US2307621A

US2307621A - Adjustable chair

Info

Publication number: US2307621A
Application number: US336383A
Authority: US
Inventors: John M Dorton
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1940-05-21
Filing date: 1940-05-21
Publication date: 1943-01-05
Anticipated expiration: 1960-01-05

Description

Jan." 5, 1943. J. M. DORTON ADJUSTABLE CHA IR Filed May 21 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I. lnventpr: John Ml7ar2an, $64, 61

Jan. 5, 1943. J. M. DORTON ADJUSTABLE CHAIR Filed May 21, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l A i Zhwentor; JohnMTflorZo'n; ffiy- {Gttomeg Patented Jan. 5, 1943 UNITED STATES BATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE CHAIR a John M. Dorton, Bonner Springs, Kans- Application May 21, 1940; Seriai No. 336,33- 6 Claims. (or. 155-161) My invention relates to an adjustable chair and one of my objects is to provide a chair of this character in which the back may be swung downward through pressure exerted thereon by the occupant, and will automatically swing upward when relieved of such pressure.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means for securing the back of the chair in any of its adjusted positions.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a head-rest which is so mounted upon the back of the chair that said head-rest may be adjusted to different positions to suit the convenience of the occupant of the chair.

Other objects will hereinafter appear and in i order that the invention may be fully understood, reference will now be had to the accompanying drawings, in which- I Fig. 1 is a side elevation with a cushioned frame of the chair partly broken away and the upholstery removed.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the parts disclosed by Fig. 1, with the cushioned frame and the headrest removed.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on line 44 of Fig. 2.-

Fig. 5 is a broken front elevation of the upper portion of the back of the chair with part of the head-rest in section on line 55 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 6 is a section on line 66 of Fig. 5.

In carrying out my invention I provide appropriate supporting means consisting in the present instance of a pair of members 2, each of which is preferably formed from one piece of tubular stock and comprises front and rear legs 4 and 5, respectively, united at their upper ends by a longitudinal member 8. The

legs

4 and 6 are mounted upon casters In so that the chair can be readily moved over the floor of a room.

A seat frame l2, preferably formed from tubular stock and bent into U-form, is secured upon the longitudinal members '8 in any appropriate manner, bolts I4 being shown in the present instance for that purpose. The seat frame [2 is provided with arm-rest IS, the forward ends of which are bent downward and fixed to the respective sides of the seat frame. The rear ends of the arm-rests I E are secured to the sides of the seat frame with sheet metal plates l8.

The back frame 20 of the chair is also preferably formed of tubular stock bent 'into U-form and includes front and rear

longitudinal side members

22 and 24, respectively, the former of which are bent re'arwardly at their upper ends and fixed to the rear members 24. The front members 22 are connected at their lower ends to the respective arm-rests 16 by means of hinges 26 so that the back frame 29 may be swung downward and upward to the respective positions shown by full and dotted lines, Fig. 1. The rear members 24 are united at their upper portions by

transverse members

28 and 30, and united at their'lower portions with a transverse member 3!. The lower portions of the front and rear members 22 and 24- are connected by sheet metal plates 32 and their intermediate portions are connected with arched reinforcing members 36.

The back frame is secured in any of its adjusted positions by means of a pair of segmental elements in the form of racks 38 and a pair of detents 40 for engaging said racks. The racks 38, which are concentric to the axis of the hinges 26, are connected at their rear ends by pivots 42 to the lower ends of the respective rear members 24 and telescopically arrangedat their forward portions in the upwardly curved rear ends the lower ends of arcuate flanges 58 which are concentric to the axis of the hinges 26 and formed integral with the lower portions of the respective plates 32. The rod 46 is journaled at its ends in the sheet metal plates l8 and extends through a coil spring 60 secured at one end to the red by appropriate means such as a pin 62 and at its opposite end to an eye 64 secured to a transverse memberfiii fixed at its ends to opposite sides of the seat frame G2. The coil spring 60 causes-the rod 46 to yielclably hold the detents Ml in engagement with the respective racks 38.

When the back frame 20 is relieved of the pressure of the occupant of the chair and the detents '40 are manually disengaged from the racks 38, the back frame is automatically swung upward from the full line to the dotted line position, Fig. 1, by

coil springs

68 and 10 arranged in the opposite tubular sides of the seat frame [2. The

springs 1'0 'are arranged within the respective companion springs 38 and have right hand convolutions to prevent them from becoming interlocked with the left hand convolutions of their companions as the springs expand and contract during downward or upward movement of the back frame 28. The front and rear ends of each set of

springs

68 and 10 are provided with

caps

12 and 13, respectively. The front caps 12 abut pins 14 extending transversely through the sides of the seat frame I 2, while the caps 13 have reduced ends threaded in the forward ends of the tubular racks 38 so that the caps 13 may be adjusted forward or backward to tension the respective sets of

springs

68 and 10.

A cushioned frame which may be upholstered in any suitable manner is associated with the underlapping the curved rear end of the seat seat and back frames I2 and 28,respectively, and

comprises a plurality of coil springs 16, l6a,'wire strands I8, strips of wire mesh Bland suppleand 28, respectively. The wire strands 18 extend from' infront of'the foremost'coil springs 76 to the. uppermost springs 16a and are bent at their upper portions as indicated at 79 and secured -to the supplemental frame 83a with suitable elements 81 a number of which are also employed in securing the base of the springs '16 and 16a to the supplemental frames 33 and 83a, respectively.

The wire mesh strips 88 are approximately coextensive with the wire strands. 18 to which they are secured by clips 85 a number of which are also employed to secure thewire strands 78 to the upper ends of the coil srpings 16 and 16a, respectively. The cushioned frame is supported, on

transverse rods

82 and 84, secured to the seat frame l2 and the back frame 28, respectively, as shown by Fig. 2. i

The upper portion of the cushioned frame is provided at each side with a bearing 88, in which a shaft 98 is rockably mounted. Each end of the shaft 90 has an arm 92 fixed thereto and extending at rightangles therefrom. The shaft 90 is prevented from turning too freely in the bearings 88 by wire brakes 94, Fig. 5, secured to adjacent strand wires 78 and frictionally engaging said shaft. The free end of each arm 92 has a stud 96 fixed thereto and paralleling the shaft 90 to support a headrest 98 which may be ad just-ed to the various positions shown by full and dotted'lines on Fig. l, for the convenience of the occupant of the chair. The head-rest 98 comprises a pair of end members I80 of approximately circular form united by a transverse spring-bar I02 and provided with fixed bearings #84 which are mounted upon the respective studs i 86 so that the head-rest 98 may be adjusted to the various positions shown by the full and dotted lines above referred to. Felt bushings Hill are interposed between the studs 95 and the bearings I84, which may be saturated with a lubricant to facilitate the operation of the headrest. Suitable upholstery I08 is employed to cover the end members I80 and the bar I02.

From the foregoing description it is apparent that I have provided an adjustable chair having the advantages above pointed out, and while I have shown a preferred form of the chair I reserve all rights to such other forms and modi fications thereof as properly fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an adjustable chair, a tubular seat frame having an upwardly curved longitudinallyslotted rear end, supporting means for said seat frame, arm rests fixed to opposite sides of the seat frame, a back frame having two sides, each comprising longitudinal front and rear members, the front member being hinged at its lower end to the rear end of the respective arm rest to permit the back frame to swing relative to the axis, of the hinges, a segmental rack concentric with the axis of the hinges, connected to one of the longitudinal rear members of the .back frame and telescopically arranged in the upwardly curved rear end of the seat frame, a detent operably connected to the seat frame and adapted to engage said rack, a

curved flange fixed to the rear longitudinal member of the back frame and concentric with and frame, and means projecting from said flange intov the slottedportion of the seat frame to coact therewith in limiting the swingable movement of the back frame.

2. In an adjustablechair, a seat frame having tubular sides with upwardlycurved rear ends, a back frame hingedly connected to said seat frame for upward and downward movement, segmental elements connected to thelower portion of the back frame and telescopically arranged in the tubular rear ends of said seat frame, stops in the tubular sides of the seat frame, a set of coil springs interposed between said stops and the forward ends of the segmental elements toyieldably hold the back frame in its upward position, and a second set of coil springs interposed be tween the, stops and the segmental elements and axially arranged within the first set of coil springs, one of said sets having right hand convolutions and the other set having left hand convolutions.

3. In an adjustable chair, a seat frame having tubular sides with upwardly curved rear ends, a back frame hingedly connected to said seat frame for upward and downward movement, segmental elements connected to the lower portion of the back frame and telescopically arranged in the tubular rear ends of said seat frame, stops in the tubular sides of the seat frame, coil springs interposed between said stopsand the forward ends of the segmental elements to yieldably hold the back frame in its upward position, caps .on the rear ends of said coil springs and threaded in the adjacent ends of the segmental elements to tension the respective springs, and caps on the forward ends of the springs to abut the respective stops. 7

4. In an adjustable chair, a seat frame having tubular sides with upwardly curved rear ends, a back frame hingedly connected to said seat frame for upward and downward movement, segmental elements connected to the lower portion of the back frame and telescopically arranged in the tubular rear ends of said seat frame, stops in the tubular sides of the seat frame, coil springs interposed between said stops and the forward ends of the segmental elements to yieldably hold the back frame in its upward position, sheet metal plates fixed to the back frame and provided with segmental flanges underlapping and concentric with the curved rear ends of the seat frame, stops projecting from said flanges, and slots in the rear ends of the seat frame into which the lastmentioned stops project to coact with the ends of said slots in limiting the upward and downward movement of the back frame.

5. In an adjustable chair, a back frame, a seat frame hinged to said back frame so that the latter may be moved to different positions, said seat frame having a tubular portion terminating in a longitudinally slotted upwardly curved rear portion concentric with the hinges, means connected to said back frame and adapted to coact with the slotted part of the tubular portion in limiting the movement of the back frame, a segmental rack pivoted to the back frame and telescopically arranged in the upwardly curved rear end of the tubular portion, a manually controlled detent operatively connected to the seat frame and adapted to coact with said rack in holding the back frame in any of its adjusted positions, a stop in the tubular portion of the seat frame, and a coil spring interposed between said stop and the rack.

6. In an adjustable chair, a back frame, a seat frame hinged to said back frame so that the latter may be moved to different positions, said seat frame having tubular portions at each side thereof terminating in longitudinally slotted upwardly curved rear portions concentric with the hinges, means connected to the back frame for cooperating with the respective slotted parts of the tubular portions in limiting the movement of the back frame, segmental racks connected to the back frame and telescopically arranged in the respective upwardly curved rear ends of the tubular portions, a rod operably mounted in the seat frame, detents fixed to said rod and adapted to engage the respective racks, springs means connected to said rod and the seat frame for engaging the detents with the respective racks, and manual means connected to the rod for disengaging the detents from the respective racks.

JOHN M. DORTON.