Second row priority seating for vehicles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11999269-B2
Application number	US-202117245352-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 30, 2021
Priority date	May 19, 2016
Publication date	Jun 4, 2024
Grant date	Jun 4, 2024

Abstract

Aspects of the disclosure relate to vehicles capable of autonomous driving. These vehicles may include seats for accommodating different numbers of passengers. In some cases, the seats may be reconfigurable. For instance, a vehicle may include a first row of seating having a first, passenger use configuration. The first row may allow a passenger to sit in a seat of the first row of seating and access user input controls for the vehicle. The first row of seating may also have a second, folded configuration where the first row is in a folded configuration and no longer usable for passenger seating. The vehicle may also have a second row of seating. When the first row of seating is in the second, folded configuration, the second row of seating may still be usable for seating and may include additional legroom for the passenger as compared to when the first row of seating is in the first passenger use configuration.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system comprising:
a first row of seating for a vehicle including two seats, each of the two seats of the first row of seating having a passenger use configuration and a folded configuration, wherein the first row of seating allows a passenger to sit in a seat of the first row of seating and access user input controls for the vehicle; and
a second row of seating for the vehicle having a passenger use configuration, wherein when the first row of seating is in the folded configuration, the first row of seating is unusable for seating, wherein, based on a number of passengers identified by a user before entering the vehicle, the vehicle is configured to automatically transition one or both of the two seats of the first row between the passenger use configuration and the folded configuration.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising, at least one computing device including one or more processors, the at least one computing device being configured to cause the vehicle to perform the transition.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the at least one computing device is further configured to cause the transition in response to receiving the number of passengers from one or more server computing devices.

4. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a set of tracks on which the first row of seating can be moved towards a front of the vehicle when in the folded configuration.

5. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a footrest for the second row of seating only usable when the first row of seating is in the folded configuration.

6. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a console including the user input controls, and wherein the console is configured to be moved from a position where the console can be accessed by a passenger in the first row of seating to an appropriate position for access by a passenger in the second row of seating when the first row is transitioned to the folded configuration.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the transition is further based on a user-identified preferred seating arrangement for the vehicle.

8. The system of claim 1 , further comprising the vehicle.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the second row of seating includes only a single seat, such that the vehicle includes three seats.

10. The system of claim 9 , wherein when a first of the two seats of the first row of seating is in the folded configuration, an area adjacent to both a second of the two seats of the first row and the single seat is available for storage of objects.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first of the two seats of the first row of seating is configured to be moved towards a front end of the vehicle and into a recess in a dashboard of the vehicle to open up the area.

12. The system of claim 9 , wherein when the two seats of the first row of seating are in the passenger use configuration, one of the two seats can be moved towards a rear of the vehicle and in line with the single seat.

13. The system of claim 9 , wherein when the two seats of the first row of seating are in the passenger use configuration, one of the two seats of the first row of seating can be moved towards a rear of the vehicle and in line with a space between a second of the two seats of the first row of seating and the single seat.

14. A method of arranging rows of seating in a vehicle having a first row of seating and a second row of seating, the first row of seating having two seats each with a passenger use configuration where the first row allows a passenger to sit in a seat of the first row of seating and access user input controls for the vehicle, the method comprising, based on a number of passengers identified by a user before entering the vehicle, changing one or more of the two seats of the first row of seating from a passenger use configuration to a folded configuration automatically.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising moving the first row of seating towards a front of the vehicle when in the folded configuration on a set of tracks.

16. The method of claim 14 , further comprising providing a footrest for the second row of seating only when the first row of seating is in the folded configuration.

17. The method of claim 14 , further comprising adjusting a position a console including user input controls from a position where the console can be accessed by a passenger in the first row of seating to an appropriate position for access by a passenger in the second row of seating when the first row is in the folded configuration.

18. The method of claim 14 , wherein changing the first row of seating is further based on a user-identified preferred seating arrangement for the vehicle.

19. The method of claim 14 , wherein the second row of seating includes only a single seat, such that the vehicle includes three seats.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein when a first of the two seats of the first row of seating is in the folded configuration, an area adjacent to both a second of the two seats of the first row and the single seat is available for storage of objects.

21. The method of claim 19 , wherein when the two seats of the first row of seating are in the passenger use configuration, one of the two seats can be moved towards a rear of the vehicle and in line with the single seat.

22. The method of claim 14 , wherein changing one or more of the two seats of the first row of seating from a passenger use configuration to a folded configuration is in response to receiving information identifying the number of passengers from a remote server computing device.

Assignees

• Waymo Llc

Inventors

• Ahn Yoojung
• Lu David Tse-Zhou
• Chan Min Li
• Cullinane Brian Douglas
• Frost Adam Lee
• Holland Philippe Robert Agostino
• Mir Hassan Rashid
• Villalón Caro Marcos Aniceto
• Nogueras Isaac Lopes

Classifications

• B60N2/01 Primary

  Arrangement of seats relative to one another · CPC title

• B60N2/206

  to a position in which it can be used as a support for objects, e.g. as a tray · CPC title

• B60N2/2222

  the back-rest having two or more parts · CPC title

• B60N2/3011

  the back-rest being hinged on the cushion, e.g. "portefeuille movement" · CPC title

• B60N2/3065

  in a longitudinal-vertical plane · CPC title