CHILD RESTRAINT CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application claims priority from Australian Provisional Patent Application 5 No 2008906428 filed on 15 December 2008, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference FIELD OF INVENTION This invention relates to a child safety restraint for a vehicle, and in particular, to a child safety restraint that is configured to cooperate with the vehicle seat belt in an improved 1o manner so as to provide greater stability to the child. BACKGROUND ART Child safety restraints have been successfully employed in safely transporting children in vehicles for many years. There are various types of safety restraints available, with the type of safety restraint being typically dependent on the age, and more particularly, 15 the size of the child to be transported. Each type of restraint can be categorised as follows: Type A restraints are referred to as capsules and are suitable for transporting infants up to 9 kg. Type A restraints are typically rearward facing restraints that keep the child semi-reclined and which incorporate a harness for securing the child within the seat 20 portion thereof. The capsule is typically tethered to a secure and dedicated anchor point on the vehicle by way of a tether strap that extends from the backrest of the capsule. Further, the vehicle lap/sash belt may be threaded through the body of the capsule to assist in stabilising the capsule. Type B restraints are a forward facing child restraint in the form of a chair portion that 25 typically accommodates children up to about 18 kg in weight. Type B restraints have an incorporated harness for restraining the child therein. Some type B restraints can be converted between a type A and a type B restraint as the child develops. Type B restraints are also typically tethered to a secure and dedicated anchor point on the vehicle by way of a tether strap that extends from the backrest of the restraint. Further, 30 the vehicle lap/sash belt may be threaded through the backrest portion of the seat to assist in stabilising the restraint during use. Type C restraints refer to forward facing harnesses that are typically used without a chair or restraint for children having a weight of between 14 - 32 kg. Type E restraints are commonly referred to as a booster seat and are typically used to accommodate children in the weight range of 14 - 26 kg. Booster seats act to raise the child to a more convenient height such that the child can employ the vehicle seat belt to 5 restrain them in position on or in the booster seat. In this regard, such booster seats are held in place by the interaction between the child, the booster seat and the cars lap/sash belt. Booster seats may be in the form of a cushion upon which the child is seated, or a chaise, that incorporates a seat and backrest. More recently a combination Type B/E seat has been proposed that is able to 10 accommodate a child over a wider weight range, typically between 8 - 26kg. In such a restraint, as the child grows the restraint is converted from a Type B to a Type E by removing and stowing away the internal harness. Such a seat is tethered to the vehicle by way of a tether strap that extends from the backrest to a dedicated vehicle anchorage point. 15 As discussed above, in most commercially available Type B and Type B/E child restraints the restraint is fitted to the vehicle seat by way of a tether strap in combination with the vehicle's seat belt. The tether strap acts to secure the back rest securely in position against the vehicle seat, whilst the lap/sash vehicle seat belt is also typically threaded through a recess in the central/lower region of the backrest or the base of the 20 restraint to further assist in securing the restraint in position. However, in most instances the vehicle lap/sash belt plays a minimal role in performing a stabilising function for the restraint. The lap/sash belt merely acts to pull the backrest toward the car seat whilst still enabling much forward and sideways movement of the base of the seat, resulting in the seat being loosely held in position. 25 Earlier versions of Type B seats have employed the vehicle lap belt to extend around the front of the restraint; however, this has resulted in the restraint tipping forward in the absence of the restraint being properly secured at the backrest, thereby reducing the safety rating of such a seat. There is a need to provide a child restraint system that is configured to enable greater 30 use of the vehicle lap/sash belt to secure the restraint against the vehicle seat in a stable and secure manner. The above references to and descriptions of prior proposals or products are not intended to be, and are not to be construed as, statements or admissions of common general knowledge in the art. In particular, the above prior art discussion does not relate to what 35 is commonly or well known by the person skilled in the art, but assists in the understanding of the inventive step of the present invention of which the identification of pertinent prior art proposals is but one part. STATEMENT OF INVENTION Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention there is provided: a child restraint for a 5 vehicle comprising: a body having a seating portion upon which the child is to be seated and a backrest portion having a first surface configured to be received against a portion of a seat of the vehicle and a second surface for receiving a back of the child; and a base configured to support the body on the seat of the vehicle; 10 wherein, a surface of the seating portion is configured to receive a seat belt of said vehicle such that the seat belt extends over and across at least a portion of the surface of the seating portion to secure the base against the seat of the vehicle. The seat belt may comprise a lap belt and a sash belt. In one embodiment, the lap belt 15 of the vehicle seat belt extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. In another embodiment, the lap belt and the sash belt of the vehicle seat belt extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. In a preferred embodiment, the base may include one or more armrests located on opposing sides thereof. The armrests may be located above the surface of the seating 20 portion so as to provide a space therebetween through which the seat belt may be received as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. The surface of the seating portion may have one or more grooves formed therein for locating the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. Alternatively, or in addition thereto, the surface of the seating portion may have one or more locating 25 members provided thereon to receive and locate the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. In another preferred embodiment, the base may include one or more projections provided on opposing sides thereof. The or each projection may be located above the surface of the seating portion so as to provide a space therebetween through which the 30 seat belt may be received as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. The or each projection may be a substantially rigid member that extends substantially parallel to the surface of the seating portion. The surface of the seating portion may have one or more grooves formed therein for locating the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. Alternatively, or in addition thereto, the surface of the seating portion may have one or more locating members provided thereon to receive and locate the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. The child restraint may include a cover that is removable from the child restraint to 5 facilitate attachment of the seat belt thereto. Alternatively, the child restraint may include a cover having one or more slots formed therein through which the seat belt passes to facilitate attachment of the seat belt thereto. In an embodiment, the seating surface may have a padded region for receiving the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. The seating surface 10 may have a padded member configured to be located over the seat belt as it extends over and across the surface of the seating portion. The padded member may be a layer of foam material. Accordingly, in a second aspect of the invention there is provided: a child restraint for a vehicle comprising: a base having a first surface configured to be received upon a seat 15 of the vehicle and a second surface upon which a child is seated; a backrest extending from said base, the backrest having a first surface configured to be received against the seat of the vehicle and a second surface for receiving a back of the child; wherein, the second surface of the base is configured to receive a seat belt of said vehicle such that the seat belt extends across the second surface of the base to secure the base against the 20 seat of the vehicle. In one embodiment, a lap portion of the vehicle seat belt extends across the second surface of the base. In an alternative embodiment, a lap portion and a sash portion of the vehicle seat belt extends across the second surface of the base. The base may include one or more armrests located on opposing sides of the base. The 25 armrests may be configured to provide a space through which the seat belt is threaded to extend across; the second surface of the base. The second surface of the base may have one or more grooves formed therein for receiving the vehicle seat belt. The one or more grooves may have one or more retaining members provided therein for retaining the seat belt in position within the grooves. In another form, the second surface of the base may 30 have one or more slots formed therein for receiving the vehicle seat belt. The restraint may include a removable cover that is removed from the restraint to facilitate attachment of the seat belt thereto. In another form, the restraint may include a cover having one or more slots formed therein through which the seat belt passes to facilitate attachment of the seat belt thereto. The cover may be padded such that the 35 child seated upon the second surface does not feel the presence of the seat belt beneath.
A
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention may be better understood from the following non-limiting description of preferred embodiments, in which: Figure 1A shows an example of a prior art Type B child safety seat; 5 Figure lB shows an example of another prior art Type B child safety seat; Figure 2 shows a Type B child safety seat in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 shows a Type B child safety seat in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; 10 Figure 4 shows a Type B child safety seat in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 shows a side view of a child safety seat in accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention; and Figure 6 shows a perspective view of the child safety seat of Figure 2 partially 15 disassembled for receipt of a vehicle seat belt. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Preferred features of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with reference to the drawings are not to be 20 construed as limiting on the scope of the invention. The present invention will be described below in relation to its application to a Type B restraint, namely a forward facing child safety seat that is anchored to an anchor point of the vehicle by way of a tether. However, it will be appreciated that the present invention may be applied to a variety of different types of restraints that make use of a 25 seat belt system of a vehicle to assist in securing the child safety seat in position against the vehicle seat. Referring to Figure 1 A, a Type B child safety seat 10 is shown that is typical of the prior art and is positioned on a rear seat 5 of a vehicle for installation. The safety seat 10 comprises a body 11 having a seat portion 14 upon which the child is seated. The body 30 11 is supported on a base 12 that is configured to be received on a substantially horizontal surface of the vehicle seat 5.
The body 11 further comprises a backrest portion 13 to support the child's back when seated on the seat portion 14. A rear surface of the backrest portion 13 is configured to be positioned against the substantially vertical portion of the vehicle seat 5, as shown. An integral harness 15 is provided within the body 11 to aid in restraining the child 5 within the safety seat 10. The harness 15 may be in the form of a five-point harness, as shown, however it will be appreciated that a variety of different types of harnesses may also be employed and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. It will also be appreciated that the seat portion 14 and backrest portion 13 of the body 11 may be configured so as to facilitate adjustment and/or removal of the harness 15 as desired, 10 especially as the child grows and their safety needs change. In this regard, a plurality of adjustment slots 11 a may be provided in the backrest portion 13 to facilitate adjustment of the harness 15 as desired. A tether 16 is attached to a rear surface of the backrest portion 13 adjacent an upper region thereof. The tether 16 is in the form of a strap that is connected at either ends to 15 opposing sides of the backrest 13. A hook member 16a is provided on the strap and is able to move in a sliding manner thereon to engage with an anchorage point provided on the vehicle. The length of the strap and the position of the hook member 16a on the strap are adjustable to facilitate tightening of the tether 16 in position. It will be appreciated that the tether arrangement 16 may take a variety of different forms, and 20 may include a single strap and/or may have multiple connection points to the backrest portion 13, and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. In this arrangement, the backrest portion 13 of the body I1 is securely tethered at an upper portion thereof to the dedicated vehicle anchorage point. Whilst such a tether arrangement 16 prevents the backrest portion 13 of the body 11 from forward 25 movement, particularly during sudden braking of the vehicle, it will be appreciated that the body 11 is only anchored at an upper region thereof, which doesn't prevent the seat 11 undergoing lateral or sideways, or the base 12 bouncing upwards on the surface of the vehicle seat 5. Hence, in order to provide further stability to the safety seat 10 during use, a traditional 30 means has been to provide the backrest portion 13 with a cavity 13a that extends the width of the body 11, as shown. The cavity 13a is configured to provide a passage for the vehicle seat belt 17 to pass through the backrest portion, such that the seat belt 17 is secured to an associated clasp or buckle located on an opposing side of the safety seat 10. A conventional vehicle seat belt 17 generally comprises a lap portion 18 that is 35 provided to extend across a lap of an individual seated on the vehicle seat 5 and a sash portion 19 that is provided to extend diagonally across the individual's chest. In the arrangement as shown in Figure 1, the lap portion 18 and the sash portion 19 of the vehicle seat belt 17 both pass through the cavity 13a to be secured at the other side to a buckle (not shown) of the vehicle seat belt 17. As is shown, the cavity 3a is shaped to enable some diagonal orientation of the sash portion 19 during use, whilst the lap 5 portion extends substantially horizontally through the cavity 13a. Whilst passing the vehicle seat belt 17 through the cavity 13a provides some stability to the lower region of the backrest 13, it is found that there still exists significant movement of the child safety seat 10 during use with the child safety seat 10 still being rather loosely held in position. In particular, it has been found that the safety seat 10 10 still has a degree of lateral or sideways movement even when the safety seat is secured in position using both the tether 1.6 and the seat belt 17. Further, it has been found that the safety seat 10 can undergo a significant amount of bounce or rebound on the surface of the vehicle seat 5, particularly during the momentum shift that occurs after sudden breakage of a vehicle. 15 Referring to Figure IB, a child safety seat 1Oa is shown that is substantially identical to safety seat 10 of Figure 1 A with the exception being the manner in which the vehicle seat belt 17 cooperates with the body 11. Hence, for reasons of clarity and consistency, the same reference numerals will be used to refer to the same or similar features of the safety seat 10a. In this arrangement, the base 12 of the body 11 has a recess or cavity 20 12a formed therethrough to receive the vehicle seat belt 17. The seat belt 17, including the lap portion 18 and the sash portion 19, passes through the cavity 12a to connect at the other side of the safety seat 10a, to a clasp or buckle of the vehicle seat belt 17 (not shown). Due to the inherent nature of this arrangement, the seat belt 17 acts to pull the safety 25 seat 10 toward the vehicle seat 5, with the sash portion 19 of the vehicle seat belt 17 providing a portion of the force in an upward direction. As such, it has been found that the safety seat 10 is stable able to undergo a significant a degree of unwanted lateral or swivel movement, and has little resistance to bounce or rebound on the surface of the vehicle seat 5, particularly during the momentum shift that occurs after sudden breakage 30 of a vehicle. Referring to Figure 2, a child safety seat 20 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention is shown that address this deficiency in the prior art. The child safety seat 20 is also in the form of a Type B child restraint and comprises a body 21 having a seat portion 24 upon which the child is to be seated. The body 21 is 35 supported on a base 22 that is configured to be received on a substantially horizontal surface of the vehicle seat 5. The body 21 further comprises a backrest portion 23 that '7 supports the back of the child when seated in the safety seat 20. A rear surface of the backrest portion 23 is configured to be positioned against the substantially vertical portion of the vehicle seat 5, as shown. An integral harness 25 is provided within the body 21 to aid in restraining the child 5 within the safety seat 20. The harness 25 is shown in an un-clipped form and is a five point harness, however it will be appreciated that a variety of different types of harnesses may also be employed and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. It will also be appreciated that the body 21 may be configured so as to facilitate adjustment and/or removal of the harness 25 as desired, especially as the child grows 10 and their safety needs change. In this regard, a plurality of adjustment slots 21a may be provided to facilitate adjustment of the harness 25. A tether 26 is attached to a rear surface of the backrest portion 23 adjacent an upper region thereof. The tether 26 is in the form of a tether strap that is connected at either ends to opposing sides of the backrest portion 23. A hook member 26a is provided on 1s the strap and is able to move in a sliding manner thereon to engage with an anchorage point provided on the vehicle. The length of the strap and the position of the hook member 26a on the strap are adjustable to facilitate tightening of the tether 26 in position. It will be appreciated that the tether arrangement 26 may take a variety of different forms, and may include a single strap and/or may have multiple connection 20 points to the backrest portion 23, and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. Alternatively, tether 26 may be attached to the front or rear portion of the backrest portion 23. In the arrangement as shown in Figure 2, the backrest portion 23 of the body 21 is securely tethered to the dedicated anchorage point on the vehicle. As is the case with 25 the prior art restraints 10 and I 0a of Figure 1, the tether arrangement 26 prevents the backrest portion 23 of the body 21 from forward movement, particularly during sudden braking of the vehicle. I however, such a tether arrangement does not restrain the lower portion of the safety seat 20 in position of the vehicle seat 5. For this purpose, the body 21 of the safety seat 20 is provided with a pair of armrests or 30 handles 30 on opposing sides thereof to provide a support for the child's arms and/or gripping support when the child is seated on the seat portion 24. The armrests 30 are configured to define a space 31 between the surface of the seat portion 24 and the underside of the armrests 30. The edges of the seat portion 24 and/or the surface of the seat portion 24 may also be provided with grooves or recesses (not shown). Such 35 grooves or recesses act to define a track or path for receiving and locating the seat belt 27 of the vehicle, and/or for recessing the seat belt 27 below or level with the surface of
Q
the seat portion 24. Alternatively, or in addition to a groove or channelled recess, one or more locating members, such as one or more fingers or projections (not shown) may be provided on the surface of the seat portion 24 to locate or retain the seat belt 27 in position. The fingers or projections may be substantially rigid such that that the seat 5 belt 27 is able to be passed thereunder and held in position with respect to the surface of the seat portion 24. In the embodiment as shown in Figure 2, in order to further stabilise the safety seat 20 in position on the vehicle seat 5, the lap portion 28 and the sash portion 29 of the car seat belt 27 are passed through the opposing spaces 31 formed in the opposing sides of 1o the body 21. The seat belt 27 then passes under each of the armrests 30 and may be located in the groove or recess provided in the surface of the seat portion 24, at which point it is clipped in position at the opposing side of the seat 21 by the clip member 32 of the vehicle seat belt. The seat belt 27 may be passed under a fabric cover of the safety scat 20, with the cover 15 replaced over the seat belt 27 during use, as is shown in Figure 6. In this regard, a layer of padding, such as a layer of foam material 39 may be provided on the surface of the seat portion 24 such that the seat belt 27 is located on the padding as it crosses the seat portion 24. An additional layer of padding, such as a layer of foam material 39 may be provided to extend over the seat belt 27 as the seat belt passes over the surface of the 20 seat portion 24. In this arrangement, the extra padding provided by the layer of foam material 39 and the cover ensures that the child will not feel the seat belt 27 when they are seated on the seat portion 24. It will be appreciated that in order to connect the lap portion 28 and the sash portion 29 together prior to extending across the surface of the seat portion 24, the lap portion 28 and the sash portion 29 may be connected via a joiner 25 or buckle such that they form a single strap that extends over the seat portion 24 of the body 21. As the seat belt 27 extends across the surface of the seat portion 24 of the body 21, the base 22 of the safety seat 20 is tightly held in position against the horizontal surface of the vehicle seat 5. Upon tightening of the seat belt 27, unwanted movement of the 30 safety seat 20 is substantially eliminated as the safety seat 20 is secured at a top portion by way of the tether 26 connected to the backrest, and across the seat portion 24 of the body 21, thereby providing for a more stable safety seat 20. As the seat belt 27 passes over the surface of the seat portion 24 of the body 21, it also applies a downward force on the body 21. This downward force acts to counters any bounce or rebound that the 35 safety seat 20 may experience on the surface of the vehicle seat 5, particularly during the momentum shift that occurs after sudden breakage of a vehicle. 0 An alternative embodiment of this arrangement is shown in Figure 5. In this embodiment, rather than space 31 being formed between the undersurface of the handles or armrests 30 and the surface of the seat portion 24, a projection 62 is provided. The projection 62 is in the form of a finger or rigid member that extends 5 substantially parallel to the surface of the seat portion to form a small narrow space 31 between itself and the surface of the seat portion 24 such that the seat belt 27 is able to be located therebetween as it passes over the surface of the seat portion 27. Such an arrangement enables the handles or armrests 30 to be located and formed substantially independently of the need to locate the seat belt 27. 10 An alternative embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figure 3. In this arrangement the child safety seat 40 is secured in position in a similar manner to that shown in Figure 2, namely with the lap portion 28 extending across the surface of the seat portion 24 of the body 21. However, in this arrangement, the sash portion 29 of the seat belt 27 extends behind the backrest portion 23 of the body 21 such that the sash 1s portion performs no substantial restraining force against the body 21 and is flush against the surface of the vehicle seat 5. Yet another embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figure 4. In this embodiment, the child safety seat 50 is configured in a similar manner to that as shown in Figure 3, however, rather than the sash portion 29 of the vehicle seat belt 27 20 extending behind the backrest portion 23 of the body 21, the sash portion 29 extends across the inside surface of the backrest portion 23. A groove or channel may be provided on the surface of the backrest portion 23 of the body to aid in locating and receiving the sash portion 29 of the seat belt 27. In this arrangement the lap portion 29 applies a restraining force against the backrest portion 23 towards the vehicle seat 5. 25 This is in addition to the lap portion 28 applying a restraining force against the surface of the seat portion 24 of the body 21. Such an arrangement provides additional stabilisation to the child safety seat 50. It will be appreciated that in order to position the sash portion 29 across the inner surface of the backrest portion 23 as shown in Figure 4, it will be necessary to first 30 remove any covering provided over the body 21. The seat belt 27 can then be fitted to the safety seat 50 in the manner as shown and the covering replaced, such that the lap portion 28 and sash portion 29 are not visible on the body 21. The arrangement of the present invention provides a more effective means of securing the child safety seat in position against the vehicle seat. This is achieved by the vehicle 35 seat belt acting at least partially across a surface of the seat portion of the safety seat to apply a downward force on the safety seat. Such a downwardly directed force is able to 1 i counter any bounce or rebound of the safety seat on the surface of the vehicle seat, particularly during the momentum shift that occurs after sudden breakage of a vehicle. At the same time, the vehicle seat belt is able to stop forward movement of the seat, especially in a frontal accident situation, thereby providing improved stability to the 5 safety seat and protection to the child located therein. Throughout the specification and claims the word "comprise" and its derivatives are intended to have an inclusive rather than exclusive meaning unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise. That is, the word "comprise" and its derivatives will be taken to indicate the inclusion of not only the listed components, 10 steps or features that it directly references, but also other components, steps or features not specifically listed, unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many modifications and variations may be made to the methods of the invention described herein without departing from 1s the spirit and scope of the invention. Orientational terms used in the specification and claims such as vertical, horizontal, top, bottom, upper and lower are to be interpreted as relational and are based on the premise that the component, item, article, apparatus, device or instrument will usually be considered in a particular orientation, typically with the child safety seat uppermost. 1 1