Seat latch
AssigneeLear Corporation
InventorStanislaw Andrzej Wieclawski
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A seat latch for use in retaining a seat back or other element in a locked position. The seat latch may include a lifting element configured to lift a locking fork into locking engagement with a retaining hook. The lifting element may be a spring that experiences increased tension when the seat back is folded into an upright position. The increased tension can cause the spring to lock the seat back relative to the retaining hook.
Claims20
A seat latch for retaining a seat back that is foldable between down and upright positions in the upright position by locking the seat back to a retaining hook, the seat latch comprising:
- a locking fork having an opening on a rearward side that extends forwardly to a retaining recess, the retaining recess having a depth and size sufficient to seat the retaining hook below the opening;
- and
- a spring configured to experience progressively increasing tension as the retaining hook travels farther forwardly within the recess, the increasing tension causing a first end of the spring directly connected to the locking fork to vertically lift the locking fork from an unlocked position to a locked position, the unlocked position corresponding with a top of the retaining recess being below a bottom of the retaining hook and the locked position corresponding with the locking fork lifting vertical so that the top of the retaining recess is lifted above the bottom of the retaining hook.
A seat latch configured for retaining a seat with respect to a stationary retaining hook, the seat latch comprising:
- a housing having opposed first and second side walls and matching top and bottom openings within each side wall;
- a locking fork positioned between the side walls and having top and bottom channels proximate the two openings, the locking fork including an opening in a rearward side that extends forwardly to a recess;
- a top and a bottom fastener respectively extending through the top and bottom openings and the top and bottom channels;
- a pivoting lever arm attached to an upper portion of the housing above the opening, the lever arm extending over at least a portion of the opening such that insertion of the retaining clip into the opening causes the lever arm to pivot forwardly;
- and
- a spring having first and second ends, the first end being connected to an upper portion of the locking fork and the second end being connected to a lower portion of the housing, the spring being positioned within a forward pivot path of the lever arm such that the spring experiences increased tension during insertion of the retaining clip that causes the first end to lift the locking fork upwardly into a locked position when the retaining hook is positioned over the recess.
A retention system for use with a seat having a seat back that is foldable between an upright and folded positions, the system comprising
- a stationary, retaining element;
- a seat latch attach to the seat back, the seat latch including a locking fork with an opening leading to a recess and a lifting element, the lifting element lifting the locking fork from an unlocked position to a locked position when the seat back is moved form the folded to the upright position, the unlocked position corresponding with a top of the recess being below a bottom of the retaining element and the locked position corresponding with the top of the recess being lifted above the bottom of the retaining element;
- and
- wherein the lifting element maintains the locking fork within the locked position until a sufficient force presses down on the locking fork to overcome force supplied by the lifting element, the lifting element maintaining the locking fork in the locked position without having to bear forces used to move the seat back to the folded position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.