U.S. patent application number 15/950219 was filed with the patent office on 2019-10-17 for spring-loaded leg base.
This patent application is currently assigned to Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z Company, Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z Company. The applicant listed for this patent is Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z Company, Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z Company. Invention is credited to Andrew David Frankel, Shi-Ping Zheng, Tian-Xia Zheng.
Application Number | 20190313797 15/950219 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 68160849 |
Filed Date | 2019-10-17 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20190313797 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Frankel; Andrew David ; et
al. |
October 17, 2019 |
SPRING-LOADED LEG BASE
Abstract
A type of spring-loaded leg base includes a base, a spring, and
a connecting component. The base has a hollow chamber. The spring
is placed inside the chamber. The connecting component is a unified
component of a leg sleeve, a connecting bar and a spring cap. By
passing the connecting bar through the grooved track and placing
the spring cap on the top of the spring, the leg sleeve can be
locked in position on the chair frame to create flexible support.
This mechanism creates the rocking function for a regular
chair.
Inventors: |
Frankel; Andrew David;
(Yorba Linda, CA) ; Zheng; Shi-Ping; (Fuzhou,
CN) ; Zheng; Tian-Xia; (Fuzhou, Fujian, CN) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z Company |
Upland |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Zenithen USA LLC d/b/a Z
Company
|
Family ID: |
68160849 |
Appl. No.: |
15/950219 |
Filed: |
April 11, 2018 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47C 7/002 20130101;
A47C 3/02 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A47C 3/02 20060101
A47C003/02; A47C 7/00 20060101 A47C007/00 |
Claims
1. A spring-loaded leg base comprising: A base having a hollow
chamber inside; A grooved track installed on the wall of the
chamber, wherein the grooved track is parallel to the central axis
of the inner chamber; The spring placed inside the chamber of the
base; A connecting component having a leg sleeve, a connecting bar,
and a spring cap forming a one-piece structure, wherein said spring
cap is placed inside the chamber of the base and on top of the
spring and the connecting bar passes through the grooved track and
the leg sleeve can be locked in position on the chair frame to
create flexible support.
2. The spring-loaded leg base of claim 1, wherein the base is a
separate structure including a base and a cylindrical housing; The
perimeter of the base bottom is molded with an enclosing sleeve;
The center is molded with a protruding console; The cylindrical
housing is molded with a chamber that has an opening and a grooved
track; The lower part of the spring cap is set on the protruding
console to maintain a centralized structure; After the connecting
bar of the connecting component is placed in the grooved track of
the cylindrical housing, the cylindrical housing is inverted and
tied to the top of the spring; and The lower part of the
cylindrical housing is mounted inside the enclosing sleeve of the
base bottom and secured by a screw.
3. The spring-loaded leg base of claim 2, wherein the spring is a
conical spring; The chamber of the cylindrical housing is in a
corresponding conical structure; and There is a gap between the
mid-upper part of the chamber and the spring that allows spring
movements.
4. The spring-loaded leg base of claim 2, wherein the spring cap of
the connecting bar is molded with an inverted concave cavity, which
is used for buckling at the top of the spring.
5. The spring-loaded leg base of claim 2, wherein on the
cylindrical housing, both sides of the grooved track are equipped
with guiding lips that protrude outwardly.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a chair accessory, and more
particularly to a type of spring-loaded leg base. The base is
placed where the chair frame touches the ground so that the chair
can rock properly.
Technical Background
[0002] A rocking chair is a common leisure facility that has a
rocking feature. However, it typically relies on arched bar
components to have contact with the ground to create rocking
movements. This causes the chair to remain in an unstable condition
all the time, limiting its use to only certain leisure occasions.
As such, manufacturers have improved on its defect, so that rocking
chairs can work in a stable mode and a rocking mode.
[0003] For example, a collapsible and portable rocking chair
disclosed in Published U.S. Patent Application Publication
U.S.20150282625A1. It includes an expandable and collapsible seat
frame. That seat frame consists of a pair of side frame components
and a connecting bar that connect the two side frames, and it is
supported by the backrest support component and the seat cushion
support bar that correspondingly support the soft backrest and seat
cushion.
[0004] A pair of side frame components, which include a front
support leg component, a rear support leg component, and a pivot
point component. The pivot point component is located at the
center-rear area of the side frame, using the ground surface for
support, so that the chair can move back and forth along the pivot
point.
[0005] At least one rocker mechanism is connected to each side
frame component to provide support for the aforementioned chair
during its back and forth movements.
[0006] The aforementioned rocker mechanism comprises a cylindrical
housing, a spring and a tubular component, which is essentially a
spring-loaded retractable bar or a standard air spring component.
The overall length is rather long. Therefore, the upper portion is
mounted on the joint between the rear leg component and the
backrest support, and the lower portion is mounted on the gliding
rail that touches the ground in order to perform rocking
movements.
[0007] The description also gives an example of an alternate rocker
mechanism design which comprises only a cylindrical housing with a
spring inside it. The rocking chair's front leg component and rear
leg component are connected to the spring directly, leveraging the
lower end of the leg components and the cylindrical housing to
create the retractable function. But this mechanism is difficult to
achieve in reality. When the chair leg components rock back and
forth along the pivot point in arc-shaped movements, the angle of
the leg components is still changing constantly. Also, because the
bottom part of the sleeve housing that touches the ground is
constrained by the ground, it is unable to follow the angle of the
leg components to make timely changes. This causes the lower end of
the leg components to be stuck inside the sleeve housing and unable
to function normally, so that either the rocking function is lost
or the rocking movement is not smooth.
[0008] The present invention aims to offer a type of spring-loaded
leg base that can be used with any type of chair to achieve the
rocking function.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] One goal of this invention is to provide an improved design
for a spring-loaded leg base. In one embodiment, it comprises a
type of spring that is placed inside a base chamber and is
connected to the chair frame and spring via the connecting
components that pass through the base grooved tracks.
[0010] The technical plan of this invention was completed in the
following manner:
[0011] A type of spring-loaded leg base with the following
characteristics:
[0012] The base having a hollow chamber inside. A grooved track is
installed on the wall of the chamber. The grooved track is parallel
to the central axis of the inner chamber.
[0013] A spring placed inside the chamber of the base.
[0014] A connecting component having a leg sleeve, a connecting
bar, and a spring cap. These three parts together form a one-piece
structure. The spring cap is placed inside the chamber of the base
and on top of the spring. The connecting bar passes through the
grooved track. The leg sleeve can be locked in position on the
chair frame to create flexible support.
[0015] The aforementioned base is a separate structure that
includes a base and a cylindrical housing. The perimeter of the
base bottom is molded with an enclosing sleeve. The center is
molded with a protruding console. The cylindrical housing is molded
with a chamber that has an opening and a grooved track. The lower
part of the spring cap is set on the protruding console to maintain
a centralized structure. After the connecting bar of the connecting
component is placed in the grooved track of the cylindrical
housing, the cylindrical housing is inverted and tied to the top of
the spring. The lower part of the cylindrical housing is mounted
inside the enclosing sleeve of the base bottom and secured by a
screw.
[0016] The aforementioned spring is preferably a conical spring.
The chamber of the cylindrical housing is in a corresponding
conical structure. There is a gap between the mid-upper part of the
chamber and the spring that allows spring movements.
[0017] The aforementioned spring cap of the connecting bar is
molded with an inverted concave cavity, which is used for buckling
onto the top of the spring.
[0018] On the aforementioned cylindrical housing, both sides of the
grooved track are equipped with guiding lips that protrude
outward.
[0019] This invention skillfully utilizes a grooved track design on
the base. By means of a connecting component that passes through
the grooved track, it connects the seat frame and the spring. The
gap between the base chamber and the connecting component's spring
and spring cap automatically adapts to the changing angles when the
chair is rocking. Specifically, the conical spring has the ability
to automatically position itself in the center and to guide itself.
This ability is appropriately utilized here.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the spring-loaded leg
base.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the spring-loaded leg
base.
[0022] FIG. 3 is a decomposition ("exploded") view of the
spring-loaded leg base.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of
the spring-loaded leg base.
[0024] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the chair frame.
[0025] FIG. 6 is a side-view of the chair frame.
[0026] Similar reference characters denote corresponding features
consistently throughout the attached drawings. Namely, in the
drawings the following reference numbers refer to the following
part: [0027] 1--Base [0028] 11--Base bottom [0029] 111--Enclosing
sleeve [0030] 112--Protruding console [0031] 12--Cylindrical
housing [0032] 121--Chamber [0033] 122--Grooved track [0034]
123--Guiding lips [0035] 2--Spring [0036] 3--Connecting component
[0037] 31--Leg sleeve [0038] 32--Connecting bar [0039] 33--Spring
cap [0040] 331--Inverted concave cavity [0041] 4--Screw [0042]
5--Chair frame [0043] 51--Horizontal connecting bar [0044]
52--Pivot point
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S)
[0045] Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a type of spring-loaded leg base is
shown including a base 1, a spring 2, and a connecting component
3.
[0046] Base 1 has a chamber with a hollow structure. Specifically,
base 1 is a separate structure which includes two parts: a base
bottom 11 and a cylindrical housing 12. The perimeter of the base
bottom 11 is molded with an enclosing sleeve 111. The center is
molded with a protruding console 112. The cylindrical housing 12 is
molded with a chamber 121 that has an opening and a grooved track
122. The grooved track 122 is parallel to the central axis of the
chamber 121. On the two sides of the grooved track 122, there are
guiding lips 123 that protrude outwardly. The lower part of the
cylindrical housing 12 is mounted inside the enclosing sleeve 111
of the base bottom 11 and secured by a screw 4 or other fastener.
Of course, an alternative option is for the base 11 to be on top,
the cylindrical housing 12 at the bottom, and the cylindrical
housing 12 to contact the ground. The top is covered with base 11.
However, this configuration makes it difficult to produce a conical
chamber.
[0047] The spring 2 is placed inside the chamber 121 of the base 1.
It can be compressed and expanded along the central axis of the
chamber.
[0048] The connecting component 3 has a leg sleeve 31, a connecting
bar 32, and a spring cap 33. These three parts together form a
one-piece structure. The spring cap 33 is placed inside the chamber
of the base 11 and on the top of the spring 2. The connecting bar
32 passes through the grooved track 122. The leg sleeve 31 can be
locked in position on the chair frame to create flexible support.
With this design, two leg sleeves 31 can be set at an approximately
horizontal position and an approximately vertical position, so that
they connect with the horizontal end or vertical end of the
component at the lower part of the chair frame.
[0049] During installation, the lower part of the spring 2 is set
on the protruding console 112 of the base to maintain a centralized
structure. After the connecting bar 32 of the connecting component
3 is placed in the grooved track 122 of the cylindrical housing,
the cylindrical housing 12 is inverted and tied to the top of the
spring 2. The lower part of the cylindrical housing 12 is mounted
inside the enclosing sleeve 111 of the base bottom and secured by a
screw 4. This forms the spring-loaded leg base unit.
[0050] Furthermore, the aforementioned spring 2 is a conical
spring. The chamber of the cylindrical housing 12 is in a
corresponding conical structure. Between the mid-upper part of the
chamber 121 and the spring 2, there is at least some gap that
allows swinging movements of the spring 2. In addition, the spring
cap 33 of the connecting bar is molded with an inverted concave
cavity 331. This inverted concave cavity 331 is used for buckling
onto the top of the spring 2, forming an installation structure.
The inherent tension of the spring 2 keeps the spring cap 33 in
contact with the top of the chamber 121 and bears the weight of the
chair. Another benefit of using a conical spring is that it can
create a nested form of compression so that the height after
compression can be further lowered, allowing a bigger rocking
magnitude under the same condition. The aforementioned spring cap
33 and the chamber 121 maintains a gap that allows reasonable
movements of the spring cap 33 without being locked in a fixed
position.
[0051] As shown in FIG. 4, the two leg sleeves 31 of the connecting
component in this illustration are in an approximately orthogonal
position. This is particularly suitable for mounting onto the
connecting bar on the rear side of the chair frame.
[0052] Referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, illustrations of the
spring-loaded leg base in use. The chair frame 5 has a connecting
bar 51 on its rear side. Each of the two spring-loaded leg bases is
locked in place on the connecting cross bar 51 by means of a leg
sleeve 31. By setting a pivot point 52 at the mid-front area of
both sides of the chair frame, the chair can rock back and forth
along that pivot point 52. When rocking backward, the spring inside
the spring-loaded leg base will be compressed, creating flexible
support. Combining the human center of gravity factor and the
rebounding force of the spring, the chair can be easily rocked
forward. With this, a regular chair may be used to perform rocking
function.
* * * * *