US2141093A - Slidable seat - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 20, 1938. E. RICHTER ET AL 2,141,093

SLIDABLE SEAT Original Filed Jan. 14, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet l az o .74 s a 3 AA/A E "Z36 P.

Dec. 20, 1938. E. RICHTER ET AL 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 SLIDABLE SEAT Original Filed Jan. 14, 1935 Il ICIHIHEI Dec. 20,1938.

E. RICHTER ET AL SLIDABLE SEAT I 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Original Filed Jan. 14, 1935 Patented Dec. 20, 1938 PATENT" mm SLIDABLE SEAT Edward Richter and Earl L. Schofleld, Freeport, lll., assignors to Henney Motor Company, Freeport, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Original application January 14, 1935, Serial 1,750. Divided and this application May 1935, Serial No. 22,128

'1 Claims.

of the seat to an out-of-the-way position when.

the casket table is to be extended from the hearse.

The principal object of our invention is to provide a seat mounting which permits quick and easy movement of the seat back and forth and the quickly releasable locking of the seat in its normal or adjusted positions and, should occasion require, the easy removal and replacement of the seat.

Another important object consists in the provision of means wherebyeither seat, although of a heavy rigid-back type, may be quickly releasably supported in forwardly tilted position when additional clearance is required to avoid interference with a casket of unusual size.

This application is a division of our copending iligizpslication Serial No. 1,750, filed January 14,

The invention will readily appear in the following detailed description, in which reference is made to the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal section through the body of a hearse showing the left seat in normal position and the mechanism for the right seat in forward position;

Fig. -2 is a vertical section on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1, further disclosing the mound structure;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged horizontal section on the line 33 of Fig. 2, showing the manually releasable lock for the seats;

Fig. 4 is a side view of one of the seats showing the improved prop for holding the same in tilted position;

Fig. 5 is a sectional detail of the prop on a larger scale;-

Fig. 6 is a front view of a seat;

Figs. 7 and 8 are a front view and side view, respectively, of oneof the adjustable front rollers for the seat;

Fig. 9 is a section on the line 9--9 of Fig. 6, showing the seat slide and its hinge connection with the seat, and

Fig. 10 is a section in a transverse plane on the line I0lll of Fig. 9, showing the bolt for locking the seat in any one of four positions of fore and aft adjustment with respect to the slide.

The same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts throughout the views.

Referring first in a general way .to Figures 1 and 2, l6 designates the body of. a hearse having the usual doors I! for use of the driver and a passenger occupying seats 18 and I9, and having other side doors 20 arranged to be opened only when a casket is to be loaded or unloaded. The casket (not shown) is supported on the table 2| movable relative to a raised platform or mound 22 which extends the full length of the body from the rear door up to the seats l8-l9. The extent to which the mound 22 is elevated with respect to the floor 24 on which the seats l8 and I9 rest clearly appears in Fig. 2. The table 2|, as disclosed in the parent application, is guided in its movement to and from extended position by three pins, the front one of which is numbered 25 and is arranged to be locked in a switch member 28 or to move laterally in either one of two guides 29 when the member 28 is turned one way or the other. Thus, in Fig. 1, the pin 25, and hence the table 2|, is movable toward the right, due to the fact that the switch member 28 has been turned as a result of the forward movement of. the right seat l9. The seats l8 and 19 are attached to guide rods or slides 34 and 35, respectively, slidable in tubular guides 36 projecting forwardly from the front wall 31 of the mound 22. The rods 34-35 project rearwardly under the mound and are connected at their rear ends by means of links 3411-3511. to arms 34b-35b pivoted on a stem projecting downwardly from the switch member 28. These arms serve to operate the switch member 28 in a manner fully disclosed in the parent application.

The seats Ill-l9 are arranged to be locked in their normal position and also in their forward position, but the seat l8 may be released by pulling out a knob l8a from the side of the mound 22. A similar knob l9a is provided for the seat 19. Viewing Fig. 3, it will be seen that the manually operable knob is connected through a rod 44 with a latch 45, slidable in a guide 45 mounted on the inside of the front wall 31 of the mound, and arranged to enter either one of two notches 46, and 41 provided in the side of the guide rod 34 (and 35). The latch 45 is urged toward engagement with the guide rod by a coiled compression spring 48, as shown, the spring being seated on a projection 49 formed preferably integral with the aforesaid guide 45'. When the seat is to be moved forward, the knob l8a is pulled out to withdraw the latch 45 from the notch 46. Then, when the seat has been moved forward far enough, the latch 45 enters the notch 41, thus looking the seat in its forward position. A rubber roller 50 rotatably mounted on a stud 5| projecting from the side of the rod 34 (and 35) adjacent the notch 41, strikes a part of the guide 45' just prior to the registration of the notch 41 with the latch 45 and serves to limit the forward movement, while at the same time making the operation as noiseless as possible. The return movement is also limited by a stop collar 52 provided on the guide rod 34 (and 35) and arranged to strike the front end of the guide 36, but have such engagement cushioned by a rubber ring 53 interposed between the collar and guide and surrounding the rod, as clearly indicated in Fig. 9.

Each seat has a fork 54 projecting downwardly from the bottom thereof at the middle of the front end, directly over the rod 34 (and 35), see Figs. 6, 9 and 10. The tubular member 55, fitting on the rod 34, has a ing 56 projecting upwardly therefrom into the fork 54 and hinged thereto on a bolt 51 received in either one of two vertically spaced holes d and e provided in the lug. The

need for these holes will be apparent later when the seat adjustment, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8, is described. Furthermore, the purpose of having the seats hinged with respect to their guide rods will appear when the prop for supporting the seats in tilted position illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, is described. A series of four longitudinally spaced sockets ,f, g, h and i is provided in the side of the rod 34 (and 35), and a spring pressed plunger 58 operable by means of a knob 59 against the action of the spring 60 is arranged to be entered in either one of these sockets and accordingly make a fore and aft adjustment of the seat on its guide rod. A hollow boss 6| projecting from the side of the member provides a bearing for the plunger 58 and a housing for its spring 60, as clearly appears in Fig. 10. A pin 62' screwed into a hole in the front end of the rod 34 (and 35) prevents disengagement of a seat from its guide rod in the fore and aft adjustment, but these pins may be removed easily in the event it is desired to remove a seat, as for example, for cleaning or repairing the seat, or reupholstering the same.

The hinging of the seats relative to their guide rods permits forward tilting, as indicated in Fig. 4, as, for example, where additional clearance is needed owing' to the unusual size of the casket. A prop 62 is extensible from the bottom of each seat at the back and is arranged to be releasably locked in extended position to support the seat in its tilted position so long as desired. The prop is in the form of a rod reciprocable in a U-shaped bracket 63 mounted in the back of the seat at the bottom. A long coiled compression spring 64 surrounds the upper end of the rod and bears at its lower end on the bracket 63 and at its upper end on a washer 65 retained by a cotter pin 66. This spring normally holds the prop in its raised retracted position so that only the knob 61 provided on the lower end of the prop is left projecting from the bottom of the seat, as indicated in Fig. 2. The knob serves both as a handle by means of which the prop may be pulled out against the action of its spring 64 and as a foot to bear on the floor to support the seat in tilted position. There is sufficient play in the bearing at 68 so that the prop when extended can-be moved forwardly so as to engage a lug 69 on the bracket 63 in a notch 10 provided in the side of the prop. In that way, the prop is positively held in extended position and can sustain the weight of the seat. When the seat is to be returned to its normal position, the prop is moved to the rear enough to disengage the lug 69 from the notch 10, whereupon the prop will return to its retracted position under the action spring.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2 and 6-8, it will be seen that the seats have pairs of front and rear rollers H and 12 for support thereof, these rollers resting normally on metal tracks 13 fastened to the floor. The front rollers II have their forks l4 adjustably secured to brackets 15 projecting downwardly from the bottom of the seat, adjustability being afforded by the bolts 16 entered through vertical slots I1 in the brackets 15 and threaded in the forks 14. The desired inclination of the seat is, therefore, easily secured by merely adjusting the front rollers. When such an adjustment is made, the bolt 51 has to be removed and entered in the proper hole d or e in the lu 56 of the associated crosshead 55.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of the various objects of our invention. It should be clear that the slid-, able seat mounting herein disclosed may be used in other vehicles independently of any mechanical connection with a casket table switching mechanism. Then, too, it will be evident that the guide rods and their cooperating guides may, if so desired, be provided in or below the floor instead of above the fioor as herein disclosed, with the crosshead 55 movable in slots in the floor. The disposition of the guide rods and guides therefor above the floor level is also not considered essential in a hearse construction, although it facilitates connection with the switch mechanism in the mound as herein disclosed. The appended claims have been drawn with a view to covering all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

We claim: I

1. In a slidable seat, the combination with a support and a seat resting directly thereon and slidable relative thereto, of a single, rigidly supported tubular guide disposed in a median plane relative to said seat extending parallel to said support and in the direction of movement of the seat and therebeneath, a single rod reciprocable of its in said guide, means cooperating with one end of said rod for releasably locking the same in a selected position to said guide. and means cooperating with the other end of said rod for adjustably connecting the seat to the rod, whereby to permit adjustment back and forth relative to the guide in the direction of movement of the seat.

2. In a slidable seat, the combination with a support and a seat resting directly thereon and slidable relative thereto, of a single, rigidly sup ported tubular guide disposed in a median plane relative to said seat extending parallel to said support and in the direction of movement of the seat and therebeneath, a single rod reciprocable in said guide, means cooperating with oneend of said rod for releasably locking the same in a selected position to said guide, the other end of said rod having a plurality of longitudinally spaced recesses provided therein, and a tubular member mounted on said seat and slidable on said rod relative to said recesses, and having a detent thereon arranged to be entered selectively in any one of said recesses to adjustably secure the seat to the'rod and accordingly permit adjustment of the seat relative to the guide and locking means.

3. In a slidable seat, the combination with a support and a seat resting directly thereon and slidable relative thereto, of a single, rigidly supported tubular guide disposed in a median plane relative to the support, rollers on the bottom of the seat at the back thereof arranged to engage said support, and other rollers vertically adjustably mounted on the bottom of the seat at the front thereof and also arranged to engage said support 4. A seat as set forth in claim 1 including a stop removably mounted on the end of each rod arranged normally to limit forward adjustment of the seats relative to the rods but adapted upon removal to permit removal of the seats from connection with the rods.

5. A seat-as set forth in claim 2 including a stop removably mounted on the end of each rod arranged normally to limit forward adjustment of the seats relative to the rods but adapted upon removal to permit removal of the seats from connection with the rods.

6. In a slidable seat, the combination with a support and a seat resting directly thereon and slidable relative thereto, of a single, rigidly supported tubular guide disposed in a median plane relative to said seat extending parallel to said support and in the direction of movement of the seat and therebeneath, a single rod reciprocable in said guide, a hinge member on the rod and another hinge member on the bottom of the seat at the front thereof for hingedly connecting the seat to the rod, said hinge members comprising relatively slidable abutting connecting portions for hingedly connecting the front end of said seat to the rod at a desired elevation of the seat relative to the support, and rollers on the bottom of the seat at the back thereof arranged to engage said support.

7. In a slidable seat, the combination with a support anda seat resting directly thereon and slidable relative thereto, of a single, rigidly supported tubular guide disposed in a median plane relative to said seat extending parallel to said support and in the direction of movement of the seat and therebeneath, a single rod reciprocable in said guide, a hinge member on the rod and another hinge member on the bottom of the seat at the front thereof for hingedly connecting the seat to the rod, said hinge members comprising relatively slidable abutting connecting portions for hingedly connecting the front end of said seat to the rod at a desired elevation of the seat relative to the support, and rollers vertically adjustably mounted on the bottom of theseat and arranged to engage said support.

EDWARD RICHTER.

EARL L. SCHOFIELD.

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