U.S. patent application number 11/220195 was filed with the patent office on 2007-03-08 for interactive cube furniture.
Invention is credited to E. R. Hurvich.
Application Number | 20070052276 11/220195 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37829409 |
Filed Date | 2007-03-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070052276 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hurvich; E. R. |
March 8, 2007 |
Interactive Cube Furniture
Abstract
Interactive Cube Furniture, having a plurality of identical
cubes each constructed of six square of poly foam pads, each having
edges that taper forty-five degrees, six rigid square pan shapes
that fit snuggly over each poly foam pad and eight U shaped
channels that can connect the pans and attached foam pads together
to construct a cube. The cubes are inserted into an upholstery
housing. One panel of each cube of the upholstery housing can be
opened via a zipper so that the cube assembly can be inserted into
the upholstery housing. The flexible fabric of the upholstery
construction acts as hinge members at certain locations thereby
making the multi-cube assembly connected so that the cubes can be
folded on top of each other in a variety of ways to create unique
pieces of furniture.
Inventors: |
Hurvich; E. R.; (Oakland,
CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
E.R. Hurvich
410 42nd St.
Oakland
CA
94609
US
|
Family ID: |
37829409 |
Appl. No.: |
11/220195 |
Filed: |
September 6, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
297/440.14 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47C 13/005
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
297/440.14 |
International
Class: |
A47C 7/00 20060101
A47C007/00 |
Claims
1. Interactive Cube Furniture comprising: a square of poly foam
material approximately eighteen inches on a side and approximately
three inches thick having edges that taper forty-five degrees; a
rigid square pan shape having edges that taper forty-five degrees
and can fit snuggly over said poly foam square; a U shaped channel
that can connect the edge of one said pan the the edge of another
said pan; said foam and pan shapes assembled by said U shaped
channels to construct a cube; said cubes capable of being inserted
into an upholstery structure that can accept a plurality of said
cubes; one panel of each cube of said upholstery structure capable
of being opened via a zipper or other standard closure so that said
cube assembly can be inserted and said upholstered cube can be
zipped closed to form an entirely upholstered cube structure; and
said upholstery structure using the flexible fabric of the
upholstery construction to act as hinge members at certain
locations thereby making the multi-cube assembly connected so that
said cubes can be folded on top of each other in a variety of ways
to create unique pieces of furniture.
2. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein said
poly foam squares attach to said pan shapes by hook and loop
fasteners or other known attachment means.
3. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein each
said cube can contain an internal assembly such as egg crate
construction corrugated fiberboard to further strengthen said cube
thereby allowing it to support greater weight.
4. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein an
alternate embodiment for attaching said cubes is to cover the outer
surfaces of said cubes with a loop type fabric and to connect said
cubes by squares of double sided hook type fastening plates thereby
allowing the user to assemble said cubes side by side in any
combination or orientation to create unique furniture pieces.
5. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein an
alternate embodiment for the internal structure of said cubes is to
employ a cube consisting totally of poly foam rather than said
combination of internal rigid construction and overlay of poly
foam.
6. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein said
cube size may vary from as little as twelve inches square, for
children's furniture to as much as twenty-four inch's square for
very large scale furniture.
7. Interactive Cube Furniture as claimed in claim 1 wherein an
alternate version of said cubes are constructed of inflatable poly
vinyl material and are hinged in a similar fashion as described in
claim 1.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Not Applicable
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not Applicable
DESCRIPTION OF ATTACHED APPENDIX
[0003] Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] This invention relates generally to the field of upholstered
furniture and more specifically to interactive cube furniture.
[0005] Upholstered padded furniture for the purpose of sifting or
lying prone is very common in most households and office
environments. Usually a piece of furniture is dedicated to one
function such as a chair or bed and to a particular shape, such as
a love seat or single club chair.
[0006] Various types of modular furniture have been designed and
manufactured that allow a person to put a plurality of chair
sections together to form a sofa or day bed.
[0007] Additionally, chairs been designed that convert from an
upright back to a tilted back and raised foot portion, such as the
well known Lazy Boy recliner.
[0008] Although these types of furniture perform adequately, they
do not allow the user to purchase one furniture unit that can
easily be folded into a variety of shapes to accommodate different
seating and lying conditions. They also are not constructed of a
plurality of identical structural elements that allow for
economical manufacture and easy assembly. Finally, they do not
generally allow the user to easily change upholstery coverings as
often as desired.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The primary object of the invention is to provide a
furniture system that uses identical cubes to make a variety of
furniture shapes.
[0010] Another object of the invention is to provide an interactive
cube furniture system where the cubes are hingedly attached so that
they may be folded onto each other to create a variety of unique
furniture shapes.
[0011] Another object of the invention is to provide an interactive
cube furniture system where each cube is constructed of a plurality
of flat panels that can be shipped flat and thereby take up less
space for storage and shipping.
[0012] A further object of the invention is to provide an
interactive cube furniture system where each assembled cube can be
inserted into a multi-cube upholstery housing that forms a single
structure having the ability to transform into a variety of
furniture forms and making it easy to remove the cubes and insert
them into a different upholstery housing as often as desired.
[0013] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in
connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of
illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is
disclosed.
[0014] In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention,
there is disclosed Interactive Cube Furniture comprising: a square
pad of poly foam material approximately eighteen inches on a side
and approximately three inches thick having edges that taper
forty-five degrees, a rigid square pan shape having edges that
taper forty-five degrees and can fit snuggly over said poly foam
square, a U shaped channel that can connect the edge of one said
pan the the edge of another said pan, said foam and pan shapes
assembled by said U shaped channels to construct a cube, said cubes
capable of being inserted into an upholstery housing that can
accept a plurality of said cubes, one panel of each cube of said
upholstery housing capable of being opened via a zipper or other
standard closure so that said cube assembly can be inserted and
said upholstered cube can be zipped closed to form an entirely
upholstered cube structure, and said upholstery structure using the
flexible fabric of the upholstery construction to act as hinge
members at certain locations thereby making the multi-cube assembly
connected so that the cubes can be folded on top of each other in a
variety of ways to create unique pieces of furniture from a single
interactive system.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] The drawings constitute a part of this specification and
include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be
embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some
instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated
or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.
[0016] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention.
[0017] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of two connected cubes of the
invention.
[0018] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a central cube of the
invention.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a plan view of the invention.
[0020] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the upholstery housing of
the invention.
[0021] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of one cube folded up.
[0022] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of three cubes folded up.
[0023] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a person sitting on the
invention.
[0024] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a sofa version of the
invention.
[0025] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an alternate version of the
invention.
[0026] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a furniture assembly formed
by the alternate version of the invention.
[0027] FIG. 12 is an exploded view of a foam and pan portion of the
invention.
[0028] FIG. 13 is an exploded view of the cube assembly
[0029] FIG. 14 is an exploded view of the joining of two pan
portions.
[0030] FIG. 15 is a side section view of the cube of the
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0031] Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are
provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present
invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific
details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but
rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for
teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in
virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or
manner.
[0032] Referring now to FIG. 1 we see a perspective view of the
invention 100. The invention is comprised of a plurality of cubes
that are held together at hinge points so that they can be folded
over onto each other and interact to form a variety of furniture
forms. The invention is formed of identical cube pairs 2, 4, 6, 8,
and a central cube 10. A typical cube pair 2 as shown in FIG. 2
which shows two identical cubes 16, 18 connected by a fabric hinge
12. All sides of each of the cubes are upholstered. Central cube 10
is shown in FIG. 3 and includes fabric flanges 20, 22, 24, 26 that
each attach to surrounding cube pairs 2, 4, 6, 8 as shown in plan
view in FIG. 4. Central cube 10 also includes an upholstered panel
on the top 30 and bottom, not shown. The dotted lines in FIG. 4
represent fabric hinge points. FIG. 5 shows the invention 100
turned upside down and showing the general upholstery housing, some
hollow portions show unzipped panels 16A that are lifted up as
shown by arrow 30. Foam cube assembly 200 can slip into the
upholstered cube housing 16B and then zipper 32 or other known
closure means closes the panel 16A to form an upholstered cube. In
this way, a person can easily remove the cubes from one upholstery
housing and insert them into one of a different color or pattern.
Additionally, the user can remove and replace the cubes from the
upholstery housing so that the upholstery portion may be cleaned.
The foam cube assemblies 200 are identical and are composed of
identical sub portions. FIG. 12 shows the key sub portions of foam
pad 208 and rigid pan 209. Both the foam pad 208 and the pan 209
are square in shape and include forty-five degree mitered edges.
The pan 208 fits snuggly over the foam 209 and are held together by
hook and loop fasteners 230, 232 or other known fasteners. A step
230 in the foam mitered edge allows the outside wall of the pan 209
edge to to be flush with foam 208 edge. FIG. 13 shows an exploded
view of a cube assembly 200 consisting of six foam panels 202, 204,
206, 208, 210, 212 and mating pan portions 203, 205, 207, 209, 211,
213. FIG. 14 shows a perspective view of two identical pan portions
209, 213 that are about to be connected by U shaped channel 214.
Small protuberances 280 on channel 214 mate with apertures 281 in
the pan 213 edge thereby keeping them from slipping up or down.
FIG. 15 shows a section view of a cube 200. Foam panels 202, 204,
212, 208 are covered by pans 203, 205, 209, 213. The pans are held
together by U channels 214. An optional inner egg crate type
construction 260 made of corrugated fiber board or other rigid
material can give extra strength to the cube so that it will hold
additional weight. All the components of the cubes can be stored
and shipped in a flat stacked form so that they take up minimum
space for shipping and storage and take up a minimum of space in a
retail setting. Referring back to FIG. 6 we see the interactive
cube assembly 100A where one cube is folded up as shown by arrow
180. In the preferred embodiment each cube is approximately
eighteen inches on a side which makes them ideal for an adult
seating environment. Obviously, smaller versions can be made for
children, such as twelve inches on a side, or larger, such as
twenty four inches on a side for oversized furniture. FIG. 7 shows
the interactive cube assembly 100B where three cubes are folded up.
FIG. 8 shows the cube furniture assembly 110B with a person 300
sitting on it. FIG. 9 shows another variation of the interactive
cube assembly 100C so that it is conformed into a more standard
sofa shape. FIG. 10 shows an alternate embodiment where each cube
402, 406 is has the same interior as the cubes shown in previous
versions, but is covered in a loop type fabric that can removably
retain a double sided hook type fastening plate 404 so that the
cubes can be placed side by side or on top of each other in a wide
variety of positions, one of which is shown in FIG. 11 as assembly
400. One other embodiment has been envisioned where the internal
cube portions are constructed in a standard way, of RF welded poly
vinyl panels that are assembled to form a cube shape which can then
be inflated with air. Still another embodiment would use cubes made
of solid foam and inserted into the upholstery housing as shown.
Obviously, other configurations of cubes, either greater than, or
less than the number shown in the present illustrations can be
employed to create other configurations of interactive cube
furniture.
[0033] While the invention has been described in connection with a
preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the
invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it
is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and
equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the
invention as defined by the appended claims.
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