US509277A

US509277A - Convertible chair

Info

Publication number: US509277A
Authority: US
Publication date: 1893-11-21
Anticipated expiration: 1910-11-21

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1,

J. H. WOODMAN. CONVERTIBLE 0mm.

No. 509,277. Patented Nov; 21,1893.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

' J. H. .WOODMAN. CONVERTIBLE CHAIR.

N0. 509,277. Patented Nov.,21, 1893.

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JOEL H. OODMAN, OF HOBOKEN, NEWV JERSEY.

CONVERTIBLE CHAIR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 509,277, dated November 21, 1893.

Application filed March 14, 1893. Serial No.46fn964. (No model.) I

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that l, JOEL H. WOODMAN, of Hoboken, in the county of Hudson and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Convertible Chairs, of

which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Myinvention relates to an improvement in the construction of convertible chairs, and it has for its object to combine in one article of furniture a settee, screen and table, and to so construct the article that it will be durable and ornamental and may be used with equally good effect either as a settee or as atable, the portion of the device which serves as a screen when the article is used as a settee, being utilized as a table top when folded downward from a vertical to a horizontal position.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of the several parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth and pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures and letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is a perspective view of the article of furniture in use as a settee and screen. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the article of furniture in use as a table, the top of the table being plain. Fig. 3 illustrates the article of furniture in perspective and as converted into use as a billiard table. Fig. 4 is a central vertical section taken transversely through the article of furniture when in use as a billiard table; and Fig. 5 is a detail sec-- tional view, illustrating the adj ustability of the legs employed to partially support th table.

In carrying out the invention the settee A, is constructed in the ordinary shape, and may be given any design that fancy may dictate. The arms 10 of the settee have preferably produced in their upperface cavities 11; and upon the back 12 of the settee a screen B, is hinged, pivoted or attached in any suitable manner, the screen being adapted to extend a slight distance downward below the top of the back. i

The screen may be made of any suitable or approved material; preferably however, it is constructed of veneers of wood cemented together, the grain of thesame running at angles to each other, and is given a rectangular or like shape. The screen B, is adapted to extend upward some distance beyond the top edge of the back of the settee and to stand in a vertical position, being so held by latches 13, of any approved construction, which latches may enter apertures 14:, formed in brackets 15, attached to the front portion of the screen.

Ordinarily and preferably a shelf 16, is constructed upon the screen near its upper end, and this shelf is supported by suitable brackets 17. Legs 18, are hinged to the lower ends of the brackets 17, and virtually constitute a continuation of said brackets, or a portion thereof. The legs are adapted to fold outward and stand at a right angle to the front face of the screen, and the lower outer edge of the bracket is provided with ornamental grooves 19, and the upper outer end of the legs is provided with correspondingly located ornamental ribs 21, so that when the legs are carried at a right angle to the screen the ribs on the legs will fit into the ribs of the bracket and thus the legs will have a firm bearing or support, as shown in Fig. 2; but if in practice itis found desirable and as shown in Fig. 4., the surfaces of the leg and bracket that are to be brought together may be simply beveled; in either event the locking surfaces of both the brackets and the legs are of somewhat ornamental character when exposed to view, which is the case when thepart isused as a screen. The lower end of each leg is preferably provided with a rubber tip 22; and the leg is made in two sections, an upper section a and a lower section a, as shown in Fig. 5, the lower section being connected with the upper section by means of a screw 23, upon which it is held to turn. Therefore the leg can be rendered short or it may be lengthened as in practice may be found desirable. When the legs are folded close to the screen, as shown in Fig. 1, extending parallel therewith, the lower ends of thelegs may rest upon lower brackets 24, secured to the front face of the screen, as shown in Fig. 1, and in this manner the brackets supporting the shelf 16, will appear to be made up of capitals, bases and columns.

When the article of furniture is to be used as a table, the latch 13, is disconnected from the screen and the screen is brought down to the horizontal position, one portion of it resting upon the back of the settee, and the legs are dropped to stand at a right angle to the front of the screen, which will be the under face when the screen is utilized as a table, and the rubber tips of the legs will thereupon enter the cavities 11 in the arms of the settee. By this means the article of furniture may be utilized as a table, the table top being the screen, and the said table top will be firmly supported in a horizontal position and the top will be enabled to bear considerable weight.

The back of the screen, which when used as a table top is the top face, may be perfectly smooth, as shown in Fig. 2, or the back of the screen may be provided with marginal flanges 25, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the said flanges being provided upon their inner faces with cushions 26, and what is really the upper face of the table may be covered with baize, or other material, and as shown in Fig 3, the back 'of the screen may then be utilized as a billiard table.

It is often advantageous, when the article of furniture is to be utilized as a table, to provide shelves at the back of the settee; therefore beams 28, are located upon the back of the settee at suitable intervals apart, preferably one near the center and the other at or near the bottom, and shelves 29, are hinged to these beams or pivoted thereon, the shelves being connected by chains 30, cables, or the equivalents thereof, with one another and with what is the front lower surface of the screen, as shown in both Figs. 2 and 4, the attachment being so made that when the screen is in an upright position the shelves may drop downward vertically, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4;; but when the screen is carried to the horizontal position and utilized as a table top the chains will draw the shelves upward to their horizontal and proper position simultaneously with the screen assuming its horizontal position.

If in practice itis found desirable the chains may be omitted and the shelves may be permanently or rigidly secured to the back of the settee, or they may be detachably connected therewith; and when the screen is to be utilized as a billiard table top, cleats 31, may be attached to one or to both surfaces to receive the cues 32, as shown in both Figs. 3 and 4. If the table top is not exactly level it may be rendered so by adjusting the lower section of the legs 18. Thus it will be observed an article of furniture of considerable utility is obtained, as it may be used as a settee with a screen at the back, or it can be employed as a table, the table being capable of use for any purposes to which a table may be applied, while the entire article may be artistically shaped and decorated, or it may be made exceedingly plain, as may be preferred.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. The combination with a settee provided with arms having cavities in their upper faces, of a screen pivoted to the back of the settee and provided with spaced brackets on its front face, and with legs hinged to said brackets and having inclined shoulders corresponding to others on the brackets, the said legs being adapted when folded to rest upon the screen between the brackets and when swung out or down to rest in the cavities upon the arms of the settee, substantially as described.

2. The combination, with the settee proper, having arms, of the screen pivoted thereon and extending over and below the back of the settee, means for supporting the screen horizontally, and shelves having a hinged connection with the rear of the settee and a flexible connection with the rear portion of the screen, as shown and described.

3. The combination with a settee, a screen hinged a short distance from one edge to the back of the settee, and means for supporting the screen in a horizontal position, of shelves hinged to the back of the settee, and chains or cords connecting the shelves with each other and with the screen, substantially as described.

4. In an article of furniture, the combination, with a settee and a screen attached to the back thereof, a portion of the screen extending over or below the back, the screen being adapted to assume a vertical or a horizontal position, of legs hinged to the forward face of the screen and adapted to engage with sockets formed in the settee, the legs being constructed in adjustable sections, and shelves having a hinged connection with the rear of the settee and a flexible connection with the rearwardly extending portion of the screen, as and for the purpose specified.

JOEL H. WOODMAN.

Witnesses:

L. GRIENEISEN, JAMES B. BOYLAN, Jr.