pivoting component can be partially exposed out of the seat body for a user to operate. 
     In order to recover the locking component  132  to the locking position, the locking component  132  further includes a protruding rim  1324  adjacent to the second end  1322 , and the spin lock mechanism  13  further comprises a resilient component  137  abutting against the protruding rim  1324  for biasing the locking component  132  to move toward the locking position. Preferably, in this embodiment, the resilient component  137  can be a compression spring abutting against the protruding rim  1324  and a wall  1212  of the middle base  121  of the seat body  12 . However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. For example, in another embodiment, the resilient component can be a torsional spring abutting against the pivoting component, so that the pivoting component can be driven by the resilient component to drive the locking component to move toward the locking position. 
     Please refer to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7 .  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  are partial diagrams of the child safety seat  1  at different states according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7 , when it is desired to switch the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  between the forward facing position as shown in  FIG. 1 , and the rearward facing position, the operating component  135  can be operated to drive the pivoting component  131  to pivot by the two linking components  136 . When the pivoting component  131  is driven to pivot along a first pivoting direction P 1 , the second portion  1312  of the pivoting component  131  drives the locking component  132  upwardly by the abutment of the washer  134  and the pin  133  to move from the locking position as shown in  FIG. 6  to the releasing position as shown in  FIG. 7 . When the locking component  132  moves from the locking position to the releasing position, the locking component  132  leaves from an end of the driving slot  1313  adjacent to the first portion  1311  of the pivoting component  131  toward another end of the driving slot  1313  away from the first portion  1311  of the pivoting component  131 , and the locking component  132  is lifted by the second portion  1312  of the pivoting component  131  to disengage from the corresponding positioning slot  112  due to pivoting movement of the pivoting component  131  along the first pivoting direction P 1  for allowing the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11 . At this moment, the resilient component  137  is resiliently deformed by the locking component  132 . Since the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  is allowed by disengagement of the locking component  132  and the corresponding positioning slot  112 , the seat body  12  can rotate relative to the base  11  from the forward facing position as shown in  FIG. 1  to the rearward facing position or from the rearward facing position to the forward facing position as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     After the switching movement of the seat body  12  is completed, the operating component  135  can be released, so that the resiliently deformed resilient component  137  can drive the locking component  132  downwardly to move from the releasing position as shown in  FIG. 7  to the locking position as shown in  FIG. 6  for restraining the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11 , and the locking component drives the pivoting component to pivot along a second pivoting direction P 2  opposite to the first pivoting direction P 1  by the abutment of the pin  133  and the washer  134 . At this moment, since the switching movement of the seat body  12  relative to the base  11  is restrained by engagement of the locking component  132  and the corresponding positioning slot  112 , the seat body  12  can be positioned at the forward facing position or the rearward facing position. 
     Please refer to  FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9 .  FIG. 8  is a schematic diagram of a child safety seat  1 ′ according to a second embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 9  is a partial section diagram of the child safety seat  1 ′ according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 8 , different from the first embodiment, the child safety seat  1 ′ includes a base  11 ′, a seat body  12 ′ and a spin lock mechanism  13 ′. The spin lock mechanism  13 ′ includes a pivoting component  131 ′, a locking component  132 ′, a pin  133 ′, a washer  134 ′, an operating component  135 ′, a linking component  136 ′ and a resilient component  137 ′. The pivoting component  131 ′ is pivotally connected to the base  11 ′ instead of the seat body  12 ′, and the locking component  132 ′ is slidably connected to the pivoting component  131 ′ by the pin  133 ′ and the washer  134 ′ for engaging with or disengaging from the seat body  12 ′ instead of the base  11 ′. The operating component  135 ′ is disposed on the seat body  12 ′. Preferably, the operating component  135 ′ can be disposed on a lateral portion of the seat body  12 ′. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. In another embodiment, the operating component can be disposed on a front portion or a rear portion of the seat body. The linking component  136 ′ is connected between the operating component  135 ′ and the pivoting component. The resilient component  137 ′ abuts between the locking component  132 ′ and the base  11 ′. Other structures of this embodiment are similar to the ones of the first embodiment. Detailed description for those structures is omitted herein for simplicity. When the operating component  135 ′ is operated to drive the pivoting component  131 ′ to pivot by the linking component  136 ′, the pivoting component  131 ′ drives the locking component  132 ′ to disengage from the seat body  12 ′ for allowing switching movement of the seat body  12 ′ relative to the base  11 ′. When the operating component  135 ′ is released, the locking component  132 ′ is recovered by the resilient component  137 ′ to engage with the seat body  12 ′ for restraining the switching movement of the seat body  12 ′ relative to the base  11 ′. 
     In contrast to the prior art, in the present invention, when the pivoting component pivots, the pivoting component drives the locking component to disengage the seat body from the base for allowing switching movement of the seat body relative to the base between the forward facing position and the rearward facing position. Furthermore, the switching movement of the seat body relative to the base can be restrained by engagement of the seat body and the base with the locking component. Therefore, the present invention has advantages of simple structure and easy operation. 
     Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.