Booster seat

Passenger restraint systems in automobiles are generally well suited to properly restrain adults but not well suited to properly restrain children. Accordingly, vehicle restraint systems must be supplemented by devices such as booster car seats. Various car seats are available for safely retaining a child within a car while utilizing the seat belts provided with the vehicle. Typically, car seats may be divided into two general categories including car seats intended to safely retain infants and small children, and those which act as booster seats for older children who have outgrown the former car seats. Booster seats are designed for the convenience and safety of the child, the convenience of the parents, all within the framework of increased safety. Booster car seats are specifically designed for use by a child older and larger than an infant, hence, for example, 40 to 60 pounds, and are simply intended to raise the elevation of a child so he or she is not simply looking at the back of the front seat. Car seats for smaller children are generally provided with belts which extend across the chest of the child in order to retain the child within a car seat shell, whereas booster seats for older children generally comprise a booster seat base with a shield attached thereto extending across the lap and in front of the chest of the child. Booster seats provide the advantage of allowing a child to sit at an elevated level to allow the child to view out of a vehicle window. Further, booster seats generally cooperate with a seat belt of the vehicle restraint system to retain the child in place in the event of an accident.

A booster seat, placed on the seat of the adult-sized chair, provides additional seating height for the small child and positions the child to use the adult-sized table. Booster seats are commonly used in a variety of situations to raise a child to a convenient level using existing seating arrangements. For example, placed on the seat of a dining chair, a booster seat enables a child to sit at a table and join the family in a meal without the necessity of using a high chair. A booster seat generally has a seat portion, two side portions which are located on opposite sides of the seat, a back portion, and a tray. It can be placed directly on the floor, attached to a chair, and used with or without the tray during playing and eating activities. The booster typically provides a surface upon which the occupant can sit, and may include a belt guide or the like which can receive a vehicle seat belt therethrough to guide the vehicle belt across the occupant in a desired manner. The booster seat may also include various other features to increase the comfort of the occupant. Typically, a booster seat includes a seating surface for the child and a pivotable barrier shield movable relative to the seating surface to a position retaining the child in a seated position on the seating surface. Many barrier shields are formed to receive vehicle lap belts so that the lap belt can be used to retain the booster seat and its barrier shield in a selected position on an underlying regular car seat. Booster seats include a seat portion to elevate the child above the vehicle’s seating surface to a position in which the vehicle’s shoulder belt is better positioned on the child and which properly positions the vehicle lap belt on the child’s torso, and may also include a back portion.

A common construction technique for booster seats with backs is to mold the seat and back portions from rigid plastic and cover them with a cushion or pad. A seat member hingedly connected to the outer shell includes a cushioned seat and support panels that extend from a lower front edge and mid-section of the seat, providing a unitary support structure for the seat. The seat member may be placed in a horizontal position for use with an infant or in a compact, upright, folded storage position. Booster seats are generally secured with the common safety harness provided by the car manufacturer. The safety harness typically includes a lap belt portion and a shoulder belt portion. These safety belts are designed for the average sized adult. When the harness is fastened around the child in the booster seat, the shoulder portion of the belt is often in an incorrect vertical position in relation to the child. In some instances, the seat, sides and back are rigidly connected together but, for convenient storage and transportation, some booster seats are collapsible to varying degrees. Portable booster seats have become more popular due to the concern about sharing germs between booster seat users and the lack of booster seats in some locations.

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May 31, 2008 | Filed Under Baby carrier