Child vehicle safety seat

Abstract

A car seat has a support base configured to test on a dedicated seat of a vehicle when installed. The car seat also has a seat shell coupled to the support base that defines a seating surface of the car seat. The seating surface has a seat bottom portion that terminates at a front end of the seat shell. The seat shell is adjustable to a plurality of selectable seat recline orientations relative to the support base. A recline lever is mounted under the seat shell and is movable between a latch position and a release position. A handle on one end of the recline lever is positioned below and projects forward of the front end of the seat shell. The handle is movable upward to move the recline lever to the release position. A shroud projects forward from the front end of the seat shell and is positioned above and spaced from the handle. A top side of the shroud is positioned to act as a fixed bearing surface for grasping and moving the handle upward toward the shroud.

1 . A car seat comprising: 
 a support base having a back section and a bottom section and configured to rest on a dedicated seat of a vehicle when installed;    a seat shell coupled to the support base and defining a seating surface with a seat back surface and a seat bottom surface that terminates at a front end of the seat shell, the seat shell being adjustable to a plurality of selectable seat recline orientations relative to the support base; and    a recline lever mounted under the seat shell and movable between a latch position and a release position, a handle on one end of the recline lever near and below the front end of the seat shell and movable upward to move the recline lever to the release position, the handle having a front, sides, and a downward facing gripping surface, the gripping surface having a downwardly rounded part adjacent the front and an upward finger recess rearwardly adjacent the rounded part, wherein the front, sides, and gripping surface smoothly and gradually transition into one another.    
   
   
       2 . A car seat according to  claim 1 , wherein the gripping surface of the handle is covered with a layer of material that is softer than the underlying handle material.  
   
   
       3 . A car seat according to  claim 1 , wherein the layer is formed of a resilient elastomer material.  
   
   
       4 . A car seat according to  claim 1 , further comprising: 
 a shroud projecting forward from the front end of the seat shell and positioned above and spaced from the handle, the shroud having a top surface positioned to provide a fixed resting surface for part of a user's hand when grasping and moving the handle upward toward the shroud.    
   
   
       5 . A car seat comprising: 
 a support base configured to rest on a dedicated seat of a vehicle when installed;    a seat shell coupled to the support base and defining a seating surface having a seat bottom portion that terminates at a front end of the seat shell, the seat shell being adjustable to a plurality of selectable seat recline orientations relative to the support base;    a recline lever mounted under the seat shell and movable between a latch position and a release position;    a handle on one end of the recline lever and positioned below and projecting forward of the front end of the seat shell, the handle movable upward to move the recline lever to the release position; and    a shroud projecting forward from the front end of the seat shell and positioned above and spaced from the handle, a top side of the shroud positioned to act as a fixed bearing surface for grasping and moving the handle upward toward the shroud.    
   
   
       6 . A car seat according to  claim 5 , wherein the shroud is formed integrally on the front end of seat shell.  
   
   
       7 . A car seat according to  claim 5 , further comprising: 
 a safety harness on the seat shell; and    a harness tensioning device positioned on a down slope on the seat bottom portion near the front end of the seat shell, the top side of the shroud space forward and downward of the tensioning device.    
   
   
       8 . A car seat according to  claim 5 , wherein the shroud has an upward hollow beneath the top side and receives at least a portion of the handle within the hollow when the handle is moved to the release position.  
   
   
       9 . A car seat according to  claim 5 , wherein the handle has a downward hollow and a bottom gripping surface, the gripping surface having a downwardly convex part adjacent the front and an upwardly concave finger recess positioned adjacent the convex part, wherein the front, sides, convex finger recess, and concave part smoothly and gradually transition into one another.  
   
   
       10 . A car seat according to  claim 9 , wherein the shroud has only downward facing edges and wherein the handle has only upward facing edges, each being configured so that a user's hand will not contact any of the upward or downward facing edges when operating the handle.  
   
   
       11 . A car seat according to  claim 5 , wherein a gripping surface of the handle is covered with a layer of material that is softer than the underlying handle material.  
   
   
       12 . A car seat according to  claim 11 , wherein the layer is formed of a resilient elastomer material.