Patent GB-625003-A (GB)
Title: An improved reclining chair or like article of furniture
IPC: A47C1/035
Filed: 1947-07-24
Abstract: 625,003. Reclining chairs.' LORENZ, A. July 24, 1947, No. 19874. [Class 52 (ii)] A reclining chair &c., having a swingable back rest and a swingable seat pivoted at its rear portion to a support and limited in its sitting position by a stop, is constructed so that the movements of a leg rest are controlled by a controlling link pivoted to the support and to the leg rest, the effective lengths of the seat, leg rest, controlling link and the support form a four-link system and the effective length of the controlling link is such that its pivoted connection with the leg rest is movable along an arc which is outside the arc along which the pivotal connection of the seat with the leg rest is movable during the movement of the seat between its sitting and its extreme reclining positions. Fig. 1 shows a reclining chair in which the seat 20 and back 18 are pivoted to a support 10 at 22 and move from the sitting position shown to the extreme reclining position indicated at 181, 25 by means of a guiding link 36 pivoted to the support 10 and to a top link 24 which with the front link 26 form a linkage system. A leg rest 42 is pivoted at 44 to the seat 20 and its movement during the adjustment of the seat is controlled by a controlling link 48 pivoted to the support 10 at 38 and to the leg rest at 50 the support 10 between the pivots 22, 38, 'the seat 20 between its pivots 22, 44 the leg rest 42 between its pivots 44, 50 and the controlling link 48 between its pivots 38, 50 forming a four-link mechanism which in this case is a parallel motion mechanism so that the leg rest moves parallel to itself throughout its range of movement. The seat &c. may be locked in any position by means of a handle 62 operating a clamp 61 arranged on any pivot. If it is desired to alter the angle of the leg rest in relation to the seat after the latter is locked the controlling link 48, which in this case is comprised of telescopic parts 58, 60, is lengthened or shortened. The back rest 18 may be lowered in line with the seat when it is desired to use the chair as a bed or couch by disconnecting the pivot 30. In a modification the seat and back rest may'be integral which may be pivoted to the support at one of several positions as is also the controlling link. In another form the linkage including the back rest may be arranged below the seat by connecting the top link 24 to a downward extension of the back rest. In other modifications the leg rest may be arranged at other angles to the seat when the latter is in sitting position and the effective lengths of the seat, guiding link, controlling link and top and front links may be varied and, in another modification, the back rest and the seat may be pivoted to the support at spaced points. Fig. 14 shows a graphical method of determining the position of the pivotal connection c. of the controlling link c with the support together with the length of such link to obtain different relations between the reclining position and sitting position angles of the seat and leg rest. The area AR being the locus of the pivotal connection c is obtained as is also a curved line d which is the locus of c for equal angles of the seat and leg rest in sitting and reclined postions. Any point in the area AR above and below such line gives a larger or smaller angle respectively for the reclined position than the sitting position. It will be seen that arc x of movement of the leg rest is outside the arc z of movement of the seat and leg rest pivot.