Seat arrangement

Details Seat arrangement Seat arrangement

1999-10-13

2001-03-13

Pape, Joseph D. (Department: 3612)

Land vehicles: bodies and tops

Bodies

Seats with body modifications

C296S065110, C296S065050, C296S065010, C297S240000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06199931

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a seat arrangement and more particularly to a seat arrangement for use within a motor vehicle.
It is clearly desirable within a motor vehicle to provide adequate seating for occupants of that vehicle. A further factor is that the number of occupants within a vehicle may vary considerably between journeys and so a balance must be struck between provision of sufficient seating for occupants whilst avoiding any detrimental factors involved with providing excess seating rarely used. Thus, with regard to so called utility vehicles it is common to provide occasional or third row seating. Furthermore, it will be appreciated that consideration must be made with regard to access to seating as again provision of separate doors can significantly add to vehicle manufacturing cost, etc.
It will be appreciated that typically with a two door vehicle the front seats are arranged such that a seat back tilts forward in order to allow access to rear seating within the vehicle. Clearly, in such circumstances even if the seat is arranged to slide forward as well as tilt access to the rear seating is still limited. A similar problem is precipitated within vehicles with third row seating in that access to that seating must either be made through the rear luggage space door or potentially by scrambling past the permanent second or normal rear seat in the vehicle. In any event, such access to seating within a vehicle is at best inconvenient and at worst unacceptable for certain groups of potential vehicle occupants.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It will be understood that so called bench-type seats present the best option with regard to maximising the number of passengers that can be accommodated. Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a seat arrangement which allows inclusion of bench-type seating within a motor vehicle whilst improving access to other seats behind the arrangement or luggage space thereat.
In accordance with the present invention there is provided a seat arrangement for a motor vehicle, the arrangement comprising a seat with a base secured at least by a pivot corner at a first end of the base such that the base is adjacent a door and the base being rotatable about that pivot corner to move forward at a second end of the base opposite the first end in order that the seat when so rotated is askew relative to the door and so facilitate access past the seat through the door to the rear of the arrangement.
Typically, the base will rotate substantially in the same plane about the pivot corner. Alternatively, the base may be arranged to lift or drop prior to or during rotation.
The seat may have a back portion secured to the base and that back portion arranged to tilt forward relative to the base.
There may be a latch at the opposite corner to the pivot corner at the first end in order to facilitate stability of the seat.
The pivot corner may be secured to a central or transmission tunnel within a motor vehicle with support means arranged at the second end of the base to ensure appropriate presentation of the seat within the vehicle.
The seat base may be segmented with a secondary pivot corner between the segments to allow respective rotation of a base segment about that secondary pivot corner.


REFERENCES:
patent: 2563220 (1951-08-01), Doty
patent: 3066979 (1962-12-01), Pitts et al.
patent: 4487452 (1984-12-01), Tanizaki et al.
patent: 4834452 (1989-05-01), Goodrich
patent: 5558386 (1996-09-01), Tilly et al.
patent: 5636884 (1997-06-01), Ladetto et al.
patent: 5662368 (1997-09-01), Ito et al.
patent: 5871255 (1999-02-01), Harland et al.
patent: 5971467 (1999-10-01), Kayumi et al.
patent: 6076880 (2000-06-01), Coffer et al.
patent: 6089641 (2000-07-01), Mattarellea et al.
patent: 1426428 (1972-03-01), None
patent: 59-89237 (1984-05-01), None
patent: 61-36028 (1986-02-01), None
patent: 63-242746 (1988-10-01), None

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