Motorized reclining chair

Abstract

There is disclosed a motorized reclining chair. All motions are controlled by a single reversible motor, the cost of the motor being offset by the relatively low cost of the linkages which are employed. The chair offers numerous advantages, including: (1) leg-rest motion takes place without set/back motion until the leg rest is raised to an intermediate position, following which the leg rest and seat move together, (2) three-way operation, in which the back tilts relative to the seat, can be provided at minimum additional cost, simply by pivoting the back to the seat and adding a single link on each side of the chair, and (3) in moving to the fully reclined position, the entire seat rises, with the front edge rising more than the rear edge, as contrasted with prior art reclining chairs in which the rear of the seat drops down. The motive force is provided by an upwardly thrusting shaft controlled by the motor. Instead of utilizing the motor to assist motion of a prior art type mechanism, the mechanism itself operates in a totally different way.