GB2105185A

GB2105185A - Beds

Info

Publication number: GB2105185A
Application number: GB08124460A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Geoffrey Dorman
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1981-08-11
Filing date: 1981-08-11
Publication date: 1983-03-23
Also published as: GB2105185B

Abstract

A bed frame has side and end pieces, the end pieces 14 having arched upper edges and being joined to the side pieces 12 in the form of a rectangular frame. Stiffener members 18 and 19 extend respectively between the end their upper surfaces flush with the upper surfaces of the pieces. The stiffener members are arranged to cross each other in close contact with each other. A decking membrane 20 is arched over the end pieces and secured to the end and side pieces and to the end-to-end stiffener members which themselves are secured to the side-to- side stiffener members. The membrane is provided with ventilation holes 21 disposed above the side-to-side stiffener members. The preferred material is wood with securing done by glue and a glue joint between two surfaces has a recess in at least one surface to receive excess glue. A head board is fitted, being cranked so as to reduce the gap between the mattress and the length of the frame. The frame is designed to fit together with like frames and for this purpose is provided with fastening points comprising captive screwed bushes, one plain and one threaded. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Beds The present invention concerns beds especially for occasional use and is particularly concerned with improvements to and modifications of the bed described in my Patent 1596654.

To key requirements of an occasional bed are portability and the facility of saving space in storage by stowing a mattress and a bed frame in the minimal space; in my Patent 1596654, the mattress could be fully stored within the bed frame. There is a problem in providing adequate strength to the sleeping platform whilst keeping the bed light in weight and providing the maximum mattress storage space underneath. The present invention seeks to provide a lightweight bed structure which lends itself to the provision of the maximum uninterrupted storage space below it.

One aspect of the present invention provides a bed in which the bedframe has side and end pieces, the end pieces having arched upper edges, joined together in the form of a rectangular frame, transverse stiffener members joining the side pieces, and an upper sleeping platform decking membrane sec ured to the side and end pieces and to the stiffener members through intermediate spacers at intervals, the arrangement being such that the membrane assumes an arched shape due to the upper curvature of the end pieces but the spacers enable the stiffener members lying closely beneath the membrane to be flat or have a different curvature.

The spacers can be in the form of longitudinal stif fener members and all the stiffener members can be in the form of relatively thin laths received in slots in the upper edges ofthe pieces with the upper surfaces of the members flush with the upper edges of the pieces. The upper decking membrane can be for example 4 mm plywood which can be arched to give the barely perceptable curvature withoutdificulty in a comparatively light-duty press and glued in position.

The longitudinal stiffener members are secured to the membrane along their lengths and to the transverse members where they cross and this securing can also be done by gluing.

There is a problem in gluing especially in presses since the glue tends to be squeezed out from the joint leaving ugly glue showing and this leads to a ten dancy to starve the joints of glue to minimise the unsightly glue showing. Another aspect of the inven tion provides a glue joint between two substantially flat surfaces wherein at least one of the surfaces is recessed around at least some of its edges to provide a reservoir for surplus glue.

Modifications to the bed described in patent 1596654 also include the use side and end pieces of uniform thickness (e.g 20 mm. thick wood), cranking the head board forward to reduce the gap between the head ends ofthe bedframe and mattress resulting from the external dimensions of the bed frame being greater than the internal dimensions of the rectangu lar frame by twice the piece thickness (the transverse difference is not material but the longitudinal differ ence could otherwise let pillows fall into the gap between the head board and the mattress) and reducing the depth of the rectangular frame so as to have the modern sleeping height with stacked beds whilst still allowing some ground clearance.Despite the reduction in depth of the rectangular frame, there will be sufficient space to store a spare bed and its mattress stacked below a bed in use since two beds stacked bottom to bottom will contain enough space for one mattress and if a single bed or both beds are to be stored each bedframe may still largely envelop its mattress and with the use of retaining straps the bed frames complete with mattresses can be stored on end in a suitable article of furniture.

In use the bed of the present invention is surprisingly light and strong; a twelve stone man has jumped up and down on a sample bed without breakage. The curvature of the decking membrane is not noticable in use since the curvature is significantly less than the depression of a mattress by a sleeper and in any case the membrane yields with the weight of a sleeper. It is though that the strength of the structure stems largely from the membrane tending to flatten with the weight of a sleeper pushing the side pieces apart but this push is taken by tension in the transverse stiffener members which makes these members stiffer and better able to take the downward force on them through the longitudinal stiffener members.

The invention lends itselfto a modular construction whereby the basic bedframe can be used in various configurations such as bunk beds, divan beds and double beds by using bolted-on fitments. The robustness and convenience of fastening points used is another important aspect of the invention and is provided by having a bolt or machine screw engaging two pieces of wood together passing through a captive bush in the first piece and engaging a captive screwed bush in the other. To provide a spread loading between each bush and the surrounding wood, each bush is screwed into the wood so the area in contact is dictated by the thread height and the length of the thread engagement, this being more satisfactory than the conventional way of spreading the load by means of a washer. The bushes can have countersunk, cheese or other heads.

Ventilation holes can be provided in the membrane and conveniently these are concealed in the gap between the transverse members and the membrane since this avoids the risk of a child in a lower of two bunk beds prodding through the ventilation holes of a bed above him.

The present invention will now be described, by the way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief description of the drawings Figure 1 is a worms-eye view of a bedframe, Figure 2 is a section on line II - II of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a side view of the bed frame, Figure4 is an enlarged detail section on the line IV IV of Figure 1, Figure 5 is a section through a fastening point shown in Figure 4 on an enlarged scale, Figure 6 is a perspective view of a bunk bed leg, Figure 7is a schematicsectionthrough a ladderfor use with a bunk bed configuration, Figure 8 is a side view of a bunk bed configuration, Figure 9 is a view from the foot of a double bed configuration, Figure 10 is a part view from the head end of a divan bed, Figure 1 7 is a part side view of the head end of a divan bed, and Figure 12 is a schematic perspective view of a divan bed leg.

A basic bedframe is shown in Figures 1 to 3 and is about one metre wide and two metres long. It comprises 20 mm. thick wood side pieces 12 and end pieces 14 joined as by gluing to form a rectanguar side frame. The upper edges of the side pieces are substantially straight and those of the end pieces are arched with a rise of, say, 9mm in the centre ofthe one metre span with a substantially uniform curvature but all the upper edges are provided with slots 15; the rise is shown at 17 in Figure 2. The slots in the end pieces receive longitudinal stiffener members 18 and those in the side pieces transverse stiffener members 19, the upper surfaces of which are flush with the upper edges. The thicknesses of the longitudinal stiffener members are graded so that the lower surfaces of these members lie substantially in a common plane.

The stiffener members are in the form of relatively thin wood laths and are secured as by gluing to the pieces and to each other where they cross. Three evenly spaced longitudinal stiffener members are normally sufficient but more could be used if desired.

In the same way eight transverse stiffener members which are preferably more widely spaced at the head and foot ends than in the mid length positions are generally satisfactory but there is no special merit in precisely eight. An upper decking membrane or sleeping platform 20 of, say 4 mm plywood is attached for example by pinning and/or gluing to the side and end pieces and to the longitudinal stiffener members; this membrane has through ventilation holes 21 disposed to lie behind the transverse stiffener members. Foam padding 22 is secured on top of the sleeping platform membrane by say gluing and is covered by a fabric 23 held by means of beading 24 on the under edges of the pieces which under edges lie in a common plane. On both the side pieces and both the end pieces there are fastening points which will be described later with special reference to Figure 5.

Figure 4 shows schematically on a large scale a preferred bond between two pieces to be glued together for example a longitudinal stiffener member 18 and the membrane 20. A recess 27 in the form of a longitudinal groove is provided one each edge of the member 18 so when glue smeared on the land between the recesses is squeezed any surplus will be retained within the reservoir provided by the grooves.

The fastening points 26 are disposed along the side pieces with five at 375 mm spacing disposed symmetrically about the centre and another at 195 mm from each end one of the line of five and about 35 mm from the ends of the bedframe. Each end of the bed has similar fastening points at each side spaced 55mm and 125 mm from the sides of the bed. Each fastening point comprises an internally and exter nallythreaded bush 28 with the external thread being in the form of a cheesehead or flanged headed wood screw which is pushed through the fabric 23 into a pre-drilled or counter-bored hole 29 trapping the fabric under the flanged head as shown in Figure 5.

Whilst it would be possible to use hammer drive external threading, it is thought that a conventional screw pitch would give a firmer anchorage less likely to develop play with wear since the loading on the wood would be taken on a larger surface area. The internal thread would be suitable to receive a machine screw 30 which would pass with clearance through a bush 31 which would be externally threaded and engaged with a fitment to be attached to the fastening point.

Figures 6 to 12 show some of the many fitments and configurations possible. A bunk bed leg is shown in Figure 6 comprising an L-section pillar 33 with bushes 31 in each web at locationsto provide support for a lower frame and an upper frame at convenient heights (100 below the lower frame will permit vacuum cleaning and 70 mm. is sufficient to provide toe clearance) as shown in Figure 8. To gain access to the top berth in a double bunk configuration, a ladder as shown in Figure 7 is provided. This ladder has two pillars 34 bolted to the top and bottom frames to fastening points at 375 mm spacing. Steps 35 are hinged attheirtop end about pivots 36 sliding in slots in the pillars 34 and are provided with a peg 37 which can be engaged with a hole 38 in a crosspiece 39 joining the pillars 34 to hold the steps up and free to remain flat against the bed.The uprights not only provide a strong mounting for the steps but also provide a strong grip to help climing the steps. The pillars 33 and 34 extend above the upper frame and where they project above the upper frame have metal channels 40 recessed in them to receive boards 41 to stop a sleeper in the upper berth rolling out. Figure 12 shows a divan bed leg for the foot of a divan bed. This comprises an L piece 42 for extending around a corner of the bedframe and thus protecting that corner from damage and an upright 43 carried perpendicularly on the longer leg of the L-piece.The L-piece has one bush 31 and the upright two spaced symmetrically aboutthe midheightofthe upright by a distance equal to the depth of a bedframe below the fastening points with the L-piece being arranged so that its one bush is level with one bush in the upright.

In addition to the bushes the upright has two large holes 44, one at each end, to act as lifting points. The upright projects below a bedframe to act as a leg as shown in Figure 9 and above to act as a mattress stop.

The upright would normally be used with the L-piece towardsthetop end with a pairoflegs bolted on each both to a side piece and to the foot end piece of a bedframe with a large clearance between the bedframe and the floor which clearance can be used for storing a spare bed frame and its mattress. The uprights could, and preferably are, inverted and bolted to the inverted spare bed frame into which the mattress of the spare bed can then be placed along with other spare parts and then the bed frame in use would be supported on the spare bed frame and possibly bolted to the two uprights. The arrangement of the uprights some little way in from the edges of the bed avoids people stubbing their toes when passing too close to the corner of the bed.To form a double bed as shown in Figure 9 two single beds are joined side-by-side with either a beam (not shown) between the outside divan legs or with a modified divan leg 45 supporting the join. Legs for a divan bed head are shown in Figures 10 and 11. These are plain uprights 46 which project above the bedframe by rather more than the uprights 43. A head board 47 is secured to these uprights 46 through the intermediary of a wedge shaped block 48 bolted to each upright which is attached to a block 49 alongside attached to the head board (this arrangement is basically to facilitate using a head board on especially a lower bunkwhere the legs are closer to the corner and will fit outside rather than inside the blocks 49).The head board is angled in as shown in Figure 11 so as to reduce the sleeping platform area by an amount equal to the combined thickness of the end pieces.

Other configurations are of course possible by bolting together configurations already described so as to form for example a nest of four bunk beds or by using special fitments for example to form a three tier bunk, to form a play house in lieu of a lower bunk, to convert the lower bunk into a storage cupboard, to convert a bunk configuration into a climbing frame or into a four-poster bed, orto convert a bunk bed configuration into a play thing for example by the attachment of a slide.

In one particularly space saving configuration, the bed frame used in a divan mode does not have legs at the head end but the head board if used and the fastening points 220 mm from the head end are supported either by wall brackets or by a pair of bed side cupboards with the fastening points acting as pivots.

In this mode, the bedframe with the mattress and bedding secured to it by straps can be swung about the fastening points and storedflatagainsta wall (for stability the bedframe will actually lean in slightly to the wall).

CLAIMS (Filed 5 Aug 82) 1. A bed in which the bed frame has side and end pieces, the end pieces having arched upper edges, joined together in the form of a rectangular frame, transverse stiffener members joining the side pieces, and an upper sleeping platform decking membrane secured to the side and end pieces and to the stiffener members through intermediate spacers at intervals, the arrangement being such that the membrane assumed an arched shape due to the upper curvature of the end pieces but the spacers enable the stiffener members lying closely beneath the membrane to be flat or have a different curvature.

2. A bed according to claim 1 wherein the spacers are in the form of longitudinal stiffener members extending between the end pieces and secured to the membrane.

3. A bed according to claim 2 wherein the membrane is of plywood and the stiffener members are in the form of wood laths received in slots in the upper edges of the pieces which are of wood, the upper edges of the laths being substantially flush with the upper edges of the pieces.

4. A bed according to claim 3 wherein the longitudinal stiffener members are of graded thicknesses, each being of uniform thickness along its length but the thickness being such as to occupy the space between the transverse stiffener members and the membrane.

5. A bed according to any preceding claim wherein a mattress has a plan area such that it can be received between the pieces belowthe membrane for storage and wherein a head board is attached to the frame so as to overlie the frame.

6. A bed according to claim 5 wherein the head board is cranked so asto lie atan angleto the vertical.

7. A bed according to any preceding claim wherein the membrane has ventilation holes with the transverse stiffener members disposed below the holes.

8. A bed according to anyone of the preceding claims adapted for use in modular construction giving alternative sleeping arrangements in which the frame side pieces at least are provided with fastening .points.

9. Afastening point for use in a bed frame according to claim 8 comprising a threaded bush screwed into one piece and having an internal tapped thread and a second threaded bush screwed into another piece on a different bed having an unthreaded internal bore which is a clearance fit for a bolt screwed into the internal bore of the first mentioned threaded bush.

10. A bed according to claim 8 having at least one leg secured to it by means of the fastening points, the leg comprising an L-piece for extending around the corner of a foot of the bed with an upright carried at the end of the longer leg of the L-piece.

11. A bed according to claim 8 having two bed frames spaced apart vertically in the manner of a bunk bed with a ladder for access to the top frame hinged at its upper end to two pillars by means of pin and slot joints and with a locking means to hold the ladder vertical when the bed is not in use.

12. Agluejoint between two substantially flat surfaces wherein at least on of the surfaces is recessed around at least some of its edges to provide a reservoir for surplus glue.

13. A bed substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings.

14. A bed according to claim 13 as modified with reference to any other of the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. bed avoids people stubbing their toes when passing too close to the corner of the bed. To form a double bed as shown in Figure 9 two single beds are joined side-by-side with either a beam (not shown) between the outside divan legs or with a modified divan leg 45 supporting the join. Legs for a divan bed head are shown in Figures 10 and 11. These are plain uprights 46 which project above the bedframe by rather more than the uprights 43.A head board 47 is secured to these uprights 46 through the intermediary of a wedge shaped block 48 bolted to each upright which is attached to a block 49 alongside attached to the head board (this arrangement is basically to facilitate using a head board on especially a lower bunkwhere the legs are closer to the corner and will fit outside rather than inside the blocks 49). The head board is angled in as shown in Figure 11 so as to reduce the sleeping platform area by an amount equal to the combined thickness of the end pieces. Other configurations are of course possible by bolting together configurations already described so as to form for example a nest of four bunk beds or by using special fitments for example to form a three tier bunk, to form a play house in lieu of a lower bunk, to convert the lower bunk into a storage cupboard, to convert a bunk configuration into a climbing frame or into a four-poster bed, orto convert a bunk bed configuration into a play thing for example by the attachment of a slide. In one particularly space saving configuration, the bed frame used in a divan mode does not have legs at the head end but the head board if used and the fastening points 220 mm from the head end are supported either by wall brackets or by a pair of bed side cupboards with the fastening points acting as pivots. In this mode, the bedframe with the mattress and bedding secured to it by straps can be swung about the fastening points and storedflatagainsta wall (for stability the bedframe will actually lean in slightly to the wall). CLAIMS (Filed 5 Aug 82)

1. A bed in which the bed frame has side and end pieces, the end pieces having arched upper edges, joined together in the form of a rectangular frame, transverse stiffener members joining the side pieces, and an upper sleeping platform decking membrane secured to the side and end pieces and to the stiffener members through intermediate spacers at intervals, the arrangement being such that the membrane assumed an arched shape due to the upper curvature of the end pieces but the spacers enable the stiffener members lying closely beneath the membrane to be flat or have a different curvature.