Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FOLDABLE CHAIR WITH STRAP
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[moil The present application claims priority of Chinese Utility Model
Application Number
CN 201420476731.9 filed August 22, 2014, the entire contents of which
applications are
incorporated herein for all purposes by this reference.
FIELD OF INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to a foldable chair, and in particular,
relates to a portable
foldable chair that is easy to carry.
DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
[0003] Folding furniture, especially folding chairs, which can be carried
outside and is
convenient in storage and transport, are widely popular with customers and
manufacturers.
Since the conventional folding chairs are of metal or plastic structures, all
the components are
pivoted by shafts and pins to compose connecting rods with a linkage action,
and all the
components may be completely collapsed into a bundle of rods and put into a
carry bag
whose opening end can be tied up for easy carrying, storage and transport. At
the same time,
for the convenience of carrying the packed folding chair around, people
usually equip the
carry bag with a backpack so that they can carry the bag on back to free their
both hands.
[0004] Since the carry bag for the folding chair is independent from the
folding chair, after
unpacking the folding chair, the carry bag is not in use or no longer needed,
and needs to be
kept somewhere. When people want to carry the folding chair outside or store
and transport
the folding chair, they need to find the carry bag, which is inconvenient in
use and the carry
bag may be lost.
[0005] The Chinese Utility Model No. ZL200820119744.5 has disclosed a foldable
leisure
chair, which includes a foldaway chair body and a foldaway soft belt. The
chair body
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includes a support frame, seat cloth, and backrest cloth, wherein the seat
cloth and the
backrest cloth are connected on the support frame. One end of the foldaway
soft belt is
connected to the front part of the left side of the seat cloth, and the other
end bypasses the
backrest and is connected to the front part of the right side of the seat
cloth; when the
foldaway soft belt is lifted, acting force is generated to fold the chair body
and the soft belt
can function as braces. However, the foldable soft belt of the foldable
leisure chair is
arranged in parallel to the seat of the chair, and vertical to the length
direction of the bundle
of rods after the folding chair is folded, and when carrying the bundle of
rods on back, the
bundle of rods stay horizontally, which is inconvenient to carry on back. In
addition, after the
folding chair is folded but have not been carried on back, the folding chair
may easily open
spontaneously, which is also inconvenient in use.
100061 Given the above background, there is a need in the art for an improved
foldable chair
that is easy to carry and use.
100071 The information disclosed in this Background section is only for
enhancement of
understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be
taken as an
acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the
prior art already
known to a person skilled in the art.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
mom The present invention is directed to a portable and foldable chair that
has a simple
structure and is easy to carry.
[0009] In various aspects, a portable foldable chair includes a chair frame, a
chair fabric
attached to the chair frame and a strap. In some aspects, the chair frame
include: a plurality of
supporting rods including two front rods and two back-rest rods; a plurality
of bases provided
at bottoms of the two front rods and the two back-rest rods; a plurality of
pivoting seats
provided on the two front rods and the two back-rest rods; and a plurality of
pairs of crossing
rods disposed between two adjacent supporting rods, wherein a pair of crossing
rods include
two crossing rods pivotally coupled to each other, and each crossing rod in
the pair of
crossing rods has a lower end pivoted to the base provided at the bottom of
one supporting
rod, and an upper end pivoted to the pivoting seat provided on the adjacent
supporting rod.
The strap has one end fixedly attached to the base of one back-rest rod and
the other end
fixedly attached to the chair fabric in proximity to a top of the other back-
rest rod.
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10010] With the two ends of the strap respectively fixed to the bottom and the
top of the two
back-rest rods, the length direction of the strap coincides with the length
direction of the
bundle of rods when the foldable chair is folded. Consequently, the present
invention
provides a simple structure and is convenient to carry on back.
100111 In an aspect, the strap includes two separable portions detachably
connected to each
other by a release buckle. Such a configuration allows the strap to be
separated into two
portions for the convenience of placing the strap after the foldable chair is
unfolded, and
allows the strap to be buckled up into one piece when in use or desired.
Moreover, placing
the foldable chair on back does not require lifting the foldable chair over
the head and then
loading it on the shoulder. Accordingly, the present invention is very
convenient to use.
100121 In some aspects, the portable foldable chair further includes: two
tightening belts,
each with one end fixedly attached to the chair fabric in proximity to the top
of one of the two
back-rest rods respectively, and a connecting component provided on the two
tightening belts
to connect the two tightening belts. Such a configuration prevents the
foldable chair, after
folded, from inadvertent unfolding.
100131 In one aspect, the connecting component is a release buckle or a
velcroe. In another
aspect, the connecting component comprises a button formed on one tightening
belt and a
hole, matching with the button, formed on the other tightening belt.
100141 The methods and apparatuses of the present invention have other
features and
advantages which will be apparent from or are set forth in more detail in the
accompanying
drawings, which are incorporated herein, and the following Detailed
Description, which
together serve to explain certain principles of the present invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[00151 FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an exemplary
portable foldable
chair of the present invention; and
100161 FIG. 2 is a schematic front view illustrating an exemplary portable
foldable chair of
the present invention.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the
present
invention(s), examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings
and described
below. While the invention(s) will be described in conjunction with exemplary
embodiments, it will be understood that present description is not intended to
limit the
invention(s) to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the invention(s)
is/are
intended to cover not only the exemplary embodiments, but also various
alternatives,
modifications, equivalents and other embodiments, which may be included within
the spirit
and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
[0018] With reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the portable foldable chair of the
present
invention includes a chair frame 1 and a chair fabric 2 attached to the chair
frame 1. In some
embodiments, the chair fabric 2 is the same as or similar to those in related
art. The chair
fabric 2 can be made of any suitable material including cloth, textile, and
the like. In an
embodiment, the chair fabric 2 is made of a one-piece chair fabric. In another
embodiment,
the chair fabric 2 is made of a number of pieces, such as a seat fabric and a
back-rest fabric,
separated or combined (e.g., stitched) together.
[0019] The chair frame 1 includes a plurality of supporting rods and a
plurality of pairs of
crossing rods. In some embodiments, the chair frame 1 includes four supporting
rods
consisting of two front rods 11 and two back-rest rods 12. A pair of crossing
rods includes
two crossing rods 13, which are crossed and pivotally coupled (e.g., hinged)
to each other.
One pair of crossing rods is arranged between two neighboring supporting rods.
For
example, in the embodiment as illustrated in FIG. 1, two crossing rods 13 (one
pair) are
arranged between the two front rods 11, between the two back-rest rods 12, and
between each
front rod 11 and its adjacent back-rest rod 12.
[0020] In some embodiments, a lower end of each crossing rod 13 is
respectively pivoted to a
base 14 provided at the bottom of the front rods 11 or the back-rest rods 12.
An upper end of
each crossing rod 13 is respectively pivoted to a pivoting seat 15 provided on
the front rods
11 or the back-rest rods 12. As shown, in some embodiments, two crossing rods
13 are
pivoted to each base 14 and each pivoting seat 15.
[00211 In some embodiments, the portable foldable chair of the present
invention further
includes a strap 3, the length of which is adjustable and can be determined
according to the
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practical requirements and/or personal preference. In some embodiments, the
strap 3 is a
belt, a strip, a string, a rope, a chord or the like. In some embodiments, the
strap 3 has one
end fixedly attached to the base 14 of one back-rest rod 12 and the other end
fixedly attached
to the chair fabric 2 in proximity to the top of the other back-rest rod 12.
It should be noted
that the purpose of fixedly attaching the strap 3 to the chair fabric 2 is to
facilitate the
installation of the chair fabric 2 on the back-rest rod 12. Without
interfering the installation of
the chair fabric 2, in some embodiments, the strap 3 may be fixedly attached
to the top of the
back-rest rod 12 or to the rod body at a position in proximity to the top of
the back-rest rod
12.
100221 In some embodiments, the strap 3 is provided with a fastener such as a
release buckle
31 that enables the strap 3 to be separated into two portions. The release
buckle 31 may be a
common release buckle disclosed in related art, such as those attached to the
strap of an
ordinary school bag, and thus the detailed description of which is omitted.
The installation
position of the release buckle 31 may be determined or adjusted according to
the practical
requirements or personal preference.
100231 In some embodiments, the portable foldable chair of the present
invention further
includes a tightening belt 4. In one embodiment, the tightening belt 4 has an
end fixedly
attached to the chair fabric 2 in proximity to the top of the two back-rest
rods 12 respectively.
As used herein, the term "belt" is interchangeable with strap, string or the
like. In another
embodiments, the tightening belt 4 has an end fixedly attached to the back-
rest rod 12. In
some embodiments, the portable foldable chair of the present invention
includes two or more
tightening belts 4 connected by a connecting component 41 provided on the
tightening belts
4. The length of the tightening belts 4 can be determined according to the
practical
requirements or personal preference. In some embodiments, the length of the
tightening belts
4 is set such that an effective length of the two tightening belts 4 after
connection is the same
or substantially the same as the distance between the two back-rest rods 12
after the foldable
chair is folded.
100241 In some embodiments, the connecting component 41 of the present
invention is a
fastener such as a loop, a hook, a velcro , or a release buckle similar to the
release buckle 31
of the strap 3. In an embodiment, the connecting component 41 is of a button
structure, which
includes a button arranged on one tightening belt 4 and a hole, matching with
the button,
arranged on the other tightening belt 4.
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[0025] In use, the foldable chair is folded into a bundle of rods, then the
two tightening belts
are connected by the connecting component 41 to prevent the foldable chair
from inadvertent
unfolding. Preferably, the release buckle 31 of the strap 3 is buckled up, and
the foldable
chair is ready for carrying on back, which is convenient in use.
[0026] For convenience in explanation and accurate definition in the appended
claims, the
terms "upper" or "lower", "top" and "bottom", and etc. are used to describe
features of the
exemplary embodiments with reference to the positions of such features as
displayed in the
figures.
[0027] The foregoing descriptions of specific exemplary embodiments of the
present
invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description.
They are not
intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms
disclosed, and
obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above
teachings.
The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain
certain principles
of the invention and their practical application, to thereby enable others
skilled in the art to
make and utilize various exemplary embodiments of the present invention, as
well as various
alternatives and modifications thereof (e.g., arranging the tightening belt on
the front rods
11). It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the Claims
appended hereto
and their equivalents.
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