WO2007074338A2

WO2007074338A2 - Outdoor furniture

Info

Publication number: WO2007074338A2
Application number: PCT/GB2006/004883
Authority: WO
Inventors: Peter John Cook; John Ellacott
Original assignee: Seladis Limited
Priority date: 2005-12-28
Filing date: 2006-12-21
Publication date: 2007-07-05
Also published as: WO2007074338A3; GB0526497D0

Abstract

Outdoor furniture, in particular a sun lounger and a table each having a base portion (1) and a support portion (4) which is arranged to rotate relative to the base (1). Resilient rollers (7) are provided between the base (1) and the support portion (4) to facilitate rotation. A spacing between facing contact surfaces (15, 42) on the base portion (1) and support portion (4), respectively, can be closed when the furniture is loaded, eg sat upon, giving a braking effect against relative rotation.

Description

OUTDOOR FURNITURE

This invention relates to outdoor furniture, in particular sun loungers, but also other furniture such as tables.

It is desirable to provide furniture which is not only easy to use, and comfortable, but also is as useful as possible. It is aim of the present invention to provide such furniture.

Outdoor furniture includes items of furniture such as sun loungers, chairs and tables. Such items of furniture may be used for example, in a garden environment or beside a swimming pool. The furniture of the present invention is particularly suited for use as pool side furniture.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided an item of outdoor furniture comprising a base portion for standing on the ground, a rotatable portion including a support surface and being arranged for rotation relative to the base portion, and between the rotatable portion and the base portion, a plurality of roller means for supporting the rotatable portion for rotation.

The item of furniture may be arranged such that the item of furniture has a loaded configuration and a rotating configuration, the rotatable portion being held against rotation relative to the base when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration. Each roller means may be a resilient roller means such that there is a plurality of resilient roller means. Each roller means may be disposed in a respective locating recess spaced from the respective other recesses and provided in one of the base portion and the rotatable portion.

A spacing between the rotatable portion and the base may decrease as the furniture moves from the rotating configuration to the loaded configuration.

The rotatable portion may have a contact surface which faces a corresponding contact surface of the base. The contact surfaces may be spaced in the rotating configuration and in contact with one another in the loaded configuration. Contact between the contact surface can serve to hold the rotatable portion against rotation. The roller means may be arranged to allow relative movement between the rotatable portion and the base so that the item of furniture can move between the rotating and loaded configurations. The resilience of the roller means may allow this relative movement.

The resilient roller means may be in a rest state when there is no load on the item of furniture and a deformed state when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration.

Load on the item of furniture will typically come from the weight of items or a user resting on the rotatable portion. The application of such a weight can move the item of furniture from the rotating configuration to the loaded configuration. In one set of embodiments such weight will have to be sufficient to overcome the resilience of the roller means to move the item of furniture from the rotating configuration to the loaded configuration.

The locating recesses may be equispaced around the axis of rotation of the rotatable portion.

Preferably the recesses are provided in the base portion.

The rotatable portion may be arranged for rotation about a generally vertical axis in normal use.

The item of outdoor furniture may be a sun lounger with the rotatable portion comprising a bed surface, hi such a case a person resting on the bed surface can act as a load moving the item of furniture into the loaded configuration. The item of outdoor furniture may be a table with the rotatable portion comprising a table surface.

Preferably there are at least three roller means. More preferably still there are four roller means. There may be four roller means locating recesses arranged at 90 degree intervals around the axis of rotation.

Each roller means may comprise a resilient member, which may be a resilient ball portion. Each roller means may comprise an axle portion. Each resilient member may be mounted on a respective axle portion. The axle portion may extend from both ends of the resilient member.

Each locating recess may comprise a pair of bearing surfaces for supporting the axle portion and hence the roller means. The roller means and locating recess may be arranged so that the roller means snaps into the recess.

A groove for receiving part of and contacting with the roller means may be provided in one of the base portion and rotatable portion so as to face the locating recesses. Preferably the groove is for contacting with the resilient member. Preferably the groove is provided in the rotatable portion.

The groove can help locate the rotating portion on the base portion.

The bed surface may comprise a panel which is mounted for substantially free pivotal movement relative to surrounding portions of the bed surface.

The item may comprise a lockable compartment. This is particularly preferred if the item is a sun lounger. Further features of such lockable compartments are defined below in relation to another aspect of the invention, and are also applicable here.

Where the item is a sun lounger it may comprise a sun shade mounted via at least one arm to the bed surface of the lounger, the shade preferably being of rigid material. Further features of such shades are defined below in relation to another aspect of the invention, and are also applicable here.

The item may comprise a temperature indicator. This is particularly preferred if the item is a sun lounger. Further features of such indicators are defined below in relation to another aspect of the invention, and are also applicable here.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a sun lounger comprising a lockable compartment.

This can allow at least reasonably safe storage of personal items in the compartment when the user is away from the sun lounger - for example in an adjacent swimming pool.

The lockable compartment may comprise a moveable lid portion which has a closed position in which the lid portion forms part of a bed surface of the lounger on which a user may rest. This can mean that the bed surface of the lounger may be incomplete if the lid portion is not in the closed position. This in turn may mean that the lounger is not useable or ideal for use when the lid portion is not in the closed position.

The lid portion may be removably mounted to the remainder of the lockable compartment. Again the lounger may be arranged such that removing the lid portion from the remainder of the lockable compartment leaves the lounger in an unsuitable form for normal use.

The lockable compartment may be removably mounted to a main body of the sun lounger. Similarly, the lounger may be arranged such that removing the lockable compartment from the main body leaves the lounger in an unsuitable form for normal use.

The lid portion may comprise a lock for locking the lid portion in the closed position to obstruct access to the interior of the lockable compartment.

The lockable compartment may be substantially drum shaped.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention there is provided a sun lounger comprising a sun shade mounted via at least one arm to a bed surface of the lounger in which the shade is of rigid material.

The arm may be pivotally mounted to the bed surface of the lounger. The sunshade may be pivotally mounted to the arm. The arm may be mounted to the sunshade at a point midway along the length of the sunshade.

The sunshade may have a stowed position in which it can be put when not in use. The sunshade may be disposed against an underside of the bed surface when in the stowed position. The arm and sunshade may move and pivot together as the sunshade moves between the stowed position and an operative position.

The expression rigid material is used to distinguish from materials such as canvass. The sunshade may carry an advertisement. The sunshade may be of the same material as the remainder of the sun lounger. The sunshade may be integral with the sun lounger.

The sun shade may be mounted to the bed surface at a position towards the head end of the lounger. The sunshade may follow an arc around the head end of the lounger as the sunshade is moved from an operative position to the stowed position.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of advertising comprising the step of providing advertisements on the sunshade of a sun lounger.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a sun lounger comprising a sun shade mounted to the lounger and carrying an advertisement.

According to a further aspect of the present invention there is provided a sun lounger comprising a temperature indicator. The temperature indicator may comprise a thermometer mounted to a bed surface of the lounger. The temperature indicator may comprise a portion of photochromatic material and/or photochromatic ink provided on a bed surface of the lounger.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a sun lounger comprising a bed surface having a panel which is mounted for substantially free pivotal movement relative to surrounding portions of the bed surface. The panel may be wholly surrounded by portions of the bed surface.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a sun lounger;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a base portion of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional view of the base portion shown in Figure 2 taken on a line III-III;

Figure 4 is a perspective view of part of a rotatable portion of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1 which is arranged to be mounted on the base portion shown in Figures 2 and 3; Figure 5 is an underside perspective view of the part of the rotatable portion shown in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a roller used to allow rotation between the rotating portion and base portion of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1 ;

Figure 7 shows a tiltable panel of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1;

Figure 8 shows a base part of a locking compartment of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1;

Figure 9 shows a lid part of the locking compartment which is arranged to fit on the base part shown in Figure 8; and

Figure 10 schematically shows a table having a base portion similar to that of the sun lounger shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 shows a sun lounger which is suited for pool side use and comprises a base portion 1 and a rotating portion 2 which is arranged for rotation relative to the base portion 1. The rotating portion 2 comprises a bed surface 3 and a support portion 4. The bed surface 3 provides a support surface on which a user may sit or lie or otherwise rest. The support portion 4 is mounted on the base portion 1 so as to allow relative rotation between the rotatable portion 2 as a whole (i.e. the bed surface 3 and the support portion 4) and the base portion 1. The sun lounger also comprises a lockable compartment 5 and a sun shade 6.

The bed surface 3 is made up of five main parts. There is a central part 31 which, in this embodiment, is integrally formed with the support portion 4. Pivotally mounted to one end of the central part 31 is a foot rest part 32 which can hinge about pivotal mountings to allow the front end of the foot rest part 32 to be raised and lowered when the sun bed is in use. The bed surface 3 further comprises a back rest portion 33 which is again pivotally mounted to the support portion 4 to allow raising and lowering of the back rest 33. The back rest 33 carries the fourth portion of the bed surface, a tiltable panel 33 a, which can seen separately in

Figure 7. The tiltable panel 33a is pivotally mounted in the back rest portion 33 about an axis which runs through a mid part of the tiltable panel 33 a. It will be noted that the tiltable panel 33a is provided wholly within the bed surface 3. That is to say the tiltable panel 33a is surrounded by portions of the back rest 33 and the central part 31 of the bed surface 3. The tiltable panel 33 is arranged for substantially free pivotal movement relative to the backrest 33.

The fifth portion of the bed surface 3 comprises a lid portion 51 of the lockable compartment 5.

The sunshade 6 is mounted by a pair of arms 61 (only one of which can be seen in the Figures) to the bed surface 3, specifically the backrest 33. A first end of each arm 61 is pivotally mounted to the backrest 33 and a second end of each arm 61 is pivotally mounted to the sun shade 6. In this embodiment the arms 61 are mounted at a position which is at the free end of the backrest 33. Thus the arms 61 are mounted at the head end of bed surface. In the present embodiment the sunshade 6 is of a rigid material. It may, for example, consist of a solid plastic sheet which may be moulded from the same plastics material as the remainder of the main components of the sun lounger. The use of a rigid material as opposed to say canvas for the sunshade 6 can maximise its effectiveness at screening the sun. The sunshade 6 also provides a suitable surface for carrying printed information. In particular the sunshade 6 may be used to carry an advertisement. Printed material may be provided on either an upper surface or an underside surface of the sunshade 6 or indeed on both of those surfaces. The sunshade 6 is shown in an operative position in Figure 1. It can be moved to a stowed position under the bed surface 3, and against the underside of the bed surface 3. The arms 61 and hence shade 6 pivot about the head end of the bed 3 in moving from the position shown in Figure 1 to the stowed position.

The bed surface 3 also comprises a temperature indicator 34, in this instance this comprises a portion of photochromatic material or an area of photochromatic ink that changes as predetermined temperatures are reached. The portion of material may have a colour the same as the remainder of bed surface 3 below a predetermined temperature and change to a different colour when the predetermined temperature is exceeded.

The arrangement of the sun lounger which allows rotation of the rotatable portion 2 and in particular the bed surface 3 relative to the base 1 will now be explained in more detail with reference to Figures 1 to 6. The sun lounger has a rotating configuration in which the rotatable portion 2 can rotate relative to the base 1 and a loaded configuration (typically adopted when a user is on the lounger) in which rotation of the rotatable portion 2 is resisted. This means that once a user sits or lies down, further (undesirable) rotation should not occur and means that as free as achievable rotation may be given in the rotating state without concern. In effect the lounger includes an automatic brake.

The description below initially describes the situation when the lounger is in the rotating, "unloaded", configuration.

In the present embodiment the rotating part 2 may rotate through 360° (and even round and round) relative to the base 1. However, this is not necessary, in some embodiments there may be limited rotation over say only a range of angles about a central position.

Figures 2 and 3 show the base portion 1 in isolation and in more detail. The base portion 1 comprises four foot portions 11 which are arranged to be in contact with the ground when the sun lounger is in use. In fact the whole of the base portion 1 contacts with the ground when the sun lounger is in use and the foot portions 11 help to provide stability. The base portion 1 is generally annular and a plurality, in this case four, roller receiving and locating recesses 12 are provided in one of the non-curved surfaces of the base portion 1. These recesses 12 face upwards when the sun lounger is in use and each is arranged to receive a respective roller 7 for supporting the rotating portion 2 for rotation.

One such roller 7 is shown in Figure 6. In the sun lounger of Figure 1 there are four rollers 7 each disposed in a respective locating recess 12. However, the rollers 7 cannot be seen in Figure 1 and are omitted from Figures 2 and 3 for the sake of clarity.

Each roller 7 comprises a resilient ball portion 71 and an axle portion 72 which projects from each side of the ball portion 71. As is best seen in Figure 3, each of the locating recesses 12 comprises a hemispherical portion 13 which can receive the ball portion 71 and two axle portion receiving bearing surfaces 14 which are U-shaped and receive the respective ends of the axle portion 72 and support the roller 7 in position in the base 11. The rollers 7 and axle portion receiving surfaces 14 are arranged so that the roller 7 can snap into its respective recess 12.

In the present embodiment, the resilient ball portion 71 is fixedly mounted to the axle portion 72 such that each of the rollers 7 will rotate as a whole. Thus, if there is a rotating force on the roller 7 rotation is allowed by the fact that the two parts of the axle portion 72 may rotate within the U-shaped bearing surfaces 14 provided in each of the recesses 12. It will be noted that the recesses 12 hold the rollers in position such that while they can rotate around their own axes, they are held against rotation around the axis of rotation of the rotating portion 2 of the lounger. They are held against radial and circumferential movement relative to the axis of rotation of the lounger.

The dimensions of the hemispherical portions 13, the rollers 7 and the bearing surfaces 14 are such that in normal use the resilient ball portion 71 will not contact with the respective hemispherical portion 13.

The support portion 4 is shown in more detail and in isolation in Figures 4 and 5. In Figure 4 the central part 31 of the bed surface 3 can be seen and in this instance the lockable compartment 5 has been removed to leave a recess. Figure 5 shows the underside of the support portion 4. As can be seen from Figure 5, a generally annular groove 41 is provided around the periphery of the underside of the support portion 4. The outer radius of this lower most portion of the support portion 4 in which the groove 41 is formed is chosen to be substantially the same as the radius of the uppermost portion of the base portion 1 i.e. that portion in which the recesses 12 are formed. Here it will be understood that the expressions lowermost and uppermost and so on are referring to the positions of parts when the sun lounger is assembled and orientated for normal use.

The groove 41 is positioned and dimensioned so that when the support portion 4 is located on the base 1 as shown in Figure 1, the resilient ball portions 71 of the four rollers 7 provided in their respective recesses 12 in the base 1 are located in the groove 4. Thus the walls 41a of the groove 41 contact with the resilient ball portions 71 and support the rotating portion 2 for rotation. It will be noted that in the present embodiment a V-shaped groove 41 is provided in the support portion 4, but other shaped grooves could be used.

In the present embodiment the resilient ball portion 71 of each of the rollers comprises a portion of solid (but air expanded) rubbery or elastomeric material. In the rotating configuration of the lounger these can transfer the load between the rotating portion 2 and the base portion 1 via the axle portions 72.

Thus in the rotating configuration the bed surface 3 may be rotated relative to the base 1 with the rollers 7 captured in, but rotating within, their recesses 12 about their axle portions 72. In this mode the lounger can be considered unloaded and the weight of the rotatable portion 2 is supported by the rollers 7 and most particularly via the ball portions 71 contacting with the groove 41.

The base 1 also comprises a contact surface 15, this is the surface in which the recesses are formed in this embodiment. The underside of the support portion 4 also comprises respective contact surfaces 42 which are provided on either side of the groove 41. When the support portion 4 is mounted on the base 1, the contact surface 15 of the base 1 faces the contact surfaces 42 of the support portion 4. With the lounger in the rotating configuration there is a spacing between these contact surfaces 15, 42, so they do not contact. They are held separate by the rollers 7. However, when the sun lounger is loaded with sufficient weight to move it to the loaded configuration, for example by a user sitting on the bed surface 3, the ball portions 71 of the rollers 7 deform, or are "squashed", into the groove 41 such that the spacing between the contact surfaces 15, 42 closes and the support portion 4 contacts with the base portion 1. In practical terms this prevents further rotation of the bed surface 3 relative to the base 1 unless the load is removed. In this embodiment there is simply an interference fit between the opposing contact surfaces 15,42; that is friction provides the braking effect. In alternatives it might be possible to provide interlocking features such as teeth but this is currently seen as unnecessary. It will be seen that this arrangement gives rise to an automatic braking effect.

The rotating arrangement eases the task of rotating the rotating part 2 of the lounger, most particularly the bed surface 3, relative to the base 1. In particular, the roller arrangement used is less likely to jam than one making use of non- resilient rollers and/or a ball race type bearing where a plurality of rollers, for example balls, are free to rotate and move in a way that orbits the axis of rotation within the race. It should be noted that as the present invention is relevant to outdoor furniture, sand, grit or other dirt is likely to make its way into most parts of such furniture and therefore the rotating mechanism must be able to withstand this. The present rotating mechanism can withstand these conditions much better than the ball race type of bearing mentioned above. Furthermore, the resilience provided in the rollers 71 can help ease the task of rotating the bed surface 3 relative to the base 1 where the base 1 is on an uneven surface and facilitates the automatic braking feature described above.

As alluded to above, the lockable compartment 5, in this embodiment, is removable from the lounger. Figure 8 shows a base portion 52 of the lockable compartment 5 and Figure 9 shows the lid portion 51 in more detail and in isolation. The lid portion 51 is arranged to carry a lock (not shown) for locking the lid portion 51 to the base portion 52. Again, as alluded to above, the base portion 52 is arranged to be received in a recess in the support portion 4. The base portion 52 of the lockable container 5 may be arranged such that it may be secured by a user to the support portion 4 of the lounger when the lid portion 51 is not in position. This form of securing may be releasable such that the lockable compartment 5 is retained within the sun lounger and practical removal prevented whilst the lid 51 is locked in position. But on the other hand such that after the lid 51 has been unlocked and removed, the base portion 52 of the lockable compartment 5 may also be released and removed from the sun lounger. This can allow for the possibility that whilst the user is in the region of the sun lounger the lockable compartment 5 may be used to store personal items in a relatively secure way with the lockable compartment 5 secured to the sun lounger whereas when it is desired to leave the region of the sun lounger, the lid 51 may be unlocked, the base portion 52 of the lockable compartment 5 released and the whole lockable compartment 5 removed by the user. Alternatively the lockable compartment 5 may be simply located in the lounger and its sheer physical bulk relied on to deter an opportunist thief. It will be noted that where either the lid portion 51 or the whole lockable compartment 5 is removed from the lounger, the bed surface 3 is incomplete and there is a recess in the central part 31 of the bed surface 3 caused by absence of the lid portion 51. This means that without the lid portion 51 in position, the lounger is not ideal for use. Thus, in effect the sun lounger may be reserved for use of the person who is in possession of the lid portion 51 and/or the key therefore.

This means that if, for example, a user is staying in a hotel they may be given the key to a particular lounger and this may be become their lounger for the duration of the stay with them having the facility of removing the lockable lid portion 5 land/or the whole of the lockable compartment 5 as required.

Figure 10 schematically shows a poolside table which has a base portion 1 and a support portion 4 which are substantially the same as that described above in relation to the sun lounger. Thus, the support portion 4 is arranged for rotation relative to the base portion 1 by the provision of rollers of the same type as shown in Figure 6. This means that a table surface 8 of the table may be rotated relative to the base portion 1 in the same way that the bed surface 3 may be rotated relative to the base portion 1 in the sun lounger.

Alternative sun loungers embodying the present invention may include one or more of the following features in combination with or in place of features described above. The base portion of the sun lounger in particular, the foot portions, may be provided with rubber isolator portions or a common rubber isolator which is arranged to contact with the ground to further accommodate any irregular ground contours.

The base portion may comprise a pop-out transport wheel for easing movement of the sun lounger. The pop-out wheel may be partially hidden from view.

The sun lounger may comprise one or more motorised elements. For example, motorised rotation of the bed relative to the base might be provided for, or motorised back support adjustment might be provided for.

An inner transportable water resistant caddy might be provided within the lockable compartment.

A solar power panel might be provided on the lounger, for example, on the sunshade. In addition or alternative to this, a battery may be provided. Such power sources might be used to power a personal cooling fan provided on the sun lounger, for example on the sunshade.

Electrical connection jack points may also be provided on the sun lounger, for example, to provide a DC power supply for powering mobile telephones, MP3 players, or other such equipment. In one set of alternatives the sun lounger may be provided with arms on which a user may rest their arms. In such a case, an arm might comprise a cup holder feature. Similarly one of the arms might comprise a lockable compartment. A lockable compartment provided in an arm might replace that provided in the bed surface in the embodiment described above.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. An item of outdoor furniture comprising a base portion for standing on the ground, a rotatable portion including a support surface and being arranged for rotation relative to the base portion, and between the rotatable portion and the base portion, a plurality of roller means for supporting the rotatable portion for rotation.

2. An item of furniture according to claim 1 arranged such that the item of furniture has a loaded configuration and a rotating configuration, the rotatable portion being held against rotation relative to the base when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration, the rotatable portion having a contact surface which faces a corresponding contact surface of the base, the contact surfaces being spaced in the rotating configuration and in contact with one another in the loaded configuration to hold the rotatable portion against rotation relative to the base, wherein the roller means are arranged to allow relative movement between the rotatable portion and the base so that the item of furniture can move between the rotating and loaded configurations closing the spacing between the contact surfaces, and each roller means being a resilient roller means which is in a rest state when there is no load on the item of furniture and a deformed state when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration.

3. An item of furniture according to claim 1 arranged such that the item of furniture has a loaded configuration and a rotating configuration, the rotatable portion being held against rotation relative to the base when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration.

4. An item of furniture according to claim 1 or claim 3 in which each roller means is a resilient roller means such that there is a plurality of resilient roller means.

5. An item of furniture according to any preceeding claim in which each roller means is disposed in a respective locating recess spaced from the respective other recesses and provided in one of the base portion and the rotatable portion.

6. An item of furniture according to claim 3 or one of claims 4 and 5 when dependent on claim 3 in which a spacing between the rotatable portion and the base decreases as the furniture moves from the rotating configuration to the loaded configuration.

7. An item of furniture according to claim 6 in which the rotatable portion has a contact surface which faces a corresponding contact surface of the base and the contact surfaces are spaced in the rotating configuration and in contact with one another in the loaded configuration.

8. An item of furniture according to claim 3 or any one of claims 4 to 7 when dependent on claim 3 in which the roller means are arranged to allow relative movement between the rotatable portion and the base so that the item of furniture can move between the rotating and loaded configurations.

9. An item of furniture according to claim 4 when dependent on claim 3 in which the resilient roller means are in a rest state when there is no load on the item of furniture and a deformed state when the item of furniture is in the loaded configuration.

10. An item of furniture according to claim 5 or any one of claims 6 to 8 when dependent on claim 5, in which the locating recesses are equispaced around the axis of rotation of the rotatable portion.

11. An item of furniture according to any preceding claim in which the item of outdoor furniture is a sun lounger with the rotatable portion comprising a bed surface.

12. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 1 to 10 in which the item of outdoor furniture is a table with the rotatable portion comprising a table surface.

13. An item of furniture according to any preceding claim in which there are four roller means and four roller means locating recesses arranged at 90 degree intervals around the axis of rotation of the item of furniture.

14. An item of furniture according to any preceding claim in which each roller means comprises a resilient member, which may be a resilient ball portion.

15. An item of furniture according to claim 14 in which the resilient member comprises one or more air pocket.

16. An item of furniture according to claim 14 or 15 in which the resilient member is of air expanded material.

17. An item of furniture according to any of claims 14 to 16 in which the resilient member is resiliently squashable.

18. An item of furniture according to claim 14 in which each roller means comprises an axle portion and each resilient member is mounted on a respective axle portion with the axle portion extending from both ends of the resilient member.

19. An item of furniture according to claim 14 when dependent on claim 5 in which each locating recess comprises a pair of bearing surfaces for supporting the axle portion and hence the roller means.

20. An item of furniture according to claim 19 in which the roller means and locating recess are arranged so that the roller means snaps into the recess.

21. An item of furniture according to claim 5 or any one of claims 6 to 20 when dependent on claim 5 in which a groove for receiving part of and contacting with the roller means is provided in one of the base portion and rotatable portion so as to face the locating recesses.

22. An item of furniture according to claim 11 or any one of claims 13 to 21 when dependent on claim 11 in which the bed surface comprises a panel which is mounted for substantially free pivotal movement relative to surrounding portions of the bed surface.

23. An item of furniture according to any preceding claim in which the item comprises a lockable compartment.

24. An item of furniture according to claim 23 which is a sun lounger and in which the lockable compartment comprises a moveable lid portion which has a closed position in which the lid portion forms part of a bed surface of the lounger on which a user may rest.

25. An item of furniture according to claim 23 or claim 24 in which the lid portion is removably mounted to the remainder of the lockable compartment.

26. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 23 to 25 in which the lockable compartment is removably mounted to a main body of the item of furniture.

27. An item of furniture according to claim 24 or claim 25 in which the lid portion comprises a lock for locking the lid portion in the closed position to obstruct access to the interior of the lockable compartment.

28. An item of furniture according to claim 11 or any one of claims 13 to 23 when dependent on claim 11 comprising a sun shade mounted via at least one arm to the bed surface of the lounger, the shade preferably being of rigid material.

29. An item of furniture according to claim 28 in which the arm is pivotally mounted to the bed surface of the lounger.

30. An item of furniture according to claim 28 or claim 29 in which the sunshade is pivotally mounted to the arm.

31. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 28 to 30 in which the arm is mounted to the sunshade at a point midway along the length of the sunshade.

32. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 28 to 31 in which the sunshade has a stowed position in which it can be put when not in use, wherein the sunshade is disposed against an underside of the bed surface when in the stowed position.

33. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 28 to 32 in which the sunshade carries an advertisement.

34. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 28 to 33 in which the sunshade is of the same material as the remainder of the sun lounger.

35. An item of furniture according to any one of claims 28 to 34 in which the sun shade is mounted to the bed surface at a position towards the head end of the lounger.

36. An item of furniture according to claim 35 in which the sunshade follows an arc around the head end of the lounger as the sunshade is moved from an operative position to the stowed position.

37. An item of furniture according to any preceding claim comprising a temperature indicator, for example a portion of photochromatic material and/or photochromatic ink.

38. A sun lounger comprising a lockable compartment.

39. A sun lounger comprising a sun shade mounted via at least one arm to a bed surface of the lounger in which the shade is of rigid material.

40. A method of advertising comprising the step of providing advertisements on a sunshade of a sun lounger.

41. A sun lounger comprising a sun shade mounted to the lounger and carrying an advertisement.

42. A sun lounger comprising a temperature indicator.

43. A sun lounger according to claim 42 in which the temperature indicator comprises a thermometer mounted to a bed surface of the lounger.

44. A sun lounger according to claim 42 in which the temperature indicator comprises a portion of photochromatic material and/or photochromatic ink provided on a bed surface of the lounger.

45. A sun lounger comprising a bed surface having a panel which is mounted for substantially free pivotal movement relative to surrounding portions of the bed surface.