Patent ID: 7255384

Claim:
A seat assembly for a vehicle that is assembled to a floor pan of the vehicle, the floor pan of the vehicle having a stowage well formed below the nominal floor of the vehicle, the seat assembly comprising: a seat; an articulated base that secures the seat to the floor pan; a locking system for locking the base in a seating position, the locking system being released in a first procedure to allow the seat to be tipped forward and downward toward the stowage well to a limited extent in an intermediate position above the stowage well; wherein the locking system may also be released in a second procedure to allow the seat to be stowed in the stowage well, and wherein the seat further comprises a seat base and a seat back, the seat back being pivoted on an axis located adjacent the lower end of the seat back and the back end of the seat base between a rearward inclined upright position and a folded position in which the seat back is positioned over the seat base in a generally parallel relationship to the seat base, and wherein the seat back may be in the upright position when the seat is in the seating position and when the seat is in the tipped forward position, and further wherein the seat back may be in the folded position when in the stowage compartment and may also be in the folded position when in a table position.