JP2009112395A - Bearing member, bearing device and chair using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bearing member which prevents thickness from fluctuating even in the case of being inserted into the outer cylinder, a bearing device, and a chair using the same. <P>SOLUTION: The bearing member 16 arranged between the outer cylinder 9 and a shaft member 11 fitted into the same is made as a substantially circular shape as a whole by connecting a plurality of thick-walled portions 17a directed in a longitudinal direction by flexible thin-walled portions 17b with each others. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bearing member, and a bearing device and a chair using the same.

For example, in a chair equipped with a seat height adjustment mechanism, a height adjustment column (cylinder body) made of a gas spring or the like is slidably fitted in the axial direction in an outer cylinder (outer cylinder) of the pedestal. In addition, the seat body is supported by the upper end portion of the height adjusting column that protrudes upward from the upper end of the outer tube, and the height adjusting column can slide smoothly between the outer tube and the height adjusting column. Some of them are provided with a bearing member (support member) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2003-33248 (FIG. 6)

However, in the case where the bearing member is press-fitted into the outer cylinder, as described in Patent Document 1, the diameter of the bearing member is reduced by the press-fitting, and the fitting with the height adjusting column is tight. There is.
Since the degree of diameter reduction of this bearing member varies depending on the material and thickness of the bearing member, the difference between the inner diameter of the outer cylinder before press-fitting and the outer diameter of the bearing member, etc., it is difficult to accurately grasp in advance.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a bearing member whose thickness does not fluctuate even if it is press-fitted into an outer cylinder, and a bearing device and a chair using the same, in view of the above-described problems of the conventional technology. The purpose is that.

According to the present invention, the above problem is solved as follows.
(1) In a bearing member provided between an outer cylinder and a shaft member fitted therein, a plurality of thick portions facing in the longitudinal direction are connected to each other with a flexible thin portion. Therefore, the overall shape is almost circular.

  (2) In the above item (1), the outer surface of the thick portion is shaped to complement the inner surface of the exterior cylinder, and the inner surface of the thick portion is shaped to complement the outer surface of the shaft member.

  (3) In the above item (1) or (2), the cross-sectional shape of the thin portion is an arc shape in which the convex portion faces outward, and the concave portion is formed inside the thin portion.

  (4) In any one of the above items (1) to (3), the inner surface of each thick portion is a flat surface, and the entire inner surface is a substantially regular polygon.

  (5) In the bearing device, the bearing member according to any one of the above items (1) to (4) is provided between the outer cylinder and the shaft member fitted therein.

  (6) In the chair, between the outer cylinder in the pedestal and the height adjustment column that supports the seat at the upper end and is slidably fitted from the upper end of the outer cylinder (1) The bearing member according to any of items (4) to (4) is provided.

  (7) In the above item (6), the height adjustment strut is formed into a regular polygon, and the inner surface of each thick-walled portion of the bearing member is a plane that is in sliding contact with each flat surface on the outer periphery of the height adjustment strut. To prevent the height adjustment column from rotating.

According to the present invention, the following effects can be achieved.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the bearing member is press-fitted into the outer cylinder, the thin portion is elastically deformed, and the bearing member is reduced in diameter as a whole, but the thickness of the thick portion varies. Therefore, it is possible to accurately predict the inner shape of the bearing member after press fitting.
Therefore, the fitting when the shaft member is fitted in the bearing member does not become tight.
In addition, since the thin-walled portion is elastically deformed, demolding is smoothly performed at the time of molding the bearing member, so that it is not necessary to provide a drawing taper for facilitating demolding as in the past, Therefore, the inner surface of the bearing member can be formed straight, and rattling with the shaft member fitted therein can be prevented.

  According to the invention of claim 2, the close contact between the outer cylinder and the bearing member and between the bearing member and the shaft member is improved, the stress is not concentrated locally, and the durability is increased. Thus, the shaft member can slide smoothly.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, when the bearing member is press-fitted into the outer cylinder, the thin-walled portion is easily elastically deformed, and the inner surface of the bearing member is provided with a concave portion that becomes a gap that does not contact the outer peripheral surface of the shaft member. It can be intermittently formed in the circumferential direction, and the shaft member can slide smoothly with respect to the bearing member.

According to the invention of claim 4, when the shaft member has a circular cross section, the outer peripheral surface of the shaft member is in line contact with the inner surface of each thick portion, and the shaft member is smoothly in the axial direction with respect to the bearing member. While being able to slide, it can rotate smoothly.
Further, when the shaft member is a polygon in which each surface is in surface contact with the inner surface of each thick portion of the bearing member, the shaft member can smoothly slide in the axial direction with respect to the bearing member. The rotation is stopped.

  According to the invention of claim 5, the fitting tolerance of the shaft member with respect to the bearing member can be accurately determined, and the shaft member can be smoothly slid with respect to the outer cylinder, and the structure is simple. Can provide a simple bearing device.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the fitting tolerance of the height adjusting column with respect to the bearing member can be accurately determined, and the height adjusting column can smoothly slide with respect to the outer cylinder of the leg column. Thus, a chair with a simple structure can be provided.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the height adjusting column can slide smoothly in the vertical direction without rotating with respect to the outer cylinder, and the orientation of the seat body is not changed. A chair can be provided.
Moreover, since the height adjustment support | pillar has comprised the regular polygon, the beauty | look of a chair can be improved.

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a bearing member provided between an outer cylinder of a pedestal in a chair and a height adjusting column will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, this chair has a pedestal 2 that is a front leg that tilts backward with a seat 1 attached to the upper end and the lower end is in contact with the floor, and an intermediate portion of the pedestal 2. Alternatively, a pair of left and right rear legs 3, 3 whose upper end is fixed to the upper part and which expands in the left-right direction toward the rear in plan view and is inclined toward the rear lower part, so that the lower end contacts the floor. It has.

  In this example, each rear leg 3 is provided with a pair of upper and lower leg rods 4 and 5 which are attached to two places where the upper ends are spaced apart in the vertical direction on the pedestal 2 and whose lower ends are coupled to each other.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the forward tilt angle θ1 of the rear leg 3 is larger than the rear tilt angle θ2 of the pedestal 2 so that it does not easily fall backward.

  Synthetic resin floor contact members 6 and 7 are fitted to the lower ends of the pedestals 2 and the rear legs 3 from below.

The pedestal 2 includes a height adjustment mechanism 8 that can adjust the height of the seat body 1 by expanding and contracting, and the height adjustment range of the seat body 1 by the height adjustment mechanism 8 is as follows. As shown by an imaginary line in FIG. 3, when the seat body 1 is lowest, the seat body 1 is located behind the lower end of the pedestal 2, and as shown by a solid line in FIG. When it does, it restrict | limits so that the seat 1 may be located ahead from the lower end of the rear legs 3 and 3. FIG.
As a result, this chair is always stable no matter how the height of the seat 1 is changed, so that it does not fall down in any of the front-rear and left-right directions. In addition, the left-right falling is prevented by the left and right rear legs 3, 3 extending so as to expand in the left-right direction toward the rear from the pedestal 2.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the pedestal 2 includes a cylindrical outer cylinder 9 and a gas spring 10 that constitutes a height adjusting mechanism 8.
The gas spring 10 includes a gas cylinder that functions as a height adjustment column 11 and a piston rod 12 that can be advanced and retracted from one end thereof, and pushes a push button 13 provided at the other end of the gas cylinder, that is, the height adjustment column 11. Only when the piston rod 12 is moving, the piston rod 12 can freely advance and retreat, and is biased in the advancing direction by the gas pressure inside the gas cylinder, and when the push button 13 is located at the protruding position, the piston rod 12 It is a publicly known device that cannot advance or retreat.

  The gas spring 10 has a front end portion of a piston rod 12 fixed to a center of an end plate 14 that closes a lower end portion of the outer cylinder 9 with a bolt and a nut 15, and a height adjusting column 11 is attached to the outer cylinder 9. A bearing member 16 fitted from the upper end of the outer cylinder 9 is slidable in the axial direction, and is assembled to the outer cylinder 9 so as to protrude coaxially from the upper end of the outer cylinder 9.

  The cross-sectional shape of the outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11 is a regular hexagon (or may be a non-circular shape including other polygons), and the upper end has a maximum diameter smaller than the inscribed circle of the regular hexagon. A taper taper portion 11a is continuously provided, and the push button 13 is provided on the tip surface of the taper taper portion 11a.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the bearing member 16 is continuous with the cylindrical portion 17 facing in the vertical direction, the enlarged diameter flange portion 18 provided at the upper end of the cylindrical portion 17, and the lower surface of the enlarged diameter flange portion 18. In addition, a rotation-preventing convex portion 19 that protrudes from the front and rear portions of the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 17 is provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the cylindrical portion 17 is formed by connecting a plurality of (six in this example) thick portions 17a facing in the longitudinal direction to each other with flexible thin portions 17b. The overall shape is almost circular.

The outer surface of the thick portion 17a is formed in an arc shape that complements the inner surface of the outer cylinder 9, and the inner surface of the thick portion 17a complements the outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11 that is a shaft member. That is, it is a plane that is complementary to the plane of the regular hexagonal straight line portion of the outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11.
When there is no need to prevent the height adjusting column 11 from rotating, the outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11 may be circular, and the inner surface of the thick portion 17a may be an arc shape that complements it.

  The cross-sectional shape of the thin portion 17b is an arc shape with the convex portion facing outward, and a concave portion is formed inside the thin portion 17b.

  The bearing member 16 has a diameter-expanded flange portion 18 that abuts on the upper end of the outer cylinder 9 and a convex portion 19 that fits into square notches 20 formed at the front and rear edges of the upper end of the outer cylinder 9. Then, the cylinder portion 17 is fitted into the upper end portion of the exterior cylinder 9 by being press-fitted into the exterior cylinder 9.

When the cylindrical portion 17 is press-fitted into the outer cylinder 9, the thin portion 17b is elastically deformed, and the cylindrical portion 17 is reduced in diameter as a whole, but the thickness of the thick portion 17b does not vary, so that the bearing The shape of the inner surface of the member 16 after press-fitting can be accurately predicted.
Therefore, the fitting when the height adjusting column 11 is fitted in the bearing member 16 is not tight.

  Further, when the height adjustment column 11 is fitted into the bearing member 16, each regular hexagonal corner portion of the outer periphery of the height adjustment column 11 is loosely fitted into the recess inside the thin portion 17 b of the bearing member 16, Since the regular hexagonal straight portion does not come into contact with the inner surface of the bearing member 16 and only comes into sliding contact with the inner surface of the thick wall portion 17a, the height adjustment support column does not concentrate stress on each corner of the regular hexagon. 11 can smoothly slide in the axial direction in the bearing member 16 while being prevented from rotating.

  In order to prevent the bearing member 16 from coming out of the outer cylinder 9, the bearing member 16 may be screwed (not shown) to the outer cylinder 9 as necessary.

As shown in FIG. 5, a seat mounting member 21 that supports the seat body 1 is attached to the upper end portion of the height adjustment column 11 that protrudes upward from the bearing member 16.
The seat mounting member 21 includes a substantially horizontal base plate part 22, a cylinder part 23 extending from the substantially center of the lower surface thereof to the front and lower side with the same rearward tilt angle as that of the pedestal 2, and the base board part 22. A handle 24 for carrying the chair that extends rearward and downward from the rear end, and protrudes upward at the four corners of the upper surface of the substrate portion 22, and supports the seat body 1 at the upper end, whereby the substrate portion 22 and the seat body 1 And four protrusions 25 that are spaced apart in the vertical direction.

A rectangular recess 26 is provided in the center of the upper surface of the substrate portion 22, and a groove 27 having a substantially U-shaped cross section is provided on the upper surface of the substrate portion 22 so as to cross the front portion of the recess 26 in the left-right direction. It has been.
Further, from the lower end of the cylindrical portion 22 to the bottom surface of the concave portion 26, a hexagonal hole (non-circular hole) 28 complementary to the hexagonal outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11 and a tapered taper portion 11a of the height adjusting column 11 are provided. A taper hole 29 having the same taper as that of the taper and expanding downward is continuously provided.

Thus, the seat mounting member 21 is attached to the height adjustment column 11 by fitting the hexagonal outer peripheral portion of the height adjustment column 11 into the hexagonal hole 28 and fitting the tapered portion 11 a into the taper hole 29. It is attached with being prevented from rotating.
In a normal use state or carrying state, the seat mounting member 21 is not detached from the height adjusting column 11 only by fitting the tapered portion 11a and the tapered hole 29. It is clear from the relationship between the base and the leg.

  Therefore, the seat mounting member 21 can be mounted simply by fitting the hexagonal outer peripheral portion of the height adjusting column 11 into the hexagonal hole 28 provided in the seat mounting member 21 and fitting the tapered portion 11a into the tapered hole 29. In addition, it can be easily attached to the upper end portion of the height adjustment column 11 while being accurately and reliably positioned and rotationally stopped, and the seat mounting member 21 can be removed from the upper end portion of the height adjustment column 11. .

  In addition, the hexagonal hole 28 and the taper hole 29 may be directly provided in the seat body 1, and the seat body 1 may be directly attached to the height adjustment column 11 without using the seat attachment member 21.

  When the seat attachment member 21 is attached to the upper end portion of the height adjustment column 11, the tip of the taper taper portion 11 a and the push button 13 are located in the recess 26 of the seat attachment member 21, The push button 13 is pushed by the operation piece 31 welded to the central portion of the operation shaft 30 facing the direction.

  The operation shaft 30 has a pair of left and right bearing members 32, 32 fitted in the concave groove 27, and is pivotally supported by the seat mounting member 21, and has both end portions protruding to both sides of the seat mounting member 21. The push button 13 can be pushed by the operating piece 31 by turning upward one of the handle portions 30a, 30a formed by bending forward.

  As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, each bearing member 32 squeezes the operating shaft 30 at the lower end of a flexible U-shaped squeeze piece 33 and squeezes in that state. After fitting the piece 33 into the concave groove 27 from above, a pair of attachment pieces 34, 34 connected to the upper end of the rubbing piece 33 are brought into contact with the upper surface of the board portion 22 and screwed. Thus, the seat mounting member 21 is easily and reliably attached.

  The seat body 1 is a known structure having a horizontal rectangular shape in a plan view in which a cushioning material is superimposed on an upper surface of a seat plate that is substantially horizontal and has a front portion slightly tilted downward and covered with a skin material (detailed illustration thereof). The seat mounting member 21 is mounted on the four projections 25 of the seat mounting member 21 with bolts (not shown) passing through the projections 25. It is fixed to.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, the handle 24 in the seat mounting member 21 has an arc shape in plan view, and the rear end thereof is substantially aligned with the rear end of the seat body 1 in the vertical direction, or Therefore, the handle 24 is not likely to collide with other objects, and the aesthetic appearance can be enhanced.

  In addition, since the handle 24 is formed integrally with the seat mounting member 21, the number of parts is not increased, and the chair can be carried stably by placing a hand on the handle 24 from below. .

  Further, since the handle 24 is disposed below the seat body 1, the handle 24 does not affect the seating feeling, and the swinging of the chair during carrying can be reduced. Sometimes, it is possible to prevent a chair leg or the like from colliding with another object.

As is clear from the above, in this embodiment, in the bearing member 16 provided between the exterior cylinder 9 and the height adjusting column 11 which is a shaft member fitted therein, a plurality of members facing the longitudinal direction are provided. By connecting the thick portions 17a to each other with a flexible thin portion 17b, the overall thickness is almost circular. Therefore, when the height adjusting column 11 is press-fitted into the outer tube 9, the thin portion 17b The bearing member 16 is elastically deformed, and the diameter of the bearing member 16 is reduced as a whole. However, the thickness of the thick portion 17a does not vary, and the shape of the inner surface of the bearing member 16 after press-fitting can be accurately predicted.
Therefore, the fitting when the height adjusting column 11 is fitted in the bearing member 16 does not become tight.

  Further, since the thin wall portion 17b is elastically deformed, the demolding is performed smoothly when the bearing member 16 is molded. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a draft taper for facilitating the demolding as in the prior art. Therefore, the inner surface of the bearing member 16 can be formed straight, and rattling with the height adjusting column 11 that is a shaft member fitted therein can be prevented.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be implemented in various modified forms.
For example, the bearing member 16 may be left as in the above embodiment, and only the outer peripheral surface of the height adjusting column 11 that is a shaft member may be circular. In this case, the outer peripheral surface of the height adjustment column 11 is in line contact with the inner surface of each thick portion 17a, and the height adjustment column 11 can slide smoothly in the axial direction with respect to the bearing member 16. It can also be rotated smoothly.

  The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be applied to any bearing member provided between a cylinder and a shaft member fitted therein, and the cylinder and its The present invention can also be applied to any bearing device including a shaft member fitted inside and the bearing member provided therebetween.

It is the perspective view which looked at the chair provided with one embodiment of the present invention from the slanting back. Similarly, it is a front view. Similarly, it is a side view. Similarly, it is a center vertical side view of the pedestal. Similarly, it is a center longitudinal cross-sectional side view of the attachment part of a pedestal and a seat. Similarly, it is the perspective view seen from diagonally backward in the state which removed the seat. Similarly, it is a perspective view of a bearing member. Similarly, it is a cross-sectional plan view of the cylindrical portion of the bearing member.

Explanation of symbols

1 Seat 2 Pillar (front leg)
3 Rear legs 4, 5 Leg rod 6, 7 Floor contact member 8 Height adjustment mechanism 9 Exterior cylinder 10 Gas spring 11 Height adjustment support (cylinder, shaft member)
11a Tapered taper portion 12 Piston rod 13 Push button 14 End plate 15 Bolt / nut 16 Bearing member 17 Tube portion 17a Thick portion 17b Thin portion 18 Expanded flange portion 19 Convex portion 20 Notch 21 Seat mounting member 22 Substrate portion 23 Tube Portion 24 Handle 25 Protrusion 26 Recess 27 Recess groove 28 Hexagonal hole (Non-circular hole)
29 Tapered hole 30 Operating shaft 31 Actuating piece 32 Bearing member 33 Gripping piece 34 Mounting piece

Claims (7)

A bearing member provided between the outer cylinder and a shaft member fitted therein,
A bearing member having a substantially circular shape as a whole by connecting a plurality of thick portions facing in the longitudinal direction to each other with flexible thin portions.   The bearing member according to claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the thick portion has a shape that complements the inner surface of the outer cylinder, and the inner surface of the thick portion has a shape that complements the outer surface of the shaft member.   The bearing member according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a cross-sectional shape of the thin portion is an arc shape in which the convex portion faces outward, and a concave portion is formed inside the thin portion.   The bearing member according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an inner surface of each thick portion is a flat surface, and the entire inner surface is a substantially regular polygon.   A bearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the bearing member according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is provided between the outer cylinder and a shaft member fitted therein.   The space between the outer cylinder in the pedestal and the height adjustment column that supports the seat at the upper end and is slidably fitted from the upper end of the outer cylinder. A chair provided with a bearing member.   The height adjustment strut is prevented from rotating by making the outer shape of the height adjustment strut a regular polygon, and by making the inner surface of each thick part of the bearing member into a plane that is in sliding contact with each flat surface of the outer periphery of the height adjustment strut The chair according to claim 6.

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