Locking device for a rocking chair
The locking device is for a rocking chair. It has a stationary lower frame and an upper frame rockingly connected thereto, including a notched member fixed to the lower frame, and a lever assembly mounted to the upper frame, and including a lever arm pivoting about a support in response to a user sitting on the seat area, a spring urging a second end of the lever arm to engage with the notched member to lock the device when the user disengages the seat area, the second end disengaging when the user sits up. In a variant, the locking device includes a friction band mounted to the lower frame and a cam rotatably mounted to the upper frame, the cam being rotatable by a handle to thus engage the friction band and lock the upper to the lower frame.
This invention generally relates to the field of movable and lockable furniture, and more specifically concerns a locking device for locking a movable chair such as a rocking chair or rolling armchair.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONIn the furniture industry, many pieces of furniture exist that include movable parts that rotate, slide, bend and/or swivel with respect o other parts of the furniture. Reclining chairs, rocking chairs and rolling armchairs are examples of such furniture. When producing furniture, mass production techniques are often used to fabricate durable, quality pieces of furniture. When producing a rocking chair, for example, the design of the chair is a major factor in determining not only its viability on the market but also its facility to be mass produced. In this sense, a rocking chair or another kind of mobile furniture containing a locking mechanism for locking the movable parts In place should be designed in order to be robust and easily assembled.
Rocking and other mobile chairs often have a locking mechanism incorporated therein. In fact, the locking mechanism is an important and desirable feature in many mobile furniture pieces. A locking mechanism stops the movement of the mobile parts, usually In response to a stimulus from the user. Lockability in moving parts that recline, slide, rock and/or pivot is often required feature.
There are many different mechanisms currently used to lock movable parts in fixed positions. However, a robust, quality, and efficiently assembled locking mechanism for locking a rocking chair in various fixed positions along its rocking path is lacking in the prior art.
In the prior art, various locking mechanisms exist for locking mobile parts of a chair in place. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,121,966 (TISCHLER) describes an adjustable recliner chair including a locking mechanism. The locking mechanism principally enables the reclinable back of the chair to be locked in various positions. The mechanism has numerous working parts including a cam interconnected to a lever handle via a connecting bar, an arcuate member engaged by the cam and being pivotally attached to the base of the chair. The interaction between the cam and the arcuate member causes the latter, through a pivoting motion, to cause the chair to be locked in a certain reclining position. TISCHLER does not show how to lock a rocking chair and, furthermore, does not show a simple and robust assembly for doing so.
The U.S. Pat. No. 6,406,095 B1 (BOUCHARD et al.) describes a self-locking chair. The locking mechanism described therein blocks all movement when an occupant desires to sit up from the chair. An actuator device is situated in the interior of the back, which is stuffed and padded, of the mobile chair and the locking mechanism is situated under the seat or its lateral sides. The locking action is thus actuated by a movement of the back of the chair, reacting to the movement of the upper part of the body of the occupant. The locking mechanism taught by BOUCHARD et al. includes levers, detectors, springs, actuators, force transmitters and a notch plates-all of which are interconnected to give a complicated and potentially costly locking mechanism. Also, in the case of BOUCHARD et al., a tubular metal chair is used and the mechanism requires a padded back to hide part of the mechanism. As soon as an occupant goes forward in the chair, that is, when his back in no longer pushing on the back cushion, the chair stops rocking or reclining. Furthermore, when the actuator to look the chair in place is situated as in BOUCHARD et al., it requires a substantial force to lock the chair, for example, the force of a larger person sitting in the chair.
In summary, the prior art teaches various techniques and mechanisms for locking mobile chairs in various positions, but such mechanisms involve numerous disadvantages that could be overcome. There is therefore a need for a locking device alleviating the drawbacks of the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccordingly, the present Invention provides a locking device for a rocking chair. The rocking chair has a stationary lower frame and an upper frame rockingly connected thereto. The upper frame delimits a horizontal seat area for a user. The locking device includes a notched member mountable to the lower frame and having at least one notch. It also includes a lever assembly operatively connectable to the upper frame. The lever assembly includes a support mountable to the upper frame and a lever arm pivotally mounted to the support. The lever arm has a first end extending in the seat area and being engagable by the user when said user sits in the seat area, and a second end engagable with the at least one notch. The lever assembly also includes biasing means having a first portion resting on the support and a second portion for urging the second end of the lever arm against the notched member to lock the upper and lower frames together when the second end is engaged with one of said at least one notch. The second end disengages the one notch when the user engages the first end to pivot the second end out of said one notch, thereby unlocking the device.
The invention also provides a locking device for a rocking chair having a stationary lower frame and an upper frame rockingly connected thereto. The locking device Includes at least one friction band mountable to the lower frame and a bar rotatably mountable to the upper frame about an axis thereof. The axis is substantially transverse with respect to a rocking path of the rocking chair. The device also includes at least one cam eccentrically and fixedly mounted to the bar, having a surface capable of cooperating respectively with said at least one friction band on any location of the rocking path of the upper frame. The device further includes a handle mounted to the bar, and rotatable by a user to thereby rotate the cam via the bar between a first position where the surface of the at least one cam engages with the at least one friction band to lock together the upper and the lower frames in one of said locations of the rocking path, and a second position where the surface of the at least one cam disengages with the at least one friction band to unlock the upper frame from the lower frame.
The advantages and operation of the invention will become more apparent upon reading the detailed description and referring to the drawings that relate to preferred embodiments of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
While the invention will be described in conjunction with example embodiments, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to such embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included as defined by the appended claims
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTSIn the following description, similar features in the drawings have been given same reference numerals.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in
The locking device 20 further comprises a notched member 26 mounted to the lower frame 22. The notched member 26 has at least one notch 28 and preferably a plurality of notches 28. As can be seen in
The locking device 20 further includes a lever assembly 30 operatively connected to the upper frame 24. The lever assembly 30 includes a support 32 mounted to the upper frame 24. The support 32 preferably takes the form of a bar, as shown in
The lever assembly 30 further includes biasing means 44 to urge the lever arm 34 into the locked position. More specifically, the biasing means 44 have a first portion 46 resting on the support 32 and a second portion 48 for urging the second end 38 of the lever arm 34 against the notched member 26 to lock the upper and lower frames 24, 22 together when the second end 38 is engaged in one of the notches 28.
Returning to
The biasing means 44 may also take the form of other kinds of springs, pistons and/or urging mechanisms or actuators, and may be arranged on the rocking chair assembly so as to urge the second end 38 of the lever arm 34 toward the notched member 26. The biasing means 44 are preferably mounted to the support 32 but could also be operatively mounted to the upper frame 24 and the second end 38 for urging the latter. The first portion 46 (coil) of the spring 44 is preferably mounted to the support 44 to stabilize the spring 44 and to keep the latter tightly in place while enabling the biasing effect.
Referring back to
According to a preferable construction, the rod 23, the second laterally extending end 38 of the lever arm 34 and the support 32 (bar), are parallel with each other, and still preferably, are horizontal and perpendicular with respect to the rocking path of the upper frame 24.
As a variant to the locking device 20 described hereabove, the variant shown in
Furthermore, the locking device further includes at least one friction band 70 mounted to the lower frame 22. Preferably, the friction band 70 is fixed to the lower frame 22, and is oriented upward to be engagable. They are preferably made of a rubber material. Also, the friction band 70 is advantageously curved according to the rocking path of the upper frame 24 so that is may be engaged at any point of the rocking path. The locking device 20 further includes at lest one cam 72 eccentrically and fixedly mounted to the support bar 32. Preferably, as shown in
Referring to
The handle 74 is preferably curved and is of a length and shape suitable for a user to rotate by applying the necessary force known to a skilled workman. It should be noted that the handle is easily accessible for the user, while the rest of the locking mechanism is preferably hidden underneath the seat area of the mobile or rocking chair.
Referring back to
As can be seen in
The components shown in
As shown in
Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein without departing from the scope or spirit of the present invention.
Claims
1. A locking device for a rocking chair having a stationary lower frame and an upper frame rockingly connected thereto, the upper frame delimiting a horizontal seat area for a user, the locking device comprising:
- a notched member mountable to the lower frame and having at least one notch; and
- a lever assembly operatively connectable to the upper frame, said lever assembly comprising: a support mountable to the upper frame; a lever arm pivotally mounted to the support, the lever arm having a first end extending in the seat area and being engagable by the user when said user sits in the seat area, and a second end engagable with the at least one notch; and biasing means operatively connected to the upper frame and resting on the second end for urging the second end of the lever arm against the notched member to lock the upper and lower frames together when the second end is engaged with one of said at least one notch, said second end disengaging said one notch when the user engages the first end to pivot the second end out of said one notch and thereby unlocking the device.
2. The locking device according to claim 1, wherein the support comprises a support bar mounted to the upper frame, and wherein the lever arm comprises a pivotal fastener provided between the first and second ends thereof, the fastener being pivotally connected to the support bar to enable the lever arm to pivot thereabout.
3. The locking device according to claim 2, wherein the support bar is rotatably mounted to the upper frame, the device further comprising:
- at least one friction band mountable to the lower frame:
- at least one cam eccentrically and fixedly mounted to the support bar, having a surface capable of cooperating respectively with said at least one friction band on any location of the rocking path of the upper frame (22); and
- a handle mounted to the support bar, and rotatable by the user to thereby rotate the cam via the support bar between a first position where the surface of the at least one cam engages with the at least one friction band to lock together the upper and the lower frames in one of said locations of the rocking path, and a second position where the surface of the at least one cam disengages with the at least one friction band to unlock the upper frame from the lower frame.
4. The locking device according to claim 1, wherein the biasing means further comprise a first portion resting on the support bar and a second portion resting on the second end of the lever arm for urging the same against the notched member.
5. The locking device according to claim 4, wherein the biasing means further comprise a third portion extending away from the first portion and resting on the upper frame to stabilize and preload the biasing means.
6. The locking device according to claim 4, wherein the first portion of the biasing means defines a coil mounted to the support, and the second portion defines a hook engaging the second end of the lever arm.
7. The locking device according to claim 1, wherein the biasing means is a spring.
8. The locking device according to claim 7, further comprising a ring member retainingly connecting the second end of the lever arm and the upper frame so that the spring remains preloaded.
9. The locking device according to claim 1, wherein the lever arm is L-shaped, the second end extending laterally away from the first end to engage the notch.
10. A locking device for a rocking chair having a stationary lower frame and an upper frame rockingly connected thereto, the locking device comprising:
- at least one friction band mountable to the lower frame;
- a support bar rotatably mountable to the upper frame;
- at least one cam eccentrically and fixedly mounted to the support bar, having a surface capable of cooperating respectively with said at least one friction band on any location of the rocking path of the upper frame; and
- a handle mounted to the support bar, and rotatable by a user to thereby rotate the cam via the support bar between a first position where the surface of the at least one cam engages with the at least one friction band to lock together the upper and the lower frames in one of said locations of the rocking path, and a second position where the surface of the at least one cam disengages with the at least one friction band to unlock the upper frame from the lower frame.
11. The locking device according to claim 10, wherein the upper frame delimits a horizontal seat area for the user, the locking device further comprising:
- a notched member mountable to the lower frame and having at least one notch; and
- a lever assembly operatively connectable to the support bar, said lever assembly comprising: a lever arm pivotally mounted to the bar, the lever arm having a first end extending in the seat area and being engagable by the user when said user sits in the seat area, and a second end engagable with the at least one notch; and biasing means operatively connected to the upper frame and resting on the second end for urging the second end of the lever arm against the notched member to lock the upper and lower frames together when the second end is engaged with one of said at least one notch, said second end disengaging said one notch when the user engages the first end to pivot the second end out of said one notch, thereby unlocking the device.
12. The locking device according to claim 10, further comprising at covering guard covering each of the at least one cam and being rotationally slidable thereon, the at least one covering guard defining the surface capable of cooperating with the at least one friction band to lock the upper and the lower frames together.
13. The locking device according to claim 12, wherein the at least one covering guard is operatively connected to the upper frame to be translationally slidable threrewith and thus guided along a guiding path with respect thereto.
14. The locking device according to claim 13, further comprising a guide member operatively connecting each of the at least one covering guard to the upper frame to guide the at least one covering guard along the guiding path when the at least one cam is rotated to engage the at least one friction band.
15. The locking device according to claim 14, further comprising a rod fixed to the upper frame horizontally and perpendicularly with respect to the rocking path of the upper frame, and wherein the at least one guide member each has an orifice with the rod passing therethrough to allow the at least one guide member to slide radially with respect to an axis of the rod.
16. The locking device according to claim 10, wherein the at least one friction band comprises two friction bands respectively mounted to opposite sides of the rocking path on the lower frame, and the at least one cam comprises two cams respectively mounted above the two friction bands.
17. The locking device according to claim 16, wherein the friction bands are upwardly concave to correspond to the rocking path of the upper frame.
18. The locking device according to claim 10, further comprising a biasing unit operatively mounted to the upper frame and the cam to resist when the cam is rotated to engage the friction band.
19. The locking device according to claim 12, wherein the at least one covering guard is made of a plastic material.
20. The locking device according to claim 19, wherein the friction bands are made of a rubber material to be frictionally engaged by the plastic covering guard.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 31, 2005
Publication Date: May 3, 2007
Inventor: Sylvain Bergeron (Rock Forest)
Application Number: 11/262,598
International Classification: A47C 3/03 (20060101);