2. Description of the Related Art Seat assemblies for automotive vehicles commonly including one or more rows of rear seat assemblies including a seat cushion and a seat back coupled to the seat cushion.

It is often desirable to pivot or fold both the seat cushion and seat back downwardly and against the floor of the vehicle to a fold flat position providing a cargo load floor in the vehicle. Typically, the seat cushion is pivotally coupled to the floor of the vehicle by seat risers for pivotal movement between a generally horizontal seating position and a forwardly folded and upright position. Further, the seat back is commonly pivotal between a generally upright seating position and a forwardly folded flat position adjacent the upright seat cushion.

It is also commonly known to have the entire seat assembly fold flat against the floor of the vehicle. Fold flat means to have the seat cushion moveable between the seating position and a stowed position lying adjacent the floor of the vehicle and to have the seat back moveable between the upright seating position and a forwardly folded flat position overlying the seat cushion in the stowed position. However, multiple or otherwise complex latching mechanisms are typically used for releasably locking the seat cushion and seat back in the respective seating positions. An example of such a seat assembly is found in United States Patent 4,793, 649, which issued to Yamano et al. on December 27, 1988.

It remains desirable to provide a fold flat seat assembly moveable and selectively lockable between the seating position and the stowed position without the use of multiple or complex latching mechanisms.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a stowable seat assembly for supporting occupants above a floor and between opposing lateral side walls of an automotive vehicle. The seat

assembly includes a seat back extending between opposite lateral sides and a seat cushion pivotally coupled to the seat back. A pivot bracket is fixedly secured to each of the opposite lateral sides of the seat back for supporting the seat assembly between the opposing side walls of the vehicle. Each of the pivot brackets includes a support flange for supporting the seat cushion cantilevered from the pivot bracket spaced above the floor and a pivot flange adapted to be pivotally coupled to a main pivot post on the respective lateral side walls of the vehicle for pivoting the seat assembly between an upright seating position and a stow-to-floor position wherein the seat cushion is pivoted forwardly and downwardly to be supported on the floor and the seat back is pivoted against the seat cushion to form an extended cargo load floor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Advantages of the present invention will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein: Figure 1 is a side view of the seat assembly in an upright seating position; Figure 2 is a side view of the seat assembly in a stow-to-floor position; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a pivot bracket for supporting and pivoting the seat assembly between the seating position and the stow-to-floor position; Figure 4 is a front view of the pivot bracket supporting the seat assembly in the seating position; and Figure 5 is a side view of a release mechanism for releasing the seat assembly from the seating position to the stow-to-floor position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a seat assembly for use in an automotive vehicle is generally shown at 10 in a seating position. The seat assembly 10 includes a seat cushion 12 and a seat back 14. The seat cushion 12 includes a rigid seat cushion support frame 16 having a front cross bar 18 and a rear cross bar 20 each extending laterally between the opposing side walls of the interior of the vehicle. A flexible suspension mat 22 is supported between the front and rear cross bars 18, 20 for supporting a seated occupant on the seat assembly 10. The seat cushion frame 16 and suspension mat 22 are covered by a resilient contoured foam pad and trim cover as is commonly known in the art.

The seat back 14 similarly includes a seat back support frame 24 having an upper cross bar 26 and a lower cross bar 28 also each extending laterally between the opposing side walls of the interior of the vehicle. A flexible suspension mat 30 is supported between the upper and lower cross bars 26, 28 for supporting the seat occupant's back on the seat assembly 10. The seat back frame 24 and suspension mat 30 are covered by a resilient contoured foam pad and trim cover as is commonly known in the art.

A support bracket 32 is fixedly secured to each of the opposing side walls on the interior of the vehicle spaced above the floor 34 of the vehicle. The support brackets 32 support the seat assembly 10 above the floor 34 in the seating position. Each support bracket 32 includes a main pivot post 36 and a latch post 38 spaced forward of the main pivot post 36.

Referring to Figures 1-4, a pair of pivot brackets 40 pivotally support the seat assembly 10 between each of the support brackets 32. Described in greater detail below, the pivot bracket 40 supports both the seat cushion 12 and seat back 14 for movement between the seating position, shown in Figure 1, and a stow-to-floor position, as shown in Figure 2. Each pivot bracket 40 includes an elongated arm portion 42 extending between an upper end 44 and a lower end 46. The upper end 44 is fixedly secured to the seat back frame 24 and the lower end 46 is releasably engaged with the latch post 38 of the support bracket 32. The pivot bracket 40 further includes a pivot flange 48 projecting rearwardly from the arm portion 42 and disposed generally intermediate of the upper end 44 and the lower end 46. The pivot flange 48 is pivotally connected to the main pivot post 36 of the support bracket 32. The pivot bracket 40 also includes a generally L-shaped support flange 50 projecting forwardly from the arm portion 42 disposed generally between the upper end 44 and the lower end 46. The support flange 50 supports the seat cushion frame 16, and thus the seat cushion 12, cantilevered above the vehicle floor 34 in the seating position. The seat cushion 12 is pivotally coupled to the arm portion 42 by pivot 43. The lower end 46 of the pivot bracket 40 forms a hook portion 52 engagable with the latch post 38 to retain the seat assembly 10 in the seating position. A latch 54 is pivotally connected to the pivot bracket 40 for selectively engaging the latch post 38 together with the hook portion 52 for locking the seat assembly 10 in the seating position.

Referring to Figure 5, the seat assembly 10 further includes a flipper panel 56 pivotally coupled to the seat back 14 at pivot 58 for movement between an unreleased position supported against the backside of the seat back 14, as shown in Figure 5, and a

released position extending longitudinally from the top of the seat back 14. A cable 60 extends between the flipper panel 56 and the latch 54 for actuating the latch 54 in and out of engagement with the latch post 38 in response to movement of the flipper panel 56 between the unreleased and released positions.

The seat assembly 10 also includes a pair of seat belt anchors, shown at 62 in Figures 1,2 and 3. The seat belt anchor 62 includes a linkage extending between one end pivotally connected to the seat cushion frame 16 and an opposite end pivotally connected to a floor anchor strap 64. The seat belts of the seat assembly 10 may be attached to the seat belt anchor 62 to transfer the seat belt loads from the seat 10 through the seat belt anchor 62 to the floor anchor 64.

In operation, the seat assembly 10 may be moved from the seating position to the stow-to-floor position by first rotating the flipper panel 56 counterclockswise, as viewed in Figures 1 and 2, to the released position. Rotation of the flipper panel 56 tensions and displaces the cable 60 to rotate the latch 54 out of locking engagement with the latch post 38. The seat assembly 10 is freely movable about the main pivot post 36 between the seating and stow-to-floor positions with the latch 54 disengaged with the latch post 38. A friction snubber 66 tucked between the seat cushion 12 and the pivot bracket 40 retains the seat cushion 12 in the seating position until the seat cushion 12 contacts the vehicle floor 34. That is, the entire seat assembly 10 pivots about the main pivot post 36 to lower the seat cushion 12 against the floor 34. Once the seat cushion 12 contacts the vehicle floor 34, the continued motion of the seat assembly 10 towards the stow-to-floor position folds the seat back 14 against the seat cushion 12. In the stow-to-floor position, the seat back 14 is stacked on top of the seat cushion 12 and the back side of the seat back 14 and the flipper panel 56 form a generally flat and planar load floor in the vehicle.

To return the seat assembly 10 from the stow-to-floor position to the seating position, the seat back 14 is pivoted about the main pivot post 36 in the clockwise direction, as viewed in Figures 1 and 2, until the hook portion 52 engages the latch post 38. Supported by the support flange 50, the seat cushion 12 is raised from the floor 34 to the seating position. Once the seat back 14 and seat cushion 12 are returned to the seating position, the flipper panel 56 is returned to the unreleased position against the back of the seat back 14. The tension in the cable 60 is released and the latch 54 engages the latch post 38 to lock the seat assembly 10 in the seat position.

Additionally, the seat assembly 10 may further include a trunk cover panel 70

pivotally connected to the floor 34 for covering a trunk compartment in the floor 34 of the vehicle. The trunk cover panel 70 may be latched in the closed position to cover the trunk compartment and form a planar portion of the floor 34 or pivoted upright to an open position and latched to the seat back 14 to provide access to the compartment. A latch of any suitable variety may releasably secure the trunk cover panel 70 to both the floor 34 and the seat back 14.

The invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology, which has been used, is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation.

Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practised other than as specifically described.