Reclining actuator for a recliner chair

An actuator assembly for a recliner chair having a chair frame, a seat unit, and a linkage mounting the seat unit on the chair frame for back and forth movement between a seating position and a reclining position located forwardly of the seating position. The actuator assembly includes a handle pivotally mounted on the side of the chair frame and connected through a link to an activator member which is pivotally mounted on the chair frame and provided with an abutting portion that is located in the path of movement of the seat unit. When the seat unit is in the seating position, a pivoting movement of the activator member in response to manipulation of the handle causes the abutting portion to engage the seat unit to move the seat unit forwardly toward its reclining position. The actuator assembly operates to move the seat unit only from the seating position toward its reclining position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates generally to a recliner chair, and in 
particular, to a manually operated actuator assembly for effecting the 
reclining movement of the recliner chair. 
Recliner chairs often are equipped with reclining actuators that are 
manually operable to cause a reclining movement of the reclining chair. 
The actuator assemblies are generally complex being structurally 
integrated with the linkage mechanism that supports the seat unit on the 
chair frame. Such recliner actuator assemblies are relatively difficult 
and expensive to install on a recliner chair and are hard to operate 
because they require high torque forces in order to move all the parts 
that must be moved in response to actuating handle movement. 
It is the general object of this invention, therefore, to provide an 
improved reclining actuator assembly for a recliner chair that is simple 
to install, can be installed with any existing hardware, and is easy to 
operate because of the efficient utilization of operating forces. 
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
Application Ser. No. 100,951, filed Dec. 6, 1979 and assigned to the 
assignee of this invention, discloses a recliner chair like the chair in 
which the present invention is employed that utilizes an actuator handle 
that is incorporated as a part of the recliner hardware. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention provides an improved reclining actuator assembly for 
a recliner chair which includes a chair frame, a seat unit, and a linkage 
mounting the seat unit on the chair frame for back and forth movement 
between an upright seating position and a reclining position located 
forwardly of the seating position. The recliner chair may also include a 
footrest connected by a scissors linkage to the recliner chair and movable 
between a concealed upright position in the seating position of the chair 
and an extended foot rest position in the reclining position of the chair. 
U.S. Pat. No. 3,743,349 discloses a recliner chair hardware in which a 
handle that can move the chair both ways between upright and reclined 
positions is incorporated as a part of the recliner hardware. In the 
recliner chair to which the actuator of this invention is applied, the 
seat and back are fixedly mounted together and are connected to a chair 
frame by a linkage that allows the front of the seat to be moved forwardly 
and upwardly while the back is moved forwardly and downwardly during the 
reclining movement of the chair. A footrest is connected by a scissors 
linkage to the seat and chair frame and to the linkage connecting the seat 
to the chair frame so that it is extended in response to a reclining 
movement of the chair. 
The reclining actuator assembly of the present invention includes a handle 
pivotally mounted on the side of the chair frame and connected through a 
link member to an activator member that is pivotally mounted on the rear 
of the chair frame. The activator member is pivotal in the longitudinal 
direction of the chair between an upright rest position and a forwardly 
inclined position in response to a corresponding pivotal movement of the 
handle between an idle position and an operative position. The actuator 
member includes an integral abutting portion located in the path of 
movement of the seat unit. When the seat is in the seating position, a 
movement of the handle from its idle position toward its operative 
position causes the activator member to be pivoted forwardly to engage the 
seat unit and move it toward its reclining position. 
The activator member includes an integral stop extension that engages the 
chair frame to restrain a further forward movement of the activator member 
from its operative position so as to maintain the abutting portion in the 
path of movement of the seat unit. Consequently, a backward movement of 
the seat unit from its reclining position toward its seating position 
causes it to engage the abutting portion and return the activator member 
to its upright rest position and the handle to its idle position. 
The actuator assembly of the present invention is operable only to move the 
seat unit from its seating position toward its reclining position through 
the engagement of the activator abutting portion with the seat unit. The 
seat unit must be returned to its seating position by the occupant 
grasping the arms of the chair and shifting his weight so as to effect the 
return movement of the seat to its upright seating position. The reclining 
actuator assembly of the present invention is simple, inexpensive, and 
highly effective to enable an occupant to easily move the seat to its 
reclining position.

Referring to the drawing, the reclining actuator assembly of the present 
invention, indicated generally at 10 in FIG. 1, is installed on a recliner 
chair 12 consisting of a chair frame 14, a seat unit 16 including a seat 
18, a backrest 20 fixedly connected to the seat 18, and a linkage 22 
connecting the seat unit 16 to the chair frame 14 for back and forth 
movement longitudinally of the chair between a seating position, as shown 
in FIG. 1, where the backrest is generally upright and the seat 18 is 
generally horizontal and a reclining position, as seen in FIG. 2, where 
the seat unit 16 is moved forwardly and pivoted slightly rearwardly. The 
recliner chair 12 also includes a footrest 24 connected to the seat unit 
16 and the linkage 22 by a scissors linkage 26. The footrest 24 is movable 
between a concealed upright position in the seating position of the 
recliner chair 12, as shown in FIG. 1, and an extended horizontal position 
in the reclining position of the recliner chair 12 as shown in FIG. 2. A 
chair of this type is disclosed in U.S. Patent application Ser. No. 
100,951, filed on Dec. 6, 1979, the specification of which is incorporated 
herein by reference. 
The reclining actuator assembly 10 is operable to effect a reclining 
movement of the recliner chair 12 from its upright seating position shown 
in FIG. 1 toward its reclining position shown in FIG. 2 where the seat 
unit 16 is positioned forwardly and pivoted rearwardly with respect to its 
seating position. 
As shown in FIG. 3, the actuator assembly 10 includes a handle 28 having a 
gripping portion 30 and an offset portion 32 connected to the gripping 
portion by a transversely extending connecting bar 34. The handle 28 is 
pivotally mounted by a bracket 36 on a frame member 38 on one side of the 
chair frame 14 for pivotal movement about an axis defined by the 
connecting bar 34 which extends transversely of the chair 12. The gripper 
portion 30 is longer than the offset portion 32 to provide a force 
multiplying mechanical advantage when the handle 28 is pivoted. 
The reclining actuator assembly 10 includes an activator member 40 
pivotally mounted on a transversely extending rear frame member 42 of the 
chair frame 14 by brackets 43. The activator member 40 includes a main 
portion 44 having at one end a transversely extending lever arm 46 and at 
the other end an integral stop extension 48. An abutting portion 50 is 
integrally formed in the main portion 44 of the activator member 40 
intermediate its ends and has a generally U-shaped configuration. The 
lever arm 46 and the abutting portion 50 which also extends transversely 
of the main portion 44 are located in a common plane. The stop extension 
48 also extends transversely of the main portion 44 but is located at an 
angle with respect to the lever arm 46 and the abutting portion 50. Its 
function and configuration will be explained below. The offset portion 32 
on the handle 28 is connected to the end of the lever arm 46 by a link 
member 54 which consists of a heavy gauge wire having hooked or return 
bent end portions that are inserted into holes formed in the ends of the 
offset portion 32 and the arm 46. 
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the handle 28 is located in an idle position in 
which the gripper portion 30 extends forwardly from the connecting bar 34 
and is only slightly inclined upwardly from the horizontal to allow an 
occupant of the recliner chair 12 to easily grasp the gripper portion 30 
utilizing its initial angular position to exert maximum mechanical force 
on the handle 28. The handle 28 is moved to a more upright operative 
position, shown in FIG. 2, to actuate the activator member 40 to move the 
seat unit 18 from its seating position (FIG. 1) toward its reclining 
position (FIG. 2). The activator member 40 is pivotal between an upright 
rest position and an inclined forwardly extending position (FIG. 2) in 
response to movement of the handle 28 from its idle position toward its 
operative position. The abutting portion 50 is located in the path of 
movement of the seat unit 16 and engages a bearing plate 56 mounted on a 
cross frame member 58 which forms a portion of the seat unit 16. 
As shown in FIG. 4, the activator member 40 is pivotal between its upright 
rest position, shown in solid lines, and a forwardly pivoted inclined 
position shown in broken lines. The stop extension 48 extends below the 
main portion 44 of the activator member 40 and forwardly at an angle with 
respect to the plane in which the abutting portion 50 is located. The stop 
extension 48 engages the upright forward surface 60 of the cross frame 42 
when the activator member is in its activated forward position to restrain 
further forward pivoting of the activator member 40. Accordingly, the stop 
extension 48 operates to prevent a further forward pivoting of the 
activator member 40 thus to maintain the abutting portion 50 in the path 
of movement of the seat unit 16 generally and, specifically, in the path 
of movement of the plate 56 mounted on the cross frame member 58 of the 
seat unit 16. 
The reclining actuator assembly 10 is only operable to move the seat unit 
16 from the seating position toward its reclining position. Assume that 
the recliner chair 12 is in the seating position illustrated in FIG. 1. A 
counterclockwise pivoting of the handle 28 causes a corresponding pivoting 
of the offset member 32 which through the link member 54 pivots the lever 
46 on the activator member 40 forwardly. The abutting portion 50 is moved 
forwardly through an arc and engages the bearing plate 56 to push the seat 
unit 16 forwardly toward its reclining position (FIG. 2). Movement of the 
seat unit 16 toward its reclining position, as shown in FIG. 2, extends 
the footrest 24 through the action of the linkages 22 and 26. The stop 
extension 48 prevents a further forward pivoting of the activator member 
40 from its activated forward position when it engages the surface 60 on 
the frame member 42. The seat unit 16 is returned from its reclining 
position when the occupant grasps the armrests 62 and shifts his weight so 
as to move the seat unit 16 rearwardly. Because the abutting portion 50 is 
always maintained in the path of movement of the bearing plate 56, the 
rearward movement of the seat unit 16 will pivot the activator member 40 
rearwardly from its activated position toward its upright rest position. 
The pivoting of the activator member 40 toward its rest position causes 
the handle 28 to be pivoted through the link member 54 toward its idle 
position. 
From the above description, it can be seen that an improved reclining 
actuator assembly 10 is provided which operates only to effect a reclining 
movement of a reclining chair. The reclining actuator assembly 10 consists 
of few components, and is easily installed. The reclining actuator 
assembly 10 is particularly adapted for mounting on a reclining chair 
since it does not require an integration of its components with any 
existing linkage connecting the seat unit with the chair frame. The 
utilization of a pushing force near the center of the chair rear rail 58 
to move the chair to its reclining position enables the handle 28 to be 
moved easily, requiring little force.