Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
` ~C)47~
HEADREST AND CABINET FOR RAII.WAY CAR COMPARTMENT
Background of the Invention
1. Field of the Invention
The field of invention pertains to railway
compartments having convertlble seat and sleeping arrangements.
More specifically, the invention relates to a headrest
compartment and cabinet which is movable from a headrest r
position to expose one side thereof which contains a sleeping
accessory.
2 Description of the Prior Art
The art of passenger car seat and sleeping
accommodations provided in compartments of passenger cars
includes numerous accessories which may serve dual functions.
Some of these are disclosed in U.S. paten-ts 24,563 June 2~,
1859, 25,570 September 27, 1859, 940,383 November 16, 1909 and
1,763,490 June 10, 1930. ~he present invention is an
improvement over the aforementioned patent structures.
Summary of the Invention
In its broader aspects the invention comprehends -~
a passenger compartment for a railway car including a side wall,
longitudinally spaced and laterally extending partition walls
and a divider wall extending longitudinally providing a door
opening into the compartment. A seating arrangement ls provided
in the compartment which includes a seat and seatback movable ~ ;
from a seating pasition to a horizontal bed position, the ~`
seatback in the ~eat position being normally upright against one
of the partition walls. A headrest and cabinet combination are ~ -
provided which include a box-like structure having one open
side facing the one of the partitions and a head resting covered
opposite side. Upper and lower bracket members are attached to
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the one of the partition walls and reinforce same. The box-like
structure of the headrest and cablnet combination has a lower
housing frame member. Hinge means connect the lower bracket
member with the lower housing frame member to thereby permit
5rotational movement of the headrest and cabinet combination from
a supported closed positlon on the lower bracket member with the
open side facing the one of the partitions whereby the headrest
and cabinet combination is immediately above the seatback and
provides a headrest, into an open downward dependiny position ~ -
lOwhereby the lower bracket and the lower housing frame member
provide shelf means for storage when the seat and seatback are
in the horizontal bed position. r
More particularly, a seating and sleeping com-
partment for railway passenger cars includes an upper berth mov-
able from a stored position to a horizontal sleeping position.The passenger compartment includes seats facing one
another both o~ which are convertible with their respective
seatbacks to an elongated horizontal sleeping position.
A headrest is provided on each partition wall above the
seatback in the seating position the headrest including
a flexible foamlike material supported in a hollow box-
like frame structure. The~frame structure is open on
one side which in the seat rest positlon of the structure
is Elush against the partition wall. When the horizontal
seats and the vertical seatbacks are positioned in a
reclined fashion for sleeping purposes the box-like
headrest structure~may be hingedly moved downwardly into
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positlon exposing the open side of the cabine-t or
structure. In this position the passenger has ready r
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access to pillow or slmllar accessory means which is
contained therein.
Brief Descr~ption of the Drawin~s
FIG. 1 is a perspective view Df the
interior one-half por~ion of a seating and sleeping com-
partment of a railway passenger car;
FIG. 2 is a view of the compartment shown
in FIG. l showing the same transformed to sleepin~ --
accommodation;
FIG. 3 is a sectional vLew taken substantially --
along the line 3-3 of FI(~
FIG~ 4 is a front. elevational view~of ~e
combination headres~ and:cabinet--with a por~ion broken~
away; and
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FIG. 5-is a cross sectional view ~aken
substantially along the line~5-5 of FIGr 4
,
- os~riuci~ ~f che ~rcfLrred Embodiment `.
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Referring par~icularly to FlGSo 1 and 2,
~a raiIway car~csmpartment or bedroom lO lncludes a car
20~~side::1l having.an:outside window 12, a roof structure --
13 and~ ~longitudinally spaced transversely extending parti-
tion walls 14. I~ FIGS. l and 2 one-half of the compart- . :
,
ment 10 is disclosed~ ~he other half being essentially
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identical having a similar seat back and headrest con-
st:r~ction. The compartment is mounted on the railway car
floor 15 and also supports an uprigh~ longitudinally
extending divider wall 16 laterally spaced with respect
to ~he wall 11. In conventîonal fashion the present com-
partments are provided on opposite sides of the passenger
car and are sufflciently spaced apart by the divlder
walls 16 to provide a sultable aisle generally designated
at 17. Each of the divider walls 16 also includes an
aisle window 18. -
An upper berth 19 is hlngedly connected as
indicated at 20 to ~he outer wall or side 11 and may be
suitably latched in a storage position-as shown in FIG.: .
-1 and which--m~y be released-to a horizontal or reclining
. position wherein the upper berth 19 is supported upon
brackets 21 provided on the par~ition walls 14.
The combination seat and lower berth arrange-
ment 22 includes a seat 23 slidingly supported for hori~on- :
tal movement upon tracks 24, one of said tracks belng
~0 positioned on the outer side wall 11 and the other being
suitably supported on a partitioned cabinet 26 adjacent
the divider walls 16. An armLest 25 may be connected to
the seat 23 to be moved with the seat to the position
indicated Ln FIG. 2. A seat back 27 is positioned in a
substantially upri~ht positîon as shown in FIG. 1 but
may be moved to convert the seat 23 with the back 27 as
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shown in ~IG, 2 to a horizontal bedlike posture.
A combination headrest and cabinet 28 is
supported on each of the partit~on walls 14 above ~he seat
back 27 as ~ndicated in FIG. 1. The combination 28 in-
- 5 cludes a boxlike frame structure 29 provided ~ith upper
hori~ontal frame members 30 and lower horizontal frame
members 310 The frame members 30 and 31 are connected to
vertical side frame members 32 and as bes~ shown in FIG.
2 the structure 29 is provîded with an open side generally
referred to at 33~ The other side of the structure 29 i~
suitably covered by means of a flexible panel 34 which may
consist-of-sponge rubber or the---like:suitably covered
wlth a fabric of relatively-1exible and-comfortable
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. material. The: ~lexlble panel 34 may be backed up by .
flexible strapping-35 to prov~de resiliency and-thus
comfort-when ~he unit is used- in the headrest position~
As best shown in FIG~ 2 when the open side is exposed
during the horizontal-position- of the-seats-and-seat~~~-
back, a pillow, bed roll or other accessory of similar
type deslgnated at 36 may be easily removed by the
passenger~ :
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Referring now part:Lcularly to FIG. 3 an
outwardly ~ pro.~ ecting horizontal hinge spacer bracket 37
: is rLgidly connected to ~he partitlon wall 14 and has
supported thereon at one end a piano hinge 38 which is -
also connected to the lower frame member 31 of the
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structure. Thus the structure 29 may be hinged about the
bracket 37 from the solid line position indicated in
FIG. 3 to the dotted line position wherein the open side
of the frame structure is accessible to the passenger. In
the closed full line position wherein the structure is
used as a headrest laterally spaced spring back latch
members 39 are connected to ~he partition wall by means of
screws 40. The latch members 39 include a spring loop 41. . -
Horizontally spaced latch brackets 42 are suitably connect-
ed by means of screws 43 within a recess 44 to the upper
hor:izontal frame member 30. In the position shown in
FIG~-5 the structure is held in a latched position up
against the wall 14 by means of the latch brackets 39
and 42. The spring loop 45 is în springlike engagement
with the loop 41-but upon outward and downward pressure
on the structure or cabinet the spring loops 41 and 45
are released to permit hinging movement of the structure
to the position shown in FIG. 3.
Operation
In F~G. 1 the compartment is set up for
seating with the upper berth 19 in a stored position.
The headrest combination 28 provides head rest comfort
for the passenger. When the seats 23 and seat backs 27
.
~ are moved to the horizontal position shown in FIG. 2
the headrest combination 28 may then be moved to the
position shown in FIG. 2 abou~ the hinges 38. Outward ~:
and downward pressure on the cabinet prov;des for dis-
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engagement of the spring loops 45 and 41 so ~hat the
cabinet now merely falls down to the dotted line position
shown in FIG. 3 whereupon the passenger may readily remove
the plllow 36 which ;s contained within the cabinet.
Very easily and very slmply the passenger can then return
the headrest to the position indicated in FIG. 1 where-
upon ~he spring loops 41 and 45 again mainta~n khe solid
line position of the cabinet as shown in FIG. 3.
The structural strength of the cabinet ~8
serve to strengthen the partition wall 14 so tha~ the
partitlon walls may be made of a relatively thin material
providing for a lighter weight passenger car. Further, -
the- support -brackets~21 for: the-upper berth 19 also
combine to rigidify the partition walls 14.- Thus-a com-
fortable headrest is provided which ~s readily movable
to a position for providing access to-accessories-con~ained
within the cabinet.
The foregoing d~scription and drawings
merely explain and illustrate the invention and the
invention is not limited thereto, except insofar as the
appendant claims are so limited~ as those skilled in the
art who have the disclosure before them will be able to
make modifieations and variations therein withou~ depart
ing from the s~eope of the lnvention.
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