Two-part motor vehicle seat

Abstract

The invention relates to a motor vehicle seat (100) comprising: - a seat (120) which includes a seat (122) and a backrest (121), and - a support (110) adapted to be mounted on a floor (12) of the motor vehicle (1) and on which the seat is mounted. According to the invention, the support includes anchoring means, and the seat includes first locking means adapted to lock onto said anchoring means to secure the seat to the support, and first manually operable means adapted to deactivate the first locking means to release the seat from the support. Figure for the abstract: Fig. 2

Description

Title of the invention: Two-part motor vehicle seat Technical field of the invention

[0001] The present invention relates generally to the interior fittings of motor vehicles.

[0002] It relates more particularly to a motor vehicle seat comprising an armchair which includes a seat and a backrest, and a support which is adapted to be mounted on a floor of the motor vehicle and on which the armchair is mounted.

[0003] It also relates to a motor vehicle equipped with such a seat. State of the art

[0004] It is known to integrate rails into the floors of motor vehicles, in particular minivan-type vehicles.

[0005] These rails allow seats to be mounted in the vehicle in such a way that the seats can slide back and forth along the floor, thus offering various positions. The rails are then equipped with locking mechanisms to ensure that the seats are locked in a fixed position during transport.

[0006] As explained in document FR2728860, the seats themselves can be modular, to allow them to be placed in different positions (facing forward or rearward), or even removed in order to free up the floor for loading bulky items into the vehicle.

[0007] However, these functions increase the complexity of the seats, as well as their weight.

[0008] So, the high weight of the seats, which can reach 30 kilograms, makes their handling difficult, particularly when it comes to reconfiguring the interior space of the vehicle by extracting the seats out of the rails to turn them over or to remove them from the vehicle. Presentation of the invention

[0009] In order to remedy the aforementioned drawback of the prior art, the present invention proposes to split the seat into two parts.

[0010] More specifically, the invention proposes a seat as defined in the introduction (with a support and an armchair), in which: - one of the supports and the chair includes anchoring means, and - the other between the support and the chair includes first locking means adapted to lock onto said anchoring means to lock the chair onto the support, and first maneuvering means (preferably manually operable) adapted to deactivate the first locking means to release the chair from the support.

[0011] Thus, thanks to the invention, the chair and the support can be manipulated independently of each other.

[0012] The support includes the part which allows the seat to be mounted on the floor and which is relatively heavy (generally between 10 and 15 kg), while the chair only includes the structure which allows the passenger to be received (and which weighs between 15 and 20 kg).

[0013] Since both parts weigh less than 20 kg each, they are easier to handle.

[0014] Another advantage provided by the invention is that the support not only allows the chair to be received, but it can also receive other elements in place of the chair, for example a fixing system for a bicycle or a board, or more generally any other equipment.

[0015] Other advantageous and non-limiting features of the seat according to the invention, taken individually or in all technically possible combinations, are as follows: - the support includes the anchoring means, and the chair includes the first locking means and the first maneuvering means; - the support includes secondary locking means adapted to lock the support to the floor, and secondary manually operable means adapted to deactivate the secondary locking means to release at least one mobility of the support relative to the floor; - the floor incorporating parallel rails, the second means of operation are adapted to allow sliding mobility of the support in said rails; - the chair includes a supporting structure on which the seat and backrest are mounted and which includes either the first locking and operating means, or the anchoring means; - the anchoring means include, at at least three anchoring points, a rod on which the first locking means can be locked; - the first locking means comprise, on the one hand, a fixed base which defines a notch, and, on the other hand, a bolt which is mounted movably relative to the fixed base between an activated position in which it is adapted to block a rod at the bottom of the notch and a deactivated position in which it releases the rod; - four rods are planned, and the first locking means include two strikes and two locks adapted to be locked respectively on the four rods; - the chair is suitable for mounting on the stand with two distinct orientations; - the support includes means of attachment suitable for securing equipment separate from the motor vehicle, preferably leisure and / or sports equipment such as a bicycle or a surfboard.

[0016] The invention also proposes a motor vehicle comprising a chassis which includes a floor, and at least one seat as above mounted on the floor.

[0017] Of course, the various features, variants, and embodiments of the invention can be combined with one another in various ways, provided they are not incompatible or mutually exclusive. Detailed description of the invention

[0018] The following description with regard to the attached drawings, given by way of non-limiting examples, will make it clear what the invention consists of and how it can be carried out.

[0019] On the attached drawings:

[0020] [Fig-1] is a schematic perspective view of the interior of a passenger compartment of a motor vehicle, including a seat according to the invention, illustrated in the position of use;

[0021] [Fig.2] is a view similar to that of [Fig.1], in which the seat chair is partially removed from its support;

[0022] [Fig.3] is a schematic perspective view of the seat support of the [Fig.1];

[0023] [Fig.4] illustrates a schematic perspective view of a lower part of the seat of the [Fig.1] and two detail views of this seat;

[0024] [Fig.5] is a view similar to that of [Fig.1], in which the seat chair is turned upside down;

[0025] [Fig.6] is a view similar to that of [Fig.1], in which the seat chair has been removed and replaced by a bicycle.

[0026] A motor vehicle 1 (car, bus, truck, boat, airplane...) generally comprises a chassis 10 including a floor 12 and bodywork elements 11 which together define a passenger compartment.

[0027] Figure 1 shows such a motor vehicle. This is a car, and more specifically a minivan (i.e., a car characterized by a monocoque body that integrates a passenger compartment, an engine compartment, and a cargo area without any visible separation, thus creating a uniform and flowing silhouette). This vehicle has at least one seat 100 designed to be installed in the passenger compartment and fixed to the floor 12 of this motor vehicle.

[0028] In practice, such a motor vehicle comprises several rows of seats, including at least one front row of at least two seats, and a rear row of at least two Seats. Here, the rear row has three identical seats, only one of which will be described. Of course, the vehicle can also accommodate other rows of seats. For example, it could have three rows of two or three seats.

[0029] In the following description, the terms "front" and "rear" will be used in relation to the motor vehicle 1, the front part of an element designating the part of that element which is located on the side of the hood of the vehicle and the rear part designating the part of that element which is located on the opposite side.

[0030] The terms "lower" (or "bottom") and "upper" (or "top") shall be used in the same way, the lower part of an element designating the part of that element which is located on the floor side 12 of the vehicle and the upper part designating the part of that element which is located on the roof side of the vehicle.

[0031] The adjective "longitudinal" shall apply to a direction or axis oriented from the front to the rear of the vehicle, parallel to the direction of travel of the vehicle when the steering wheel is in the neutral position.

[0032] The adjective "transverse" shall apply to a direction or axis oriented orthogonally to the longitudinal and horizontal axes when the vehicle is traveling on a horizontal road.

[0033] The term “fixed” (or “blocked”) will be used to designate an assembly without any mobility between two elements.

[0034] On the contrary, the term "mounted" will be used to designate an assembly with or without mobility between two elements.

[0035] As shown in [Fig. 1], the seat 100 conventionally comprises an armchair 120 which includes a seat 122 and a backrest 121 equipped with a headrest. Each of these seats and backrests comprises a frame and upholstery attached to the frame.

[0036] The backrest could be mounted on the seat, either fixed or with a tilting mechanism to allow its inclination to be adjusted.

[0037] Here, the backrest 121 and the seat 122 are mounted on a common supporting structure 123. This supporting structure 123 has two sides that extend longitudinally and vertically, parallel to each other. The backrest 121 is mounted on these two sides in such a way that it can be completely folded against the seat 121, which will facilitate handling of the chair 120.

[0038] Of course, as an alternative, the armchair could have different shapes. In particular, it could delineate not a single seat, as shown, but several seats to form a bench. However, this alternative is not preferred given the weight that such a bench would represent.

[0039] According to the invention, the seat 100 comprises, in addition to this armchair 120, a support 110 which is adapted to be mounted on the floor 12 of the vehicle and on which the armchair is mounted 120. In other words, seat 100 is made up of two parts that are removable from each other.

[0040] This support 110 includes for this purpose anchoring means 114 for the chair 120 and mounting means on the floor 12.

[0041] As for the chair 120, it includes corresponding first locking means 129 adapted to lock onto these anchoring means 114, as well as first manual operating means 134, 144 (operable without tools) adapted to deactivate the first locking means 129 to release the chair 120 from the support 110. Thus the chair 120 can be easily separated from its support 110.

[0042] These anchoring means 114, locking means 129 and maneuvering means 134, 144 could take very diverse forms.

[0043] Preferably, their shapes will be such that it will be possible to mount the chair 120 on the support 110 in normal position (facing the road) or in reverse position (rear to the road).

[0044] We can here present the particular embodiment of the seat 100 illustrated in the figures, starting by describing the support 110.

[0045] As shown in [Fig.3], this support 110 is intended to be mounted on the floor 12 of the motor vehicle 1.

[0046] It could be envisaged that it be fixed there. In this event, it would preferably be fixed there in a removable manner, for example by means of bolts.

[0047] But preferably, the support 110 is mounted on the floor 12 so as to be longitudinally mobile and removable.

[0048] For this purpose, the floor 12 incorporates parallel rails 13. Here, these rails are formed by rectangular profiles, open at the top, and preferably made of metal. Preferably, two parallel rails 13 are provided for each seat in the rear row. In the illustrated example, three pairs of rails are therefore provided. Carpeting is installed between the rails for comfort. Each rail has internal notches.

[0049] The support 110 illustrated in [Fig. 3] then comprises a platform 112, here in the form of a flat plate, and two feet 111 fixed under the platform, parallel to each other. These two feet are fixed to each other at least by this platform 112. However, to give them greater rigidity, one or two additional crossbars may be used to connect the two feet 111 together.

[0050] These two feet 111 each have in their lower part a rib adapted to slide inside one of the rails 13, second locking means adapted to lock the support 110 in the rails 13 in a fixed position, and second manual operating means (operable without tools) adapted to deactivate the second locking means to free the sliding mobility of the support 110 along the rails 13. These second means of maneuver are preferentially also provided to allow the feet 111 to be extracted from the rails 13.

[0051] In the example shown in the figures, the two feet 111 each have a parallelepiped shape elongated longitudinally and vertically, the lower face of which has the rib adapted to slide in one of the rails 13.

[0052] The second locking means (not visible in the figures) may then include notches (not shown) mounted movably on the foot 111 and adapted to hook onto the corresponding notches provided in the rail 13.

[0053] The second means of operation comprise a lever 116 accessible to the seat occupant, which, when the seat occupant wishes to move forward or backward, separates the notches of the feet 111 from those of the rail 13 to allow the sliding movement of the support 110. In the rest position (activated), the notches cooperate and are held in this position, for example by elastic return means. These notches then move apart only when the lever is operated by the occupant (deactivated).

[0054] Here, as shown in [Fig.3], this lever 116 forms a rod, a central part of which is folded into a U shape to be accessible from the front of the seat 100, and whose two coaxial ends are housed in the two feet 111, so as to form a rocker arm.

[0055] This lever 116 could be used to extract the support 110 from the rails 13. For this purpose, the rear ends of the rails could all be opened so that, by sliding the support 110 backwards, it is possible to extract it from these rails 13.

[0056] Preferably, however, a mechanism is provided for extracting the support 110 from the rails 13 regardless of the support's position along those rails. Here, this mechanism is controlled by a strap 115 which can be pulled to retract the notches of the feet 111 in order to extract them from the rails 13.

[0057] This mechanism is described in more detail in document FR2950300.

[0058] The two feet 111 are for example formed from metallic material, and here are the result of a stamping operation on a sheet of steel.

[0059] The platform 112, which connects the two feet 111, is also formed of metallic material.

[0060] In the example illustrated in [Fig.3], it has a Swiss cross shape, with four notches at its four corners.

[0061] It preferably extends horizontally and / or parallel to the floor 12.

[0062] The anchoring means 114 carried by this platform 112 for which the chair 120 can be fixed preferably comprise at least three anchoring points. Here, they even more preferably comprise four.

[0063] Here, each anchor point is formed by a section 114A of rod on which the first locking means 129 of the chair can hook and lock.

[0064] Each section 114A of rod preferably has an L-shape, to extend from one side to the other of the notch in which it is located.

[0065] In practice, the four rod sections 114A can be formed from a single piece (called the "rod") folded into a rectangular shape, and the platform 112 can be clipped over this single rod. Alternatively, the four rod sections 114A could be separate pieces and welded to the edges of the notches in the platform.

[0066] Here, this single rod is formed by a rigid rod, preferably made of metal (here, steel). This rod has, for example, a circular cross-section.

[0067] The shape of the rod is such that the platform 112 has at least one vertical plane of symmetry. Here, it has two vertical planes of symmetry that are perpendicular to each other. In this way, the first locking means 129 of the chair 120 can be attached to the rod in four positions: facing forward, facing backward, facing left, or facing right.

[0068] We can then describe in more detail the first locking means 129 which allow the chair 120 to be fixed to this rod.

[0069] They are here located projecting from the lower faces of the sides of the supporting structure 123 of the chair 120.

[0070] They could comprise four identical systems. But here, and preferably, they comprise two front strikes 140 and two rear locks 130 adapted to lock respectively onto the four rod sections 114A.

[0071] These strikes and locks have different shapes.

[0072] As shown in [Fig.4], the locks 130 each have a fixed base 131 in the shape of a clamp, which defines a notch 133 for the rod.

[0073] This notch 133 is open downwards. Thus, the locking of the chair 120 onto the support 110 is achieved by vertically aligning the locks 130 with the corresponding rod sections 114A.

[0074] Each lock 130 further comprises a bolt 132 mounted pivotally on the fixed base 131 around a transverse axis, between an activated position in which it locks the rod at the bottom of the notch and a deactivated position in which it releases the rod, here by retracting into the fixed base.

[0075] An elastic return means allows the bolt 132 to be held in the activated position. The operating means 134 accessible to the user for returning the bolt 132 to the deactivated position is in the form of a lever, preferably accessible from the rear or side of the seat.

[0076] It will be noted that the mechanism of the bolt 132 is such that it is not necessary to use this lever to lock the lock 130 on the corresponding rod section 114A.

[0077] Each strike plate 140 has a similar shape, with a fixed base 141 that defines a notch 143 and a bolt 142 that pivots relative to the fixed base 141. However, the notch 143 opens forward. Thus, locking the chair 120 onto the support 110 is achieved by tilting the chair forward and then returning it to a horizontal position. Furthermore, the operating means 144 for the bolt 142 is in the form of a lever 144 that is accessible from underneath the chair 120. This lever 144 is designed such that when the strike plate is returned to the corresponding rod section 114A, the lever bears against the platform 112, which allows the strike plate to lock onto the rod.

[0078] Thus, as shown in [Fig.2], to remove the chair 120 from its support 110, it is necessary to fold the backrest 121 onto the seat 122, to operate the bolts 132 of the rear locks 130 in order to tilt the chair 120 forward, and possibly to operate the bolts 142 of the latches 140 to completely remove the chair 120 from its support 110 (this last operation can be carried out automatically, for greater ease, if the bolt 142 is elastically returned to the deactivated position).

[0079] As shown in [Fig.5], it is then possible to turn the chair 120 around to fix it head-to-toe on its support 110.

[0080] It is also possible to place it at a distance from its support, on the floor, or to remove it from the vehicle.

[0081] The support 110 can then also be extracted from the rails 13 or remain in place.

[0082] In this latter case, it can be used to support equipment distinct from the components of the motor vehicle 1. It can thus be used to block any object in the passenger compartment (for example by using straps).

[0083] Preferably, the support may be equipped with fastening means 119 adapted to secure recreational and / or sports equipment such as, for example, a bicycle 200 ([Fig. 6]) or a surfboard. The fastening means 119 may be installed on the support 110 as required, or may be integrated into the support itself.

[0084] In the example shown in [Fig.6], the fastening means is screwed onto the platform 112. Alternatively, it could be designed to be clipped onto the rod of the support 110.

[0085] It should also be noted that the armchair shown in the figures can be removed from its support 110 and replaced by a baby or child seat, provided that the latter has means of attachment to the support rod.

[0086] The present invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described and represented, but a person skilled in the art will be able to make any variation in accordance with the invention.

[0087] Typically, the support 110 could include the first locking means 129 and the first maneuvering means 134, 144, in which case it would be the chair 120 which would include the anchoring means 114.

Claims

Demands

1. Motor vehicle seat (100) comprising: - a seat (120) which includes a seat (122) and a backrest (121), and - a support (110) which is adapted to be mounted on a floor (12) of the motor vehicle (1) and on which the seat (120) is mounted, characterized in that one of the support (110) and the seat (120) includes anchoring means (114), and in that the other of the support (110) and the seat (120) includes: - first locking means (129) adapted to lock onto said anchoring means (114) to lock the seat (120) on the support (110), and - first operating means (134, 144) adapted to deactivate the first locking means (129) to release the seat (120) from the support (110).

2. Seat (100) according to claim 1, wherein the support (110) comprises: - second locking means adapted to lock the support (110) on the floor (12), and - second operating means (116) manually operable and adapted to deactivate the second locking means to release at least one mobility of the support (110) relative to the floor (12).

3. Seat (100) according to claim 2, wherein the floor (12) incorporating parallel rails (13), the second means of operation (116) are adapted to release a sliding mobility of the support (110) in said rails (13).

4. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the chair (120) comprises a load-bearing structure (123) on which the seat (122) and the backrest (121) are mounted and which includes the first locking means (129) and the first operating means (134, 144) or the anchoring means (114).

5. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the anchoring means (114) comprise, at at least three anchoring points, a rod on which the first locking means (129) can be locked.

6. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the first locking means (129) comprise, on the one hand, a fixed base (131, 141) which defines a notch (133, 143), and, on the other hand, a bolt (132, 142) which is mounted movable relative to the fixed base (141) between an activated position in which it is adapted to block a rod at the bottom of the notch (133, 143) and a deactivated position in which it releases the rod.

7. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first locking means (129) comprise two strikes (140) and two locks (130) adapted to be locked respectively on four rod sections (114A).

8. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the chair (120) is adapted to be mounted on the support (110) with two distinct orientations.

9. Seat (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the support (110) comprises fastening means (119) adapted to lock equipment separate from the motor vehicle (1), preferably leisure and / or sports equipment such as a bicycle (200) or a surfboard.

10. Motor vehicle (1) comprising a chassis (10) which includes a floor (12), characterized in that it includes at least one seat (100) conforming to any one of claims 1 to 9, mounted on the floor (12).

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