EP0344133A1

EP0344133A1 - An armchair or sofa-bed frame

Info

Publication number: EP0344133A1
Application number: EP89830232A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Renato Zorzetto
Original assignee: Stema Sas Di Zorzetto Renato & C
Current assignee: Stema Sas Di Zorzetto Renato & C
Priority date: 1988-05-23
Filing date: 1989-05-23
Publication date: 1989-11-29
Also published as: IT8821284V0; IT214040Z2

Abstract

An armchair or sofa-bed frame comprising a plurality of frame portions connected to each other by a pair of J-shaped rods (22, 30). First rod (30) is pivotally connected, at the end of curved portion (36) thereof, to frame base (10) and, to an intermediate position thereof, there is pivoted a rod (34) which is provided, at the opposite end thereof, with a slot (46) wherein there is slidably engaged a pin (48) having two short rods (50, 52) pivoted thereat. The latter rods are pivoted, at the opposite end thereof, to the head side frame portion (14) in the bed position, and to base (10) and, owing to the pulling action exerted by rod (34) on pin (48) during the frame opening stage, said rods (50, 52) get spread apart, whereby said opening is made easier.

Description

This invention relates to a frame for an armchair or for a sofa-bed.
More particularly, this invention relates to a frame for an armchair or for a sofa-bed comprising an improvement of the armchair or sofa-bed frame disclosed in Italian Patent No. 1 155 062 filed on September 17, 1982 and issued to Mr. Zorzetto Renato.
The frame forming the subject of this invention resumes some of the features of the structure described and claimed in the above mentioned patent, but it is an improvement thereof in that, in general, the frame has been simplified, whereby the opening and closing operations thereof are easier, simpler and quicker.
Furthermore, the frame making the subject of this invention represents an improvement compared to known frames wherein, in the folded-up position, the mattress is partially positioned in the seat portion and, for the remaining part, it stands in a folded-up position, against the back. In the known frames of this type, the folded up portion of the mattress has a stretch shorter than the other, in particular the one positioned on the side of the seat portion. The shorter stretch presses against the adjacent mattress stretch causing a bulge to be generated in the latter, said bulge becoming permanent as time goes by. As it should be apparent, when the frame is brought to the bed position, said bulge which rests on the bedspring, makes the mattress support unstable and creates discomfort to the user.
The frame disclosed as the subject of this invention makes it possible to overcome the above drawback. The features as well as the advantages of the frame according to this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of a non limiting embodiment thereof, made in reference to the attached drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view of the frame in the folded-up position;
Figure 2 is a view thereof in the initial opening stage;
Figure 3 is a view of the frame in the final opening stage;
Figure 4 is a view of the frame in the spread-out position.

Referring now to the attached drawing, the inventive frame includes a base 10 having a stiff back 12 fastened to the back side thereof. As it will be explained in the following, to base 10 there is fastened three folding frames, which can be folded over each other, being referenced by numbers 14, 16 and 18, and which are pivotally connected to each other in any known fashion.
In the attached Figures there is shown the frame portion of only one side thereof, since the frame portion on the other side is identical.
More particularly, frame 14 comprises the head-side portion of the framework, while frame 18 is the foot-side portion thereof. On frame 18 there is pivoted a pair of small legs 20 being each connected to a substantially J-shaped rod 22 having a bent end portion 24 inserted in an intermediate area of small leg 20, and retained therein through known locking means (not shown). J-shaped rod 22 is pivoted at 26 to the end of intermediate frame 16, at bent portion 28 thereof. J-shaped rod 22, at the end of curved portion 28 thereof, is pivoted at 29 on the end of a second J-shaped rod which is in turn pivoted at 32 on the end of a straight rod 34.
Second J-shaped rod shown at 30, at the end of curved portion 36 thereof, is pivoted at 38 on frame base 10.
Close to one of the ends of intermediate frame 16 there is fastened, for instance by welding, end 40 of a bracket 42 whose opposite end 44 is pivoted on base 10. As it should be understood, the pair of brackets 42 which connect intermediate frame 16 to base 10 in the fashion described above, enable said frame to rotate relative to the base, both in the frame opening and in the frame closing operation.
According to one of the features of the frame of this invention, straight rod 34, at the end thereof opposite to the one where it pivots on J-shaped rod 30, is provided with a longitudinal slot 46 wherein there is slidably inserted a pin 48.
On pin 48 there pivot the ends of a pair of straight short rods 50, 52 which, during the armchair or sofa opening stage, rotate around pin 48 and take substantially a V position relative to each other, where the tip angle increases as the opening operation proceeds.
As it may be noticed in particular in Figures 3 and 4, short rods 50 and 52, at the end thereof opposite to the former one, are pivoted at 54 on frame 14, and at 56 on base 10 respectively.
The inventive frame is further provided with means adapted to make easier the opening operations thereof, said means including, on each side of the frame, a spring 58 having one end thereof hooked-up to an upright 60 of base 10 and, at the opposite end, a metal cable 62 slidably supported on a small pulley 64 which is in turn rotatingly mounted on a cross member 66 of base 10.
At the free end thereof metal cable 62 is fastened to the end of straight rod 34, near pin 32.
It should further be noticed that the upper portion of back 12 is bent backwards so that, when the frame is in the armchair or sofa position (Figure 1), the mattress portion folding up towards the back takes a substantially U-shaped configuration having the pair of stretches positioned slightly apart from each other when the armchair is not in use, whereby the end of the shorter stretch does not transmit any compression to the other stretch, thereby avoiding formation of the bothersome bulge mentioned above and doing away with the associated drawback.
The frame according to this invention, in particular owing to the simple construction thereof, makes its opening and closing operations exceptionally easy. In the following, only the main steps of the opening operations are recalled, the steps of the closing operations being exactly the opposite.
Starting from the closed position, shown in Figure 1, the frame is gradually brought to the position of Figure 2, for instance by performing a pulling action which is applied by grabbing tubular end member 68 of frame 18.
During this first stage pin 48, which in the closed position was located at the left end of slot 46, moves gradually towards the right end, until it gets positioned at the latter. This takes place in that rotation of J-shaped rod 30 around stationary pin 38 causes a pushing action on rod 34, towards the armchair back side. Therefore, short rods 50 and 52 remain in the same position they were at when the armchair was in the closed condition.
At the end of the above stage, substantially corresponding to the situation of Figure 2, said pushing action is interrupted and, while J-shaped rod 30 keeps rotating, the latter ends up now applying a pulling action on rod 34, towards the armchair front side. In this way pin 48 gradually moves all the way to the left end of slot 46 and, when it gets into engagement therewith, said pulling action causes said short rods 50 and 52 to spread apart, as it may be noticed in particular in Figure 3. The relative motion of short rods 50 and 52 around pin 48 allows frame 14 to be raised all the way up to its final position.
Springs 58 and metal cables 62 make the frame opening operation easier, both going from the position of Figure 1 to the position of Figure 3, and going from the position of Figure 3 to that of Figure 4. In fact, it is easy to ascertain that in both stages just considered, the above mentioned means reduce the effort the user is required to perform.
It should eventually be understood that variations and/or modifications may be made to the armchair or sofa-bed frame of this invention, without thereby exceeding the scope of protection of said invention.

Claims

1. An armchair or sofa-bed frame comprising a number of frame portions hingedly connected to each other, adapted to collapse on top of each other when the frame is folded up, and further to lie aligned relative to each other in a plane when the latter is spread out, said frame portions being connected to each other at both opposite sides by at least one pair of J-shaped rods, one of said J-shaped rods for each side being pivoted, at the end of the curved portion thereof, to the frame base, characterized in that, at an intermediate area of curved portion 36 of J-shaped rods 30 there is pivotally connected a rod 34 which is provided, at the opposite end thereof, with a slot 46 slidingly supporting a pin 48 to which there are pivoted, at one end thereof, a pair of short rods 50, 52 which, at the opposite end thereof, are pivotally connected to head side frame portion 14 in the bed mode, and to frame base 10 respectively, spring means being eventually provided to connect base 10 to the end of rod 34, close to the pivot point 32 thereof relative to curved portion 36 of J-shaped rod 30.

2. The frame according to Claim 1, characterized in that pivot point 32 of rod 34 on J-shaped rod 30 is loc ated in such a position that, in a first initial frame opening stage, J-shaped rod 30 transmits a pushing action on rod 34 in the direction of the frame back side, whereby pin 48 where the pair of short rods 50, 52 are pivoted at, moves towards the frame front portion, while short rods 50, 52 remain stationary and, as the frame opening operation proceeds, pin 48 goes back to the starting position while abutting against the end of slot 46 located towards the frame back side, J-shaped rod 30 now transmitting a pulling action to the frame front side whereby short rods 50, 52 get spread apart by pivoting around pin 48 and said frame portion 14 gets raised and positioned.

3. The frame according to Claim 1, characterized in that the resilient means connecting base 10 to rod 34 comprise a spring 58 fastened to base 10 at one end thereof, while at the opposite end it is connected to a tension transmitting cable 62 which is in turn fastened, at the opposite end thereof, to the end of rod 34.

4. The frame according to Claim 3, characterized in that cable 62 is led over at least one pulley 64 rotatingly mounted on base 10.

5. The frame according to Claim 1, characterized in that the upper portion of back 12 thereof is bent back wards.