CA1133374A - Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action - Google Patents
Recliner chair with wall-avoiding actionInfo
- Publication number
- CA1133374A CA1133374A CA386,433A CA386433A CA1133374A CA 1133374 A CA1133374 A CA 1133374A CA 386433 A CA386433 A CA 386433A CA 1133374 A CA1133374 A CA 1133374A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- seat
- link
- linkage
- backrest
- footrest
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
Abstract
RECLINER CHAIR WITH WALL-AVOIDING ACTION
ABSTRACT OF DISCLOSURE
A handle-operated recliner chair has a seat mount-ing linkage consisting of two mounting links mounting the seat directly to a stationary base for movement between nor-mal and reclining positions. A footrest is mounted to the front of the seat by a footrest linkage which is extended and retracted through means of a handle mounted relative to the seat to rotate a torque tube which is connected to the foot-rest linkage to operate the same. One of the links of the footrest linkage is directly connected to the front mounting link of the seat such that extension of the footrest will cause the seat mounting links to pivot forwardly to not only place the seat in an inclined position but also, to move the seat forwardly relative to the base to provide wall-avoiding action which comes in to play when the backrest is reclined to avoid striking a nearby wall with the backrest. The back-rest may be either fixed rigidly to the seat to move together with the seat as a unit to provide a "one-way" recliner or as an alternative, it may be mounted by means of a novel back-rest linkage to the seat to move relative to the seat to pro-vide a "three-way" recliner chair. In either instance, the backrest linkage is totally independent of the seat mounting linkage and the footrest linkage.
ABSTRACT OF DISCLOSURE
A handle-operated recliner chair has a seat mount-ing linkage consisting of two mounting links mounting the seat directly to a stationary base for movement between nor-mal and reclining positions. A footrest is mounted to the front of the seat by a footrest linkage which is extended and retracted through means of a handle mounted relative to the seat to rotate a torque tube which is connected to the foot-rest linkage to operate the same. One of the links of the footrest linkage is directly connected to the front mounting link of the seat such that extension of the footrest will cause the seat mounting links to pivot forwardly to not only place the seat in an inclined position but also, to move the seat forwardly relative to the base to provide wall-avoiding action which comes in to play when the backrest is reclined to avoid striking a nearby wall with the backrest. The back-rest may be either fixed rigidly to the seat to move together with the seat as a unit to provide a "one-way" recliner or as an alternative, it may be mounted by means of a novel back-rest linkage to the seat to move relative to the seat to pro-vide a "three-way" recliner chair. In either instance, the backrest linkage is totally independent of the seat mounting linkage and the footrest linkage.
Description
g i3 ~3t7~ ~
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a recliner chair having a relatively simple linkage system for mounting and operating its moving parts and yet provides wall-avoiding action which permits the chair to be placed adjacent a wall without striking the wall when the chair is moved into reclining positions. Included herein is such a recliner chair including a footrest which may be moved between extended and retracted positions by means of an oper-ating handle and in which the footrest has a certain linkage associated with it that causes the seat of the chalr to move forwardly relative to the base into a comfortable reclining position which also provides the wall-avoiding action.
It is another primary object of the present inven-tion to provide a reclining chair which will achieve the above objects and yet, may be equipped with a backrest that is either rigidly fixed to the seat to move with the seat as a unit so as to provide a "one way" recliner chair or, in the alternative, may be mounted to the seat to move relative to the seat so as to provide a "three-way" recliner chair. A
"one-way" recliner chair as used herein is meant to define a recliner chair having a unitary seat, back and arm that always move together as a unit. Included herein is the pro-vision of a novel backrest linkage mechanism for mounting the backrest relative to the seat to permit the backrest to move rlelative to the seat into various reclining positions inde-p,endently of other linkage mechanism which mounts the seat relative to the base. Included herein is such a novel back-rlest mounting linkage which utilizes a spring for biasing the backrest into a normal reclining position.
According to one preferred embodiment of the inven-tion, a recliner chair has a seat mounted relative to an underlying fixed base by means of front and rear seat mount-ing links whose opposite ends are pivotally mounted relative 3337~ ) to the seat and the ~ase. A footrest has a footrest linkage mounted to the seat to be actuated by means of a manual con-~ - trol handle mounted on one side of the chair relative to the seat. Movement of the control handle in one direction extends the footrest linkage to project the footrest forwardly of the -chair for reclining, and movement of the handle in the oppo-site direction, retracts the footrest to a position extending generally vertically below the front of the seat. One of the :Links included in the footrest linkage is directly connected 1:o the front seat mounting link such that when the footrest is extended, the front seat mounting link will be actuated for-wardly to place the seat into a comfortable reclining position while, at the same time, moving the seat forwardly relative to the base to provide wall-avoiding action.
In the preferred embodiment, the backrest is mounted to the seat for movement relative to the seat between upright 2md reclining positions by ~eans of a novel backrest linkage ~ncluding a first backrest mounting link fixed to the backrest and a second backrest mounting link fixed to the seat and pivotally connected to the first backrest mounting link. A
h:nuckle linkage is provided between the backrest mounting ]inks; the knuckle linkage including a pair of short knuckle links pivotally mounted to the backrest mounting links, re-spectively, and also being pivotally interconnected to form a knuckle joint which, upon exerting pressure on the backrest, will collapse permitting the backrest to be moved into a num-ber of reclining positions relative to the seat.
One of the knuckle links has a depending spring mounting portion for mounting one end of a tension coil spring ~hose opposite end is anchored relative to the seat so as to bias the knuckle linkage in what may be termed an "extended position" biasing the backrest towards upright or normal posi-tion. When sufficient pressure is exerted on the backrest by the chair occupant, to overcome the biasing force of the spring, 37~
the knuckle links will fold pivoting relative to each other to permit the backrest to be moved to a desired reclining position against the bias of the spring. When backrest pressure is re-moved from the backrest by the chair occupant, such as by lean-ing forward in the chair, the pressure of the spring will return the backrest towards normal or upright position. Pref-erably, the mounting of the biasing spring to the lower knuckle link is achieved through an adjusting screw BO that the biasing force of the spring may be adjusted.
If it is desired to convert the chair into a "one-way"
recliner chair, that is, with the backrest rigidly fixed to the seat to move together with the seat as a unit at all times, the backrest mounting linkage may be removed and replaced by a single ~ackrest mounting link rigidly~ fixed to the backrest at one end ~nd rigidly fixed to the 6eat at the opposite end.
In accordance with a broad aspect, the convention relates to a recliner chair having a seat, a base, front and rear seat mounting links both pivotally connected to the base and both pivotally connected to the fieat to mount the seat for movement relative to the base between normal and reclining positions, a footrest, a footrest linkage mounting the footrest to the seat for movement between a retracted position adjacent the seat and an extended position projected forwardly from the seat, the footxest linkage including a footrest mounting link halving one end pivotally connected to the seat, and manual means for actuating the footrest linkage to move the footrest between the extended and retracted poSitiQns thereof, the manual actuating means including lin~age connected to the foot-rest linkage for operating the same between said positions thereof; the improvement comprising an extension of said frontseat mounting link projecting above the pivotal connection of ~_3_ :J ~3;~37~
the front seat mounting link to the seat, and a ~eat ac~uating link having one end portion pivotally connected to said foot-rest mounting link and having an opposite end portion pivot-ally connected to said extension of said front seat mounting link such that when the footrest is moved to the extended posi-tion, said seat actuating link will pivot said front mounting link about its pivotal connection to the base to move the seat forwardly relative to the base into an inclined position for-wardly of the base.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed descrip-t:ion of the drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a chair embodying the present inv~ntion shown with the upholstery removed and with the assoicated linkage system ~n one side of the chair in an up-ri.ght or normal position;
Fig. 2 is a view generally similar to Fig. 1 except that the chair parts are shown in a fully ~eclined position, that is, with the footrest extended and with the backrest re-c]ined relative to the seat and with the se2t reclined and positioned forwardly relative to the base;
Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view of the basic chair parts when in the position corresponding to that shown in Fig. l;
Fig. 4 is a view ~imilar to Fig. 3 but showing the chair palrts in the position corresponding to that shown in Fig. 2;
and Fig. 5 i~ a detail view of one of a portion of a knuckle linkage utilized to mount a spring which biases the backrest _3a-13337~ ~
towards upright position.
Referring now to the drawings in detail, there i5 ` - shown for illustrative purposes only, a "three-way" reclining chair embodying the present invention and including a seat whose frame is only shown and which includes opposite side rails 12 which may be formed from any suitable material such as wood interconnected by front and rear rails 14 and 16 to define a generally rectangular frame. The armrests of the chair which, of course, will be upholstered together with the seat in the finished product, are represented by the armrest frames 18 which are fixed to the seat to move with the seat as a unit at all times.
Seat 12 is mounted relative to an underlying fixed base, which may be formed from a rectangular ~rame of metallic channel parts, or any other suitable structure. The base frame includes opposite side rails, one of which is shown at 20 in Fig. l. Mounting of the seat relative to the base is achieved by a "seat mounting linkage" including front and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24, respectively. Front and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24 are each pivotally connected to the seat and to the base and, in the shown embodiment, the connec-tion to the seat is achieved through a "seat link" 30 which is fixed to the seat 12 by means of horizontal flanges 34 and 32 which underlie the seat 12 and are secured thereto by means of screws 36 as shown in Fig. l. Front seat mounting link 22 is pivoted to seat link 30 by means of a pivot 42 and is pivoted to base 20 by means of a pivot 40. Rear seat mounting link 24 is pivoted to seat link 30 by means of a pivot 46 and is pivoted to base 20 by means of pivot 44. It will be seen from :~ig. l, that when the chair is in normal or upright position, the ~ront and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24 will extend Erom the base upwardly and slightly rearwardly in a generally parallel interrelationship.
T~ ir also typically inclu.!~S ~ foc)trest whose frame is shown at 50 which is mounted for movement between a retracted position where it extends downwardly at the front of the seat in generally vertical position as shown in Fig. 1, ~nd extended position where it is projected forwardly from the-.Eront of the seat in a horizontal elevated position as shown :in Fig. 2. Referring to Fig. 2, footrest 50 has an associated "footrest linkage" for mounting i~ to the seat and for extend-ing and retractin~ it relative to the seat. The footrest link-age includes a bracket 52 fixed to the rear side of footrest 50; ', and a pair of links 54 and 56 pivoted at one of their ends to bracket 52 by pivots 57 and 58 respectively.
The footrest linkage further includes a link 60 having one end pivotally connected by pivot 62 to one end of link 54 and having an intermediate portion pivotally connected by pivot 64 to an intermediate portion of link 56. Link 56 extends beyond link 60 where it is pivoted by pivot 72b to one end of what is termed a"~ootrest mounting link" 70 whose opposite end is pivoted by pivot 73 to the seat link 30. Link 70 is pivoted intermediate its ends to link 72 by pivot 70a. Link 60 is pivotally connected to the forward end of a "footrest exten-sion link" 72 by means of a pivot 74a. The opposite, rear end of footrest extension link 72 is pivotally connected to a foot-rest actuating crank 74 by means of a pivot 75. Footrest actuating crank is fixed to a torque tube 76 mounted in a passage in the seat link 30 so as to be rotatable by means of a manual control handle 77 which is positioned on one side of the chair. Torque tube 76-extends transversely of the chair under the seat; it being understood that the chair has a link-age system similar to the one disclosed on opposite sides of the chair, and the torque tube is mounted in the seat links 30 fixed to opposite side rails 12 of the seat.
When the chair is in the normal or upright position, the footrest is folded with the parts shown in Fig. 1. When 11;~3~
it is desired ~ :~ the footrest to the extended position shown in Fig. l to the forward position shown in Fig. 2 which - causes rotation of torque tube 76 which, in turn, rotates foot-rest actuating crank 74 to project footrest extension link 72 which causes unfolding of link 60 and actuation of the other links of the footrest linkage to place the footrest in a de-sired elevation and projected position relative to the seat as shown in Fig. 2. Return of the footrest to the retracted posi-tion shown in Fig. 1 is, of course, achieved by opposite rota-tion of manual handle 77.
The various linkage mechanisms described thus far maybe considered conventional or, at least, residing in the prior ~rt and themselves form no part of the present invention.
However, in accordance with one aspect of the present lnvention, footrest mounting link 70 is directly connected by a "seat actua~ing" link 78 to an upper portion 22a of the front seat mounting link 22 which projects beyond its pivoting 42 to seat link 30. Pivot 78a connects the forward end of actuating link 78 to a intermediate portion of footrest mounting link 70 adjacent pivot 73, while pivot 68b pivotally connects the rear end portion of actuating link 78 to the upper end portion 22a of front seat mounting link 22. It will thus be seen that when the footrest is extended to the position shown in Fig. 2, link 78 will be moved forwardly by footrest mounting link 70 to, in turn, cause front seat mounting link 22 to pivot forwardly a,bout pivot 40 to the base 20, thus causing the seat 12 to move forwardly relative to base 20 and into a reclined position with t]le front of seat 12 moving upwardly and forwardly and with the rear of seat 12 moving downwardly and forwardly relative to the base 20 and xelative to the horizontal may be seen by comparing Figc. 3 and 4 which correspond to Figs. 1 and 2, respectively.
en the footrest is moved from the extended to retracted posi-tlon by handle 77, it will be seen that the seat actuating link 7~ will cause front seat link 22 to pivot rearwardly about the ` ~3337~
pivot 40 to return the seat into the normal position shown in Figs. 1 and 3.
In accordance with the present invention, the back-rest 80 in the preferred embodiment is pivotally mounted to the seat to be movable relative to the seat between a normal posi-`
tion shown in Figs. 1 and 3 and a plurality of reclining posi- ' tions, the ultimate of which is shown in Figs. 2 and 4. This is achieved by a no~el backrest mounting linkage which includes a first backrest mounting link 82 having a generally L-shape and being fixed by screws 83 to backrest 80; and a second back-rest mounting link 85 being fixed by screws to seat 12. The second backrest mounting link 85 in the specific e~bodiment has a generally V-shape. The lower leg 84 of backrest mounting link 82 and the upper leg of the backrest mounting link 85 are pivotally interconnected by pivot 88.
In addition, backrest mounting links 82 and 85 are pivotally interconnected by what will be termed a "knuckle link-age", including a pair of short knuckle links 90 and 91 pivotal-ly connected to each other by pivot 92. Knuckle link 90 is pivotally connected by pivot 93 to a lower portion of backrest mounting link 82, while knuckle link 91 is pivotally mounted by pivot 94 to backrest mounting link 85.
Knuckle links 91 and 92 are biased into an extended or unfolded position shown in Fig. 1 for normally retaining the backrest in upright position by means of a tension coil spring 96, one end of which is anchored by a pin 97 to seat 12.
The opposite end of spring 96 is connected relative to a lower extension of knuckle link 91 which is formed as a generally U-shaped channel 98 having an upper flange 99 and a lower flange 100 joined by an adjusting screw 102. The latter is threaded through a mounting lug 103 which receives one end of spring 96.
Channel 98 is also shown in Fig. 5. Adjusting screw :1 i 3 3 37~ ~ ~
L02 is received through apertures formed in flanges 99 and 100, and a wing nut 104 is provided on the lower end of adjusting screw 102. The tension of the spring may be ad~usted by adjust-ing the position of mounting lug 103 along screw 102.
The tension of spring 96 exerts a very strong biasing i-orce on lower knuckle link 91 tending to pivot link 91 in a counterclockwise direction as shown in Fig. 1 about pivot 94 which will tend to maintain the knuckle links 90, 91 in extend-ed or unfolded position shown in Fig. 1. This position of the knuckle links is determined by a stop pin 106 fixed to the back-rest mounting link 85 to be engageable with a forward edge por-tion of lower knuckle link 91 as shown in Fig. 1. When the chair occupant exerts a sufficient force against backrest 80, the biasing force of spring 96 will be overcome to collapse or fold the knuckle joint at pivot 92 forwardly so that the knuckle links pivot relative to each other into the position shown in Fig. 2, thereby permitting the backrest to move into a reclined position. A number of different reclining positions may be achieved depending on the pressure exerted on the backrest 80, however, an ultimate reclining position is determined by stop 106 upon engagement with another forward edge portion of the knuckle link 91 as shown in Fig. 2. When the occupant releases back pressure on the backrest 80, spring 96 will pivot lower knuckle link 91 in a counterclockwise direction about pivot 94 to return the backrest towards normal or upright position shown in Fig. 1.
The extended position of the footrest 50 is achieved bv another stop 110 fixed to footrest mounting link 70 so as to be engageable with a lower edge portion of extension link 72 as shown in Fig. 2. Extension link 72 is provided with a recess 7Za for accommodating the stop 110 when the footrest linkage is in the retracted position shown in Fig. 1.
Although the preferred embodiment shown includes the 113;~374 novel backrest linkage described above, the recliner chair may be converted to a "one way" recliner chair by removing the backrest linkage shown and described, and by replacing it with a single backrest mounting link (not shown) which is rigidly ~ixed to the backrest 80 and which is also rigidly fixed to 1:he seat 12 so that the backrest 80 will be united with the seat 12 as one unit.
It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a recliner chair having a relatively simple linkage system for mounting and operating its moving parts and yet provides wall-avoiding action which permits the chair to be placed adjacent a wall without striking the wall when the chair is moved into reclining positions. Included herein is such a recliner chair including a footrest which may be moved between extended and retracted positions by means of an oper-ating handle and in which the footrest has a certain linkage associated with it that causes the seat of the chalr to move forwardly relative to the base into a comfortable reclining position which also provides the wall-avoiding action.
It is another primary object of the present inven-tion to provide a reclining chair which will achieve the above objects and yet, may be equipped with a backrest that is either rigidly fixed to the seat to move with the seat as a unit so as to provide a "one way" recliner chair or, in the alternative, may be mounted to the seat to move relative to the seat so as to provide a "three-way" recliner chair. A
"one-way" recliner chair as used herein is meant to define a recliner chair having a unitary seat, back and arm that always move together as a unit. Included herein is the pro-vision of a novel backrest linkage mechanism for mounting the backrest relative to the seat to permit the backrest to move rlelative to the seat into various reclining positions inde-p,endently of other linkage mechanism which mounts the seat relative to the base. Included herein is such a novel back-rlest mounting linkage which utilizes a spring for biasing the backrest into a normal reclining position.
According to one preferred embodiment of the inven-tion, a recliner chair has a seat mounted relative to an underlying fixed base by means of front and rear seat mount-ing links whose opposite ends are pivotally mounted relative 3337~ ) to the seat and the ~ase. A footrest has a footrest linkage mounted to the seat to be actuated by means of a manual con-~ - trol handle mounted on one side of the chair relative to the seat. Movement of the control handle in one direction extends the footrest linkage to project the footrest forwardly of the -chair for reclining, and movement of the handle in the oppo-site direction, retracts the footrest to a position extending generally vertically below the front of the seat. One of the :Links included in the footrest linkage is directly connected 1:o the front seat mounting link such that when the footrest is extended, the front seat mounting link will be actuated for-wardly to place the seat into a comfortable reclining position while, at the same time, moving the seat forwardly relative to the base to provide wall-avoiding action.
In the preferred embodiment, the backrest is mounted to the seat for movement relative to the seat between upright 2md reclining positions by ~eans of a novel backrest linkage ~ncluding a first backrest mounting link fixed to the backrest and a second backrest mounting link fixed to the seat and pivotally connected to the first backrest mounting link. A
h:nuckle linkage is provided between the backrest mounting ]inks; the knuckle linkage including a pair of short knuckle links pivotally mounted to the backrest mounting links, re-spectively, and also being pivotally interconnected to form a knuckle joint which, upon exerting pressure on the backrest, will collapse permitting the backrest to be moved into a num-ber of reclining positions relative to the seat.
One of the knuckle links has a depending spring mounting portion for mounting one end of a tension coil spring ~hose opposite end is anchored relative to the seat so as to bias the knuckle linkage in what may be termed an "extended position" biasing the backrest towards upright or normal posi-tion. When sufficient pressure is exerted on the backrest by the chair occupant, to overcome the biasing force of the spring, 37~
the knuckle links will fold pivoting relative to each other to permit the backrest to be moved to a desired reclining position against the bias of the spring. When backrest pressure is re-moved from the backrest by the chair occupant, such as by lean-ing forward in the chair, the pressure of the spring will return the backrest towards normal or upright position. Pref-erably, the mounting of the biasing spring to the lower knuckle link is achieved through an adjusting screw BO that the biasing force of the spring may be adjusted.
If it is desired to convert the chair into a "one-way"
recliner chair, that is, with the backrest rigidly fixed to the seat to move together with the seat as a unit at all times, the backrest mounting linkage may be removed and replaced by a single ~ackrest mounting link rigidly~ fixed to the backrest at one end ~nd rigidly fixed to the 6eat at the opposite end.
In accordance with a broad aspect, the convention relates to a recliner chair having a seat, a base, front and rear seat mounting links both pivotally connected to the base and both pivotally connected to the fieat to mount the seat for movement relative to the base between normal and reclining positions, a footrest, a footrest linkage mounting the footrest to the seat for movement between a retracted position adjacent the seat and an extended position projected forwardly from the seat, the footxest linkage including a footrest mounting link halving one end pivotally connected to the seat, and manual means for actuating the footrest linkage to move the footrest between the extended and retracted poSitiQns thereof, the manual actuating means including lin~age connected to the foot-rest linkage for operating the same between said positions thereof; the improvement comprising an extension of said frontseat mounting link projecting above the pivotal connection of ~_3_ :J ~3;~37~
the front seat mounting link to the seat, and a ~eat ac~uating link having one end portion pivotally connected to said foot-rest mounting link and having an opposite end portion pivot-ally connected to said extension of said front seat mounting link such that when the footrest is moved to the extended posi-tion, said seat actuating link will pivot said front mounting link about its pivotal connection to the base to move the seat forwardly relative to the base into an inclined position for-wardly of the base.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following more detailed descrip-t:ion of the drawings in which:
Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a chair embodying the present inv~ntion shown with the upholstery removed and with the assoicated linkage system ~n one side of the chair in an up-ri.ght or normal position;
Fig. 2 is a view generally similar to Fig. 1 except that the chair parts are shown in a fully ~eclined position, that is, with the footrest extended and with the backrest re-c]ined relative to the seat and with the se2t reclined and positioned forwardly relative to the base;
Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view of the basic chair parts when in the position corresponding to that shown in Fig. l;
Fig. 4 is a view ~imilar to Fig. 3 but showing the chair palrts in the position corresponding to that shown in Fig. 2;
and Fig. 5 i~ a detail view of one of a portion of a knuckle linkage utilized to mount a spring which biases the backrest _3a-13337~ ~
towards upright position.
Referring now to the drawings in detail, there i5 ` - shown for illustrative purposes only, a "three-way" reclining chair embodying the present invention and including a seat whose frame is only shown and which includes opposite side rails 12 which may be formed from any suitable material such as wood interconnected by front and rear rails 14 and 16 to define a generally rectangular frame. The armrests of the chair which, of course, will be upholstered together with the seat in the finished product, are represented by the armrest frames 18 which are fixed to the seat to move with the seat as a unit at all times.
Seat 12 is mounted relative to an underlying fixed base, which may be formed from a rectangular ~rame of metallic channel parts, or any other suitable structure. The base frame includes opposite side rails, one of which is shown at 20 in Fig. l. Mounting of the seat relative to the base is achieved by a "seat mounting linkage" including front and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24, respectively. Front and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24 are each pivotally connected to the seat and to the base and, in the shown embodiment, the connec-tion to the seat is achieved through a "seat link" 30 which is fixed to the seat 12 by means of horizontal flanges 34 and 32 which underlie the seat 12 and are secured thereto by means of screws 36 as shown in Fig. l. Front seat mounting link 22 is pivoted to seat link 30 by means of a pivot 42 and is pivoted to base 20 by means of a pivot 40. Rear seat mounting link 24 is pivoted to seat link 30 by means of a pivot 46 and is pivoted to base 20 by means of pivot 44. It will be seen from :~ig. l, that when the chair is in normal or upright position, the ~ront and rear seat mounting links 22 and 24 will extend Erom the base upwardly and slightly rearwardly in a generally parallel interrelationship.
T~ ir also typically inclu.!~S ~ foc)trest whose frame is shown at 50 which is mounted for movement between a retracted position where it extends downwardly at the front of the seat in generally vertical position as shown in Fig. 1, ~nd extended position where it is projected forwardly from the-.Eront of the seat in a horizontal elevated position as shown :in Fig. 2. Referring to Fig. 2, footrest 50 has an associated "footrest linkage" for mounting i~ to the seat and for extend-ing and retractin~ it relative to the seat. The footrest link-age includes a bracket 52 fixed to the rear side of footrest 50; ', and a pair of links 54 and 56 pivoted at one of their ends to bracket 52 by pivots 57 and 58 respectively.
The footrest linkage further includes a link 60 having one end pivotally connected by pivot 62 to one end of link 54 and having an intermediate portion pivotally connected by pivot 64 to an intermediate portion of link 56. Link 56 extends beyond link 60 where it is pivoted by pivot 72b to one end of what is termed a"~ootrest mounting link" 70 whose opposite end is pivoted by pivot 73 to the seat link 30. Link 70 is pivoted intermediate its ends to link 72 by pivot 70a. Link 60 is pivotally connected to the forward end of a "footrest exten-sion link" 72 by means of a pivot 74a. The opposite, rear end of footrest extension link 72 is pivotally connected to a foot-rest actuating crank 74 by means of a pivot 75. Footrest actuating crank is fixed to a torque tube 76 mounted in a passage in the seat link 30 so as to be rotatable by means of a manual control handle 77 which is positioned on one side of the chair. Torque tube 76-extends transversely of the chair under the seat; it being understood that the chair has a link-age system similar to the one disclosed on opposite sides of the chair, and the torque tube is mounted in the seat links 30 fixed to opposite side rails 12 of the seat.
When the chair is in the normal or upright position, the footrest is folded with the parts shown in Fig. 1. When 11;~3~
it is desired ~ :~ the footrest to the extended position shown in Fig. l to the forward position shown in Fig. 2 which - causes rotation of torque tube 76 which, in turn, rotates foot-rest actuating crank 74 to project footrest extension link 72 which causes unfolding of link 60 and actuation of the other links of the footrest linkage to place the footrest in a de-sired elevation and projected position relative to the seat as shown in Fig. 2. Return of the footrest to the retracted posi-tion shown in Fig. 1 is, of course, achieved by opposite rota-tion of manual handle 77.
The various linkage mechanisms described thus far maybe considered conventional or, at least, residing in the prior ~rt and themselves form no part of the present invention.
However, in accordance with one aspect of the present lnvention, footrest mounting link 70 is directly connected by a "seat actua~ing" link 78 to an upper portion 22a of the front seat mounting link 22 which projects beyond its pivoting 42 to seat link 30. Pivot 78a connects the forward end of actuating link 78 to a intermediate portion of footrest mounting link 70 adjacent pivot 73, while pivot 68b pivotally connects the rear end portion of actuating link 78 to the upper end portion 22a of front seat mounting link 22. It will thus be seen that when the footrest is extended to the position shown in Fig. 2, link 78 will be moved forwardly by footrest mounting link 70 to, in turn, cause front seat mounting link 22 to pivot forwardly a,bout pivot 40 to the base 20, thus causing the seat 12 to move forwardly relative to base 20 and into a reclined position with t]le front of seat 12 moving upwardly and forwardly and with the rear of seat 12 moving downwardly and forwardly relative to the base 20 and xelative to the horizontal may be seen by comparing Figc. 3 and 4 which correspond to Figs. 1 and 2, respectively.
en the footrest is moved from the extended to retracted posi-tlon by handle 77, it will be seen that the seat actuating link 7~ will cause front seat link 22 to pivot rearwardly about the ` ~3337~
pivot 40 to return the seat into the normal position shown in Figs. 1 and 3.
In accordance with the present invention, the back-rest 80 in the preferred embodiment is pivotally mounted to the seat to be movable relative to the seat between a normal posi-`
tion shown in Figs. 1 and 3 and a plurality of reclining posi- ' tions, the ultimate of which is shown in Figs. 2 and 4. This is achieved by a no~el backrest mounting linkage which includes a first backrest mounting link 82 having a generally L-shape and being fixed by screws 83 to backrest 80; and a second back-rest mounting link 85 being fixed by screws to seat 12. The second backrest mounting link 85 in the specific e~bodiment has a generally V-shape. The lower leg 84 of backrest mounting link 82 and the upper leg of the backrest mounting link 85 are pivotally interconnected by pivot 88.
In addition, backrest mounting links 82 and 85 are pivotally interconnected by what will be termed a "knuckle link-age", including a pair of short knuckle links 90 and 91 pivotal-ly connected to each other by pivot 92. Knuckle link 90 is pivotally connected by pivot 93 to a lower portion of backrest mounting link 82, while knuckle link 91 is pivotally mounted by pivot 94 to backrest mounting link 85.
Knuckle links 91 and 92 are biased into an extended or unfolded position shown in Fig. 1 for normally retaining the backrest in upright position by means of a tension coil spring 96, one end of which is anchored by a pin 97 to seat 12.
The opposite end of spring 96 is connected relative to a lower extension of knuckle link 91 which is formed as a generally U-shaped channel 98 having an upper flange 99 and a lower flange 100 joined by an adjusting screw 102. The latter is threaded through a mounting lug 103 which receives one end of spring 96.
Channel 98 is also shown in Fig. 5. Adjusting screw :1 i 3 3 37~ ~ ~
L02 is received through apertures formed in flanges 99 and 100, and a wing nut 104 is provided on the lower end of adjusting screw 102. The tension of the spring may be ad~usted by adjust-ing the position of mounting lug 103 along screw 102.
The tension of spring 96 exerts a very strong biasing i-orce on lower knuckle link 91 tending to pivot link 91 in a counterclockwise direction as shown in Fig. 1 about pivot 94 which will tend to maintain the knuckle links 90, 91 in extend-ed or unfolded position shown in Fig. 1. This position of the knuckle links is determined by a stop pin 106 fixed to the back-rest mounting link 85 to be engageable with a forward edge por-tion of lower knuckle link 91 as shown in Fig. 1. When the chair occupant exerts a sufficient force against backrest 80, the biasing force of spring 96 will be overcome to collapse or fold the knuckle joint at pivot 92 forwardly so that the knuckle links pivot relative to each other into the position shown in Fig. 2, thereby permitting the backrest to move into a reclined position. A number of different reclining positions may be achieved depending on the pressure exerted on the backrest 80, however, an ultimate reclining position is determined by stop 106 upon engagement with another forward edge portion of the knuckle link 91 as shown in Fig. 2. When the occupant releases back pressure on the backrest 80, spring 96 will pivot lower knuckle link 91 in a counterclockwise direction about pivot 94 to return the backrest towards normal or upright position shown in Fig. 1.
The extended position of the footrest 50 is achieved bv another stop 110 fixed to footrest mounting link 70 so as to be engageable with a lower edge portion of extension link 72 as shown in Fig. 2. Extension link 72 is provided with a recess 7Za for accommodating the stop 110 when the footrest linkage is in the retracted position shown in Fig. 1.
Although the preferred embodiment shown includes the 113;~374 novel backrest linkage described above, the recliner chair may be converted to a "one way" recliner chair by removing the backrest linkage shown and described, and by replacing it with a single backrest mounting link (not shown) which is rigidly ~ixed to the backrest 80 and which is also rigidly fixed to 1:he seat 12 so that the backrest 80 will be united with the seat 12 as one unit.
Claims (6)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINES FOLLOWS:
1. In a recliner chair having a seat, a base, front and rear seat mounting links both pivotally connected to the base and both pivotally connected to the seat to mount the seat for movement relative to the base between normal and reclining positions, a footrest, a footrest linkage mounting the footrest to the seat for movement between a retracted position adjacent the seat and an extended position projected forwardly from the seat, the footrest linkage including a footrest mounting link having one end pivotally connected to the seat, and manual means for actuating the footrest linkage to move the footrest between the extended and retracted positions thereof, the manual actuating means including linkage connected to the foot-rest linkage for operating the same between said positions thereof; the improvement comprising an extension of said front seat mounting link projecting above the pivotal connection of the front seat mounting link to the seat, and a seat actuating link having one end portion pivotally connected to said foot-rest mounting link and having an opposite end portion pivot-ally connected to said extension of said front seat mounting link such that when the footrest is moved to the extended posi-tion, said seat actuating link will pivot said front mounting link about its pivotal connection to the base to move the seat forwardly relative to the base into an inclined position for-wardly of the base.
2. The recliner chair defined in claim 1 wherein said seat actuating link is pivotally connected to said foot-rest mounting link adjacent the pivotal connection of the foot-rest mounting link to the seat.
3. The recliner chair defined in claim 1 wherein there is further included a backrest and backrest linkage means pivotally mounting the backrest to the seat for movement be-tween a generally upright position and a reclined position, said backrest linkage means including a first backrest link fixed to the backrest, a second backrest link fixed to the seat and pivotally connected to the first backrest link, a knuckle linkage interconnecting the first and second backrest links and movable between an extended position when the back-rest is in the generally upright position and a retracted folded position when the backrest is reclined relative to the seat, and spring means biasing the knuckle linkage into its extended position but permitting the knuckle linkage to be moved into said retracted position thereof when sufficient pressure is exerted against the backrest to move the backrest into a reclining position relative to the seat.
4. The chair defined in claim 3, further including stop means fixed to the seat and engageable with spaced por-tions of the knuckle linkage for defining extended and folded positions of the knuckle linkage.
5. The recliner chair defined in claim 4 wherein said knuckle linkage includes a first link pivotally connected to the first backrest link, a second link pivotally connected to the second backrest link, said first and second knuckle links being pivotally connected to each other.
6. The recliner chair defined in claim 5 wherein said second link of the knuckle linkage has a portion project-ing below the point of its pivotal connection to the seat and wherein said spring means is connected at one end to said last defined portion of the second link of the knuckle linkage.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA386,433A CA1133374A (en) | 1979-01-23 | 1981-09-22 | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US5,810 | 1979-01-23 | ||
| US06/005,810 US4226469A (en) | 1979-01-23 | 1979-01-23 | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action |
| CA000341287A CA1118675A (en) | 1979-01-23 | 1979-12-05 | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action |
| CA386,433A CA1133374A (en) | 1979-01-23 | 1981-09-22 | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1133374A true CA1133374A (en) | 1982-10-12 |
Family
ID=27166508
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA386,433A Expired CA1133374A (en) | 1979-01-23 | 1981-09-22 | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1133374A (en) |
-
1981
- 1981-09-22 CA CA386,433A patent/CA1133374A/en not_active Expired
Similar Documents
| Publication | Publication Date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| CA1118675A (en) | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action | |
| CA2053696C (en) | Chaise lounge recliner chair | |
| CA1301622C (en) | Mechanism for a reclining chair or a sofa module | |
| CA1040089A (en) | Reclining chair with secondary backrest | |
| US6135559A (en) | Seat back reclining mechanism adaptable to chairs with stationary or movable seats | |
| CA1086629A (en) | Recliner chair with compound linkages to maintain wall clearance of reclining backrest | |
| CA1241265A (en) | Footrest assembly for recliner chairs | |
| CA2817252C (en) | Linkage mechanism for a high-leg seating unit | |
| US5772278A (en) | Recliner chair having wall-avoiding linkage arrangement | |
| EP0790793B1 (en) | Dual leg rest assembly | |
| EP0638266B1 (en) | Dual leg rest assembly | |
| US4185869A (en) | Two-way wall-avoiding recliner chair | |
| US4895411A (en) | Shiftable carriage mechanism for incliner chair | |
| US5054850A (en) | Shiftable carriage mechanism for incliner chair | |
| US4332417A (en) | Reclining actuator for a recliner chair | |
| US4071276A (en) | Recliner chairs | |
| KR860000049A (en) | Recliner | |
| CA1133374A (en) | Recliner chair with wall-avoiding action | |
| US3147037A (en) | Head-rest mounting and actuating arrangement | |
| US3057658A (en) | Reclining chairs | |
| US3140893A (en) | Reclining chair and leg-rest control arrangement | |
| US2779391A (en) | Reclining chair | |
| US3004791A (en) | Reclining chairs | |
| US3065990A (en) | Reclining chair and leg-rest control arrangement | |
| AU742105B2 (en) | Seat back reclining mechanism for a chair |
Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKEX | Expiry |