Patent Publication Number: US-8967718-B2

Title: Rocking-reclining seating unit

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates generally to seating units, and relates more particularly to reclining seating units with rocking capability. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Recliner chairs and other reclining seating units have proven to be popular with consumers. These seating units typically move from an upright position, in which the backrest is generally upright, to one or more reclined positions, in which the backrest pivots to be less upright. The movement of the seating unit between the upright and reclined positions is typically controlled by a pair of matching reclining mechanisms that are attached to the seat, backrest and base of the chair. 
     One particularly popular reclining chair is the so-called “rocker-recliner,” which can, when in the upright position, rock with a forward and rearward motion similar to that of a traditional rocking chair. A typical rocker recliner, one of which is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,647 to Rogers, includes an arcuate rocker cam that is attached with the lower portion of each mechanism, with the lower convex surface of the rocker cam contacting a level bearing surface of the base. Also, a spring assembly is mounted to the base of the chair and to each rocker cam. Each spring assembly includes two quite stiff, vertically-oriented helical springs attached to mounting brackets that are in turn fixed to the base and to the rocker cam. When the chair is in its upright position and is unoccupied, the seat, backrest and reclining mechanisms reside above the base, the rocker springs are deflected only along their longitudinal axes, and the rocker cams rest on a level portion of the base. When an occupant sits on the chair and applies a forwardly- or rearwardly-directed force to the seat or backrest, the seat and backrest move relative to the base. The path of movement is defined by the convex shape of the rocker cams as they rock on the level bearing surface of the base, with the result that the seat and backrest simulate the rocking motion of a rocking chair. During the rocking movement, the rocker springs deflect such that their top portions bend away from their longitudinal axes as the chair rocks forward and back. The deflection in the springs urges the springs (and, in turn, the seat and backrest) to return to their original positions as the chair returns to and through the upright position. In this manner, the chair is capable of providing a controlled rocking motion when in the upright position. 
     Although they are already popular seating units, it may be desirable to provide additional functionality to rocker-recliners. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     As a first aspect, embodiments of the present invention are directed to a reclining seating unit. The reclining seating unit comprises: a base; a rocker assembly fixed to the base; and an arm frame fixed to the rocker assembly, wherein the rocker assembly is configured such that the arm frame experiences rocking motion relative to the base. The seating unit further comprises: a generally horizontally-disposed seat; a generally upright backrest positioned rearwardly of the seat; a footrest unit; and a reclining mechanism that interconnects and controls movement of the seat and the backrest relative to the arm frame between an upright position and a reclined position. In the upright position, the backrest is generally upright and positioned above the arm frame, and the seat has a first rearward position relative to the arm frame, and in the reclined position, the backrest is reclined relative to the underlying surface as compared to its disposition in the upright position and the seat has a second forward position relative to the arm frame that is forward of the first rearward position. The footrest unit comprises at least one footrest and a footrest mechanism that interconnects the footrest with the seat, the footrest mechanism configured to move the footrest between a retracted position, in which the footrest is positioned beneath the seat, and an extended position, in which the footrest is generally horizontally disposed in front of the seat. The footrest mechanism is decoupled from the reclining mechanism. When the backrest moves between the upright and reclined positions, the footrest unit moves relative to the arm frame in concert with the seat. Such a seating unit can provide great flexibility to the occupant: he can recline the backrest with the footrest extended or retracted, or allow the backrest to remain upright with the footrest retracted or extended. In any of these positions, the occupant is free to rock while in the seating unit. 
     As a second aspect, embodiments of the present invention are directed to a reclining seating unit as described above, wherein the rocker assembly includes: a mounting bracket fixed to the base; a locking link fixed to the arm frame and pivotally attached to the mounting bracket at a first pivot; and a spring unit attached to the mounting bracket and to the locking link that is configured to dampen relative rocking motion of the arm frame and the base. In some embodiments, the first pivot is positioned such that the frontmost end of the seat experiences little to no upward movement during rocking motion of the arm frame. In additional embodiments, the first pivot is positioned such that the seat moves between a first unrocked position, in which a rearwardmost end of the seat is in a relatively rearward and raised position, and a second rocked position, in which the rearwardmost end of the seat is in a forward and lowered position compared to the unrocked position. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a rocker-recliner chair according to embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a side section view of the chair of  FIG. 1  with the backrest in its upright position and the footrest in its retracted position. 
         FIG. 3  is a side section view of the chair of  FIG. 1  with the backrest in its upright position and the footrest in its extended position. 
         FIG. 4  is a side section view of the chair of  FIG. 1  with the backrest in its reclined position and the footrest in its extended position. 
         FIG. 5  is a side section view of the chair of  FIG. 1  with the backrest in its reclined position and the footrest in its retracted position. 
         FIG. 6  is a top cutaway view of the frame of the chair of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the base and rocking assembly of the chair of  FIG. 1  with the rocking assembly rocked forwardly. 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the base and rocking assembly of  FIG. 7  with the rocking assembly rocked rearwardly. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention now is described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. 
     Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. In the figures, the thickness of certain lines, layers, components, elements or features may be exaggerated for clarity. Broken lines illustrate optional features or operations unless specified otherwise. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, phrases such as “between X and Y” and “between about X and Y” should be interpreted to include X and Y. As used herein, phrases such as “between about X and Y” mean “between about X and about Y.” As used herein, phrases such as “from about X to Y” mean “from about X to about Y.” 
     Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the specification and relevant art and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. Well-known functions or constructions may not be described in detail for brevity and/or clarity. 
     It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “on”, “attached” to “connected” to, “coupled” with, “contacting”, etc., another element, it can be directly on, attached to, connected to, coupled with or contacting the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being, for example, “directly on”, “directly attached” to, “directly connected” to, “directly coupled” with or “directly contacting” another element, there are no intervening elements present. It will also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that references to a structure or feature that is disposed “adjacent” another feature may have portions that overlap or underlie the adjacent feature. 
     This invention is directed to seating units that have a stationary base, a seat portion, and a backrest. As used herein, the terms “forward”, “forwardly”, and “front” and derivatives thereof refer to the direction defined by a vector extending from the backrest toward the seat parallel to the underlying surface. Conversely, the terms “rearward”, “rearwardly”, and derivatives thereof refer to the direction directly opposite the forward direction; the rearward direction is defined by a vector that extends from the seat toward the backrest parallel to the underlying surface. The terms “lateral,” “laterally”, and derivatives thereof refer to the direction parallel with the floor, perpendicular to the forward and rearward directions, and extending away from a plane bisecting the seating units between their armrests. The terms “medial,” “inward,” “inboard,” and derivatives thereof refer to the direction that is the converse of the lateral direction, i.e., the direction parallel with the floor, perpendicular to the forward direction, and extending from the periphery of the seating units toward the aforementioned bisecting plane. 
     The seating units illustrated and described herein comprise a plurality of pivotally interconnected links. Those skilled in this art will appreciate that the pivots between links can take a variety of configurations, such as pivot pins, rivets, bolt and nut combinations, and the like, any of which would be suitable for use with the present invention. Also, the shapes of the links may vary as desired, as may the locations of certain of the pivots. Moreover, in some instances combinations of pivot points may be replaced by equivalent structures, such as “slider-crank” configurations, like those described in B. Paul,  Kinematics and Dynamics of Planar Machinery  4-21 (1979). 
     Referring now to the drawings, a chair, designated broadly at  10 , is illustrated in  FIGS. 1-6 . The chair  10  includes a base  200 , an arm frame  225 , a seat  22 , a backrest  28 , and a footrest unit  34 . These components identified above are described in greater detail below. As used herein to describe the relative positions of components, the terms “lateral”, “outward” and derivatives thereof indicate the directions defined by a vector beginning at a vertical plane P (shown in  FIG. 5 ) that bisects the chair  10  normal to the seat  22  and the backrest  28  and extending normal thereto (i.e., from the center of the chair  10  toward the arms). Conversely, the terms “inward”, “inboard” and derivatives thereof indicate the direction opposite the “outward” direction. Together, the “inward” and “outward” directions comprise the “transverse” axis of the chair  10 . The “rear” of the chair  10  is located at the tip of the backrest  28 , and the “front” of the chair  10  is located at the end of the seat  22  farthest from the backrest  28 . The “front” and “rear” directions comprise the “longitudinal” axis of the chair  10 . 
     The base  250  includes a circular, two-level foundation  252 . A swivel unit  253  includes a sleeve  254  within which is rotatably mounted a spindle  256 . A plate  258  is fixed to the upper end of the spindle  256 . Cross-members  260   a ,  260   b  are mounted to the underside of the plate  258 . 
     A rocker assembly  262  includes a mounting bracket  264  fixed at each end of the cross-members  260   a ,  260   b . A cross-member  266  spans the mounting brackets  264 . A rocking link  276  is mounted at a pivot  280  to each mounting bracket  264 . The pivot  280  is positioned well forward of the spindle  256  of the swivel unit  253 , typically between about 3 and 7.5 inches from the front of the seat  22 . A spring base  278  spans the front portions of the rocking links  276 , and a cross-member  284  spans the rear portions of the rocking links  276 . A cross member  284  is fixed to the cross-member  282  and terminates in a mounting panel  286 . A cross-member  288  is mounted to lower forward portions of the rocking links  276 . A pin  264   a  mounted to the mounting bracket  264  extends through an arcuate slot  276   a  in the rocking link  276 . A spring unit  268  includes a helical spring  270  and a spring rod  272 . The spring rod  272 , which passes through the coils of the spring  270 , is mounted at one end to a cap  275 , which is threaded onto the spring rod  272 , and at its other end to the spring base  278  at a pivot  274 . 
     Notably, the rocker assembly  262  is relatively short in height, which can enable it to be used with multiple chair styles. In some embodiments, the height of the rocker assembly  268 , measured from its lowermost portion (in this case the lower end of the end cap  275 ) to its uppermost portion (in this instance the uppermost end of the mounting bracket  264 ) is between about 3.5 and 5.5 inches. 
     The arm frame  225  includes two arms  226 , only one of which will be described in detail herein. The arms  226  are spanned by a cross-member  228 , and by the cross-members  282 ,  288 , which are mounted to the inner surfaces of the arms  226  via mounting panels  286 ,  290  respectively. 
     Referring again to  FIGS. 1 and 6 , the seat  22  includes a seat frame  24  that is generally horizontally disposed between the arms  16 , with a slight incline (typically between about 1 and 12 degrees) from rear to front. The seat frame  24  is formed by two cross-members  26   a ,  26   b  and two seat mounting brackets  50 . The seat  22  is mounted to the arm frame  225  via a pair of reclining mechanisms  40 , which are described in detail below. 
     The backrest  28  is disposed to be generally upright (with a typical angle α of between about 55 and 80 degrees to horizontal—see  FIG. 1 ) above the rear portion of the base  200 . The backrest  28  includes a frame  30  that is attached to the reclining mechanism  40  ( FIG. 5 ). 
     The reclining mechanisms  40  mount the seat  22  and the backrest  28  to the arm frame  225  and move the backrest  28  between an upright position ( FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  3 ), in which the backrest  28  is generally upright and positioned above the rear portion of the seat  22 , and a reclined position ( FIGS. 2 and 4 ), in which the backrest  28  is reclined relative to the upright position. The reclining mechanisms  40  are mirror images of one another about the plane P; as such, only one reclining mechanism  40  is described herein, with the understanding that this discussion is equally applicable to the reclining mechanism on the opposite side of the chair  10 . Also, the reclining mechanism  40  will be described first with respect to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , wherein the backrest  28  is in the upright position; a description of its movement to the reclined position ( FIGS. 2 and 4 ) will then follow. 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 1 and 3 , the reclining mechanism  40  includes an L-shaped rear seat mounting bracket  42  that is mounted to the rear outer edge of the seat panel  24  and extends upwardly therefrom. A backrest mounting bracket  44  is fixed to the inner surface of the inner panel  230  of the arm frame  225 . A coupling link  46  is fixed to the frame  30  of the backrest  28 . The coupling link  46  is pivotally attached to the backrest mounting bracket  44  at a pivot  48  and extends downwardly and slightly forwardly therefrom to attach to the rear seat mounting bracket  42  at a pivot  47 . 
     Still referring to  FIG. 3 , the seat mounting bracket  50  includes a pin  50   a  on its outboard surface. A frame mounting bracket  52  is mounted to the inner surface of the arm  226 . The frame mounting bracket  52  includes a slot  54  that extends upwardly and forwardly and receives the pin  50   a  of the seat mounting bracket  50 . In the upright position shown in  FIG. 3 , the pin  50   a  is located at the rear end of the slot  54  and prevents rearward movement of the seat  22  relative to the frame  12 ; gravity prevents forward movement of the seat  22  and backrest  28  relative to the arm frame  225 . 
     In operation, the backrest  28  may be moved from the upright position of  FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  3  to the reclined position of  FIGS. 4 and 5  through a rearwardly-directed force applied to the backrest  28  (typically via an occupant of the chair  10  pushing rearwardly on the arms  226 , such that the occupant&#39;s back is pressed into the upper end of the backrest  28 ). Such a force causes the backrest  28 , and in turn the coupling link  46 , to rotate (counterclockwise from the vantage point of  FIGS. 2 and 3 ) about the pivot  48 . The lower, forward end of the backrest  28  rises slightly and moves forwardly, and in doing so drives the rear seat mounting bracket  42  and, in turn, the seat  22  forwardly. The motion of the front end of the seat  22  follows the movement of the pin  50   a  as it moves forwardly in the slot  54 . Motion ceases when the pin  50   a  reaches the forward end of the slot  54 . Typically, the seat  22  moves forward between about 2.5 and 6 inches in moving from the upright position to the reclined position. 
     Notably, the backrest  28  and footrest unit  34  are decoupled from each other, such that the backrest  28  is able to move to the reclined position independent of the position (i.e., retracted or extended) of the footrest unit  34 . However, the entire footrest unit  34  moves in concert with the seat  22  in either position. 
     The backrest  28  is maintained in the reclined position by the contact of the pin  50   a  with the front end of the slot  54 . The backrest  28  can be returned to the upright position of  FIGS. 1 ,  2  and  3  by applying a rearwardly-directed force to the lower portion of the backrest  28  (typically by the occupant pressing his back against the lower portion of the backrest  28 ). 
     Turning now to  FIG. 4 , the footrest unit has two footrest mechanisms  60  that attach extendable footrest panels  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  to the arm frame  225 . The footrest mechanisms  60  move the footrest panels  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  between retracted positions below a front portion of the seat  22  to extended positions in front of the seat  22 . Like the reclining mechanism  40 , the footrest mechanisms  60  are mirror images of each other about the plane P; consequently, only one of the footrest mechanisms  60  will be described herein, with the understanding that such description is applicable to the other footrest mechanism  60 . For the sake of clarity, the footrest mechanism  60  will be described initially with respect to  FIG. 4 , in which the backrest  28  is in its reclined position and the footrest unit  34  is in its extended position. 
     The footrest mechanism  60  includes an actuating handle  62  that is attached to the seat mounting bracket  50  at a pivot  64 . The graspable portion of the handle  62  extends generally upwardly therefrom and is located inboard of the adjacent arm  226 . The lower portion of the handle  62  is pivotally attached to a drawing link  66  at a pivot  68 . The drawing link  66  extends rearwardly from the pivot  68  to terminate in a pivot  72  with a V-shaped crank  70 . The crank  70  extends downwardly and rearwardly from the pivot  72  to a pivot  73  with the seat mounting bracket  50 , then rearwardly and upwardly therefrom. A drive plate  74  is pivotally attached to the seat mounting plate  50  at a pivot  76 ; a cross-member  77  spans the drive plates  74  of the footrest mechanisms  60  on each side of the chair  10 . Also, a pin  74   a  is mounted to the drive plate  74  and extends into an arcuate slot  50   c  in the seat mounting bracket  50 . A spring link  79  is attached to the drive plate  74  at a pivot  75 . A spring  78  is attached between a forward portion of the spring link  79  and the seat mounting bracket  50 ; the spring  78  is in tension. 
     A footrest drive link  80  is attached to the forward end of the drive plate  74  at a pivot  82  and extends generally forwardly and slightly upwardly therefrom. A lower footrest swing link  84  is attached to the seat mounting bracket  50  at a pivot  86  and extends generally forwardly therefrom, and an upper footrest swing link  88  is attached to the seat mounting bracket  50  at a pivot  90  that is positioned slightly upwardly and forwardly from the pivot  86  and extends generally forwardly therefrom. The footrest drive link  80  is attached to the lower footrest swing link  84  at a pivot  87 . An upper footrest extension link  92  is attached to the forward end of the lower footrest swing link  84  at a pivot  94  and extends forwardly and upwardly therefrom. Similarly, a lower footrest extension link  100  is attached to the upper footrest swing link  88  at a pivot  102  and extends forwardly and upwardly therefrom. The upper footrest extension link  92  is also pivotally attached to the upper footrest swing link at a pivot  98 . The upper footrest extension link  92  also includes a pin  96  between the pivots  94  and  98 . 
     The footrest  61   a  is attached to the footrest mechanism  60  via a rear footrest link  104  that is pivotally attached to the lower footrest extension link  100  at a pivot  106  and extends upwardly and rearwardly therefrom to meet the footrest  61   a . A brace  108  is attached to the rear footrest link  104  at a pivot  112  and to the upper footrest extension link  92  at a pivot  110 . The footrest  61   b  is mounted on a middle footrest bracket  114 , which is attached to the upper and lower footrest extension links  92 ,  100  at pivots  116 ,  118  respectively. The footrest  61   c  is mounted to a front footrest link  120 , which is attached to the middle footrest bracket  114  at a pivot  122  and extends forwardly therefrom to meet the footrest  61   c . A brace  124  is attached to the front end of the lower footrest extension link  100  at a pivot  126  and to the front footrest link  120  at a pivot  128 . 
     The footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  of the chair  10  can be moved between their retracted positions ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ) and their extended positions ( FIGS. 3 and 4 ) through movement of the handle  62 . Turning first to  FIG. 1 , it can be seen that the handle  62  extends upwardly and forwardly from the pivot  64 . The drawing link  66  is generally horizontal and extends rearwardly from the pivot  68 , and the crank  70  extends downwardly from the pivot  72  to the pivot  73 , then rearwardly to a position below the pin  74   a , which is located in the rear end of the slot  50   c . The drive plate  74  is oriented such that the pivot  75  is below the pivot  73 . The spring link  79  extends upwardly and forwardly from the pivot  75 , with the result that the pivot  75  and the spring  78  create an “over-center” condition. The footrest drive link  80  extends generally forwardly from the pivot  82 . The upper and lower footrest swing links  88 ,  84  extend downwardly and rearwardly from their respective pivots  90 ,  86  with the seat mounting bracket  50 , and the upper and lower footrest extension links  92 ,  100  extend upwardly and forwardly from, respectively, pivots  94 ,  102 . The rear footrest link  104  extends upwardly and forwardly from the pivot  106 , such that the footrest  61   a  is generally vertically disposed underneath the forward portion of the seat panel  24 . The middle footrest bracket  114  is disposed such that the footrest  61   b  is vertically disposed and is substantially flush with the front panels  20   a  of the wings  20 . The front footrest bracket  120  is extends rearwardly from the pivot  122 , such that the footrest  61   c  is positioned below the forward portion of the seat panel  24  and faces downwardly. The footrest mechanism  60  is maintained in the retracted position by an “over-center” condition defined by the ends of the spring  78  and the pivot  76 , wherein the spring  78  biases the footrest unit toward the retracted position. 
     To move the footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  from their retracted positions shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  to their extended positions shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , an occupant of the chair  10  applies a rearwardly-directed force to the handle  62 , which causes the handle  62  to rotate (counterclockwise from the vantage point of  FIG. 1 ) about the pivot  64 . This action pulls the drawing link  66  forward, which in turn draws the forward leg of the crank  70  forward and rotates the crank  70  clockwise about the pivot  73 . As the crank  70  rotates, its rear leg strikes the pin  74   a  and forces it forwardly in the slot  50   c , which in turn forces the drive plate  74  to rotate clockwise about the pivot  76 . This motion is encouraged by the tension in the spring  78  after the drive plate  74  rotates sufficiently that the over-center condition between the ends of the spring  78  and the pivot  75  no longer exists. Rotation of the drive plate  74  drives the footrest drive link  80  forward. Forward motion of the footrest drive link  80  rotates the lower footrest swing link  84  counterclockwise about the pivot  86 , which action forces the upper footrest extension link  92  forward. The forward movement of the upper footrest extension link  92  rotates the upper footrest swing link  88  counterclockwise, which in turn drives the lower footrest extension link  100  forward. 
     The forward movement of the upper and lower footrest extension links  92 ,  100  unfolds the footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c . More specifically, as the upper and lower footrest links  92 ,  100  move forwardly, the brace  108  rotates counterclockwise about the pivot  110 , which action rotates the rear footrest link  104  counterclockwise about the pivot  106 . This rotation raises the footrest  61   a  and rotates it counterclockwise to a generally horizontal disposition in front of the seat  22 . The movement of the upper and lower footrest extension links  92 ,  100  also causes the middle footrest bracket  114  and the footrest  61   b  to rotate counterclockwise to a generally horizontal disposition in front of the footrest  61   a . Finally, the movement of the upper and lower footrest extension links  92 ,  100  forces the brace  124  forward and rotates it counterclockwise about the pivot  126 ; this rotation causes the front footrest link  120  to rotate counterclockwise about the pivot  122  to an inverted position, such that the footrest  61   c  is generally horizontally disposed and positioned in front of the footrest  61   b . Movement of the footrest mechanism  60  ceases when a pin  74   b  on the drive plate  74  strikes the rear edge of the seat mounting plate  50  and the pin  96  contacts the lower edge of the upper footrest swing link  88 . 
     The footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  can be moved back to the retracted position by the occupant pushing the handle  62  forward. As the handle  62  rotates clockwise about the pivot  64 , the lower portion of the handle  62  forces the drawing link  66  rearwardly, which in turn rotates the crank  70  counterclockwise about the pivot  73 . This movement, combined with the weight of the occupant&#39;s legs on the footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c , overcomes the “over-center” condition created by the pivots  76 ,  82 ,  87 , which releases the footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c  and allows them to collapse into their retracted positions ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ). 
     The chair  10  is also free to rock in any of the positions of the backrest  28  and the footrests  61   a ,  61   b ,  61   c . As can be seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the arm frame  225  is fixed to the mounting panels  286 ,  290 , the cross-members  282 ,  288  and the rocking links  276 . The base  250  is fixed to the mounting brackets  264 . Because the rocking links  276  are able to pivot relative to the mounting brackets  264  about the pivot  280 , the arm frame  225  is able to rock relative to the base  12 . Rocking motion is dampened by the spring  270 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , the spring  270  is confined between the cap  275  and the spring base panel  278 . When the chair  10  is unoccupied, or when the occupant is leaning or rocking forward, the spring  270  biases the spring base panel  278 , and in turn the rocking links  276 , upwardly, such that the arm frame  225  and seat  24  are “rocked” forwardly, with the rear of the seat  24  in its most elevated position. In this position (shown in  FIG. 7 ), the rocking link  276  is oriented such that the pin  264   a  is located in the bottom end of the slot  276   a.    
     As the occupant rocks the chair  10  rearwardly, the rocking links  276  pivot counterclockwise relative to the mounting brackets  264  about the pivot  280 . When this occurs, the spring base panel  278  is lowered and compresses the spring  270  against the cap  275 . The distance between the cap  275  and the cross-member  266  is essentially constant due to the presence of the rod  272 , although the rod  272  is free to pivot about the pivot  274 . Compression of the spring  270  dampens the rocking motion and urges the chair  10  to return to its forward position. The maximum stroke of the rocking motion is controlled by the pin  264   a  on the mounting bracket  264  reaching the upper end of the slot  276   a  in the rocking link  276 . 
     The foregoing demonstrates that the chair  10  provides great flexibility to the occupant: he can recline the backrest with the footrest extended or retracted, or allow the backrest to remain upright with the footrest retracted or extended. In any of these positions, the occupant is free to rock while occupying the chair  10 . Because the seat  22  moves forwardly relative to the arm frame  225  when the backrest  28  reclines; the center of gravity of the chair  10  and the occupant moves forward relative to the base  12 , such that the chair  10  resists tipping over backward when the backrest  28  is reclined with an occupant present. 
     In addition, the position of the pivot  280  between the rocking link  276  and the mounting bracket  264  (i.e., considerably forward of the spindle  256  of the swivel unit  253 ) can provide a somewhat different, and in many cases more pleasant, rocking motion to the chair  10 . In a conventional rocker-recliner that employs cams that rock relative to the floor and springs that control/dampen the rocking motion, the pivot point for rocking motion of the chair is much farther from the front of the chair, which results in a rocking motion that lowers the rear of the seat as the occupant rocks rearwardly and lowers the front of the seat as the occupant rocks forwardly. This type of motion can be somewhat uncomfortable if the occupant has his feet on the floor, and in some instances the occupant can experience the uncomfortable feeling of being “flung” forwardly. In contrast, the motion of the chair  10  is primarily limited to the rear portion of the seat  22  lowering and rising during the rocking motion; because the pivot  280  is positioned relatively near the front of the seat  22  (typically between about 3 and 7.5 inches), the forward portion of the seat drops very little, if at all, during the rocking motion, and considerably less than the rearmost portion of the seat  22 . Consequently, the motion can be more comfortable for an occupant who is sitting with his feet on the floor, and there is little to no sensation of being “flung” forwardly. In this sense, the “rocking” motion is somewhat like that provided by an office chair. 
     It should also be noted that the dampening influence of the spring unit  268  can be adjusted. Because the end cap  275  is threaded on the rod  272 , rotation of the end cap  275  relative to the rod  272  moves the position of the end cap  275  relative to the spring base  278 , thereby adjusting the degree of compression in the spring  270 . As such, dampening effect of the spring unit  268  on the rocking motion of the chair  10  can be increased by tightening the end cap  275  and decreased by loosening the end cap  275 . 
     The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as recited in the claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.