Four-Bar Seating Linkage With Controlled Recline Stop
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing seating arrangements lack a durable and cost-effective design that efficiently supports user comfort while reducing manufacturing and labor costs, with complex mechanisms and high part counts contributing to increased costs and complexity.
Innovation Solution
A seating arrangement featuring a four-bar linkage mechanism with flexibly resilient shell members and rigid support members, allowing the back and seat to move between upright and reclined positions without compromising structural integrity or user support, and incorporating a control mechanism to synchronize movements and limit recline angles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If complex mechanisms with high part counts are used, then user comfort and structural integrity are improved, but manufacturing costs and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into a single integrated mechanism. The four-bar linkage system merges seat support, backrest positioning, and recline control into one unified structure, eliminating the need for separate mechanisms for each function. This reduces part counts while maintaining structural integrity and user comfort.
Solution Approach 2:
The four-bar linkage mechanism serves multiple purposes simultaneously: it supports the seat, positions the backrest, controls recline angles, and provides structural stability. This multi-functionality reduces the overall number of components needed while maintaining reliable structural performance.
2Reliability
If complex mechanisms with high part counts are used, then user comfort and structural integrity are improved, but manufacturing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
By merging multiple functions into the four-bar linkage system, the patent reduces the total number of parts that need to be manufactured, assembled, and quality-checked. This simplification lowers manufacturing costs while maintaining the comfort and reliability benefits of a complex mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The mechanism is divided into modular components (first link member, second link member, third link member, fourth link member) that can be manufactured separately and assembled systematically. This segmentation allows for efficient manufacturing and assembly while maintaining the overall complexity needed for user comfort.
3Duration of action of stationary object
If flexibly resilient members are used, then durability and operational life are improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies flexibility selectively to specific link members (first, second, and third link members are flexibly resilient while the fourth is rigid). This local application of flexibility allows each component to be optimized for its specific function, reducing overall manufacturing precision requirements while extending operational life through controlled flexibility in critical areas.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design provides a durable, cost-effective, and visually appealing seating solution that maintains user comfort and reduces part counts and manufacturing costs, while ensuring long-term operational life and ease of assembly.
Implementation Method 1
a first link member, a second link member, a third link member and a fourth link member that cooperate to form a deformable, flexibly resilient four-bar linkage
Implementation Method 2
The first link member, the second link member, the third link member and the fourth link member cooperate to form a linkage arrangement
Data Source
AI summary
A seating arrangement includes a seat arrangement that includes first, second, third and fourth link members coupled to one another, a back arrangement movable between an upright position and a reclined position and coupled to the seat arrangement such that the first link member moves between forward and rearward positions as the back arrangement is moved between the upright and reclined positions, and a stop arrangement including a stop link coupled to at least one of the first link member, the third link and the fourth link member such that the stop link moves with the associated link member as the back assembly moves between the upright and reclined positions, wherein travel of the stop link is limited with respect to the second link member thereby limiting a rearward movement of the back arrangement toward the reclined position.