INFANT SEAT FOR AUTOMOBILES

The present invention relates to an infant seat for automobiles, comprising a backrest provided with a head and a pair of side protections.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There are known infant seats for automobiles comprising a backrest provided with a head and a pair of side protections.

This head can be vertically movable with respect to the rest of the backrest, so that it is adjusted to the height of the child who used the seat. The side protections protect the kid in the case of a side impact. These protections are fixed, i.e. its separation cannot be adjusted according to the height and age of the child.

The fact that the side protections are fixed involves that the protection against side impacts could be not suitable, because it is not adjusted to the height of the child.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With the infant seat of the invention said drawbacks can be solved, presenting other advantages that will be described.

The infant seat for automobiles of the present invention comprises a backrest provided with a vertically movable head and a pair of side protections, and it is characterised in that said side protections are horizontally movable, said head comprising means to determine the position of said side protections according to the position of the head.

Thanks to this feature, the width between said side protections can be adjusted automatically, according to the position of the head, increasing the protection against side impacts. In a preferred embodiment, said means for determining the position of the side protections comprises a fixed guide piece, said guide piece being complementary with a pair of complementary pieces integral with the head, so that the separation of said complementary pieces is determined by their relative position with respect to said guide piece.

Advantageously, said guide piece is V-shaped, and each of said complementary pieces comprises an inclined internal surface complementary to said V-shaped guide piece.

Preferably, the backrest is divided in an upper part and in a lower part, the head and the side protections being integral with the upper part. Said upper part of the backrest comprises preferably a tubular structure with a shape of an inverted U, and said lower part of the backrest comprises a tubular structure formed by two tubes joined to each other, wherein the two ends of the tubular structure of the upper part of the backrest are housed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of what has been disclosed, some drawings are attached, in which, diagrammatically and only as a non-limitative example, a practical case of embodiment is shown.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatical perspective view of the backrest structure of the seat of the present invention, in its position of minimum height and width;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatical perspective view of the backrest structure of the seat of the present

invention, in its position of maximum height and width;

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatical perspective view of the backrest structure of the seat of the present invention, in its position of minimum height and width, with the head removed; and

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatical perspective view of the backrest structure of the seat of the present invention, in its position of maximum height and width, with the head removed.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Firstly, it must be pointed out that in the figures only the backrest of the seat of the present invention is shown for simplicity reasons. Furthermore, only its internal structure is shown for clarity reasons.

The backrest of the present invention comprises a head 1 and a pair of side protections 2.

The backrest structure is divided in an upper part 3 and in a lower part 4, the head 1 and the side protections 2 being integral with the upper part 3.

Said upper part 3 of the backrest structure is a tubular structure with an inverted U shape, its lower ends being housed in the two tubes joined to each other forming the lower part 4 of the backrest structure, as it can be seen better in Figs . 3 and 4.

The lower part 4 comprises a fixed V-shaped guide piece 5, i.e. integral with said lower part.

The side protections 2 comprise pieces 6 complementary with said guide piece 5, comprising an inclined internal surface, as it can be seen in Fig. 4.

The relative position between said complementary pieces 6 and the guide piece 5 determines the space between the side protections 2 and, consequently, the width of the backrest of the infant seat.

The regulation of the position of the head 1 can be carried out in any suitable way, e.g. in the way described in the Spanish utility model U200400352, in the name of the same applicant than the present application. It is desirable that the regulation of the height of the head 1 is carried out by only one operating unit, which can be placed in a plurality of positions.

When the head 1 is in its position of minimum height (Figs. 1 and 3), the side protections 2 are also in its position of minimum width, because the guide piece 5 is not in contact with the complementary pieces 6, which do not cause any space between the side protections.

If the head 1 is raised, the complementary pieces 6, integral with the upper part 3 of the backrest, with the head 1 and also with the side protections 2, are also raised, contacting with the guide piece 5.

Due to the V-shape of the guide piece 5 and the inclined internal surface of the complementary pieces 6, higher the head 1 is raised, and consequently also the complementary pieces 6 and the side protections 2, greater will be the space between said side protections 2.

In Figs. 2 and 4 the side protections 2 are shown in its position of maximum width, even though it must be pointed out that they can be placed, and also the head 1, in a plurality of intermediate positions between the positions shown in the figures.

Therefore, when the height position of the head 1 is modified, the side protections 2 are automatically placed in their position of suitable width to guarantee the maximum security against side impacts.

Even though reference is made to a specific embodiment of the invention, it is apparent for a person skilled in the art that the infant seat described is susceptible of numerous variations and modifications, and that all the details cited can be substituted by other

technically equivalent ones, without departing from the scope of protection defined by the attached claims.