Chairs and seats – Bottom or back – Made of individual elongated members extending across a...
Reexamination Certificate
2002-10-21
2003-09-23
Brown, Peter R. (Department: 3636)
Chairs and seats
Bottom or back
Made of individual elongated members extending across a...
C297S280000, C297S281000, C297S284400
Reexamination Certificate
active
06623081
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
THIS INVENTION relates to furniture and is more specifically, but not exclusively, concerned with an article of furniture which may be transported as a compact kit and then quickly and easily erected at the site of use without having to connect the furniture together with locking fixtures such as nails or bolts.
STATE OF THE ART
Conventional rigid furniture is bulky and heavy and this makes transportation awkward and sometimes expensive. Various articles of furniture have been developed to reduce these disadvantages. For example, folding chairs and deck chairs are well known. Both use a base constructed from hinged plastics or wooden members which can usually be folded into a generally flat state so that the furniture can be transported in a fairly compact form.
A folded base still results in at least one pair of relatively large dimensions and the use of metal components to provide the hinging limits the materials from which the base can be made. Also, light materials, such as bamboo, do not lend themselves to being interconnected by metal standard-sized fixtures as bamboo splits easily and its radial dimension varies from one cane to another along its length. For these reasons, bamboo furniture is normally provided with a rigid base frame. The result is a relatively light article of furniture of pleasing appearance but it is usually bulky and its shape is unalterable so that it cannot be transported in a compact, easily erectable form.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
An object of this invention is to provide an article of furniture which is both light and compact to transport, and yet can be quickly and easily assembled when required for use.
THE INVENTION
In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, an article of furniture designed to be pendantly supported from above, comprises a platen of stiff, elongated elements spaced from one another and extending between opposite sides of the platen so that a line of slots extends along each of its side margins; flexible strands interconnecting the spaced elements allowing deformation of the platen out of its plane and into a desired shape; two, horizontally-spaced, seat-support members lying beneath respective side margins of the platen so that an area of its length rests on the support members to provide a seat; and, flexible connectors such as ropes, which can be arranged to extend down from one or more anchor fixtures above the furniture to the support members to carry the weight of the seat, sections of the connectors extending upwardly through selected side slots of the platen to hold it in position.
PREFERRED FEATURES OF THE INVENTION
Conveniently the elements are cylindrical, and hollow for lightness, and preferably comprise bamboo canes. These are stiff, light and pleasing in appearance. Also the natural interruptions in the cylindrical surface profile of a bamboo cane acts to hold the elements slightly apart in the platen so that air and light can pass between them. This facilitates cooling while allowing broken sunlight to pass through it to create an impression of airiness and coolness.
Suitably the elements in the platen alternate with parallel elements of shorter length, so that the marginal side edges of the platen are formed by the terminal portions of the longer elements. The gaps between the longer elements at the edges of the platen provide slots terminating on the ends of the shorter elements and which enable sections of a rope, providing the flexible connectors, to pass between them and so hold the platen in a particular desired shape. This shape can, for example, provide a lumbar back support. Preferably the strands holding the elements of the platen together are non-resilient rust-resistant wires which are manually deformable and are strong in tension.
The platen may be of an extended length. One-end portion of it may be draped over a pair of spaced, horizontal members which are preferably parallel but not necessarily so, to provide a seat for a swing chair. An intermediate portion of the platen can be used to provide a back support to the chair and a part of the back support may be arched forwards to provide a lumbar support of a desired shape to meet the comfort requirements of the user. The remaining end portion of the platen may be draped across another pair of spaced, parallel supports to provide an overhead screen for someone sitting in a swing chair. A feature of such a swing chair, is that the back support resiliently yields gently to a person leaning backwards in the chair to an extent dependent on the weight of the person. This gives a most comfortable feeling to the user.
Although the furniture outlined above is simple to assemble, it has a number of advantages over conventional furniture. Firstly, a person sitting on the furniture can readily adjust the height and angle of the seat, back support and overhead sun-screen to suit the user's particular requirements. This is achieved by altering the positions at which the support members are attached to the flexible connectors. Secondly, the surfaces of the platen which engage the user's body preferably comprise thin, spaced, part cylindrical portions of the elements and the spacing between them allows air to circulate through. The body surfaces of the person in contact with the platen are thus maintained cool when the chair swings back and forth, and the platen provides a very comfortable support for a person's body. A continuous, unventilated surface of a static conventional chair does not provide such ventilation and nor is it as comfortable, because in a hot climate, a person may often develop a hot damp zone in his clothing where it in contact with an unbroken surface of the chair, and which is caused by perspiration. This is avoided in the invention by the air flow passing through the platen as the chair swings gently back and forth. Finally, the spacing between the elements of the platen allow broken sunlight to pass between them when they are used to provide an overhead screen. The overall effect on a person sitting in a chair of the invention, is one of cool comfort. This is highly desirable in garden or leisure furniture particularly when intended to be used by elderly or physically-handicapped people.
REFERENCES:
patent: 872736 (1907-12-01), Lansberry, Jr.
patent: 1192941 (1916-08-01), Schmid
patent: 1500338 (1924-07-01), Shuman
patent: 3877750 (1975-04-01), Scholpp
patent: 4244622 (1981-01-01), Simpson
patent: D281206 (1985-11-01), Halsall
patent: 4608798 (1986-09-01), Spiers
patent: 5788327 (1998-08-01), Gregory
patent: 5957536 (1999-09-01), Sullivan
patent: 6019427 (2000-02-01), Combest
Brown Peter R.
Smith-Hill and Bedell
LandOfFree
Platen furniture does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Platen furniture, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Platen furniture will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3088759