Vehicle seat

This application is based upon and claims the priority benefit of Japanese Patent Application No. JP2016-044561, filed Mar. 8, 2016, the contents being incorporated herein by reference.

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle seat on which a child safety seat can be installed.

There has been a well-known vehicle seat including an engagement portion that is engaged with a child safety seat to fix the child safety seat on a rear seat of a vehicle. As such a vehicle seat, for example, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-007101 (JP 2008-007101 A) describes a rear seat including an engagement portion that is engaged with an ISO standard child safety seat to fix the child safety seat.

In JP 2008-007101 A, respective hook-and-loop fasteners are provided on a cover member and a cover of a seat. In a state where the child safety seat is not installed, the hook-and-loop fasteners are engaged with each other such that the engagement portion is covered by the cover member. In addition, in a state where the child safety seat is installed, the engaged hook-and-loop fasteners are disengaged from each other such that the engagement portion is uncovered.

However, in the related art described above, in order to install the child safety seat, it is necessary for the engaged hook-and-loop fasteners to be disengaged from each other such that the engagement portion is uncovered. In order to cover the engagement portion with the cover member, it is necessary for the hook-and-loop fasteners to be engaged with each other. Accordingly, the related art requires additional work by a user to change the cover between the covered and uncovered states with the cover member. Furthermore, the number of components of a mechanism for covering the engagement portion is increased.

The present disclosure has been made in view of the above-described problems. An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a vehicle seat that can more easily change an engagement portion, configured to engage with an attachment mechanism of a child safety seat, between covered and uncovered states with a cover member.

The above problems are solved by a vehicle seat according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The vehicle seat includes: a seat back; a seat cushion; an engagement portion having an end portion that is configured to engage with an attachment mechanism of the child safety seat; and a cover member adapted to cover at least a portion of the engagement portion. The engagement portion is disposed between the seat back and the seat cushion. The cover member includes: a base material having a fixed end that is fixed to a cover of the vehicle seat and a free end that is not fixed to the cover; and a projecting portion provided on one of an upper surface and a lower surface of the base material, the projecting portion being configured to project on an inner side of the end portion of the engagement portion when the free end is inserted between engagement portion and one of the seat back and the seat cushion.

According to the vehicle seat described above, the engagement portion, configured to engage with the attachment mechanism of the child safety seat, can be more easily changed between covered and uncovered states with the cover member. In other words, when the child safety seat is not installed, the engagement portion can be easily covered by the cover member, and when the child safety seat is installed, the engagement portion can be easily uncovered. In addition, the number of components of a mechanism for covering the engagement portion can be reduced.

In the vehicle seat, the projecting portion may extend from a connecting portion with the base material toward the fixed end. Accordingly, the projecting portion projecting on the inner side of the end portion of the engagement portion is not easily unhooked or removed from the inner side of the end portion of the engagement portion that is engaged with the attachment mechanism of the child safety seat.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may be hooked by a front end of the end portion of the engagement portion. Accordingly, the base material of the cover member is pushed between the engagement portion and the seat back or between the engagement portion and the seat cushion, whereby the projecting portion of the cover member can be easily hooked by the front end of the end portion of the engagement portion. Therefore, the engagement portion can be easily covered by the cover member.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may be provided on the lower surface of the base material, and the projecting portion may be hooked by the front end of the end portion from above the end portion of the engagement portion when the free end is inserted between the seat back and the engagement portion. Accordingly, the base material of the cover member is pushed between the engagement portion and the seat back, whereby the projecting portion of the cover member can be easily hooked by the end portion of the engagement portion from above. In addition, the base material of the cover member covers an upper portion of the engagement portion, thereby inhibiting the engagement portion from being uncovered. Therefore, an aesthetic design of the vehicle seat can be improved. In addition, the engagement portion can be suitably protected by the cover member.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may be provided on the upper surface of the base material, and the projecting portion may be hooked by the front end portion from below the end portion of the engagement portion when the free end is inserted between the seat cushion and the engagement portion. Accordingly, the base material of the cover member is pushed between the engagement portion and the seat cushion, whereby the projecting portion of the cover member can be easily hooked by the end portion of the engagement portion from below.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may be elastically deformable. Accordingly, a state where the cover member is hooked by the engagement portion is easily maintained. Therefore, even if a tilt of the seat back is changed, the cover member is not easily unhooked from the engagement portion.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may be formed by sewing an end of the base material, which is positioned adjacent to the free end, in a folded state. Accordingly, the number of components of the cover member can be reduced.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the base material and the projecting portion may be formed separately from each other, and the projecting portion may be sewn together with the base material. Accordingly, the projecting portion can be provided at any desired position in the cover member.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, the projecting portion may have a loop portion. Accordingly, the projecting portion can be easily configured to be elastically deformable. Therefore, a state in which the cover member is hooked by the engagement portion can be easily maintained.

In the foregoing vehicle seat, a width of the base material may be larger than a width of the end portion of the engagement portion, and a width of the projecting portion may be smaller than the width of the end portion of the engagement portion. Accordingly, the base material of the cover member can widely cover the engagement portion, and the projecting portion of the cover member is easily hooked by the engagement portion.

According to an embodiment, the engagement portion, configured to engage with the attachment mechanism of the child safety seat, can be easily changed between covered and uncovered states with the cover member.

According to an embodiment, the projecting portion projecting on the inner side of the end portion of the engagement portion that is engaged with the attachment mechanism of the child safety seat is not easily unhooked from the inner side of the end portion of the engagement portion.

According to an embodiment, the engagement portion can be easily covered by the cover member.

According to an embodiment, the engagement portion can be inhibited from being uncovered.

According to an embodiment, the projecting portion of the cover member can be easily hooked by the end portion of the engagement portion from below.

According to an embodiment, a state in which the cover member is hooked by the engagement portion is easily maintained.

According to an embodiment, the number of components of the cover member can be reduced.

According to an embodiment, the projecting portion can be provided at any desired position in the cover member.

According to an embodiment, the base material of the cover member can widely cover the engagement portion, and the projecting portion of the cover member is easily hooked by the engagement portion.

Various embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an outline, perspective view of a rear seat according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an explanatory drawing illustrating a configuration for installing a child safety seat on a vehicle seat;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, partial perspective view of an attachment portion of a cover member, according to a first embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the cover member, according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory, partial perspective drawing illustrating a state in which the cover member according to the first embodiment is hooked by an engagement portion having a U-shaped portion;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of FIG. 1 , of a vehicle seat including the cover member according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 7 is an explanatory, partial cross-sectional drawing illustrating engagement between the cover member and the engagement portion;

FIG. 8 is an explanatory, partial cross-sectional drawing illustrating engagement between the cover member and the engagement portion;

FIG. 9 is an explanatory, partial cross-sectional drawing illustrating engagement between the cover member and the engagement portion;

FIG. 10 is an explanatory, partial cross-sectional drawing illustrating engagement between the cover member and the engagement portion;

FIG. 11 is an explanatory, partial cross-sectional drawing illustrating engagement between the cover member and the engagement portion;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged, partial perspective view of an attachment portion of a cover member according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of the cover member according to the second embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of FIG. 1 , of a vehicle seat including the cover member according to the second embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of FIG. 1 , of a vehicle seat including a cover member according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 16 is an explanatory, partial perspective drawing illustrating a state in which the cover member is hooked by an engagement portion having an L-shaped portion.

A vehicle seat S according to an embodiment of the present disclosure (hereinafter referred to as the embodiment) is described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 16 .

FIG. 1 is an outline, perspective view of a rear seat RS including the vehicle seat S according to the embodiment. The rear seat RS includes a center rear seat and side rear seats provided on the lateral sides of the center rear seat, respectively, and thus three passengers can be seated on the rear seat RS. In an embodiment, one of the side rear seats is the vehicle seat S.

In the following descriptions, a “front-to-back direction” means a front-to-back direction as viewed from a passenger seated on the vehicle seat S and is coincident with a traveling direction of a vehicle. A “seat width direction” means a lateral direction of the vehicle seat S and is coincident with a right-to-left direction as viewed from a passenger seated on the vehicle seat S. In addition, in the following descriptions, “left” and “right” refers to left and right as viewed from a seated passenger. Furthermore, a “height direction” means a height direction of the vehicle seat S and is coincident with an up-to-down direction when the vehicle seat S is viewed from the front side thereof.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the vehicle seat S includes a seat back S 1 , a seat cushion S 2 , and a headrest S 3 .

The seat back S 1 forms a backrest surface for supporting the back and waist of a passenger seated on the vehicle seat S. The seat cushion S 2 forms a seating surface for supporting the hip and thigh of the passenger seated on the vehicle seat S. The headrest S 3 forms a head supporting surface for supporting the head of the passenger seated on the vehicle seat S.

As shown in FIG. 2 , a child safety seat C can be attached to the vehicle seat S and other vehicle seats and includes an attachment mechanism C 1 that allows the child safety seat C to be fixed to the vehicle seat S. The vehicle seat S includes an engagement portion 20 that is configured to engage with the attachment mechanism C 1 of the child safety seat C to fix the child safety seat C to the vehicle seat S. The engagement portion 20 is disposed between the seat back S 1 and the seat cushion S 2 . The engagement portion 20 and the attachment mechanism C 1 are engaged with each other to be locked, whereby the child safety seat C can be installed on the vehicle seat S without a seatbelt. The attachment mechanism C 1 is, for example, a lock mechanism formed based on an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standard for child safety seat lock mechanisms.

As shown in FIG. 5 , the engagement portion 20 that is configured to engage with the attachment mechanism C 1 is formed of a wire having an end of a U-shaped portion 20 A (an example of an “end portion” of the engagement portion 20 ). When the child safety seat C is installed, the attachment mechanism C 1 is locked to a front end portion 20 B (i.e., a front end of the end portion of the engagement portion 20 ).

In addition, a cover member 10 is provided on the seat cushion S 2 , as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 . When the child safety seat C is not installed, the cover member 10 is hooked by the engagement portion 20 to cover at least a portion of the engagement portion 20 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , a first end (a fixed end 13 A) of the cover member 10 is a fixed end that is fixed to the seat cushion S 2 , and a second end (a free end 13 B) thereof is a free end that is not fixed to the seat cushion S 2 . As shown in FIG. 6 , the fixed end 13 A is sewn via a second sewing portion 33 together with a cover 32 covering a cushion pad 30 of the seat cushion S 2 , thereby being fixed to the seat cushion S 2 .

Also, as shown in FIG. 3 , the cover member 10 also includes a flap 12 (a base material of the cover member 10 ) and a tab 14 (a projecting portion) provided on an upper surface of the flap 12 . In the following descriptions, in a state where the free end 13 B faces the engagement portion 20 , a surface of the flap 12 facing upward is an upper surface thereof and a surface of the flap 12 facing downward is a lower surface thereof. In an embodiment, the tab 14 is a tab-shaped portion extending from a connecting portion 14 e with the flap 12 toward the fixed end 13 A and includes an extending end 14 f that is opposite to the connecting portion 14 e.

As shown in FIG. 4 , a cover member 10 a , which has not been sewn, forms one cover including a flap forming area 12 a and a tab forming area 14 a that extends to protrude from an end of the flap forming area 12 a . As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6 , the tab forming area 14 a (as a loop portion) is folded in a loop, and the tab 14 is then sewn via a first sewing portion 17 together with a cushion material 15 and a backing cloth 16 that are provided on a back surface of the flap 12 . Thus, the cover member 10 shown in FIG. 3 is formed. Accordingly, the cover member 10 is a member formed by sewing the cover, the cushion material, and the backing cloth. Therefore, the integrity of the cover member 10 with the vehicle seat S can be improved, thereby making the cover member 10 less noticeable. As a result, an aesthetic design of the vehicle seat S can be improved, and the strength and cushioning properties of the cover member 10 can be enhanced.

The cover forming the cover member 10 is made of fabric, artificial leather, genuine leather, or the like. The cushion material 15 forming the cover member 10 is made of urethane foam, or the like. The backing cloth 16 forming the cover member 10 is made of nylon, nonwoven cloth, or the like.

With reference to FIGS. 7 to 10 , engagement between the cover member 10 and the engagement portion 20 when the cover member 10 is pushed toward the engagement portion 20 or is pulled out is described. FIGS. 7 to 10 show simplified sectional views taken along the line VI-VI.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 is first pushed between the engagement portion 20 and the seat cushion S 2 . As a result, the tab 14 is moved in a pushing direction while being sandwiched and pressed between the front end portion 20 B of the engagement portion 20 and the seat cushion S 2 , as shown in FIG. 8 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 9 , an end of the tab 14 , which is adjacent to the fixed end 13 A, is further pushed to pass beyond the front end portion 20 B. As a result, the tab 14 is released from its pressed state by the front end portion 20 B and the seat cushion S 2 to be projected (expanded) upward on an inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A.

The cover member 10 is then pulled back toward the fixed end 13 A from the state shown in FIG. 9 . As a result, a rear end of the tab 14 is brought into contact with the front end portion 20 B and is hooked by the front end portion 20 B, as shown in FIG. 10 .

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 , when the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat cushion S 2 , the tab 14 of the cover member 10 is disposed on the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A of the engagement portion 20 and is hooked by the front end portion 20 B. Accordingly, a portion of the front end portion 20 B of the engagement portion 20 is covered by the tab 14 . Therefore, the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat cushion S 2 , whereby the cover member 10 can be easily hooked by the engagement portion 20 .

When the cover member 10 is pulled out toward the fixed end 13 A, the tab 14 projecting on the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A is brought into contact with the front end portion 20 B. The tab 14 is formed into a loop to be elastically deformable, and thus the tab 14 is not easily (e.g., inadvertently) unhooked or removed from the front end portion 20 B even if a tilt angle of the seat back S 1 is changed.

When the cover member 10 is further pulled out toward the fixed end 13 A, the tab 14 is pulled out while an upper portion of the tab 14 is pressed by the front end portion 20 B in the up-to-down direction as shown in FIG. 11 . When an end portion (an end portion positioned on the opposite side of the connecting portion with the flap 12 ) of the tab 14 passes over the front end portion 20 B, the tab 14 is released from the pressed state by the front end portion 20 B to return to the state shown in FIG. 7 .

In the embodiment, the width (the width in the seat width direction) of the tab 14 is smaller than that of the U-shaped portion 20 A of the engagement portion 20 , whereby the tab 14 is easily inserted into the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A. Therefore, when the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat cushion S 2 , the tab 14 is easily hooked by the front end portion 20 B. The width (the width in the seat width direction) of the flap 12 may be larger than that of the U-shaped portion 20 A of the engagement portion 20 . Accordingly, the strength of the flap 12 of the cover member 10 can be enhanced.

In attaching the child safety seat C to the engagement portion 20 , the cover member 10 is pulled out toward the front of the seat, whereby the tab 14 is easily deformed. Therefore, the tab 14 can be unhooked from the front end portion 20 B.

In the cover member 10 described above, the tab 14 is formed by folding a portion of the flap 12 in a loop. Therefore, the number of components of a mechanism for allowing the cover member 10 to be hooked by the engagement portion 20 can be reduced.

A second embodiment of the present disclosure is now described on the basis of FIGS. 12 to 14 . A cover member 10 A according to the second embodiment is different from the cover member 10 according to a first embodiment in that a tab 14 A is provided on a lower surface of the cover member 10 A and is not formed integrally with the flap 12 , and the cover member 10 A is the same as the cover member 10 in other respects. The differences from the cover member 10 according the first embodiment are mainly described below.

As shown in FIG. 12 , the tab 14 A is provided on a lower surface of the flap 12 in the cover member 10 A.

As shown in FIG. 13 , a cover member 10 b representing the cover member 10 A, which has not been sewn, includes a flap forming area 12 b and a tab forming area 14 b that are formed separately from each other. The tab 14 A formed by folding the tab forming area 14 b in a loop is disposed on a back surface (lower surface) of the flap 12 , as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 . The tab 14 A is sewn via the first sewing portion 17 together with the cushion material 15 and the backing cloth 16 that are provided on the back surface of the flap 12 . Accordingly, the cover member 10 A shown in FIG. 12 is formed.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 14 , when the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 A is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat back S 1 , the tab 14 A of the cover member 10 A is disposed on the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A from above the engagement portion 20 , thereby being hooked by the front end portion 20 B of the U-shaped portion 20 A. As a result, the U-shaped portion 20 A is covered by the cover member 10 . As described above, the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 A is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat back S 1 , whereby the cover member 10 A can be easily hooked by the engagement portion 20 .

The tab 14 A formed in a loop is elastically deformable, and is therefore not easily (e.g., inadvertently) unhooked or removed from the front end portion 20 B even if the tilt angle of the seat back S 1 is changed.

In addition, the width (the width in the seat width direction) of the tab 14 A is shorter than that of the U-shaped portion 20 A of the engagement portion 20 , whereby the tab 14 A is easily inserted into the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A. As a result, when the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 A is inserted between the engagement portion 20 and the seat back S 1 , the tab 14 A is easily hooked by the front end portion 20 B. The width (the width in the seat width direction) of the flap 12 may be larger than that of the U-shaped portion 20 A of the engagement portion 20 . Accordingly, the flap 12 of the cover member 10 A can widely cover the engagement portion 20 . In addition, since the cover member 10 A covers an upper portion of the engagement portion 20 , the engagement portion 20 is not uncovered; therefore, an aesthetic design can be improved.

In attaching the child safety seat C to the engagement portion 20 , the cover member 10 A is pulled out toward the front of the seat, whereby the tab 14 A is easily deformed. Therefore, the tab 14 A can be easily unhooked from the front end portion 20 B.

FIG. 15 shows a sectional view taken along the line VI-VI, of a cover member 10 B according to a third embodiment. The cover member 10 B according to the third embodiment is different from the cover member 10 A according to the second embodiment in that the tab 14 B of not a loop but a tongue is provided, and the cover member 10 B is the same as the cover member 10 A in other respects.

The tab 14 B may be made of a flexible plastic material such as urethane foam, a synthetic resin, or PVC.

The present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, in the first embodiment, the tab 14 formed by folding the tab forming area 14 a of the cover member 10 in a loop may be provided on the lower surface of the cover member 10 . In this case, when the free end 13 B of the cover member 10 is pushed between the engagement portion 20 and the seat back S 1 , the tab 14 of the cover member 10 is inserted from above the engagement portion 20 into the inner side of the U-shaped portion 20 A, thereby being hooked by the front end portion 20 B.

In addition, in the second and third embodiments, the tabs 14 A, 14 B may be provided on the upper surface of the flap 12 . Furthermore, the tabs 14 A, 14 B may be provided on a portion of the flap 12 other than an end of the flap 12 positioned adjacent to the free end 13 B.

In the above embodiments, the cover member 10 covers the engagement portion 20 having the U-shaped portion 20 A. However, the shape of an end portion of the engagement portion 20 is not limited to the U-shape. For example, the cover member 10 can also cover the engagement portion 20 having not the U-shaped portion 20 A but an L-shaped portion 20 C having an L-shape (an example of the end portion of the engagement portion 20 ) shown in FIG. 16 . Also in this case, when the free end 13 B is inserted between the seat cushion S 2 and the engagement portion 20 , the tab 14 is projected on an inner side of the L-shaped portion 20 C; in other words, the tab 14 is projected on the rear side of the seat with respect to the front end portion 20 B of the L-shaped portion 20 C, therefore being hooked by the front end portion 20 B.