US3800337A

US3800337A - Convertible settee-bed

Info

Publication number: US3800337A
Application number: US00296761A
Authority: US
Inventors: N Mizelle
Original assignee: Seng Co
Current assignee: Leggett and Platt Inc; Seng Co
Priority date: 1972-04-06
Filing date: 1972-10-12
Publication date: 1974-04-02
Anticipated expiration: 1991-04-02
Also published as: JPS498369A; GB1383181A; AU6079773A; GB1383182A

Abstract

A convertible settee-bed for recreational vehicles or other comparably restricted living areas has a cushioned back rest that rolls over about 275* or 280* on a pair of four bar linkages from an upright cushion-forward settee position behind a cushioned seat to a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat. As the back rest nears bed position, one of the links goes overcenter and abuts a stop, while the position of the other link is such that in bed position the back rest is suspended in cantilever fashion. In a double bed structure an interference means converts the linkage mechanism from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage during final movement of the back rest toward bed position. In a dinette unit which has two settees facing each other the back rests travel nearly vertically into bed position so that their outer ends may abut one another without interfering.

Description

United States Patent [191 [111 3,800,337 Mizelle Apr.-2, 1974 CONVERTIBLE SETTEE-BED Primary Examiner-Casmir A. Nunberg l. 5l inventor: Ned W. Mizelle, High Point, NC. Attorney" Agent or Firm H0fgrcn wcgner Allen Stellman & McCord [73] Assignec: The Seng Company, Chicago, Ill. {22] Filed. Oct. 12, 1972 ABSTRACT [211 App]. N0.1296,76l Y A convertible settee-bed for recreational vehicles or Related Application Data other comparably restricted living areas has a cush- [63] Continuation-im art of Ser. No. 241,530, A ril 6, ioncd back rest that rolls over about 275 or 280 on a 1972, abandoned: pair of four bar linkages from an upright cushionforward settce position behind a cushioned seat to a [52] US. Cl.. 5/43, 5/45 horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the Cl A470 2 2 seat. As the back rest nears bed position, one of the [58] Field of Search 5/13, l7, 18, 28, 29, 38, links goes over-center and abuts a stop, while the posiv 5/43-45 tion of the other link is such that in bed position the back rest is suspended in cantilever fashion. in a dou- [56] References Cited ble bed structure an interference means converts the UNITED STATES PATENTS linkage mechanism from a four bar linkage to a three 794,345 7/1905 Coopersmith 5 45 bar linkage l l final "Q 9 back rest 1,360,478 11/1920 wajtukiewiczmu toward bed position. in a dinette unit whlch has two 2,597,995 5/1952 J ki u 5/45 settees facing each other the back rests travel nearly 3,377,635 4/1968 Schindler... 5/45 vertically into bed positionso that their outer ends 3,456,268 7/1969 Rogers, Jr.. 5/17 may abut one another without interfering. 3,656,189 4/1972 Wiberg 5/45 24 Claims, 12 Drawing Figures PAIENTEDAPR 2 914 3.800.337

. SHEET 2 [If 5 RATENTEUAPR 2 mm SHEET 5 0f 5 1 CONVERTIBLE SETTEE-BED CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 241,530 filed Apr. 6, 1972 now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION The recreational vehicle field, including motor homes, house trailers, sport trailers and the like, requires convertible settee-beds for lounge and dinette areas. Heretofore such settee-beds have used unsatisfactory sliding support frames with a cushioned seat moving forwardly and a cushioned back rest dropping down to occupy the portion vacated by the seat. There has been no satisfactory arrangement for locking the parts in bed position, and it is difficult in such a structure to provide a seat which has a comfotable rearward pitch in settee position.

Convertible settee-beds have been known in the prior art, but not applied to recreational vehicles or other comparably restricted living areas, in which a four bar linkage at each side of the unit has a stationary link provided by a base frame, a shifting link provided by a back rest frame, and first and second control links both connecting the back rest frame to the base frame in such a way that it rolls about 275 or 280 from a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat to a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat. For such mechanisms reference is made to U. S. Pat. Nos. 793,180; 794,345; 1,088,587 and 1,360,478.

Prior art mechanisms of the above type were too cumbersome for the space available in restricted living areas such as recreational vehicles, and were unsatisfactory because the back rest in bed position was not locked down and tended to rattle and shift about as a person sat on the side of the bed or rolled over in the bed. Further,'the structures of the above patents are uncomfortable as settees because they have horizontal seats, rather than a seat having a comfortable rearward pitch.-

U.S. Pat. No. 2,597,995 discloses a mechanism having a seat with rearward pitch, but the seat must move rearwardly as it is shifted to a horizontal position and this is undesirable where space is limited. Further, the structure of that patent occupies far too much space, both in settee position and in bed position, for use in restricted living areas.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The principal object of the present invention is to provide a settee-bed of the above described type which eliminates the disadvantages above noted and which is especially suited to use in recreational vehicles or other comparably restricted living areas.

In accordance with the present invention, the operating linkage at each end of a settee-bedof the above described type includes means for securely locking the cushioned back frame in the bed position.

In a double bed version of the present structure, as the back rest nears the bed position a pin projecting laterally from the back rest engages one of the control links to stop relative pivotal movement between that link and the back rest. Thus, at that point the one control link and the back rest become locked together while the other control link remains free, so the linkage is transformed from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage. As a result the back rest tends to pivot about two spaced points on the stationary frame, resulting in an interference, since it cannot pivot about two spaced points under these conditions.

As the back rest is moved on into bed position under this interference condition, one of the links is placed in tension, while the other link is compressed slightly, tending to bend it somewhat to compensate for the interference. As the pivot between the free link and the back rest moves over center, i. e., over a line extending through the two pivots between the control links and the base frame, the interference is reduced somewhat, and at that point the link which is in tension engages a stop that holds the linkage in the over-center condition and maintains the interference between the control links with one in tension and the other in compression.

While legs are not required in all applications because of the above locking arrangement, they may be provided to increase the load bearing capacity of the back rest in bed position.

A dinette arrangement convertible to a bed employs a pair of linkages similar to the four bar linkage described above for swinging the cushioned backs of two facing dinette settees to abutting positions in which they cooperate with the seats of the two settees to form a bed. In bed position two control links at the ends of the cushioned back rest pass over center and abut stops at the top of the heel board so that those links can no longer move relative to the back. The other control links at that point are in such a position that the back rest is suspended forward of the heel board in cantilever fashion. Alternatively, support members on the heel boards carry a dinette table on which the back rests lie in bed position.

As used herein, the terms cushioned seat" and cushioned back rest are not limited to upholstered members, but also include supporting springs for loose cushions.

Also provided in both forms of the present invention is a mechanism for raising the cushioned seat from a slightly inclined settee position to a horizontal bed position. This mechanism consists of a depending roller link pivoted at each end of the base frame which has a supporting roller beneaththe rear of the seat frame. Each roller link is linked to one of the back rest operating links in such a manner that as the back rest is rolled over into its bed position, the roller link is pivoted, lifting the rear of the seat to bring the seat to a horizontal position.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the linkage mechanism at one side of a settee-bed with the cushioned back rest and cushioned seat illustrated in broken lines, and with the mounting for the front of the seat shown in section;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the back rest illustrating the legs and latches;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with the back rest rolled about from its settee position toward its bed position;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with the back rest approaching bed position;

FIG. 5 is a top plan of the linkage mechanism shown in FIG. 1, and showing its mounting on a vehicle wall;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with the mechanism in bed position;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the invention incorporated into a first form of convertible dinette arrangement, with the back rests at different stages of their movement from settee position to bed position FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the dinette arrangement of FIG. 7 with the back rests in bed position;

FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the linkage mechanism at one side of a second form of dinette settee-bed (in a position similar to FIG. 1);

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 9 (in a position similar to FIG. 3);

FIG. 11 is a view similar to FIG. 9 showing the seat and back rest of the right hand unit nearing bed position and with the forward portion of the left hand unit back rest also shown; and

FIG. 12 is a view like FIG. 11 with the parts in bed position and with the seat frame omitted for clear illustration of the back frame linkage stop on the heel board.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The Double Bed Embodiment Referring to the drawings and particularly FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, a convertible settee-bed unit 10 is especially designed for installation in various types of recreational vehicles. The settee-bed consists of a pair of linkage assemblies 12 at each end of a cushioned seat 14 and a cushioned back rest 16 that support both the seat and the back rest for pivotal movement. The linkage assemblies 12 at each end are mirror images of one another, so only one will be described.

The linkage assembly 12 is seen to include a base frame 20 comprising a mounting bar fixed by screws 21 to a wall W (FIG. 5) of the vehicle. The seat 14 includes a frame of which only a front cross member 22 is illustrated, and the cross member 22 is hingedly connected to a heel board H of the vehicle by flexible spring steel angle brackets 24 so that the seat may be moved between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position, as hereinafter described. Thus the rear of the seat 14 is movable relative to the mounting bar 20.

Fixed to the back rest 16 is a back rest bracket 26 having resilient latch members 28, shown clearly in FIG. 2, that are received in recesses 29 (FIG. 1) in latch plates 30 fixed to the sides of the vehicle. Latch members 28 hold the back rest 16 solidly in the settee position shown in FIG. 1. As seen in FIG. 2, for the purpose of releasing the latch members 28 a cable 33 has its ends 34 connected to the latches 28, and its central area is encased in a plastic tube 35. In settee position the cable is accessible from above the cushioned back rest 16 and may be pulled to release both latches 28 from the recesses 29.

Leg members

39 and 40 may be pivotally connected to the back rest 16 as at 42 with pins 43 being provided on brackets 46 for the purpose of holding the legs in the open position illustrated by the right leg in FIG. 2.

For the purpose of supporting, guiding, and controlling movement of the back rest 16 from settee position to bed position, control links 44 and 45 are provided between the base frame 20 and the back rest bracket 26. The link 44 is pivotally connected at 50 to the forward end of the base frame 20, has a slight bend at 52 and is pivotally connected at 54 to the lower end of the back rest bracket 26 as shown in FIG. 1. The link 45 is pivotally connected at 56 to the base frame 20, has a slight bend at 59, and is pivotally connected at 61 to the upper end of the back rest bracket 26 as shown in FIG. 1. The distances between the

pivots

50 and 56 and between the pivots 54 and 61 are approximately the same.

As seen in FIG. 3, as the back rest 26 is pulled upwardly and forwardly, link 44 rotates the lower part of the back rest 16 upwardly while link 45 guides the upper part of the back rest 16 forwardly. This represents approximately 100 of rotation from FIG. 1. With the continued forward movement of the back rest 16, links 44 and 45 continue the counterclockwise rotation of the back rest 16 to the position shown in FIG. 4, where the back rest 16 approaches the full bed position shown in FIG. 6.

For the purpose of assisting the locking of the back rest in the bed position shown in FIG. 6, a locking pin 63 is fixed to the back rest bracket 26 and extends into the plane of movement of the link 44. Thus when the links 44 and 45 reach the position shown in FIG. 4, the pin 63 engages link 44, interfering with movement of the back rest 16.

At this point, and with further movement of the back rest 16 downwardly from the position shown in FIG. 4 to the position shown in FIG. 6, the pin 63 prevents relative rotation between the back rest frame 26 and link 44 so that from a kinematic standpoint frame member 26 and link 44 form one member and the linkage 12 functions as a three bar linkage.

Thus, in the position shown in FIG. 4, the linkage-is in an interference condition, arrested by pin 63, since the frame member 26 tries to rotate about both

points

50 and 56, which it cannot do. Therefore, the back rest 16 must be forced somewhat from the position shown in FIG. 4 to the position shown in FIG. 6. Since the links are effectively locked in both positions, or interfere with one another, link 44 is compressed slightly while 45 is placed in tension as movement continues from the FIG. 4 position to the FIG. 6 position. This may cause a slight bending of link 44 in an outward direction. A point of maximum interference results when pivot point 61 is in a line passing through

pivots

50 and 56 of links 44 and 45. Further counterclockwise movement of the back rest 26 past this position releases the interference somehat, but complete release is prevented by engagement of link 45 with stop 66 formed about pivot 50. Thus, the bracket 26 and the back rest 16 are maintained at this interference position with link 44 in compression and link 45 in tension, over center from their maximum interference position.

With this arrangement, the bracket 26 and the back rest 16 are held rigidly in the bed position. However, folding legs 40 may be provided if desired to increase the load capacity of the back rest in the bed position.

For the purpose of pivoting the seat 14 from the settee position of FIG. 1 to the bed position of FIG. 6, a seat pivoting linkage 68 is provided. This linkage consists of a generally L-shaped roller link 70 pivoted at 71 on the base and having a roller 73 which projects laterally and engages a wear plate 76 fixed to the bottom and near the rear of the seat 14. To raise the rear of the seat 14 slightly, the roller link is rotated counterclockwise when viewed in FIG. 1 with the roller 73 rolling on wear plate 76, and as shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6, this gradually moves the seat 14 to a horizontal positron.

The roller link 70 is controlled by a link which has one end pivoted at 81 to an overhanging portion 82 of link 45 and which has its other end pivoted at 83 to the link 70. Thus, as the back rest 16 is rotated from setee position toward bed position, pivot 81 moves in a counterclockwise direction about stationary pivot 56 and link 80 drives the roller link 70 counterclockwise to move the roller 73 along plate 76, this lifts the rear of the seat 14 until the seat is horizontal when the back rest 16 is horizontal.

A stop member 84 is engaged by the roller 73 in the settee position.

The structure of FIGS. 1 to 6 provides a double bed which extends entirely across the rear of a recreational vehicle.

The Dinette Embodiments Viewing FIGS. 7 and 8, a dinette assembly 85 for a recreational vehicle is convertible from a dinette to a bed. The dinette consists of two settee units having a panel that provides a heel board, and end panels 86b and 87b. Commonly, the dinette arrangement is set in a corner of a recreational vehicle so that, as illustrated, a transverse wall Wt serves as a back panel for the base 87 and a side wall Ws is structurally a part of the

bases

86 and 87. The base 86 includes a back panel 86c. Mounted on the

bases

86 and 87 are seat and back rest assemblies 88 and 89similar to the seat and back rest unit 10 illustrated in FIGS. l-6. The

bases

86 and 87 are so spaced that the back rests 90 and 91 are substantially abutting in the bed position as indicated at 92 in FIG. 8.

In the first dinette embodiment of FIGS. 7 and 8, the back rests 90 and 91 are supported in the bed position of FIG. 8 by support members 93 and 94 on the

bases

86 and 87, respectively, onto which a dinette table 96 is dropped from table height to the position shown in FIG. 7 preparatory to rolling over the back rests from the settee position to the bed position on their

linkages

97 and 98. The convertible dinette provides a sleeping unit which has its head h located as seen in FIG. 8.

Referring now to the second, and preferred, dinette structure of FIGS. 9 to 12, a right hand settee-bed unit and a left hand settee-bed unit 110A are identical and occupy confronting positions equidistant from a mid-line M. Each unit is supported on a base such as the

bases

86 and 87, and in this embodiment only the rail 87a providing the heel board of the right hand base is illustrated, and the transverse wall Wt.

A dinette table is mounted at table height as seen inFlG. 9 and is removed from the dinette area when the settee-bed units are to be converted to bed position.

Each of the

settee bed units

110 and 110A consists of a pair of linkages, such as the linkage 1 17, which are mounted, respectively, upon the side wall and the base end panel to support a cushioned seat 118 and a cushioned backrest 119 of the unit. In order to clarify the 6 illustrations of the linkages, the seat cushion and back rest cushion are illustrated in broken lines.

The linkage 117 includes a mounting bar 120 which is fixed by screws 121 either to the side wall or to the end panel. The cushioned seat 118 includes a frame of which only a front cross member 122 is illustrated, and the cross member 122 surmounts the transverse rail 87a to which it is connected by flexible, steel spring angle brackets 123 which permit it to be tilted slightly with respect to said rail. Thus the rear of the seat 118 may be raised and lowered-relative to the mounting bar 120 and the transverse rail 87a.

Each of the linkages includes a back rest bracket 124 that,'when assembled, is an integral part of the cushioned back rest 119. For the purposes of supporting, guiding and controlling movement of the back rest 119 between settee position and bed position, a front control link 125 and a rear control link 126 are provided, the link 125 being pivotally mounted at 127 on the front of the mounting bar 120 and at 128 on the lower end of the back rest bracket 24; while the rear link 126 is pivoted at 129 toward the rear of the mounting bar 120 and at 130 on the end of the back rest bracket 124 which is uppermost in the settee position of FIG. 9.

FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate two positions occupied by the linkage 1 17 and by the cushioned seat and back

rest

118 and 119, respectively, in moving from the settee position of FIG. 9 to the bed position of FIG. 12. As seen in FIG. 10, when the back rest 119 is moved from settee position to bed position its lower end first swings upwardly and its upper end rolls over about 95 to 100 so that the cushioned back rest occupies an elevated, substantially horizontal position with its cushion down. From there it rolls another through the position of FIG. 11 to the bed position of FIG. 12. During the latter part of that movement, the back rest 119 is moving almost vertically so that both back rests may be moved separately to bed position without interference between them.

A comparison of FIG. 11 with FIG. 4 shows a significant difference in function between the double bed unit and the dinette bed unit. From the point that the double bed unit becomes a three bar linkage the back rest 119 must describe an arc of a circle for about 15 as it moves into bed position. The dinette unit, on the other hand, continues to function as a four bar linkage, and the back rest is only about 7 from the horizontal in the position of FIG. 11, even though at that point the link 125 is about 15 from its final position. This nearly translatory final movement of the back rest helps to avoid interference between the two back rests.

Furthermore, the pivot 130 moves a substantial distance below the pivot 127, so when the link 126 abuts a rubber ca'p 1400f an adjustable stop 14] which is mounted on the front of the panel 87a the link 125 can no longer turn about the pivot 127, so the back rest is suspended from the base in cantilever fashion; and no supplemental support, such as folding legs, or a dinette table, is required.

Comparison of FIGS. 9 and 12 shows that the seat cushion top surface 1 18a is pitched rearwardly in settee position but is horizontal in bed position. The pitch of the cushion surface 118a is due to the fact that the cushion tapers from front to rear, the bottom 1l8b of the cushioned seat being substantially horizontal in settee position and being inclined upwardly from the transverse rail 87ain bed position. The required movement of the cushioned seat is accomplished by a pair of seat linkages, one of which is indicated generally at 131, which are connected to and cooperate with the back linkages 117. The seat linkage 131 includes a carrier link 132 which is pivoted at 133 on the support bar 120, a guiding link 134 which is pivoted at 135 on an extension 1260 of the rear back rest link 126 below the pivot 129, a pivotal connection 136 between the

links

132 and 134, and a transversely extending support member in the form of a roller 137 which is journalled on the pivot 136 and extends beneath the end of the cushioned seat where it bears upon a wear plate 138. Comparison of FIGS. 9 to 12 shows that during most of the travel of the back rest 119 from settee position to bed position the seat supporting rollers 137 swing in an arc that is predominantly horizontal and has very little vertical component. During the last part of the travel to bed position, the rollers 137 do most of the work of pivoting the seat upwardly on the transverse front rail 112 to its horizontal bed position. This permits the rear ends 124a of the backrest brackets 124 to clear the front edge 1180 of the seat cushion top surface 118a, after which said front edge 118 c swings into abutment with the rear edge 119a of the back cushion 119.

As seen in FIGS. 11 and 12, the nearly vertical movement of the cushioned back rests 119 and 119A of the settee-

bed units

110 and 110A permits them to move into the bed position of FIG. 12 without interfering with one another, and permits their forward edges ll9b to abut along the mid-line M in bed position. Thus, the cushioned seats and cushioned back rests of the two settee-bed units provide a continuous sleeping surface. This is permitted both by the linkages and by the fact that the seat cushions project slightly farther forward at the top than at the bottom and the back cushions project slightly farther forward and farther back at their top surfaces than at their bottom surfaces. This projection must be very slight in order to provide adequate springing and cushioning along the abutting edges.

Both the double bed unit and the dinette unit may be made without the elevating means for the rear of the seat. In such a structure the seat is fixedly mounted flat on top of the base, and has no pitch in settee position. Movement of the back from settee position to bed position is the same.

The foregoing detailed description is given for clearness of understanding only and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, as modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

I claim: 1

1. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushionup bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising:

means for locking said back rest in the bed position including means producing interference between the first and second control links as the linkage nears bed position.

2. The settee-bed of claim 1 in which the means producing interference comprises means for locking one of the control links to the back rest to convert the linkage from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage as it nears bed position.

3. The settee-bed of claim 2 in which the locking means includes a pin on the back rest which engages said one of the control links as the linkage means nears bed position.

4. The settee-bed of claim 1 in which the means producing interference places one control link in tension and the other in compression as the linkage means nears bed position.

5. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushionup bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising:

means for locking one of the control links to the back rest to convert the linkage from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage as it nears bed position.

6. The settee-bed of claim 5 in which the locking means includes a pin on the back rest which engages said one of the control links as the linkage means nears bed position.

7. The settee-bed of claim 5 in which one control link is in tension and the other is in compression after the one control link is locked to the back rest.

8. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushionup bed position forward of the seat, said first control link being pivoted adjacent the front of the fixed link and adjacent the side of the back rest that is down in settee position, and said second control link being pivoted adjacent the rear of the fixed link and adjacent the side of the back rest that is up in settee position, the improvement comprising:

means for locking said first control link to said back rest while leaving the second control link free, and thus convert the linkage from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage as it nears bed position.

9. The settee-bed of claim 8 in which the pivotal connection between the second control link and the back rest, during final movement into bed position, goes below a dead-center position aligned with the pivotal connections of both control links with the fixed link.

10. The settee-bed of claim 9 in which the first control link is compressed slightly and the second control link is placed under tension in the three bar linkage condition, said compression and said tension being relieved slightly after the aforesaid pivotal connection moves past said dead-center position.

11. The settee-bed of claim 8 which includes means limiting movement of the back rest to a horizontal position after the aforesaid pivotal connection moves past said dead-center position.

12. The settee-bed of claim 8 which includes hinge means pivotally connecting the front of the cushioned seat to the base frame, and seat control linkage means including an actuating link at each end of the base frame which is pivotally connected to one of the second control links, said seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seat for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seat between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position as the back rest is moved between said positions.

13. The settee-bed of claim 12 in which the seat control linkage means includes a pair of roller links pivoted on the base frame, each of said roller links having a roller beneath an end of the seat near the rear thereof.

14. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushionup bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising:

hinge means pivotally connecting the front of the cushioned seat to the base frame; and seat control linkage means including an actuating link at each end of the base frame which is pivotally connected to one of the control links, said seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seat for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seat between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position as the back rest is moved between said positions.

15. The settee-bed of claim 14 in which the seat control linkage means includes a pair of roller links pivoted on the base frame, each of said roller links having a roller beneath an end of the seat near the rear thereof.

16. The settee-bed of claim 15 in which the second control link includes a portion that overhangs its pivotal connection with the base, and in which the actuating link is pivotally connected to said overhanging portion ofthe second link.

17. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link ofa four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushionup bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising:

' means for locking said back rest in the bed position including means producing interference between the first and second control links as the linkage nears bed position;

hinge means pivotally connecting the front of the cushioned seat to the base frame; and seat control linkage means including an actuating link at each end of the base frame which is pivotally connected to one of the control links, said seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seat for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seat between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position as the back rest is moved between said positions. 18. A dinette-bed comprising, in combination:

a pair of confronting, spaced settee base frame means each of which includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage; a cushioned seat on each of said base frame means; a cushioned back rest associated with each of said base frame means, each of said back rests being a shiftable link of one of said four bar linkages; a set of back control links at each end of each base frame, each of said sets comprising a first control link and a second control link connecting ya back rest to the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position and a horizontal cushion-up bed position; a movable dinette table; and means on the settee base frame means for removably mounting said dinette table beneath the two back rests to support the latter in bed position, the adjacent ends of said back rests abutting one another in bed position.

1 9. The dinette-bed of claim 18 which includes hinge means pivotally connecting the front of each cushioned seat to the associated base frame, and a set of seat control linkage means at each end of each base frame, each of said sets including an actuating link which is pivoted to one of the back control links, said sets of seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seats for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seats between inclined settee positions and horizontal bed positions.

20. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, first control links at each end of the base frame which are pivoted near the front of the base frame and near the bottom of the back rest, second control links at each end of the base frame which are pivoted near the rear of the base frame and near the top of the back rest, said control lines supporting the back frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising:

stops on the base frame which are below the pivots between the first control links and said base frame, said stops supporting the second control links in bed position, the first control links being substantially horizontal in said position and the back rest being suspended in cantilever fashion entirely forward of the base frame.

21. The settee-bed of claim 20 in which vertically adjustable. I

22. A dinette-bed comprising, in combination:

a pair of confronting,.spaced settee base frame means each of which includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage; a cushioned seat on each of said baseframe means; a cushioned back rest associated with each of said base frame means, each of said back rests being a shiftable link of one of said four bar linkages; a set of back control links at each end of each base frame, each of said sets comprising a first control link which is pivoted near the front of the base frame and near the bottom of the back rest,

- and a second control link which is pivoted near the rear of the base frame and near the top of the back rest, said links mounting the back rest on the base frame for about 275 roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion'forward settee position and a horizontal cushion-up bed position; stops on the stops are the base frames which are below the pivots between the first control links and said base frames, said stops supporting the second control links in bed position, the first control links'being substantially horizontal in said position and the back rests being suspended in cantilever fashion entirely forward of the base frame.

23. The dinette-bed of claim 22 which includes hinge means pivotally connecting the front of each cushioned seat to the associated base frame, and a set of seat control linkage means at each end of each base frame, each of said sets including an actuating link which is pivoted 12 to one of the back control links, said sets of seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seats for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seats between inclined settee positions and horizontal bed positions.

24. The dinette-bed of claim 22 in which the relationship between the base frames, the links and the back rests is such that said back rests move nearly vertically, and in a nearly translatory fashion, as they near bed position.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 5 9 .CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 337 v Dated April 7 inventor) Ned W. Mizelle It is certifi'edthat error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

r- Page 1, the name and address of the Assignee should .1

be changedfrom The Seng Company, a Delaware cornoration, Chicago, Illinois, to Hoover-Seng Company, a Delaware corporation,

Chicago, Illinois. a Signed and se ale d" this 9th da of July 197a.

(SEAL) Attest: H McCOY M. GIBSON, IJR. c. MARSHALL DANN .Attesting Officer 7 I Commissioner of Patents

Claims

1. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising: means for locking said back rest in the bed position including means producing interference between the first and second control links as the linkage nears bed position.

5. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising: means for locking one of the control links to the back rest to convert the linkage from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage as it nears bed position.

8. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, said first control link being pivoted adjacent the front of the fixed link and adjacent the side of the back rest that is down in settee position, and said second control link being pivoted adjacent the rear of the fixed link and adjacent the side of the back rest that is up in settee position, the improvement comprising: means for locking said first control link to said back rest while leaving the second control link free, and thus convert the linkage from a four bar linkage to a three bar linkage as it nears bed position.

14. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising: hinge means pivotally connecting the front of the cushioned seat to the base frame; and seat control linkage means including an actuating link at each end of the base frame which is pivotally connected to one of the control links, said seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seat for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seat between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position as the back rest is moved between said positions.

16. The settee-bed of claim 15 in which the second control link includes a portion that overhangs its pivotal connection with the base, and in which the actuating link is pivotally connected to said overhanging portion of the second link.

17. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, and first and second control links at each end of the base frame which connect the back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising: means for locking said back rest in the bed position including means producing interference between the first and second control links as the linkage nears bed position; hinge means pivotally connecting the front of the cushioned seat to the base frame; and seat control linkage means including an actuating link at each end of the base frame which is pivotally connected to one of the control links, said seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seat for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seat between an inclined settee position and a horizontal bed position as the back rest is moved between said positions.

18. A dinette-bed comprising, in combination: a pair of confronting, spaced settee base frame means each of which includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage; a cushioned seat on each of said base frame means; a cushioned back rest associated with each of said base frame means, each of said back rests being a shiftable link of one of said four bar linkages; a set of back control links at each end of each base frame, each of said sets comprising a first control link and a second control link connecting a back rest to the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position and a horizontal cushion-up bed position; a movable dinette table; and means on the settee base frame means for removably mounting said dinette table beneath the two back rests to support the latter in bed position, the adjacent ends of said back rests abutting one another in bed position.

19. The dinette-bed of claim 18 which includes hinge means pivotally connecting the front of each cushioned seat to the associated base frame, and a set of seat control linkage means at each end of each base frame, each of said sets including an actuating link which is pivoted to one of the back control links, said sets of seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushioned seats for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seats between inclined settee positions and horizontal bed positions.

20. In a settee-bed of the type which has a base frame that includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage, a cushioned seat, a cushioned back rest which is a shiftable link of said linkage, first control links at each end of the base frame which are pivoted near the front of the base frame and near the bottom of the back rest, second control links at each end of the base frame which are pivoted near the rear of the base frame and near the top of the back rest, said control lines supporting the back frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position behind the seat and a horizontal cushion-up bed position forward of the seat, the improvement comprising: stops on the base frame which are below the pivots between the first control links and said base frame, said stops supporting the second control links in bed position, the first control links being substantially horizontal in said position and the back rest being suspended in cantilever fashion entirely forward of the base frame.

21. The settee-bed of claim 20 in which the stops are vertically adjustable.

22. A dinette-bed comprising, in combination: a pair of confronting, spaced settee base frame means each of which includes a fixed link of a four bar linkage; a cushioned seat on each of said base frame means; a cushioned back rest associated with each of said base frame means, each of said back rests being a shiftable link of one of said four bar linkages; a set of back control links at each end of each base frame, each of said sets comprising a first control link which is pivoted near the front of the base frame and near the bottom of the back rest, and a second control link which is pivoted near the rear of the base frame and near the top of the back rest, said links mounting the back rest on the base frame for about 275* roll-over movement between a generally upright cushion-forward settee position and a horizontal cushion-up bed position; stops on the base frames which are below the pivots between the first control links and said base frames, said stops supporting the second control links in bed position, the first control links being substantially horizontal in said position and the back rests being suspended in cantilever fashion entirely forward of the base frame.

23. The dinette-bed of claim 22 which includes hinge means pivotally connecting the front of each cushioned seat to the associated base frame, and a set of seat control linkage means at each end of each base frame, each of said sets including an actuating link which is pivoted to one of the back control links, said sets of seat control linkage means supporting the rear of the cushionEd seats for generally vertical movement about the hinge means to shift the cushioned seats between inclined settee positions and horizontal bed positions.