US2732157A - hamilton - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 24, 1956 F. HAMILTON CHAIR BASE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 12, 1953 I N V EN TOR. 57/21 f'fl/m/z ra/v,

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Jan. 24, 1956 E. F. HAMILTON 2,732,157

CHAIR BASE Filed May 12, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 11111:; i "I" .anu'lll INVENTOR.

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r 2,732,157 Patented Jan. 24, 1956 CHAIRBASE Earl F. Hamilton, Columbus, Ind. Application May 12, 1953, Serial No. 354,509

Claims. (Cl. 248-194) This invention relates to articles of furniture and more particularly to legs for furniture and to means for holding a caster pin therein and for providing a resilient bumper face therefor. The invention is especially adapted for incorporation in a swivel-chair base of common type having radiating legs formed of sheet-metal in an inverted U-shape cross-section.

It is an object of this invention to produce improved caster-holding meansespecially adapted for use in a chair leg of formed sheet-metal. Another object is to produce improved caster holding means of sturdy construction especially adapted for easy and economical assembly onto such a leg. A further object is to provide for such a leg a resilient bumper and cover face of economical construction and mode of attachment.

In carrying out my invention in a preferred embodiment, I form a chair-base as a sheet-metal stamping having radiating legs of inverted U-shape in cross-section. At the outer end of each leg I provide a caster-socket in the form of two sheet-metal stampings having opposed faces shaped to provide grooves which, when the two stampings are secured together as by rivets, define a vertical passage for receiving a caster pin. One of such stampings has upper and lower tongues for connection to the leg, the lower of such tongues being bent to provide an upwardly open hook-portion adapted to embrace the lower edge of a chair-leg wall, while the upper tongue extends along the inner face of the leg at the top thereof and is secured to the leg as by a rivet. Desirably, a trim-strip member covers and conceals the lower tongue at the outer end of the leg and continues inwardly along the top of the leg to conceal the lastmentioned rivet.

At the outer end of each leg, I provide a bumper of resilient rubber or like material, such bumper comprising a web extending across the open bottom ofthe leg beneath the caster-socket and an upwardly extending marginal flange which embraces the lower edge of the leg across the outer'end thereof and fora distance inwardly along the sides ofthe leg. The web is provided with an opening for passage of the caster pin, and the caster therefore holds the bumper in place.

Other objects and features of my invention will become apparent as the'following description is understood, reference being had to the following drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a side elevation of a chair embodying my invention; 7

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmental radial section at a leg-end, taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an end elevation of a leg-end, with portions thereof broken away on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a bottom view of a leg-end; and

Fig. 7 is an isometric view of the bumper.

The chair shown in the drawings comprises a seat 10 supported by a rod 14 extending from a base 18. Such a base comprises a series of radiating legs 20 all desirably formed as a single sheet-metal stamping, with each leg of inverted U-shape in cross-section and having substantially vertical side walls 24 the lower edges of which are turned inwardly to provide stiffening lips 26. The top wall 28 of each leg interconnects the side walls along their upper edges, such top wall 28 lying generally horizontally near the center of the base but curving gradually downward until at the outer leg-end it is substantially vertical.

To provide a caster-socket adjacent each outer leg-end, I stamp from heavy sheet-metal two pieces 30-32 formed to possess longitudinal grooves to define, when the two pieces are held juxtaposed by rivets 34, a vertical passage or opening adapted to receive the pin 36 and the pincarried expandible retaining ring 38 of a caster 40.

The outer stamping 32 is provided at its lower end with a tongue 44 which extends radially of the leg to end in an upwardly-open U-shaped hook portion 46 adapted to embrace the edge of the leg wall 28 at the end of the leg. Near the top of the caster-socket, one of the stamp ings 30-32, shown here as stamping 32, is provided with an upper tongue 52, which tongue is bent to extend inwardly along and conform to the lower surface of the leg-wall 28, to be secured thereto as by rivet 56. The transverse engagement of the tongue 52 and wall 28 in the region of the rivet connection 56, as well as the transverse engagement of hook 46 of lower tongue 44 with the wall 28, prevent any, rotation of the caster-holding assembly 30-32 about such connection 56; hence a single point connection, such as the single rivet 56 shown, is sufficient both to positively position vertically and hori zontally the upper end of the socket 30-32 and to oppose downward movement of such socket during caster-withdrawal.

If both tongues 44 and 52 extend from the same stamping 32, as shown, the other stamping 30 need be formed only to provide the pin-receiving groove above described, though desirably the lower end 60 thereof is flared to facilitate caster-pin entrance. To facilitate assembly, both ends of the stamping 30 may be provided with flared portions 60, as shown, thus making it a matter of indifference which end of the stamping is uppermost.

A bumper 64 of resilient rubber-like material is provided to snugly fit around and under the leg-end. The bumper shown is a one-piece molded element, and comprises an upstanding flange having side portions 66 adapted to extend along the leg-walls 24and an end portion 68 adapted to extend across the leg-wall 28, the flange 66-68 being integral with a horizontal web 70. As shown in Fig. 7, such bumper flange 66-68 desirably is formed to have a greater inward inclination than that which the leg-walls 24-28 may have, so that when the bumper 64 is in place the upper edges of the flange 66-68 will be resiliently stretched to assure snug contact of at least the upper edges thereof with the leg walls. The offset of the flange-portion 68 is to accommodate a trim-strip 72, yet to be described.

The web 70 of the bumper 64, when the bumper is installed, underlies the inturned lips 26 of the leg walls. Centrally of such bumper-web 70, it is provided with an opening 74 adapted to receive the caster pin 36 of the caster 40. Desirably, the inner wall 75 of such opening is so located with respect to the flange-portion 68 that it will be necessary to stretch the web between the opening 74 and the flange-portion 68 to bring the opening 74 sufiiciently into alignment with the socket 30-32 to permit insertion of the caster pin 36. This arrangement insures that with the caster in place the flange-portion 68 will be held tightly against the end of the leg.

The caster which I prefer to employ in practicing my invention is one of the anti-friction type embodying a stationary dish-like race 76 and a series of balls 77 interposed between such race and the upper wall of the conventional caster-yoke 78. The lips 26 on the chair-legs extend inwardly far enough to overlap the race '76, which constitutes a shoulder through which and the bumperweb 70 the weight of the chair and its occupant is trans mitted to the caster. The bumper-web, thus being clampedd firmly between the race 76 and the lips 26, the bumper is held securely in position. The antifriction bearing provided by the balls 77 reduces any tendency of the bumper to be displaced when the caster rotates about the axis of its pin 36. The socket 30-32 is located high enough in the leg to avoid intereference with the clamping of the bumper web between the race 76 and lips 26.

As shown, a longitudinal trim-strip 72 overlies the top leg wall 28. Such trim-strip desirably is connected inwardly of the leg-end as at 80 (see Fig. 2) and in its outward run therefrom covers the rivet 56 and the outer wall of the tongue-hook 46, to end underneath the chair leg-structure. The inner wall of the tongue-hook 46 conveniently provides ample means for connection of the trim-strip to the leg-bottom, as the trim-strip 72 may be secured thereto merely by hooking its end upwardly against such inner wall of the tongue-hook 46, as shown in Fig. 3. Position of the trim-strip hook so formed is aided somewhat by the bumper, which conceals the lower end of the trim-strip as well as the entire caster-socket.

Desirably, such trim-strip 72 is not flat in cross-section, but is of shallow inverted U-shape. adds to appearance and strength and accommodates the upstanding head of the rivet 56. To support the raised intermediate portion of the trim-strip so formed, the legwall 28 is desirably provided with one or more upwardly struck bosses 88. Such bosses protect against unsightly deformation of the trim-strip which may be occasioned by a kick or other force applied to the trim-strip, especially if such force be applied in the region of the protruding head of rivet 56.

Although I have shown and described a specific embodiment of my invention, I intend to cover all changes and modifications of the example herein chosen for purposes of disclosure, which do not constitute departures from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an article of furniture, a base having an outwardly Such construction 2. The invention of claim 1 with the addition that said end wall and the groove receiving it are curved in horizontal plan to locate the lower end of the socket transversely of the leg.

3. In an article of furniture, a base having an outwardly projecting, generally horizontal leg of sheet metal formed into an inverted U-shape in cross-section, a casterpin socket located within and secured to said leg near its outer end, said socket comprising a pair of opposed sheet-metal stampings formed to provide opposed grooves cooperating to define a passage adapted to receive a casterpin, and means for securing said stampings together, one of said stampings having at its lower end an outwardly projecting tongue having an upwardly opening hook-like end, said leg having an end wall the lower edge of which is received in said hook-like end, one of said stampings having at its upper end an ear which extends along and is secured to the upper wall of said leg.

4. In an article of furniture, a base having an outwardly projecting, generally horizontal leg of sheet metal formed into an inverted U-shape, a caster-pin socket located within and secured to said leg near its outer end, said socket having a vertical passage adapted to receive a caster-pin and being provided at its lower end with an outwardly projecting tongue formed at its outer end with an upwardly opening groove, said leg having an end wall the lower edge of which is received in said groove to locate the lower end of the socket in the leg, said socket having at its upper end an ear which extends along and is secured to the upper wall of said leg to locate the upper end of the socket in the leg, the lower edges of the side walls of the leg being bent inwardly adjacent said socket to provide coplanar lips the inner edges of which are spaced apart to permit passage of the casterpin into the socket, and an annular thrust-transmitting bearing member surrounding the caster-pin and underlying said lips to transmit vertical forces from the caster to the leg through said lips and independently of said socket.

projecting, generally horizontal leg of sheet metal formed into an inverted U-shape in cross-section, a caster-pin socket located within and secured to said leg near its outer end, said socket comprising a pair of opposed sheetmetal stampings formed to provide opposed grooves cooperating to define a passage adapted to receive a casterpin, one of said stampings having at its lower end an outwardly projecting tongue having a first portion which slopes upwardly, a second portion which extends downwardly, and a third portion which extends upwardly in opposed spaced relation to said second portion to define an upwardly opening groove the bottom of which lies approximately at the same level as the lower end of said passage, said leg having an integral end wall the lower edge of which is received in said last mentioned groove to locate the lower end of the socket longitudinally of the leg.

5. The invention of claim 4 with the addition of a bumper formed of resilient material, said bumper having a horizontal web interposed between said bearing member and said lips and a marginal flange extending upwardly for a distance along the side and end walls of the leg.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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