Foldable vehicle seat

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12434603-B2
Application number	US-202218045553-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 11, 2022
Priority date	Oct 12, 2021
Publication date	Oct 7, 2025
Grant date	Oct 7, 2025

Abstract

A foldable vehicle seat includes a seat base having a seat support frame, a seat back extending from the seat base, and a foldable section connected to the seat back. The folded section has a folded and unfolded configuration, and comprises a hinge mechanism with a pivot point, a first support, a second support, and a top surface configured to store luggage thereon. The first support is connected to the hinge mechanism and is rotatable about the pivot point. Likewise, the second support is connected to the hinge mechanism and is rotatable about the pivot point. The first and second supports contain first and second magnets, respectively, which are configured to retain the foldable section in the folded configuration.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A foldable vehicle seat comprising:
a seat base having a seat support frame;
a seat back extending from the seat base;
a foldable section connected to the seat back, the foldable section having a folded configuration and an unfolded configuration and comprising:
a hinge mechanism having a pivot point;
a first support connected to the hinge mechanism and rotatable about the pivot point, said first support having a first magnet;
a second support connected to the hinge mechanism, said second support having a second magnet,
wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are configured to retain the foldable section in the folded configuration; and

a top surface is configured to store luggage thereon, the top surface being exposed when the foldable section is in the folded configuration.

2. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the first support includes a third magnet and the seat back includes a fourth magnet complimentary to the third magnet, wherein the third magnet and fourth magnet are configured to retain the foldable seat in the unfolded configuration.

3. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the top surface includes a third magnet and the seat back includes a fourth magnet complimentary to the third magnet, wherein the third magnet and fourth magnet are configured to retain the foldable seat in the unfolded configuration.

4. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the second support further includes a clip assembly configured to retain the foldable seat in the unfolded configuration.

5. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the foldable section further comprises a plurality of anchors configured to engage with a selectively attachable baggage restraint.

6. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 5 , wherein the anchors are selectively detachable from the foldable section.

7. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 5 , wherein the selectively attachable baggage restraint is substantially rectangular and comprises a plurality of straps for securing items therein, wherein the plurality of straps comprises horizontal straps that are arranged substantially parallel to the top surface when in the folded configuration and vertical straps that are substantially perpendicular to the horizontal straps.

8. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section includes at least one recess configured to act as a cupholder.

9. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section includes a protective mat fashioned from a material selected from the group consisting of:
rubber, vinyl, synthetic rubber, silicon, plastic, polyvinyl chloride, polyurethane, and neoprene.

10. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 1 , further comprising an item catcher assembly located behind the foldable section, the assembly having a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to the seat support frame, and the second end being connected to the second support.

11. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 10 , wherein the item catcher assembly includes an item catcher fashioned from a material selected from the group consisting of: netting, cloth, vinyl, nylon, and mesh.

12. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 10 , wherein the item catcher assembly includes an item catcher having a plurality of holes therethrough.

13. A foldable vehicle seat comprising:
a seat base;
a seat back extending from the seat base; and
a foldable section connected to the seat back, the foldable section comprising:

a first support comprising a first magnet;
a second support connected to the first support at a pivot point, said second support comprising a second magnet,
wherein the first support is configured to rotate about the pivot point to move the foldable section to a folded position,
wherein the first magnet and the second magnet are configured to retain the foldable section in the folded position; and
a top surface configured to store luggage thereon, the top surface being exposed when the foldable section moves to the folded position.

14. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , further comprising third and fourth magnets configured to retain the foldable section in an unfolded position.

15. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section forms an angle between about 75 and about 95 degrees with respect to the seat back when in the folded position.

16. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , wherein the first support includes a left first support and a right first support, wherein:
the left first support is disposed about one-fourth to about one-third of a distance from a first lateral end of the top surface to a second lateral end of the top surface,
the right first support is disposed about two-thirds to about three-fourths of the distance from the first lateral end of the top surface to the second lateral end of the top surface, and
the left and right first supports extend substantially along a length of the foldable section and extend substantially parallel to one another.

17. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section includes a plurality of recesses.

18. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , wherein the foldable section further comprises a plurality of anchors configured to engage with a selectively detachable baggage restraint.

19. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 13 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section includes a protective mat fashioned from a non-slip material.

20. The foldable vehicle seat of claim 19 , wherein the top surface of the foldable section includes at least one recess configured to act as a cupholder.

Assignees

• Textron Aviation Inc
• Textron Innovations Inc

Inventors

• Ward Barry John
• Reese Matthew William
• Decker Jason Michael
• Paul Matthew Allen

Classifications

• B60N2/3004

  by rotation only · CPC title

• B60N2/36

  into a loading platform {(B60N2/065 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B64D11/0627

  Seats combined with storage means · CPC title

• B64D11/0639 Primary

  with features for adjustment or converting of seats · CPC title

• B60N2/206 Primary

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