Retainer system for juvenile vehicle seat

• US 6,672,663 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2001
• Issued: 01/06/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Cosco Management Incorporated (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cosco Management Incorporated (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Kain, James M.
• Primary Examiner(s): BARFIELD, ANTHONY DERRELL
• Application Number:
  US09/865,206
• Publication Number:
  US 20020043840A1
• Time in Patent Office: 957 Days
• Field of Search: 297/250.1, 297/256.16, 297/463.2, 297/463.1
• US Class Current: 297/250.1
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2806 for securing the child seat to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/2863 backward facing

Abstract

A juvenile vehicle seat includes a seat, a support base under the seat, a first belt retainer coupled to one side of the support base, and a second seat belt retainer coupled to another side of the support base. To retain the juvenile vehicle seat in place on a first side of a seat in a vehicle, a vehicle shoulder strap associated with that first side of the seat is moved to engage one lower portion of the support base and pass through a channel provided by the first belt retainer so that it extends diagonally behind the juvenile vehicle seat (from left to right) in an “upwardly” sloping direction. Alternatively, to retain the juvenile vehicle seat in place on the other side of a seat in a vehicle, the vehicle shoulder strap associated with that side of the seat is moved to engage another lower portion of the support base and pass through a channel provided by the second belt retainer so that it extends diagonally behind the juvenile vehicle seat (form left to right) in a “downwardly” sloping direction.

Claims

1. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and seat back extending away from the seat bottom,

a support base appended to an underside of the seat, arranged to lie behind the seat back and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, and

a first belt retainer coupled to the support base on an underside of the seat back and arranged to provide a shoulder belt receiver channel located between the support base and the first belt retainer and adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle, the first belt retainer being formed to include a belt receiver slot opening into the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support base to facilitate movement of a vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel, wherein the support base includes first and second support legs extending away from the seat back, each support leg includes an upper portion lying adjacent to the seat back and a foot portion lying away from the seat back, each foot portion includes an exterior wall providing a shoulder belt receiver surface adapted to engage a vehicle shoulder belt, the first belt retainer is coupled to the upper portion of the first support leg, and the first belt retainer and the shoulder belt receiver surface on the external wall of the second support leg cooperate to provide means for receiving a vehicle shoulder belt internally in the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the first support leg and externally on the shoulder belt receiver surface on the second support leg to retain the seat in place in a vehicle.

2. The vehicle seat of claim 1, wherein the first belt retainer includes first and second retainer arms cantilevered to the upper portion of the first support leg, the first and second retainer arms and the upper portion of the first support leg cooperate to define the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the first support leg, and the first and second retainer arms cooperate to form therebetween the belt receiver slot.

3. The vehicle seat of claim 2, wherein the first retainer arm includes an angled root portion anchored to the first support leg and an elongated retainer portion extending from a distal end of the angled root portion toward a distal end of the second retainer arm to define the shoulder belt receiver slot therebetween.

4. The vehicle seat of claim 2, wherein the exterior wall of the second support leg includes a rear wall facing away from the seat back and a side wall lying at an angle to the rear wall and wherein the side wall and rear wall cooperate to provide an edge defining the shoulder belt receiver surface.

5. The vehicle seat of claim 4, wherein the edge is curved along the length of the second support leg.

6. The vehicle seat of claim 1, further comprising a second belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the second support leg and wherein the second belt retainer and the shoulder belt receiver on the external wall of the first support leg cooperate to provide means of receiving a vehicle shoulder belt internally in a shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the second support leg and externally on the shoulder belt receiver surface on the first support leg to retain the seat in place in a vehicle.

7. The vehicle seat of claim 6, wherein the support base further includes a first support member located under the seat bottom on one side of the seat and in spaced-apart relation to the first support leg to define a first notch therebetween and a second support member located under the seat bottom on another side of the seat and in spaced-apart relation to the second support leg to define a second notch therebetween.

8. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and seat back extending away from the seat bottom

a support base appended to an underside of the seat and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat,

a first belt retainer coupled to the support base and arranged to provide a shoulder belt receiver channel located between the support base and the first belt retainer and adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle, the first belt retainer being formed to include a belt receiver slot opening into the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support base to facilitate movement of a vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel, and

a second belt retainer coupled to the support base and arranged to provide a shoulder belt receiver channel between the support base and the second belt retainer and wherein the second belt retainer is adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle and the second belt retainer is formed to include a second belt receiver slot opening into the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the second support leg to facilitate movement of the vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the second support leg and wherein each of the first and second belt retainers also includes a second retainer arm coupled to the support base and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to a companion one of the first retainer arms to define one of the belt receiver slots therebetween.

9. The vehicle seat of claim 8, wherein each second retainer arm includes a panel facing toward the companion one of the retainer arms and a rigidifying rib coupled to the support base and a rear wall of the panel to position the panel between the rigidifying rib and said companion one of the retainer arms and arranged to lie in perpendicular relation to the rear wall of the panel.

10. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom, a seat back extending away from the seat bottom and having an upper edge, and a pair of spaced-apart sides arranged to position the seat bottom therebetween,

first and second support legs appended to an underside of the seat back and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, each of the first and second support legs being coupled to the seat back to lie in spaced-apart relation to the sides and including an upper portion lying adjacent to the upper edge of the seat back and a foot portion arranged to lie below the upper portion and adapted to support a portion of the seat on a surface underlying the seat,

a first belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the first support leg at a surface behind the seat back and arranged to provide an open-ended first shoulder belt receiver channel located between the first support leg and the first belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back, and

a second belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the second support leg at a surface behind the seat back and arranged to provide an open-ended second shoulder belt receiver channel located between the second support leg and the second belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back.

14. The vehicle seat of claim 10, wherein the seat back includes a top edge, the first belt retainer includes a first retainer arm cantilevered at one end to the first support leg and having another end arranged to extend upwardly from the first support leg along the seat back toward the top edge of the seat back, and the second belt retainer includes a second retainer arm cantilevered at one end to the second support leg and having another end arranged to extend upwardly from the second support leg along the seat back toward the top edge of the seat back.

15. The vehicle seat of claim 14, wherein the first retainer arms of the first and second belt retainers are arranged to lie in spaced-apart parallel relation to one another.

11. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising:

a seat including a seat bottom and a seat back extending away from the seat bottom and having an upper edge,

first and second support legs appended to an underside of the seat back and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, each of the first and second support legs including an upper portion lying adjacent to the upper edge of the seat back and a foot portion arranged to lie below the upper portion and adapted to support a portion of the seat on a surface underlying the seat,

a first belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the first support leg and arranged to provide an open-ended first shoulder belt receiver channel located between the first support leg and the first belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back, and

a second belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the second support leg and arranged to provide an open-ended second shoulder belt receiver channel located between the second support leg and the second belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back, wherein each foot portion includes an exterior wall providing a shoulder belt receiver surface adapted to engage a vehicle shoulder belt, the first belt retainer and the shoulder belt receiver surface on the second support leg cooperate to provide first means for receiving a vehicle shoulder belt extending in a positively sloping direction internally in the open-ended shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the first support leg and externally on the shoulder belt receiver surface on the second support leg to retain the seat in place in a vehicle when the seat is positioned to be retained by a positively sloping vehicle shoulder belt, and the second belt retainer and the shoulder belt receiver surface on the first support leg cooperate to provide second means for receiving a vehicle shoulder belt extending in a negatively sloping direction internally in the open-ended shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the second support leg and externally on the shoulder belt receiver surface on the first support leg to retain the seat in place in a vehicle when the seat is positioned to be retained by a negatively sloping vehicle shoulder belt.

12. The vehicle seat of claim 11, wherein each support leg includes a rear wall facing away from the seat back and a side wall lying at an angle to the rear wall and wherein the side wall and the rear wall cooperate to provide an edge defining the shoulder belt receiver surface.

13. The vehicle seat of claim 12, wherein each edge is curved along a length portion thereof.

16. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and a seat back extending away from the seat bottom and having an upper edge,

first and second support legs appended to an underside of the seat back and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, each of the first and second support legs including an upper portion lying adjacent to the upper edge of the seat back and a foot portion arranged to lie below the upper portion and adapted to support a portion of the seat on a surface underlying the seat,

a first belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the first support leg and arranged to provide an open-ended first shoulder belt receiver channel located between the first support leg and the first belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back, and

a second belt retainer coupled to the upper portion of the second support leg and arranged to provide an open-ended second shoulder belt receiver channel located between the second support leg and the second belt retainer and near the upper edge of the seat back, wherein the seat back includes a top edge, the first belt retainer includes a first retainer arm cantilevered at one end to the first support leg and having another end arranged to extend upwardly from the first support leg along the seat back toward the top edge of the seat back, and the second belt retainer includes a second retainer arm cantilevered at one end to the second support leg and having another end arranged to extend upwardly from the second support leg along the seat back toward the top edge of the seat back and the first belt retainer further includes a second retainer arm coupled to the first support leg and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to said another end of the first retainer arm of the first belt retainer to define a belt receiver slot therebetween providing an access opening into the open-ended shoulder belt receiver channel located between the first support leg and the first belt retainer and the second belt retainer further includes a second retainer arm coupled to the second support leg and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to said another end of the first retainer arm of the second belt retainer to define a belt-receiver slot therebetween providing an access opening into the open-ended shoulder belt receiver channel located between the second support leg and the second belt retainer.

17. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and a seat back extending away from the seat

a support base appended to the underside of the seat and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, and

a first retainer arm cantilevered to the support base to define a shoulder belt receiver channel located between the support base and the first retainer arm and adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle, and

a second retainer arm cantilevered to the support base and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to the support base to define a belt receiver slot opening into the belt receiver channel to facilitate movement of a vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel, wherein the first retainer arm includes an angled root portion anchored to the support base and an elongated retainer portion extending from a distal end of the angled root portion toward a distal end of the second retainer arm to define the belt receiver slot therebetween.

18. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and a seat back extending away from the seat bottom,

a support base appended to the underside of the seat and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, and

a first retainer arm cantilevered to the support base to define a shoulder belt receiver channel located between the support base and the first retainer arm and adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle, and

a second retainer arm cantilevered to the support base and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to the support base to define a belt receiver slot opening into the belt receiver channel to facilitate movement of a vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel, wherein the second retainer arm includes a panel facing toward a distal end of the first retainer arm and a rigidifying rib coupled to the support base and a rear wall of the panel to position the panel between the rigidifying rib and the distal end of the first retainer arm.

19. A juvenile vehicle seat comprising

a seat including a seat bottom and seat back extending away from the seat bottom,

a support base appended to an underside of the seat and adapted to support the seat on a surface underlying the seat, and

a first belt retainer coupled to the support base and arranged to provide a shoulder belt receiver channel located between the support base and the first belt retainer and adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle, the first belt retainer being formed to include a belt receiver slot opening into the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support base to facilitate movement of a vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support base, wherein the first belt retainer includes first and second retainer arms cantilevered to an upper portion of the support base, the first and second retainer arms and the upper portion of the support base cooperate to define the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support base, and the first and second retainer arms cooperate to form therebetween the belt receiver slot.

20. The vehicle seat of claim 19, wherein the first retainer arm includes an angled root portion anchored to the support base and an elongated retainer portion extending from a distal end of the angled root portion toward a distal end of the second retainer arm to define the shoulder belt receiver slot therebetween.

21. The vehicle seat of claim 19, including a support leg coupled to the support base and having a rear wall facing away from the seat back and a side wall lying at an angle to the rear wall and wherein the side wall and rear wall cooperate to provide an edge defining a shoulder belt receiver surface.

22. The vehicle seat of claim 21, wherein the edge is curved along the length of the support leg.

23. The vehicle seat of claim 19, further comprising a second belt retainer coupled to the support base and arranged to provide a shoulder belt receiver channel between the support base and the second belt retainer and wherein the second belt retainer is adapted to receive only a vehicle shoulder belt therein to retain the seat in place in a vehicle and the second belt retainer is formed to include a second belt receiver slot opening into the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to a support leg to facilitate movement of the vehicle shoulder belt into and out of the shoulder belt receiver channel adjacent to the support leg, the seat back includes a top edge and each of the first and second belt retainers includes a first retainer arm cantilevered at one end to the support base and having another end arranged to extend upwardly from the support base along the seat back toward the top edge of the seat back, and the second belt retainer includes a second retainer arm coupled to the support base and arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to a companion first retainer arm to define a belt receiver slot therebetween.

24. The vehicle seat of claim 23, wherein each second retainer arm includes a panel facing toward the companion one of the retainer arms and a rigidifying rib coupled to the support base and a rear wall of the panel to position the panel between the rigidifying rib and said companion one of the retainer arms and arranged to lie in perpendicular relation to the rear wall of the panel.