Patent ID: 8291734

Claim:
A vehicular lock device comprising: a connecting unit that connects a vehicle seat to a vehicle body, the vehicle seat being capable of changing between a seating state that enables an occupant to sit and a stowed state in which the vehicle seat is stowed at a specific location at the vehicle body, by locking a connecting member that connects the vehicle seat and the vehicle body and that is provided at one or the other of the vehicle seat or the vehicle body in order to maintain the stowed state when the vehicle seat is in the stowed state, the connecting unit being provided at the other of the vehicle seat or the vehicle body; a sensing unit that senses insertion of the connecting member into the connecting unit; a control unit that controls the connecting unit so as to lock the connecting member when insertion of the connecting member into the connecting unit has been sensed by the sensing unit; an estimating unit that estimates separation of the connecting member from the connecting unit when locking of the connecting member by the connecting unit has been released; and an initial state control unit that controls the connecting unit such that the connecting member is placed in a lockable initial state when the connecting member is estimated by the estimating unit to have separated from the connecting unit, wherein the estimating unit estimates that the connecting member has separated from the connecting unit when a duration of time has elapsed after locking by the connecting unit was released, the duration of time being equal to or greater than a specific duration of time required to separate the connecting member from the connecting unit.