Pivoting seat assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11214179-B2
Application number	US-201916452639-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2019
Priority date	Jun 26, 2019
Publication date	Jan 4, 2022
Grant date	Jan 4, 2022

Abstract

A seat assembly includes a base frame supporting a lift mechanism. A seatback is operably coupled to a seat portion. The seatback and the seat portion are vertically adjustable as powered by the lift mechanism. The seat portion is pivotally coupled to the seatback by a support bracket for rotational movement between first and second positions. A seat frame of the seat portion is vertically juxtaposed over the lift mechanism when the seat portion is in the second position.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A seat assembly, comprising:
a swivel mechanism;
a base frame coupled to the swivel mechanism;
a lift mechanism supported on the base frame, such that the base frame and the lift mechanism are rotatably supported on the swivel mechanism between forward-facing and rearward-facing configurations; and
a seatback operably coupled to a seat portion, wherein the seatback and the seat portion are directly supported on the lift mechanism and vertically adjustable as powered by the lift mechanism, and further wherein the seat portion is pivotally coupled to the seatback by a support bracket for rotational movement between first and second positions, wherein a seat frame of the seat portion is vertically juxtaposed over the lift mechanism when the seat portion is in the second position.

2. The seat assembly of claim 1 , wherein the seat portion includes front and rear portions, and further wherein the rear portion of the seat portion is pivotally coupled to the seatback.

3. The seat assembly of claim 2 , wherein the front portion of the seat portion is disposed adjacent to an upper portion of the seatback when the seat portion is in the second position.

4. The seat assembly of claim 3 , wherein the rear portion of the seat portion is disposed adjacent to a lower portion of the seatback when the seat portion is in both the first and second positions.

5. The seat assembly of claim 1 , wherein the lift mechanism includes an upper limit of travel in a range from 60 mm to 100 mm when moving the seat frame between a lowered position and a raised position.

6. The seat assembly of claim 1 , wherein the
swivel mechanism includes an upper portion, and further wherein the base frame is rotatably supported on the upper portion of the swivel mechanism for rotation about a pivot axis.

7. The seat assembly of claim 6 , including:
a first actuator operably coupled to the swivel mechanism for powering rotation of the upper portion thereof.

8. The seat assembly of claim 7 , including:
a second actuator operably coupled between the support bracket and the seat portion for driving the seat portion between the first and second positions.

9. A seat assembly, comprising:
a base frame supported on a swivel mechanism;
the swivel mechanism rotatably supporting the base frame and a lift mechanism, the swivel mechanism configured for rotation of the base frame and the lift mechanism between forward-facing and rearward-facing configurations;
the lift mechanism operably coupled to the base frame;
a seatback and seat portion supported directly on the lift mechanism for vertical adjustment therewith; and
an actuator operably coupled to the seat portion for driving the seat portion between a horizontal use position and an upright non-use position.

10. The seat assembly of claim 9 , wherein the seat assembly includes a first rotational footprint when the seat portion is in the use position and a second rotational footprint when the seat portion is in the upright non-use position, and further wherein the first rotation footprint is greater than the second rotational footprint.

11. The seat assembly of claim 10 , wherein the first rotational footprint includes a radius measured between a central pivot axis of the swivel mechanism and a front portion of the seat portion.

12. The seat assembly of claim 11 , wherein the second rotational footprint includes a radius measured between the central pivot axis of the swivel mechanism and a perimeter edge of the base frame.

13. The seat assembly of claim 12 , wherein the front portion of the seat portion is vertically juxtaposed over the base frame when the seat portion is in the upright non-use position.

14. The seat assembly of claim 13 , wherein the front portion of the seat portion extends outwardly past the perimeter edge of the base frame when the seat portion is in the horizontal use position.

Assignees

• Ford Global Tech Llc

Inventors

• Line Johnathan Andrew
• Kondrad Marcos Silva
• Kish Joseph Michael
• Aktas Macit
• Hoernke Spencer Robert
• Lyons David Frederick

Classifications

• B60N2/305

  the cushion being hinged on the vehicle frame · CPC title

• B60N2/06

  slidable (B60N2/12 {, B60N2/2209} take precedence) · CPC title

• B60N2/162

  Scissors-like structure · CPC title

• B60N2/14 Primary

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

• B60N2/143 Primary

  taking a position opposite to the original one · CPC title