FORM 2
The Patents Act 1970
(39 of 1970)
AND
THE PATENTS RULES, 2005
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (See Section 10; Rule 13)
TITLE OF THE INVENTION A FRONT SEAT ASSEMBLY FOR A VEHICLE
APPILICANT(S)
TATA MOTORS LIMITED
an Indian company
having its registered office at Bombay house,
24 Homi Mody Street, Hutatma Chowk,
Mumbai 400 001,
Maharashtra, INDIA.
PREAMBLE TO THE DESCRIPTION
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.

A FRONT SEAT ASSEMBLY FOR A VEHICLE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to seat assemblies for automotive vehicles, and more specifically related to a front seat assembly for a vehicle that is longitudinally displaceable from both front seat and rear seat passengers.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Vehicles such as cars, busses, trucks etc. are extensively available. Manufacturers continuously designs such vehicles with enhanced functionality and features. Many of these enhancements are found in the vehicle interior, particularly the seating comfort and leg room for the passengers. Even though a lot of enhancements are made to the designs of front seat of the vehicles but still the adjustment of the front seat by passenger seating at a rear compartment of the vehicle involves challenges. For example, if the front seat was adjusted and held at a rear end (longitudinal movement) and if no one is seated on the front seat, then it becomes difficult for the passengers in the rear compartment to adjust the front seat towards a front compartment of the vehicle.
[0003] Hence there remains a need to provide a front seat design for use in the vehicles especially cars, which provides greater options for adjustment over conventional front seat designs.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The principal object of the embodiments herein is to provide front seat assembly for a vehicle that is longitudinally displaceable from both front seat and rear seat passengers. A front seat lever is extended towards a rear

compartment of the vehicle so that passengers seated in the rear compartment of the vehicle can also adjust the position of the front seat assembly.
[0005] Yet another object of the embodiments herein is to provide an enhanced front seat design by providing a front sleeve and rear sleeve assembly that limit longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly by the passengers seated in the rear compartment of the vehicle when a passenger is seated on the front side.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] In one aspect the object is satisfied by providing a front seat assembly for a vehicle having a front passenger compartment and a rear passenger compartment. The front seat assembly includes a seat back pivotally adjustable between an upright seating position and a folded flat position, a seat cushion movable longitudinally between a seating position spaced apart from the floor of the vehicle, a lower rail fixedly secured to a floor of the vehicle, and an upper rail slidably engaged with the lower rail to allow longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly. Further, the front seat assembly includes a front sleeve assembly fixedly secured to the floor of the vehicle, a rear sleeve assembly connected to the floor of the vehicle using a spring, and a locking lever to lock or unlock the upper rail with the lower rail. The front sleeve assembly comprises a front side lever accessible from the front passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly, and the rear sleeve assembly comprises a rear side lever accessible from the rear passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly.
[0007] In an embodiment, when an occupant is seated on the front seat assembly, both the rear sleeve assembly and the front sleeve assembly is in non collinear so that only the front side lever is actuated by the front passenger compartment of the vehicle.

[0008] In an embodiment, the rear side lever is non collinear by displacing a position of the rear sleeve assembly by suppression of the spring due to a weight of the occupant, below a position the front sleeve assembly.
[0009] In an embodiment, when an occupant is not seated on the front seat assembly, the front sleeve assembly and the rear sleeve assembly is collinear to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly from both the front passenger compartment and the rear passenger compartment.
[0010] These and other aspects of the embodiments herein will be better appreciated and understood when considered in conjunction with the following description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that the following descriptions, while indicating preferred embodiments and numerous specific details thereof, are given by way of illustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the embodiments herein without departing from the spirit thereof, and the embodiments herein include all such modifications.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0011] The proposed front seat assembly is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, throughout which like reference letters indicate corresponding parts in the various figures. The embodiments herein will be better understood from the following description with reference to the drawings, in which:
[0012] FIG. 1a illustrates a front seat assembly of a vehicle, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;
[0013] FIG. 1b illustrates a detail view of a section of the front seat assembly, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;

[0014] FIG. 1c illustrates a perspective view of the front seat assembly, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;
[0015] FIG. 2a illustrates a position of a rear sleeve assembly and a front sleeve assembly when the front seat is vacant, according to embodiments as disclosed herein;
[0016] FIG. 2b illustrates a position of a rear sleeve assembly and a front sleeve assembly when the front seat is occupied by a passenger, according to embodiments as disclosed herein; and
[0017] FIG. 2c illustrates a detailed view of the locking lever, according to embodiments as disclosed herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0018] The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference to the non-limiting embodiments that are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. Also, the various embodiments described herein are not necessarily mutually exclusive, as some embodiments can be combined with one or more other embodiments to form new embodiments. The term “or” as used herein, refers to a non-exclusive or, unless otherwise indicated. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein can be practiced and to further enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.

[0019] Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGS. 1 through 2, where similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the figures, there are shown preferred embodiments.
[0020] FIG. 1a illustrates a front seat assembly of a vehicle, according to embodiments as disclosed herein. The vehicle includes a passenger compartment having a front seat assembly and a rear seat assembly for supporting occupants above a floor (9).
[0021] The front seat assembly includes a seat back (0), a seat cushion (1), an upper rail (2) and a lower rail (3) and. The seat back (0) is pivotally adjustable between an upright seating position and a folded flat position. The seat cushion (1) is movable longitudinally between seating positions spaced apart from the floor (9) of the vehicle. The front seat assembly allows selective adjustment of the seat cushion (1) along the floor (9) and angular adjustment of the seat back (0) with respect to the seat cushion (1) based on seating positions of the passengers.
[0022] The lower rail (3) is fixedly secured to a floor (9) of the vehicle. The upper rail (2) is slidably engaged with the lower rail (3) to allow longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly.
[0023] Further, the front seat assembly includes a front sleeve assembly (5), a rear sleeve assembly (7), and a locking lever (10) to lock or unlock the upper rail (2) with the lower rail (3).
[0024] The front sleeve assembly (5) is directly fixed to the floor (9) of the vehicle so that the front sleeve assembly (5) does not move when the passenger is seated on the front seat assembly. The front sleeve assembly (5) includes a front side lever (4) accessible from the front passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly.

[0025] The rear sleeve assembly (7) is connected to the floor (9) of the vehicle using a spring (6) so that the front sleeve assembly (5) can move in vertical direction when the passenger is seated on the front seat assembly. The rear sleeve assembly (7) comprises a rear side lever (8) accessible from the rear passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly (5). The spring (6) is suppressed when the passenger is seated on the front seat assembly. The supersession of the spring (6) will displace the position of the rear sleeve assembly (7).
[0026] Unlike the conventional front seat designs, the front side lever (4) and the rear side lever (8) will allow displaceable of the front seat assembly in longitudinal direction from both front seat and rear seat passengers. A front seat lever is extended towards a rear compartment of the vehicle by providing the rear side lever (8) so that passengers seated in the rear compartment of the vehicle can also adjust the position of the front seat assembly.
[0027] The locking lever (10) locks or unlocks the upper rail (2) with the lower rail (3) to allow or limit the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly either only from the front passenger compartment of the vehicle or from both the rear passenger compartment and the front passenger compartment.
[0028] The locking lever (10) locks or unlocks the upper rail (2) with the lower rail (3). Also, collinear (same line) & non-collinear (not in the same line) arrangement of rear sleeve assembly (7) & front sleeve assembly (5) allow or limit the actuation of the rear side lever (8) by the rear seat passengers.
[0029] FIG. 1b illustrates a detail view of a section of the front seat assembly and FIG. 1c illustrates a perspective view of the front seat assembly, according to embodiments as disclosed herein. Further, as shown in the FIGS. 2a and 2b, an enhanced front seat assembly design that includes the collinear & non-collinear

arrangement of the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) to allow the actuation of the rear side lever (8) by the rear seat passengers when no passenger is seated on the front seat assembly and to limit the actuation of the rear side lever (8) when passenger is seated on the front seat assembly.
[0030] The FIG. 2a illustrates a position of a rear sleeve assembly and a front sleeve assembly when the front seat is vacant, according to embodiments as disclosed herein. In an embodiment, when an occupant is not seated on the front seat assembly, arrangement of the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) will be in collinear. Hence, the front seat assembly can be adjusted longitudinally from both the front passenger compartment and the rear passenger compartment. As shown in the FIG. 2a, as there is no load on the front seat, an initial tension of the spring (6) remains due to which the position of the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the position of the front sleeve assembly (5) remains in same line (11).
[0031] In an embodiment, as the front seat is vacant, the passenger seated on the rear compartment can push the rear side lever (8) to towards the front compartment in order to adjust the position of the front seat assembly. As the front side lever (4) and the rear side lever (8) are in same line, when the passenger seated in the rear compartment of the vehicle pushes the rear side lever (8), the front seat assembly is moved in towards the front compartment of the vehicle.
[0032] Further, FIG. 2b illustrates a position of a rear sleeve assembly and a front sleeve assembly when the front seat is occupied by a passenger, according to embodiments as disclosed herein. In an embodiment, when an occupant is seated on the front seat assembly, arrangement of the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) will be non collinear (not in same line). Hence, the front seat assembly can be adjusted longitudinally only from the front passenger compartment.

[0033] The position of the rear sleeve assembly (7) is displaced based on suppression of the spring (6) due to a weight of the occupant. As there is load on the front seat, an initial tension of the spring (6) is suppressed due to which the position of the rear sleeve assembly (7) is displaced (12) below the position of the front sleeve assembly (5) which is fixed.
[0034] FIG. 2c illustrates a detailed view of the locking lever (10), according to embodiments as disclosed herein. When no one is seated (as shown in the FIG. 2a), the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) will be in collinear (same line). Hence, if the rear side lever (8) is pushed forward, it pushes the front side lever (4) also to forward side.
[0035] When the front side lever (4) is actuated to forward, the locking lever (10) unlocks the upper rail (3) and the lower rail (2) from slots (13) by moving inward (refer dotted line) against a pivot point (14) so that longitudinal adjustment of the seat can be done (i.e. the upper rail (3) can be slide over the lower rail (2).
[0036] When the rear side lever (4) is released, the locking lever (10) can be moved to the original position because of a force from a spring (15) and locks the upper rail (3) and lower rail (2) by fixing the slots (13).
[0037] When the passenger is seated (as shown in the FIG. 2b), the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) will be non collinear (not in same line). Hence, the rear side lever (8) cannot actuate the front side lever (4).
[0038] The foregoing description of the specific embodiments will so fully reveal the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be

understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.
[0039] List to reference numerals:

Sr. No. Description
0 seat back
1 seat cushion
2 upper rail
3 lower rail
4 front side lever
5 front sleeve assembly
6 spring
7 rear sleeve assembly
8 rear side lever
9 floor
10 locking lever
11 same line
12 Displaced position
13 slots
14 pivot point
15 spring

WE CLAIM:
1. A front seat assembly for a vehicle having a front passenger compartment and
a rear passenger compartment, wherein the front seat assembly comprises:
a lower rail (3) fixedly secured to a floor (9) of the vehicle;
an upper rail (2) slidably engaged with the lower rail (3) to allow longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly;
characterized in that
a front sleeve assembly (5) fixedly secured to the floor (9) of the vehicle, wherein the front sleeve assembly (5) comprises a front side lever (4) accessible from the front passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly;
a rear sleeve assembly (7) connected to the floor (9) of the vehicle using a spring (6), wherein the rear sleeve assembly (7) comprises a rear side lever (8) accessible from the rear passenger compartment to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly (5); and
a locking lever (10) to lock or unlock the upper rail (2) with the lower rail (3).
2. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein when an occupant is seated on the front seat assembly, both the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve assembly (5) is in non collinear so that only the front side lever (4) is actuated by the front passenger compartment of the vehicle.
3. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the rear side lever (8) is non collinear by displacing a position of the rear sleeve assembly (7), and wherein the position of the rear sleeve assembly (7) by the suppression of the spring (6) due to a weight of the occupant below a position the front sleeve assembly (5).
4. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein when the occupant is seated on the front seat assembly, the rear sleeve assembly (7) and the front sleeve

assembly (5) is non collinear so that the rear side lever (8) cannot actuate the front side lever (4).
5. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein when an occupant is not seated on the front seat assembly, the front sleeve assembly (5) and the rear sleeve assembly (7) is collinear to allow the longitudinal movement of the front seat assembly (5) from both the front passenger compartment and the rear passenger compartment.
6. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein when the occupant is not seated on the front seat assembly, the front sleeve assembly (5) and the rear sleeve assembly (7) is in collinear so that the rear side lever (8) is pushed forward that pushes the front side lever (4) to forward side.
7. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 1, comprises:
a seat back (0) pivotally adjustable between an upright seating position and a folded flat position; and
a seat cushion (1) movable longitudinally between seating positions spaced apart from the floor (9) of the vehicle.
8. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein when the front side lever
(4) is actuated to forward, the locking lever (10) unlocks the upper rail (3) and the
lower rail (2) from slots (13) by moving inward against a pivot point (14) so that
the upper rail (3) slides over the lower rail (2).

9. The front seat assembly as claimed in claim 8, wherein when the rear side lever (4) is released, the locking lever (10) is moved to original position due a force from a spring (15) and locks the upper rail (3) and lower rail (2) by fixing the slots (13).