US2518860A

US2518860A - Aircraft passenger chair

Info

Publication number: US2518860A
Application number: US706818A
Authority: US
Inventors: Max T Blue
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1946-10-31
Filing date: 1946-10-31
Publication date: 1950-08-15
Anticipated expiration: 1967-08-15

Description

Aug. 15, 1950 M. T. BLUE 2,518,

AIRCRAFT PASSENGER CHAIR Filed Oct. 31, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 414/11 7. BLUE 3/ 772. M

A TTORNE Y.

atented Aug l90 7 i Max T. Blue, Wichita gains. Application; October a1, 1946, Serial No. 706,818

*Myfinvention relates to an improvement in aircraft passnger's'eatsJ The object-of my inventi'on is'jt'o providea seat of the kind mentioned that is strong and light in weight, one that is' comfortable andhasspring supported 'uphol- *stering in both'these atand back, one in which the back is easily adjustable forward or backward and onejnwhichthe seat may be easily m e f Q l 9 r A still ,furtherobject is to provide afseat of the kind; mentionedTwhich; while being designed for passenger air 'usefcan befeasily conver ted for fd naryid se: L I v i A" still further object is to providela seat of the kind mentioned that is fast, easy and inexpensive to build and one that is neat and has a pleasing appearance. These. and, other objects "ill be more fullydescribed and explained as this description progresses. V

' Now'referring to the accompanying drawings in which similar numerals of reference designate the same parts throughoutthe several figures of thedrawings; X Y

Fig. 1 is a. front viewofa singleseatin' which the above. mentioned objects are included.

i Fig. '2 affront view of a' double seat in which the above mentioned objects are included. i

Fig.f3.is aside view of. the seats shown in FigiiresIandZ-Q i V Fig.4 is-a bottom plan view of the seat shown in" Fig. .1. The construction shown in Fig, 4 is common :to both. the seats shown in Fig. 1 and Fig.2.

-3 claims. (01.155-194) E i Figh5=is asectional view. through the seat, the

view being taken, along the line V-'-V in Fig.6

andlooking in the direction of the arrows-qThe upholstering has been removed for convenience of illustration. Fig. "6 is a; side chair. l

Fig. 7 isan enlarged detail sectional view through the arm rest and'frame therefor, the View being taken along the line VII- -VII in Fig. 3 and looking in the'direction of the arrows.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail side view of a portion of one of the side frame members, parts being broken away for convenience of illustration. Fig. 9 is an enlarged sectional detail view through the'hinge structure of the back portion ofthe chair, the view being taken along the line "IX -fIX in and looking in the direction of detail of the back frame of the the arrows.

Fig.10 is aside view oithe' lower portion of the penetrthe chairand illustrating how thechair i 2 r can be converted intoa rocking chair for domestic use. l l. v f

Fig. 11 is a detail sectionalview of thelower portion of the chair frame, the view being taken along the line XI-XI in Fig. 10, and looking in the direction of the arrows. l e

Fig. 12 is a detail sectional view through a portion of the chair seat; the view being taken along the line XII-XII in Fig, 4 and looking in the direction of the arrows.v

Fig. 13 is a view, the same as Fig. 3 except that one ofthe supportingelements of the. chair is raised to rest on a heating duct existant in the aircraft. v a v.

,In the drawings the singlechair. see Figures 1, 3, 4'and '5 is shown as having apair 'of side frame elements [5. and [6 that are duplicates in shape and are made preferably of tubular-material and of which'each has a, straight horizontalbase portion a that is bent with rounded corners to form vertically and upwardlyextending front leg b and rear leg 0 elements, the front leg b curving rearwardly and thence curving downwardly to form an arm rest support d and then curving in a still more downwardlydirection and merging into the upper end of the rear leg 0 as shown more clearly inFig'. 3. As shown in Fig. 2', the frames l5 and [6 are spaceddouble distance apart anda third'frame I! that; isa

duplicate in shape of the frames [land I 6 is positioned between the frames l5 and lfizwhich frames provide a frame work for the support of .the double chair as shown inFig. 2. The base portiona of each frame l5,- l6 and I1 isprovided with a pair "of inwardly directed lug ele- 'ments's'l8 and I9, each' of which has a hole, 29 therein; through which bolts maybepassed to 'fasten the'chair to the floor of the aircraft; or:if

the chairis to be used as a rocking chair; a

rocker 2| may be'placed under the lugs l8 and 19 and rigidly bolted thereto by'means-of'bolts' 22 that are passed through the lug holes 20 and are preferably threaded into the rocker- 2l, as shown in Figs. 10 and 11. The front legs b of the frames I 5 and I6, as

shown in Figs. 1, 4, 10 and 11 are rigidly held in "their spaced a'pa'rt and parallel position by means "of a tubular element 23-, the ends of whichfar'e 1 The rear legs cfof the frames l5 and 16 arefrigidly held in theirspaced apart and parallel positionby means of "atubuIar element .24; the ends of which are rigidly attached, preferably welded, to the legs 0.

In both frames l5 and I6 is a tubular support element e that is positioned between the legs b and c, and slopes downwardly from front to rear, and the ends of the support element e are each welded to their respective leg b and c.

A tubular cross support element f is positioned between the two supports e in thetwo frames I5 and I6 and a -littIe-in' front of the cross element 24, and "the ends" of the cross'support element 1 are each welded to their respective support element.

The chair is provided with a seat'e'element 01-" that has a tubular rectangular shaped base or frame 25, the rear corners of which are insetor notched inwardly as at 26 to fit around the mounting mechanism of the back of the chair which will later be described. A seriesofpara'l lelly positioned and spaced apart, arched zig-zag tioned between the front and rear members-of the'frame and the ends 'bf 'the spring members mare welded to-- their'adjacent front or i ear 'memb'ei' of the seat frame 25. A spring member 28 that is of the sametypeastne spring members-His positioned about-midway between the front and rear members. of the seat-framers and the ends of" the spring member 23 are? welded to their adjacent side member of theseat frame 15. 'lhe spring member 28 "serves: as a fm'ther and' additihnal seat' support 'to the springs 23. A 'tlaick padding- 29, cotton; felt, spongerubber,

or a combination of these elements is positioned on top of-the s ring'suppor t2F-28- and anupbolstering materiaiwsc is placed thereover and brought; down around the sides and 'ends'of the received by the member d-of the chair fram'e 'l5,

[6 aud t]; A padding =34; preferablyrmadef sponge rubber;- is fitted-between; over ancl'around the upturned legs of the curved-channel 33,- and an upholst'ering material 30a is placed-over the top and sides ofthe padding 34 and under-the channel 33-; which is thenlaid and -fitteddrrthe frame member at, and screws- 35 are passed through the frame member d'and threaded into the channel33-to solidlyhold-the arm rest iron the frame member (it The chair is provided with-an adjustable back 1' having an. inverted u-shaped frame 9 having a tubular top cross member 33aand-tubular-side members 34 and 3 5-, the lower ends -of-=whichcurve forwardly as-,-at 36- and the ends thereof fit petween pairs; of -upward-lyprojecting -earlike7 ele- Jme nts. 31- and '38, the lower ends' ofwhich are welded to the frameelements e, and abolt 3-9 -is passed throughthe

ears

31 and 38 and the lower ends of the legs-34 and;35;to form a pivotal mounting of the back; ii on the chair. 'Helical springs and l are positioned, one around each ofthebolts iigwith'one end of each spring and 5 1messen ers-t e seesaw memb I f 4 the chair and the other ends of the springs 40 and 4! being hooked around their

respective leg members

34 and 35, the springs 40 and 4! being so tensioned as to move or urge the forward rocking movement of the back j about the pivotal bolts 39.

A cross frame member 42 is positioned between the

leg members

34 and 35 at a point just above the curve 36 and the ends of the cross member 42 are each welded to their respective leg memhers and 35. The chair backis provided with a second inverted U-shaped frame It having a top cross member 43 and downwardly extending

leg elements

44 and 45, the lower ends of which curve as at 46 and-the ends thereof are welded to the same places as the ends of the cross member 42 i. are welded to. the

legs

34 and 35.

I The frame It is spaced away from and is held in parallelism with the frame 7' by spacer tubes 41, the ends of which are welded to their respective elements of the two frames j and-k as shown. Also a cross tubular member 48qis positioned between the upper portions of the

frame legs

34 and 35 and is welded to the

legs

34 and 35 Vertically positioned

frame members

49 and 50, having curved endssuch as 54, are positioned between the

frame legs

44 and 45 and the ends of the curved portions 5| are welded to the top and.

bottom cross members

33a and 42 of the frame a." The frame j-is provided with zig-zag formed spring wire back supports 52, the ends of which are weld'dito the frame cross members" 33a and 42 and an intermediate point of the springs 52 'is welded to the frame crossmember 48, and the Springs curve outwardly asillustrated atm' andjn between the cross rrame memsers'aa d and 48,"and '48 and 42.

A curved lever'support element 53 is positioned betweenfth legs 34 and 35' of "the frame iand is welded thereto. A lever'bar' 54 is pivotally carried by the lever support 53 and one end of 'a helical spring '53 iseonneeted to the upper end of the lever bar 54 and the other end of the spring'is connected to one end portionofthe lever support member 53 and is tensioned to urge the lever bar 54to rock toward a horizontal position.

One end of a pair'of lock bars"51 and Sears 'pivotally connected, one to-ea'ch'end portion of the lever bar 54'. The outer end o'f-the lock-bar 5! slidably passes" through andpioiects beyond the frame leg 34, and the outer end of 'the lock bar 58-slidablypasses through and projects beyondtl'ie frame leg-'35? The rear curved portion d of the side chair'f'rames l5andi6 are provided with a series of holes 59, and the frame I! is similarly providedWith-holes 59; in* which the outer projecting-ends of' the lock bars51 and 58 are receivable to ho1d-the chairback in adjusted recliningposition as indicatedby tl'ie dotted'posi tions shown in Fig. 3.

.teOne end of an operating rod-fillisspivotally connected to the lower end of the cantilever bar 54 and the operating rod 60-extends-sideway to and slidably; passes. through;andv projects beyond the frame leg 34i The outer end of theoperating rod 63 is providedwith a finished'end' such as a head or ball 6| by which the operating lever-Mmay be operated as will laterbedescribedu a V The '-frame I and area bounded thereby is covered witha piece of light weightsubstantial h s Manat e a -ti ed and sembled as above described, is provided with a suitable padding, not shown, that is placed over the springs 52 and then an upholstering material 63 is placed over the front, back and edges of the seat back 2'. Upholstery buttons 64 are placed on the upholstery 63 and attached to the cross frame member 43 to improve the appearance of the seat back and form a head rest and back rest portion of the back.

Clips 65 having holes 66, are attached to the frame members e of the chair for the purpose of attaching a safety belt thereto as is required in air craft seats.

Many air planes have a heating air duct that is positioned on the floor and next to the wall of the plane in a position such as indicated by the dotted lines 68 in Figures 1 and 3, and in order to set the seat in the plane and get it next to the wall of the plane the side seat frame l5 or [6 as the case may be will have to be shortened in height so that the seat frame I5 or l6 will rest on top of the air duct 61 as indicated by the dotted lines l6a: in Fig. 3.

If the chair is to be used as a rocking chair for domestic use, rocker elements 69 may be positioned under the attachment clips l8 and l 9 and fastened thereto in the same manner as the chair would ordinarily be fastened to the floor of the plane and the chair thereby becomes a rocking chair.

To adjust the position of the back of the chair, the knob and operating rod 6I69 may be pressed inwardly, whereupon the lever bar 54 is rocked against the pull of the spring 56 whereupon the lever bar 54 will pull the lock bars 51 and 58 inwardly and Withdraw the outer ends of the lock bars 51 and 58 from the holes 59 in the frames I5, I6 or IT, whereupon the back 2' may be rocked to any desired position as indicated by the dotted lines y in Fig. 3. When the seat back i has been rocked to the desired position, the operating rod 6l60 may be released and the spring 56 will rock the lever bar 54 to move the lock bars 51 and 58 outwardly and move the outer ends of the lock bars 51 and 58 into the holes 59 that are in registering position therewith and thereby rigidly hold the seat back i in its adjusted position.

Such modifications of my invention may be employed as lie within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit and intention of the invention. Now having fully shown and described my .invention, what I claim is:

1. In an aircraft passenger chair of the kind described, said chair having a supporting frame, a seat and a back, said supporting frame being made of light weight tubular material, said supporting frame having duplicate side frames, each of said side frames being made of a single piece of material and having a straight bottom portion, substantially vertical front and rear leg portion, and a curved upper arm rest support portion, and an arm rest, said arm rest being detachably attached to the said arm rest support, said side frames having a support tube, said support tube being positioned between the front and rear legs of the side frames and sloping downwardly from front to rear and being welded to the legs of the side frame, a front and a rear cross tube, said front cross tube being positioned between the front legs of the side frames and welded thereto at the same level as the adjacent point of joinder of the said support tube with the front leg of the side frame, the said rear cross tube being positioned between the rear legs of the side frames and welded thereto at the same level as the adjacent point of joinder of the support tube with the rear legs of the said side frames, an intermediate cross tube, said intermediate cross tube being positioned between the said front and rear cross tubes and reaching between and being welded to the said support tubes of the side frames, a seat, said seat having a tubular frame, a series of upwardly curved and spaced apart springs carried by said frame, and seat padding supported on said springs, and upholstering material covering said padding and seat frame, said seat frame resting on and being supported by the said front and intermediate cross tubes, and means for detachably attaching said seat frame to the said front and intermediate cross tubes, a chair back, said chair back being pivotally carried by the chair frame and by the said intermediate cross tube, and means for holding the chair back in adjusted tilted position.

2. In an aircraft passenger chair of the kind described; the structure as defined in claim 1, said chair back having a tubular inverted U-shaped frame said tubular U-shaped frame being positioned between the said side frames of the chair, the lower ends of the legs of the tubular U-shaped frame being pivotally carried between mountings on the chair frame and the said intermediate cross tube to form the aforesaid pivotal mounting of the chair back, a pair of tubular chair back cross frame members, one of said tubular chair back cross frame members being positioned between and adjacent the lower ends of the legs of the tubular U-shaped back frame and welded thereto, the second of the said pair of tubular chair back cross frame members being positioned a short distance below the top and between the legs of the inverted tubular chair back frame and being welded thereto, a series of vertically disposed spaced apart chair back spring elements, said chair back spring elements being welded to the said top and tubular chair back cross members and curving forwardly between the cross members of the chair back, a second tubular chair back frame element, said second tubular chair back frame element being in registry with and spaced behind the first said chair back frame element, and spaced means between and welded to the two chair back frames for holding the frames in their relative positions, said chair back springs having a padding thereover and an upholstery material covering the padding and chair back frames.

3. In an aircraft passenger chair of the kind described; the structure as defined in claim 1, said chair being convertable into a rocking chair, by means of rocker elements that are detachably attached to the base members of the side frames of the chair as shown and described.

MAX T. BLUE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date D. 98,517 Hoffman Feb. 11, 1936 507,921 OBrien Oct. 31, 1893 2,397,322 McArthur Mar. 26, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 360,386 Italy June 18, 1938 376,251 Great Britain July 5, 1932