Patent GB-933065-A (GB)
Title: Improvements relating to convertible chairs
Inventor: SCHREIER WILHELM
IPC: A47C1/022
Filed: 1961-04-04
Abstract: 933,065. Seats. P. FANGHANEL & CO. Ltd. March 30, 1962 [April 4, 1961; Aug. 29, 1961 (2)], Nos. 11593/61, 31117/61 and 31118/61. Class 52 (2). A convertible armchair frame consists of a seat frame 53a, a back frame 54a and a pair of arm frames 93, 94, the frames 53a, 54a being movable together so as to form the seat frame of the settee and the arm frames 93, 94 being movable so as together to form the back frame of the settee. The chair base frame comprises two parts 1, 2. The part 1 is quadrilateral and comprises walls 3, 4, 5 and 6. The part 2 is triangular and has walls 7, 8, 9. A hinge 10 is provided at the juncture of the walls 5, 8 which constitute the rear wall of the base frame. The parts 1, 2 may be locked in the chair position by a catch 29 on the part 1 engaging an element 30 on the part 2 and releasable by means of a handle 36 (Fig. 4). To convert the chair into a settee the catch 29 is released and the part 2 is rotated about the hinge 10 until the walls 4, 7 and the arms 93, 94 are in alignment. A spring clip 121 on the back frame 54a engages over the element 30 to lock the parts in the settee position. The back frame 54a is provided with rods 65, 67 having legs 68, 69. Feet 72, 73 are provided at the other ends of the rods 65, 66 to engage in boxes 59, 60 and thus to hold the back 55 in the chair position. When converting the chair into a settee the legs 68, 69 are rotated through 90 degrees to the position shown in Fig. 2. This releases the feet 72, 73 from engagement with the tops of the boxes and allows the back frame 54a to be aligned with the seat frame 53a and then moved longitudinally towards the seat. In a modification shown in Fig. 5, the boxes and support rods are replaced by tubes 122 and housings 123 having recesses 129 to engage the lower ends 128 of rods 127. A hinged stay 88 on the seat frame 53a is guided in a box 91 and has two apertures 89, 90 in one of which the end 37 of a rod 20 (Fig. 4) may be engaged. The seat frame 53a is also supported on the chair base by means of socket elements 84, 85 co-operating with balls 86, 87 carried on legs 12, 14 of the base. The arrangement is such that when in the chair position (Fig. 1) the seat frame 53a slopes towards the back frame 54a, the front of the seat being supported by the ball 87 and the stay 88 with the hole 89 engaged by the rod 20. In the settee position (Fig. 2) the aligned back frame 54a and seat frame 53a are inclined towards the arms 93, 94, the hole 90 in the stay 88 being engaged by the rod 20. The arms 93, 94 have sockets 95, 96 which fit over tubes 46 to 49 pivoted at 52 to strips 42 to 45 fixed to the two parts 1, 2 of the base frame. As shown in Fig. 1, the arms 93, 94 are mounted so that they are vertical and their upper surfaces 118 incline downwardly from the front to the back of the chair. In the settee position shown in Figs. 2 and 4, the tubes 46 to 49 are pivoted relative to the strips 42 to 45 so that the arms 93, 94 are tilted outwardly relative to the chair and their upper surfaces extend horizontally.