Mobile seat for use in motorized vehicles

• US 5,632,521 A
• Filed: 06/30/1995
• Issued: 05/27/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Centre de recherche industrielle du Québec
• Original Assignee: Flexibulb Inc.
• Inventors: Octeau, Pascal, Archambault, Marc-Antoine, Pham, Viet, April, Philippe
• Primary Examiner(s): Pike, Andrew C.
• Application Number:
  US08/497,423
• Time in Patent Office: 697 Days
• Field of Search: 296/65.1, 296/68.1, 297/344.1
• US Class Current: 296/65.13
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 3/00 Ambulance aspects of vehicles; Vehicles with special provisions for transporting patients or disabled persons, or their personal conveyances, e.g. for facilitating access of, or for loading, wheelchairs
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/062 transversally slidable

Abstract

A mobile seat is used in a motorized vehicle to permit a user person seated thereon to displace itself to a desired position and wherein the seat is locked and unlocked at the desired position by the user person in a hands-free mode. The seat comprises a seating member which is displaceably secured between front and rear guide rails. A pivot connection is provided rearwardly of the seating member. A braking element is connected to the seating member for displaceable engagement with the front guide rail by pivoting motion of the seat member about the pivot connection. The braking element is actuable by the position of the user person seated on the seating member whereby to arrest the seat member at a desired position without the use of the user person'"'"'s hands.

Claims

1. A mobile seat for use in a motorized vehicle to permit a user person seated thereon to displace itself to a desired position and wherein said seat is locked and unlocked at said desired position by said user person in a hands-free mode, said seat comprising a seating member displaceably secured between front and rear guide means, pivot connection means rearwardly of said seating member, and arresting means connected to said seating member for displaceable engagement with said front guide means by pivoting motion of said seating member about said pivot connection means, said arresting means being actuable by a position of said user person seated on said seating member whereby to arrest said seating member at said desired position without use of the user person'"'"'s hands.

2. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 1 further comprising automatic locking means associated with said rear guide means to further arrest said seating member when said seating member is subjected to a predetermined abrupt force imparted thereto by the vehicle to which said seat is secured.

3. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 2 wherein said seating member has a seat portion and a backrest portion, said front guide means being disposed under a forward part of said seat portion, said rear guide means being disposed rearwardly of said backrest portion.

4. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 3 wherein said front and rear guide means are front and rear elongated guide rails disposed substantially parallel to one another, and said seat further comprises a carriage secured to said backrest portion and having roller bearing means in support engagement with said rear elongated guide rail for smooth support displacement of said seating member therealong.

5. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 4 wherein said automatic locking means is comprised of a support member immovably secured to said carriage and displaceable adjacent a face of said rear elongated guide rail as said carriage is displaced therealong, said face of said rear elongated guide rail having a plurality of spaced-apart engagement arresting cavities therealong, a displaceable locking member secured to said support member, and a force responsive means for moving said locking member in engagement with one or more of said arresting cavities when said seating member is subjected to said predetermined abrupt force.

6. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 5 wherein said displaceable locking member is a pivotally connected arresting rocker arm connected to said support member by a pivot connection, said arresting rocker arm having a locking head for engagement in said one or more of said arresting cavities, and a lever end for arcuately displacing said locking head about said pivot connection, said force responsive means being connected to said lever end.

7. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 6 wherein said force responsive means is a swing arm having a bottom pivot connection secured to said support member, and a coupling member at a top end of said swing arm, said swing arm being engageable with said lever end at an intermediate location thereof;

and an actuating wheel is secured to a pivot shaft of one of said roller bearing means, said actuating wheel having impact responsive means to engage said coupling member when said actuating wheel is displaced as a result of said predetermined abrupt force to cause said displaceable locking member to pivot for engagement with said one or more of said arresting cavities.

8. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 7 wherein said lever end has a slot therein, said slot being dimensioned to receive said swing arm in spaced relationship therethrough to permit limited lateral displacement of said swing arm without causing said locking head to engage in said one or more said arresting cavities.

9. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 8 wherein said locking head is a fork head having two pairs of spaced locking fingers, one of said pairs of fingers engaging in an arresting cavity of two rows of said arresting cavities when said rocker arm is displaced through a predetermined arc about said pivot connection and another of said pairs of fingers abutting a shoulder of said support member to wedge said head between said rear elongated guide rail and said carriage.

10. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 8 wherein said locking head is a fork head having a pair of spaced locking fingers, one of said pair of locking fingers engaging in one of said arresting cavities when said rocker arm is displaced through a predetermined arc about said pivot connection to wedge said head between said rear elongated guide rail and a side portion of said rocker arm abutting said support member.

11. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 7 wherein said impact responsive means is comprised by at least two radially displaceable actuating pins retained captive in respective cavities formed spaced-apart in a circumferential top wall of said actuating wheel, said pins being displaceable axially in said cavities by gravitational and centrifugal forces.

12. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 1 wherein said seating member has a seat portion and a backrest portion, said front guide means being disposed under a forward part of said seat portion, said rear guide means being disposed rearwardly of said backrest portion.

13. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 12 wherein said front and rear guide means are front and rear elongated guide rails disposed substantially parallel to one another, and said seat further comprises a carriage secured to said backrest portion and having roller bearing means in support engagement with said rear elongated guide rail for smooth support displacement of said seating member therealong.

14. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 13 wherein said carriage is secured to a carriage frame, said seating member being secured to a seat support frame, said seat support frame being pivotally attached to said carriage frame by said pivot connection means to permit said pivoting motion of said seating member.

15. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 14 wherein said seat support frame has a pair of rear vertical posts each being pivotally connected by a pivot pin to a respective end flange of said carriage frame, said carriage frame having a pair of said roller bearing means arranged in a spaced-apart manner.

16. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 15 wherein said roller bearing means are each comprised by a pair of roller bearing sheaves disposed spaced apart and retained captive by opposed side edges of a projecting vertical support flange of said rear elongated guide rail with said sheaves in rolling engagement with a respective one of said opposed side edges.

17. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 12 wherein said front and rear guide means are connected to a vehicle cabin frame to displace said user person seated on said seat portion along a side and a head end of a stretcher disposed in said vehicle, said seat being displaced along said guide means by said user person while both hands of said user person may be used to attend to a patient on said stretcher.

18. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 17 wherein said motorized vehicle is an ambulance.

19. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 1 wherein said arresting means is a brake shoe secured to a forward portion of a seat support frame, said front guide means being an elongated guide rail secured to an immovable frame and having a top flat horizontal braking surface above which said brake shoe is displaceably positioned.

20. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 19 wherein said brake shoe is an elongated flat bar having a lower flat brake pad disposed in parallel relationship with said flat horizontal braking surface.

21. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 20 further comprising a spring-biased roller bearing also secured to said seat support frame in opposed aligned relationship with said brake shoe, said roller bearing being in spring-biased contact with a bottom flat surface of said elongated guide rail.

22. A mobile seat as claimed in claim 21 wherein said roller bearing is connected to a front end portion of a pivotal support arm pivotally connected to said forward portion of said seat support frame, and a helical spring is held in compression between said pivotal support arm and a support flange connected to said forward portion of said seat support frame, said support flange limiting said pivoting motion of said seating member.