Pivotable Truck Seats for Horizontal Sleeping Surface
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Solution Overview
Problem
Truck drivers often face discomfort and fatigue due to the lack of suitable resting arrangements, especially in trucks without sleeper cabs, as existing solutions like renting lodging or sleeping in the cab are inadequate for comfort and convenience.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle compartment design featuring pivotable and reclining seats, along with a foldable cushion arrangement, allows drivers to sleep or rest in a substantially inclined position, creating a generally horizontal surface for comfort, even in trucks without sleeper cabs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a truck is provided with a sleeper cab, then driver comfort during rest is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the seats pivotable and reclining rather than fixed. The driver's seat and passenger's seat can rotate about vertical axes and recline to different angles, transforming from static seating to dynamic multi-position structures that adapt to sleeping needs without requiring a full sleeper cab
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universality by designing seats that serve multiple functions: normal driving position, reclined resting position, and sleeping position. The same seat structure provides both seating and sleeping capabilities, eliminating the need for separate sleeper cab infrastructure
2Loss of time
If drivers sleep in the truck cab without proper arrangements, then loss of time for lodging is reduced, but driver comfort and safety deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring the seats with pivot and recline capabilities before the driver needs to rest. The cushion arrangement is also pre-positioned to cooperate with the seats, so when the driver needs to rest, the infrastructure is already in place and ready to provide comfort immediately
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the resting function from the entire vehicle structure and integrates it into the seat components themselves. Rather than requiring a dedicated sleeper section, the sleeping capability is segmented into the seat units, allowing independent activation without affecting other vehicle systems
3Ease of operation
If the seats are made pivotable and reclining to create sleeping positions, then driver comfort is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the driver's seat and passenger's seat functions with the sleeping surface function. The seats combine seating, reclining, and sleeping capabilities in single integrated units, while the cushion arrangement bridges the gap between them, creating a unified sleeping platform without requiring separate mechanical systems for each function
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle with a sleeping arrangement includes a vehicle compartment, a driver's seat mounted in the compartment, the driver's seat having a bottom cushion portion and a back portion, and a passenger's seat mounted in the compartment, the passenger's seat having a bottom cushion portion and a back portion. At least one of the driver's seat and the passenger's seat may be pivotable from a normal use position facing a front of the compartment to a sleeping position oriented approximately 90° relative to the normal use position, and the pivotable seat is adapted to recline such that the bottom cushion portion and the back portion of the pivotable seat defines at least part of a generally horizontal surface together with the bottom cushion portion of the other one of the driver's seat and the passenger's seat.