Control for seating unit with back stop

• US 7,568,763 B2
• Filed: 12/02/2005
• Issued: 08/04/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Inventors: Bodnar, David A., Heidmann, Kurt R., Peterson, Gordon J., Battey, Robert J., Bedford, Adam C., Karsten, Gary Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): WHITE, RODNEY BARNETT
• Application Number:
  US11/293,553
• Publication Number:
  US 20060071522A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,341 Days
• Field of Search: 297/285, 297/286, 297/300.6, 297/300.7, 297/300.8, 297/301.5, 297/301.6, 297/301.7, 297/300.1, 297/300.2, 297/300.5, 297/342, 297/301.3
• US Class Current: 297/300.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 1/023 the parts being horizontally-adjustable seats ; Expandable seats or the like, e.g. seats with horizontally adjustable parts
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 1/024 the parts, being the back-rest, or the back-rest and seat unit, having adjustable and lockable inclination
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 1/03255 with a central column, e.g. rocking office chairs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 1/03266 with adjustable elasticity
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 1/03272 with coil springs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 5/06 Special adaptation of seat upholstery or fabric for attachment to tubular chairs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/025 Springs not otherwise provided for in A47C7/22 - A47C7/35
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/38 for the head adjustable coupled to reclining or easy chairs A47C1/036
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/46 with special, e.g. adjustable , lumbar region support profile; "Ackerblom" profile chairs

Abstract

A seating unit includes a base with a control housing, a back supported on the base for reclining movement, and a seat supported at least partially by a pivoting link on the base for synchronous movement with the back upon recline of the back. A back stop is operably mounted on a pair of parallel guide rods that extend transversely across the control housing for selective movement to a plurality of different positions where the back stop engages the link to limit movement of the seat and hence limit recline of the back to a plurality of selectable recline positions corresponding to the plurality of different positions.

Claims

1. A seating unit comprising:

a base with a control housing and a guide extending across the control housing;

a seat supported on the base;

a back supported on the base for reclining movement; and

a back stop slidably mounted on the guide for selective translational movement to a plurality of different positions where the back stop limits recline of at least the back to a plurality of selectable recline positions corresponding to the plurality of different positions.

2. The seating unit defined in claim 1, including a cable connected to the back stop for sliding the back stop along the guide.

3. The seating unit defined in claim 1, wherein the guide includes at least one rod.

4. The seating unit defined in claim 3, wherein the at least one rod includes a pair of parallel rods.

5. The seating unit defined in claim 1, including a movable component associated with one of the back and seat, and wherein the back stop includes at least two abutment surfaces configured to selectively abut the movable component to thus limit recline of the seat and back.

6. The seating unit defined in claim 1, wherein the seat is operably supported on the back for synchronous movement upon recline of the back.

7. The seating unit defined in claim 1, including a link pivotally connected to the base and also pivotally connected to the seat at a different location, the back stop being configured to abut the link to limit movement of the seat and the back.

8. The seating unit defined in claim 1, wherein the base includes at least one flexible support with ends extending laterally of the control housing, the ends being configured to flexibly move in forward and rearward directions and supporting one of the seat and back.

9. The seating unit defined in claim 1, wherein the back includes a back frame with spaced-apart side frame members and having resilient support wires extending therebetween.

10. A seating unit comprising:

a base with a control housing;

a back supported on the base for reclining movement;

a seat connected by a pivoting link to the base for synchronous movement with the back upon recline of the back; and

a back stop operably mounted on the control housing for selective movement to a plurality of different positions where the back stop engages the link to limit movement of the seat and hence limit recline of the back to a plurality of selectable recline positions corresponding to the plurality of different positions.

11. The seating unit defined in claim 10, including a cable connected to the back stop for sliding the back stop along the guide.

12. The seating unit defined in claim 10, including a guide mounted in the control housing for slidably supporting the back stop.

13. The seating unit defined in claim 12, wherein the guide includes at least one rod extending across the control housing at a location above a bottom of the control housing.

14. The seating unit defined in claim 10, wherein the back stop includes at least two abutment surfaces configured to selectively abut the link to thus limit recline of the seat and the back.

15. The seating unit defined in claim 10, wherein the link is pivotally connected to the base at one end and also pivotally connected to the seat at another end.

16. The seating unit defined in claim 10, wherein the base includes at least one flexible support with ends extending laterally of the control housing, the ends being configured to flexibly move in forward and rearward directions and supporting one of the seat and back.

17. A seating unit comprising:

a base with a control housing and at least one flexible support extending laterally on each side of the housing, the at least one flexible support including ends configured to flexibly move in forward and rearward directions;

a back and a seat supported on the base for synchronous movement upon recline of the back, at least one of the back and seat being supported by the ends of the at least one flexible support; and

a back stop operably mounted on the control housing for selective movement to a plurality of different positions where the back stop limits movement of the seat and hence limits recline of the back to a plurality of selectable recline positions corresponding to the plurality of different positions.

18. The seating unit defined in claim 17, including a cable connected to the back stop for sliding the back stop along the guide.

19. The seating unit defined in claim 17, including a guide mounted in the control housing for slidably supporting the back stop.

20. The seating unit defined in claim 19, wherein the guide includes at least one rod extending across the control housing at a location above a bottom of the control housing.

21. The seating unit defined in claim 17, including a link pivoted at one end to the base and to another end to the seat, and wherein the back stop engages the link to limit movement of the seat and hence the back.

22. In a seating unit having a control housing and a back supported on the control housing for reclining movement along a first direction, an improvement comprising:

at least one laterally-extending guide supported between first and second side walls of the control housing and a back stop slidably mounted on the guide for lateral translational movement between different back stopping; and

a cable connected to the back stop for sliding the back stop along the guide.

23. The seating unit defined in claim 22, wherein the guide includes at least one rod.

24. The seating unit defined in claim 23, wherein the at least one rod includes a pair of parallel rods.

25. The seating unit defined in claim 22, including a seat and a movable link associated with one of the back and the seat, the link moving during recline of the back, and wherein the back stop includes at least two abutment surfaces configured to selectively abut the movable link to thus limit recline of the seat and back.

26. The seating unit defined in claim 25, wherein the seat is operably supported on the back for synchronous movement upon recline of the back.