Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6719373
-
Patent Number
6,719,373
-
Date Filed
Tuesday, October 29, 200221 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, April 13, 200420 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Cuomo; Peter M.
- Garrett; Erika
Agents
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CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 297 408
- 297 410
- 297 391
- 297 353
- 297 34418
- 297 34412
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International Classifications
-
Abstract
A chair, in particular an office chair, comprises a pedestal; a seat support propped thereon; a seat supporting itself on the seat support; a backrest support mounted on the seat support; a headrest support mounted on the backrest support; and a headrest mounted on the headrest support and having a height setting mechanism for height adjustment of the headrest and an inclination setting mechanism for adjustment of an angle of inclination a of the headrest.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a chair, in particular an office chair.
2. Background Art
Chairs with headrests have been familiar for a long time. As a rule the headrests have the drawback of complicated height adjustment by locking mechanisms. Adjustment of inclination is not possible as a rule.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to embody a chair with a headrest, the height and angle of inclination of which are as easy as possible to regulate. The gist of the invention resides in that a headrest is simultaneously provided with a height adjustment device and a device for inclination adjustment.
According to the invention, this object is attained in a chair, in particular an office chair, which comprises a pedestal; a seat support propped thereon; a seat supporting itself on the seat support; a backrest support for a backrest, the backrest support being mounted on the seat support; a headrest support mounted on the backrest support; and a headrest mounted on the headrest support and having a height setting mechanism for height adjustment of the headrest, and an inclination setting mechanism for adjustment of the angle of inclination a of the headrest.
Additional features and details of the invention will become apparent from the ensuing description of an exemplary embodiment, taken in conjunction with the drawing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1
is an illustration of an office chair with a headrest;
FIG. 2
is a detail, on an enlarged scale, of the headrest of
FIG. 1
;
FIG. 3
is an illustration of a framework construction of the headrest of
FIG. 2
;
FIG. 4
is a section on the line IV—IV of
FIG. 2
; and
FIG. 5
is a section on the line V—V of FIG.
2
.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A chair
1
seen in
FIG. 1
, in particular an office chair, comprises a pedestal
2
, which supports itself on the ground by way of casters
3
. Mounted on the pedestal
2
is an adjustable-height chair column
4
, to the upper end of which a seat support
5
is detachably fixed, with an upholstered seat
6
mounted thereon. Attached to the rear end of the seat support
5
is a substantially upward backrest support
7
, with an upholstered backrest
8
fixed thereto. Attached to the upper end of the backrest support
7
is a headrest support
9
with a headrest
10
fixed thereto.
The following is a detailed description of the structure of the headrest
10
, taken in conjunction with
FIGS. 2
to
5
. The backrest support
7
comprises two substantially vertical and parallel bars
11
which run as far as to the upper end of the backrest
8
, passing by their upper end into a headrest support bracket
12
. The brackets
12
continuously pass by their upper end into a horizontal shaft-press-fit bearing
13
that tapers cross-sectionally. The free ends
14
of the bearings are turned towards each other. The headrest
10
is supported vis-à-vis the brackets
12
and joined thereto.
The headrest
10
has a frame
15
formed by two parallel pairs of rails
16
and two interconnecting cross bars
17
. As seen in
FIG. 5
, the rails
16
are curved and consist for instance of spring steel sheet. The rails
16
of a pair of rails run in parallel one on top of the other. The cross bars
17
have the shape of an elongated cuboid, its ends standing out beyond the fastening points
18
that connect the cross bars
17
with the rails
16
. A shaft
19
passes between the two pairs of rails
16
, at both ends having journals
20
which are fixed by press-fit in corresponding recesses
21
of the bearing
13
. As a result, the shaft
19
is fixed substantially non-rotatably relative to the bearings
13
. The frame
15
is joined to the shaft
19
by way of two pairs of friction guide shoes
22
. Centrally the shoes
22
have a hole
23
that the shaft
19
passes through. On sides turned towards each other, the shoes
22
each have two grooves
24
, the depth of which is slightly smaller than half the width of the rails
16
. Two shoes
22
at a time are united to form a pair
26
by two screws
25
. The four grooves
24
of a pair
26
enclose the two rails
26
, forming two ducts. The friction between the shoes and the rails
16
is adjustable by the screws
25
. The pairs
26
are displaceable on the rails
16
against a counterforce, constituting a height setting mechanism for the headrest
10
. The friction between the rails
16
and the two pairs
26
is regulated such that, in any pre-determined position, the headrest
10
is stationary towards the externally supported shaft
19
without any force acting from outside.
In the vicinity of the hole
23
, the inner fronts
27
of the shoes
22
have a conical widening
28
of the hole
23
. As a result, an annular chamber with a rubber ring
29
placed therein originates between the shaft
19
on the one hand and the two shoes
22
of a pair
26
on the other hand. The conical surfaces of the chamber in the vicinity of the widening
28
help press the rubber ring
29
against the shaft
19
when two shoes
22
are screwed together, whereby pre-determined friction is adjustable between the shaft
19
and the frame
15
. Since the shaft
19
is fixed non-rotatably relative to the bearing
13
, the headrest
10
can only be pivoted about the shaft
19
against the action of force. Without any force acting from outside, the headrest
10
will stay in any preset inclination at an angle of inclination a relative to the vertical. In this regard, the shaft
19
combines with the shoes
22
, constituting an inclination setting mechanism for adjustment the angle of inclination a of the headrest
10
.
The frame
15
is covered with a multi-piece facing for instance of wood. Two semi-cylindrical sections
30
are mounted on the top side of the upper cross bar
17
and on the bottom side of the lower cross bar
17
. A curved cover plate
31
is fixed to the front and rear. The cover plates
31
have rectangular recesses
32
along the range the shoes
22
travel through upon height adjustment; parts of the shoes project into these recesses
32
. This enables as compact as possible a design of the headrest
10
to be put into practice, because the total thickness K of the facing of the headrest
10
only slightly exceeds the thickness S of the shoes
22
. Two curved frontal plates
33
with two curved oblong holes
34
are mounted on the fronts of the frame
15
, the shaft
19
being displaced in the oblong hole
34
. The headrest
10
, which is illustrated in
FIG. 2
only with its facing, is finished for example with leather or fabric as seen in FIG.
1
.
The following is a detailed description of the mode of operation of the headrest. For the height of the headrest
10
to be changed, the user of the chair
1
presses from above or from below. If the force is sufficient to overcome a given friction, the rails
16
are displaced in the grooves
24
of the shoes, as a result of which the height of the headrest
10
changes. Due to the friction acting between the rails
16
and the shoes
22
, the headrest
10
is stable in the newly adjusted position and does not slide downwards again. If the angle of inclination a of the headrest is to be set, the user pivots the headrest about the shaft
19
. Since the journals
20
are non-rotatably secured in the bearing
13
, the shoes
22
are pivoted relative to the shaft
19
. Due to the friction between the wall of the hole
23
and the shaft
19
and due to the friction, set by the rubber ring
29
, between the shoes
22
and the shaft
19
, a minimum turning moment is required for the headrest
10
to be pivoted about the shaft
19
. When it is exceeded, pivoting of the headrest
10
takes place. If no external torque is exerted on the headrest
10
, the headrest remains stationary in the position set.
Being curved backwards, the headrest
10
adapts to the contour of the back of the head and the neck of someone leaning backwards. Special advantages reside in that the angle of inclination a of the backrest
10
can adjust automatically when someone leans backwards. Adjustability in height of the headrest ensures that the upper part of a user's neck rests approximately level with the shaft
19
and that the pivotability of the headrest
10
corresponds substantially to that of the human neck. As a result, the headrest
10
conveys a feeling of ease and convenience. Special advantages reside in that the height of the headrest
10
and the angle of inclination can be set simultaneously and infinitely variably. Moreover, a headrest
10
that is rotatable by more than 360° offers the possibility for the user to employ it as a convex or concave headrest surface. In the position of the headrest
10
seen in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, the headrest surface is concave seen from the direction of the head. Upon rotation by 180° about the shaft
19
, the opposite headrest surface may be used.
Claims
- 1. A chair, in particular an office chair, comprisinga pedestal (2); a seat support (5) propped thereon; a seat (6) supporting itself on the seat support (5); a backrest support (7) for a backrest (8), the backrest support (7) being mounted on the seat support (5); a headrest support (9) mounted on the backrest support (7); and a headrest (10) mounted on the headrest support (9), the headrest (10) having a height setting mechanism for height adjustment of the headrest (10), wherein the height setting mechanism comprises at least one rail (16) fixedly connected with the headrest (10), wherein at least one friction guide shoe (22) is frictionally displaceably guided on the at least one rail (16) for changing the height of the headrest (10) and an inclination setting mechanism for adjustment of an angle of inclination a of the headrest (10), wherein the inclination setting mechanism comprises a shaft (19) that is supported in relation to the headrest support (9), wherein the at least one friction guide shoe (22) is lodged frictionally rotatably in relation to the shaft (19) for pivoting the headrest (10).
- 2. A chair according to claim 1, wherein the at least one rail (16) is curved relative to a vertical plane.
- 3. A chair according to claim 1, wherein two pairs of rails (16) are provided.
- 4. A chair according to claim 3, wherein the two pairs of rails (16) are united to form a frame by two cross bars (17).
- 5. A chair according to claim 4, wherein the frame (15) comprises a facing for definition of the outer contour of the headrest (10).
- 6. A chair according to claim 5, wherein the facing has a cover.
- 7. A chair according to claim 5, wherein the facing comprises two cover plates (31) which are fixed to the front and the rear of the frame (15).
- 8. A chair according to claim 7, wherein the cover plates (31) have recesses (32) along the range a friction guide shoe (22) travels through upon height adjustment.
- 9. A chair according to claim 5, wherein the facing comprises two frontal plates (33) which are mounted on the fronts of the frame (15).
- 10. A chair according to claim 9, wherein the two frontal plates (33) have two oblong holes (34) for displacing the shaft (19).
- 11. A chair according to claim 4, wherein the frame (15) is joined to the shaft (19) by way of two pairs of friction guide shoes (22).
- 12. A chair according to claim 11, wherein two friction guide shoes (22) are united to form a pair (26) by screws (25), the pair (26) enclosing a pair of rails (16).
- 13. A chair according to claim 12, wherein friction between the friction guide shoes (22) and rails (16) is adjustable by the screws (25).
- 14. A chair according to claim 12, wherein each friction guide shoe (22) has a hole (23) that the shaft (19) passes through.
- 15. A chair according to claim 14, wherein inner fronts (27) of the friction guide shoes (22) have a widening (28) of the hole (23), whereby a chamber between the shaft (19) and the two friction guide shoes (22) of a pair (26) is originated to place a rubber ring (29) therein.
- 16. A chair according to claim 15, wherein the rubber ring (29) is pressed against the shaft (19) when two friction guide shoes (22) are screwed together by the screws (25).
- 17. A chair according to claim 16, wherein friction is adjustable between the shaft (19) and the frame (15) by the screws (25).
- 18. A chair according to claim 1, wherein the shaft (19) is non-rotatably fixed relative to the headrest support (9).
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
101 61 587 |
Dec 2001 |
DE |
|
US Referenced Citations (19)
Foreign Referenced Citations (5)
Number |
Date |
Country |
24 19 483 |
Nov 1975 |
DE |
100 48 779 |
Apr 2002 |
DE |
1 417 128 |
Oct 1965 |
FR |
2 765 841 |
Jan 1999 |
FR |
WO 00-74531 |
Dec 2000 |
WO |