Abstract:
A vehicle seating structure allowing the removal of a seat assembly through an opening ( 72 ) of a vehicle having a track ( 26 ) secured to the body of the vehicle, the track coordinated with the opening such that the seat assembly ( 10 ) includes a coupling device ( 30 ) which slidably engages the track, thereby allowing the seat assembly to be displaced along the track and pass through the opening.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of prior provisional application No. 60/052,901, filed Jul. 16, 1997. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Field 
     This invention generally relates to a seat which is removable from a vehicle and, more particularly. to a seat which engages a track aligned with and generally perpendicular to a door opening which allows the seat to be removed through the door opening when extended beyond the end of the track. 
     2. Discussion 
     Seats which are removable from a vehicle are known in the industry within certain vehicle types. Particularly, removable seats have been incorporated in vans which are intended to serve a dual purpose, that of cargo carrying and that of passenger transport. While some advancements have been made to improve the ease with which the seats may be removed, the task is still often difficult and awkward. Typically, the person removing the seats must release a latch mechanism mounted to the seat which engages a striker bar connected to a recess in the vehicle floor. Once released. the seat is lifted from the recesses and is free from the vehicle at that point. The seat must then be lifted by the person removing the seat as they exit the vehicle. The lifting motion is often difficult because the person must bend to avoid hitting the roof of the vehicle as they lift the seat. Some manufacturers have reduced the difficulty of removing the seat by placing rollers on the bottom of the seat stations, however, the seat must still be lifted out of the recesses and angled such that the wheels contact the floor of the vehicle while rolling them toward the opening. 
     The present invention is intended to provide a user friendly removable seat which minimizes the operator&#39;s difficulty during removal. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, there is provided a removable seat slidably engaging a track mounted to the vehicle. The track is generally perpendicular to and aligns with the door opening of the vehicle such that the operator is able to remove the seat while primarily standing on the exterior of the vehicle. In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the seat can be folded to a more compact configuration than when in the normal use position. Once the seat is in the folded configuration it can pass through the door opening of the vehicle with relative ease. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The various advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art upon reading the following specification and by reference to the drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a removable seat made in accordance with the teachings of the present invention and shown in the normal use position; 
     FIG. 2 is a detailed sectional view taken along line  2 - 2  in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the removable seat in a first folded position; 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the removable seat in a vertically rotated position; and 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the removable seats when removed through the door opening of a vehicle. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The following description of the preferred embodiment is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, or its application, or uses. 
     Referring to FIG. 1, seat assembly  10  is shown with a vehicle body  12 . Seat assembly  10  is shown as a 60/40 split seat having a driver side seat portion  14  and a passenger side seat portion  16 . Each seat portion,  14  and  16 , includes a seat cushion  18  and  20 , respectively, and seat backs  22  and  24 , respectively. While the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described as a 60/40 split bench seat, other seating arrangements such as a full width bench seat, separate and individual seating units (typically referred to as bucket seats), and seats having three or more sections are also specifically included within the scope of the present invention. 
     Portions  14  and  16  are shown in a normal use position wherein an occupant would normally be seated in the seat while in this configuration. A track  26  is provided in or on the floor pan  28  of the vehicle body  12 . Track  26  in the preferred embodiment is shown to be mounted on, or provided in, a generally vertical portion of floor pan  28 . Further, track  26  can be located on a generally horizontal portion of floor pan  28 , or at some inclined angle between horizontal and vertical surfaces of floor pan  28 . 
     Track  26  can be secured to floor pan  28  by a number of methods known in the industry. Such methods include, but are not limited to: screws; bolts; welding; bonding; and the like. Further, track  26  can be mounted or secured below the surface of floor pan  28  with a coordinated slot or groove provided to enable track  26  to properly interface with connecting pieces as described below. 
     With additional reference to FIG. 2, an interconnecting assembly  30  is shown attached to seat cushion  20  and engaging track  26 . Assembly  30  includes a first segment  32  connected to a forward lower edge  34  of seat cushion  20 . First segment  32  is pivotally connected to a second segment  36  about hinge  38  having axis  40  running therethrough. A distal end  42  of second segment  36  provides attachment for track engagement member  44 . Engagement member  44  in the preferred embodiment includes a roller  46  mounted for rotation about a shaft  48  having a threaded portion  50  thereon. A radially extending shoulder  52  is located on shaft  48  and acts in conjunction with retainer  54  to secure second segment  36  to the shaft. While track engagement member  44  in the preferred embodiment is as described. Other engagement member structures can be used with equal result. Sliding block type members made of steel or plastic, particularly a self-lubricating type plastic, can be utilized in place of the above described engagement member as one non-limiting example. Further, engagement member structures using a plurality of rollers which are either oriented to coordinate with one another or are oriented to provide retention and reduce frictional resistance, can also be utilized. The track can also provide bearings to support and reduce friction when a sliding block member is used. 
     Referring to FIG. 3, seat backs  22  and  24  are shown in a first folded position in which seat backs  22  and  24  pivot about axis  56  and overlie seat cushions  18  and  20 , respectively. Seat backs  22  and  24  are pivotally connected to seat cushions  18  and  20  about axis  56  and may include a recline mechanism (not shown) allowing the angle of the seat backs to be varied when in the normal use position. One of many lock devices known within the industry can be used to retain seat backs  22  and  24  in their upright position relative to seat cushions  18  and  20  and such a device can be incorporated in the recline mechanism as known in the industry. 
     With reference to FIG. 4 driver side seat portion  14  and passenger side seat portion  16  are shown rotated upwardly and forwardly about axis  40  (shown in FIG. 2) to a generally vertical position. As a result, the seat backs  22  and  24  are now inverted with the headrest  60  and  62  directed toward floor pan  28 . Once seat portions  14  and  16  have been folded to the position shown in FIG. 4, seat portions  14  and  16  can be moved laterally along track  26  as shown by arrows “A” and “B” in FIG.  5 . As each track engagement member  44  exits a distal end  66  and  68  of track  26 , seat portions  14  and  16  are removed through an opening  72  (passenger side body opening not shown for simplicity) of vehicle body  12 . In the preferred embodiment, each seat portion  14  and  16  includes a handle  70  along an outboard side for ease in handling the seat portion during removal and for carrying the seat portions following removal. 
     Reinstalling the seat portions into the vehicle can be accomplished by reversing the process described above. Further, while a single interconnecting assembly  30  was shown for each seat portion it is within the scope of the present invention to provide multiple interconnecting assemblies. For example, one interconnecting assembly could be located on an inboard corner of each seating portion with a second interconnecting assembly located on each outboard comer of the seat portion. Further, a lateral retention device can be incorporated in the interconnecting assembly or can be separate from the seating portion and attached to the vehicle body in proximity to track  26 . The lateral retention device inhibits or prevents the seat portion from lateral movement within the track when engaged, and allows for movement of or removal of the seat portion when disengaged. 
     While the preferred embodiment is described as allowing the seats to be removed from openings located in the side of the vehicle, it is within the scope of the present invention to provide tracks extending longitudinally in the vehicle if an opening is provided at a front or rear end of the vehicle. One particular non-limiting example is if the present invention is incorporated in a van having an opening at the rear of the van. 
     The foregoing discussion discloses and describes a preferred embodiment of the present invention. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from such discussion, and from the accompanying drawings and claims, that various changes, modifications, and variations can be made therein without departing from the true spirit and fair scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.