Patent ID: 7887134

Claim:
An interlock device for use with a seat control mechanism on a vehicle seat having a seat frame and a seat back pivotally coupled to a seat bottom; the interlock device comprising: a lock plate slidably coupled to the seat back for movement in a single linear direction relative to the seat back between a locked position and a released position; a stop bracket fixed to the seat bottom and having a first end engageable with the lock plate in the locked position when the seat back is in a full-forward position and a second end engageable with the lock plate in the locked position when the seat back is in a fold-flat position; and an actuator operable to move the lock plate from the locked position to the released position to release the lock plate and permit movement of the seat back between the full-forward position and the fold-flat position; wherein, after the actuator is released, the lock plate is biased toward the locked position such that the lock plate engages with the first end of the stop bracket in the locked position when the seat back is in the full-forward position and the lock plate engages with the second end of the stop bracket in the locked position when the seat back is in the fold-flat position, and wherein the lock plate is configured to be coupled to the seat back by a pair of slotted apertures engaging a pair of projections positionally fixed on the seat back.