Patent Publication Number: US-7213875-B2

Title: Foldable chair

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
   This foldable chair has been devised for the purpose of being preferentially used by infants. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   There are different models of foldable chairs for infants, said foldable chair models generally having a simple makeup and for example including among them the one being made up by a frame making up the backrest and the forward prop and being articulately linked to a second frame making up the backward prop and to a plate making up the seat and coming to rest on the second frame. 
   A drawback of this type of chairs lies in that because of having their components articulately linked to each other their folded arrangement is not stable, the articulated members effecting relative motions with respect to each other and thus hampering the handling of these chairs when having to move them around and put them aside. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   This invention has as its object a foldable chair which once folded maintains its components, i.e. the two frames and the seat, in a mutually juxtaposed arrangement thus forming a compact assembly allowing to more easily move it around and put it aside in the dealer&#39;s warehouse or in the user&#39;s home. 
   This foldable chair is characterised in that the seat is linked in a pin-jointed connection and by means of a link to the second frame forming the chair&#39;s backward prop. 
   In order to establish this pin-jointed connection a piece is fixedly attached to the lower surface of the seat and another piece is also fixedly attached to the lower surface of the cross member of the second frame, said seat coming to rest on this latter cross member, each of the respective ends of the link being linked in a pin-jointed connection to the respective one of the aforementioned pieces, said link longitudinally having a slightly arcuate shape and being forked at its ends. 
   These and other features will be best made apparent by the following detailed description whose understanding will be made easier by the accompanying sheet of drawings showing a practical embodiment being cited only by way of example not limiting the scope of the present invention. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  shows in a perspective view the chair being the object of the invention, said chair being shown here in its unfolded state and as seen from below. 
       FIGS. 2 ,  3  and  4  in a sectional elevation illustrate the detail of the pin-jointed connections between the three components of the chair in the unfolded, semi-unfolded and folded positions, respectively. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
   According to the drawings this foldable chair comprises a rectangular frame  1  at its upper end forming the backrest  2  and at its lower end forming the forward prop  3 ; a second rectangular frame  4  forming the backward prop  8  of the chair and having extended sides  5  being each by means of a pin  6  linked in a pin-jointed connection to the respective projection  7  of the backward edge of each of the sides of frame  1 ; and a quadrangular plate  9  forming the seat of the chair and being laterally linked in a pin-jointed connection and by means of a pin  10  to the sides of frame  1 . 
   In the chair&#39;s unfolded position the seat plate  9  rests on the upper cross member  11  of frame  4  ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ). 
   In the chair&#39;s folded position ( FIG. 4 ) the seat plate  9  is in the plane of frame  1  and frame  4  is juxtaposed on said frame  1 . 
   In order to maintain the chair in a stably folded position the seat  9  is linked in a pin-jointed connection with the second frame  4  by means of a link  12  longitudinally having a slightly arcuate shape and being forked at its ends  13  and  14 , each of said ends by means of a respective pin  15  and  16  being linked in a pin-jointed connection to a respective piece  17  and  18  being fixedly attached to the lower surface of the cross member  11  and to the lower surface of the seat  9 , respectively. 
   When with this structure proceeding to fold the chair, when folding the seat  9  as per arrow (F) around the pin  10  said seat by means of the link  12  will pull along the frame  4  as per arrow (F′) till finally reaching a position wherein the three components of the chair are arranged in a juxtaposed and stabilised arrangement as shown in  FIG. 4 . 
   A tray can be also fitted to this chair.