AU721501B2

AU721501B2 - Retractable anti-rebound support

Info

Publication number: AU721501B2
Application number: AU49215/97A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Michael Andrew Lumley; Wieslaw Maciejczyk
Original assignee: Britax Child Care Products Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Britax Childcare Pty Ltd
Priority date: 1997-01-02
Filing date: 1997-12-23
Publication date: 2000-07-06
Anticipated expiration: 2017-12-23
Also published as: AU4921597A

Description

Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

T

,BiiENDE a Name of Applicant: Actual Inventors: BRITAX CHILD-CARE PRODUCTS PTY LTD (ACN 006 773 600) Michael Andrew Lumley Wieslaw Maciejczyk Address for Service: MADDERNS, 1st Floor, 64 Hindmarsh Square, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia Invention title: RETRACTABLE ANTI-REBOUND SUPPORT Details of Associated Provisional Application No: PO 4426 dated 2 January 1997 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us.

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INTRODUCTION

This invention relates to a child safety seat with an anti-rebound support, and in particular to a means whereby the safety seat can be provided with an anti-rebound support for use in a rear facing position. The invention also provides for a retractable support that is stowable so that it does not impede the use of the child seat in a forward facing position or when being used as a cradle whilst not in the motor vehicle.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Child safety seats for motor vehicles are well known, some of which are designed for use in two modes of operation. The first mode is for infants from birth to approximately 6 months of age where the safety seat is rearward facing. In this arrangement, an infant's back is positioned in the direction of travel so that during collision, impact forces are absorbed through the backrest of the child safety seat.

The other mode of operation is where the seat is positioned so that the child is facing forward in the direction of travel. Both styles of safety seats are well known by people skilled in the art.

Another requirement for some safety seats is to be used as a rear facing safety seat in the car and as a cradle when not in the car.

It has also become common for a single child safety seat to be designed for both rearward and forward facing operation.

One particular problem for a safety seat, particularly when used in the rearward facing mode, is the possibility of rebound after a collision. As a result of either a rear impact, or following a front end collision, a rearward facing seat is inclined to rotate quickly towards the backrest of the vehicle seat. There is a real possibility of injury to an infant within the seat or the possibility of the infant being thrown with force against the vehicle seat backrest.

In order to prevent such rebound, a support which extends above the seat portion is used.

However, such supports are not convenient for dual purpose seats. They are unsuited to rear facing seats which are also used as cradles external of a vehicle. In both cases, the anti-rebound support cannot be left in its in use position.

Accordingly, there is a need to provide a means where an anti-rebound support can be positioned when needed in respect of a rear facing seat, but can be conveniently and easily repositioned when the seat is to be used either in a forward facing direction or as a cradle.

Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide such a means, and to do so in the simplest and easiest possible manner. It is also an object of this invention to provide S an anti-rebound support that can be easily deployed, and readily retracted.

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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention is a child safety seat having rebound protection, in combination with a motor vehicle seat having generally horizontal and vertical 0 portions, said child safety seat comprising: a seat portion, a backrest portion extending from a rear edge of said seat portion, at least one seat base surface for supporting said safety seat on said motor vehicle seat, means for securing said safety seat to said motor vehicle seat, an anti-rebound support, and a coupling device coupling said anti-rebound support to said safety seat so that said anti-rebound support can be moved between a first position where said anti-rebound support extends from an edge of said seat portion, opposite to said rear edge, and abuts against said vertical portion of said motor vehicle seat when said child safety seat is in a rearward facing position to thereby restrain rebound ovement of said child safety seat, and a second position where said anti-rebound r| support is retracted from said first position to facilitate use of said child safety seat in a forward facing position, said movement between said first and second position comprising linear retraction in a direction substantially parallel to the plane within which said anti-rebound support lies.

Preferably, the anti-rebound support comprises a generally U-shaped member which is designed to slide in and out of suitably shaped recesses within the seat portion of the child safety seat. In addition to a U-shaped member, the anti-rebound support may also comprise a plate-like element and other shapes and forms which are also designed to slide into and out of suitably shaped recesses.

.The anti-rebound support in its extended form and in position on a vehicle seat, extends above the safety seat portion so that it abuts against the backrest of the S"vehicle seat.

Preferably, the U-shaped member is moulded from a plastic material, but may also be manufactured from other materials such as metal. One advantage of the plastic material is a degree of flexibility which will act to absorb any forces which may be applied during a collision.

The U-shaped member may comprise two legs with a cross-member extending between the outer ends of the two legs. Preferably, the seat portion has a pair of apertures or longitudinal recesses into which the legs locate and retract through. The seat portion may also be provided with a recess for location of a cross-member so that it is flush with the external surface of the seat portion.

The coupling device may also be used to hold the anti-rebound member in its extended position. Preferably, a self engaging lock is provided that engages when the anti-rebound member is pulled into its operative position. A manual release mechanism is provided to allow retraction of the anti-rebound member.

I -I In addition to the use of a U-shaped anti-rebound support, other shapes may also be used. For example, the anti-rebound support may comprise a pair of arms that extend from the seat portion, or a T-shaped member having a single leg with a crossmember attached thereto.

In a further aspect of the invention is a child safety seat, having rebound protection, in combination with a motor vehicle seat having generally horizontal and vertical portions, said child safety seat comprising a seat portion, a backrest portion extending from a rear edge of said seat portion, at least one seat base surface for supporting said safety seat on said motor vehicle, means for securing said safety seat to said motor vehicle seat, an anti-rebound support, and a coupling device coupling said anti-rebound support to said safety seat so that said anti-rebound support can be moved between a first position where said anti-rebound support extends from g o beneath said seat portion, adjacent said rear edge, and abuts against said motor vehicle seat when said child safety seat is in a rearward facing position to thereby restrain rebound movement of said child safety seat, and a second position where said anti-rebound support is retracted from said first position to facilitate use of said child safety seat in a forward facing position, said movement between said first and o second position comprising linear retraction in a direction substantially parallel to the plane within which said anti-rebound support lies when retracted.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order for the invention to be fully understood, preferred embodiments will now be described. However, it should be realised that the invention is not to be limited or confined to the details of each of these embodiments.

The embodiments are illustrated in the accompanying representations in which: Fig 1 shows a part perspective view of a child safety seat with an extended anti-rebound support, Fig 2 shows a perspective view of the U-shaped anti-rebound support, Fig 3 shows a part side view of a child safety seat with an extended antirebound support, and a retracted anti-rebound support showing in dashed outline, i 1 Fig 4 shows a locking support used at the end of one of the U-shaped members legs, Fig 5 shows a non-locking support used for holding one of the ends of the legs of the U-shape support, Figs 6 and 7 show side and cross-sectional views of the locking support shown in Fig 4, Fig 8 shows a perspective view of a child safety seat with a T-shaped antirebound support, Figs 9 and 10 show a perspective view of a child safety seat using a pair of arms as anti-rebound supports, Figs 11 and 12 show side views of a child safety seat with an anti-rebound bar ili that is located beneath the seat portion in its extended position, and 2 Fig 13 shows a perspective view of a child safety seat in which the antirebound support comprises a pair of pivotally mounted arms which rotate into the anti-rebound support position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In all of the embodiments shown in the accompanying illustrations, the child safety seat 10 comprises a backrest portion 11 and a seat portion 12. The safety seat 10 is manufactured from a unitary plastic moulding, in which the backrest and seat portions 11 and 12 are formed with side walls 13, a pair of back ribs 14 which extend along the backrest portion 11, and a pair of base ribs 15. The back and base ribs 14 and 15 are connected. The edges 16 of the side walls 13 are curved in cross-section and extend along the length of the side wall 13 from the base rib 15 to the top of the back rib 14.

The safety seat 10 is provided with means for securing said safety seat 10 to said motor vehicle seat comprising various apertures for fixing vehicle seat belts thereto.

The safety seat 10 in all of the embodiments described has a base plate 19 that is pivotally attached to the safety seat 10. The base plate 19 forms a support for locating on the horizontal surface of the vehicle seat to provide a stable platform. It is rotatable so that its position can change depending on whether or not the safety seat is being used in a rearward or forward facing position. The base plate 19 rests on either the back ribs or base ribs 14 or 15 depending on which direction the safety seat is facing.

In the embodiments shown in Figs 1 to 7, the anti-rebound support 20 comprises a generally U-shaped member having a pair of legs 21 and a crossbar member 22. At one end of each leg 21, there is a projection 23 which is used in conjunction with supports 24.

The supports 24 are illustrated in Figs 4 to 7. One of the supports 24 is provided with a locking mechanism 25 which is illustrated in Figs 4, 6 and 7.

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The supports 24 provide a channel generally defined by walls 26 and associated apertures within the safety seat 10 allow the legs 21 to locate within the supports 24.

These channels defined by walls 26 guide the legs 21 of the anti-rebound support as it slides into and out of its retracted position. The retracted position is illustrated in ghost outline in Fig 3. As illustrated in Fig 1, a recess 27 is provided in the seat portion to accommodate the crossbar member 22 to ensure that it is flush with the outer surface of the seat portion when in its fully retracted position.

As seen in Figs 1 and 2, the anti-rebound support 20 extends beyond the end of the seat portion 12 and is designed to be positioned against the backrest of the vehicle seat when the safety seat 10 is in the rearward facing position. This provides support to restrain rotation of the safety seat 10 towards the vehicle seat. The anti-rebound support 20 is retracted when the safety seat 10 is used in the forward facing position.

The lock mechanism 25 used in one of the supports 24 comprises a spring-loaded member 30. The spring-loaded member 30 in turn comprises a plate 31 and a release button 32. The plate 31 has a ramped surface comprising curved leading edge 33. As the anti-rebound support 20 is being pulled from its retracted position, the projection 23 abuts against the curved leading edge 33. The curvature is sufficient to enable the projection 23 to deflect the spring-loaded plate 31 away from the projection 23. Once in this position, the leg 21 can then be rotated into a V-shaped recess 34 formed by surfaces 35 and 36. Once in this position, the spring-loaded plate 31 is released, with surface 37 abutting against an upper surface of the leg 21. This accordingly prevents rotation of the leg 21 out of the V-shaped recess 34 thereby locking the leg 21 in that position.

In order to release the leg 21, the release button 32 is depressed thereby clearing surface 37 from the leg 21 enabling it to rotate out of the V-shaped recess 34 and to then slide with respect to the support 24.

The second support 24 without the lock mechanism 25 simply has the V-shaped recess 34 within which the leg 21 locates. The surfaces 35 and 36 of the V-shaped recesses 34 resist any forces applied to the anti-rebound support 20 as a result of T1 rotation of the safety seat 10 towards the backrest of the vehicle seat, and prevent S retraction of the anti-rebound support 20 when in the locked position.

eO° o Figs 8 to 10 show variations of the above-described embodiment. In Fig 8, the antirebound support 20 comprises a T-shaped member. In this embodiment, the support S 24 would be substantially the same as that shown in Figs 4, 6 and 7.

o* o Fig 9 shows a pair of arms 61 without the use of a crossbar member 22. In this example, each support 24 would comprise that illustrated in Figs 4, 6 and 7. Fig shows an embodiment similar to that illustrated in Fig 9, but in this example, the "25 ends of the arms 61 comprise a moulding which is shaped to fit into a corresponding recess in the seat portion 12.

Fig 13 shows a further embodiment in which the anti-rebound support 20 comprises a pair of rotatably mounted arms. Each of the arms 40 is designed to locate into recesses 41. Although Fig 13 shows the arms 40 having a pivot 42 located towards the edges 16, the pivot 42 may be positioned at the other end of the arms 40 so that they i vot from the opposite end of the recess by comparison to what is shown in Fig 13.

Finally, Figs 11 and 12 show a further version of an anti-rebound support 20. In this embodiment, the anti-rebound support 20 may comprise a U-shaped bar, and is positioned so that, in its extended form as shown in Fig 12, it abuts against the base of the vehicle seat backrest. As shown in Fig 12, the anti-rebound support 20 extends from beneath the seat portion 12. In this embodiment, a pair of slots 45 are provided in the back ribs 14 which enable the anti-rebound support 20 to slide into and out of its in use position. The ends of the anti-rebound support 20 have suitable projections which locate and hold the anti-rebound support 20 within the slots 45. As shown in Figs 12 and 13, the slot 45 may have an extension portion 46 that extends away from the main slot portion 45 at an angle to provide a recess within which the ends of the anti-rebound support 20 locate. The ends of the anti-rebound support 20 can be locked into this extension portion 46 to resist any retraction forces that might be applied to the anti-rebound support 20 when in its in use position.

*o oo S As will be seen from the above descriptions, the invention provides a very simple means of providing an anti-rebound support which can be used on a child safety seat designed for both forward and rearward facing operation.

Claims

1. A child safety seat, having rebound protection, in combination with a motor vehicle seat having generally horizontal and vertical portions, said child safety seat comprising: a seat portion, a backrest portion extending from a rear edge of said seat portion, at least one seat base surface for supporting said safety seat on said motor vehicle seat, means for securing said safety seat to said motor vehicle seat, an anti-rebound support, and a coupling device coupling said anti-rebound support to said safety seat so that said anti-rebound support can be moved between a first position where said anti-rebound support extends from an edge of said seat portion, opposite to said rear S edge, and abuts against said vertical portion of said motor vehicle seat when said child safety seat is in a rearward facing position to thereby restrain rebound movement of said child safety seat, and a second position where said anti-rebound support is retracted from said first position to facilitate use of said child safety seat in a forward facing position, said movement between said first and second position comprising linear retraction in a direction substantially parallel to the plane within which said anti-rebound support lies when retracted.

2. A child safety seat according to claim 1 wherein said anti-rebound support retracts between said base surface and said seat portion.

3. A child safety seat according to either claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said anti- rebound support comprises a pair of spaced apart legs with a crossbar member extending between said legs, said coupling device including an aperture in said child safety seat for each of said legs.

4. A child safety seat according to claim 3 further including a recess in said child safety seat between said apertures within which said crossbar member locates.

A child safety seat according to any one of the preceding claims wherein said coupling device includes a lock that engages when said anti-rebound support is in said first position.

6. A child safety seat according to claim 5 wherein said lock comprises a spring loaded plate located adjacent at least one of said apertures, and an end of at least one of said legs opposite said cross member has a projection thereon, said plate having a ramp surface and an abutment surface wherein said ramp surface is engaged by said projection as said anti-rebound support is moved into said first position so that said plate is deflected from its rest position to allow said projection to pass whereupon said plate returns to its rest position and said leg is held in position by at least said abutment surface.

7. A child safety seat according to claim 6 wherein said lock further comprises a 1 manual release button that enables said plate to be deflected to allow said anti- Srebound support to move from said first to said second position. .o

8. A child safety seat according to any one of claims 5 to 7 wherein said apertures each further comprise a recess having an abutment surface into which the ends of said legs locate to thereby prevent retraction of said anti-rebound support. 9•00

9. A child safety seat according to claim 8 wherein said anti-rebound support is rotated with respect to said apertures to enable the ends of said legs to engage said S recess and abutment surface.

A child safety seat according to either claim 1 or 2 wherein said anti-rebound support comprises a single leg with a crossbar member at the end of said leg, said coupling device including an aperture in said child safety seat for said leg.

11. A child safety seat according to either claim 1 or 2 wherein said anti-rebound support comprises a pair of spaced apart arms, said coupling device including an ture in said child safety seat for each of said arms.

12. A child safety seat, having rebound protection, in combination with a motor vehicle seat having generally horizontal and vertical portions, said child safety seat comprising: a seat portion, a backrest portion extending from a rear edge of said seat portion, at least one seat base surface for supporting said safety seat on said motor vehicle seat, means for securing said safety seat to said motor vehicle seat, an anti-rebound support, and a coupling device coupling said anti-rebound support to said safety seat so that said anti-rebound support can be moved between a first position where said anti-rebound support extends from beneath said seat portion, adjacent said rear edge, and abuts against said motor vehicle seat when said child safety seat is in a 1. rearward facing position to thereby restrain rebound movement of said child safety S seat, and a second position where said anti-rebound support is retracted from said i. first position to facilitate use of said child safety seat in a forward facing position, said movement between said first and second position comprising linear retraction in a direction substantially parallel to the plane within which said anti-rebound support -"020 lies when retracted.

13. A child safety seat according to claim 12 wherein said anti-rebound support retracts behind said backrest portion. .25

14. A child safety seat according to either claim 12 or claim 13 wherein said anti- rebound support comprises a pair of spaced apart legs with a crossbar member extending between said legs.

A child safety seat according to either claim 13 or claim 14 wherein the ends of said legs opposite said crossbar member have projections, and said safety seat has a arof slots, each of said projections locating within a slot and thereby guiding the RAA retraction of said anti-rebound support.

16. A child safety seat according to claim 15 wherein at least one of said slots includes a locking means that holds said anti-rebound support in its said first position.

17. A child safety seat according to claim 16 wherein said locking means comprises an extension portion on each of said pair of slots that extend away from each said slot at an angle with respect to their longitudinal axes to thereby form a recess within which said projections locate.

18. A child safety seat substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying representations. Dated this 8th day of May 2000. S* BRITAX CHILD-CARE PRODUCTS PTY LTD By its Patent Attorneys MADDERNS