US3038690A - Utility stool and the like - Google Patents

Description

c. G. ALEXIOU UTILITY STOOL AND THE LIKE June 12, 1962 Filed June 15, 1960 IN VEN TOR.

States This invention relates to collapsible and foldable stools, chairs or supports, and more particularly to devices adapted for providing a compact, light in weight and an inexpensive stool for body support, such that may be used when resting, and also for providing a unit so that when in a folded position, same may be used as a walking staff or support and the like.

Manifestly, an object of the invention is to provide a collapsible and foldable stool or body supporting unit, said supporting unit having a folding seat or pad, which is provided with a suitable elevating means adapted for extending and for spreading a plurality of leg members or supports from their normally folded and vertical position and adjacent to the center column thereof, and for automatically retracting the position of said leg members into a vertically compact and parallelly disposed unit when said seat member is folded.

A further object of the invention is to provide a stool structure forming a foldable unit, so that same may be used as means for a table support or a tray carrier when it may be required, or, that said device may be used as a portable chair or stool for golf players, exhibition spectators and the like, or, to be used on beaches, picnicking or races, or, that same may be used as a cane or lean-on support or device, and since the structure of said device is of a nature that may be easily folded and reduced considerably in its shape and size, then it may be used in places heretofore inaccessible.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description.

The invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical in manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

Reference is now had to the accompanying drawings in which the similar reference characters denote the same parts.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 shows an elevational and vertical view of the collapsible and foldable stool, showing same in position when in use.

FIG. 2 shows the top plan view thereof, taken from the top of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a side elevational and vertical view of the invention, when in folded position.

FIG. 4 shows a slightly enlarged and transverse sectional view of the center column and the leg sections, taken in the direction of the lines 44- of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 shows another slightly enlarged and transverse sectional view of the center column including the leg members and braces, taken in the direction of the lines 55 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 shows a vertically sectional and partly frag mentary view of the seat section, showing same in a slightly enlarged form.

FIG. 7 shows a fragmentary and vertically elevational view of the center column and the spider member, including the sliding sleeve of the supporting strut members, showing same in a slightly enlarged form, and taken from the front of FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 shows a fragmentary and side elevational view of the bracket guiding plates, showing same in relation to said center column, taken from the right of FIG. 7.

ate

3,038,693 Patented June 12, 1962 FIG. 9 shows a fragmentary elevational view of the retaining bushing, showing same in a modified form.

Describing the invention more in detail, in its broader aspects, said invention comprises a center column 2, having a plurality of leg members 4 extending outwardly from the mid-section 6 of said center column, of which the upwardly extending column end 8 of said center column is provided with a suitable mounting plate 10 and which is adapted for mounting and for supporting thereon a foldable stool seat 12.

The upper end of each leg member 4 is hingedly mounted upon a pivot pin 14 disposed in a suitable center spider member 16, said spider member being secured upon a mounting bushing 18 which is held in place and position by means of a taper pin 20 or other suitable fastening means, and thereby holding said spider member 16 in position at said mid-section 6 of said center column 2.

In close proximity to and below said mounting bushing 18 a suitable sliding sleeve 22 is provided on said center column 2, said sleeve having a set of equilaterally mounted bracket plates 24, which are rigidly mounted thereon, having the extended ends 26 of said bracket plates arranged in pairs and parallelly disposed thereon, and adapted for straddling said leg members 4 when folded in parallel position and alongside said center column 2, as shown in FIG. 3.

Each extended end 26 of said bracket plates 24 is provided with a suitable strut member 28, thus forming a pair of struts for each leg member, one end of each strut member 28 is pivotally connected to each end 26 of said bracket plates 24, while the outwardly and downwardly extending ends of said struts, and in pairs, are connected to and pivotally mounted on the lower and extended end 30 of each leg member 4, for guiding same into folding position, as shown.

Said sliding sleeve 22 is also provided with a retaining bushing 32 which is rigidly secured thereon, the upper section of which is provided with a pair of extensions 34, each having a control rod 36 attached thereto, as shown in FIG. 7.

The retaining bushing 32 may, if so desired, be made in two parts as shown in FIG. 9, and said individual parts each having side flanges which may be held in place by means of suitable rivets or screws 38, each upper section of said side flanges having a suitable pin or stud member 40 to which said control rods 36 may be connected, as shown.

Said control rods 36 extend upwardly and each extended end is provided with a suitable loop 42 which is adapted for engaging the lower cross member 44 of the respective seat bracket rod member 46, the purpose of which will be presently described.

The upwardly extending end 8 of said center column 2 is provided with a flanged end bushing to which said mounting plate 10 is attached, and for providing thereon a base on which two pairs of suitable hinge members 52 are secured.

As shown one hinge plate is secured to said mounting plate 14 from each pair of said hinge members 52, and each of the opposite hinge plate or strap 54 is attached to the respective underside surface section of a seat half section 56, so that said half sections may be folded upwardly, as shown in FIG. 3.

Said seat half sections forming said stool seat 12, each having a hand grip opening section 58 disposed at the outwardly extended ends thereof, also, each having a pair of pivoting brackets 60 mounted at the underside section thereof and adapted for receiving and accommodating the outwardly formed and extended rod ends 62 of said seat bracket rod members 46, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 8.

Said cross members 44 of each seat bracket rod memher 46 are slidably disposed in the respective longitudinal slots 64, said slots being oppositely positioned in pairs and provided in a pair of guiding plates 66 which are securely mounted and held in place by means of rivets 68 upon said upwardly extending end 8 of said center column 2 and in close proximity to said foldable stool seat 12.

The seat half sections 56 are also provided with a layer of suitable padding material 70 which is disposed at the upper part surface section thereof, the entire half sections and padding are then covered and enclosed with suitable fabric material 72, for securing a pleasant in appearance and comfortably relaxing seat for said apparatus when in use.

In order to maintain said guiding plates 66 securely in position and to alleviate the exessive weight which may be imposed thereon by the user, said guiding plates 66 are supported in position by means of a suitable spacer bushing 74 which may be fastened upon said center column 2 or arranged to bear against said mounting bushing 18, and thereby adding strength to the respective parts when the apparatus is in use.

Also, in order to eliminate a sideward slipping of the apparatus, or, to prevent marring of surfaces on which said apparatus may stand and when same is in use, the extreme ends of said leg members 4 including the bottom end section of said center column 2, are each provided with suitable rubber pads or caps 76, as shown.

The apparatus when in folded position is always parallelly disposed, that is, the pair of said seat half sections 56 of said folded stool seat 12, including said leg members 4 and the strut members 28 lie parallelly to each other in a compact form, so that when handling said hand grip opening sections 58 together, said apparatus may be easily carried or be used as a cane.

When in folded position, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, and when the use of the apparatus is desired, both halves of said stool seat 12 are spread outwardly and into a horizontal position, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the downward semi-circular movement of said seat half sections causes the seat bracket cross member 44 together with said loops 42 of said control rods 36 to move downwardly, so that said seat bracket cross members 44 following said pair of the oppositely positioned slots 64 in the respective guiding plates 66 will cause the lowermost ends of said control rods 36 to force said retaining bushing 32 downwardly.

The downward movement of said retaining bushing 32 and said sliding sleeve 22 causes said strut members 28 to spread and the movement of which causes said leg members 4 to be forced outwardly and angularly, as shown the FIG. 1, therefore, it may be noted, that when said leg members 4 are in their outermost angular position, then the lowermost end of said center column 2 is also brought to a resting position simultaneously with said outwardly extended ends 30 of said leg members 4,

and thereby providing a four point support for said apparatus, when in use.

While I have thus described the invention with great particularity, it will be clear that the same may be modified throughout a wide range.

I, accordingly, do not propose to be limited to the exact details of construction herein shown on the drawings and described in the specification, but reserve the rights in practice to make the necessary changes and modifications therein, Which may come within the scope of the appended claims.

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

1. In the apparatus'of the class described comprising in combination, a center column, a spider member secured at the mid-section of said column, a plurality of leg members pivotally connected to said spider member, a plurality of strut members connected in pairs to the lower section of said leg members, a sliding sleeve connecting the upper end sections of said strut members and slidably mounted on said column and below said spider member, a retaining bushing connecting said sliding sleeve, a pair of control rods connecting said retaining bushing and extending upwardly therefrom, a pair of guiding plates on said column, a hingedly mounted stool seat upon the upwardly extending end of said column, and a pair of seat bracket rod members connecting said hingedly mounted stool seat extending downwardly for engaging said guiding plates and for engaging said pair of upwardly extending ends of said control rods connecting said sliding bushing, for controlling the position of said leg members when said stool seat of said apparatus is in use.

2. In the apparatus of the class described, as disclosed in claim 1, wherein, each of said pair of seat bracket rod members is hingedly connected to the respective seat half sections of said stool seat at the underside surface section thereof and extending downwardly therefrom, a cross member in each of the extended ends of said seat bracket rod members, a pair of longitudinal slots in said guiding plates arranged in pairs and oppositely positioned therein for accommodating the respective cross members at said extended ends of said seat bracket rod members, for guiding said cross members upwardly and downwardly and for guiding said stool seat into a closed and open position.

3. In the apparatus of the class described, as disclosed in claim 1, wherein, a spacer bushing is mounted on said center column and between said pair of guiding plates and said spider member, for supporting the position of said guiding plates when the downward pressure is applied upon said stool seat.

4. In the apparatus of the class described, as disclosed in claim 1, wherein, hand grip opening sections are provided in said pair of stool seat half sections and disposed at the extended end of each stool seat half section for facilitating the opening and closing of said stool seat and for simultaneously facilitating the spreading and folding action of said leg members of said apparatus.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 436,176 Hendrickson Sept. 9, 1890 494,303 Nixon Mar. 28, 1893 755,043- Pike Mar. 22, 1904 1,089,295 Vallier Mar. 3, 1914 1,601,206 Franz Sept. 28, 1926 2,359,821 Black Oct. 10, 1944 2,560,447 Jansen July 10, 1951 vain

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