Furniture system

Details Furniture system Furniture system

1995-06-07

2001-01-02

Melius, Terry Lee (Department: 3628)

Beds

Combination furniture

C005S200100, C005S400000, C108S107000, C248S243000, C403S253000, C403S298000

Utility Patent

active

06167579

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to furniture, and more particularly to a furniture system adapted for use in a residence hall or other institutional setting.
In the past, furniture used in residence halls or other similar institutional settings has consisted of a floor-mounted bed unit, a desk area with associated drawers, a storage unit adjacent to or over the desk area, and a closet area and dresser for clothing storage. An additional storage unit may be located to adjacent the bed, and the bed may be mounted on rollers for movement toward and away from the wall to which the storage unit is mounted. Installations such as this are relatively inflexible, in that all components except the bed unit and the dresser are fixed in position, being mounted to the walls and/or floor of the room. While this type of arrangement is functional and generally satisfactory, it has come to be recognized that room residents often exercise great creativity in an effort to gain more floor space, such as by elevating the bed using various devices and by rearranging, to the extent possible, the remaining furniture components. Further, arrangements such as this are inadequate to change the room construction according to different uses and users, e.g. when the room is being used by a different number of persons then that for which it was designed, or when a different character of user, e.g. an elderly person, is using the room.
In view of the above, there exists a need for a flexible furniture system for use in residence halls or other similar settings, in which the furniture components can be easily moved, repositioned or reconfigured according to the requirements of the user or according to the use of the room. There further exists a need for such a system in which the furniture components can be easily moved, repositioned or reconfigured without the use of tools and involving little change to the basic structure of the system. A need also exists for such a system which is relatively simple in its construction, components and operation.
In accordance with the invention, a furniture system incorporates a number of aspects which accomplish the above objectives.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a furniture system includes a series of posts, with each post having a substantially vertical longitudinal recess defined by two or more recess walls. A series of vertically spaced slots are formed in at least one of the recess walls, and a plurality of furniture components are removably mountable to the posts by means of bracket structure associated with each component. The bracket structure defines one or more tabs which are removably engageable within the slots, and the recess functions to conceal the slots and at least a portion of the bracket structure. The recess is preferably defined by an inner, outwardly facing recess wall with a pair of recess sidewalls extending between the inner recess wall and the external walls of the post, and the slots are preferably formed in the inner recess wall.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a post construction for a furniture system consists of interchangeable upper and lower sections. The upper post section has a lower end defining a downwardly facing recess; and the lower post section has an upper end defining an upwardly facing recess. A connector secures the upper and lower post sections together. The connector includes a first, upwardly extending mounting portion extending into the downwardly facing recess of the upper post section and a second, downwardly extending mounting portion extending into the upwardly facing recess of the lower post section. A rim section is interposed between the first and second mounting portions, and the rim section is exposed between and engageable by the lower end of the upper post section and the upper end of the lower post section. The rim section preferably defines an outwardly facing surface exposed between the upper and lower post sections, and has a cross-section corresponding to the post sections. The first and second mounting portions of the connector each include a recessed area within which the recesses formed in the post sections are disposed.
In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, a furniture system includes a pair of spaced supports, each support having a series of spaced vertical slots. A storage-type furniture component includes at least a pair of end walls, and a back wall, and the back wall includes opposite end portions. Each end portion of the back wall includes a series of tabs which are selectively engageable with the spaced vertical slots in the supports for removably mounting the furniture component to and between the supports. Each back wall end portion extends outwardly from one of the end walls, and an intermediate section is interposed between the tabs and the adjacent end wall. The tabs are preferably formed on the endmost extent of the back wall end portions, which is bent relative to the intermediate section so as to enable the furniture component to be mounted to the spaced supports by exerting a push-on force in a direction parallel to the orientation of the tabs toward the supports.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a bed construction includes a pair of side rails and support structure for spacing the side rails above a supporting surface. A series of cross-members extend between the side rails, and a bottom wall is disposed between the side rails and supported by the cross-members for supporting a mattress thereabove. The bottom wall is defined by two or more panels, with each panel having transverse edges arranged such that the facing edges of adjacent panels define a joint between the panels. Each joint is located over one of the cross-members so that, when the bed construction is viewed from below, the joints are concealed by the cross-members. The cross-members are preferably U-shaped in cross-section, with each defining a pair of spaced, substantially vertical legs. The joints between adjacent panels are disposed between the legs of the U-shaped cross-members. Two of the cross-members are located toward the ends of the bed construction to support the ends of the bottom wall defined by edges of the endmost panels. The end cross-members are preferably formed so as to provide an upward extension on the outer leg of the U-shaped cross-member, and an inwardly extending lip extending from the upper end of the upper extension to receive the end of the panel.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, the cross-members of the bed construction are connected to the rails via connection structure which includes a downwardly extending locking tab formed at each end of the cross-member, and an upwardly facing recess associated with each rail for receiving the locking tab therewithin to removably secure each cross-member to the rail. Each rail preferably is in the form of an assembly consisting of an inner rail member and an outer rail member. The inner rail member is further preferably a metal member having tab structure at its opposite ends for removably securing each rail assembly between spaced posts. The outer rail member is preferably in the form of a wooden board secured to the inner rail member and defining spaced ends which are in close proximity to or which engage the spaced posts. Alternatively, the outer rail member may be formed of any other satisfactory material, such as steel. The upwardly facing recess associated with each rail is preferably constructed by a strip of material having end portions secured to the inner rail member and an inwardly extending central portion located between the end portions and spaced from the inner surface of the inner rail member to define the upwardly facing recess. The cross-members are constructed so as to define end portions which engage the inner rail member when the locking tab is received within the recess so as to securely mount the cross-members between the rails and to reinforce the bed construction.
In accordance with a still further aspect

Affiliated with

Also associated with

Rating

Furniture system does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.

If you have personal experience with Furniture system, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Furniture system will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2527376