Patent Publication Number: US-8113137-B2

Title: Folding seat with movable backrest

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/086,561 entitled F OLDING  S EAT  W ITH  M OVABLE  B ACKREST , filed on Aug. 6, 2008, by Bruce F. Thompson, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a fold-out seat which includes a movable backrest which moves between a lowered stowed position, when the seat is stowed, and a raised use position, when the seat is folded out to a use position. 
     Many pleasure boats, such as those available in the Pursuit® and Tiara® lines of yachts, include seats across the transom for increasing the seating in the cockpit areas. Such seats are usually stowed in a vertical position parallel to the transom to allow full use of the cockpit. When additional seating is desired, they fold down from the vertical stowed position to a lowered position in which they form a bench seat. The bolster, which extends across the transom and along the port and starboard sides, typically forms the backrest for the seat. The bolster height in some vessels, however, is inconveniently low to form a comfortable backrest. Also, in some fold-out seat designs for vessels, the bolster is pivotally mounted to hold the seat in a stowed position and must be manipulated by pivoting the bolster upwardly to allow the folding seat to be extended. Subsequently, the bolster is again returned to its normal position. This complicates the operation of the seat for the user and the bolster may be uncomfortable for use as a backrest. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention addresses the issue of providing a fold-out seat which can be easily moved between a stowed and use position. A bolster is coupled to the fold-out seat mechanism to move from a lowered position aligned with adjoining bolster sections of a vessel to a raised position forming a comfortable backrest when the seat is extended to a use position. Such construction eliminates the need for the operator to manipulate a bolster first to pull down a seat and then subsequently return the bolster to its original position and provides a one-motion operation to lower the seat and raise the bolster to a backrest position. Upon returning the seat to the stowed position, the bolster again returns to the aligned position with the remaining bolster sections. 
     Seats provided by the present invention provide such control of the seat and backrest by providing a parallel link connection for the seat allowing the seat to pivot from a raised stowed position to a lowered use position. A sliding backrest is coupled by a connecting link to one of the pivoted seat links, such that, as the seat is lowered, the connecting link raises the backrest to a more comfortable position. When the seat is again stowed, the connecting link lowers to move the backrest to a lowered position. When installed in a vessel, the backrest forms part of the bolster system in the cockpit of the vessel. 
     In one embodiment of the invention, magnetic catches are employed to secure the seat to the frame mechanism for the seat assembly in a stowed position. Although the seat and bolster/backrest assembly of the present invention typically are mounted to the transom of a vessel, such mechanisms can be employed in other areas and in other environments to provide compactly stowed seat and comfortable backrest when the seat is moved to a use position. 
     These and other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following description thereof together with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the transom of a vessel showing the seat and bolster/backrest in a stowed position; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the structure shown in  FIG. 1 , showing the seat partially moved from the stowed position; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the seat and bolster/backrest, showing the seat in its lowered use position with the bolster raised to a backrest position; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of one end of the seat frame and link assembly for the seat shown in  FIGS. 1-3 , shown with the seat, trim and bolster removed, and shown in the seat stowed position corresponding to that of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of one end of the seat frame and link assembly shown in a partially extended position corresponding to  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the seat frame and link assembly, illustrating the assembly when in a use position, as seen in  FIG. 3 ; and 
         FIG. 7  is a drawing sheet showing the drawings for the individual components of the seat frame and link assembly shown in  FIGS. 4-6 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring initially to  FIGS. 1-3 , there is shown a vessel  10 , such as a 2008 Pursuit® 375 Offshore, which includes a cockpit area  12  at the stern of the vessel and having a transom  14  which includes one or more seat assemblies  20  of the present invention. The seat assembly includes a finished outer forward facing panel  22  which is generally U-shaped with sides  21  and  23 , as best seen in  FIG. 2 . Panel  22  covers the seat frame and link assembly  40  ( FIG. 4 ) for controlling the motion of the seat and its backrest. The seat assembly  20  includes a padded horizontally extending cushioned seat  24  ( FIGS. 2 and 3 ) mounted to the frame assembly  40 , as described below. A handle  26  is employed for moving the seat from a stowed position ( FIG. 1 ) downwardly in a direction indicated by arrow A in  FIG. 2  to the use position shown in  FIG. 3 . Seat assembly  20  also includes a vertically sliding seat back/bolster  28  which integrally forms part of the bolster system aligned with adjacent bolster sections  25  and  27  of the vessel when the seat is stowed, as shown in  FIG. 1 . When seat  24  is lowered for use, the backrest raises to a comfortable back supporting position, as seen in  FIG. 3 . 
     As best seen in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , the frame assembly  40  for the seat comprises a generally rectangular seat frame  30  having a front leg  32 , side legs  33  and  34 , and a rear leg  35 . The rearwardly extending legs  33 ,  34  are pivotally mounted at  46  ( FIG. 5 ) to one end of link  44  having its opposite end pivotally mounted at  47  to vertically extending mounting brackets  36  (starboard) and  38  (port). Brackets  36 ,  38  are secured in spaced relationship to the stern transom bulkhead  39  by suitable fasteners  37 . The pivot mounting of frame  30  to brackets  36  and  38  is through an upper link  42  (best seen in  FIGS. 5 and 6 ) and a lower link  44 . The linkage connection is symmetrical so that only the one link mechanism on one side of the seat (port side of the vessel) is described in detail. Link  42  is pivotally coupled to leg  34  by pivot connection  41  and to right angle bracket  38  by pivot connection  45 . Lower link  44  is pivotally coupled to the end of leg  34  at pivot connection  46  and to bracket  38  at pivot connection  47 . 
     The seat back/bolster  28  is coupled to a generally inverted U-shaped frame  50  ( FIGS. 6 and 7 ) having a top horizontally extending leg  53  and a pair of downwardly extending L-shaped legs  52  and  54  at opposite ends. Legs  52 ,  54  are slideably mounted in a slot in a lubricious polymeric bracket  56 . Legs  52 ,  54  each have a flange  51  which fits within a slot  55  ( FIG. 6 ) in brackets  56  (between surface  39  and the rear surface of brackets  56 ) to captively hold the movable frame  50  and also allow the seat back/bolster  28  to move upwardly and downwardly. To coordinate the motion of seat back frame  50  with the motion of seat frame  30 , a connecting link  60  is pivotally coupled to link  44  at pivot connection  62  ( FIG. 6 ) between the ends of link  44  and at its upper end to leg  54  of frame  50  at pivot connection  64 . Leg  34  of the seat frame  30  includes a magnetic catch  48  which aligns with a magnetic catch  49  on bracket  38  when the seat is in a closed position, as seen in  FIG. 4 , to hold the seat in a vertical stowed position. 
     The operation of the seat is best understood by reference to  FIG. 5  in which, when the seat frame  30  is rotated downwardly in the direction indicated by arrow A in  FIG. 5 , link  44  rotates from a generally vertical lower position parallel to bulkhead  39  upwardly, as indicated by arrow B in  FIG. 5 , which also raises connecting link  60  in a direction indicated by arrow C. Thus, as seat frame  30  is further pivoted to the position shown in  FIG. 6 , link  44  moves to a position parallel to bracket  38  as does link  60 , thereby raising the seat back/bolster  28  attached to frame  50  from the lowered position, shown in  FIG. 1 , to a raised position, shown in  FIG. 3 . The movement of the bolster is through guide bracket  56  with leg  54  being L-shaped with a flange  51  ( FIG. 6 ) which slides in slot  55  and is controlled by the guide bracket  56  on one side and a spaced-apart lubricious polymeric guide  57  on the opposite side of leg  54  to control the position of the seat back/bolster  28  in its movement between the lowered position, shown in  FIG. 1 , to the raised position, shown in  FIG. 3 . When the seat  24  is again stowed, the connecting links move in the opposite directions. 
     Thus, the seat assembly of the present invention provides a unique, movable backrest which serves as a bolster in the cockpit of a vessel and allows the compact storage of the seat with ease of control by rotating the seat downwardly utilizing only handle  26  from the stowed position, shown in  FIG. 1 , to the use position, shown in  FIG. 3 , where the seat back/bolster  28  becomes a comfortable backrest for the user. Although the seat assembly  20  of the present invention is shown mounted in the stern area of the cockpit of a vessel, it could be mounted in the port or starboard side of the cockpit area or used in other environments where compact storage of a fold-down seat with a movable backrest is desired. 
     It will become apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications to the preferred embodiment of the invention as described herein can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.