Patent ID: 8376442

Claim:
A latch assembly incorporated into a stadium style vehicle seat, comprising: a floor mounted stanchion exhibiting an upwardly extending support surface; a modified “L” shaped frame with a first leg securing along an extending side of a seat bottom and a second enlarged dimension leg pivotally engaged at an intermediate location to an upper end of said stanchion, an edge extending profile associated with said enlarged dimension leg further comprising first and second spaced apart notched locations; a sector pivotally slaved to an inside face of said second leg of said seat bottom frame opposing said stanchion support surface, said sector exhibiting a bottom extending surface including a generally central located shoulder projection separating said surface into first and second locations; a pendulum shaped member pivotally secured to said stanchion support surface and exhibiting an upper end profile which seats against a first sector location in edge abutting contact with said shoulder, concurrent with said seat bottom in a downward design position; a detent style lever pivotally mounted in spring loaded fashion to another location of said stanchion support surface and seating in biased fashion against said first notched location of said “L” shaped frame so as to maintain said seat bottom in said downward design position; and upon said seat bottom being grasped by a user and rotated in an upward direction, said detent lever being caused to pivot out of engagement with said first notched location and travel along said edge extending profile simultaneous with said sector displacing relative to said pendulum so that said shoulder traverses along said upper end profile, upon said seat bottom rotating to an upwardly folded position, said detent lever re-establishing seating engagement with said second notched location concurrent with said pendulum pivoting into engagement with said second sector location in opposite edge abutting contact with said shoulder; said pendulum additionally responding to an inertial impact condition not associated with manual controlled rotation of the seat bottom, in either of said design or upright folded positions, by engaging said shoulder projection associated with said slaved sector to thereby prevent rotation of the first seat component.