GB2537798A

GB2537798A - Child car seat

Info

Publication number: GB2537798A
Application number: GB1420075.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: James Hicks Ben; Kujawa Anthony
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2014-11-11
Filing date: 2014-11-11
Publication date: 2016-11-02
Also published as: GB201420075D0

Abstract

A fully-dismantleable child car seat 110, (10 , see figure 1a) comprising a multi-part seat body (12) having a plurality of modular releasably engagable support elements stowable into a collapsed compact arrangement when not in use, wherein one of the support elements 128, (28) is capable of housing the other support elements in the collapsed compact arrangement. Preferably the seat has engagement means for coupling to an existing restraint system (1000) of a vehicle; a gluteal support element, which is a squab portion 18 having a recess 34 for housing other mutually stackable modular support elements in the collapsed arrangement; said support elements include engagable interface portions comprising co-operable spring pin locators (174, 182, figure 4) and receivers (172, 178); the collapsed arrangement is substantially cuboidal with a reduction in volumetric envelope of more than 75%. A method of stowing such a car seat is also provided.

Description

Child Car Seat The present invention relates to a car seat for a child, and in particular to a modular car seat capable of disassembly for more convenient storage. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method of stowing such a car seat.

Restraint systems in vehicles which are used to prevent injury to passengers are generally unsuitable for children, who are too small to be adequately restrained by a three-point seat belt. This problem is generally solved by the provision of a special restraint seat for the child which can be coupled to the restraint system in the vehicle.

Such child seats are typically very bulky constructs, which means that they are difficult to transport between locations. Whilst this is generally not an issue when the parent or carer is only travelling by car, say, it can be difficult to transport the seat in environments where the seat cannot be used, and where space is at a premium, for instance on aircraft. Similarly, such child seats are difficult to store when not in use, having very large volumetric envelopes, that is, the minimum cuboidal volume capable of containing the seat.

Some child seats are foldable, the backrest folding down onto the squab of the seat, and whilst the volumetric envelope is reduced, the folded seat is still relatively bulky, and difficult to fit into overhead luggage storage on an aircraft, for example. Foldable seats also have movable components, which can be dangerous, since a child could readily become trapped in the seat in the event of an accident or malfunction.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to solve or substantially obviate the above-mentioned problems, by providing a fully-dismantleable child car seat which can be readily assembled and disassembled, with one component of the car seat acting as a housing for the remainder of the components.

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a fully-dismantleable child car seat comprising a multi-part seat body having a plurality of modular releasably engagable support elements stowable into a collapsed compact arrangement when not in use, wherein one of the support elements is adapted to partially or fully house the other support elements in the collapsed compact arrangement.

Existing car seats for children are bulky and difficult to arrange into a compact configuration. They generally fill the majority of the volume of a regular adult seat within a vehicle, and take up a comparable volume when stored. The present invention allows a user to completely dismantle the child seat into a collapsed compact configuration for easy stowing and/or transportation. By designating one of the support elements as a storage housing, into which the remaining support clement may be incorporated, the volumetric envelope of the car seat can be substantially reduced in the stowed condition.

Preferably, the seat may comprise a gluteal support element which is a squab portion, and a back support element which is a backrest portion, the squab and backrest portions being releasably interengagable. Optionally or additionally, the scat may further comprise a head support element which is a headrest portion, and/or at least one lateral support element which is a side wall portion. The said squab portion may include a recess into which the other modular support elements may be housed in the collapsed compact arrangement. Furthermore, the said other support elements may be mutually stackable so as to be housed within the said one support element A child seat for a car comprises sufficient components to fully support the body of the child in a safe manner. This will generally include at least a squab and a backrest, the squab generally having a greater depth than the backrest. If the backrest is created as a multi-part support element, then the squab will be the largest individual support element, and is therefore the most logical element to utilise as the housing element, with a recess formed in its body to receive the other support elements, the said other elements being advantageously mutually stackable so as to readily fit within the housing element.

This allows the child seat to be compacted in its collapsed stowing condition so as to have a minimised volume.

The car seat may further be provided with a seat belt, and may further comprise engagement means for coupling to an existing restraint system of a vehicle.

Whilst the modular car seat is primarily designed such that the seat body is readily collapsible, the seat belt of the chair could easily be provided with the chair so as to be packaged away easily in the stowed condition. The same also applies for the means of engagement with the vehicle in which the car seat is to be used. The provision of these components further enhances the stowability of the car seat.

Preferably, the support elements may include mutually engagable interface portions that are complementarily formed so as to provide three-dimensional kinematic constraint to the respective support elements. The interface portions may comprise at least in part co-operable spring pins and additionally or alternatively may at least in part comprise mutually engagable locators and receivers.

A critical advantage of the present invention is that there are no moving or folding parts of the car seat in which a child, and in particular their appendages, could become trapped or caught, which would likely result in injury. It is therefore beneficial to provide mutually engagable support portions which are fully three-dimensionally kinematically constrained, thereby drastically reducing the probability of injury as a result of the child seat. Furthermore, the safety regulations in respect of child seats are justifiably strict, and therefore the seat must comply with the relevant regulations. Advantageously, the spring pin arrangement of the invention provides a reinforcing effect to the structural integrity of the seat without drastically increasing the weight of the scat. This ensures that the scat is both safe and lightweight, ensuring portability of the device.

For ease, the collapsed compact arrangement of the car seat may be substantially cuboidal, which may in its collapsed compact ku-rangement, have a reduction in volumetric envelope of more than 75%.

For ease of storage, it is beneficial to provide a car seat which, in its stowed condition, has a very regular volumetric profile, so as to allow it to he readily stacked within a cupboard, for instance. The smaller the car seat in this condition, the more readily it can be stowed.

Preferably, the car seat is a forward-facing Group 1 car seat, as defined by the UN ECE regulations 44/03 and 44/04.

Child car seats are classified into weight ranges, which broadly correspond with the age of the child to be restrained. It has been found that the most limited range of child car seats currently available is for the Group 1 category, designed for children of around 9 months to 4 years in age, having masses from 9 to 18 kilograms.

At least one of the support portions may be at least in part cushioned.

Children are particularly intolerant of uncomfortable situations, and therefore it is advantageous to provide some form of cushioned support as part of the car seat. Not only does this increase the comfort of the seat in-use, hut also provides additional shock absorption to limit injury to the child in the event of a vehicular accident. Such cushioning could easily be provided as a booster seat, for example. Additionally or alternatively, the cushioning may utilise or be in the form of a non-Newtonian liquid and/or a rate-sensitive material, such as D30 RTM, whereby shock-absorption is significantly improved due to the liquid hardening on impact.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of stowing a car seat for a child, the method comprising the steps of: providing a fully-dismantelable child car seat, preferably in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; separating the support elements of the car scat from one another; and using one said support element as a housing for the remaining said support elements to stow the disassembled car seat in a collapsed compact arrangement.

Preferably, the remaining said support elements are housed within the said support element which is a squab portion of the car seat.

By providing a car seat which can be readily assembled and disassembled between operational and stowed conditions, the storage of what are usually bulky items can be readily achieved. For parents of young children, which usually require a great deal of associated paraphernalia as standard, the collapsed compact arrangement frees up valuable storage space for other items.

The invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure la shows a front perspective view of a first embodiment of a car seat in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; Figure lb shows a rear perspective view of the car seat of Figure la; Figure 2 shows a front perspective view of a second embodiment of a car seat in accordance with the first aspect of the invention; Figure 3 shows a front perspective view of the car seat of Figure 2, with the seat belt removed; Figure 4 shows an exploded perspective view of the car seat of Figure 3; Figure 5 shows an exploded perspective view of the car seat of Figure 3 prepared for storage; and Figure 6 is a perspective view of a squab portion of the car seat of Figure 3, reversed and inverted to show the dismantled car seat in a fully stowed collapsed compact arrangement.

Referring firstly to Figures la and lb, (here is shown a fully-dismantleable child car seat, referenced globally as 10. The car seat 10 comprises a multi-part seat body 12, a seat belt 14, and an engagement means 16 for connecting the car scat 10 to an existing restraint system 1000 in a vehicle into which the car scat 10 is to be used, illustrated here as a seat belt.

The seat body 12 is multi-part, having a plurality of modular releasably engagable support elements. In the depicted embodiment, these support elements include a squab portion 18, a lower backrest portion 20, an upper backrest portion 22, lower side walls 24 and upper side walls 26. In this particular embodiment, each support element is preferably formed from moulded plastics material, such as reaction injection moulded polyurethane foam, having a density for example of 200 kg/m3, which is formed around a metal frame, which in this instance is a chrome-molybdenum steel frame. Other suitable materials, however, can be considered.

The squab portion 18, being a gluteal support element, forms a base of the car seat 10, upon which a child would sit during use. The squab portion 18 is formed so as to be substantially cuboidal, having roughly equivalent width and length, but a relatively shallow depth. As such, an upper face 28 of the squab portion 18 is generally square. An elongate aperture 30 runs through the upper face 28 to allow a portion of the seat belt 14 to pass therethrough.

The squab portion 18, in this embodiment, has no integrated corresponding lower face to the upper face 28 and there is only provided three of the four possible side walls 32 which should extend contiguously from the upper face 28. Since the squab portion 18 is hollow, this provides a recess 34 on an in-use underside of the squab portion 18. This recess 34 is sized so as to be able to house all of the remaining support elements simultaneously.

The lower backrest portion 20, forming a lower-back support clement, is a preferably solid unit which, in use, is engagable with the squab portion 18 at preferably a geometrically constrained angle of the order of 100 degrees. A front-facing face 36 of the lower backrest portion 20 is planar, although it will be apparent that it could just as easily be ergonomically formed to complement the curvature of the lower vertebrae of a child.

A rear-facing face 38 of the lower backrest portion 20 includes a plurality of projections or spacers 40 which engage with a plate 42 affixed to the rear-facing face 38. The lower backrest portion 20 includes a pair of elongate apertures 44, through which part of the seat belt 14 may pass, with corresponding seat belt anchors 46 being positioned on the plate 42.

The upper backrest portion 22, forming an upper-back support element, is similarly formed to the lower backrest portion 20, and is in-use positioned so as to be preferably coplanar or substantially coplanar with the lower backrest portion 20. A plurality of vertically spaced-apart elongate apertures 48 are provided through the upper backrest portion 22, also through which part of the seat belt 14 may pass, with further seat belt anchors 50 being provided on the plate 42. A further engagement means 16' for engaging with the vehicular restraint means could also be provided at or adjacent to this location.

The two lower side wall portions 24, forming lower-lateral support elements, are preferably solid planar units having in this case chamfered edges. On a lower edge 52 of each is an interface portion formed as an elongate projection 54, which is engagable with a complementary channel 56 on the squab portion 18, the projections 54 and channels 56 respectively acting as locators and receivers of the interface portions. The in-use lower side wall portions 24 are arranged via these interface portions so as to project slightly off the vertical axis running through the upper face 28 of the squab portion 18, being adjacent and supporting the flanks of a child in the car seat 10.

The upper side wall portions 26, forming upper-lateral support elements, are similarly formed to the lower side wall portions 24, having an elongate projection 58 arranged so as to be perpendicularly oriented to an inner face 60 of each upper side wall portion 26. These elongate projections 58 arc engagable with complementary channels 62 on the upper backrest portion 22, similarly being locators and receivers of the interface portions respectively, and thereby providing lateral support at or adjacent to the arms of a child in the car seat 10. It will be apparent, however, that the upper side wall portions 26 could easily be connected via the lower backrest portion 20, or indeed could be integrally formed with the lower side wall portions 24.

The locators and receivers of the interface portions kinematically constrain the support elements with respect to one another when the car seat 10 is assembled. The locators 20 and receivers are preferably complementarily formed such that there is no scope for any movement in any of the three dimensions between engaged support elements.

The seat belt 14 in this embodiment is a five-point restraint, comprising a buckle 64 and five straps 66a, 66b, 66b', 66c, 66c'. The buckle housing 64 is permanently attached to the lowermost strap 66a, which passes through the aperture 30 in the upper face 28 of the squab portion 18, being secured at a seat belt anchor within the recess 34.

The central straps 66b, 66b' pass through the apertures 44 in the lower backrest portion 20, and the upper straps 66c, 66c' pass through the apertures 48 in the upper backrest portion 24, with each strap 66b, 66b', 66c, 66c' terminating in a buckle clip 68, engagable with the buckle housing 64. A release button 70 is provided on the buckle housing 64 to permit selective engagement and release of the buckle clips 68, though this will preferably be childproof to prevent the child from accidentally releasing the buckle clip 68 in use. The height of the shoulders of the child when seated will determine which of the apertures 48 the upper straps 66c, 66c' will pass through.

The engagement means 16 is shown in the depicted embodiment as merely being the rear of the upper face 28 of the squab portion 18, being in physical engagement with the restraint system 1000 of the vehicle, typically a seat belt. Once assembled, the illustrated embodiment is preferably approximately 600 mm x 320 mm x 285 mm, and is preferably approximately 180 mm x 320 mm x 305 mm in its collapsed compacted state. However, other sizes and dimensions are feasible.

A second embodiment of the car seat 110 is shown in Figures 2 to 4. This second embodiment is largely identical to that of the first embodiment, and as such, like references will be used to refer to like components, and further detailed description will be omitted.

The car seat 110 again has a seat body 112 comprised of a squab portion 118, a lower backrest portion 120, an upper backrest portion 122, and lower and upper side wall portions 124, 126, in addition to a scat belt 14.

The main differences between the first and the second embodiments of the car seat 10, 110 are that, in the second embodiment 110, the apertures 148 of the upper backrest portion 122 are provided as slots, inwardly cut into the main body of the upper backrest portion 122, allowing for straightforward alteration of the strap height of the upper straps 66c, 66c' of the seat belt 14. Furthermore, the shapes of the upper side walls 126 are altered to provide a greater degree of restraint to a child therein, and they are connected to the lower backrest portion 120 instead of the upper backrest portion 122. However, the two embodiments are largely identical in any material sense.

Figure 4 shows the second embodiment of the car seat 110 in an exploded arrangement so as to illustrate the interface portions between the respective support elements 128. A similar concept and construction applies to the first embodiment, described above.

The elongate projections 154, 158 of the lower and upper side walls 124, 126 and the respective complementary channels 156, 162 on the squab and lower backrest portions 118, 120 respectively can be seen. However, the interface portions between the squab, lower backrest and upper backrest 118, 120, 122 can be readily seen.

There are two receivers, such as recesses or hollows 172 provided in the rear of the upper face 128 of the squab portion 118. with corresponding locators, such as plugs 174 being provided on a lower edge 176 of the lower backrest portion 120. Similarly, two further receivers 178 are provide inwardly extending from an upper edge 180 of the lower backrest portion 120, with a further two corresponding locators182 being provided projecting from a lower edge 184 of the upper backrest portion 122.

These locators 174, 182 are formed preferably as co-operable spring pins, retractable into the main bodies of their respective backrest portions 118, 120, but securely releasably engagable with the respective receivers 172, 178 when in use, via a, preferably steel, skeleton frame, indicated as dashed lines SF in Figure 3. This increases the strength and stiffness of the relevant support elements of the car seat. As with the interfaces between the lateral support elements 24, 26 and the support elements to which they are connected, described above, the locators and receivers between the gluteal support element and back support element or elements also provide full three-dimensional kinematic constraint.

The engagement means 116 of the car seat 110 is also visible in Figure 4; there is a groove 186 which spans the upper face 128 of the squab portion 118 into which a restraint system 1000 of a vehicle is receivable.

In this embodiment, the volumetric envelope of the car seat in its collapsed compact state is, for example, 320 mm x 280 mm x 144 nun The car scat 110 will now be described in use; the references for the second embodiment will be hereafter utilised, but it will be apparent that the subsequent description will apply equally to the first embodiment.

To form a fully functional car seat 110, the lower backrest portion 120 is inserted into the squab portion 118 utilising the relevant locators 174 and receivers 172, and the upper backrest portion 122 will be inserted into the lower backrest portion 120 using the relevant locators 182 and receivers 178. The lower side walls 124 can then be inserted via the elongate projections 154 into engagement with the complementary channel 156 of the squab portions 118, and the upper side walls 126 can be inserted via their elongate projections 158 into engagement with the complementary channels 162 of the lower backrest portion 120. This is best illustrated in Figure 4. The reverse can then be performed to disassemble the car seat 110.

Upon disassembly, the car seat 110 may be stowed into a collapsed compact arrangement, as shown in Figure 5. Since the lower and upper backrest portions 120, 122 and lower and upper side walls 124, 126 are all substantially planar, they can be readily slacked. These items may be further profiled to improve inter-location and thus stackability. This stack of support elements 128 is sufficiently small, having a volumetric envelope which is reduced by more than 75% when compared with the fully assembled car scat 110, that it is capable of fitting fully or partially within the recess 134 of the squab portion 120.

In this collapsed compact arrangement, the car seat 110 can be readily stowed, for example, as hand luggage on an aircraft. To facilitate the portability of the stowed seat 110, the squab portion may be provided with one or more enhancements. For example, a retaining means could be provided to retain the compact stack within the recess, such as an encapsulating cover, webbing or retainer straps. It is, however, advantageous that the seat belt is utilised to secure the support elements within the squab portion.

Furthermore, the squab portion could be provided with a carry handle, which may be telescopically extendable and retractable, or preferably wheels, to assist with transportation.

Optionally, the support elements receivable within the squab portion may be releasably interengagable to simplify retention when stored. For example, each support element may include one or more push-fit fastener which push-fit engages with a corresponding part on a neighbouring support element. This may dispense with the need for any encapsulating cover or other additional retaining means.

It will be appreciated that although the car seat is described as having certain components which support the relevant parts of a child's body, the actual modularization of the car seat could be arbitrary. Indeed, if a single backrest was provided, and it was the largest component, then not only would separate upper and lower backrests be required, but the backrest portion could be utilised as the support element within which the others were contained.

Similarly, any number of different types of support element could be provided with the car seat, and in particular a headrest, forming a head support element, might be considered as a useful addition to provided additional cranial support for a child. It will also be apparent that whilst the underlying structure of the car scat is shown in the depicted embodiments, the complete car seat would likely include a number of comfortable enhancements, such as cushioned portions on the components which actually contact with the body of the child, in use. These cushioned portions could be incorporated directly into the car seat, or could be provided as separate, preferably machine washable, cover portions for the car seat.

Likewise, whilst spring pins are utilised to interengage the relevant support elements, such as the upper and lower backrests, it will be appreciated that any appropriate locator and receiver arrangement could be used instead The depicted embodiments are particularly designed for a Group 1 car seat, that is, a forward-facing car scat for a child weighing between 9 and 18 kilograms. However, it is self-evident that the same principles of the present invention could easily be applied to a child seat falling into any of the Group categories. It is also apparent that the seat must comply with the relevant safety regulations in respect of child car scats, in particular in respect of load-deflection. The relevant restrictions are defined in UN ECE regulations 44/03 and 44/04.

It is therefore possible to provide a car seat for a child, wherein the car seat has a seat body which can be disassembled into a plurality of support elements, which are releasably engageable. One support element can he provided so as to house the remaining support elements therein, acting as a container which can be readily stored in a small space.

The words 'comprises/comprising' and the words 'having/including' when used herein with reference to the present invention are used to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof.

It is appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of examples only, and various other modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the field without departing 10 from the scope of the invention herein described and defined.

Claims

Claims 1. A fully-dismantleable child car seat comprising a multi-part seat body having a plurality of modular releasably engagable support elements stowable into a collapsed compact arrangement when not in use, wherein one of the support elements is adapted to partially or fully house the other support elements in the collapsed compact arrangement.
2. A car seat as claimed in claim 1, comprising a gluteal support element which is a squab portion, and a hack support element which is a backrest portion, the squah and backrest portions being releasably interengagable.
3. A car seat as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a head support element which is a headrest portion.
4. A car seat as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, further comprising at least one lateral support element which is a side wall portion.
5. A car scat as claimed in any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the squab portion includes a recess into which the other modular support elements may he housed in the collapsed compact arrangement.
6. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the said other support elements are mutually stackable so as to be housed within the said one support element.
7. A car scat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a seat belt.
8. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, further comprising engagement means for coupling to an existing restraint system of a vehicle.
9. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the support elements include mutually engagable interface portions.
10. A car seat as claimed in claim 9, wherein the mutually engagable interface portions are complementarily formed so as to provide three-dimensional kinematic constraint to the respective support elements.
11. A car seat as claimed in claim 10, wherein the interface portions comprise at least in part co-operable spring pins.
12. A car seat as claimed in claim 10 or claim 11, wherein the interface portions comprise at least in part mutually engagable locators and receivers.
13. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the collapsed compact arrangement of the car seat is substantially cuboidal.
14. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the car seat, in its collapsed compact arrangement, has a reduction in volumetric envelope of more than 75%.
15. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the car seat is a forward-facing Group 1 car seat as defined by the UN ECE regulations 44/03 and 44/04.
16. A car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the support portions is at least in part cushioned.
17. A car scat substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to Figures la and lb, or Figures 2 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.
18. A method of stowing a car seat for a child, the method comprising the steps of: providing a fully-dismantleable child car seat as claimed in any one of the preceding claims; separating the support elements of the car seat from one another; and using one said support element as a housing for the remaining said support elements to stow the disassembled car seat in a collapsed compact arrangement.
19. A method as claimed in claim 18, wherein the said remaining support elements are housed within the said one support element which is a squab portion of the car seat.