Articulated seating system

• US 8,936,295 B2
• Filed: 11/01/2012
• Issued: 01/20/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BraunAbility Europe AB (Braun Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Bruno Independent Living Aids, Inc.
• Inventors: Slungare, Hans Bertil, Bergstrand, Joakim Lars
• Primary Examiner(s): Dayoan, Glenn
• Assistant Examiner(s): Westbrook, Sunsurraye
• Application Number:
  US13/666,063
• Publication Number:
  US 20130113258A1
• Time in Patent Office: 810 Days
• Field of Search: 296/65.09, 296/65.01, 296/65.06, 296/65.03, 296/64, 296/69, 297/344.1, 297/331, 297/15, 297/335, 297/334, 297/311, 297/312, 297/336, 297/378.13, 297/344.21, 248/503.1
• US Class Current: 296/65.12
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/02246 Electric motors therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/02253 characterised by the transmission between the electric motor and the seat or seat parts
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/02258 characterised by the mounting of the electric motor for adjusting the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/0256 Arrangements for facilitating the occupant to get in or out of the vehicle, e.g. stowing a seat forward
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/14 rotatable, e.g. to permit easy access B60N2/10 , B60N2/2869 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/1625 Combination of rods and slides
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/245 for handicapped persons

Abstract

An articulated seating system supports a user seat using a mounting assembly, a fore-aft slide assembly, a swivel assembly and an extension assembly driven by a drive packet having one or more motors or the like. The seat is moved from a secured drive position (e.g., a standard interior vehicle seat position) to an extension position (wherein the seat faces out of a vehicle doorway) and finally to an access position outside the vehicle, facilitating access for a user having limited mobility, strength, etc. Extendible supporting arms engage and enclose guide rollers to allow stable and precise control of lateral and vertical seat movement. Moving between the drive and extension positions, the seat can move through a narrow transition corridor in the motor vehicle. The motors can operate manually to allow securing the seat in the drive position despite power or other failure.

Claims

1. An articulated seating system comprising a user seat, the articulated seating system further comprising:

an adapter plate configured to be affixed to a motor vehicle at a driver'"'"'s seat position inside the motor vehicle;

a user seat fore-aft slide assembly slidably coupled to the adapter plate and configured to move the user seat linearly fore and aft in a motor vehicle relative to the adapter plate;

a user seat swivel assembly mounted to the fore-aft slide assembly using an off-center swivel post and configured to swivel the user seat to an extension position at least 90°

relative to the direction of linear fore and aft movement; and

a user seat extension assembly mounted to the swivel assembly and configured to move the user seat between an extension position in which the user seat has linearly moved forward and has rotated at least 90°

relative to the direction of fore and aft movement and an access position that is lateral to and lower than the extension position;

wherein the user seat is movable between the extension position and a drive position in which the fore-aft slide assembly, the swivel assembly and the extension assembly are substantially above the adapter plate and below the user seat and in which the user seat is facing in a forward orientation;

further wherein the extension assembly comprises;

a first carriage comprising a drive tab engaging a lift screw driven by an extension motor mounted to a weldment secured to the swivel assembly;

a second carriage comprising the user seat;

a drive shaft having a first end pivotably coupled to a linear rack mounted to the swivel assembly and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second carriage, the drive shaft controlling extension and retraction of the extension assembly by operation of the extension motor;

a first push-rod having a first end pivotably coupled to the first carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second carriage;

a second push-rod having a first end pivotably coupled to the first carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second carriage;

a first support arm having a first end pivotably coupled to the first carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second carriage, the first support arm having an underside channel engaging and at least partially enclosing a first extension guide roller rotatably mounted to the swivel assembly;

a second support arm having a first end pivotably coupled to the first carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second carriage, the second support arm having an underside channel engaging and at least partially enclosing a second extension guide roller rotatably mounted to the swivel assembly;

wherein each support arm underside channel is shaped to control the vertical position of the user seat as the first and second support arms are extended and retracted relative to the first and second extension guide rollers; and

further wherein the swivel assembly comprises;

an over-plate;

a swivel motor mounted to the weldment;

a pinion coupled to the swivel motor, wherein the pinion engages an arcuate rack mounted to the under-plate;

the off-center swivel post mounted to the over-plate; and

the first and second guide rollers rotatably mounted to the over-plate.

2. The seating system of claim 1 wherein each support arm is pivotably coupled to the second carriage using an offset coupling that provides a lateral offset of the user seat.

3. The seating system of claim 2 wherein the pivotable coupling of the drive shaft first end comprises a first end geared coupling and further wherein the pivotable coupling of the drive shaft second end comprises a second end geared coupling to synchronize the angular movement of the drive shaft relative to the over-plate with the angular movement of the user seat relative to the drive shaft.

4. The seating system of claim 1 wherein the fore-aft slide assembly comprises:

an under-plate;

a plurality of fore-aft slide rollers rotatably mounted to the under-plate, the fore-aft slide rollers engaging first and second side channels on the adapter plate to guide linear movement of the user seat relative to the adapter plate; and

a slide motor coupled to the under-plate and configured to move the under-plate linearly relative to the adapter plate.

5. The seating system of claim 4 wherein the slide motor, the swivel motor and the extension motor each can be selectively operated manually to move the user seat to the drive position.

6. The seating system of claim 5 wherein the fore-aft slide assembly and the swivel assembly work in concert to move the user seat through a transition corridor during movement between the drive position and the extension position.

7. The seating system of claim 6 wherein the transition corridor is less than 24 inches wide.

8. The seating system of claim 6 wherein the transition corridor is less than 22 inches wide.

9. The seating system of claim 5 wherein the fore-aft slide assembly, the swivel assembly and the extension assembly work in concert to move the user seat through a transition corridor during movement between the drive position and the extension position.

10. In combination with a motor vehicle, an articulated seating system comprising:

an adapter plate having sidewall channels, the adapter plate bolted to the motor vehicle at a motor vehicle seat location;

a slide motor mounted to an under-plate having a plurality of rotatable slide rollers engaging the adapter plate sidewall channels, the slide motor and under-plate configured to permit selective linear movement of the under-plate relative to the adapter plate;

an arcuate rack affixed to an under-plate upper surface and a pivot hole in the under-plate, the pivot hole generally concentric with the arcuate rack;

an over-plate and a swivel post mounted to an over-plate bottom surface, wherein the swivel post engages the under-plate pivot hole;

a swivel motor coupled to the over-plate and comprising a pinion engaging the arcuate rack, the swivel motor configured to permit controlled rotation of the over-plate relative to the under-plate;

a first extension carriage and a second extension carriage, the first extension carriage comprising an extension motor and lift screw coupled to a weldment mounted to the over-plate, a drive tab mounted to the first carriage engaging the lift screw, and the extension second carriage comprising a seat bracket supporting a user seat mounted thereto;

a pair of push-rods, each push-rod having a first end pivotably coupled to the first extension carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second extension carriage;

a pair of support arms, each support arm having a first end pivotably coupled to the first extension carriage and having a second end pivotably coupled to the second extension carriage using an offset coupling to offset the user seat relative to the pair of support arms, each support arm comprising a contoured underside channel that at least partially encloses an extension guide roller rotatably mounted to the over-plate, wherein the spacing between each extension guide roller and the pivotably coupled first end of each support arm changes as the first extension carriage is extended and retracted; and

a drive shaft pivotably coupled to the first extension carriage using a first end gear connection and pivotably coupled to the second extension carriage using a second end gear connection;

wherein the underside channels on the support arms are contoured to control the vertical position of the user seat as the first carriage is extended and retracted.

11. The seating system of claim 10 wherein the slide motor and the swivel motor move the user seat between a drive position in which the user seat is in a generally forward-facing orientation in the motor vehicle seat location and an extension position in which the user seat is rotated at least 90°

from the drive position and is facing generally outward through an access-way of the motor vehicle; and

further wherein an extension assembly moves the user seat out of and into the motor vehicle while the user seat is lowered and raised, respectively, to move the user seat between the extension position and an access position outside the motor vehicle, wherein the extension assembly comprises the extension motor, the pair of push-rods, the pair of support arms and the drive shaft.

12. The seating system of claim 10 further comprising a stop pin mounted to the over-plate and a limit tab adjacent the under-plate pivot hole, wherein the stop pin prevents operation of the extension motor unless the over-plate has rotated a preselected amount relative to the under-plate.

13. The seating system of claim 10 wherein the motor vehicle seat location is the motor vehicle driver'"'"'s seat location.

14. The seating system of claim 13 wherein the motor vehicle comprises a steering wheel, a B-pillar, and a transition corridor of less than 24 inches between the motor vehicle steering wheel and the motor vehicle B-pillar, further wherein the user seat moves through the transition corridor as the user seat moves between a drive position in which the user seat is in a generally forward-facing orientation in the motor vehicle seat location and an extension position in which the user seat is rotated at least 90°

from the drive position and is facing generally outward through an access-way of the motor vehicle.

15. In combination with a motor vehicle having a steering wheel, a B-pillar, a chassis, and a transition corridor of less than 22 inches between the motor vehicle steering wheel and the motor vehicle B-pillar, an articulated seating system comprising:

a mounting assembly configured to be secured to a motor vehicle interior in approximately the motor vehicle driver'"'"'s seat location, the mounting assembly comprising an adapter plate bolted to the motor vehicle chassis and having fore-aft slide assembly guides comprising sidewall channels;

a fore-aft slide assembly configured to move the user seat linearly fore and aft relative to the mounting assembly within a motor vehicle, the fore-aft slide assembly comprising;

an under-plate having a plurality of rollers mounted to the under-plate, the fore-aft slide assembly rollers engaging and configured to slide the under-plate linearly within the sidewall channels;

a slide motor coupled to the under-plate and configured to selectively move the under-plate linearly in the sidewall channels;

an arcuate rack affixed to an under-plate upper surface; and

an under-plate pivot hole generally concentric to the rack;

a swivel assembly above and engaging the fore-aft slide assembly, the swivel assembly comprising;

an over-plate having a swivel post structure mounted to an over-plate bottom surface, wherein the swivel post structure engages the pivot hole to permit controlled rotation of the swivel assembly relative to the fore-aft slide assembly, the swivel post structure comprising a spring-loaded stop pin configured to engage a stop tab on the under-plate adjacent to the pivot hole; and

a swivel motor mounted to the over-plate, the swivel motor comprising a pinion engaging the arcuate rack; and

an extension assembly comprising a user seat mounted to a chair plate, the extension assembly further comprising;

an inner carriage and an outer carriage coupled to the chair plate;

the inner carriage comprising a tab engaging a lift screw coupled to an extension motor mounted to the swivel assembly;

a drive shaft having a first geared connection to a linear rack mounted to the swivel assembly and a second geared connection to the outer carriage to synchronize rotation of the drive shaft and rotation of the outer carriage, the chair plate and the user seat;

a pair of push-rods having first ends pivotably coupled to the inner carriage and second ends pivotably coupled to the outer carriage;

a pair of support arms having first ends pivotably coupled to the inner carriage and second ends pivotably coupled to the outer carriage, each support arm having a contoured underside channel that encloses an extension roller mounted to the swivel assembly, wherein the spacing between the extension rollers and the pivot coupling of the support arms to the inner carriage changes as the inner carriage is extended and retracted;

wherein the contouring of the underside channels on the support arms controls the vertical position of the user seat as the inner carriage is extended and retracted by the extension motor driving the drive shaft;

wherein the fore-aft slide assembly and swivel assembly move the user seat between a drive position in which the user seat is in a generally forward-facing orientation in the motor vehicle and an extension position in which the user seat is facing generally outward through a motor vehicle access-way;

further wherein the extension assembly moves the user seat out of and into the motor vehicle while the user seat changes vertical position to move the user seat from the extension position to an access position outside the motor vehicle.