US2131219A

US2131219A - Portable back support for seats

Info

Publication number: US2131219A
Application number: US182579A
Authority: US
Inventors: Harold H Cooper
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1937-12-30
Filing date: 1937-12-30
Publication date: 1938-09-27
Anticipated expiration: 1955-09-27

Description

Sept. 27, 1938. H. H. COOPER- Y 3 PORTABLE BACK SUPPORT FOR SEATS Filed Dec. 30, 1937 Patented Sept. 27, 1938' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to seats and particularly to a portable back support designed for use in stadiums, on bleacher seats and under like circumstances.

The general object of the invention is .to provide a very simple, sturdily made and readily portable back support having means whereby it may be engaged with a stadium or bleacher seat or bench, and which is so constructed that the seat engaging portion may be folded up against the back support when not desired for use.

A further object is to so connect the seat engaging element with the back support that the hinged joint between the seat engaging element and the back support will not pinch or snag the garments of the wearer.

My invention is illustrated in theaccompanylng drawing wherein: 1

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my device in position on a seat.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section on the line 33 of Fig. 2 on an enlarged scale. I

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through one of the side bars of the back support showing the means whereby the back support is pivotally connected to the seat engaging element.

Fig. 5 is an elevation of the structure shown in Fig. 4, the seat engaging element being shown in section.

Referring to the drawing, I designates a metallic back support which is shown as approximately U-shaped to provide lateral downwardly extending side portions II. The upper portion of this back support is filled in by a web- I2, which may be made of metal, fabric, leather or any other suitable material. As will be seen from Fig. 2, the frame Ill with the downwardly extending portions or legs II is approximately U- shaped in cross-section and the Web l2 at its upper portion is extended forward and is attached to the front flange I3 of the frame Ill. The front flange at its lower end is cut away, as shown in Fig. 4, and bent forwardly, as at I4.

The back support is engaged with the seat A of a bleacher or stadium seat by means of a seat engaging element designated generally I5, which comprises two side bars I6, each side bar at its forward end extending downward, as at IT, and then inward or rearward, as at I8, and terminating in' a cross-bar I9, which connects the two inwardly extending portions I 8. Thus the seat engaging element is formed at its forward end with a hook which engages beneath the forward edge of the seat A and holds the back supporting frame in place upon the seat. Each of the bars I6 extends rearwardly, as shown in Fig.

4, and at its rear end is bent around at 20, to form an eye. This eye is pivoted to the lower end of the corresponding member I l of the back, as will be now described.

Embracing each barIIi at its rear end is a triangular shield 2|, which is folded .along its lower edge to extend beneath and fit against and partly 10 embrace the rear end of the corresponding seat. engaging bar the corresponding bar I6 and upward on each side of the corresponding portion I I of the back frame III, as shown clearly in Figs.

4 and 5. This shield is triangular in side eleval5 tion and the lateral members of the shield are inwardly flanged at 22 to extend over the rear face of the corresponding member I I. A rivet 23 passes through the member II and through the two sidewalls of the shield, as shown in Figs. 3 go and 5, and a rivet 24 extends through the side walls of the shield, through the eye and through the forwardly bent flange I4, thus pivotally connecting the element I5 with the back frame. It will be understood that the triangular shield is thus rigidly held to the legs II of the back frame but that the back frame may be turned down against the seat engaging element I5, as shown by dotted linesin Fig. 4. The purpose of bending the flange II forwardly, asat I4, is to provide a suitable bearing for the rivet 24, which constitutes the pivot and to provide clearance for the eye 20, and one purpose of the triangular shield is to prevent any possibility of the clothes of the user becoming pinched or snagged at the hinge joint between the element I6 and the back frame I0. A further and important feature of this triangular member 2| is to constitute means for supporting the back of the seat when the back is placed in a vertical position and receives the pressure of the users back. Under these circumstances, the member 2| transmits the backward thrust on the back of the seat to the bars I 5 and they carry the ultimate strain to the hooks I8. Still another important feature incident to the use of the shields 2| is that these shields prevent the back Ill from being forced down against the bars I5 when these bars are 'engaged with the bleacher seat A. This advantage is secured by folding the material for each triangular shield along the lower edge of the shield" so that this folded portion fits closely against the corresponding bar I6 and is disposed between the corresponding bar I6 and the slats of the bleacher seat. Thus if the user of the back support should rise for any reason, the back cannot be thrown down by a person sitting in the next rearward seat because inasmuch as the back I0 is rigidly connected to the triangular shields, these triangular shields would have to be forced down if the back is turneddown. This would act to lift the side bars l6 at their rears ends but this in turn is prevented by the hooks I8 which bear against the underface of the forward slat of the bleacher seat so that until the back support is entirely removed from the slats of the bleacher seat A, the back cannot be turned down either accidently or intentionally by a person sitting behind nor can it accidently fall down.

The back :2 is dished out to fit the body and similar to the rounded or-concave back of -certain chair backs.

nel irons II as this back'frame Ill might be formed of small pipe, a rod rounded in crosssection or an angle iron, as may be found desirable. g i

What is claimed is: I

'1. A device of the character described, including a back frame having two laterally spaced downwardly extending side bars and a connecting portion, a seat engaging element having two laterally spacedbars pivoted at their rear ends to the lower ends of the back bars, the seat engaging element at its forward end being formed with a hook to engage beneath the forward edge of a seat, and a triangular shield folded along its lower to receive, fit against and partially embrace the rear end of the corresponding seat engaging bar and extending upwardly on opposite sides of the corresponding side bar of the back and extending partly over the-rear edge of the corresponding side bar, saidshield being rigidly attached to the side bars of the back.

2. A device of the character described, including a backsupport formed of channel iron and bent toprovide two laterally spaced downwardly extending side bars and a connecting portion, the flanges of saidchannel iron extending inwardly, the forward flange of each channel iron at its lower end being bent forwardly, a seat engaging element having two laterally spaced bars connected to each other at their forward ends by a cross-bar, the laterally spaced bars of the seat engaging element being bent to form eyes at their rear ends, triangular shields each extending beneath and embracing the rear end of each seat engaging bar and extending up on opposite sides of the corresponding side bar of the back, a rivet engaging the upper end of each shield with the corresponding side bar of the back, and a rivet passing through the shield, through said eye in the corresponding seat engaging bar and through the forwardly extending flange of the corresponding side bar of the back.

3. A device of the character described, including a back support formed of channel iron and bent to provide two laterally spaced downwardly extending side bars and a connecting portion, the flanges of said channel iron extending laterally inwardly, the forward flange of each channel iron at its lower end being-bent forwardly, a seat eno gagingelement having two laterally spaced bars I do not wish to be limited to the use of chanconnected to each other at their forward ends by a cross-banthe laterally spaced bars of the seat engaging element being bent to form eyes at their rear ends, triangular shields, each extending be-' neath and embracing the rear end of a corresponding seat engaging bar and extending up on opposite sides of the corresponding side bar of the back, a rivet engaging the upper end of each shield with the corresponding side bar of the back, and a rivet passing through each shield, through said eye in the corresponding seat engaging bar and through the forwardly extending flange of the corresponding side bar of the back, the forward end of each seat engaging bar being extended downwardly and rearwardly and said rearwardly extending ends being connected by the cross-bar.

4. A device of the character described, including a back supporting frame having two laterally spaced side bars and a connecting portion, a seat engaging element including two laterally spaced bars, the element having means at its forward end for engaging beneath the forward edge of a seat and triangular shields, each folded along its lower edge to partially embrace and fit against the underface of the rear end of the cor- 1 responding seat engaging bar and extend upwardly on opposite sides of the corresponding side bar of the back and rigidly attached thereto, the seat engaging element being pivoted to the side bars of the back and tosaid shields.

HAROLD H. COOPER.