Child restraint with swiveling juvenile seat and seat-back lock

• US 7,712,830 B2
• Filed: 01/04/2008
• Issued: 05/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dorel Juvenile Group, Inc. (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cosco Management Incorporated (Dorel Industries Incorporated)
• Inventors: Biaud, Richard, Lhomme, Gilles
• Primary Examiner(s): WHITE, RODNEY BARNETT
• Application Number:
  US11/969,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20080315649A1
• Time in Patent Office: 858 Days
• Field of Search: 297/256.12, 297/256.16
• US Class Current: 297/256.12
• 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 configured to include a swivel-mount pad and an upright anchor-support pad extending upwardly from the swivel-mount pad, the seat support further including a swivel coupled to the swivel-mount pad,

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, the juvenile seat including a seat bottom coupled to the swivel for swiveling motion about the axis of rotation and a seat back arranged to extend upwardly from the seat bottom for motion therewith, and

seat stop means for selectively retaining the juvenile seat in the forward- facing travel position to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation toward the left-facing and right-facing entry positions, the seat stop means including a seat anchor coupled to the anchor-support pad of the base and a seat-back lock coupled to the seat back of the juvenile seat, the seat-back lock including hook-retainer latches movable between hook-retaining positions and hook-releasing positions, and wherein the seat back is formed to include a central opening and the seat-back lock is arranged to extend through the central opening formed in the seat back to mate with the seat anchor, the seat anchor being located and configured to provide means for moving the hook-retainer latches from the hook-retaining positions to the hook-releasing positions in response to swiveling motion of the juvenile seat about its axis of rotation and arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position, so as to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position.

2. A child restraint comprising:

a seat support including a base adapted to set on a vehicle seat and configured to include a swivel-mount pad and an upright anchor-support pad extending upwardly from the swivel-mount pad, the seat support further including a swivel coupled to the swivel-mount pad,

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, the juvenile seat including a seat bottom coupled to the swivel for swiveling motion about the axis of rotation and a seat back arranged to extend upwardly from the seat bottom for motion therewith,

seat stop means for selectively retaining the juvenile seat in the forward- facing travel position to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation toward the left-facing and right-facing entry positions, the seat stop means including a seat anchor coupled to the anchor-support pad of the base and a seat-back lock coupled to the seat back of the juvenile seat, and wherein the seat back is formed to include a central opening and the seat-back lock is arranged to extend through the central opening formed in the seat back to mate with the seat anchor so as to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position,

wherein the juvenile seat further includes an interior region formed in the seat back, a hook pivot shaft located in the interior region of the seat back and coupled to the seat back to move therewith, and first and second retainer pivot shaft segments located in the interior region of the seat back and coupled to the seat back to move therewith,

wherein the seat-back lock includes a hook mounted on the hook pivot shaft for pivotable movement about a first horizontal axis between a locked position arranged to engage and mate with the seat anchor coupled to the anchor-support pad of the base and an unlocked position arranged to disengage the seat anchor to free the juvenile seat for swiveling motion relative to the base about the axis of rotation, a first hook-retainer latch mounted for pivotable movement on the first retainer pivot shaft segment about a second horizontal axis, and a second hook-retainer latch mounted for pivotable movement on the second retainer pivot shaft segment about the second horizontal pivot axis,

wherein each of the first and second hook-retainer latches includes an axle mount coupled to a companion one of the first and second retainer pivot shaft segments and formed to include a tip arranged to engage a companion flange portion of the hook to retain the hook in the unlocked position and to remain in the interior region of the seat back during pivotable movement of the first and second hook-retainer latches about the second horizontal axis,

wherein each of the first and second hook-retainer latches also includes a pivot actuator coupled to a companion axle mount and arranged to lie outside of the interior region of the seat back and in alignment with the central opening formed in the seat back to engage the seat anchor coupled to the anchor-support pad of the base during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the arc and arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing position, and

wherein the seat anchor is configured and arranged to provide hook-mover means for engaging the pivot actuators of the first and second hook-retainer latches upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position to apply forces sufficient to pivot the first and second hook-retainer latches inwardly toward the hook pivot shaft to cause the tips of the axle mounts of the first and second hook-retainer latches to disengage the companion flange portions of the hook so that the hook is released and moved by a hook-return spring included in the seat-back lock from the unlocked position to the locked position to mate with the seat anchor to block further swiveling motion of the juvenile seat relative to the base of the seat support.

3. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein the pivot actuator of the first hook-retainer latch includes a negatively sloping right-side cam surface and a positively sloping left-side cam surface, the right-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the first portion of the arc from the left-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position, and the left-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the second portion of the arc from the right-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position.

4. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the pivot actuator of the first hook-retainer latch further includes a ridge arranged to interconnect the let-side and right-side cam surfaces.

5. The child restraint of claim 4, wherein the ridge is flattened and has substantially no slope.

6. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the first hook-retainer latch includes a first segment cantilevered to the axle mount of the first hook-retainer latch and formed to include the right-side cam surface.

7. The child restraint of claim 6, wherein the first hook-retainer latch further includes a second segment cantilevered to the first segment and formed to include the left-side cam surface.

8. The child restraint of claim 7, wherein the second segment is formed to include a ridge interconnecting the left-side and right-side cam surfaces.

9. The child restraint of claim 3, wherein the pivot actuator of the second hook-retainer latch includes a negatively sloping right-side cam surface and a positively sloping left-side cam surface, the right-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the first portion of the arc from the left-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position, and the left-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the second portion of the arc from the right-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position.

10. The child restraint of claim 9, wherein the left-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch is arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to the right-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch to locate the right-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch and the left-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch therebetween.

11. The child restraint of claim 9, wherein the left-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch is located between the right-side cam surfaces of the first and second hook-retainer latches.

12. The child restraint of claim 9, wherein the right-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch is located between the left-side cam surfaces of the first and second hook-retainer latches.

13. The child restraint of claim 9, wherein the second hook-retainer latch includes a first segment cantilevered to the axle mount of the second hook-retainer latch and formed to include the left-side cam surface.

14. The child restraint of claim 13, wherein the second hook-retainer latch further includes a second segment cantilevered to the first segment and formed to include the right-side cam surface.

15. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein portions of the hook and the first and second hook-retainer latches are arranged to extend through the central opening, the central opening is located between a first seat-anchor guide channel formed in a right side of a rear portion of the seat back and a second seat-anchor guide channel formed in a left side of the rear portion of the seat back, and the seat anchor is arranged to extend into the first seat-anchor guide channel during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the first portion of the arc and into the second seat-anchor guide channel during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat along the second portion of the arc.

16. The child restraint of claim 2, wherein the hook includes an axle mount coupled to the hook pivot shaft and an upstanding finger cantilevered to the axle mount of the hook and configured to engage and mate with the seat anchor and wherein the companion flange portion of the hook associated with the tip of the first hook-retainer latch is coupled to one side of the axle mount of the hook and the companion flange portion of the hook associated with the tip of the second hook-retainer latch is coupled to another side of the axle mount of the hook.

17. 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, the juvenile seat including a seat bottom coupled to the swivel for swiveling motion about the axis of rotation and a seat back arranged to extend upwardly from the seat bottom for motion therewith, and

seat stop means for selectively retaining the juvenile seat in the forward-facing travel position to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation toward the left-facing and right-facing entry positions, the seat stop means including a seat anchor coupled to the base and a seat-back lock coupled to the seat back of the juvenile seat, and wherein the seat back is formed to include a central opening and the seat-back lock is arranged to extend through the central opening formed in the seat back to mate with the seat anchor so as to block rotation of the juvenile seat about the axis of rotation upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position,

wherein the juvenile seat further includes an interior region formed in the seat back, a hook pivot shaft located in the interior region of the seat back and coupled to the seat back to move therewith and first and second retainer pivot shaft segments located in the interior region of the seat back and coupled to the seat back to move therewith,

wherein the seat-back lock includes a hook mounted on the hook pivot shaft for pivotable movement about a first horizontal axis between a locked position arranged to engage and mate with the seat anchor coupled to the base and an unlocked position arranged to disengage the seat anchor to free the juvenile seat for swiveling motion relative to the base about the axis of rotation, a first hook-retainer latch mounted on the first retainer pivot shaft segment for pivotable movement about a second horizontal axis, and a second hook-retainer latch mounted on the second retainer pivot shaft segment for pivotable movement about the second horizontal pivot axis,

wherein each of the first and second hook-retainer latches includes a tip arranged to engage a companion flange portion of the hook to retain the hook in the unlocked position, and

wherein each of the first and second hook-retainer latches also includes a pivot actuator arranged to lie outside of the interior region of the seat back and in alignment with the central opening formed in the seat back to engage the seat anchor coupled to the anchor-support pad of the base during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the arc and arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing position.

18. The child restraint of claim 17, wherein the seat anchor is configured and arranged to provide hook-mover means for engaging the pivot actuators of the first and second hook-retainer latches upon arrival of the juvenile seat at the forward-facing travel position to apply forces sufficient to pivot the first and second hook-retainer latches inwardly toward the hook pivot shaft to cause the tips of the axle mounts of the first and second hook-retainer latches to disengage the companion flange portions of the hook so that the hook is released and moved by a hook-return spring included in the seat-back lock from unlocked position to the locked position to mate with the seat anchor to block further swiveling motion of the juvenile seat relative to the base of the seat support.

19. The child restraint of claim 18, wherein the pivot actuator of the first hook-retainer latch includes a negatively sloping right-side cam surface and a positively sloping left-side cam surface, the right-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the first portion of the arc from the left-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position, and the left-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the second portion of the arc from the right-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position.

20. The child restraint of claim 19, wherein the pivot actuator of the first hook-retainer latch further includes a ridge arranged to interconnect the left-side and right-side cam surfaces.

21. The child restraint of claim 20, wherein the ridge is flattened and has substantially no slope.

22. The child restraint of claim 19 wherein the first hook-retainer latch includes a first segment cantilevered to the axle mount of the first hook-retainer latch and formed to include the right-side cam surface.

23. The child restraint of claim 22, wherein the first hook-retainer latch further includes a second segment cantilevered to the first segment and formed to include the left-side cam surface.

24. The child restraint of claim 23, wherein the second segment is formed to include a ridge interconnecting the left-side and right-side cam surfaces.

25. The child restraint of claim 19, wherein the pivot actuator of the second hook-retainer latch includes a negatively sloping right-side cam surface and a positively sloping left-side cam surface, the right-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the first portion of the arc from the left-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position, and the left-side cam surface is arranged to engage the hook-mover means of the seat anchor during swiveling motion of the juvenile seat on the second portion of the arc from the right-facing entry position toward the front-facing travel position.

26. The child restraint of claim 25, wherein the left-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch is arranged to lie in spaced-apart relation to the right-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch to locate the right-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch and the left-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch therebetween.

27. The child restraint of claim 25, wherein the left-side cam surface of the first hook-retainer latch is located between the right-side cam surfaces of the first and second hook-retainer latches.

28. The child restraint of claim 25, wherein the right-side cam surface of the second hook-retainer latch is located between the left-side cam surfaces of the first and second hook-retainer latches.