Patent ID: 7494184

Claim:
An electric vehicle seat storage structure for moving a seat having a bottom cushion and a back cushion between a seating position and a storage position including a seat storage frame defined in a rear portion of the bottom cushion of the seat having an axle positioned along said rear portion of the bottom cushion and having a seat gear mounted to said axle, the improvement comprising: an actuator for moving the seat between the seating position and the storage position, the actuator having an output gear positioned about an output shaft that is secured along a longitudinal axis defined by the actuator, the actuator mounted within a recess defined by the seat storage frame, such that the output gear and the seat gear are directly meshed thereto, the actuator being further mounted within said recess such that the longitudinal axis of the actuator is substantially parallel to the axle of said seat storage frame, whereby when said seat is moved between the seating position and the storage position, the actuator mounted within said seat storage frame is moved therewith and wherein the actuator includes a four stage planetary gear train and wherein the first stage of the four stage planetary gear train includes three first stage planet gears rotatably mounted to a triangularly shaped planetary carrier plate.