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I really like your design when you posted it for a folding table.

We tried both something like what you have on a trip where I was building the van up until the night we left and it worked out ok. The bench I tried to fill the gap between the 1st and 2nd row didn't quite work in the short period of time I had so we used these expanding plastic stools from amazon and plywood. We also did it with the swivels turned and spanned the gap between the front and second row, again it worked out ok. But what was a pain was the setup and tear down in a small space along with storage of all the parts. Now we are considering a hanging bed from the ceiling, over the top of the 2nd row along the driver side wall. I'm thinking about straps that can be used to raise the mattress to the roof while driving, so setup would be quick, but I'm not sure how well it will work yet. We thought we might do this for a single bed for one child and then figure out another option below.

Another design we considered was doing the swivels, and then utilizing a strong material like what is used in a hammock to span the gap and strap it through the middle of the seat to the floor anchors and do the same through the front seats. So it would created a hammock, but I think if you used a 4" mattress the kids would be able to sleep side by and it wouldn't fall into the gap. The appeal of this method was that it would fold up into nothing and should be quick to deploy. It would requiring some heavy duty sewing, but seems possible. We may still explore this one too. Thinking about it again, maybe just attaching straps to the mattress and pulling those through the seat and attaching to the floor would be enough to keep it tight within the gap.

 

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Agreed on it being comfortable. On one of our stops after traveling for 20 hours my wife and kids slept on the big bed and I slept on the converted 2nd row and had no problem getting comfortable or sleeping.

I did find that I didn't need something going over the seat with the 4" mattress, just a platform in the gap and think the right sized folding bench would work (we just happened to get one that was too long and I didn't have time to cut it down). That would reduce the materials needed

I think the platform bed is a fine place to store the kids mattress, but it should would be nice to have it up and out of the way.

I will let you know what I end up doing. We have several other more important projects to get done before the end of the year (to get RV titled), so this one is taking a bit of a back seat. I'll be on the lookout for your updates too

 

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Thinking more about the hammock concept during lunch I was thinking maybe a heavy duty cargo net could work. Strap it through the front and 2nd row seats and make one attachment point on the passenger side wall to span the distance to the slider. I think I might give this idea a try as it would be the least amount of work.

 

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I'm thinking about trying this cargo net:

Amazon.com: Gladiator Cargo Nets - Heavy Duty Truck Cargo Net - Small (SGN-100) 4.75' x 6' ft. : Automotive

Amazon.com: Gladiator Cargo Nets - Heavy Duty Truck Cargo Net - Small (SGN-100) 4.75' x 6' ft. : Automotive

www.amazon.com

If it works I might forget about the hanging bed and just go back to the kids sharing the 1st row / 2nd row bed.

It could also double as a cargo net to keep things in their place in the garage when traveling.