Seating arrangement and method of construction
AssigneeSteelcase Inc.
InventorsNickolaus William Charles Deevers, Kurt R. Heidmann, Michael J. Kemen
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A seating arrangement includes a base member, and an integrally formed support member coupled to the base member and supporting a seat moveable from an upright position to a reclined position, wherein a portion of the support member is bendable as the seat moves from the upright position to the reclined position such that a first side of the support member is put in tension and a second side generally opposite the first side is put in compression, and wherein the first side includes a tensile substrate so that the first side has as higher modulus of elasticity than the second side.
Claims27
A seating arrangement, comprising:
- a base member;
- and
- an integrally formed support member coupled to the base member and supporting a seat having a first portion configured to support a seated user thereon and a second portion moveable from an upright position to a reclined position, wherein a portion of the support member is bendable as the seat moves from the upright position to the reclined position such that a first side of the support member is put in tension and a second side generally opposite the first side is put in compression, and wherein the first side includes a tensile substrate so that the first side has a higher modulus of elasticity than the second side.
A seating arrangement, comprising:
- a first portion of a seating component;
- a second portion of the seating component moveable with respect to the first portion between a first position and a second position;
- a transition portion of the seating component positioned between the first portion and the second portion, where the transition portion is configured to deform as the second portion is moved from the first position to the second position, the transition portion including a surface in tension as the transition portion is deformed and a surface under compression as the transition portion is deformed;
- and
- a stranded material attached to the surface in tension of the transition area;
- wherein the stranded material biases the second portion from the second position toward the first position.
A method of constructing a seating arrangement, comprising:
- providing a first material comprising a plurality of strands extending lengthwise with respect to one another;
- placing the first material in a mold;
- and
- molding a second material to the first material to form a seating component having a first portion, a second portion, and a deformable transition portion positioned between the first and second portions, a side in tension as the transition portion is deformed and a side under compression as the transition portion is deformed, wherein a majority of the strands are positioned in the side under tension.
A seating arrangement, comprising:
- a first portion of a seating component;
- a second portion of the seating component moveable with respect to the first portion between a first position and a second position;
- and
- a transition portion of the seating component positioned between and integral with the first and second portions and configured to deform as the second portion is moved between the first and second position, the transition portion including a side in tension as the transition portion is deformed, a side under compression as the transition portion is deformed and a plurality of longitudinally-aligned strands where a majority of the plurality of strands of the transition portion are positioned in the side in tension, wherein the plurality of strands bias the second portion from the second position toward the first position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.