US1895541A - Folding couch - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 31, 1933. A. CRONENBERG FOLDING COUCH Original Filed May 6, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet In l en Z 071 466e, Crone/16c Jan. 31, 1933 A, CRQNENBERG 1,895,541

FOLDING COUCH Original Filed May 6, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Jan. 31, 1933 UNHTED STATES PATENT OFFECE ABBEY ORONENBERG, OF TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO NATHAN PHILLIPS, OF TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA FOLDING COUCH Application filed May 6, 1931, Serial N0. 535,418. Renewed December 14, 1932.

The principal objects of this invention are, to provide a couch or lounge which will be extremely comfortable and which will be readily convertable into a double bed, afford- 5 ing ample sleeping accommodation, but which when in couch form will occupy the minimum amount of space.

A further object is to devise a form of structure which may be manufactured at extremely low cost but will be strong and durable and will be very easily operated in opening it out to the bed form or folding it back to the couch form.

A further object is to provide a frame structure which will while being utilized as a couch afford storage accommodation for the necessary bedding being concealed in a position clear of the floor so that the couch may be readily moved about and will permit sweep- 0 ing or dusting underneath the same.

The principal features of the invention consist in the novel construction and arrangement of a pair of frame sections hinged together and supported upon rigid end members and adapted to be folded one beneath the other and to be swung outwardly providing a bed structure free from interference of longitudinal supports in its width.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 0 is a perspective view of my improved couch frame showing it in the folded position.

Figure 2 is a cross sectional view, of the structure in the position shown in Figure 1.

Figure 8 is a cross sectional view showing the bed frame sections reversed from the position shown in Figure 2.

Figure at is a cross sectional view showing the parts in the reverse position as in Figure 3 with the upper member raised to uncover the bedding contained in the storage holder.

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view showing the frames being swung into the open posi tion.

Figure 6 is a cross sectional View showing the frames in the open position presenting a double bed structure.

Numerous forms of metal bed frames have been made to provide comfortable bed structures, but most of these are found to be too complicated to enable their being produced at sufficiently low cost to meet a popular demand and many of the structures are of such a nature that they easily get out of order and will not fold and unfold properly. F urther, many others do not provide a proper accommodation for the storage of bedding.

In the structure herein shown the end frames 1 are formed of lengths of angle iron bent into an inverted U shape and form the of angle steel is secured to the top bar of each of the end frames centrally thereof and a bolt 6 extends through said bracket and the flange of the top bar 7 of the end frame and these form pivot supports at each end of the frame for the couch frame.

The upper couch frame is formed of a pair of angle bars 8 which are pivoted midway of their length upon the bolts 6 and are connected at one end by a longitudinal angle bar 9.

An angle bar 10 having right angularly bent ends 11 has said ends rigidly secured to the vertical flanges of the end bars 8 ad jacent to the ends opposite those to which the bars 9 are secured.

It will be seen that the longitudinal portion of the bar 10 is ofiset downwardly from the horizontal end bars 8. This provision is made so that the spring 12 may flex along the front edge of the couch without the person sitting upon the couch being inconvenienced by the pressure of a rigid edge against the underside of the limbs, and also such offset arrangement provides that there is no rigid longitudinal member adjacent to the central part of the spring when the bed is extended.

A pair of flat bars 13 are secured one to each end of the bars 8 and against the offset ends 11 of the bar 10 and each of the said bars 13 is provided with an offset lug end 14.

An angle bar 15 of corresponding shape to the bar 10 has the right angularly turned ends 16 thereof pivotally mounted in the lug ends 14 of the bars 13 and the extremities of the ends 16 are rigidly secured to the angle bar ends 17 of the lower frame 18 which is a clupli cation of the upper frame mounted on the pivot bolts 6.

An offset latch arm 19 is pivotally secured to the longitudinal bar 9 midway of its length and it hooks over a pin mounted on the longitudinal bar 20 of the lower frame.

It will be readily seen that the two frames are thus rigidly connected together and that they will swing together on the pivot bolts 6.

The upper longitudinal bar 9 is provid d with extension end lugs 21 which project under and engage the underside of the top bars 7 of the end frames 1 and thus hold the spring frames from rotating through the ap plication of a load forward of the pivot bolts and these lugs further co-operate to arrest the pivotal frame section in its inverted position, Figure 4, to which position it is initially swung as a unit with the other frame section. Thus when the section having the end members 18 is uniocked from the pivotal section and swung open, the stop lugs 21 serve a very important function in temporarily supporting the unbalancing weight of the upwardly and outwardly swung section.

A pair of locking dogs 22 are pivotally mounted on the top bars 7 at the forward edge to engage the top sides of the ends bars of the swinging frame to prevent the tilting of the moveable frame when a load is shifted back of the pivots and these locking dogs co-operate with the stop lugs 21 to definitely support the pivotal frame section in its normal position preventing its rotation in either direction.

End panels 23 and a longitudinal panel at are secured to the ends and longitudinal back bar of the pivotal upper frame, and with the bottom spring frame and upper spring form an enclosure in which the bedding to be used upon the bed when in its extended position may be housed.

This receptacle is shown in the open position in Figure 4 where the frame has been turned over and the bottom frame is thrown back from the receptacle to allow of the removal of the bedding therefrom. When the bedding has thus been removed the two sections of the frame are swung upwardly to a position as shown in Figure 5 and carried over until the spring of the under frame is in horizontal alignment with the spring of the upper frame as shown in Figure 6. The outer edge of the extended frame formed by the longitudinal bar 20 is supported by the pivotal leg 25 which legs are adapted to be swung into parallel relation with the longitudinal bar 20 when the frames are folded together. I

A very rigid bed frame is thus provided which will accommodate two persons with comfort.

It will be seen that both of the inside longitudinal bars with the offset ends form longitudinal supports for the spring frames at their meeting edges, but the offset arrangement of the ends arranges the bars a sufficient distance below the spring that the person resting thereon will not come in contact with such bars and be inconvenienced thereby.

It will be readily understood from this description that the construction of device is extremely simple and that the operation is not complicated by any arrangement of levers and rods of various lengths and kinds, but the spring frame is merely swung temporarily from its normal position upon its end pivots, turning it over to an inverted position where it is arrested by the stops 21 to allow of the tween the end and side panels 23 and 24 and the outer section is closed down and latched by the latch arm 19. The closed frame is then swung back and locked by means of the end lugs 21 and locking dogs 22 when it may be again used as a couch.

It will be noted that the construction is such that the pivotally mounted section occupies the same position relative to the rigid frame when the other frame is extended in bed form or when it is folded in couch form and its position is altered only temporarily when swung to permit the opening of the other frame section and removal of the bedding.

What I claim as my invention is: i

1. A folding couch, comprising the combination with a pair of metal ends formed of an inverted U shape and longitudinal bars supporting and spacing said ends and connected to the sides thereof intermediate of their height, of a couch seat frame pivotally connected at the ends to the intermediate top portion of the inverted U-shaped members, a supplementary bed frame pivotally connected to one of the free longitudinal;

sides of the couch seat frame and adapted to swing thereunder springs carried by said respective frames, means for locking said hinged frames together in substantially parallelly spaced relation whereby they may swing as a unit on the pivotal connection of said seat frame, and means permanently associated with one of said frames forming with the springs of the respective frames an enclosure for receiving and retaining bed-Y removal of the beddng from the pocket ding, said locked frames being adapted to be swung in unison a half revolution in one direction to permit removal of the bedding whereupon the firstmentioned frame is adapted to be returned to its normal position while the other frame is swung on the frameconnecting pivots to an extended position in horizontal alignment with said normally positioned first-mentioned frame.

2. A folding couch, comprising a rigid frame having means by which its ends are spaced apart, a couch frame formed of two end bars pivotally mounted intermediate of their length on the end of the rigid frame, one pair of ends of said end bars being connected by a straight rigid bar and the other ends being connected by a rigid bar with oflset ends, a spring extending between the end bars and clearing the longitudinal portion of the bar with the offset ends, a pair of offset bracket members secured to the ends of the couch frame adjacent to the bar with the offset ends, a longitudinal bar having offset ends pivotally mounted on said bracket members, and a rigid couch frame secured to the latter pivotally mounted bar and supporting a mattress spring.

8. A folding couch, comprising a rigid frame having means by which its ends are spaced apart, a frame pivotally supported on the ends of the aforesaid frame and adapted to swing thereon, side and end panels secured to said frame forming an enclosure, and a frame pivotally connected to said pivotal frame and adapted to swing under said pivotal frame and to be extended therefrom, said frames having spring elements forming with said side and end panels a compartment for housing the bedding.

4. A folding couch, comprising a rigid frame having means by which its ends are spaced apart, a frame having its ends pivotally mounted centrally of the ends of the rigid frame and adapted to be rotated thereon and carrying a spring, panels secured to said frame and forming with said spring the sides and ends of an open compartment into which the bedding is adapted to be packed, a frame pivotally secured to one edge of the rotatable frame, said pivotally secured frame having a spring adapted to co-operate with said panels to close the compartment, and means for locking said latter frame with its spring in position to close said compartment to retain the bedding packed therein.

5. A folding couch, comprising a pair of spring frames having their adjacent side bars offset downwardly, ofiset pivotal connections securing said frames together, side and end panels secured to one of said frames forming an enclosure between said spring frames when swung together, a latch member pivotally connected to the opening side of one of said frames exterior to the side

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