CHILD RESTRAINT WITH SWIVELING JUVENILE SEAT AND SWIVEL-DIRECTION CONTROLLER

• US 20080054695A1
• Filed: 08/31/2007
• Published: 03/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/01/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cosco Management Incorporated (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cosco Management Incorporated (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Biaud, Richard, Lhomme, Gilles
• Granted Patent: US 7,481,492 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 297/256.12
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2806 for securing the child seat to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2812 for securing the child to the child seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2821 having a seat and a base part
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2869 rotatable about a vertical axis

Abstract

A child restraint includes a seat support and a juvenile seat mounted to swivel about an axis on the seat support. The seat support is adapted to set on a vehicle seat.

Claims

1. A child restraint comprising

a seat support including a base adapted to set on a vehicle seat and a swivel coupled to the base,

a juvenile seat mounted on the swivel for swiveling motion on an arc relative to the base about an axis of rotation along a first portion of the arc between a left-facing entry position and a forward-facing travel position and along a second portion of the arc between the forward-facing travel position and a right-facing entry position, and

a swivel-direction controller coupled to the base and configured to cooperate with the base to provide means for selectively allowing swiveling motion of the juvenile seat relative to the base along one of the first portion of the arc to permit movement of the juvenile seat back and forth between the left-facing entry position and the forward-facing travel position and the second portion of the arc to permit movement of the juvenile seat back and forth between the forward-facing travel position and the right-facing entry position so that swiveling motion of the juvenile seat is limited to only one of the first and second portions of the arc at a time.

2. The child restraint of claim 1, wherein the swivel-direction controller includes a rotatable member mounted for rotation in the base about the axis of rotation, a seat mount coupled to the rotatable member to rotate therewith about the axis of rotation and coupled to the juvenile seat to support the juvenile seat for swiveling motion about the axis of rotation, a first anti-rotation stop coupled to the rotatable member and associated with the first portion of the arc, a second anti-rotation stop coupled to the rotatable member and associated with the second portion of the arc, and a direction-selector switch mounted for movement relative to the base at the option of a caregiver to engage one of the first anti-rotation stop to allow swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the second portion of the arc and block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the first portion of the arc and the second anti-rotation stop to allow swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the first portion of the arc and block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the second portion of the arc.

3. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein the direction-selector switch includes a block mover mounted for movement relative to the base and a rotation-inhibitor block coupled to the block mover for movement therewith and the rotation-inhibitor block is constrained to move in a block-receiving space provided between the first and second anti-rotation stops between a first position wherein the rotation-inhibitor block is positioned to engage the first anti-rotation stop on the rotatable member upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position to block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the first portion of the arc during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the arc from the left-facing entry position toward the right-facing entry position and a second position wherein the rotation-inhibitor block is positioned to engage the second anti-rotation stop on the rotatable wheel upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position to block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the second portion of the arc during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the arc from the right-facing entry position toward the left-facing entry position.

4. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the first anti-rotation stop is located a first distance from the axis of rotation and the second anti-rotation stop is located a lesser second distance from the axis of rotation.

5. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the base includes a bottom plate adapted to set on a vehicle seat and formed to include an opening exposing a grip tab included in the block mover and configured to be gripped by a user and moved in the opening to cause the rotation-inhibitor block to move in the block-receiving space between the first and second positions only when the base and the juvenile seat are inverted.

6. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the block mover includes a plate formed to include a bottom side and a top side and a grip tab coupled to the bottom side and arranged to extend through an opening formed in the base during movement of the rotation-inhibitor block between the first and second positions and wherein the rotation-inhibitor block is coupled the top side of the plate.

7. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the base includes a bottom plate and a foundation coupled to the bottom plate and arranged to lie between the juvenile seat and the bottom plate, the rotatable member is positioned to lie in a space provided between the foundation and the bottom plate and is formed to include a bottom surface facing toward the bottom plate and carrying the first and second anti-rotation stops, and the block mover and the rotation-inhibitor block are arranged to move relative to the rotatable member in a space provided between the rotatable member and the bottom plate.

8. The child restraint of claim 7, wherein the block mover includes a plate and a grip tab, the rotation-inhibitor block is coupled to a top side of the plate facing upwardly toward the foundation, the grip tab is coupled to a bottom side of the plate facing downwardly toward the bottom plate of the base, the bottom plate is formed to include a grip tab-receiving guide slot, and the grip tab is arranged to extend into the grip tab-receiving guide slot and remain therein during movement of the rotation-inhibitor block back and forth between the first and second positions.

9. The child restraint of claim 3, further comprising spring means for yieldably urging the rotatable member to rotate in a first direction to cause the first anti-rotation stop on the rotatable member to engage the rotation-inhibitor block of the direction-selector switch when the rotation-inhibitor block is moved to assume the first position and in an opposite second direction to cause the second anti-rotation stop on the rotatable member to engage the rotation-inhibitor block of the direction-selector switch when the rotation-inhibitor block is moved to assume the second position so that the juvenile seat is swiveled to assume the forward-facing travel position after the juvenile seat is moved by a caregiver relative to the base to assume one of the left-facing and right-facing entry positions and then released.

10. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein the seat support further includes a spring mount coupled to the base and a return spring coupled to the spring mount and to the rotatable member and configured to provide automatic means for yieldably rotating the rotatable member relative to the base about the axis of rotation to assume the forward-facing travel position.

11. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein the first anti-rotation stop is located a first distance from the axis of rotation and the second anti-rotation stop is located a lesser second distance from the axis of rotation.

12. A child restraint comprising

a seat support including a base adapted to set on a vehicle seat and a swivel coupled to the base,

a juvenile seat mounted on the swivel for swiveling motion relative to the base about an axis of rotation between a left-facing entry position and a forward-facing travel position and between the forward-facing travel position and a right-facing entry position, and

a swivel-direction controller includes a rotatable ring mounted to the base for rotation with the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation, first and second anti-rotation stops coupled to the rotatable ring and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to one another to define a block-receiving space therebetween, and a direction-selector switch including a rotation-inhibitor block mounted for movement in the block-receiving space between a first position wherein the rotation-inhibitor block engages the first anti-rotation stop on the rotatable ring to block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat between the forward-facing travel position and the left-facing entry position yet allow swiveling motion of the juvenile seat between the forward-facing travel position and the right-facing entry position and a second position wherein the rotation-inhibitor block engages the second anti-rotation stop on the rotatable ring to block swiveling motion of the juvenile seat between the forward-facing travel position and the right-facing entry position yet allow swiveling motion of the juvenile seat between the forward-facing travel position and the left-facing entry position.

13. The child restraint of claim 12, wherein the first anti-rotation stop is located a first distance from the axis of rotation and the second anti-rotation stop is located a lesser second distance from the axis of rotation.

14. The child restraint of claim 12, wherein the seat support further includes a spring mount coupled to the base and a return spring coupled to the spring mount and to the rotatable ring and configured to provide automatic means for yieldably rotating the rotatable ring relative to the base about the axis of rotation to assume the forward-facing travel position whenever a caregiver releases the juvenile seat for swiveling motion about the axis of rotation.