BED FRAME
United States Patent 3713181
A nonadjustable Hollywood bed frame in which the frame elements are formed from angle iron. The side rails and cross rails are so interconnected that the frame may be assembled and disassembled without the use of any screws, nuts, or bolts. To that end the cross rails are detachably connected to the side rails by either a bayonet and hook type connector or a lockable headed rivet and keyway type connector. A headboard may be connected to the end of the side rails in any of three different modes by a novel hinge connection arrangement between the headboard and the side rails.
US Patent References:
Double-deck bunk
Phipps - September 1921 - 1389697
Bed frame
Silverman et al. - October 1961 - 3004265
Bed-frame construction
Hering - January 1923 - 1442779
Collapsible bed frame construction
Goldberg - May 1961 - 2985894
Hollywood bed frame
Hooker - January 1966 - 3230555
Double-deck bunk
Phipps - September 1921 - 1389697
Bed frame
Silverman et al. - October 1961 - 3004265
Bed-frame construction
Hering - January 1923 - 1442779
Collapsible bed frame construction
Goldberg - May 1961 - 2985894
Hollywood bed frame
Hooker - January 1966 - 3230555
Application Number:
05/141272
Publication Date:
01/30/1973
Filing Date:
05/07/1971
View Patent Images:
Export Citation:
Assignee:
Leggett & Platt Incorporated (Carthage, MO)
Primary Class:
Other Classes:
5/201, 5/303
International Classes:
A47C19/00; A47C19/12
Field of Search:
5/176,201,202,282,285,286,297,299,300,303,288
Primary Examiner:
Zugel, Francis K.
Assistant Examiner:
Marquette, Darrell
Claims:
Having described my invention, I claim
1. A bed frame comprising
2. The bed frame of claim 1 which further includes a first hinge plate fixedly secured to the vertical leg of each of said side rails at one end of each of the side rails,
3. A bed frame comprising
4. A bed frame which comprises
1. A bed frame comprising
2. The bed frame of claim 1 which further includes a first hinge plate fixedly secured to the vertical leg of each of said side rails at one end of each of the side rails,
3. A bed frame comprising
4. A bed frame which comprises
Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to Hollywood bed frames and particularly to knock-down type Hollywood bed frames made from angle iron.
For many years bed frames, and particularly the so-called Hollywood style bed frames, have been made from angle iron and have been so constructed as to accommodate varying width beds as, for example, the standard twin size bed, the queen size bed, and the king size bed. In order to accommodate these differing widths of beds, while still enabling the frames to be broken down or folded for shipment, the frames have generally been made from a pair of side rails and a pair of cross rails, each of the cross rails generally being made of two sections pivotally connected to the side rails. When pivoted outwardly so as to extend at 90° to the side rails, the free or swinging ends of the cross rails are connectable at multiple points so as to vary the distance between the side rails. The connector between the sections of the cross rails has most commonly been a screw and nut, but other arrangements have been utilized.
Recently there has been a growing demand for non-adjustable bed frames which could be assembled and disassembled by a housewife or a mover without the use of any instructions and without any removable connectors, as, for example, screws or nuts, which could become lost.
It has therefore been a primary objective of this invention to provide a Hollywood style bed frame which may be very easily assembled and disassembled.
Still another objective of this invention has been to provide a Hollywood style bed frame which may be assembled and disassembled without the use of any removable parts, fasteners or connectors.
These objectives are accomplished and this invention is predicated upon the concept of a knock-down or foldable style of Hollywood bed frame which may be assembled and disassembled in a very simple and foolproof manner through the use of either (1) a headed rivet projection on the cross rail which fits into a bayonet slot of the side rail in combination with a cooperating locking finger on the cross rail hookable over the side rail or (2) a headed rivet connector on the cross rail receivable in a keyway slot of the side rail. In the case of the headed rivet and keyway slot detachable connector, there is preferably a locking spring associated with the keyway so that once assembled and snapped into place the cross rail cannot be inadvertently dislodged from the side rail.
Another aspect of this invention is predicated upon the use of a hinge type connector for securing a headboard to the cross rails of the bed frame. This hinge connection consists of a conventional pair of hinge plates interconnected by a hinge pin. One hinge plate is secured to the vertical flange of a side rail and the other hinge plate is connectable to the headboard. The hinge plate which is connected to the headboard may be connected in either of two different modes, depending upon the width of the headboard in relation to the spacing of the cross rails. If the hinge connection is used to connect a narrow headboard to the side rails, the hinges are folded inwardly relative to the side rails. When the hinges are used to connect wide headboards, the headboard connected hinge plate is inverted and rotated 180° about the hinge pin. This same hinge may be used in a third mode for connecting a very large headboard to the outer side rails of a pair of twin beds fastened together to form a single bed while still permitting the beds to be pivoted apart about the headboard hinges for ease of making the bed.
These and other objectives and advantages of this invention will be more readily apparent from the following description of the drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a foldable bed frame incorporating the invention of this application.
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the detachable connector in the frame of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the detachable connector employed in the modification of FIG. 1 but illustrating the connector in a disassembled position.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the headboard hinge connection of FIG. 1.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a second modification of a knock-down style bed frame incorporating the invention of this application.
FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the detachable connector employed in connecting the cross rails to the side rail in the frame of the modification illustrated in FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the connector of FIG. 6.
Referring first to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a foldable Hollywood bed frame incorporating the invention of this application. The frame 10 is foldable in the sense that a pair of cross rails 11, 12 are pivotally connected to the side rails 13, 14 by rivets 15, 16, respectively. Each cross rail 11, 12 may be pivoted from a position in which it is located beneath and parallel the side rail to which it is attached to a position in which it extends at 90° to the side rail. The frame is stored and shipped with the cross rails in the former position and is assembled in the latter.
Each side rail 13, 14 consists of an angle iron having a vertical leg 20 and a horizontal flange 21. Similarly, each cross rail 11 and 12 comprises a pair of angle irons having a vertical leg 22 and a horizontal flange 23. Each cross rail is permanently connected to one end of a side rail by the rivet 15, 16 which extends through and permanently interconnects the horizontal flange of a cross rail to a horizontal flange of the side rail.
In order to enable the free or swinging end 25 of each cross rail to be detachably connected to a side rail, the free or swinging end of the cross rails are provided with detachable connectors 70-75. The connectors all include an upstanding projection 26 on the cross rail which terminates in an enlarged head 27. The bottom surface of the head 27 is spaced from the top surface of the flange 23 by a distance slightly greater than the thickness T of the flange 21 of a side rail such that the projection may be inserted into a hook-shaped slot 28 in the side rail. When the projection is inserted into the slot, the head 27 on the end of the projection, which is wider in diameter than the width W of the slot, is located above the horizontal flange of the cross rail such that it prevents the cross rail from moving vertically relative to the side rail. This relationship of the diameter of the head 27 on the projection 26 to the width W of the slot 28 is most clearly shown in FIG. 2.
In the preferred embodiment each of the cross rails 11, 12 has a small section of angle iron 30, 31 connected to its opposite ends. These sections of angle iron 30, 31 are welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the cross rails with the vertical leg 32 of the sections welded to the vertical leg 22 of the cross rail and with the horizontal flanges 33 of the sections located in the same plane as the horizontal flange 23 of the cross rail. That section 30 which is secured to the pivoted end of the cross rail serves primarily to prevent the cross rail from pivoting or rotating about the longitudinal axis of the cross rail and in so doing prevents the rivet 15 from having to carry a heavy load which might otherwise shear off the head of the rivet.
The section 31 of angle iron which is secured to the free or swinging end of the cross rail also serves the same purpose as a load-carrying element to prevent the cross rail from pivoting or rotating about its longitudinal axis. Additionally, the section 31 has a finger 35 extending upwardly and outwardly from its outer end. As may be seen most clearly in FIG. 2, this finger 35 is sheared and formed from the end portion of the section 31 of angle iron. Thus, when the projection 26 is located in the slot 28, the finger 35 associated with the same cross rail detachable connector is received over the top of the horizontal flange 21 of the side rail while the outer end section 36 of angle iron from which the finger is formed fits and is received beneath the horizontal flange 21. Consequently, the finger serves to lock the free or swinging end of the cross rail to the side rail.
There is a metal leg 59 secured to both ends of the cross rails 11 and 12 in the vicinity of the end sections 33 of the rails. The legs are welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the cross rails in a conventional manner which has not been illustrated in detail since it forms no part of the invention of this application.
In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the frame 10 is provided with a center rail 38. This center rail has a pair of detachable connectors 39, 40 on its opposite ends so that it is completely detachable from the side rails 13 and 14. The detachable connectors 39 and 40 are identical to the detachable connectors 41 and 42 of the cross rails 11 and 12. Specifically, they include the projections 26 receivable in hooked-shaped slots 28 of the side rails and a finger 35 receivable over the top of the horizontal flange of the side rail. In general, transverse center rails 38 are provided on so-called "queen" size beds. "King" size beds utilize a longitudinal reinforcement bar while standard twin size beds have no center rail.
In order to enable a headboard to be attached to one end of the side rails, a pair of hinges 44 and 45 are secured to the ends of the side rails. Each of these hinges consists of a pair of hinge plates 46 and 47, one of which is welded to the vertical flange 20 of the cross rail with which it is associated. When welded to the vertical flange, the three hinge pin receiving hooks 48 of the plate extend outwardly from and are turned inwardly relative to the end of the vertical flange 20 of the side rail. The hinge plate 47 has a pair of hinge pin receiving hooks 49 which extend outwardly from the plate and are turned inwardly relative to it so that they may be located between the three hooks 48 of the plate 46 and connected thereto by the hinge pin 55.
Referring to FIG. 4, the headboard-connecting hinge 44 is illustrated in solid lines in a position in which it may be mounted upon a narrow headboard. By attaching the hinge plate 47 to the headboard by means of screws which extend through the slots 50, 51 and then attaching the hinge plate 47 to the hinge plate 46 by means of the hinge pin 55, the headboard may be attached to the side rails. In this position of the hinge, the hinge plate 47 extends inwardly from the side rails.
It is often desirable with wider headboards to have the hinge plates 47 extend outwardly from the side rails. If this hinge is simply rotated 180° from the solid line position illustrated in FIG. 4 so as to enable the inside surface 52 to become the outside surface, the outside surface 52 is the one which must be placed against the headboard. It is then located, though, approximately one-half inch, or the diameter of the hinge plate hooks 48, from the headboard. Of course, a filler block of the requisite thickness could be attached to the headboard but this is undesirable because of the inconvenience and unsightliness of such a filler block. With this hinge pin the problem is overcome by removing the hinge pin 55, inverting the hinge plate 47 so that the upper slot 50 now becomes the lower one and the lower slot 51 becomes the upper, and then rotating the plate 47 180° to the position illustrated in phantom in FIG. 4. When assembled in this manner, the headboard contacting surface of the hinge plate 47 is located the same distance from the end of the side rail when turned inwardly as it is when turned outwardly. A headboard may be attached to the side rails when the hinge is either folded inwardly relative to the side rail or folded outwardly and without the use of a filler block.
This hinge connection also is useful for connecting a single headboard to two twin beds mounted side by side. If a pair of hinge plates on the outermost rails of the two beds are connected to a single headboard, the foot ends of the bed frames may be pivoted outwardly or apart for ease of access to bed clothing over mattresses mounted on the frames.
Referring now to FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, there is illustrated a second modification of the invention of this application. This second modification illustrates a "knock-down" as opposed to a "folding" type frame. In other words, the cross rails 60, 61 and the center rail 62, if a center rail is employed, are completely detachable from both side rails 63 and 64.
As in the case of the modification of FIGS. 1-4, the frame is made up of angle iron. Specifically, the side rails 63 and 64 are made from a single piece of angle iron having a vertical leg 65 and a horizontal flange 66. The cross rails similarly are made from angle iron having a vertical leg 67 and a horizontal flange 68. Reinforcing sections of angle iron 69 are secured to both ends of the cross rail.
The detachable connectors 70-75 for connecting the ends of the cross rails 60-62 to the side rails are all identical.
Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, it will be seen that each detachable connector 70-75 comprises a pair of projections 76, 77 which extend upwardly from the top surface of the flange 68 of the cross rail and the top surface of the reinforcing section 69 of the cross rail, respectively. These projections each have enlarged heads 78, 79 on their outer or upper ends. The bottom surfaces of these heads 78, 79 are vertically spaced from the top surface of the cross rail by a distance slightly greater than the thickness T of the horizontal flange of the cross rails.
EAch cross rail has a pair of transversely spaced keyway slots 80, 81 adapted to receive the projections 76, 77. Each keyway slot has a wide section 83 and a narrow section 84. The wide section is slightly larger in diameter than the diameter of the heads 78, 79 on the projections 76, 77 such that the heads of the projections may be inserted upwardly through the wide sections. The narrow sections, though, are slightly narrower in width than the heads of the projections but wider than the diameter of the necks of the projections such that the heads of the projections may be inserted upwardly through the wide sections 83 of the keyhole slots and then moved longitudinally of the rails into the narrow sections to secure the cross rails in an assembled relationship to the side rails.
In order to detachably lock the side rails to the cross rail, one of each pair of keyway slots has a leaf spring 85 associated therewith. Each leaf spring is fixedly secured to the top surface of the horizontal flange 66 of a side rail by a rivet or weld 86 and has a free or vertically movable end 87 located over the wide section 83 of the keyhole slot with which it is associated.
Thus, when a cross rail is assembled onto a side rail by inserting the heads 78, 79 of the projections upwardly into and through the large diameter sections of the keyhole slots, the end 87 of the spring 85 is free and thus moves upwardly so as to permit the head 79 to be inserted through the slot. When the rail is then moved longitudinally and the projection 77 is moved into the narrow section of the slot, the spring moves back downwardly into contact with the rail such that the end surface 88 of the spring serves as an abutment to prevent the cross rail 60 from moving longitudinally relative to the side rail.
When it is desired to disassemble or break the bed down for shipment after it has once been assembled, all that is required is to insert a key or some other object into the keyhole slot and push the free end 87 of the leaf spring 85 upwardly until the head 79 on the projection 78 may be moved beneath the leaf spring.
To enable a headboard to be connected to the side rails of the frame, the side rails have hinge connectors 44', 45' secured to one end thereof. These connectors 44', 45' are identical to the hinge connectors 44, 45 of the modification of FIG. 1. Specifically, each includes a pair of hinge plates 46', 47' interconnected by a hinge pin 55'.
In the modification of FIG. 5, the bed has been illustrated as incorporating a center rail 62. This rail is normally omitted from twin size beds and incorporated only in so-called "queen" size beds.
As in the modification of FIGS. 1-4, the bed illustrated in FIGS. 5-7 has legs 59' fixedly secured to the lower side of the cross rails. These legs form no part of this invention and therefore the connections of the legs to the cross rails has not been illustrated in detail.
The primary advantage of both modifications of the bed illustrated and described herein is that both may be assembled and disassembled without the use of any threaded fasteners and without the use of any removable elements which could be easily omitted from packaging or which could easily be lost during disassembly and shipment. Additionally, both modifications of the bed are easily assembled and disassembled so that even a housewife with absolutely no mechanical aptitude may assemble and disassemble them with little or no instruction.
While only two modifications of my invention have been illustrated and described herein, persons skilled in the art to which this invention pertains will appreciate numerous modifications and changes which may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention. Specifically, the detachable connector of the second modification of the bed could be utilized on a folding bed frame and similarly the connector on the first or folding style of bed could be incorporated in a completely knock-down style of bed. Therefore, I do not intend to be limited except by the scope of the appended claims.
This invention relates to Hollywood bed frames and particularly to knock-down type Hollywood bed frames made from angle iron.
For many years bed frames, and particularly the so-called Hollywood style bed frames, have been made from angle iron and have been so constructed as to accommodate varying width beds as, for example, the standard twin size bed, the queen size bed, and the king size bed. In order to accommodate these differing widths of beds, while still enabling the frames to be broken down or folded for shipment, the frames have generally been made from a pair of side rails and a pair of cross rails, each of the cross rails generally being made of two sections pivotally connected to the side rails. When pivoted outwardly so as to extend at 90° to the side rails, the free or swinging ends of the cross rails are connectable at multiple points so as to vary the distance between the side rails. The connector between the sections of the cross rails has most commonly been a screw and nut, but other arrangements have been utilized.
Recently there has been a growing demand for non-adjustable bed frames which could be assembled and disassembled by a housewife or a mover without the use of any instructions and without any removable connectors, as, for example, screws or nuts, which could become lost.
It has therefore been a primary objective of this invention to provide a Hollywood style bed frame which may be very easily assembled and disassembled.
Still another objective of this invention has been to provide a Hollywood style bed frame which may be assembled and disassembled without the use of any removable parts, fasteners or connectors.
These objectives are accomplished and this invention is predicated upon the concept of a knock-down or foldable style of Hollywood bed frame which may be assembled and disassembled in a very simple and foolproof manner through the use of either (1) a headed rivet projection on the cross rail which fits into a bayonet slot of the side rail in combination with a cooperating locking finger on the cross rail hookable over the side rail or (2) a headed rivet connector on the cross rail receivable in a keyway slot of the side rail. In the case of the headed rivet and keyway slot detachable connector, there is preferably a locking spring associated with the keyway so that once assembled and snapped into place the cross rail cannot be inadvertently dislodged from the side rail.
Another aspect of this invention is predicated upon the use of a hinge type connector for securing a headboard to the cross rails of the bed frame. This hinge connection consists of a conventional pair of hinge plates interconnected by a hinge pin. One hinge plate is secured to the vertical flange of a side rail and the other hinge plate is connectable to the headboard. The hinge plate which is connected to the headboard may be connected in either of two different modes, depending upon the width of the headboard in relation to the spacing of the cross rails. If the hinge connection is used to connect a narrow headboard to the side rails, the hinges are folded inwardly relative to the side rails. When the hinges are used to connect wide headboards, the headboard connected hinge plate is inverted and rotated 180° about the hinge pin. This same hinge may be used in a third mode for connecting a very large headboard to the outer side rails of a pair of twin beds fastened together to form a single bed while still permitting the beds to be pivoted apart about the headboard hinges for ease of making the bed.
These and other objectives and advantages of this invention will be more readily apparent from the following description of the drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a foldable bed frame incorporating the invention of this application.
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the detachable connector in the frame of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the detachable connector employed in the modification of FIG. 1 but illustrating the connector in a disassembled position.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the headboard hinge connection of FIG. 1.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a second modification of a knock-down style bed frame incorporating the invention of this application.
FIG. 6 is a top plan view of the detachable connector employed in connecting the cross rails to the side rail in the frame of the modification illustrated in FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the connector of FIG. 6.
Referring first to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a foldable Hollywood bed frame incorporating the invention of this application. The frame 10 is foldable in the sense that a pair of cross rails 11, 12 are pivotally connected to the side rails 13, 14 by rivets 15, 16, respectively. Each cross rail 11, 12 may be pivoted from a position in which it is located beneath and parallel the side rail to which it is attached to a position in which it extends at 90° to the side rail. The frame is stored and shipped with the cross rails in the former position and is assembled in the latter.
Each side rail 13, 14 consists of an angle iron having a vertical leg 20 and a horizontal flange 21. Similarly, each cross rail 11 and 12 comprises a pair of angle irons having a vertical leg 22 and a horizontal flange 23. Each cross rail is permanently connected to one end of a side rail by the rivet 15, 16 which extends through and permanently interconnects the horizontal flange of a cross rail to a horizontal flange of the side rail.
In order to enable the free or swinging end 25 of each cross rail to be detachably connected to a side rail, the free or swinging end of the cross rails are provided with detachable connectors 70-75. The connectors all include an upstanding projection 26 on the cross rail which terminates in an enlarged head 27. The bottom surface of the head 27 is spaced from the top surface of the flange 23 by a distance slightly greater than the thickness T of the flange 21 of a side rail such that the projection may be inserted into a hook-shaped slot 28 in the side rail. When the projection is inserted into the slot, the head 27 on the end of the projection, which is wider in diameter than the width W of the slot, is located above the horizontal flange of the cross rail such that it prevents the cross rail from moving vertically relative to the side rail. This relationship of the diameter of the head 27 on the projection 26 to the width W of the slot 28 is most clearly shown in FIG. 2.
In the preferred embodiment each of the cross rails 11, 12 has a small section of angle iron 30, 31 connected to its opposite ends. These sections of angle iron 30, 31 are welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the cross rails with the vertical leg 32 of the sections welded to the vertical leg 22 of the cross rail and with the horizontal flanges 33 of the sections located in the same plane as the horizontal flange 23 of the cross rail. That section 30 which is secured to the pivoted end of the cross rail serves primarily to prevent the cross rail from pivoting or rotating about the longitudinal axis of the cross rail and in so doing prevents the rivet 15 from having to carry a heavy load which might otherwise shear off the head of the rivet.
The section 31 of angle iron which is secured to the free or swinging end of the cross rail also serves the same purpose as a load-carrying element to prevent the cross rail from pivoting or rotating about its longitudinal axis. Additionally, the section 31 has a finger 35 extending upwardly and outwardly from its outer end. As may be seen most clearly in FIG. 2, this finger 35 is sheared and formed from the end portion of the section 31 of angle iron. Thus, when the projection 26 is located in the slot 28, the finger 35 associated with the same cross rail detachable connector is received over the top of the horizontal flange 21 of the side rail while the outer end section 36 of angle iron from which the finger is formed fits and is received beneath the horizontal flange 21. Consequently, the finger serves to lock the free or swinging end of the cross rail to the side rail.
There is a metal leg 59 secured to both ends of the cross rails 11 and 12 in the vicinity of the end sections 33 of the rails. The legs are welded or otherwise fixedly secured to the cross rails in a conventional manner which has not been illustrated in detail since it forms no part of the invention of this application.
In the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the frame 10 is provided with a center rail 38. This center rail has a pair of detachable connectors 39, 40 on its opposite ends so that it is completely detachable from the side rails 13 and 14. The detachable connectors 39 and 40 are identical to the detachable connectors 41 and 42 of the cross rails 11 and 12. Specifically, they include the projections 26 receivable in hooked-shaped slots 28 of the side rails and a finger 35 receivable over the top of the horizontal flange of the side rail. In general, transverse center rails 38 are provided on so-called "queen" size beds. "King" size beds utilize a longitudinal reinforcement bar while standard twin size beds have no center rail.
In order to enable a headboard to be attached to one end of the side rails, a pair of hinges 44 and 45 are secured to the ends of the side rails. Each of these hinges consists of a pair of hinge plates 46 and 47, one of which is welded to the vertical flange 20 of the cross rail with which it is associated. When welded to the vertical flange, the three hinge pin receiving hooks 48 of the plate extend outwardly from and are turned inwardly relative to the end of the vertical flange 20 of the side rail. The hinge plate 47 has a pair of hinge pin receiving hooks 49 which extend outwardly from the plate and are turned inwardly relative to it so that they may be located between the three hooks 48 of the plate 46 and connected thereto by the hinge pin 55.
Referring to FIG. 4, the headboard-connecting hinge 44 is illustrated in solid lines in a position in which it may be mounted upon a narrow headboard. By attaching the hinge plate 47 to the headboard by means of screws which extend through the slots 50, 51 and then attaching the hinge plate 47 to the hinge plate 46 by means of the hinge pin 55, the headboard may be attached to the side rails. In this position of the hinge, the hinge plate 47 extends inwardly from the side rails.
It is often desirable with wider headboards to have the hinge plates 47 extend outwardly from the side rails. If this hinge is simply rotated 180° from the solid line position illustrated in FIG. 4 so as to enable the inside surface 52 to become the outside surface, the outside surface 52 is the one which must be placed against the headboard. It is then located, though, approximately one-half inch, or the diameter of the hinge plate hooks 48, from the headboard. Of course, a filler block of the requisite thickness could be attached to the headboard but this is undesirable because of the inconvenience and unsightliness of such a filler block. With this hinge pin the problem is overcome by removing the hinge pin 55, inverting the hinge plate 47 so that the upper slot 50 now becomes the lower one and the lower slot 51 becomes the upper, and then rotating the plate 47 180° to the position illustrated in phantom in FIG. 4. When assembled in this manner, the headboard contacting surface of the hinge plate 47 is located the same distance from the end of the side rail when turned inwardly as it is when turned outwardly. A headboard may be attached to the side rails when the hinge is either folded inwardly relative to the side rail or folded outwardly and without the use of a filler block.
This hinge connection also is useful for connecting a single headboard to two twin beds mounted side by side. If a pair of hinge plates on the outermost rails of the two beds are connected to a single headboard, the foot ends of the bed frames may be pivoted outwardly or apart for ease of access to bed clothing over mattresses mounted on the frames.
Referring now to FIGS. 5, 6, and 7, there is illustrated a second modification of the invention of this application. This second modification illustrates a "knock-down" as opposed to a "folding" type frame. In other words, the cross rails 60, 61 and the center rail 62, if a center rail is employed, are completely detachable from both side rails 63 and 64.
As in the case of the modification of FIGS. 1-4, the frame is made up of angle iron. Specifically, the side rails 63 and 64 are made from a single piece of angle iron having a vertical leg 65 and a horizontal flange 66. The cross rails similarly are made from angle iron having a vertical leg 67 and a horizontal flange 68. Reinforcing sections of angle iron 69 are secured to both ends of the cross rail.
The detachable connectors 70-75 for connecting the ends of the cross rails 60-62 to the side rails are all identical.
Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, it will be seen that each detachable connector 70-75 comprises a pair of projections 76, 77 which extend upwardly from the top surface of the flange 68 of the cross rail and the top surface of the reinforcing section 69 of the cross rail, respectively. These projections each have enlarged heads 78, 79 on their outer or upper ends. The bottom surfaces of these heads 78, 79 are vertically spaced from the top surface of the cross rail by a distance slightly greater than the thickness T of the horizontal flange of the cross rails.
EAch cross rail has a pair of transversely spaced keyway slots 80, 81 adapted to receive the projections 76, 77. Each keyway slot has a wide section 83 and a narrow section 84. The wide section is slightly larger in diameter than the diameter of the heads 78, 79 on the projections 76, 77 such that the heads of the projections may be inserted upwardly through the wide sections. The narrow sections, though, are slightly narrower in width than the heads of the projections but wider than the diameter of the necks of the projections such that the heads of the projections may be inserted upwardly through the wide sections 83 of the keyhole slots and then moved longitudinally of the rails into the narrow sections to secure the cross rails in an assembled relationship to the side rails.
In order to detachably lock the side rails to the cross rail, one of each pair of keyway slots has a leaf spring 85 associated therewith. Each leaf spring is fixedly secured to the top surface of the horizontal flange 66 of a side rail by a rivet or weld 86 and has a free or vertically movable end 87 located over the wide section 83 of the keyhole slot with which it is associated.
Thus, when a cross rail is assembled onto a side rail by inserting the heads 78, 79 of the projections upwardly into and through the large diameter sections of the keyhole slots, the end 87 of the spring 85 is free and thus moves upwardly so as to permit the head 79 to be inserted through the slot. When the rail is then moved longitudinally and the projection 77 is moved into the narrow section of the slot, the spring moves back downwardly into contact with the rail such that the end surface 88 of the spring serves as an abutment to prevent the cross rail 60 from moving longitudinally relative to the side rail.
When it is desired to disassemble or break the bed down for shipment after it has once been assembled, all that is required is to insert a key or some other object into the keyhole slot and push the free end 87 of the leaf spring 85 upwardly until the head 79 on the projection 78 may be moved beneath the leaf spring.
To enable a headboard to be connected to the side rails of the frame, the side rails have hinge connectors 44', 45' secured to one end thereof. These connectors 44', 45' are identical to the hinge connectors 44, 45 of the modification of FIG. 1. Specifically, each includes a pair of hinge plates 46', 47' interconnected by a hinge pin 55'.
In the modification of FIG. 5, the bed has been illustrated as incorporating a center rail 62. This rail is normally omitted from twin size beds and incorporated only in so-called "queen" size beds.
As in the modification of FIGS. 1-4, the bed illustrated in FIGS. 5-7 has legs 59' fixedly secured to the lower side of the cross rails. These legs form no part of this invention and therefore the connections of the legs to the cross rails has not been illustrated in detail.
The primary advantage of both modifications of the bed illustrated and described herein is that both may be assembled and disassembled without the use of any threaded fasteners and without the use of any removable elements which could be easily omitted from packaging or which could easily be lost during disassembly and shipment. Additionally, both modifications of the bed are easily assembled and disassembled so that even a housewife with absolutely no mechanical aptitude may assemble and disassemble them with little or no instruction.
While only two modifications of my invention have been illustrated and described herein, persons skilled in the art to which this invention pertains will appreciate numerous modifications and changes which may be made without departing from the spirit of my invention. Specifically, the detachable connector of the second modification of the bed could be utilized on a folding bed frame and similarly the connector on the first or folding style of bed could be incorporated in a completely knock-down style of bed. Therefore, I do not intend to be limited except by the scope of the appended claims.