Heated bench

Abstract

 A heated bench, particularly for use in stadiums and the like comprising a sitting plane (2), a back (3), a roof and a heat exchanger (25, 27) adapted to heat at least the front region below the sitting plane (2) and therefore the user's legs during cold weather. The heat exchanger has a fan (25) which can be used to provide cool air during hot weather.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a heated bench particularly for outdoor use in stadiums, sports fields and the like for players or athletes acting as reserve or in any case waiting to take part in the game or sports event and/or for the coach, the doctor etc.

[0002] An aim of the present invention is to provide a heated bench capable of providing great comfort during the cold season, and particularly to ensure that the athletes are kept in optimum condition so that they can go and take part in a sports event at any time without the need for a preliminary "warm-up" step.

[0003] Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to allow said heated bench to be manufactured at competitive costs, to be highly reliable in operation and to be easy and quick to install with no special provisions or foundation work.

[0004] This aim, this object and others which will become apparent hereinafter are achieved by a heated bench according to the invention, which comprises a supporting frame, a seating plane, a back, a roof and heating means adapted to heat at least the front region below the sitting plane at the user's legs.

[0005] The heating means advantageously also heat the sitting plane and the back of the bench. If required, a bench according to the invention can include ventilation means adapted to create a circulation of conditioned air through and around the bench.

[0006] The invention is further described hereafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

figure 1 is a perspective view with sectioned or removed portions of a first embodiment of a stadium bench according to the invention;

figure 2 is a perspective view, similar to the one of figure 1, illustrating another embodiment wherein the heating means provide a flow of warm air against the user's legs;

figure 3 is a schematic transverse sectional view of the bench of figure 2;

figure 4 is a schematic transverse sectional view, similar to figure 3, according to another constructive embodiment;

figure 5 is a schematic transverse sectional view, similar to figures 3 and 4, illustrating a further constructive embodiment; and

figure 6 is a partial perspective view of a detail of the roof of the bench.

[0007] In the various figures of the accompanying drawings, identical or similar parts and components have been indicated by the same reference numerals.

[0008] A heated bench according to the invention comprises a base 1, a sitting plane 2, a back 3 and a roof 4 which extends upwards and protrudes outwards starting from the rear of the base 1 or from the back 2.

[0009] Initially with specific reference to the bench of figure 1, it can be seen that the base, the sitting plane and the back constitute a monolithic element 5 and are obtained enbloc in plastic material, for example by molding or by another suitable process. The body 5 includes a plurality of ducts 6, which extend for example longitudinally with respect to said body, which lead to two terminal collectors 7 (only one of which is illustrated in the figures); one of said collectors is connected to a delivery duct 8 for a warm fluid, for example water or steam, and the other is connected to a return and discharge duct 9 for said fluid. The ducts 8 and 9 can in turn be connected to a heating system or to a source of warm fluid (not illustrated) possibly already installed in a stadium or in another kind of sports field.

[0010] Conveniently armored electric resistors can naturally be used instead of the ducts 6 to achieve the same result.

[0011] Below the base 1 there are ground resting crosspieces 10, made for example of metal, which are part of the supporting frame of the bench and initially rise upwards on the rear of the bench and then extend protrudingly above the sitting plane and possibly above the base 1 to act as ribs or supporting uprights 12 for the roof 4. The latter naturally acts, at the vertical portion of the ribs, as a protective wall and possibly as a back cover, while it may have a frontpiece or fascia 13 at its free protruding end which can act as shield and protection for lighting sources (neon tubes, lamps and the like).

[0012] With a bench thus structured it is possible to heat the entire body 5, i.e. the base 1, the sitting plane 2 and the back 3.

[0013] Figure 2 illustrates a bench in which the sitting plane 2 is enbloc with the back (but not with the base) to constitute a single laminar element 14 of plastic material or of sheet metal. The element 14 is supported by a plurality of crosspieces 15 of the frame, which protrude for example from the ribs or uprights 12. More precisely, as can be seen more clearly in figure 3, the element 14 rests on, and is fixed to, for example a plurality of spacers 16 between its own sitting plane and the crosspieces 15 and to spacers 17 between the back and the ribs 12. At the top of the back, the element 14 is adjacent in an air-tight manner to the lower vertical portion of the roof, while it overlaps and partially protrudingly encircles the front end of the crosspieces 15 at the lower free edge of the sitting plane so as to define a sort of hood.

[0014] The crosspieces 15 are in turn covered and support one or more panels, made for example of thermally insulating material or sheet metal 19, delimiting an interspace 20 with the sitting plane 2. Between the back 3 and the roof 4, the panel 19 has a bulkhead 21 which is spaced both from the back 3 and from the roof 4 and is lower than the top 18 of the back and delimits, together with said back, an interspace 23 connected to the interspace 20; the bulkhead 21 furthermore delimits, together with the roof, an interspace 24 which is downwardly open and connected to the interspace 23 and to the space or chamber 24 below the crosspieces 15.

[0015] The chamber 24 accommodates one or more blowers or electric fans 25; their suction intake or intakes draw from the chamber 24 and their delivery leads to a respective shell 26, in which one or more heat exchangers 27 are arranged; the air forced by the blower or blowers is heated through said heat exchanger as an effect of the heat conveyed by warm water fed through a duct 28 to the battery 27, and the cooled water exiting from the heat exchanger is discharged therefrom through a duct 29. On the front of the bench, the shell 26 has a system of preferably orientatable fins 30 through which the warm air exiting from the heat exchanger 27 can be partly directed frontally onto the user's legs and partly sent below the sitting plane within the interspaces 20 and 23 to return to the chamber 24 along the rear interspace 22, as indicated by the arrows. During its path along the interspaces 20 and 23, the air heats both the sitting plane and the back from within and is then sucked in again by the impeller 25 and returned to the cycle.

[0016] The shell 26 advantageously also has an upper lateral outlet 31 which can preferably be controlled and cutoff by a butterfly valve 32 which communicates, through a respective duct 34, with one or more ribs or uprights 12 which are in this case hollow or made of tubular material to convey warm air towards the top of the roof 4 and deliver it downwards through distribution ports 35 (figure 2).

[0017] The same configuration is illustrated in the embodiment of figure 4, wherein one or more heat exchangers with electric resistors 36 are provided instead of the water-fed heat exchanger 27. The sitting plane 2 and the back 3 are furthermore affected by a plurality of longitudinal spaced strips 37 capable of ensuring greater comfort for the user.

[0018] Closure sides 38 with external air intakes (figure 2) can be provided at the sides of the bench. The sides 38 are advantageously removable to access the chamber 24 for inspection or maintenance purposes.

[0019] In the embodiment illustrated in figure 5, the chamber 24 contains one or more warm-air generators 40 with a burner. The warm air exits from the fins 30 and is partially directed onto the legs of the user and partially sent to the interspaces 20 and 23.

[0020] Figure 6 illustrates a fascia 13 orientatably mounted at the end of the roof 4 so as to control and adjust the circulation of warm air below the roof according to the requirements of the users.

[0021] The above described heating bench, when used in stadiums or other sports fields, is capable in particular, even in the cold season, of keeping warm the legs of the athletes sitting thereon while waiting to replace other players, so that they are ready to start playing even without a preliminary gymnastics "warm-up" phase.

[0022] The invention as described above is susceptible to numerous modifications and variations within the protective scope defined by the claims.

[0023] Thus, for example, the electric fan 25 may have multiple speeds, and in any case the intensity of the flow of warm air may be adjusted according to the requirements; during the warm season, it can furthermore operate as simple conditioning fan to keep the occupants of the bench cool.

[0024] The materials and the dimensions may be various according to the requirements.

[0025] Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the scope of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.

Claims

1. Heated bench, comprising a supporting frame, a base, a sitting plane, a back, a roof and heating means adapted to heat at least the front region, below the sitting plane, at the legs of the user or occupant.

2. Bench according to claim 1, characterized in that the sitting plane and the back form a monolithic body.

3. Bench according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the base, the sitting plane and the back include the heating means.

4. Bench according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that said heating means comprise a plurality of embedded tubes for the flow of a warm fluid therein.

5. Bench according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that said heating means comprise a plurality of embedded electric resistors.

6. Bench according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said sitting plane and said back have a box-like structure which internally defines at least one path for the flow of heated air fed by the heating means.

7. Bench according to claim 6, characterized in that said box-like structure comprises an internal set of panels between the supporting frame, the sitting plane and the back, delimiting an interspace for the inflow of the warm air and extends to rearwardly affect at least the sitting plane.

8. Bench according to claim 7, characterized in that said internal set of panels furthermore delimits an output passage for warm fluid extending from the top of the back towards the heating means, so as to create a cyclic path for the warm air between the heating means and the sitting plane and/or the back to be heated.

9. Bench according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that said heating means comprise at least one heater unit placed below the sitting plane and intended to produce warm air and direct it partially to the outer front region below the sitting plane and partially in said path or paths for the convector fluid.

10. Bench according to claim 9, characterized in that said heater unit comprises at least one heat exchanger with warm-fluid tubes or with electric resistors and at least one electric fan adapted to force air to be heated through the heat exchanger.

11. Bench according to claim 9, characterized in that said heater unit comprises a burner-powered warm-air generator.

12. Bench according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a protection roof comprising a plurality of ducts for the passage of a warm fluid therein.

13. Bench according to claim 12, characterized in that said ducts in the roof are connected to said thermal unit to receive and convey warm air to be delivered downwards from above.

14. Bench according to claim 13, characterized in that the roof has an orientatable terminal frontpiece for adjusting the flow of warm air dispensed through the roof.

Drawing