Vehicular portable swivel seat

• US 5,318,339 A
• Filed: 02/18/1992
• Issued: 06/07/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Trexie I. Cherniak
• Original Assignee: Trexie I. Cherniak
• Inventors: Cherniak, Trexie I.
• Primary Examiner(s): KANNAN, PHILIP
• Application Number:
  US07/836,702
• Time in Patent Office: 840 Days
• Field of Search: 297/349, 297/250, 297/242
• US Class Current: 297/344.26
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/245 for handicapped persons

Abstract

A portable apparatus for expeditiously seating a handicapped or elderly person in a vehicle. The device is mounted on a car seat and includes top and bottom members which swivel relative to each other. The bottom member is removably fastened by a belt to the existing car seat.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing a vehicular portable swivel seat for aiding a person, especially of limited ambulatory ability, in entering or exiting an automotive vehicle, said apparatus being removably fastened to and on top of a single existing automotive vehicular seat, said apparatus comprising:

a thin, rigid, circular top member having a flat top surface and a flat bottom surface, said top member having a circumferential peripheral edge, said top member circumferential peripheral edge allowing said top member to be completely accessible from any radial direction, said top member sized in diameter to span said single car seat;

a resilient pad mounted on top of said top member top surface, said pad extending across said top member top surface to said top member'"'"'s circumferential peripheral edge;

a cover mounted over said pad and connected around the top of said top member and encompassing the complete circumference of said top member;

a thin, rigid, circular bottom member having the same diameter as said top member, said bottom member having a flat top surface and a flat bottom surface;

a bottom cover mounted over said bottom surface of said bottom member and attached to the top surface of said bottom member, enclosing said bottom member completely to provide a contact cover with said automotive vehicular seat;

a swivel for allowing relative rotational movement between said rigid top member and said rigid bottom member, said swivel connected to the bottom surface of said top member and the top surface of said bottom member and centrally located relative to said top member and said bottom member, said swivel including a top plate connected to the bottom surface of said top member, a bottom plate connected to the top surface of said bottom member, and a plurality of ball bearings disposed between said top plate and said bottom plate, said top late attached to said bottom plate and operably connected with said ball bearings associated therewith to permit ease of rotational movement between said top member and said bottom member;

a disengageable lock connected to said bottom member and connectable to said top member, said lock having a first mode of operation to prevent rotational movement between said top member and said bottom member and a second mode of operation which allows relative movement between said top member and said bottom member, said lock including a hinge connected to said bottom member and a hinge member connected to said hinge that can be pivoted vertically and a hinge plate connected to said top member which receives and locks said hinge late in said first mode of operation; and

a strap connected firmly to the top surface of said bottom member, said strap being sized to fit around a conventional automobile seat either from front to back for an extended vehicular front seat or from said to side for bucket seats found in a conventional automobile, said strap including a buckle attached to one end to allow the strap to be secured to said automotive seat, attaching said bottom member to said automobile seat, said bottom member being sized n diameter to fit on top of an automobile seat without extreme overlap, whereby a partially ambulatory person can be allowed to sit upon the apparatus when entering the car to provide a swivel action to rotate the person from a seated position into the car to an exit position.