US20020195847A1

US20020195847A1 - Chair assembly having upper and lower seat members

Info

Publication number: US20020195847A1
Application number: US09/886,753
Authority: US
Inventors: Chia Hsu
Original assignee: SHEU BER SHU
Current assignee: SHEU BER SHU
Priority date: 2001-06-20
Filing date: 2001-06-20
Publication date: 2002-12-26

Abstract

A chair assembly includes a chair frame unit, an upper seat member and a lower seat member. The upper seat member is connected to the chair frame unit, and has opposing front and rear edges, and opposing lateral edges that interconnect the front and rear edges. The upper seat member is formed with an opening that extends from the front edge toward the rear edge to form the upper seat member with a U-shaped configuration. The lower seat member is disposed below the upper seat member and is registered with the opening.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a kind of chair assembly, particularly to a chair assembly having upper and lower seat members.

2. Description of the Related Art

A conventional chair is generally designed for use by a single person and thus cannot accommodate two persons at the same time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide a chair assembly having upper and lower seat members so as to be adapted to accommodate two persons at the same time.

Accordingly, a chair assembly of this invention comprises a chair frame unit, an upper seat member and a lower seat member. The upper seat member is connected to the chair frame unit, and has opposing front and rear edges, and opposing lateral edges that interconnect the front and rear edges. The upper seat member is formed with an opening that extends from the front edge toward the rear edge to form the upper seat member with a U-shaped configuration. The lower seat member is disposed below the upper seat member and is registered with the opening.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: [0007]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention; [0008]
FIG. 2 is a top view of the chair assembly of FIG. 1; [0009]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the second preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention; [0010]
FIG. 4 is a side view of the chair assembly of FIG. 3; [0011]
FIG. 5 is a side view of the chair assembly of FIG. 3 in a folded state; [0012]
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the third preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention; [0013]
FIG. 7 is a side view of the chair assembly of FIG. 6 illustrating how the lower seat member can be adjusted relative to the upper seat member; [0014]
FIG. 8 is a fragmentary partly sectional view illustrating how a positioning member moves in a hollow positioning rail of the third preferred embodiment; [0015]
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the fourth preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention; [0016]
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the fifth preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention; and [0017]
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the sixth preferred embodiment of a chair assembly according to the present invention.[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the first preferred embodiment of a [0019] chair assembly 1 according to the present invention is shown to comprise a chair frame unit 11, an upper seat member 12 and a lower seat member 13. The chair frame unit 11 includes a pair of front leg rods 111, a pair of rear leg rods 112, a connecting bar 113, and a backrest member 114. Each of the front leg rods 111 has an inclined lower rod portion 1111 that extends downwardly and frontwardly relative to the upper seat member 12, and an inclined upper rod portion 1112 that extends upwardly and rearwardly with respect to the upper seat member 12. Each of the rear leg rods 112 is connected securely to a respective one of the front leg rods 111. The connecting bar 113 interconnects the lower rod portions 1111 of the front leg rods 111, and has the lower seat member 13 mounted securely thereon. The backrest member 114 is mounted on and extends between the upper rod portions 1112 of the front leg rods 111. The upper seat member 12 is connected to the chair frame unit 11, and has opposing front and rear edges 121, 122, and opposing lateral edges 123 that interconnect the front and rear edges 121, 122. In this embodiment, each of the lateral edges 123 of the upper seat member 13 is connected to one of the front leg rods 111 and one of the rear leg rods 112. The lower seat member 13 is disposed below the upper seat member 12 and is registered with the opening 125, as best illustrated in FIG. 2.
In use, two persons can be seated on the [0020] chair assembly 1 at the same time with one person, such as an adult, seated on the upper seat member 12, and with the other person, such as a child, seated on the lower seat member 13.
The second preferred embodiment of a [0021] chair assembly 2 according to the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 3 to 5. Like the first preferred embodiment, the chair assembly 2 comprises a chair frame unit 21, an upper seat member 22 and a lower seat member 23. The chair frame unit 21 includes a pair of front leg rods 211, a pair of rear leg rods 212, a connecting bar 213, a backrest member 214, a pair of first pivot links 215 and a pair of second pivot links 216. Each of the front leg rods 211 has a lower rod portion 2111 that extends downwardly relative to the upper seat member 22, and an upper rod portion 2112 that extends upwardly with respect to the upper seat member 22. The connecting bar 213 interconnects the lower rod portions 2111 of the front leg rods 211 for supporting the lower seat member 23 thereon. The backrest member 214 is mounted on and extends between the upper rod portions 2112 of the front leg rods 211. Each of the second pivot links 216 interconnects pivotally a respective one of the front leg rods 211 and a respective one of the rear leg rods 212. The upper seat member 22 has opposing front and rear edges 221, 222, opposing lateral edges 223 that interconnect the front and rear edges 221, 222, and a lower surface 224. The upper seat member 22 is formed with an opening 225 that extends from the front edge 221 toward the rear edge 222 to form the upper seat member 22 with a U-shaped configuration. The front leg rods 211 are connected pivotally and respectively to the lateral edges 223 of the upper seat member 22. Each of the first pivot links 215 interconnects pivotally a respective one of the lateral edges 223 of the upper seat member 22 and a respective one of the rear leg rods 212, as best illustrated in FIG. 4. The lower seat member 23 is disposed below the upper seat member 22, is registered with the opening 225, and has a rear edge 232. The chair assembly 2 further comprises a third pivot link 20 that interconnects pivotally the lower surface 224 of the upper seat member 22 and the rear edge 232 of the lower seat member 23. Unlike the previous embodiment, the chair assembly 2 is foldable. By folding the upper seat member 22 upwardly to be in parallel between the front leg rods 211, the lower seat member 23 can be folded to extend downwardly relative to the upper seat member 22, as best shown in FIG. 5.
FIGS. [0022] 6 to 8 illustrate the third preferred embodiment of a chair assembly 3 according to the present invention. The chair assembly 3 comprises a chair frame unit 31, an upper seat member 32 and a lower seat member 33. Unlike the first preferred embodiment, the lower seat member 33 has opposite lateral sides 333 and the upper seat member 32 has a pair of hollow positioning rails 34 that extend downwardly and that are respectively disposed adjacent to the lateral sides 333 of the lower seat member 33. Each of the positioning rails 34 has an open side 343 that confronts the respective one of the lateral sides 333 of the lower seat member 33, and has a front wall formed with a series of positioning holes 341 that are vertically aligned and that are spaced apart from each other. Each of the lateral sides 333 of the lower seat member 33 has a positioning member 35 that extends into the adjacent one of the positioning rails 34 via the open side 343, and that engages removably and selectively one of the positioning holes 341 for retaining the lower seat member 33 at a desired height relative to the upper seat member 32. Each of the positioning members 35 includes a retaining block 352 mounted pivotally on the lower seat member 33 and formed with a retaining protrusion 3521 for engaging removably and selectively the positioning holes 341, and a biasing member 353 for biasing the retaining block 352 so as to ensure removable engagement between the retaining protrusion 3521 and the selected one of the positioning holes 341.
In this embodiment, the [0023] lower seat member 33 can be movably adjusted to a desired height, and aligns with the upper seat member 32 to form a single seat member, as shown in FIG. 7.
In use, the [0024] lower seat member 33 can be adjusted to move upwardly or downwardly to a desirable height relative to the upper seat member 23, or to be in level with the upper seat member 23, to suit the requirement of the user.
Referring to FIG. 9, the fourth preferred embodiment of a [0025] chair assembly 4 according to the present invention is shown to be a modification of the third preferred embodiment. In this embodiment, a backrest member 414 extends upwardly from a rear edge 422 of an upper seat member 42, and the configuration of the chair frame unit 41 is modified such that a number of the upper seat members 42 can be disposed side by side to form a bench suitable for use in public places, such as parks.
Referring to FIG. 10, the fifth preferred embodiment of a [0026] chair assembly 5 according to the present invention is shown to be a modification of the fourth preferred embodiment. In this embodiment, the chair frame unit 51, the upper seat member 52 and the lower seat member 53 are connected integrally. The configuration of the chair frame unit 51 is modified such that the back rest member 514 is connected integrally to the rear edge 522 of the upper seat member 52, and two armrests 515 are connected integrally and respectively to the opposing lateral edges 523 of the upper seat member 52. Moreover, the chair frame unit 51, the upper seat member 52, and the lower seat member 53 are in the form of boards.
FIG. 11 illustrates a [0027] chair assembly 6, which is a modification of the fifth preferred embodiment, wherein the chair frame unit 61, the upper seat member 52, and the lower seat member 53 are in the form of rods.
While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. [0028]

Claims

I claim:

1. A chair assembly comprising:

a chair frame unit;

an upper seat member connected to said chair frame unit, and having opposing front and rear edges, and opposing lateral edges that interconnect said front and rear edges, said upper seat member being formed with an opening that extends from said front edge toward said rear edge to form said upper seat member with a U-shaped configuration; and

a lower seat member disposed below said upper seat member and registered with said opening.

2. The chair assembly of claim 1, wherein said chair frame unit includes a pair of front leg rods and a pair of rear leg rods, each of said lateral edges of said upper seat member being connected to one of said front leg rods and one of said rear leg rods.

3. The chair assembly of claim 2, wherein each of said front leg rods has an inclined lower rod portion that extends downwardly and frontwardly relative to said upper seat member, said chair frame unit further including a connecting bar that interconnects said lower rod portions of said front leg rods and that has said lower seat member mounted securely thereon.

4. The chair assembly of claim 3, wherein each of said front leg rods further has an inclined upper rod portion that extends upwardly and rearwardly with respect to said upper seat member, said chair frame unit further including a backrest member that is mounted on and that extends between said upper rod portions of said front leg rods.

5. The chair assembly of claim 3, wherein each of said rear leg rods is further connected securely to a respective one of said front leg rods.

6. The chair assembly of claim 2, wherein said front leg rods are connected pivotally and respectively to said lateral edges of said upper seat member, said chair frame unit further including:

a pair of first pivot links, each of which interconnects pivotally a respective one of said lateral edges of said upper seat member and a respective one of said rear leg rods; and

a pair of second pivot links, each of which interconnects pivotally a respective one of said front leg rods and a respective one of said rear leg rods.

7. The chair assembly of claim 6, wherein each of said front leg rods has a lower rod portion that extends downwardly relative to said upper seat member, said chair frame unit further including a connecting bar that interconnects said lower rod portions of said front leg rods for supporting said lower seat member thereon.

8. The chair assembly of claim 7, wherein said upper seat member has a lower surface, and said lower seat member has a rear edge, said chair assembly further comprising a third pivot link for interconnecting pivotally said lower surface of said upper seat member and said rear edge of said lower seat member.

9. The chair assembly of claim 1, wherein:

said lower seat member has opposite lateral sides;

said upper seat member having a pair of hollow positioning rails that extend downwardly and that are respectively disposed adjacent to said lateral sides of said lower seat member, each of said positioning rails having an open side that confronts the respective one of said lateral sides of said lower seat member, and being formed with a series of positioning holes that are vertically aligned and that are spaced apart from each other;

each of said lateral sides of said lower seat member having a positioning member that extends into the adjacent one of said positioning rails via said open side, and that engages removably and selectively one of said positioning holes for retaining said lower seat member at a desired height relative to said upper seat member.

10. The chair assembly of claim 9, wherein said positioning member includes a retaining block mounted pivotally on said lower seat member and formed with a retaining protrusion for engaging removably and selectively said positioning holes, and a biasing member for biasing said retaining block so as to ensure removable engagement between said retaining protrusion and the selected one of said positioning holes.

11. The chair assembly of claim 1, further comprising a backrest member that extends upwardly from said rear edge of said upper seat member.

12. The chair assembly of claim 1, wherein said chair frame unit, said upper seat member and said lower seat member are connected integrally.

13. The chair assembly of claim 12, further comprising a backrest member connected integrally to said rear edge of said upper seat member, and two armrests connected integrally and respectively to said opposing lateral edges of said upper seat member.