The present invention relates to a foldable chair, and more particularly, to a foldable chair of which durability is improved, and thus lifespan and performance is also enhanced.

Generally, a foldable chair is unfolded to support a load of a user, when the user sits thereon, and folded when the user stands up therefrom.

The foldable chair is installed at a gymnasium, a theater or the like which receives a large audience, such that a seat part of the foldable chair is automatically erected and folded when user stands up from the foldable chair.

Here, a principle that the seat part of the foldable chair is automatically erected is generally embodied by restoring force of a spring or a self-weight of a backrest part. In this case, a collision between members may occur due to fast rotation of the seat part.

In other words, when the user stands up from the foldable chair, the seat part is folded, and thus the seat part strongly collides with the backrest part.

At this time, impact noise may be generated by contact between the seat part and the backrest part, and contacting parts may be worn.

Meanwhile, in the foldable chair, since the seat part is repeatedly folded and unfolded, durability of the foldable chair is deteriorated by the collision between the seat part and the backrest part, and thus lifespan and performance thereof is remarkably reduced.

Therefore, it is necessary to improve the lifespan and performance of the foldable chair without any influence on the durability thereof, even though the seat part of the foldable chair is repeatedly folded and unfolded. DE9113551U1 discloses a foldable chair comprising a fixing stand, a seat part and a backrest part which are rotatably installed at the fixing stand. A damping stopper is provided to relieve a shock when the seat part is rotated.

KR101054636B1 discloses a seat buffering device for a viewing chair. The seat buffering device comprises a seat fixture, a hinge unit and a damper, whereby the seat fixture fixes a seat back and a seat between armrest side plates. The hinge unit folds or unfolds the seat.

JP2009017927A discloses a folding chair comprising a plunger-type damper.

An object of the present invention is to provide a foldable chair which absorbs a shock generated when a seat part is repeatedly folded and unfolded, and also minimizes contact between the seat part and a backrest part, thereby improving durability thereof.

According to the present invention, there is provided a foldable chair as described in claim 1. The damping part may reduce a rotational speed of the seat part or the backrest part, when being in contact with the backrest part.

The damping part includes a coupling part which is coupled to the fixing stand, and a relieving part which protrudes from the coupling part and is inserted into the coupling part by contact with the backrest part.

The fixing stand may have a coupling hole or coupling groove in which the damping part is inserted and coupled.

The backrest part may have a contacting part which protrudes to an outside and is in contact with the damping part when the seat part is rotated.

The foldable chair may further include a connecting part which is rotatably coupled with the backrest part and the fixing stand so as to connect the backrest part and the fixing stand.

The connecting part may have a stopper which is in contact with part of the fixing stand and fixes the seat part at a predetermined position, when the seat part is rotated.

The stopper may protrude from the connecting part to an outside thereof.

The fixing stand may have a through-portion passing through the fixing stand to an outside thereof, and the stopper may be in contact with one surface defining the through-portion when a load of a user is applied.

The foldable chair may further include a bracket which is coupled to the fixing stand and fixes the damping part to the fixing stand.

According to the foldable chair of the present invention, when the seat part is repeatedly folded and unfolded, it is possible to absorb the shock and also to reduce a rotational speed of the seat part or the backrest part.

Also, it is possible to minimize the contact between the seat part and the backrest part, and thus it is possible to improve the durability of the foldable chair and maximize the performance and lifespan thereof.

• FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a foldable chair in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 2 is a schematically enlarged perspective view of an A part of FIG. 1.
• FIG. 3 is a schematically exploded perspective view of the A part of FIG. 1.
• FIGS. 4 to 7 are schematic side view illustrating a use state of the foldable chair in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 8 is a schematically exploded perspective view illustrating a first modified embodiment of the A part of FIG. 1.
• FIG. 9 is a schematically exploded perspective view illustrating a second modified embodiment of the A part of FIG. 1.

According to the present invention, there is provided a foldable chair as described in claim 1.

Hereinafter, the exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

Further, in the drawings, the same components having the same functions are designated by the same reference numerals, even though they are depicted in different drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a foldable chair in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematically enlarged perspective view of an A part of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a schematically exploded perspective view of the A part of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a fixing stand 100 which is fixed to a fixing structure (not shown), a seat part 200 and a backrest part 300 which are installed to be rotatable with respect to the fixing stand 100, and a damping part 400 which relieves shock.

The fixing stand 100 is a component which fixes the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention to the fixing structure, and may include a base part 110, a supporting part 120, a coupling part 130 and a pillar part 140.

The base part 110 may be coupled to the fixing structure such as floors and walls and may be provided in at least one or more parts.

Here, a coupling manner between the base part 110 and the fixing structure may be at least one of a coupling manner using a screw and a bolt, a bonding manner and a welding manner, but is not particularly limited thereto.

Meanwhile, the supporting part 120 may be extended so as to correspond to the supporting part 110, and may define a height of the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention.

That is, the supporting part 120 may be installed at the base part 110 so as to adjust the height of the foldable chair 10, and all of well-known means for adjusting the height may be applied.

Meanwhile, the supporting part 120 may be connected through the coupling part 130, and the coupling part 130 may connect the support part 120 and the pillar part 140.

Here, the base part 110, the supporting part 120 and the coupling part 130 may be prepared separately and then coupled with each other, but are not limited thereto. The base part 110, the supporting part 120 and the coupling part 130 may be integrally defined.

Further, the base part 110, the supporting part 120 and the coupling part 130 are not limited to shapes illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 3, and may have various shapes according to intension of a person skilled in the art.

Meanwhile, each pillar part 140 may be coupled to both ends of the coupling part 130, and the pillar part 140 may provide a rotational center for rotation of the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300.

In other words, the pillar part 140 which is part of the fixing stand 100 may be adapted to enable the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 to be rotated with respect to a portion which is coupled with a connecting part 500 connecting the seating part 200 and backrest part 300 and the fixing stand 100.

Here, the seating part 200 may be dependently rotated with respect to the fixing stand 100 in a counterclockwise direction (an X direction, referring to FIG. 4) or a clockwise direction (a Y direction, referring to FIG. 4) according to whether to exist a load of a user.

That is, when the load of the user is applied to an upper surface of the seat part 200, the seat part 200 is nearly vertically unfolded with respect to the backrest part 300 and thus in an installation state, and when the load of the user is removed, the seat part 200 is automatically folded.

Meanwhile, when the load of the user is removed and thus the seat part 200 is folded, the backrest part 300 may be interlocked and rotated. The rotation of the backrest part 300 may be embodied by the connecting part 500 connecting the backrest part 300 and the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100.

That is, one end and the other end of the connecting part 500 are respectively connected with the backrest part 300 and the fixing stand 100, such that the backrest part 300 may be rotated.

Here, the connecting part 500 may include at least one stopper 510 (referring to FIGS. 4 to 7) protruding to an outside, and the stopper 510 is in contact with part of the fixing stand 100, when the seat part 200 is rotated, and enables the seat part 200 to be fixed at a predetermined position.

In other words, the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100 has a through-portion 145 passing through the pillar part 140 toward the outside, and the stopper 510 may be in contact with an upper surface defining the through-portion 145, when the load of the user is applied, and may fix the seat part 200 at the predetermined position.

Here, the through-portion 145 may be covered by a sealing part 600 in order to improve an external appearance, and the sealing part 600 may be made of various materials.

Meanwhile, the rotation of the backrest part 300 may be assisted by an armrest part 700 connecting the backrest part 300 and an end of the pillar part 140, and the armrest part 700 may be disposed to be nearly parallel with the seat part 200 and thus to enhance user's convenience, when the load of the user is applied.

The damping part 400 is a component which relieves the shock by contacting the backrest part 300, when the load of the user is removed and thus the seat part 200 is rotated. The damping part 400 may be installed at the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100.

Here, a coupling manner between the damping part 400 and the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100 may be embodied by inserting and coupling the damping part 400 into a coupling hole 147 defined in the pillar part 140.

However, the damping part 400 may be coupled to the coupling hole 147 in a fitting manner, or may be inserted into the coupling hole 147 and then bonded by an adhesive.

More specifically, the damping part 400 may include a coupling part 410 which is inserted and coupled into the coupling hole 147, and a relieving part 420 which protrudes from the coupling part 410 and is inserted into the coupling part 410 when being in contact with the backrest part 300.

Here, the contact between the backrest part 300 and the relieving part 420 may be embodied by a contacting part 310 provided at the backrest part 300, and the contacting part 310 may be disposed at a position corresponding to the damping part 400 when the backrest part 300 is folded.

That is, the contacting part 310 may protrude from an edge portion of the backrest part 300 to an outside thereof, and thus may be in contact with the relieving part 420 of the damping part 400 when the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 are rotated.

Meanwhile, the inserting of the relieving part 420 into the coupling part 410 by the contact with the contacting part 310, or protruding of the relieving part 420 to an outside of the coupling part 410, when the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 are rotated, may be embodied by an elastic member such as a spring, or a hydraulic manner.

However, an operation of the relieving part 420 is not limited to the elastic member such as the spring, or the hydraulic manner, and may be changed according to intension of a person skilled in the art.

Meanwhile, the relieving part 420 may relieve the shock from the backrest part 300, when being in contact with the backrest part 300, and may reduce a rotational speed of the backrest part 300 or the seat part 200. Thus, when the load of the user is removed and the seat part 200 is rotated, contact between the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 may be minimized.

Therefore, since the contact between the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 is previously prevented, it is possible to minimize wear or impact noise generated by the shock, and thus to improve durability of the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, thereby maximizing performance and lifespan thereof.

FIGS. 4 to 7 are schematic side view illustrating a use state of the foldable chair in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, in the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, when the load of the user is applied to an upper surface of the seat part 200, the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 may be disposed to be nearly vertical to each other.

At this time, fixing of the seat part 200 may be embodied by the contact between the stopper 510 provided at the connecting part 500 and the fixing stand 100. More specifically, the stopper 510 is in contact with the upper surface defining the through-portion 145 of the pillar part 140, and thus the seat part 200 may be stably fixed at the predetermined position.

Here, the relieving part 420 of the damping part 400 is maintained in a state of protruding to the outside of the coupling part 410.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, when the load of the user is removed from the seat part 200, the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 are automatically rotated and folded by the restoring force of the spring or the like.

Here, the restoring force which automatically restores the seat part 200 is not limited to the spring, and all of well-known means may be applied.

Meanwhile, when the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 are rotated, the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 are rotated at a high speed by the restoring force, and the contact between the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 may be occurred by inertial force due to the high rotational speed.

However, in the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, the contact between the seat part 200 and the backrest part 300 may be prevented by the damping part 400 and the contacting part 310 provided at the backrest part 300.

Referring to FIG. 7, when the load of the user is removed from the seat part 200, the backrest part 300 and the seat part 200 may be rotated and then folded to be parallel with each other.

In this case, the contacting part 310 provided with the backrest part 300 is in contact with the relieving part 420 of the damping part 400 before the rotation of the backrest part 300 is completed, and thus the rotational speed of the backrest part 300 is reduced.

That is, the shock may be relieved by the contact between the contacting part 310 and the relieving part 420 of the damping part 400, and the rotational speed of the backrest part 300 is slowly reduced after the contact.

Therefore, even when the backrest part 300 and the seat part 200 are rotated at the high speed, the final rotational speed is considerably reduced by the damping part 400, and thus the contact between the backrest part 300 and the seat part 200 is previously prevented.

Accordingly, it is possible to previously prevent the contact between the backrest part 300 and the seat part 200, thus to minimize the wear or the impact noise due to the shock, and eventually to improve the durability of the foldable chair 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, thereby maximizing the performance and lifespan thereof.

FIG. 8 is a schematically exploded perspective view illustrating a first modified embodiment of the A part of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 8, the damping part 400 may be inserted and coupled a coupling groove 149 defined in the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100.

More specifically, the coupling groove 149 may be defined to correspond to the coupling part 410 of the damping part 400, or the coupling part 410 of the damping part 400 may be coupled therein in a tight fit manner.

Further, the damping part 400 may be inserted into the coupling groove 149 and then bonded by an adhesive.

Meanwhile, a through-portion 143 defined in the fixing stand 100 may be covered by the sealing part 600 (referring to FIG. 1) in order to improve an external appearance, as described above,

FIG. 9 is a schematically exploded perspective view illustrating a second modified embodiment of the A part of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 9, the damping part 400 may be fixed to the fixing stand 100 by a bracket 800 coupled to the fixing stand 100.

More specifically, the bracket 800 may include a main body 810 having a hollow portion and a wing part 820 protruding to both sides of the main body 810. The wing part 820 may be fixed to an inner surface of the through-portion 141 defined in the pillar part 140 of the fixing stand 100 by a fastening member such as a screw.

Here, the wing part 820 may be defined to correspond to a length of the main body 810 or may be defined to be biased to one side of the main body 810.

Further, a plurality of wing parts 820 may be provided to be spaced apart from each other.

Meanwhile, the coupling part 410 of the damping part 400 may be inserted into the hollow portion of the main body 810, and thus the damping part 400 may be stably fixed to the fixing stand 100.