Vehicle with reconfigurable seat and foot rest

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10532685-B2
Application number	US-201715852760-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 22, 2017
Priority date	Dec 30, 2016
Publication date	Jan 14, 2020
Grant date	Jan 14, 2020

Abstract

A foot rest for use in a reconfigurable passenger cabin of a personal automotive vehicle is moveable between a first position and a second position. In the second position, a resting surface of the foot rest is inclined to face toward a seat when the seat is moved away from a forward-facing position to a rotated position. In the first position, the resting surface can be level with a floor of the passer cabin, facing toward a different seat, or facing toward the same seat as in the second position. The foot rest provides stability to a seat occupant when the seat is moved into unconventional positions, such as rotated or extreme rearward positions.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A personal automotive vehicle having a reconfigurable passenger cabin, comprising:
a vehicle body comprising a floor that partly defines an interior of the passenger cabin;
a seat in the interior and over the floor of the passenger cabin, the seat being coupled with the vehicle body for rotational movement about a vertical axis between a forward-facing position and an inwardly-rotated position; and
a foot rest mounted in the interior of the passenger cabin for movement between a first position and a second position,
wherein the foot rest comprises a resting surface spaced from and inclined to face toward a front side of the seat when in the second position with the seat in the inwardly-rotated position, and
wherein the foot rest lies along a longitudinal axis of the seat when the seat is in the inwardly-rotated position but not when the seat is in the forward-facing position.

2. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the seat is rotated about the vertical axis by an angle of 15 to 25 degrees from the forward-facing position when in the inwardly-rotated position.

3. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the foot rest is mounted along the floor of the vehicle body such that the resting surface is declined to match the surface of the surrounding floor when in the first position.

4. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the foot rest is mounted along the floor at a fixed position corresponding to the inwardly-rotated position of the seat.

5. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the seat is included in a front row of seats.

6. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the seat is a first seat of a row of seats that includes a second seat, and the resting surface is inclined to face toward a front side of the second seat when the foot rest is in the first position.

7. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the foot rest is coupled with the floor.

8. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein the passenger cabin has a driving configuration in which the seat is in the forward-facing position and an autonomous configuration in which the seat is in the inwardly-rotated position.

9. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 1 , wherein movement of the foot rest between the first and second positions is rotational movement about a pivot axis, the pivot axis being at a fixed angle with respect to a longitudinal axis of the vehicle and perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the seat when the seat is in the inwardly-rotated position.

10. A personal automotive vehicle having a reconfigurable passenger cabin, comprising:
a vehicle body comprising a floor that partly defines an interior of the passenger cabin;
a seat in the interior and over the floor of the passenger cabin, the seat being coupled with the vehicle body for rotational movement about a vertical axis between a forward-facing position and an inwardly-rotated position; and
a foot rest mounted in the interior of the passenger cabin for movement between a first position and a second position,
wherein the foot rest comprises a resting surface spaced from and inclined to face toward a front side of the seat when in the second position with the seat in the inwardly-rotated position, and
wherein the seat is a first seat of a row of seats that includes a second seat, and the resting surface is inclined to face toward a front side of the second seat when the foot rest is in the first position.

11. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 10 , wherein the seat is rotated about the vertical axis by an angle of 15 to 25 degrees from the forward-facing position when in the inwardly-rotated position.

12. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 10 , wherein the row of seats is a front row of seats.

13. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 10 , wherein the foot rest is coupled with the floor.

14. A personal automotive vehicle as defined in claim 10 , wherein the passenger cabin has a driving configuration in which the seat is in the forward-facing position and an autonomous configuration in which the seat is in the inwardly-rotated position.

Assignees

• Faurecia Interior Systems Inc

Inventors

• Fitzpatrick Robert
• Uhlig Markus
• O'Regan Desmond
• Benson Matthew
• Aycoberry Fabrice

Classifications

• B60N3/063 Primary

  with adjustment systems · CPC title

• B60N2/14

  rotatable, e.g. to permit easy access (B60N2/10 {, B60N2/2869} take precedence) · CPC title