EMBEDDED FURNITURE
A furniture and floor structure design allows a large piece flat furniture to be hidden in the floor. This design includes two interchangeable mechanisms, both achieving the same result, which is allowing the furniture to be risen out of the floor and collapsed into the floor. This design allows the room to have more space for placing items and helps extendable/foldable houses to have more furniture stored in a limited space. Examples of such furniture include a bed frame and a dinner table, but the two mechanisms can also be used on furniture other than these two examples. The mechanisms are interchangeable and neither of them are limited to a certain type of furniture. The first mechanism includes two sets of sliding blocks and several rotatable linkages while the second mechanism includes one set of sliding blocks and a pulley-belt system.
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to furniture construction and storage. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to furniture that may be embedded into a space within a floor of a structure when not in use.
2. Description of Prior Art and Related InformationThe following background information may present examples of specific aspects of the prior art (e.g., without limitation, approaches, facts, or common wisdom) that, while expected to be helpful to further educate the reader as to additional aspects of the prior art, is not to be construed as limiting the present invention, or any embodiments thereof, to anything stated or implied therein or inferred thereupon.
Storage space within a home can be limited, especially in smaller homes, mobile homes, recreational vehicles or foldable homes. Some furniture items may be useful only during certain times of the day (such as a bed) or may be used only under certain circumstances, such as a dining table or desk.
Typically, a user could fold these items to minimize their size, however, such folded items still require storage space within the home. Further, this method requires a user to move or carry items into the desired storage space.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need for a furniture construction that can permit the furniture items to be easily stored without occupying conventional storage spaces, such as closets, within the structure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONEmbodiments of the present invention aim to solve the aforementioned problems in conventional furniture.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising first and second sliding plates, wherein each of the first and second movable members are disposed in a recess in a floor of a structure; and each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within the recess to move the furniture item from a retracted state to a raised state.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising first and second sliding plates; first and second legs pivotably attached, at a lower end thereof, to respective first and second sliding plates, wherein the first and second legs extend upward, above a plane of a floor in a raised state; first and second sliding guides movable along a guide track, the guide track having a longitudinal axis perpendicular to the linear track, the first and second sliding guides attached to the first and second sliding plates; and a furniture item top of the furniture item pivotably attached to an upper end of each of the first and second legs, wherein each of the first and second movable members are disposed in a recess in the floor of a structure; each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within the recess to move the furniture item from the retracted state to a raised state; and the first and second sliding plates move uniformly and equally away or toward each other during movement between the retracted state and the raised state.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising first and second sliding plates, wherein each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within a recess in a floor of a structure to move the furniture item between a retracted state to a raised state; first and second legs pivotably attached, at a lower end thereof, to respective first and second sliding plates, wherein the first and second legs extend upward, above a plane of the floor in the raised state; a belt spanning between pulleys at opposite ends of the linear track, wherein each of the first and second sliding plates engages with the belt to guide movement thereof; and a furniture item top of the furniture item pivotably attached to an upper end of each of the first and second legs, wherein the first and second sliding plates move uniformly and equally away or toward each other during movement between the retracted state and the raised state.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.
Some embodiments of the present invention are illustrated as an example and are not limited by the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references may indicate similar elements.
The illustrations in the figures may not necessarily be drawn to scale.
The invention and its various embodiments can now be better understood by turning to the following detailed description wherein illustrated embodiments are described. It is to be expressly understood that the illustrated embodiments are set forth as examples and not by way of limitations on the invention as ultimately defined in the claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS AND BEST MODE OF INVENTIONThe 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 term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well as the singular forms, 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, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one having 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 relevant art and the present disclosure and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein.
In describing the invention, it will be understood that a number of techniques and steps are disclosed. Each of these has individual benefit and each can also be used in conjunction with one or more, or in some cases all, of the other disclosed techniques. Accordingly, for the sake of clarity, this description will refrain from repeating every possible combination of the individual steps in an unnecessary fashion. Nevertheless, the specification and claims should be read with the understanding that such combinations are entirely within the scope of the invention and the claims.
In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be evident, however, to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.
The present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated by the figures or description below.
As is well known to those skilled in the art, many careful considerations and compromises typically must be made when designing for the optimal configuration of a commercial implementation of any system, and in particular, the embodiments of the present invention. A commercial implementation in accordance with the spirit and teachings of the present invention may be configured according to the needs of the particular application, whereby any aspect(s), feature(s), function(s), result(s), component(s), approach(es), or step(s) of the teachings related to any described embodiment of the present invention may be suitably omitted, included, adapted, mixed and matched, or improved and/or optimized by those skilled in the art, using their average skills and known techniques, to achieve the desired implementation that addresses the needs of the particular application.
Broadly, embodiments of the present invention provide a design of furniture and floor structures in a room that allows a large piece flat furniture to be hidden in the floor. This design includes two interchangeable mechanisms, both achieving the same result, which is allowing the furniture to be risen out of the floor and collapsed into the floor. This design allows the room to have more space for placing items and helps extendable/foldable houses to have more furniture stored in a limited space. Examples of such furniture include a bed frame and a dinner table, but the two mechanisms can also be used on furniture other than these two examples. The mechanisms are interchangeable and neither of them are limited to a certain type of furniture. The first mechanism includes two sets of sliding blocks and several rotatable linkages while the second mechanism includes one set of sliding blocks and a pulley-belt system.
The figures are briefly described below, followed by a broader discussion of each figure and the components therein.
Referring to
Referring to
The outside ends 14B of each of the first and second sliding plates 14 can attach to respective retractable legs 24 at a pivot axis 26A. The retractable legs 24 can each attach to the bed frame top 30 (see
Referring to
Referring now to
However, in this embodiment, as best seen in
The first channel 92 may be wider than the second channel 94, so that the first channel 92 permits the belt 76 to freely move therethrough without requiring the uniform movement of the sliding plate 64 with the movement of the belt 76. The second channel 94 engages with the belt 76, where the movement of the belt 76 moves the sliding plate 64. When the sliding plates are arranged with their leading edges facing away from each other, the configuration of the first and second channels 92, 94 permit the sliding plates 64 to move in opposite directions, as shown, for example, in
The sliding plates 64 can further include a hole 88 for pivotably connecting the lower side 62A of the legs 62 thereto, as described above.
While the above discusses specifics of tables and bed frames, it should be understood that the present invention may be used with various flat furniture items with legs, as discussed above.
All the features disclosed in this specification, including any accompanying abstract and drawings, may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.
Claim elements and steps herein may have been numbered and/or lettered solely as an aid in readability and understanding. Any such numbering and lettering in itself is not intended to and should not be taken to indicate the ordering of elements and/or steps in the claims.
Many alterations and modifications may be made by those having ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it must be understood that the illustrated embodiments have been set forth only for the purposes of examples and that they should not be taken as limiting the invention as defined by the following claims. For example, notwithstanding the fact that the elements of a claim are set forth below in a certain combination, it must be expressly understood that the invention includes other combinations of fewer, more or different ones of the disclosed elements.
The words used in this specification to describe the invention and its various embodiments are to be understood not only in the sense of their commonly defined meanings, but to include by special definition in this specification the generic structure, material or acts of which they represent a single species.
The definitions of the words or elements of the following claims are, therefore, defined in this specification to not only include the combination of elements which are literally set forth. In this sense it is therefore contemplated that an equivalent substitution of two or more elements may be made for any one of the elements in the claims below or that a single element may be substituted for two or more elements in a claim. Although elements may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, it is to be expressly understood that one or more elements from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination and that the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination.
Insubstantial changes from the claimed subject matter as viewed by a person with ordinary skill in the art, now known or later devised, are expressly contemplated as being equivalently within the scope of the claims. Therefore, obvious substitutions now or later known to one with ordinary skill in the art are defined to be within the scope of the defined elements.
The claims are thus to be understood to include what is specifically illustrated and described above, what is conceptually equivalent, what can be obviously substituted and also what incorporates the essential idea of the invention.
Claims
1. A system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising:
- first and second sliding plates, wherein:
- each of the first and second movable members are disposed in a recess in a floor of a structure; and
- each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within the recess to move the furniture item from a retracted state to a raised state.
2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a supporting member connected to each of the first and second sliding plates to evenly move the first and second movable plates toward and away from each other along the linear track.
3. The system of claim 1, further comprising a rail disposed along the linear track.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the rail engages with an underside of each of the first and second sliding plates to prevent upward movement of the first and second sliding plates.
5. The system of claim 1, further comprising first and second legs pivotably attached, at a lower end thereof, to respective first and second sliding plates, wherein the first and second legs extend upward, above a plane of the floor in the raised state.
6. The system of claim 5, further comprising a furniture item top pivotably attached to an upper end of each of the first and second legs.
7. The system of claim 6, wherein the furniture item top is a bed frame top or a tabletop.
8. The system of claim 5, wherein the furniture item top is generally flush with the plane of the floor, with the first and second legs disposed under the furniture item top, when the system is in the retracted state.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the first and second sliding plates move uniformly and equally away or toward each other during movement between the retracted state and the raised state.
10. The system of claim 2, wherein the supporting member includes first and second sliding guides movable along a guide track, the guide track having a longitudinal axis perpendicular to the linear track, the first and second sliding guides attached to the first and second sliding plates.
11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:
- first and second linkages, each pivotably attached, at a first end thereof, to the first sliding guide, each of the first and second linkages further pivotably attached, at a second end thereof, to an upper inside edge of each of the first and second sliding plates; and
- third and fourth linkages, each pivotably attached, at a first end thereof, to the second sliding guide, each of the third and fourth linkages further pivotably attached, at a second end thereof, to a lower inside edge of each of the first and second sliding plates.
12. The system of claim 2, wherein the supporting member includes a belt spanning between pulleys at opposite ends of the linear track.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein each of the first and second sliding plates engages with the belt to guide movement thereof.
14. The system of claim 13, wherein the belt is disposed in a first and second channel formed in the underside of each of the first and second sliding plates, the first channel permitting the belt to freely move therethrough, and the second channel engaging with the belt so that movement of each of the first and second sliding plates moves the belt.
15. A system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising:
- first and second sliding plates;
- first and second legs pivotably attached, at a lower end thereof, to respective first and second sliding plates, wherein the first and second legs extend upward, above a plane of a floor in a raised state;
- first and second sliding guides movable along a guide track, the guide track having a longitudinal axis perpendicular to the linear track, the first and second sliding guides attached to the first and second sliding plates; and
- a furniture item top of the furniture item pivotably attached to an upper end of each of the first and second legs, wherein
- each of the first and second movable members are disposed in a recess in the floor of a structure;
- each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within the recess to move the furniture item from the retracted state to a raised state; and
- the first and second sliding plates move uniformly and equally away or toward each other during movement between the retracted state and the raised state.
16. The system of claim 15, further comprising:
- first and second linkages, each pivotably attached, at a first end thereof, to the first sliding guide, each of the first and second linkages further pivotably attached, at a second end thereof, to an upper inside edge of each of the first and second sliding plates; and
- third and fourth linkages, each pivotably attached, at a first end thereof, to the second sliding guide, each of the third and fourth linkages further pivotably attached, at a second end thereof, to a lower inside edge of each of the first and second sliding plates.
17. The system of claim 15, further comprising a rail disposed along the linear track, wherein the rail engages with an underside of each of the first and second sliding plates to prevent upward movement of the first and second sliding plates.
18. A system for raising and lowering a furniture item comprising:
- first and second sliding plates, wherein each of the first and second movable members operable to slide outward and away from each other along a linear track within a recess in a floor of a structure to move the furniture item between a retracted state to a raised state;
- first and second legs pivotably attached, at a lower end thereof, to respective first and second sliding plates, wherein the first and second legs extend upward, above a plane of the floor in the raised state;
- a belt spanning between pulleys at opposite ends of the linear track, wherein each of the first and second sliding plates engages with the belt to guide movement thereof; and
- a furniture item top of the furniture item pivotably attached to an upper end of each of the first and second legs, wherein
- the first and second sliding plates move uniformly and equally away or toward each other during movement between the retracted state and the raised state.
19. The system of claim 18, wherein the belt is disposed in a first and second channel formed in the underside of each of the first and second sliding plates, the first channel permitting the belt to freely move therethrough, and the second channel engaging with the belt so that movement of each of the first and second sliding plates moves the belt.
20. The system of claim 18, further comprising a rail disposed along the linear track, wherein the rail engages with an underside of each of the first and second sliding plates to prevent upward movement of the first and second sliding plates.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 16, 2022
Publication Date: May 16, 2024
Inventors: Xunmin Jiang (Irvine, CA), Jiuqi Wang (Santa Ana, CA), Zhuangboyu Zhou (Santa Ana, CA), Sichen Li (Santa Ana, CA), Ju Gao (Newport Beach, CA), Han Qin (Newport Beach, CA), Jiayang Qin (Newport Beach, CA)
Application Number: 18/056,180