Improvements in Folding Arm Chairs for Use in Theatres, Concert Rooms, Meeting or Assembly Rooms, and the like.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 27th Mar., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 3rd Nov., 1899-Accepted, 20th Jan., 1900
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Folding Arm Chairs for Use in Theatres, Concert
Rooms, Meeting or Assembly Rooms, and the like.
I, MARIUS HORST, trading as Marius Horst and Company, of 33, Rue Victor
Massé, Paris, France, Inventor, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
-
The subject of the present invention is a folding arm chair intended for use
in theatres, concert-rooms, meeting or assembly rooms, permitting an easy circu-
lation in all directions and the rapid clearing out of the rooms in the case of
panic or of fire.
In this arm chair the seat is hinged on one side to the stock or frame which
is formed of two independent uprights or posts suitably secured upon the floor,
so that said seat may be folded up against one of said posts or uprights when not
The back of the improved arm chair is also hinged to one of the posts
or uprights of the stock or frame so that it may be folded up in line or at right
angles with said post or upright.
in use.
The hinges of the seat and back may be provided with suitable springs or
equivalents, and the seat and back are then provided with devices to lock them
in place for use.
Dated this 27th day of March 1899
J. P. BAYLY,
18, Fulham Place, London, W., Agent for the Applicant.
Improvements in Folding Arm Chairs for Use in Theatres, Concert
Rooms, Meeting or Assembly Rooms, and the like.
I, MARIUS HORST, trading as Marius Horst and Company, of 33, Rue Victor
Massé, Paris, France, Inventor, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to folding arm-chairs of the kind used in theatres, play
and meeting houses, the object being to provide a device of this kind, which will
occupy as small space as possible particularly if a panic is produced in such play-
houses. The improved folding arm-chair permits passages in any direction,
between and across the arm-chairs, so that crushing and stifling of spectators
is effectively avoided when the latter try to pass all in the same direction.
The invention consists in the construction, novel combination and arrangement

page_text: 5
of parts, fully described hereinafter and especially pointed out in the appended
claims.
In order that the invention may be the more readily understood and carried
into effect or practice, reference is hereby made to the accompanying drawings,
in which:
Fig. 1 is a front elevation of two adjacent chairs of one row, one of said chairs
being ready for use, the other folded so as to leave free passage between its legs.
Fig. 2 is a similar view shows a modified chair-back.
Fig. 3 is a side elevation of an arm-chair folded as in Fig. 2.
Fig. 4 is a detail view hereinafter referred to.
In the drawings like numerals refer to like parts throughout all the figures.
The improved arm-chair is principally composed of two ordinary legs or up-
rights, one of which serves always as an intermediate in one row of chairs, that
is, a row of twenty chairs comprises only twenty legs or uprights plus one say
two extreme legs and nineteen intermediate legs. However if one arm-chair
is taken alone it must be seen as having two legs. Said legs are secured upon the
floor in any suitable way, and between the legs are arranged the seats and
backs. The characteristic feature of the invention consists in providing means
for folding automatically or not said backs and seats, so as to leave sufficient
space between the legs for the passage of a person.
Fig. 1 shows in a very simple manner the means for carrying the invention
into practice.
The legs or uprights 1, 2, 3, are provided with supports 5 made in the body
of the supports or secured thereto in any suitable way, and on said supports
are arranged seats 4 adapted to be folded upwards against the uprights, to leave
free passages between the latter whereby a person may freely pass before the
spectator already sit down.
The back 6 is hinged at one side-end to one of the uprights, against which it
may be folded as shown in Fig. 1, in which one back is folded against upright 2.
The back may also be held between two uprights in suitable ways or grooves
provided in the latter, in which case said back may be removed by lifting the same
out of said ways or grooves. As the back and seat are folded against the upright
the passage will be wholly free between and across the several chairs. The
operation of the back and seat is evidently primitive and would not have many
advantages. This arrangement has been described only with a view of clearly
pointing out the principle involved by the invention, the means employed for
automatically operating the back and seat-some of which are described here-
inafter by way of example-being well-known and can therefore be claimed only
in their novel combination and application.
Such means embody any kind of suitable springs, levers and weights.
The back 6 in Fig. 1 may be provided with door-spring of the kind usually
employed for the purpose and the casing of which will be secured to the outer
face of the upright, the roller-lever of said spring being held to bear against
the rear-side of the back. In this case the latter would represent a door, but
instead of being held in and brought to its closed position it would be held in
and brought to its open position. Furthermore a coil-spring may be fitted over
the pivot-pin of the back, one end of said spring pressing against the upright
whilst the other end is held to bear against the back as in Fig. 4.
These arrangements may be also applied to the seat of the chair, in which case
the seat is hinged or pivoted at one of its sides.
Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings shows the seat 4 pivoted at 7 to support 5.
The latter is recessed at 8 to receive the side end of the seat when the same is
folded into upright position. The back 6 in Fig. 2 is pivoted to the top of the
upright so that it can be folded into line with the latter, either by or automatically
by means of a weight attached to disk 10 adapted to rotate on pin 9 and made
integral with the back 6; or by means of a spiral spring one end of which is
secured to said pin 9, whilst the other end is attached to a pin 11 secured to the

page_text: disk 10. The back may be held in operative position by any suitable lock-device
preferably provided with springs.
The seat and back may be mounted on a stirrup 12 (Fig. 4), connected with a
spring 13 having tendency to bring the stirrup against the upright.
Said spring sliding-bolts prevent the back from moving back into its folded
position each time the user or spectator stands up. The spectator is enabled
to easily fold the back by pressing his hand or arm against the right of the back
(when he stands before the chair), whereby said recesses and stirrup are disengaged
the latter then bringing the back against the upright, so that the spectator may
pass across or through the chair almost at the moment he disengages the back
of the latter.
I am aware that there are other suitable devices for automatically operating
the seat and back of the chair, but all these devices are based upon the action
of springs, employed alone or combined with levers, or upon the action of balance-
weights.
Thus, various kinds of devices known as "door-closers" may be employed for
the purpose, in making the necessary modifications in the details of construction
in said devices. It is evident that these devices must be so applied as to produce
the automatic opening in lieu of the automatic closing, which may be obtained
without difficulty.
'
I wish it to be understood that the improved arm-chair may be made of any
suitable material.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. An improved folding arm-chair, having two side uprights, a movable seat
and a movable back adapted to be folded so as to leave free passages between the
uprights if the arm-chair is not in use, substantially as set forth.
2. An improved folding arm-chair, having two side-uprights, a seat and back
adapted to be automatically folded so as to leave free passages between the uprights
if the arm-chair is not in use, substantially as set forth.
3. An improved folding arm-chair two lateral uprights, a seat and back pivoted
to one of said uprights and adapted to be automatically folded against said up-
right by means of suitable devices, so as to leave free passages between the
uprights, if the arm-chair is not in use, substantially as set forth.
4. An improved folding arm-chair, having two lateral uprights, a seat pivoted
or hinged to one of said uprights and adapted to be automatically folded against
said upright, and back also pivoted or hinged to one of said uprights and adapted
to be automatically brought in line with said upright so as to leave free passages
between the uprights if the arm-chair is not in use, substantially as set forth.
5. An improved folding arm-chair having two lateral uprights, a seat and back
pivoted or hinged into stirrups provided with springs and pivotally attached to
one of said uprights, said stirrups being adapted to bring the seat and back
against said upright, so as to leave free passages between the uprights if the arm-
chair is not in use, substantially as set forth.
Doted this 3rd der of November 1899.
J. P. BAYLY,
18, Fulham Place, London, W., Agent for the Applicant.