Patent ID: 6869138

Claim:
A stowable seating apparatus for a vehicle having a floor defining a floor surface, the seating apparatus comprising: a seat receiving recess in the floor, extending downward from the floor surface and opening upward through the floor surface; and a seat having a seat cushion, a foldable seat back, and a leg operatively attaching the seat cushion to the floor for selective movement of the seat with respect to the seat receiving recess between a deployed position of the seat, an intermediate position of the seat, and a stowed position of the seat; the seat cushion having an upper surface for receiving the buttocks of a passenger when the seat is in the deployed position, and a lower surface facing the floor surface when the seat is in the deployed position; the foldable seat back pivotably attached to the seat cushion to be foldable upon the upper surface of the seat cushion to a folded position of the seat back, and openable to an open position of the seat back for supporting the back of a passenger seated upon the cushion; the leg having an upper pivot operatively attached to the lower surface of the seat cushion and a lower pivot operatively attached to the floor for selective movement of the leg between a substantially vertical deployed position of the leg for supporting the seat cushion in the deployed position of the seat whereat the seat cushion extends substantially perpendicular to the leg, and a substantially horizontal stowed position of the leg whereat the leg extends into the recess in a direction substantially parallel to the floor surface; the seat cushion being operatively attached to the upper pivot of the leg for selective movement with respect to both the seat receiving recess and the leg, between the deployed position of the seat, whereat the seat cushion extends substantially perpendicular to the leg with the leg in the deployed position of the leg and the seat back is in either the open or the folded position, and the intermediate position of the seat whereat the seat cushion with the seat back folded thereupon extends substantially perpendicularly to the leg with the leg in the stowed position of the leg; the seat cushion with the seat back folded thereupon foldable from the intermediate position of the seat to the stowed position of the seat within the seat receiving recess by pivoting the seat cushion with the seat back folded thereupon about the upper pivot of the leg and into the seat receiving recess, and a seat position adjustment track attached to the floor, and wherein the lower pivot of the leg is operatively attached to the seat position adjustment track for movement of the leg toward and away from the seat receiving recess.