Patents Examined by Laurie Cranmer
  • Patent number: 9296322
    Abstract: A vehicle seat comprising a load-bearing structure and a first and a second shaped panel carried by the load-bearing structure and forming the seat base and the backrest of the seat, respectively. The load-bearing structure comprises a first and a second supporting side element which extend along opposite sides of the seat and are interconnected to each other by a transversal element which extends at the junction zone of the seat base with the backrest. A third panel is provided, facing the second and defining a pocket seat for accommodating the webbing of a seat belt, with the second panel and with the supporting side elements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: Ruspa Officine S.p.A.
    Inventor: Renzo Ruspa
  • Patent number: 9295578
    Abstract: Fastening device for people with reduced mobility conditions, of the variety employed in chairs or arm chairs in domestic, geriatric, care or hospital environments, comprising fixation means (50), which can be adapted to the back of the chair or arm chair and containing means (100) to contain the person to be fastened. Said device (1) comprises a portable support body (10) in which said fixation means (50) and containing means (100) are located and the containing means (100) comprise at least one containing strap (101, 102, 103) connected to an emergency locking retractor (104, 105, 106) which is configured in order to facilitate the free movement of the person fastened to said chair or arm chair and to prevent falling movement of the same.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: CORPORACIO SANITARIA PARC TAULI
    Inventors: Carlos Grassi Osma, Luis Capella Folguera, Laura VidaƱa Moya, Beatriz Robles Moreno, Eva Maria Carrasco Rilova, Maria Victoria Marti Del Peral
  • Patent number: 9290112
    Abstract: A motor vehicle seat including a seat part and a foldable seatback including a rear face including a tray, the seatback configured to be folded onto the seat part to bring the rear face thereof into a substantially horizontal position. The tray is affixed against the rear face of the seatback and is held against the face by a locking mechanism including an actuating member, and a pressure exerted on the actuating member releases the tray such that the tray can be removed from the seatback.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Yves Rouxel, Herve Folliot
  • Patent number: 9290222
    Abstract: In an embodiment of the present invention, an improved pump is provided to inflate and deflate a bladder of a seat. The pump has a base, a stem, a valve, a bulb, an O-ring and a cover. The O-ring holds the bulb to the base in a recess defined by two lips. The bulb has a hole in one end that can be covered by a user's finger during inflation, wherein the user compresses the bulb while covering the hole to create pressure within the chamber. Then, when the user contacts the plunger, the pressure causes air to enter the bladder. To deflate the bladder, the user contacts the plunger without covering up the hole in the bulb. The stem has a flange. The pump can connect to a seat by connecting to a seat tab and securing the tab between the flange and the base.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Inventor: Steven D. Kuhl
  • Patent number: 9272643
    Abstract: There is provided a vehicle seat including a seat cushion configured to support a weight of a sitting passenger from below, and a seat back configured to support an upper body of the sitting passenger from a back side thereof. The seat back includes a seat back fixing part including a back frame which configures a frame of the seat back, and a seat back moving part configured to support the upper body of the passenger at a passenger sitting surface side of the seat back fixing part. The seat back moving part is supported to the seat back fixing part so as to be rotatable about an upper part thereof in a left-right direction which corresponds to lateral sides of the sitting passenger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 2, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignees: TOYOTA BOSHOKU KABUSHIKI KAISHA, TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hidetaka Nagayasu, Osamu Kaneko, Eishi Takeuchi, Kohshi Katoh
  • Patent number: 9265348
    Abstract: The adjusting mechanism serves for the weight-dependent setting of a restoring force which acts on a backrest (4) of an office chair which is configured with a synchronous mechanism. The synchronous mechanism comprises a support (12), a seat support (10) and a backrest support (8) which are connected to one another via joint pins (A1-A4), the restoring force being exerted via a spring element (18). In order to achieve as flat a design as possible, the restoring force is transmitted with the aid of a pivotable lever (16) via a front bearing pin (L1) to a first front joint pin (A1), an active lever length (h) which can be varied with the aid of an adjusting element (20) being defined by the spacing between the bearing pin (L1) and the second front joint pin (A2). A weight setting is made possible by the variation of the active lever length (h).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 23, 2016
    Assignee: HAWORTH, INC.
    Inventor: Martin Potrykus
  • Patent number: 9260190
    Abstract: A flight attendant seat, an aircraft monument assembly having such a flight attendant seat, and also an aircraft having an aircraft monument assembly of this kind. In one embodiment, the flight attendant seat includes a backrest element, a seat element and a guiding apparatus for holding the flight attendant seat in a starting position. The guiding apparatus according to this embodiment is also configured so that the flight attendant seat is movable, in a direction transverse to the longitudinal axis of the backrest element, from the starting position into at least one end position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH
    Inventors: Bernd Ehlers, Mark Herzog, Stefan Behrens
  • Patent number: 9254763
    Abstract: A vehicle seat (car seat (S)) includes a seat cushion (S1), a seat back (S2), and a headrest (S3), the seat back (S2) including a seat back frame constituting a frame of the seat back (S2), and a seat back pad covering the seat back frame, and the vehicle seat being configured to allow an upper body of an occupant to sink into the seat back (S2) when a backward movement load acts on the seat back from the occupant's upper body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: TS TECH CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shuichi Shimizu, Yuichiro Seki, Satoshi Fujita
  • Patent number: 9254766
    Abstract: A sidewall integrated armrest includes a plurality of armrest segments upon which an arm may rest. Each of the plurality of armrest segments are supported by a structure proximate a sidewall and adjacent to but not supported by a seat. Each of the seats is disposed in a line along the sidewall and spaced apart at a seating pitch. The armrest further includes at least one armrest spacer disposed between the plurality of armrest segments. The at least one armrest spacer has a combined length between the plurality of armrest segments to establish a pitch between the plurality of armrest segments substantially equal to the seating pitch.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Assignee: B/E AEROSPACE, INC.
    Inventors: Stephanie N. Lightbody, Jefferey M. McKee
  • Patent number: 9254815
    Abstract: A system for removably securing a person to a recreational vehicle may comprise a vehicle seat having an upper support surface, and a garment configured to be worn by the rider with a torso portion configured to cover at least the lower torso portion and a pair of leg portions configured to cover at least the upper leg portions. The garment may include a crotch section located to be positioned adjacent to the crotch and a portion of the buttocks of the rider. The system may also include a rider attachment structure configured to attach the garment to the vehicle seat in a manner that permits release of the attachment therebetween, and may include a first component and a second component releasably attachable together with the first component being secured to the upper support surface and the second component being secured to the crotch section of the garment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 9, 2016
    Inventor: Ryan Cantrell
  • Patent number: 9237809
    Abstract: A chair system may include a plurality of components that may include a seating surface having seating handles, a backrest having a backrest handle, a kickstand base, and a support frame. The configuration may generally provide a lightweight, comfortable chair system that may be easily adjusted, lifted, transported, arranged and stacked by any user, while still providing substantial structural integrity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 19, 2016
    Assignee: Paragon Furniture LP
    Inventors: Richard Kassanoff, Robert Larry Stewart
  • Patent number: 9233631
    Abstract: A head restraint assembly is provided with a first guide member mounted proximate to a vehicle seat back. A second guide member is mounted to the first guide member for translation along the first guide member. A locking mechanism is mounted to the second guide member in cooperation with the first guide member for locking the second guide member relative to the first guide member. The first and second guide members are the only guide members to minimize binding. The locking mechanism includes a torsion spring connected to the first guide member and oriented about the second guide member for locking the second guide member relative to the first guide member. A lever is mounted to the torsion spring for unlocking the torsion spring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2016
    Assignee: Lear Corporation
    Inventors: Mladen Humer, Arjun Yetukuri, Eric Veine
  • Patent number: 9215934
    Abstract: Provided is a corrective chair using a slider means that includes a supporting leg, a seat plate that is coupled to the supporting leg and on which a user seats, and a backrest whose lower part is coupled to an upper part of the supporting leg and that supports a back of the user when the user seats on the seat plate. The chair includes a slider that is interposed between the supporting leg and the seat plate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2015
    Inventor: Jae Hyun Lee
  • Patent number: 9215936
    Abstract: A single-person chair includes a proximal end and a distal end. A generally convex central portion extends between the proximal end and the distal end. The central portion extends upwardly, forming a first pool between the proximal end and the central portion and a second pool between the distal end and the central portion. A longitudinal centerline extends between the proximal end and the distal end. A first sidewall extends between the proximal end and the distal end on a first side of the longitudinal centerline. A second sidewall extends between the proximal end and the distal end on a second side of the longitudinal centerline such that that a liquid can be contained within the chair between the proximal end, the distal end, the first sidewall, and the second sidewall.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2015
    Inventors: Dianne Hoffmann, Mark D. Kuhn, IV, Luc Tenthorey, John Halko, IV
  • Patent number: 9211015
    Abstract: A chair is mounted on ball-casters. Each leg of the chair is mounted on a caster wheel that is surrounded by a ring of small metal balls, such as ball bearings, enabling the chair to roll freely without scuffing or scratching the floor or dulling the floor polish, and making it virtually impossible for the occupant to lean back in the chair with any stability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 15, 2015
    Inventor: Michael Louis Larzelere
  • Patent number: 9198522
    Abstract: A cushion device for an exercising apparatus has a body, at least one air bag group and a covering group. The body has at least one mounting recess and a connecting recess. The at least one air bag group is mounted in the at least one mounting recess of the body, and each one of the at least one air bag group has a connecting panel and multiple airbags. The covering group is mounted around the body to hold the at least one air bag group in the body and has a top cover, a bottom panel and a side cover. The top cover is mounted on a top side of the body. The bottom panel is mounted in the connecting recess. The side cover is mounted around the body and is connected to the top cover and the bottom panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 1, 2015
    Assignee: CLOUD FITNESS CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Tsao-Kuang Wei
  • Patent number: 9193281
    Abstract: A vehicle seat system includes a vehicle floor, a floor bracket fixedly secured to the vehicle floor, an adjustable upper bracket, and a linkage assembly coupling the floor bracket to the adjustable upper bracket and including two front links and two rear links. The vehicle seat system also includes a seat back bracket coupled to the adjustable upper bracket and configured to travel between an upright position and a reclined position, and a seat bottom bracket coupled to the seat back bracket. As the seat back bracket travels between the upright and reclined positions, each of the two front links travel from one side of a vertical position, through the vertical position, and to the other side of the vertical position such that the vertical distance between the vehicle floor and the seat bottom bracket in the upright and reclined positions are substantially identical.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 24, 2015
    Assignee: FCA US LLC
    Inventor: Robert Elton
  • Patent number: 9193289
    Abstract: The present invention provides a vehicle seat which includes a seat back including a seat back body and an upholstery that covers front, back, and upper surfaces and both side surfaces of the seat back body. In the vehicle seat, the seat back body includes a frame having a frame shape and serving as a framework, a front-side cover portion placed so as to cover a front side of an inner space of the frame and supporting a back of a seated occupant, and a back-side cover portion placed so as to cover a rear side of the inner space. The front-side cover portion and the back-side cover portion are covered by the upholstery. The back-side cover portion includes a flexible back-side sheet body stretched across the frame.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 24, 2015
    Assignee: CENTRAL JAPAN RAILWAY COMPANY
    Inventors: Yukio Takahashi, Hiroki Tsunoda, Soshi Kawakami, Yuya Futamura, Masaki Yamabe
  • Patent number: 9187011
    Abstract: A motor vehicle seat including a seat part and a foldable seatback including a rear face configured to be situated in a substantially horizontal position when the seatback has been folded. The rear face of the seatback includes an attachment mechanism configured to engage with an independent tray, to hold the tray in an erect position on the rear face once the seatback has been folded.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 17, 2015
    Assignee: RENAULT S.A.S.
    Inventors: Yves Rouxel, Herve Folliot
  • Patent number: 9180792
    Abstract: The invention relates to a commercial vehicle seat with a seat portion, with a backrest portion and with a seat substructure for mounting on a body portion of a commercial vehicle, wherein said seat substructure has locking means for securing against an unintended rotary movement of a rotary adjustment means for rotating at least the seat portion relative to the body portion, wherein the locking means comprises a locking member that is supported so as to be translationally displaceable along a displacement axis, for fixing the rotary adjustment means, and wherein said locking member comprises a base body member secured against rotation about the displacement axis, the base body height of which base body member is at least two to four times, preferably more than six times smaller than the base body width thereof.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 10, 2015
    Assignee: Grammer AG
    Inventor: Erwin Haller