GB2546727A

GB2546727A - A child's car seat

Info

Publication number: GB2546727A
Application number: GB1600391.5A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Walford Lisa
Original assignee: BABY SAFE Ltd
Current assignee: BABY SAFE Ltd
Priority date: 2016-01-08
Filing date: 2016-01-08
Publication date: 2017-08-02
Anticipated expiration: 2036-01-08
Also published as: GB2546727B; GB201600391D0

Abstract

A child's car seat comprises a base 2, a seat portion 3, reclining means such as a rack and pinion 5B driven by motor 7 allowing the seat 3 to move, preferably rotate, between an upright and a reclined position, a footrest 12 movable by an actuator or push arm 14 between a stowed position and an extended position and a controller that controls operation of the reclining means and the actuator. The controller comprises a receiver for receiving a signal from a remote control (9 fig. 3) to allow a user, situated remote from the child's car seat, e.g. in the driver's seat of a car, to operate the reclining mechanism and control movement of the footrest. The controller may cause the actuator 14 to move the footrest 12 towards the extended position in response to movement of the seat 3 towards the reclined position or to move the footrest 12 towards the stowed position in response to movement of the seat 3 towards the upright position. A downwardly extending support (4 fig. 5) may provide stability to the base 2.

Description

A Child’s Car Seat

The present invention relates to a child's car seat. More particularly, the present invention relates to a child's car seat that can be reclined or brought upright remotely.

Child's car seats are regularly used by parents and carers to transport young children in cars. They often have an upright position for use when the child is awake that seats and retains the child in a normal seated position, allowing them to observe and interact with their surroundings, and a reclined position for use when the child is sleeping. US20140008951 relates to an adjustable child seat base that includes a seat base housing having first and second distal ends, a foot movably mounted to the seat base housing for movement between extended and retracted positions for adjusting the angle of the seat base, and a control handle positioned between the first and second distal ends of the seat base housing. The control handle is adapted for effecting one-handed control of the movement of the movable foot. US20120280540 relates to a baby car carrier dimensioned to hold a small child safely in a motor vehicle. The base of the device sits atop a car seat and is secured by means of a seatbelt. A frame is rotatably affixed to the top of the base. The top of the frame is concave and slidably supports the convex bottom of a cradle assembly. The cradle assembly can recline relative to the frame by motorized means. A plurality of padded nesting inserts are provided on top of the cradle assembly to accommodate for growth of the child. EP2272708 describes and shows a child's car seat with position adjustment means which comprises a base element which supports a seat body with the interposition of means for varying the tilt. Means are also provided for connection to a seat of a vehicle; the car seat further comprises tilting means which can be activated by a button for controlling the movement of an upper pivot, connected to the seat body, in an upper slot defined in the base element.

It is common for young children to start a journey awake and then to fall asleep while strapped into their seat. When a child falls asleep strapped upright in a chair, their head will tend to fall forward. This is not an ideal position, and can be dangerous for younger children. The parent or carer can move the seat from the upright position to a reclined position when the child falls asleep. However, if they are the driver, or the seat is located out of reach of the front passenger seat, it may be necessary to: stop the vehicle, get out, open the passenger door at the rear and manually re-positioning the seat. Similarly, if the child is asleep and then wakes with the seat in the reclined position, the parent or carer will need to move the seat upright, and may need to pull over and exit the car as outlined above.

Additionally there is a need to support the child’s legs when the seat is reclined. This is currently accomplished through provision of a footrest that can be pulled out manually by the parent or carer once the seat is in a reclined position, and similarly pushed in when moving the chair to the upright position.

According to the present invention there is provided a child's car seat comprising: a base configured to be mounted and secured within a car interior -preferably a the car seat a seat configured to receive a child; a reclining means arranged to allow the seat to move between upright and reclined positions on the base; a footrest configured for movement by an actuator between a stowed position and an extended position; and a controller that controls operation of the reclining means and the actuator, the controller comprising a receiver for receiving a signal from a remote control to allow a user to move the seat from a location remote from the child’s car seat, between the upright and reclined positions and the footrest between a stowed position and an extended position.

The reclining means and the remote control of the reclining means allows a user to recline the child's seat or to bring it upright, and to enable the footrest to be correspondingly controlled, without having to directly grip and manipulate the seat itself.

The seat is preferably configured to be moved between at least three discrete positions: an upright position suitable for a child who is awake; a half- reclined position suitable for a small child who may fall asleep; and a fully reclined position suitable for a sleeping child. These allow a child to be placed in an appropriate position for a journey or a particular section of a journey.

The reclining means may comprise a rack and pinion mechanism driven by a motor. This is a simple and reliable mechanism.

Preferably the footrest is arranged to be in the extended position when the seat is in the reclined position to provide foot support to the child, and in the stowed position when the seat is in the upright position where such support is often detrimental to comfort.

Preferably the controller, in response to receiving the signal from the remote control, either causes the actuator to move the footrest towards the extended position and the seat towards the reclined position, or causes the actuator to move the footrest towards a stowed position and the seat towards the upright position. Consequently, the footrest can be moved into the desired position without the need for the user to provide a separate command from that of rotating the chair.

In order to obviate the need for two electric motors, it is preferred that the actuator is mechanically linked to the reclining means such that movement of the seat relative to the base operates the actuator.

Favourably the footrest, which may be pivotally mounted to the seat, rotates between the stowed position and the extended position. In such an arrangement, the actuator may comprise a push arm arranged to press against the footrest to rotate the footrest.

The actuator may further comprise an actuating arm pivotally connected at or towards a first end to the base, and also at or towards a second end to the seat; and further coupled to the push arm such that rotation of the actuating arm about its pivot connections acts to move the push arm towards or away from the footrest.

It is preferred that the seat is also arranged to rotate relative to the base in a horizontal plane. This allows a user to rotate the seat to assist with placing or removing a child from the seat, for example through a car door.

It is preferred that the remote control comprises a wireless transmitter, e.g. operating using the Bluetooth(RTM) protocol.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a child's car seat system comprising the aforementioned child’s car seat and a remote control comprising a three-button control panel, the buttons corresponding to reclining the seat, bringing the seat upright, and bringing the seat to a central position.

Preferably the remote control comprises a clip for connecting the remote control to a steering wheel.

In one variation, the remote control may comprise a mobile phone programmed with a remote control software application.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the following figures in which:

Figure 1 is perspective view of a child's car seat;

Figure 2 is an exploded view of the child's car seat;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of a remote control used to control the tilt position of the child’s car seat;

Figures 4A & 4B are side section views of the car seat showing operation between a stowed and extended positions;

Figure 5 is a perspective part section view illustrating the footrest mechanism with the footrest in a stowed position;

Figure 6 is a perspective part section view illustrating the footrest mechanism with the footrest in an extended position;

Figure 7 is an exploded view of the seat portion to show the swivel mount; and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the child car seat shown with the seat portion swivelled to ease placement and removal into/out of the seat portion.

The child’s car seat 1 comprises a base 2 arranged to be secured to the rear passage seat of a car or other vehicle, and a seat portion 3 that is mounted on top of the base 2 and can rotate relative to the base 2.

The seat portion 3 comprises a seat 3A configured to seat a child, and to this end may comprise padding, a head support, a five-point harness (not shown) and the like for the child’s comfort and safety.

To secure the child’s car seat 1 to a rear passenger seat, the base 2 is provided with apertures (not shown) through which a seatbelt may be passed. As this arrangement is conventional, it will not be detailed further. Additionally, the base 2 may comprise a support 4 that extends forwards and downwards from the base 2 to provide stability to the base 2 when connected to the passenger car seat.

The base 2 and seat portion 3 are connected via a reclining mechanism that allows the seat portion 3 to move between an upright position, through a half reclined position, to a reclined position (and vice-versa) on the base 2.

With reference to Fig 2, an upper portion 2A of the base 2 defines a central flared aperture 2B with an inwardly sloping annular surface 2C.

Mounted within the aperture 2B - and forming part of the reclining mechanism -is a trolley 5 that includes a platform 5A for rigid attachment to the seat 3, curved toothed rails 5B and casters 5C. The trolley 5 is arranged so that casters 5C rest on and are able to roll across the sloping annular surface 2C.

An axel 6 extends between the toothed rails 5B and includes gears 6A substantially at either end that mesh with the rails 5B to provide a rack and pinion mechanism. An electric motor 7 rigidly mounted to a lower portion 2D of the base 3 is arranged to rotate the axel 6 to drive the trolley across the sloping annular surface so that the seat rocks forwards or backwards between an upright position (illustrated in Fig 4A) and reclined position (illustrated in Fig 4B).

Operation of the motor 7 is controlled by controller 8 that includes a wireless receiver. Upon receipt by the wireless receiver of a wireless signal from a remote control 9 (see also Fig 3), the controller 8 operates the motor 7 to rotate the seat 3 portion.

The remote control 9 includes a wireless transmitter mounted within a housing, and a three-button user interface 9A. Each button corresponds to one of the three positions: upright, half-reclined and reclined, that when pressed causes the wireless transmitter to emit a signal to the controller 8 to move the seat to the corresponding position. The remote control 9 further comprises a clip 9B that extends from the housing to attach the remote control 9 to a steering wheel.

Although it is preferred that signal between the remote control 9 and controller 8 are transmitted wirelessly, it will be appreciated that a wired arrangement is possible. In another variation, the functions of the remote control 9 may be provided by a suitably programmed smart phone, PDA or the like.

The controller 8 and motor 7 are powered by a battery 10 also located in the base 2. A battery level indicator (not shown) is located on the front of the base 2 to indicate to a user the battery’s state of charge. The battery 10 may be recharged via a retractable cable 11 for connection to the vehicle’s power supply, e.g. through the vehicle’s cigarette lighter socket.

Referring to Figs 4 - 6, the child’s car seat 1 is also provided with a footrest 12 and associated actuating mechanism that in response to movement of the seat 3, causes the footrest 12, which is pivotally mounted to the seat 3, to move between a stowed position (illustrated in Fig 4A & 5) and an extended position (illustrated in Figs 4B and 6).

The actuating mechanism comprises a pivot arm 13 that is pivotally mounted substantially at a first end 13 A to the axle 6, and terminates at a second end with a ball head 13B. The pivot arm 13, which extends into the seat portion 3, is also pivotally mounted adjacent second end 13B to a strut 3B mounted under the seat 3A. The actuating mechanism further comprises a push arm 14 arranged for sliding movement within, and guided by, a channel 3C (seen in Fig 5 & 6) provided by the seat portion 3. The push arm 14 includes a contact surface 14A proximate and facing the footrest 12, and an aperture 14B in which the ball head 13B sits.

The footrest 12 is pivotally mounted to the seat portion 3 and comprises a camming surface 12A that faces the contact surface 14A of push arm 14.

When the seat portion 3 is rotated by reclining means from an upright position towards a reclined position, the displacement of the seat portion 3 relative to the base 2 causes rotation of the actuating arm 14A simultaneously about its pivot mounts at/towards first and second ends 13A 13B.

The lateral component of the ball head’s 13B motion towards the footrest 12 is transferred to the push arm 14 causing the push arm 14 to slide - within channel 3C - against the footrest 12. The force conveyed by the push arm 14, via the contact surface 14A, against the camming surface 12A rotates the footrest 12 towards the extended position shown in Figs 4B & 6. In this way the footrest 12 is able to support the child’s feet whilst the child is reclined.

Conversely, rotation of the seat portion 3 back towards the upright position leads the actuator arm 13 to force push arm 14 away from the footrest 12 leaving the footrest 12 free to rotate anti-clockwise (as viewed in Figs 4) under gravity back into the stowed position. This leaves the child’s legs free to dangle across the front (or back when so arranged) of child’s car seat 1.

The seat portion 2 is usually arranged to face either directly forwards or backwards. Nevertheless, so that a child in the seat portion 2 can be rotated towards or away from a door to the side of the child's car seat 1 - to assist with placing or removing a child from the seat through a car door - the seat portion 3 may include a seat base 3D (see Fig 7) onto which the seat 3A is pivotally mounted for rotation relative to the base 3D in a substantially horizontal plane as illustrated in Fig 8. A retractable handle 15 extends through an aperture 3E at the front of the seat portion 3 for engagement with the seat base 3A. When located within the aperture 3E the handle 3E engages with the seat base 3D to prevent rotation of the seat 3 A.

Claims

1. A child's car seat comprising: a base configured to be mounted and secured within a car interior; a seat configured to receive a child; a reclining means arranged to allow the seat to move between upright and reclined positions on the base; a footrest configured for movement by an actuator between a stowed position and an extended position; and a controller that controls operation of the reclining means and the actuator, the controller comprising a receiver for receiving a signal from a remote control to allow a user to move the seat, from a location remote from the child's car seat, between the upright and reclined positions and the footrest between a stowed position and an extended position.

2. A child’s car seat according to claim 1 wherein the footrest is arranged to be in the extended position when the seat is in the reclined position, and in the stowed position when the seat is in the upright position.

3. A child’s car seat according to claim 1 wherein the controller, in response to receiving the signal from the remote control, either causes the actuator to move the footrest towards the extended position and the seat towards the reclined position or causes the actuator to move the footrest towards a stowed position and the seat towards the upright position.

4. A child’s car seat according to claim 1 wherein the actuator moves the footrest towards the extended position in response to movement of the seat towards the reclined position and moves the footrest towards a stowed position in response to movement of the seat towards the upright position.

5. A child's car seat according to any previous claim wherein the reclining means comprises a rack and pinion mechanism driven by a motor.

6. A child’s car seat according to any previous claim wherein the footrest rotates between the stowed position and the extended position.

7. A child’s seat according to claim 6 wherein the footrest is pivotally mounted to the seat.

8. A child’s seat according to claim 7 wherein the actuator is mechanically linked to the reclining mechanism so that rotation of the seat operates the actuator.

9. A child’s seat according to claim 7 or 8 wherein the actuator comprises a push arm arranged to press against the footrest to rotate the footrest.

10. A child’s seat according to claim 9 wherein the actuator comprises an actuating arm pivotally connected: at or towards a first end to the base, and at or towards a second end to the seat; and coupled to the push arm such that rotation of the actuating arm about its pivot connections acts to move the push arm towards or away from the footrest.

11. A child's car seat according to any previous claim wherein the seat portion can be moved between at least three discrete positions: an upright position suitable for a child who is awake; a half-reclined position suitable for small children who may fall asleep; and a fully reclined position suitable for sleeping children.

12. A child's car seat according to any previous claim wherein the base further comprises a support configured to extend forwards and downwards from the base portion to assist with providing stability to the base portion when connected to the car interior portion.

13. A child's car seat according to any previous claim comprising a power storage unit.

14. A child's car seat according to claim 13 comprising a power level indicator that provides an indication of the charge state of the power storage unit.

15. A child's car seat according to any previous claim wherein the seat portion and base portion are connected such that the seat portion can be rotated in a plane aligned substantially horizontally in use relative to the base portion.

16. A child's car seat according to claim 15 wherein the seat portion further comprises a retractable handle configured to be stored in the seat portion and which can be pulled out from the seat portion to assist with rotation of the seat portion on the base portion.

17. A child's car seat according to any previous claim wherein the remote control comprises a wireless transmitter.

18. A child's car seat system comprising: a child’s car seat according to any previous claim; and a remote control comprising a three-button control panel, the buttons corresponding to reclining the seat, bringing the seat upright, and bringing the seat to a central position.

19. A child's car seat system according to claim 19 further comprising a clip for connecting the remote control to a steering wheel.

20. A child's car seat system according claim 18 or 19 wherein the remote control comprises a mobile phone programmed with a remote control software application.

21. A child's car seat, comprising: a seat configured for receiving a child; a base configured to be mounted and secured within a car interior; the seat and base connected via a reclining means configured to allow the seat to move between upright and reclined positions on the base; a footrest and an actuator that in response to operation of the reclining means move the footrest between a stowed position and an extended position.