WO1996032037A1

WO1996032037A1 - An article of furniture

Info

Publication number: WO1996032037A1
Application number: PCT/GB1996/000885
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jack Ingham
Original assignee: Technovations (International) Limited
Priority date: 1995-04-13
Filing date: 1996-04-12
Publication date: 1996-10-17
Also published as: GB2303543A; AU5284696A; GB9507697D0; GB9626000D0

Abstract

A bed comprising a base frame (10) and mattress (15), the frame (10) being mounted on individual cantilever legs (21, 22) at the four corners, the effective resilience of each leg being adjustable by means of a sliding block (19) which may be moved towards or away from a vertical support member (21) of the cantilever leg. By suitable adjustment of the blocks (19) the resilience of the supporting legs at the respective corners may be set individually as required.

Description

AN ARTICLE OF FURNITURE

THIS INVENTION concerns an article of furniture and preferably, though not exclusively, a bed, sofa or the like. Most conventional beds have a base structure which may be a rigid framework on legs, or a box-like construction, upon which there is placed a resilient mattress. The base structure may or may not have any inherent resilience. Typically, resilience whether just in the mattress, or additionally in the base structure, is provided by springs and/or foamed materials. Methods of manufacture have changed little with time.

An object of the present invention is to provide an alternative construction from an article of furniture which is simple in concept yet as functional as conventional designs.

One of the problems encountered with conventional designs of bed is accommodating individual users particularly where the bed is to be occupied by two persons of widely different weights without causing the sleeping surface to tilt. Therefore, a further object of the present invention is to provide an article of furniture in which it is possible to adjust different parts of the article to allow for different weights.

According to the present invention there is provided an article of furniture comprising a base structure which may be upholstered, and mounted on a resilient support structure, characterised in that the resilience of the support structure is adjustable.

Preferably, the resilience is adjustable individually for different parts of the base structure.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a schematic side elevation of a bed incorporating an adjustable resilient support structure in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a schematic side elevation of a second embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view thereof;

and Fig. 5 is a cross-sectionai view of a base structure forming a part of the bed.

Referring now to Figs. 1 , 2 and 5 , a bed made in accordance with the invention comprises a rectangular base frame generally indicated at 10 and of timber or other construction and having spaced parallel cross slats 1 1 attached to and extending between two opposed sides of the frame 10. The base frame 10 defines a recess in which is located, on the slats 1 1 , a sheet 13 of hardboard or the like and a resilient infill pad 14, for example, of foamed neoprene.

A mattress 15 which may be of a conventional kind, is supported on the pad 14 by the base frame 10. In the example illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, a headboard 16 is mounted on and extends upwardly from one end of the base frame 10.

The base frame 10 is mounted on a support structure or leg assembly which consists essentially of four cantilever legs 18 one at each corner of the base frame, and of laminated timber construction or of metal or plastics, with a supporting block or the like 19 disposed between an upper cantilever arm 20 of each leg, and the underside of the base frame 10. Each block 19 is slidably adjustable along the arm 20 thus to adjust the position at which the base frame 10 is supported on each leg in relation to a vertical member 21 thereof. In this way, the resilience of the support structure may be adjusted as required. The position of each block 19, as illustrated in Fig. 1 , will afford the maximum resilience, this being reduced progressively as the block 19 is moved towards the vertical member 21 on each leg 18. The mechanism affording the block 19 its adjustable movement, is not illustrated but may be in the form of a simple track attached to the member 20 with a similar track on the underside of the base frame 10, and with the block 19 captive between the two. Preferably, graduated markings will be provided on one or other of the tracks or on the base frame 10 or the leg 18, to enable the position of the block to be set as required.

The resilience of each cantilever leg assembly is reduced as the block 19 is moved towards the upright part 21.

It will be appreciated that by selection of the positions of the blocks 19 at all four corners, the support structure may be set to accommodate different weights while ensuring that the sleeping surface remains level in use. Thus, for example, the bed can be calibrated to support, at one side, a person weighing 60 Kg, and at the other, one weighing 120 Kg without causing the bed to tilt to the side occupied by the heavier person.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, in an alternative arrangement, the cantilever legs are reversed such that the upright members 22 thereof are spaced inwardly from the ends of the base frame 10, and in this example the upper horizontal arms 23 are extended upwardly respectively at the ends of the bed to serve as supports for a headboard 24 at one end and a footboard 26 at the other. Once again, the positions of the blocks 19 will determine the degree or resilience afforded to the base frame.

While the cross slats 1 1 may be of timber construction, alternatively they may be of glass reinforced polyester or any other material providing the degree of flexibility and resilience required.

The provision of the neoprene infill 14 will enable a mattress of less than conventional thickness to be used so that the overall construction of the bed will be considerably more compact and may be lighter in weight than conventional constructions.

The density or compressibility of the infill 14 may be selected according to the degree of support preferred, and if required, for a double bed, the infill may be provided as separate sections each individually selectable as, for example, "hard", "medium" or "soft".

The space beneath the base frame 10 provides free access to the floor area on which the bed stands, or it may be utilised for the incorporation of storage drawers of the kind often found in conventional bed structures.

It is not intended to limit the invention to the above examples only. For example, the cantilever legs may be replaced by other resilient devices such as leaf or coil springs but in any case means must be provided to adjust the effective resilience at each leg.

Whilst the invention has been described in relation to a bed the invention may be incorporated into a sofa or chair or indeed any article of furniture which may be upholstered and wherein the degree of resilient support may be adjusted.

Claims

1. An article of furniture comprising a base structure which may be upholstered and mounted on a resilient support structure; characterised in that the resilience of the support structure is adjustable.

2. An article of furniture according to Claim 1, wherein the resilience is adjustable individually for different parts of the base structure.

3. An article of furniture according to Claim 1 , wherein the resilient support structure comprises a plurality of cantilever legs, and the resilience thereof is adjustable by means of movable members disposed between the legs and the base structure.

4. An article of furniture according to Claim 3, wherein said movable members are supporting blocks disposed between an upper cantilever arm of each leg and the underside of the base structure, adjustment being afforded by moving the block towards or away from a vertical supporting member of the associated cantilever leg.

5. An article of furniture according to Claim 4, wherein each said block is movable along a track with graduated markings to enable the position of the block to be set as required.

6. An article of furniture according to Claim 3, wherein each cantilever leg is formed from laminated timber.

7. An article of furniture according to Claim 1, wherein the base structure comprises a rectangular base frame having spaced parallel cross slats attached to and extending between two opposed sides of the base frame.

8. An article of furniture according to Claim 7, being a bed and wherein the base frame defines a recess in which is located a sheet of a resilient supporting material, there being a mattress disposed on the base frame above the resilient supporting material.

9. An article of furniture according to Claim 3, being a bed and wherein one pair of cantilever legs additionally supports a headboard, and the other pair additionally supports a footboard.

10. An article of furniture according to Claim 1 , wherein the base structure defines therebelow a space providing free access to the floor area on which the article stands.

11. An article of furniture according to Claim 1, wherein the resilient support structure includes one or more springs the effective resilience of which is adjustable.