Technical Field

The present disclosure generally relates to the furnishing field, and more specifically to the field of the so-called sofa-beds. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a frame structure for a sofa-bed and a sofa-bed that includes said frame structure.

Background Art

In general, by the term sofa-bed is meant in the context of the present disclosure any furnishing component which can be configured to allow a seat for a user, and after transformation, to allow it to become a bed for the same user. In other words, by sofa-bed is meant that furnishing component which through the subtraction, displacement or movement of some of its parts takes on a configuration that makes it suitable for use both as a seat, i.e., as a sofa, chair, ottoman, armchair or small armchair, and as an actual bed. By the term frame structure is meant the framework or framing that supports the set of padding and fabrics completing the furnishing component together with the frame structure.

Sofa-beds are, as is well known, very popular and widespread furnishing articles, due to their dual use that allows quickly converting a room or part thereof from a living area to a sleeping area, and vice versa. Thus, sofa-beds are particularly valuable for making the best use of available space, either for contingent hospitality needs or in situations where it is necessary to permanently provide a larger number of people with the opportunity to stay overnight at home. In the tourist-hotel sector, sofa-beds are also greatly exploited, to make hospitality spaces more versatile in relation to the number of occupants.

The technical solutions offered to make the conversion between sofa and bed configuration are varied, and among them very different in nature, complexity and effectiveness of the internal mechanism for this purpose. In general, a very strong need is for easy maneuverability of the bed net by a user.

Known bed nets are advantageous under several points of view, especially for simplicity and convenience for movement. However, it is known that the bed nets and their respective mechanisms affect the overall weight of the sofa-bed and make the displacement of the sofa-bed impractical for a user.

Description of the Invention

The aim of this disclosure is precisely to provide a sofa-bed which will avoid excessive weighting of the sofa-bed and to allow the sofa to be displaced easily. This is achieved through a frame structure and a sofa-bed as defined in the attached independent claims. Secondary features and special embodiments of the item covered by this disclosure are defined in the corresponding dependent claims.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The advantages, characteristics and methods of use of the item covered by this disclosure will be evident from the following detailed description of one of its embodiments, given for illustrative and non-limiting purposes.

Reference will be made to the figures in the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a top view of the frame structure according to the present disclosure in the night position, i.e., open;

Figure 2 shows a side view of the frame structure in Figure 1.

Embodiments of the Invention

With reference to the appended figures, one embodiment of a frame structure 10 for a sofa-bed according to the present disclosure is shown as mentioned in its essential framework components. Also omitted are any accessory structural components, such as, e.g., the padding and textile covering parts, which, according to what is well known to the expert in the field, and beyond what is in any case specified further below, will complement the article with different techniques and fashions based on the desired design.

The expression “frame structure” 10 means exactly the framework or framing which enables all the padding and textile covering parts to be supported. Thus, the frame structure 10 comprises, e.g., a supporting base or base 1 and a net 2 which serves, in the open position or sleeping position, as an area for lying down to sleep. The structure 10 may also comprise the armrest support for the sofa and at least one backrest. The frame structure 10 may comprise additional mechanical components of hinges, pivots, connections, levers, slides, springs and other components which are known in the convertible sofa-bed industry. All such components are known to a technician in the industry.

According to one innovative aspect of the present disclosure, the frame structure is made wholly, i.e., completely or partly, of plastic polymeric material, preferably of a thermoplastic polymeric material. In other words, the components of the frame structure, or some of them, are made of plastic polymeric material, preferably a thermoplastic polymeric material.

In the embodiment shown, the frame structure 10 comprises a base 1 made, e.g., by lattice assembly of side members, cross members and uprights to globally define an elongated parallelepiped shape according to a longitudinal direction X, which corresponds to the width direction of the piece of furniture seen in the sofa configuration. More precisely, the base 1 has two long sides that correspond to a front side and to a back side (of backrest) of the sofa-bed in the sofa configuration, respectively. More precisely, the base 1 also comprises two short sides facing each other and located between the ends of the front side and of the back side.

The base 1, preferably by means of feet, is intended for resting in a stable manner on a floor or ground in general, and preferably comprises at its longitudinal ends two sidewalls 11 which can be used as the core of any armrests and that rise from the two short sides, sideways, of the base 1, respectively.

The frame structure 1 also comprises a net 2. More specifically, the net 2 may comprise two or more sections 3, 4, 5, 6 pivoted to each other two by two. Specifically, a back section 3 is pivoted to a first intermediate section 4 and a second intermediate section 5 is pivoted between the first intermediate section 4 and a front section 6. The net 2 can be folded into the closed position, or day position, to be contained within the base 1. In the closed or folded position, the net 2 occupies the top of the base 1. The net 2 can also take on an open position, or night position, in which it overhangs from the base 1. In the open position all the sections 3, 4, 5, 6 of the net 2 preferably lie on one and the same supporting plane for a user. That is, the net 2 in the open position or night position defines the supporting plane for a user lying down.

Two mutually opposite faces of the net 2 are adapted to support a mattress cover for use as a bed and a padding cover for use as a sofa seat, respectively. Both covers are not shown. One face of the net 2 is adapted to be associated with a mattress, which is folded or extended according to the position taken on by the same net 2. On the other hand, the opposite face of the net 2 is adapted to be associated with a padding cover for use as a sofa seat.

The frame structure 10 may also comprise first levers 27 pivoted between one or more legs and an intermediate section 5.

The frame structure 10 may also comprise a support 29 adapted to hold a seat being mechanically connected to the front section 6 by means of second and third levers pivoted between the support 29 and the front section 6.

The second levers, the third levers, the support 29 and the front section 6 of the net 2 preferably form an articulated quadrilateral.

The back section 3 and the front section 6 may preferably be respectively provided with sidewalls 7, 8 to contain a mattress which, as mentioned above, may be arranged over the net 2 and folded into the latter. The base 1 can be partly closed by one or two lateral walls and/or by a back wall to conceal the net 2 folded into the base 1.

Preferably, the net 2 is mechanically connected to the base 1 by means of one or more first linkages adapted to lift the net 2 from the base 1 to switch from the day position, or open position, to the closed or night position, and vice versa.

As anticipated above, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, the whole frame structure 1 as defined above, or a part thereof, i.e., e.g., only the net 2, are made of plastic polymeric material, such as e.g. polyethylene or polypropylene.

Preferably, a thermoplastic polymeric material is provided and more specifically a recyclable thermoplastic polymeric material. Molding techniques for such materials may be prior arts for a technician in the branch of plastic polymeric materials.

Preferably, to allow for convenience in the manufacturing process, this is an injection moldable polymeric material, preferably co-injection, which allows for the production of bi-component items consisting of a central core (structure) and an outer cover (leather).

In this case, the core gives mechanical strength and resilience, while the outer cover gives resistance to scratching and tactile softness. The plastic material may be added with natural mineral fillers and an expanding agent that eliminates post-molding deformations and ensures a perfect match to the shape of the article.

In addition, the leather material is also added with anti-UV pigments to ensure color stability and a pleasant soft-touch effect.

The thermoplastic polymeric material can be selected to have adequate chemical resistance to detergents, good surface resistance to scratching and low overall weight, resistance to shocks and detergents and is fully recyclable at the end of its life.

What is relevant to the present disclosure is the fact that the plastic polymeric material is a material that allows the frame structure to be considerably lighter, and the sofa-bed to be moved more easily, especially if the sofa-bed is a momentary furnishing component for temporary use.

It will be easily appreciated that the frame structure for the sofa-bed according to the present disclosure fully achieves the goal of allowing for a lightening of the sofa-bed in its entirety, without affecting the possibility of converting the sofa-bed between the two standard configurations, that is, a sofa configuration, or seating configuration in general, and a bed configuration. The mechanisms that control the movements of the frame structure may also be constructively simple and functionally reliable even over time to be molded in plastic polymeric material.

It is noted that if some components of the frame structure are visible from the outside, being made of plastic material, they can be of such a color that they do not cause any aesthetic disturbance especially in the sofa configuration, leaving freedom to stylistic choices in sofa design.

It tends to be the case that the sofa-bed structure according to the present disclosure is, as mentioned above, suitable for making available to the user a structure that in the closed condition is a sofa, but it cannot be ruled out that any other furnishing component can be made, such as an armchair, a seat of the chaise longue type or other structure that is convertible into a bed. The bed can be a single- size bed, but it cannot be ruled out that the application of the system can be extended to larger bed sizes, such as e.g. the size of a square and a half, or even to a so-called “French” bed size.

The term “horizontal”, referring to the positions of use of the tilting plane, is evidently meant in the context of this disclosure when the sofa-bed is in its natural position of use, that is, supported by a horizontal floor or supporting base. The subject matter of this disclosure has been described so far with reference to one of its embodiments. It is to be understood that there may be other embodiments pertaining to the same inventive core, all of which fall within the scope of protection of the claims set forth below.