FOLDABLE CHAIR

A foldable chair can be folded easily by pressing a control member disposed at a lateral side of the seat, and when the control member is released from being pressed, the chair can be returned to the locked position by a spring. In addition to the pivot connection of the corresponding interconnected components, the structure for controlling the pivot motion and locking is also very simple, which not only reduces material cost, but also make production and assembly easier.

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Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a chair, and more particularly to a foldable chair, the folding of its armrests and back is simply controlled by an act of pressing.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Chair is one of the indispensable daily necessities. A foldable chair 10 is shown in FIG. 1 and essentially comprises a seat 11, a back 12, two armrests 13 and an adjustment assembly 14. Each of the armrests 13 has one end connected to the seat 11 and another end connected to the adjustment assembly 14, and then the back 12 is connected to the seat 11 via the adjustment assembly 14. The back 12 and the armrests 13 can be folded by the adjustment assembly 14. The adjustment assembly 14 is structurally complicated and uneconomical since it consists of a positioning member 141, an adjustment block 142, an adjustment member 143, a spring 144, two stop pieces 145, and a support seat 146.

The present invention has arisen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore-described disadvantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a foldable chair, wherein the armrests and back can be easily folded by an act of pressing a control member.

To achieve the above object, a foldable chair in accordance with the present invention comprises: a seat, a control assembly, a back, a first covering assembly, a second covering assembly, two armrests, and a back cushion.

The seat is formed with at two opposite lateral sides thereof with a first pivot seat and a second pivot seat, respectively, the first pivot portion is formed in a peripheral surface thereof with a stop groove, in the first pivot seat is formed a hollow mounting seat.

The control assembly includes a control member and a spring, the control member includes a press portion and a rotation-stop portion connected to the press portion, the press portion is formed with an engaging groove, the spring is received in the mounting seat, the mounting seat is inserted in the engaging groove of the control member, and the spring has both ends pressed against the mounting seat and the engaging groove, respectively, the rotation-stop portion of the control member is aligned with the stop groove.

The back includes a support panel connected to a first ear and an opposite second ear, respectively, the first and second ears are each formed with an engaging hole, the engaging hole of the first ear is formed around its periphery with a plurality of stop concaves, and each stop concave has a stop surface, the first and second pivot seats of the seat are inserted in the engaging holes of the first and second ears of the back, respectively. In normal conditions, the spring extends and pushes against the control member to make the rotation-stop portions of the control member lean against the stop surfaces of the stop concaves of the first ear, and the rotation-stop portions are disengaged from the stop grooves of the seat.

The positioning cap is formed with a through hole and fixed to the first pivot seat of the seat to prevent disengagement of the first ear, and the control member extends out of the through hole the first positioning cap.

The second positioning cap is fixed to the second pivot seat of the seat to prevent disengagement of the second ear.

The two arms each includes a first connecting member pivoted to a second connecting member, the first connecting member has one end pivoted to the seat, and the second connecting member has one end pivoted to the back.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a conventional foldable chair;

FIG. 2 is assembly view of a foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a partial exploded view of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view showing the first pivot portion, the first ear, and the first covering assembly of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view showing the second pivot portion, the second ear, and the second covering assembly of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a side view showing the unfolded state of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view showing the first pivot portion, the second ear, and the first covering assembly of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention, wherein the control member is pressed down to pivot the back of the chair; and

FIG. 9 is a side view showing the folded state of the foldable chair in accordance with the present invention.

 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will be clearer from the following description when viewed together with the accompanying drawings, which show, for purpose of illustrations only, the preferred embodiment in accordance with the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 2-9, a foldable chair in accordance with the present invention comprises: a seat 20, a control assembly 30, a back 40, a first covering assembly 50, a second covering assembly 60, two armrests 70, and a back cushion 80.

The bottom of the seat 20 is connected to a base 21 and formed with two pivot holes 22, and at two opposite lateral sides of the seat 20 are provided a first pivot portion 23 and a second pivot portion 24, respectively.

The first pivot portion 23 includes a first concave 231 and a first pivot seat 232 formed in the first concave 231. The first pivot seat 232 is a hollow cylindrical structure, and two stop grooves 233 are formed in the peripheral surface of the first pivot seat 232 and define an angle therebetween of 180 degrees. In the first pivot seat 232 is formed a mounting seat 234 which also is a hollow cylindrical structure.

The second pivot portion 24 includes a second concave 241 and a second pivot seat 242 formed in the second concave 241, the second pivot seat 242 is a hollow cylindrical structure, and in the second pivot seat 242 is formed an engaging cylindrical portion 243.

The control assembly 30 includes a control member 31 and a spring 32. The control member 31 includes a press portion 311 and two rotation-stop portions 312 connected to the press portion 311. An angle between the two rotation-stop portions 312 is 180 degrees, the press portion 311 is formed with an engaging groove 313 and a spring-mounting portion 314 in the engaging groove 313. The spring 32 is received in the mounting seat 234 of the first pivot portion 23, and then the control member 31 is received in the first pivot seat 232 of the first pivot portion 23 in such a manner that the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 are aligned with the stop grooves 233, the mounting seat 234 is inserted in the engaging groove 313 of the control member 31, and the spring 32 is mounted on the spring-mounting portion 314 and has both ends pressed against the mounting seat 234 and the engaging groove 313, respectively.

A back 40 includes a support panel 41 connected to a first ear 42 and an opposite second ear 43, respectively. The first and second ears 42, 43 are each formed with an engaging hole 421, 431. The engaging hole 421 of the first ear 42 is formed around its periphery with a plurality of stop concaves 422, and each stop concave 422 has a stop surface 423. The first and second pivot seats 232, 242 of the seat 20 are inserted in the engaging holes 421, 431 of the first and second ears 42, 43 of the back 40, respectively. In normal conditions, the spring 32 extends and pushes against the control member 31, the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 lean against the stop surfaces 423 of the stop concaves 422 of the first ear 42, and the rotation-stop portions 312 are disengaged from the stop grooves 233 of the seat 20, as shown in FIG. 5. In this way, the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 can stop the back 40 from rotating. The support panel 41 of the back 40 is provided on a surface thereof with two protruding blocks 411, each of the protruding blocks 411 is formed with a pivot hole 412, and each of the pivot holes 412 is in communication with an opening 413 formed in an opposite surface of the support panel 41. The openings 413 are each sealed with a cover 44, and the support panel 41 is further formed with a plurality of assembling holes 414.

The first covering assembly 50 includes a first positioning cap 51 and a first decorative cap 52, and each of which is formed with a through hole 511, 521. The first positioning cap 51 is formed with a plurality of step holes 512, and the first decorative cap 52 is formed around its periphery with a plurality of hooks 522. The first positioning cap 51 is fixed to the first pivot seat 232 of the first pivot portion 23 of the seat 20 to prevent the disengagement of the first ear 42, and then the first decorative cap 52 is assembled to the first positioning cap 51 by hooking its hooks 522 into the step holes 512 of the first positioning cap 51 in such a manner that the press portion 311 of the control member 31 extends out of the through holes 511, 521 of the first positioning cap 51 and the first decorative cap 52.

The second covering assembly 60 includes a second positioning cap 61 and a second decorative cap 62. The second positioning cap 61 is formed with a through hole 611 and a plurality of step holes 612. The second decorative cap 61 is formed around its periphery with a plurality of hooks 522 formed around its periphery with a plurality of hooks 621 and is fixed to the second pivot seat 242 on the second pivot portion 24 of the seat 20 in such a manner that the engaging cylindrical portion 243 of the second pivot seat 242 of the seat 20 extends out of the through hole 611 of the second positioning cap 61, and then the hooks 621 are inserted and hooked into the step holes 612 of the second positioning cap 61.

The two arms 70 each include a first connecting member 71 pivoted to a second connecting member 72. The first connecting member 71 has one end pivoted in the pivot hole 22 of the seat 20, and the second connecting member 72 has one end pivoted in the pivot hole 412 of the back 40.

The back cushion 80 is provided on its rear surface with a plurality of protrusions 81 to be inserted in the assembling holes 414 of the back 40, and then a plurality of fasteners are inserted through the assembling holes 414 of the back 40 and screwed into the protrusions 81, so as to fix the back cushion 80 to the back 40.

To fold or adjust the back 40, it just needs to the press the press portion 311 of the control member 31 of the control assembly 30, so that the spring 32 biased between the control member 31 and the mounting seat 234 of the first pivot portion 23 will be compressed, and the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 will be moved into the stop grooves 233 of the first pivot portion 23 from its normal position where the rotation-stop portions 312 lean against the stop surfaces 423 of the stop concaves 422 of the first ear 42, as shown in FIG. 8. At this moment, the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 don't stop the back 40 from rotation anymore, plus the first and second pivot seats 232, 242 of the seat 20 are inserted in the first and second ears 42, 43 of the back 40, so that the back 40 is allowed to pivot with respect to the seat 20. When pivoting toward the seat 20, the back 40 also drives the first and second connecting members 71, 72 of the armrests 70 to pivot toward each other. When the back 40 rotates, the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 are changed to be aligned with different stop concaves 422 of the first ear 42 in different positions.

After the back 40 is adjusted a certain angle, it only needs to stop pressing the control member 31, the spring 32 which was previously pressed by the control member 31 will be relaxed, so that the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 will move from the stop grooves 233 of the seat 20 back into the stop concaves 422 of the engaging hole 421 of the first ear 42. Since the back 40 has been adjusted an angle, the rotation-stop portions 312 of the control member 31 are also adjusted to engage in different stop concaves 422 of the first ear 42 in different positions. The back of the chair can be adjusted and locked easily by an act of pressing or releasing, without the act of disassembling and assembling.

In addition to the pivot connection of the corresponding interconnected components, the structure for controlling the pivot motion and locking is also very simple, which not only reduces material cost, but also make production and assembly easier.

While we have shown and described various embodiments in accordance with the present invention, it is clear to those skilled in the art that further embodiments may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A foldable chair comprising:

a seat formed with at two opposite lateral sides thereof with a first pivot seat and a second pivot seat, respectively, the first pivot portion being formed in a peripheral surface thereof with a stop groove, in the first pivot seat being formed a hollow mounting seat;
a control assembly including a control member and a spring, the control member including a press portion and a rotation-stop portion connected to the press portion, the press portion being formed with an engaging groove, the spring being received in the mounting seat, the mounting seat being inserted in the engaging groove of the control member, and the spring having both ends pressed against the mounting seat and the engaging groove, respectively, the rotation-stop portion of the control member being aligned with the stop groove;
a back including a support panel connected to a first ear and an opposite second ear, respectively, the first and second ears being each formed with an engaging hole, the engaging hole of the first ear being formed around its periphery with a plurality of stop concaves, and each stop concave having a stop surface, the first and second pivot seats of the seat being inserted in the engaging holes of the first and second ears of the back, respectively, in normal conditions, the spring extends and pushes against the control member to make the rotation-stop portions of the control member lean against the stop surfaces of the stop concaves of the first ear, and the rotation-stop portions are disengaged from the stop grooves of the seat;
a positioning cap formed with a through hole and fixed to the first pivot seat of the seat to prevent disengagement of the first ear, and the control member extending out of the through hole the first positioning cap;
a second positioning cap fixed to the second pivot seat of the seat to prevent disengagement of the second ear; and
two arms each including a first connecting member pivoted to a second connecting member, the first connecting member having one end pivoted to the seat, and the second connecting member having one end pivoted to the back.

2. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first and second pivot seats are formed in a first and second concaves of a first and second pivot portions at the two opposite lateral sides of the seat.

3. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein a spring-mounting portion is formed in the engaging groove of the control member, and the spring is mounted on the spring-mounting portion.

4. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1 further comprises a first decorative cap and a second decorative cap which are formed with a plurality of step holes and, respectively, and are further formed around their peripheries with a plurality of hooks respectively, the first and second decorative caps are assembled to the first and second positioning caps by hooking their hooks into the step holes of the first and second positioning caps the first decorative cap is formed with a through hole, and the press portion of the control member extends out of the through holes of the first and second positioning caps.

5. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein two stop grooves are formed in the first pivot seat and define an angle therebetween of degrees, the control member includes two rotation-stop portions connected to the press portion, and an angle between the two rotation-stop portions is 180 degrees.

6. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1 further comprises a back cushion which is provided on its rear surface with a plurality of protrusions to be inserted in assembling holes formed in the support panel of the back, and then a plurality of fasteners are inserted through the assembling holes of the back and screwed into the protrusions, so as to fix the back cushion to the back.

7. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein a bottom of the seat is connected to a base.

8. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein the seat is formed with two pivot holes, the support panel of the back is provided with two protruding blocks, each of the protruding blocks is formed with a pivot hole, the first connecting members are pivoted in the pivot holes of the seat, and the second connecting members are pivoted in the pivot holes of the back.

9. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein an engaging cylindrical portion is formed in the second pivot seat, the second positioning cap is formed with a through hole, and the engaging cylindrical portion of the second pivot seat extends out of the through hole of the second positioning cap.

10. The foldable chair as claimed in claim 1, wherein the back is formed with two pivot holes which are in communication with an opening formed in an opposite surface of the support panel, and the openings are each sealed with a cover.

Patent History
Publication number: 20130082501
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 30, 2011
Publication Date: Apr 4, 2013
Inventor: Yu-Ching HUNG (Taichung City)
Application Number: 13/251,168
Classifications
Current U.S. Class: Tiltable (297/354.1)
International Classification: A47C 3/00 (20060101); A47C 4/00 (20060101); A47C 7/00 (20060101); A47C 1/00 (20060101);