AU2013204194A1 - A Child Restraint for a Vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

There is disclosed a child safety seat (10) for a vehicle comprising: a base (12) configured to be supported on a seat of a vehicle; a backrest (16) pivotally mounted to the base (12) such that the angular position of the 5 backrest (16) with respect to the base (12) is adjustable; wherein when the child safety seat (10) is not in use, the backrest (16) is foldable such that the backrest (16) is substantially parallel to the base (12) to form a compact unit for storage.

Description

A CHILD RESTRAINT FOR A VEHICLE FIELD OF INVENTION This invention relates to child restraint for a vehicle, and in particular, to a booster seat for a vehicle. 5 BACKGROUND ART There exist a variety of types of child safety seats that are approved for use with children of a variety of ages and/or sizes. Type A seats typically refer to rear facing seats or capsules suitable for accommodating babies/infants up to around 6 months of age and/or 70 cm in length and up to 12 kg. Type B seats typically refer to 10 forward facing seats used to accommodate toddlers and young children from approximately 6 months to 4 years, or from 8 - 18 kg. Type E seats typically refer to booster seats and booster cushions used to accommodate children between 4 - 8 years old, or approximately from 14 - 32 kg, and which are typically used in combination with the vehicle seat belt. Some seats may be a combination type A/B 15 or B/E to accommodate a child as the child grows thereby avoiding the need to purchase, or otherwise source, a variety of different seats to accommodate a growing child. Type E or booster seats are typically designed for a child who has outgrown a Type B child safety seat but is too small to safely use a vehicle seat belt solely. Booster 20 seats are typically used until the child's eyes become level with the top of the back seat, when seated thereon. Until such a time as the child's eyes become level with the top of the back seat, the child is seated on a booster seat such that they are sufficiently elevated on the vehicle seat to safely use the vehicle seat belt. Type E seats typically take a variety of forms. Early designs of such booster seats 25 include cushions or pedestals configured to be placed upon the surface of the vehicle seat for the child to sit upon to elevate the child to a desired height suitable for using the vehicle seat belt. The vehicle seat belt is then employed to restrain the child in position upon the seat, with the lap belt portion of the vehicle seat belt extending across the child's lap and the sash belt portion of the vehicle seat belt 30 extending across the child's chest. Whilst such cushions or pedestals have proven effective in elevating the child above the surface of the seat, they offer little protection to the child in terms of back support and side impact protection. As such, booster seats having a shell and backrest have been developed to provide back support to the child and side impact protection. Such booster seats typically have side wings which extend laterally about the child for protection and the vehicle seat belt is fitted about the seat to restrain both the child and the seat in position on the vehicle seat. These seats have traditionally been made from a lightweight plastic material, such as polystyrene. However, such seats made from polystyrene or 5 similar material have a tendency to split or break-up under forces associated with a vehicle accident or the like, significantly compromising the safety of the child restrained therein. Typically the region between the base of the seat and the backrest of the seat becomes split in such seats. In order to increase the strength of booster seats, sturdier and heavier materials have 10 been employed, such as dense injection-moulded plastics. However, increasing the weight of the booster seat has also created safety problems. Heavier booster seats experience greater momentum of force during an accident, which, when combined with the weight of the child seated therein, can result in greater forces being exerted by the child against the vehicle seat belt. Such increased forces can cause 15 significant damage to the internal organs of the child and in some instances, may be fatal. As such, in Australia regulations have been put in place to ensure that all booster seats over 2 Kg in weight are tethered in position on the vehicle seat. Whilst tethering has proven effective in improving the safety of the child and restraining 20 movement of the booster seat on the surface of the vehicle seat, a tethered booster seat significantly reduces the useability and portable nature of the booster seat. Hence, in order to remove or reposition the seat it is necessary to disengage the tether from the vehicle anchorage point which can be an onerous task to perform, especially in limited space as is often the case with vehicles. Further, as tethered 25 booster seats are traditionally rigid in shape and form, they are typically not readily able to be stored in a position that is out of the way, such as the trunk or boot of the vehicle when not in use. As such, there is a need to provide a Type E or booster seat arrangement that has sufficient structural stability to withstand forces associated with a vehicle accident 30 and which can be readily repositioned and stored in a simple manner as desired by the user of the seat. 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 35 relate to what 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 a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a child safety seat for a vehicle comprising: 5 a body adapted to be mounted to a seat of the vehicle and configured to receive a child therein, the body being formed from a lightweight material and wherein a strengthening material is applied to at least one surface of the body to reinforce the body for use. The lightweight material may be a foam material, such as polystyrene. 10 The strengthening material may be a plastic material, such as polyethylene. The strengthening material may be a sheet of plastic material. The strengthening material may be applied to the surface of the body by way of an adhesive. In one form, the strengthening material may be applied to multiple surfaces of the body to provide reinforcement to those regions of the body. In this regard, the strengthening 15 material may be configured to extend around adjoining surfaces of the body so as to sandwich the lightweight material between the strengthening material. In another aspect of the invention there is provided a child safety seat for a child safety seat for a vehicle comprising: a base configured to be supported on a seat of a vehicle; 20 a backrest pivotally mounted to the base such that the angular position of the backrest with respect to the base is adjustable; wherein when the child safety seat is not in use, the backrest is foldable such that the backrest is substantially parallel to the base to form a compact unit for storage. 25 In an embodiment, a securing system is provided to secure the backrest in angular position with respect to the base. The securing system may be in the form of a securing means that provides engagement between the base and the backrest to retain the backrest in a pivotal position with respect to the base. The securing system may comprise one or more straps that function to retain the backrest and the 30 base as a said compact unit when the child safety seat is not in use. In one embodiment, the backrest is at least partially formed from a separate material with respect to the base. The backrest may be at least partially formed from a material having a lighter weight than the material of the base. The material of the backrest may comprise polystyrene. In another form, the base and backrest are formed from the same material. In this form, the base and backrest may be moulded 5 from a plastic material. In each of the above forms, the combined weight of the base and backrest is sufficiently low to not require a top tethering means. In this regard, the combined weight of the base and backrest may be less than 2 Kg. The backrest may be pivotally mounted with respect to the base to facilitate folding of the backrest such that the backrest can be moved between a first position whereby 10 it extends substantially perpendicular to the base for use, and a second position whereby the backrest extends substantially parallel to the base for storage. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention may be better understood from the following non-limiting description of preferred embodiments, in which: 1s Figure 1 is a rear perspective view of a Type E child safety seat in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 1 in a folded position; Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the Type E child safety seat of Figures 1 and 20 2 showing the manner in which the portions of the seat engage in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.; Figure 4 is a rear perspective view of a Type E child safety seat in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 is a rear perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 4 25 in a folded position; Figure 6 is a rear perspective view of a Type E child safety seat in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 7 is a rear perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 6 in a folded position; 30 Figure 8 is a rear perspective view of a Type E child safety seat in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention; Figure 9 is a rear perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 8 in a folded position; Figure 10 is a rear perspective view of a Type E child safety seat in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention; 5 Figure 11 is a front perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 10; and Figure 12 is a rear perspective view of the Type E child safety seat of Figure 10 in a folded position. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 10 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 construed as limiting on the scope of the invention. The present invention will be described below in relation to a Type-E child safety 15 seat or booster seat for use in a vehicle in a forward facing manner. However, it will be appreciated that the present invention could be equally applicable for use in a variety of different modes of child safety seats, including Type A/B, Type A/B/E etc, and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. Further, the present invention will be described below in relation to a vehicle undergoing an accident. 20 However, it will be appreciated that the present invention can be used in a variety of vehicle situations, such as sudden breakage or acceleration of the vehicle where a child can be exposed to potentially harmful forces, without the need for the vehicle to be involved in an accident or collision. Referring to Figures 1 to 3, a booster seat 10 in accordance with one embodiment of 25 the present invention is shown. The booster seat 10 is configured to be supported on a rear seat of a vehicle in a conventional manner, however, it will be appreciated that the booster seat 10 may be supported on a front seat or any other vehicle seating arrangement, as desired by a user. The booster seat 10 has a base 12 that is shaped to be positioned on a surface of the 30 vehicle seat. The undersurface of the base 12 is substantially level or shaped to conform with an upper surface of the vehicle seat such that the booster seat 10 is substantially stable when positioned on the vehicle seat for use. The base may comprise a pair of armrests 13 located on opposing sides thereof, to receive the arms of the child so as to provide additional comfort to the child. The armrests 13 are typically formed such that there is a gap 15 provided between the armrests 13 and the seating surface 14 of the base 12. Such a gap 15 may receive the vehicle seat belt as it passes over the lap of the child positioned therein, to assist in positioning the seat belt with respect to the child. 5 A backrest 16 is connected to the base 12 to extend substantially perpendicular from the base 12 when in use. The backrest 16 has back portion 17 against which a back of the child is received and supported when the child is seated thereon. A pair of side wings 18 are also provided to extend laterally along the sides or flanks of the backrest 16 in the manner as shown, to provide added side impact protection to the 10 child seated therein. The backrest 16 may be padded or otherwise configured to provide comfort and support to the child located therein. As is shown more clearly in Figure 2, the backrest 16 is pivotally connected to the base 12 at a lower portion thereof. The manner in which the pivotal connection is provided may vary. In the manner as shown in the embodiment of Figures 1 and 2, 15 the pivotal connection comprises a male member 19a that projects laterally from a lower region of the side wings 18 on opposing sides of the backrest. The male member 19a is configured to be received within a female member or hole 19b formed on an inside surface of the arm rests 13. Such an arrangement forms a pair of pivot points on opposing sides of the backrest 16 that enables the angular position 20 of the backrest 16 to be adjusted with respect to the base 12 as will be discussed in more detail below. It will be appreciated that in one form the male member may be an elongate shaft or rod that extends through a lower region of the backrest 16 to project from the opposing sides thereof. Similarly, in another form, a recess may be provided in opposing sides of the lower region of the backrest 16 to receive a 25 corresponding projecting member, such as a rod or shaft that projects from the inner surfaces of the arm rests 13, to define pivot points. A securing system 20 is provided to secure the backrest 16 in position with respect to the base 12. In the embodiment as shown in Figures 1 - 3, the securing system 20 comprises a pair of strap arrangements 22 that are each attached at a first end to the 30 rear of the base 12 by way of a rivet or similar fastening member 21. The strap arrangements 22 comprise a first strap member 24 that passes through a space formed between the end of the backrest 16 and the base 12 to the front surface of the backrest 16 where it is threaded through a slot 23 formed through the backrest 16. The first strap member 24 then exits from the slot 23 at the rear of the backrest 16 35 where the distal end of the strap member terminates in a buckle member 25. A second strap member 26 of the strap arrangement 22 is also fastened to the rear of the base 12 by way of the rivet 21 or similar fastening member and has a distal end that is to be received within the buckle member 25 of the first strap member. By tightening the second strap member 26 in the buckle 25 the strap arrangements 22 act to secure the backrest 16 in position with respect to the base 12. With the provision of movement limiting or locking members (not shown) provided between 5 the base 12 and the backrest 16, the backrest can be positioned to an upright position, as shown in Figure 1, and then secured in position by way of the securing system 20, for use. The base 12 is made from a high density plastic material, such as polyethylene, through an injection moulding or blow moulding process. As the base 12 receives 10 the vehicle seat belt when the child is positioned thereon, it experiences most of the direct forces applied by the vehicle seat belt in the event of a vehicle accident. Hence, by forming the base 12 from materials having increased strength properties, the seat is able to withstand a wide range of forces that may be applied by the vehicle seat belt during use. Through providing the base 12 with increased strength, 15 this enables the backrest 16 to be formed from a more lightweight material, such as polystyrene. As the backrest 16 merely supports the child's back and extends around the child to provide impact protection, the use of a material, such as polystyrene can be employed without compromising the safety of the child, or indeed the ability of the seat to perform its intended function. 20 Hence, by positioning the high strength and heavier materials at those areas of the booster seat where the high forces are concentrated and placing lightweight materials in other regions of the seat, the total weight of the seat can be controlled. As it is law in Australia to ensure that all booster seats over 2 Kg are tethered in position on the vehicle seat, the booster seat 10 of the present invention can be 25 configured to have the same or similar strength properties as tethered booster seats without the need for tethering, by reducing the overall weight of the seat. Alternatively, the regions of the seat that experience higher load forces in use, may be constructed to provide increased strength in such regions, whereas, regions of the seat that do not experience high load forces in use may be constructed of lighter 30 weight material, thus optimising the weight of the seat. In this regard, the booster seat 10 can be easily repositioned or removed from the vehicle without the need for disconnecting and reconnecting tether arrangements. As is shown in Figure 2, the booster seat 10 can be easily folded by releasing the securing system 20 such that the backrest 16 can be positioned to extend 35 substantially parallel to the base 12. This significantly reduces the size of the seat 10 to enable it to be stored in a storage or luggage compartment of the vehicle, or elsewhere, as desired. In this regard, locating straps 27 may be provided on the base 12 and/or the backrest 16 to retain the booster seat 10 in a folded position for storage and transportation. The locating straps may use hook and loop fasteners, such as those sold under the trade name Velcro®, to assist in retaining the seat in a folded position. It will be appreciated that a variety of alternative means other than 5 locating straps 27 may be employed to achieve this, such as press-studs and similar fasteners as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. Referring to Figures 4 and 5, an alternative embodiment of a booster seat 30 in accordance with the present invention is shown. In this embodiment, the base 32 is formed from a lightweight material, such as polystyrene. A lower hinge member 39 10 is formed at a rear region of the base 32 which is formed from a high density plastic material, such as polyethylene. The lower hinge member 39 is secured to the base 32 by way of rivets and the like and/or an adhesive such that the base 32 and lower hinge member 39 form a single body. Similarly the backrest 36 is formed from a lightweight material, such as polystyrene, 1s with the lower portion of the backrest 36 having an upper hinge member 38 attached thereto. The upper hinge member 38 is formed from a high strength plastic material, such as polyethylene and is configured to compliment the lower hinge member 39. In this regard, the upper hinge member 38 is secured to the backrest 36 by way of rivets and the like and/or an adhesive such that the backrest 36 and upper 20 hinge member 38 form a single body. In this embodiment, the upper hinge member 38 and the lower hinge member 39 are formed by blow moulding or injection moulding such that they can be formed to high tolerances to enable the two components to co-operate together to provide controlled pivotal movement relative to each other. As such, the upper hinge 25 member 38 and the lower hinge member 39 have predetermined pivot points 40 that assemble together by way of an interference fit, or similar assembly methods, that provide smooth pivotal movement as well as an ability to lock the upper hinge member 38 in position with respect to the lower hinge member 39 at a desired angle. Hence, the booster seat 30 may be positioned for use as in Figure 4 and then 30 positioned for transport and/or storage as in Figure 5 without the need for any significant effort on behalf of the user. Yet another embodiment of the present invention is shown in Figures 6 and 7. In this embodiment booster seat 40 comprises a base 42 formed from a high strength plastic material, such as polyethylene. The base 42 includes armrests 43 on 35 opposing sides thereof which define a gap 45 between the armrest 43 and the seating surface 44 of the base 12 through which a vehicle seat belt passes en-route across the waist of child seated thereon. As the base is formed from a material having high strength characteristics, it can readily handle large forces that may be applied by the vehicle seatbelt to the region of the booster seat 40 without deforming the seat or causing failure in the seat base 42. 5 In order to reduce the overall weight of the booster seat 40, the backrest 46 is substantially formed from a light weight material such as polystyrene. The backrest 46 comprises a back support portion 47 to receive the child's back when the child is seated in the booster seat 40 and a pair of side wings 48 that extend laterally along opposing sides of the backrest 46 to provide a degree of impact protection to the 10 child. In order to provide a degree of added strength to the backrest 46, the lower most region of the backrest 46 comprises a pivot support member 49 that engages with the base 42. The pivot support member 49 is formed from high strength plastic material, such as polyethylene, and is formed by blow moulding or injection 1s moulding such that the pivot support member 49 can be configured to high tolerances. In this regard, the pivot support member 49 is fitted and secured to the lower portion of the backrest 46 and may be configured such that it fits over the lower portion of the backrest 46. One or more securing members such as rivets and the like may be provided to aid in securing the pivot support member 49 to the 20 backrest 46 and an adhesive may also be provided. It will be appreciated that a variety of methods for securing the pivot member 49 to the backrest 46 may be employed and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. The pivot support member 49 engages with the base 42 by way of a pivot 50 that allows pivotal movement of the backrest 46 with respect to the base 42. The pivot 25 50 may be in the form of a projection that extends from the lower region of the pivot support member 49 and is received in a recess provided in the base 42. The projection may be formed of steel, plastic or a combination of steel and plastic or any other suitable material. As is shown in Figure 7, the backrest 46 is able to be folded for transport and/or 30 storage and a locating strap 57 or similar locking device is provided to retain the booster seat 40 in the folded position. An alternative embodiment of the seat 40 as shown in Figures 6 and 7 is shown in Figures 8 and 9. In this embodiment the backrest 46 is formed as a unitary member and has a cover provided thereon which has aesthetic appeal and increased comfort. 35 In the embodiment as shown in Figures 8 and 9, the backrest 46 may be made from a polystyrene foam material with a laminar coating of a sheet of plastic material as is depicted. Figures 10 - 12 show yet another embodiment of a child safety seat 60 in accordance with the present invention. As in the previous embodiments, in this 5 embodiment the child safety seat 60 comprises a base portion 62 and a backrest portion 66, with the base portion 62 and the backrest portion 66 being pivotally mounted together by way of a pivot connection 65, to facilitate folding of the seat 60, as shown in Fig. 12. In the seat 60, both the backrest portion 66 and the base portion 62 may be formed 10 from a foam or polystyrene material 75 as discussed previously. In order to provide added strength to the seat 60, one or more strips or layers of strengthening material 70 may be applied over the surface of the foam material 75, as shown. The strengthening material 70 may be in the form of a sheet of high strength plastic material, such as polyethylene, which can be adhered or otherwise applied to the 15 surface of the foam material 75 in specific regions thereof, namely those regions of the seat 60 which may be subjected to stress or other forces during use. As is shown in Figures 10 and 11, the edges of the base portion 62 may have a strengthening material 70 applied thereto to increase and reinforce the overall strength of the base portion 62. Similarly the edges of the backrest portion 66 may 20 have a layer of strengthening material applied thereto, as shown, which extend over the leading edges of the wing portion 68 as shown, to provide a degree of reinforcement to the wing portions 68. Similarly, strips of strengthening material may be applied across the surface of the backrest portion and along the outer sides of the wing portions 66, as shown, to provide improved reinforcement of the 25 backrest portion 66. As is shown in Fig. 11, the strengthening material 70 may be layered across the inner surface of the backrest portion 66 as shown, such that the inner layer of strengthening material 70 may form a sandwich with an outer layer of strengthening material 70 with the foam material 75 located therebetween. Such an arrangement 30 will function to strengthen the polystyrene material to ensure that it is capable of withstanding impact during use. In order to provide increased strength to the seat 60 at the pivot connection 65, the area of the base portion 62 and the backrest portion 66 pivot in this region may have be provided with a inner and outer layer of strengthening material 70 to increase the 35 strength of the polystyrene foam material in this region. Such an arrangement will ensure that the seat 60 is able to cope with any forces present in the seat 60 as the seat is folded about the pivot connection 65. In the embodiment of the seat 60 as shown in Figs. 10 - 12, both the backrest portion 66 and the base portion 62 are able to be formed from a lightweight material, such as polystyrene foam. The seat 60 can be reinforced and strengthened 5 to ensure that it is able to withstand the forces present on the seat during use in a vehicle through the application of a layer of strengthening material, such as a plastic such as polyethelene, without substantially increasing the weight of the seat. iT will be appreciated that whilst the seat 60 is shown as a base portion pivotally connected to a backrest portion, the base portion and the backrest portion may be formed 1o integrally as a single body and still fall within the spirit of the present invention. It will be appreciated that the booster seat of the present invention provides a system whereby the seat is designed to withstand the forces present in the event of an accident and provide enhanced protection to the child. The booster seat is sufficiently light to avoid the need to tether the seat to the vehicle and is configured 15 to fold for storage. This provides a user of the seat with improved mobility to transport and use the seat in a variety of vehicle options. 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 20 its derivatives will be taken to indicate the inclusion of not only the listed components, 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 25 variations may be made to the methods of the invention described herein without departing from 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 30 usually be considered in a particular orientation, typically with the child safety seat uppermost.

Claims (7)

1. A child safety seat for a vehicle comprising: a body adapted to be mounted to a seat of the vehicle and configured to receive a child therein, the body being formed from a lightweight material and wherein a strengthening material is applied to at least one surface of the body to reinforce the body for use.

2. A child safety seat according to claim 1, wherein the lightweight material is a foam material, such as polystyrene.

3. A child safety seat according to claim 1, wherein the strengthening material is a plastic material, such as polyethylene.

4. A child safety seat according to claim 3, wherein the strengthening material is a sheet of plastic material.

5. A child safety seat according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the strengthening material is applied to the surface of the body by way of an adhesive.

6. A child safety seat according to any one of claims 1 - 5, wherein the strengthening material is applied to multiple surfaces of the body to provide reinforcement to those regions of the body.

7. A child safety seat according to claim 6, wherein the strengthening material is configured to extend around adjoining surfaces of the body so as to sandwich the lightweight material between the strengthening material.