Vehicle seat (embodiments) and seat backrest for vehicle seat

<u>FIELD OF THE INVENTION</u>

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a vehicle seat having compressible portions to facilitate folding of the seat. Compressible areas can be inflated into extended positions while using the seat.

<u>BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION</u>

[0002] Vehicles may include folding seats in which their seatback can be rotated downward in contact with a suitable cushion. Folding seats can be used, for example, to the rear seats of the vehicle so that their seat backs can fold when not occupied by a passenger or the like, with the possibility of expanding the cargo space provided by the trunk of the vehicle. Accordingly, the degree to which the seatback can be folded affects the used cargo space achieved by such folding. For ergonomic and other reasons, the seatbacks and pillows can have contours and thicknesses that limit folding of the seatback so that the back surface of the seatback on which the load rests, significantly deviates up from the adjacent surface of the trunk. This can affect the used cargo space, as well as the ability to reliably place objects on an inclined surface. Accordingly, improvements are required in vehicle seats that provide a greater degree of folding.

<u>SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION</u>

[0003] According to one aspect of the present invention, a vehicle seat includes a seat back having upholstery material forming a seat surface with a curved lower region and a curved upper region. The seat back further has a compressible upper chamber under the upper region of the upholstery and a compressible inflatable chamber located under the lower region of the upholstery and in fluid communication with the upper chamber. The first fixed amount of fluid is contained in and is partially movable between the upper chamber and the inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the bendable upper region of the upholstery material is movable between a compressed position and an extended position; and the upper chamber is configured to compress to allow the upper region to move to the compressed position. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the upper chamber is configured to compress by transferring at least a portion of the first fixed amount of fluid from the upper chamber to the first inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the upper chamber is inflated by transferring at least a portion of the first fixed amount of fluid from the first inflatable chamber to the upper chamber to provide holding force to the upper region in the extended position. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat, further comprising a pillow, with which the seatback is rotatable, wherein: the seatback is rotatable between the open position and the closed position, the upper region of the seatback being located away from the pillow when the seatback is in the open position, and the upper region is in contact with the area pillows when the seatback is in the closed position; and when in the closed position, contact between the upper region and the cushion portion compresses the upper chamber, thereby moving portions of the first fixed amount of fluid from the upper chamber to the first inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which a cushion forms a bendable central region and a bendable edge region, wherein the cushion includes: a compressible edge chamber within the boundary region and a compressible second inflatable chamber within the central region and in fluid communication with the edge chamber; and a second fixed amount of fluid contained in and partially moved between the edge chamber and the second inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the edge chamber is inflated by transferring at least a portion of the second fixed amount of fluid from the second inflatable chamber to the edge chamber to provide a holding force on the edge region of the pillow in a raised position. contained in and partially moved between the edge chamber and the second inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the edge chamber is inflated by transferring at least a portion of the second fixed amount of fluid from the second inflatable chamber to the edge chamber to provide a holding force on the edge region of the pillow in a raised position. contained in and partially moved between the edge chamber and the second inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the edge chamber is inflated by transferring at least a portion of the second fixed amount of fluid from the second inflatable chamber to the edge chamber to provide a holding force on the edge region of the pillow in a raised position.

[0004] According to another aspect of the present invention, the backrest of a vehicle seat includes upholstery material forming a surface of the backrest with a curved lower region and a curved upper region. The seat back further includes a compressible upper chamber below the upper region of the upholstery and a compressible inflatable chamber lying below the lower region of the upholstery and in fluid communication with the upper chamber. A fixed amount of fluid is contained in and is partially movable between the upper chamber and the inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest in which: an inflatable chamber is configured to compress from a neutral state into a compressed state; and the upper region of the upholstery is configured to compress from the extended position to the compressed position when the inflatable chamber is in a neutral state by correspondingly compressing the upper chamber, causing at least partial transfer of a fixed amount of fluid from the upper chamber to the inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest in which, when the inflatable chamber is in a compressed state, at least a portion of a fixed amount of fluid flows from the inflatable chamber to the upper chamber, thereby providing supporting force within the upper chamber to maintain the upper region of the upholstery material in the extended position. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest, in which the inflatable chamber and the upper chamber are fluidly coupled by means of a tube in fluid communication with the upper chamber at its first end and the inflatable chamber at its second end. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest in which an inflatable chamber and an upper chamber are formed in one chamber unit, wherein at least one joint thereof separates the inflatable chamber and the upper chamber, and wherein the gap in the joint is configured to provide communication fluid between the inflatable chamber and the upper chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest in which: the upholstery forms a neutral shape within a central region; and when in the neutral state, the inflatable chamber is configured to apply force to the lower region of the upholstery to maintain the lower region of the upholstery in a neutral form. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a backrest in which the inflatable chamber is in a compressed state while the lower region of the upholstery is in neutral form.

[0005] According to another aspect of the present invention, a vehicle seat includes a seatback having an upper chamber within its upper region, and a first inflatable chamber inside the seatback remote from the upper region. The seat further includes a cushion with which the seatback is rotatable. The first inflatable chamber is in communication with the upper chamber and forms with it a first closed unit containing a first fixed amount of fluid. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which a first fixed amount of fluid is partially movable between the first inflatable chamber and the upper chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which: the first inflatable chamber is configured to compress from a neutral state to a compressed state; and the upper region of the seat back is configured to compress from the extended position to the compressed position when the first inflatable chamber is in a neutral state by compressing the upper chamber, causing at least partial transfer of the first fixed amount of fluid from the upper chamber to the first inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the cushion forms a bendable central region and a bendable edge region and includes: a compressible edge chamber within the boundary region and a second compressible inflatable chamber within the central region and in fluid communication with the edge chamber ; and a second fixed amount of fluid, contained in and partially transmitted between the edge chamber and the second inflatable chamber. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which the edge chamber is inflated by transferring at least a portion of the second fixed amount of fluid from the second inflatable chamber to the edge chamber to provide a holding force on the edge region of the pillow in a raised position. According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a seat in which: the back of the seat is movable by being rotatably coupled with a cushion between the open position and the folded position, the upper region of the seat back being located away from the pillow when the seat back is in the open position, and wherein the upper region is in contact with the cushion portion when the seatback is in the folded position; and when in the folded position, the contact between the upper region and the pillow compresses the upper chamber, thereby transferring part of the first fixed amount of fluid from the upper chamber to the first inflatable chamber.

[0006] These and other aspects, objects, and features of the present invention will be understood and appreciated by a person skilled in the art when studying the following description, claims, and the attached drawings.

<u>Brief Description of the Drawings</u>

[0007] In the drawings:

[0008] FIG. 1 is a side view of a portion of a vehicle cabin including a folding seat of a vehicle according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

[0009] FIG. 2 is a side view of a portion of a vehicle interior including a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 1, with a seat in a folded configuration;

[0010] FIG. 3 is a side view of a portion of a vehicle interior including a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 1, with a seat in an open configuration with a passenger on it;

[0011] FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. one;

[0012] FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view of a compressible chamber used in a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 1, wherein the camera is shown inflated;

[0013] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional side view of the compressible chamber of FIG. 5 in a compressed state;

[0014] FIG. 7 is a front perspective view of a folding seat of a vehicle according to another embodiment of the disclosure;

[0015] FIG. 8 is a front cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 7;

[0016] FIG. 9 is a front cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 7 in a compressed state;

[0017] FIG. 10 is a detailed cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 7;

[0018] FIG. 11 is an additional similar cross-sectional view of additional structures used with respect to the folding seat portion of the vehicle of FIG. 7;

[0019] FIG. 12 is a side cross-sectional view of a folding seat of a vehicle according to a further embodiment of the disclosure;

[0020] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional side view of a collapsible vehicle seat according to yet another further embodiment of the disclosure, wherein the vehicle seat is shown in a folded state;

[0021] FIG. 14 is a side cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 14 in an open unoccupied state;

[0022] FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 14 in an open occupied state;

[0023] FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional side view of a collapsible vehicle seat according to yet another further embodiment of the disclosure, wherein the vehicle seat is shown in an open, unoccupied state;

[0024] FIG. 17 is a side cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 14 in an open occupied state; and

[0025] FIG. 18 is a side cross-sectional view of a portion of a folding seat of the vehicle of FIG. 14 when folded.

<u>Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments</u>

[0026] For the purpose of describing here, the expressions "upper", "lower", "right", "left", "rear", "front", "vertical", "horizontal", "internal", "external" and their derivatives will relate to the invention, which is oriented to FIG. 1. However, it should be understood that the invention may take various alternative orientations, unless the exact same is true. It should also be understood that the specific devices and processes illustrated in the attached drawings and described in the following description are merely exemplary embodiments of the inventive ideas defined in the attached claims. Therefore, the specific dimensions and other physical characteristics related to the embodiments disclosed herein should not be construed as limiting. Unless the claims expressly indicate otherwise. Additionally, unless otherwise specified, it should be understood that consideration of a particular feature of a component continuing in or along a given direction or the like does not mean that the feature or component follows a straight line or axis in that direction, or that it continues only in such a direction or on such a plane without otherwise directed components or deviations, unless otherwise specified.

[0027] In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 generally denotes a vehicle seat. The vehicle seat 10 includes a cushion 12 having a cushion upholstery 14 forming a seat surface 16 with a bendable central region 18 and a bendable edge region 20. A compressible edge chamber 22 is located below the edge region 20 of the cushion upholstery 14, and a first compressible inflatable chamber 24 is located under the central region 18 of the upholstery material 14 and is in fluid communication with the edge chamber 22 (for example, by connecting to it using a pillow tube 26). A first fixed amount of fluid 28 (such as air or other various inert inactive gases or mixtures thereof) is contained in and is partially moved between the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 1-3, the vehicle seat 10 may include a seatback 30 that can be rotatably coupled with the cushion 12 so that the seatback 30 can be made in an open position in which the seatback 30 is away from the edge region 20 (as shown in Fig. 1), and the folded or closed position (which is shown in Fig. 2), in which the portion of the backrest 30 is in contact with the edge region 20. In general, the structure of the vehicle seat 10 may be similar to the structure which usually meeting applied to the rear seats of the vehicle, resulting in the folding provided by the seat 10 of the vehicle (which is shown in Fig. 2), can be used to increase the load capacity of an adjacent trunk of a connected vehicle. This folding configuration may also be used in one or more of the front seats 32 of the associated vehicle, such as the front seat 32 of the passenger side. Respectivelythe various features of the vehicle seat 10 discussed herein can be particularly described with reference to the vehicle seat 10 located toward the rear of the associated vehicle, and can be applied to, for example, a rear seat in a sofa style (such as a foldaway seat) 60/40 proportions rear sofa), rear seats in the style of a commander’s chair, etc. Such features, however, can also be used in relation to the front passenger seat 32.

[0029] Again in FIG. 1-3, the inclusion of the inflatable chamber 24 and the edge chamber 22, connected, for example, using a tube 26 (which communicates with the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24 at their opposite ends) can provide a change in the profile of the pillow 12 when the seat 10 is not occupied, so that an angle 36 of the rear seat surface 34 can be achieved with respect to the trunk floor 38 of about 6 ° or less. Additionally, such features may allow the cushion 12 to provide a comfortable and safe contour for the passenger O when sitting on it, as shown in FIG. 3. In particular, the various features of the cushion 12 provide such a change in the contour of the seat surface 16 by facilitating the transfer of fluid 28 between the inflatable chamber 24 and the edge chamber 22 under various circumstances. In particular, the edge chamber 22,

[0030] The edge chamber 22, the inflatable chamber 24 and the tube 26 may be made of a generally airtight material, such as plastic or the like, so that the edge chamber 22, the inflatable chamber 24 and the tube 26 form a closed unit or system, containing a fixed amount of fluid 28 in it. In the example, the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24 may be configured to contain fluid 28 with a pressure of up to about 0.0207 MPa gauge pressure, but may be inflated with fluid 28 to between about one third and half of this maximum pressure, or between about 0.0034 MPa gauge pressure and 0.0069 MPa gauge pressure. Accordingly, an increase in external pressure on one of either the edge chamber 22 or the inflatable chamber 24 may cause at least a portion of the fluid 28 within such a structure is transmitted and the internal pressure of such fluid 28 is increased within the other of such structures. Thus, the pressure of the fluid 28 inside the closed structure of the edge chamber 22, the inflatable chamber 24 and the tube 26 can reach a constant equilibrium pressure inside such a block.

[0031] The above-described transfer of fluid 28 between the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24 by means of pressure applied to the inflatable chamber 24 may cause compression of the inflatable chamber 24 and consequently inflate, or at least increase the pressure of the fluid 28 therein , the boundary chamber 22 (provided that any external pressure applied to the boundary chamber 22 is less than the pressure by which the inflatable chamber 24 is compressed). As shown in FIG. 3, this transmission is performed when the passenger O sits on the seat 10 of the vehicle, with most of the weight of the passenger O located in the center of the central region 18 of the surface 16 of the seat and, accordingly, on the inflatable chamber 24, which is located under it. The weight of the passenger O on the inflatable chamber 24 applies pressure to it,

[0032] As shown in FIG. 1, when passenger O is not sitting on the vehicle seat 10, the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24 may be in a generally neutral state, which may be at least partially due to the natural position of the seat surface 16, which is due to the upholstery material 14. In general, the upholstery material 14 may consist of various layers of foam rubber and fabric or leather and may lead to a bendable structure so that its various sections are able to move using, for example, the force exerted on them, causing compression of the underlying structure (including the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24) or by expanding one of the edge chamber 22 or the inflatable chamber 24, as discussed further below. When the seatback 30 is folded, which is shown in FIG. 2, a portion of the backrest 30 of the seat can be brought into contact with the edge region 20 of the cushion 12. The force applied to the backrest 30 of the seat in this way can increase the pressure of the fluid 28 inside the edge chamber 22, thereby compressing the edge chamber 22 by moving the edge region 20 of the upholstery material 14 into a compressed position (FIG. 2), thereby correspondingly increasing the pressure of the fluid 28 inside the inflatable chamber 24 and allowing the backrest 30 of the seat to fold into a generally flatter position (i.e., with a wide angle 36), in that case will be possible without compression of the edge region 20.

[0033] As shown in FIG. 5 and 6, the compression of the edge chamber 22 described above can provide a change (and / or thickness) of the edge chamber 22. As shown in FIG. 5, when the edge chamber 22 is inflated, the edge chamber 22 may have a height 41, which generally corresponds to the raised position of the edge region 20 of the seat surface 16 (FIG. 3). When compressing the edge chamber 22, which is shown in FIG. 6, the edge chamber 22 may have a height 43 that is less than its height 41 when inflated, and which may correspond to the position of the edge region 20 of the seat surface 16 when in a compressed position (FIG. 2). In the example, the edge chamber 22 may be configured such that the height 43 is less than the height 41 by at least about 20 mm, and in one example between about 30 mm and 40 mm, thereby facilitating such a compression of the edge region 20 of the cushion 12. In the example, the height 43 of the edge chamber 22 in the compressed position may be about 20.0 mm. Additionally, the compression of the edge chamber 22 may not be evenly distributed in the direction from the front of the pillow 12 to its rear, and its compression in this example is measured by its portion, which exhibits the greatest degree of compression.

[0034] As further illustrated in FIG. 5 and 6, the edge chamber 22 may form a plurality of fixed cells 44, which can replace all or a portion of any foam, which might otherwise be present in the upholstery material 14, at least in the region of the edge chamber 22. As illustrated, such fixed the cells 44 do not substantially release any air or other medium contained therein during compression of the edge chamber 22. Additionally, cells similar to the fixed cells 44 can be presented along the portion of the inflatable chamber 24 and / or along the entire there are 16 seats and also inside the backrest 30 of the seat.

[0035] Returning now to FIG. 1-3, the vehicle seat 10 may include an additional camera in the form of an upper chamber 50 within the bendable upper region 52 of the seatback 30. As illustrated, in an embodiment, the upper chamber 50 may be connected to the inflatable chamber 24 using the seatback tube 54. Thus, the seatback tube 54 and the upper chamber 50 can be included in the closed unit described above as including an edge chamber 22, an inflatable chamber 24, and a pillow tube 26. In this regard, the upper chamber 50 may be made of the same or similar material as the edge chamber 22 and the inflatable chamber 24, so as to be generally compressible by its elastic deformation under pressure, and may additionally be generally airtight so ,

[0036] In a manner similar to the edge chamber 22 described above, the upper chamber 50 may support a portion of the backrest upholstery 56 within its upper region 52 when the upper chamber 50 is inflated or expanded due to pressure on the inflatable chamber 24, for example using the weight of the passenger O, which is shown in FIG. 3. Additionally, part of the fluid 28 may be discharged from the upper chamber 50 and into the inflatable chamber 24 due to the pressure applied to the upper region 52, for example, by forcibly moving the seatback 30 to the folded position shown in FIG. 2. Such compression can provide a reduction in the thickness of the seatback 30 adjacent to the upper region 52 by moving the upholstery material 56 of the seatback within the upper region 52 between the extended position and the inside position, moreover, the thickness of the backrest 30 of the seat is greater when the upholstery material 56 is in the extended position (thickness 62 in FIG. 1) within the upper region 52 than when in the compressed position (thickness 64 in FIG. 3). Such compressibility may further increase the ability of the vehicle seat 10 to fold into a relatively flatter position. In such an embodiment, the inflatable chamber 24 may be sized to receive portions of the fluid 28 from both the upper chamber 50 and the edge chamber 22 when both are in a compressed state. Such compressibility may further increase the ability of the vehicle seat 10 to fold into a relatively flatter position. In such an embodiment, the inflatable chamber 24 may be sized to receive portions of the fluid 28 from both the upper chamber 50 and the edge chamber 22 when both are in a compressed state. Such compressibility may further increase the ability of the vehicle seat 10 to fold into a relatively flatter position. In such an embodiment, the inflatable chamber 24 may be sized to receive portions of the fluid 28 from both the upper chamber 50 and the edge chamber 22 when both are in a compressed state.

[0037] In another example of the vehicle seat 110 shown in FIG. 7, the vehicle seat 110 includes an inflatable and compressible edge chamber 122, as well as an inflatable and compressible upper chamber 150, and may further include a plurality of inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c. In the example shown, the central one of the inflatable chambers 124b can be connected to the upper chamber 150 using the seatback tube 154 so that the compression of the inflatable chamber 124b causes inflation and / or expansion of the upper chamber 150, and the compression of the upper chamber 150 is possible without more compressive force on the inflatable camera 124b. Additionally, a corresponding pair of inflatable chambers 124a and 124c located laterally outside and surrounding the inflatable chamber 124b on its opposite sides are connected to the edge chamber 122 using a pillow tube 126, having a plurality of branches 166 fluidly coupled to an inflatable chamber 126c. In this configuration, a pressure uniformly distributed over the central region 18 of the seat surface 16 can provide a greater amount of air flow and a correspondingly large increase in pressure within the edge chamber 122 compared to the upper chamber 150. For example, a pressure differential may be preferable because the weight applied to the edge region 120 may be greater than the weight applied to the upper region 152 when the passenger is sitting on the vehicle seat 110.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 8-11, the vehicle seat 110 may in particular be configured to hold the inflatable chambers 124 in position within the cushion 112. In this regard, the cushion 112 may include a lower tray 168 configured to support the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c and an upholstery foam block 170 formed to extend above and separate inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c. Additionally, the upholstery foam 170 may include a plurality of grooves 174 having a size for receiving corresponding ridges 172a, 172b, and 172c associated with and extending from the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b, and 124c, respectively. The ridges 172 can be integral with the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c, for example, by thermal compaction of its excess material at a distance corresponding to the desired height of the ridges 172a, 172b and 172c. Accordingly, when the upholstery foam block 170 is assembled above the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c, ridges 172a, 172b and 172c can be received in the respective grooves 174a, 174b and 174c, thereby contributing to maintaining the desired position of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c, for example by preventing them from turning or twisting. Such a configuration can be particularly useful in preventing such movement of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c during compression, for example, by using the weight of the passenger O on the cushion 12, as shown in FIG. 9. thereby contributing to maintaining the desired position of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c, for example, by preventing them from turning or twisting. Such a configuration can be particularly useful in preventing such movement of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c during compression, for example, by using the weight of the passenger O on the cushion 12, as shown in FIG. 9. thereby contributing to maintaining the desired position of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c, for example, by preventing them from turning or twisting. Such a configuration can be particularly useful in preventing such movement of the inflatable chambers 124a, 124b and 124c during compression, for example, by using the weight of the passenger O on the cushion 12, as shown in FIG. 9.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 10, the tray 168 may include additional ridges 176 extending along it that correspond to grooves 178 formed in the portion of the upholstery foam 170. The engagement of the ridges 76 with the grooves 78 facilitates the bonding of the upholstery foam 170 to the tray 168, which may help to hold the inflatable chambers 124a 124b and 124c inside the cushion 12. To further facilitate the retention of ridges 172 and / or ridges 76 within respective grooves 174 and 178, a plurality of elastically deformable ribs 180 can be connected inside grooves 174 and 178, such ribs 180 Do me the favor towards the center of the respective grooves 174 or 180 and generally inclined in the insertion direction of the respective ridges 176 and 172, thereby providing them with an insert, but in general the extraction limiting.

[0040] As shown in FIG. 12 in an embodiment, the vehicle seat 210 may include a plurality of inflatable chambers 224a, 224b, and 224c that extend laterally with respect to the cushion 212 (i.e., inward and outward of the page in relation to FIG. 12). Additionally, the vehicle seat 210 may include a plurality of edge chambers 222a and 222b, as well as a plurality of upper chambers 250a and 250b, all of which extend laterally with respect to the edge region 220 and the upper region 252, respectively. With this arrangement, the inflatable chamber 224b may be connected via a tube (not shown) to both upper chambers 250a and 250b. Additionally, both inflatable chambers 224a and 224c may be fluidly coupled with a tube (not shown) to both edge chambers 222a and 222b.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 13-15, in an embodiment of the vehicle seat 310, the edge chamber 322 and the inflatable chamber 324 may be configured to extend substantially along the entire surface of the seat 316, including the longitudinal direction within the associated vehicle. In such a configuration, the edge chamber 322 can be partially overlapped with the inflatable chamber 324 in the vertical direction 384. The extension of the edge chamber 322 and the inflatable chamber 324 along the entire surface 316 of the seat can help to ensure reliable compression of the inflatable chamber 324 by the passenger O sitting on the seat 310 of the vehicle 310, including the adoption of various seating positions by the passenger O in relation to the seat 310 of the vehicle. Additionally, the overlap between the edge chamber 322 and the inflatable chamber 324 may help to ensure a generally smooth transition between such components when the passenger O sits on the vehicle seat 310, as shown in FIG. 15.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 13, the vehicle seat 310 may function in a manner similar to the other vehicle seat embodiments discussed herein, including providing for deflating the edge chamber 322 from pressure from the folded down backrest 330 of the seat to the edge region 320 of the cushion 312, including transferring a portion of the fluid medium 328 from the boundary chamber 322 to the inflatable chamber 324. As shown in FIG. 14, without any external pressure on the seat surface 316, this natural form of the upholstery material 314 may cause the edge chamber 322 and the inflatable chamber 324 to be generally in a neutral position, including raising the edge region 320 in a raised position. As shown in FIG. 15, the pressure on the inflatable chamber 324 using the weight of the passenger O on it, for example,

[0043] In a further embodiment of the vehicle seat 310 shown in FIG. 13-15, the edge chamber 322 and the inflatable chamber 324 may be formed in one camera unit, for example, being formed in a single structure, such as a larger camera unit with separation between it along the overlap area 81 between its portion designated as the edge camera 322, and a portion thereof designated as inflatable chamber 324. Thus, the inflatable chamber 324 and the boundary chamber 322 may be in fluid communication with one or more gaps (not shown) in a joint or other structure separating the boundary chamber 322 from the inflatable chamber cameras 324.

[0044] Turning now to FIG. 16-18, an additional embodiment of a vehicle seat 410 is shown in which the seatback 430 includes an upper chamber 450 located under the upper region 452 of the seatback upholstery material 456. The upper chamber 450 has a structure similar to, for example, the upper chamber 450 described above with respect to FIG. 1-3, and is further compressible by the release of a portion of the fluid 428 contained therein, under pressure applied to it, and inflated by transferring an additional portion of the fluid 428 to it. As illustrated, the backrest 430 further includes an inflatable chamber 486 of the backrest located therein and lying below the lower region 458 of the upholstery material 456 of the backrest, which corresponds, for example, to the total area of ​​the backrest 430 of the seat, which provides support for the lower back passenger. Accordingly, a second fixed amount of fluid 428 is contained within a closed unit formed by an inflatable chamber 486 of the backrest, an upper chamber 450 and a tube 454 of the backrest, which fluidly connects the upper chamber 450 to the inflatable chamber 486 of the backrest.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 17, the inflatable chamber 486 of the backrest is configured to compress under the weight of a part of the passenger O (for example, the lumbar region) while sitting on the seat of the vehicle 410. Such compression of the inflatable chamber 486 of the backrest causes part of a fixed amount of fluid 428 to the upper chamber 450, thereby increasing the pressure of the fluid 428 inside the upper chamber 450 and providing a corresponding force therein to hold the upper region 452 in the extended position (which is shown in FIG. 17) to maintain the upper region 452 of the upholstery the material 456 of the seatback in general contact with the adjacent part of the passenger O. The pressure of the fluid 428 inside the inflatable chamber 486 of the seatback, the upper chamber 450 and the tube 454 of the seatback can be in the same total pressure range for the fluid 28, described above with respect to FIG. 1-3.

[0046] Additionally, in FIG. 16 and 17, the lower region 460 of the backrest upholstery material 456 may be generally bent between the extended position (FIG. 16) and the compressed position (FIG. 17), with the extended position in FIG. 17 generally corresponds to a conventional contour of a similar region in a conventional seatback of a vehicle for supporting a rear region of a passenger lumbar, wherein the compressed position shown in FIG. 16 is bent inward from the remaining portions of the backrest upholstery material 456 by an amount approximately equal to that normally found in the vehicle seat under pressure from the back of the passenger. This configuration causes the passenger O to bend inwardly into the lower region in the normal sitting position so as to move the inflatable chamber 486 to the compressed state shown in FIG. 17.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 18, when the inflatable chamber 486 of the seatback is in a neutral state, for example, being uncompressed by the passenger weight on the vehicle seat 410, the upper chamber 450 is compressed so as to allow movement of the upper region 452 of the upholstery material 456 of the seatback to move into the corresponding compressed position, for example, when forcibly moving the seatback 430 to the folded position shown in FIG. 18, in which the edge region 420 of the cushion 412 is pressed into the upper region 452 of the backrest upholstery material 456. Such compression of the upper region 452 and the upper chamber 450 may be generally similar to the compression described above with respect to FIG. 1-3.

[0048] In various embodiments, a vehicle seat 410 including a backrest 430, as described above, and further including an inflatable backrest chamber 486 fluidly connected to the upper chamber 450, a corresponding cushion 412 may itself include an inflatable chamber 424 fluidly coupled to the edge chamber 422 in a manner similar to the various embodiments discussed above with respect to FIG. 1-16. In such embodiments, the inflatable chamber 424 may be fluidly connected only to the edge chamber 422, but not to the upper chamber 450. Additionally, various alternative embodiments of the seat back including the upper chamber associated with the inflatable chamber of the seat back may be similar various alternative embodiments of the inflatable chamber 124, an inflatable chamber 224 or an inflatable chamber 324 and corresponding embodiments of the edge chamber 122, 222 and 322 described above with respect to FIG. 4-6, FIG. 7-11, FIG. 12 and FIG. 13-15.

[0049] One skilled in the art should understand that the execution of the described invention and other components is not limited to any particular material. Other exemplary embodiments of the invention disclosed herein may be formed from a wide variety of materials, unless otherwise described herein.

[0050] For the purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” (in all its forms: “bind”, “bind”, “coupled”, etc.) generally means the connection of two components (electrical or mechanical) directly or indirectly with each other friend. Such a compound may be stationary in nature or mobile in nature. Such a connection can be achieved with two components (electrical or mechanical) and any additional intermediate elements formed in one piece as a single unit with each other or with two components. Such a connection may be constant in nature or may be removable or detachable in nature, unless otherwise stated.

[0051] It is also important to note that the design and arrangement of the elements of the invention, which are shown in exemplary embodiments, are illustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the present innovations have been described in detail in this disclosure, a person skilled in the art who is considering this disclosure will readily appreciate that many transformations are possible (e.g., changes in sizes, sizes, designs, shapes and proportions of various elements, parameter values, installation locations, use of materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without significant deviation from new ideas and advantages of the stated object of the invention. For example, elements shown as being formed in one piece can be made of multiple parts or elements, shown in the form of multiple parts can be formed in one piece, the operation of the interfaces can be reversed or otherwise changed, the length or width of the structures and / or elements or of the connector or other elements of the system can be changed, the nature or number of adjustment positions provided between the elements, can be changed. It should be noted that the elements and / or components of the system can be made of any of a wide variety of materials that provide sufficient strength or durability, in any of a wide variety of colors, textures and combinations. Accordingly, all such transformations are intended to be included in the scope of protection of true innovations. Other replacements, transformations, changes and omissions may be made in the design,

[0052] It should be understood that any described processes or steps in the described processes can be combined with other disclosed processes or steps to form structures within the scope of protection of the present invention. The exemplary structures and processes disclosed herein are presented for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as limiting.