Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US5121964?ie=ISO-8859-1
Timestamp: 2014-04-18 21:29:05
Document Index: 656301240

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 11', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5', 'art 5']

Patent US5121964 - Motor-vehicle seat sitting unit equipped with a raisable central part for ... - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inAdvanced Patent SearchPatentsThis sitting unit comprises a central part (5) articulated on the front edge of the sitting unit and thus raisable forwards, a receptacle (7) designed to receive this central part (5) when it is turned down into the sitting unit, and a device (8, 8a, 12) for locking and retaining in the raised position...http://www.google.com/patents/US5121964?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US5121964 - Motor-vehicle seat sitting unit equipped with a raisable central part for receiving a child's seatAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS5121964 APublication typeGrantApplication numberUS 07/716,771Publication dateJun 16, 1992Filing dateJun 7, 1991Priority dateJun 19, 1990Fee statusPaidAlso published asDE69108791D1, DE69108791T2, EP0462859A1, EP0462859B1Publication number07716771, 716771, US 5121964 A, US 5121964A, US-A-5121964, US5121964 A, US5121964AInventorsFrancois Fourrey, Marc Mathiot, Roel VerhoogOriginal AssigneeEciaExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (7), Referenced by (18), Classifications (10), Legal Events (5) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMotor-vehicle seat sitting unit equipped with a raisable central part for receiving a child's seatUS 5121964 AAbstract This sitting unit comprises a central part (5) articulated on the front edge of the sitting unit and thus raisable forwards, a receptacle (7) designed to receive this central part (5) when it is turned down into the sitting unit, and a device (8, 8a, 12) for locking and retaining in the raised position the central part, to the rear face of which a child's seat can be attached. This arrangement increases the safety of the child in the event of a front collision of the vehicle because the child's seat faces rearwards, instead of facing forwards, so that, in the event of a collision, the child is already steadied in the seat and does not suffer the injuries caused by the belts which are conventionally used.
We claim: 1. A motor-vehicle seat sitting unit (4) adapted to accommodate a child's seat, comprising:a central part (5) being selectively articulatable on a front edge of the sitting unit and raisable from a folded down position to a generally upright position; a receptacle (7) configured to receive said central part (5) when said central part (5) is folded down into the sitting unit; and means (8, 8a, 12) for locking and retaining the central part in the raised, upright position, said central part sized and configured to receive said child's seat, and comprising means for mounting and retaining said child's seat. 2. Sitting unit according to claim 1, characterised in that the said locking means comprise a U-shaped yoke (8), the ends of which are articulated freely on the central part (5), and a retractable catch (11) articulated on an abutment (12) which is fastened in the receptacle (7) and against which crossbar (8a) of the yoke (8) can come to a stop, after the catch for locking the said yoke in the corresponding raised position of the central part has been lifted.
3. Sitting unit according to claim 2, characterised in that the locking means comprise an elastic system for the return of a catch (11) into the position for stopping the yoke (8), for example a spring (14), one end of which is fastened to a bottom of the receptacle (7) and the other end of which exerts a push on the catch (11).
The subject of the present invention is a motor-vehicle seat sitting unit, such as for a front seat, a side or central position on a rear bench seat or, if appropriate, another type of seat.
It is known that removable child's seats are conventionally attached to the backs of the rear seats or, if appropriate, of a front seat, the child being retained by a cross-belt or by a strap. The result of this is that, in the event of a front collision of the vehicle, the child is thrown in the direction of travel of the vehicle and therefore suffers injuries caused by the cross-belt or strap. Moreover, these conventional arrangements for the installation of a child's seat make it necessary to provide, in the body, anchoring points for the straps or cross-belt, this complicating them and making them relatively expensive.
The object of the invention is, therefore, to provide a seat arrangement which does not have these disadvantages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the invention, the seat sitting unit comprises a central part articulated on the front edge of the sitting unit and thus raisable forwards, a receptacle designed to receive this central part when it is turned down into the sitting unit, and means for locking and retaining the central part in the raised position.
According to one embodiment of the invention, the locking means comprise a U-shaped yoke, the ends of which are articulated freely on the central part, and a retractable catch articulated on an abutment which is fastened in the receptacle and against which the crossbar of the yoke can come to a stop, after the catch for locking the yoke in the corresponding raised position of the central part has been lifted.
Since the face of the central part turned rearwards when the sitting unit is raised is equipped with means for attaching a child's seat, this arrangement considerably increases the safety of the child installed in the seat. In fact, in the event of a front collision, the child is thrown in the direction of travel of the vehicle when it is already steadied in the seat, so that it does not suffer the injuries caused hitherto by the cross-belt or retaining strap.
Moreover, the arrangement of means for the removable fastening of the child's seat to the rear face of the raised central part eliminates the need to provide anchoring points for the straps in the body.
Other particular features and advantages of the invention will emerge from the following description made with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate one embodiment of it by way of a non-limiting example.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rear vehicle bench seat, one of the side sitting units of which is equipped according to the invention with a raisable central part.
FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the sitting unit in FIG. 1, with its central part in the raised and locked position.
FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the seat in FIGS. 1 and 2, with a child's seat attached to the raised central part.
FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of the sitting unit in FIGS. 1 to 3, with its central part turned down and folded away in the sitting unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The rear vehicle bench seat 1 illustrated in FIG. 1 comprises three sitting units 2, 3, 4, a side sitting unit 4 being equipped with a central part 5 articulated on the front edge of the sitting unit 4 about a transverse axis 6 and thus being capable of being raised forward, as can be seen in FIGS. 1 to 3.
Formed in the sitting unit 4 is a receptacle 7 designed for receiving the central part 5 in the turned-down position, so that it is folded away in the sitting unit 4, the receptacle 7 being suitably profiled for this purpose with an intermediate inclined plane 7a.
The sitting unit comprises means for locking and retaining the central part 5 in the raised position, which, in the example illustrated, comprises a U-shaped yoke 8, the ends of which are articulated freely on lugs 9 of the raisable part 5. The locking device comprises in complementary fashion a retractable catch 11 articulated about an axis 13 on an abutment 12 which is fastened in the receptacle 7 not far from the axis 6 and against which the crossbar 8a of the yoke 8 can come to a stop, after the catch 11 has been lifted. The central part 5 is thus retained and locked in its raised position.
Advantageously, the locking means comprises an elastic system for the return of the catch 11 into the position for locking the yoke 8. In the exemplary embodiment shown, this return system comprises a spring 14, one end of which is fastened to the bottom of the receptacle 7 between the abutment 12 and the axis 6 and the opposite end of which stresses the end part 11a of the catch 11 opposite that interacting with the crossbar 8a, so as to push this rear end of the catch 11 constantly into its position for locking the bar 8a.
In the turned-down position, folded away inside the receptacle 7, the yoke 8 of the central part 5 rests freely on the bottom of the receptacle 7 (FIG. 4), this yoke being inclined in the horizontal approximately in parallel with the intermediate plane 7a of the receptacle 7.
When the central part 5 is raised (arrow F in FIG. 4), the central part 5 tilts about the axis 6 until the crossbar 8a, which slides on the inclined plane 7a, lifts the catch 11 and comes to a stop against the abutment 12, thereby blocking the central part 5 in its position raised forwards, (FIGS. 1 to 3). During this operation, the catch 11 is lifted counter to the return force of the spring 14, and then the spring causes the catch 11 to tilt into its position shown in FIG. 2, in which it locks the bar 8a and the yoke 8 on the abutment 12. Since the face of the central part 5 turned rearwards is equipped with means for fastening a child's seat 15, for example hooks interacting with crossbars 16 fastened to the back of the seat 15, it is possible to put the latter in place on the raised part 5 in a very simple way.
Thus, the provision of a sitting unit 4 of which the central part 5 is raisable makes it possible to install at the rear of this a fastening device for the child's seat 15 which is efficient and both quickly available and accessible, without the need to resort to anchoring points specially made in the body for the conventional straps for retaining the child's seats used hitherto.
When the part 5 is turned down, the passenger's comfort is in no way affected in comparison with conventional sitting units, because the device for locking the central part 5 and for fastening the seat 15 is very compact and therefore takes up very little space under the part 5, of which the thickness of foam or of upholstery is identical to that of a conventional seat.
Finally, as already mentioned, facing the child's seat 15 rearwards rather than forwards appreciably increases the safety of the child in the event of a front collision.
Various fastening means can be employed for installing the child's seat 15 on the central part 5. Likewise, any other locking means equivalent to that described can be used, for example a latch without an elastic return system, instead of the locking catch 11.
Patent CitationsCited PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS4555135 *Feb 28, 1984Nov 26, 1985Freeland Verne LBuilt-in child's safety seat for vehiclesDE2709005A1 *Mar 2, 1977Oct 19, 1978Opel Adam AgFahrzeugsitz, insbesondere in kraftfahrzeugenDE2823529A1 *May 30, 1978Dec 6, 1979Opel Adam AgFahrzeugsitz, in kraftfahrzeugenDE3800896A1 *Jan 14, 1988Sep 29, 1988Richard AmbrosSafety car with additional protective devices for the vehicle occupantsDE3922836A1 *Jul 11, 1989Dec 7, 1989Richard AmbrosUniversal car seat for small and large passengersEP0348374A1 *Jun 20, 1989Dec 27, 1989Ab Akta Barns�kerhetA vehicle seat structure which incorporates a child's chairFR2615799A1 * Title not available* Cited by examinerReferenced byCiting PatentFiling datePublication dateApplicantTitleUS5265934 *Jun 11, 1992Nov 30, 1993Bertrand Faure Automobile "Bfa"Lifting device for the cushion of a vehicle seatUS5409293 *Mar 2, 1993Apr 25, 1995Kabushiki Kaisha Tokai-Rika-Denki SeisakushoVehicle seat including a child seatUS5511551 *Mar 15, 1994Apr 30, 1996Omron CorporationCuff for blood pressure meterUS5524962 *Mar 23, 1994Jun 11, 1996Ford Motor CompanyTilt forward seat base for integrated infant seatUS5542742 *Mar 23, 1994Aug 6, 1996Ford Motor CompanyIntegrated infant seat for vehiclesUS6199945 *Aug 4, 1999Mar 13, 2001Hoon Y. KimVehicle seat for reversible occupant travelUS6254183Jun 29, 2000Jul 3, 2001Visteon Global Technologies, Inc.Removable cushion for isofix child seatUS6488333Mar 19, 2001Dec 3, 2002Hoon Y. KimVehicle seat for reversible occupant travelUS6494531Jan 11, 2000Dec 17, 2002Hoon Y. KimVehicle seat for reversible occupant travelUS6991285Mar 17, 2004Jan 31, 2006Hemenway Michael SReversible seatback for a vehicleUS7458635 *Nov 17, 2006Dec 2, 2008Ford Global Technologies, LlcVehicle seat arrangementUS7517016 *Dec 27, 2006Apr 14, 2009Eugene WestVehicle child seatUS7523988Aug 19, 2004Apr 28, 2009Milsco Manufacturing Company, A Unit Of Jason IncorporatedSeat, suspension, bolster and shellUS7997647 *Mar 21, 2008Aug 16, 2011Dan SjoquistSafety seatUS8061772 *Jul 24, 2009Nov 22, 2011Airbus Operations GmbhIntegrated child seat having special functionsUS8328280Sep 1, 2010Dec 11, 2012Honda Motor Co., Ltd.Hinged center bolster for center ISO FIX attachment in a high bolster rear seatUS8430443 *Oct 26, 2012Apr 30, 2013Ford Global Technologies, LlcStowable child seat for automotive vehiclesWO2001010667A1 *Feb 9, 2000Feb 15, 2001Y Kim HoonA vehicle seat for reversible occupant travel* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification297/237, 297/236International ClassificationB60N2/28, B60N2/30Cooperative ClassificationB60N2/286, B60N2/2863, B60N2/283European ClassificationB60N2/28D, B60N2/28P2, B60N2/28P4Legal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionSep 29, 2003FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 12Nov 29, 1999FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 8Nov 24, 1995FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Dec 3, 1992ASAssignmentOwner name: CESA - COMPAGNIE EUROPEENNE DE SIEGES POUR AUTOMOBFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST.;ASSIGNOR:ECIA - EQUIPEMENTS ET COMPOSANTS POUR L INDUSTRIE AUTOMOBILE;REEL/FRAME:006337/0071Effective date: 19920907Sep 26, 1991ASAssignmentOwner name: ECIA - EQUIPEMENTS ET COMPOSANTS POUR 1 INDUSTRIEFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST.;ASSIGNORS:FOURREY, FRANCOIS;VERHOOG, ROEL;MATHIOT, MARC;REEL/FRAME:005858/0106Effective date: 19910620RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services©2012 Google