Seat Fastening Means

Abstract

A chair frame has a pair of spaced substantially horizontal side members for support of a seat, and said side members are spanned by a fixed panel upon which a chair seat may be superposed and anchored with great ease and despatch and without the use of tools or mechanical ability. The seat carries fastening means to engage the fixed panel either permanently or releasably, whereby the chair is fully prepared for use.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is customary in the furniture manufacturing industry, to ship and/or store new chairs in a partially knocked-down condition, so as to conserve storage and shipping space. The chairs in knocked-down condition are usually packed in cartons of six, or four, with the frames nested together and the seats separately interposed between or amongst the frame elements in a manner such as to afford protection for the seats and their coverings against damage in handling of the cartons.

The recipient of the cartoned chairs usually will assemble them by securing the seats upon the frames, and in most instances he resents the chore if assembly involves any substantial amount of labor, skill, or the use of tools which could scratch or mar the frame or the seat coverings. A primary objective of the present invention is to eliminate the need for tools in assembly of the chairs, and to effect a practically instant attachment of a seat to the chair frame with substantial savings of time, labor and handling.

The most relevant prior art of which applicant is aware is embodied in the following United States Patents:

Lisi 2,717,634, Mayer 2,876,828, Keefer 2,961,037, Wilson 2,997,339, Cohen 3,054,156, Grosfillex 3,393,941.

While the prior art patents recognize the shipping and storage problem, and suggest various means to save time and labor in securing the seats upon the chair frames, there is room for improvement in the securing means provided.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, the horizontal side members of the chair frame are rigidly connected and reinforced by a metallic panel or anchor plate which spans the side members and is rigidly secured thereto by means of welds or otherise. The rigid panel is fabricated with simple anchor means to accommodate a multiplicity of fasteners with which the seat member is equipped at the factory. The fasteners on the seat member may be in the form of spring clips, deformable lugs, spring fingers, or the like, which are easily alignable with and readily interlockable with, the anchor means of the panel or plate aforesaid.

The securement or interlocking of the fasteners of the seat member with the cooperative anchor means of the rigid panel, is accomplished with ease and dispatch and without the use of tools or mechanical skill. The interlock elements are simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and the entire structure is designed to withstand more than the usual amount of use and abuse.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a chair embodying the means of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a rigid seat-mounted panel.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a frame-spanning rigid panel.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a spring fastener or clip.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 5--5 of FIG. 1 assembled.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 6--6 of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a view of a modified form of spring fastener or clip.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmental cross-section similar substantially to the left half of FIG. 5, showing use of the FIG. 7 fastener.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a modification of the seat mounting means of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 10 and 11 are plan views of the FIG. 9 elements.

FIGS. 12 and 13 are enlarged cross-sections showing use of the seat mounting means of FIGS. 9 to 11.

FIG. 14 shows in plan a modification of the FIG. 11 panel.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view showing a further modification of the seat mounting means of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 16 and 17 are plan views of the FIG. 15 elements.

FIG. 18 is an enlarged fragmental cross-section showing the elements of FIG. 15 interlocked.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The frame of the chair comprises two main parts formed preferably of metal tubing, one of which parts is substantially Z-shaped and includes two front legs 22, 22, two substantially horizontal side members 24, 24, and two upright back members 26, 26 which latter are suitably connected to a back rest 28. The second frame part is generally L-shaped, and comprises two rear legs 30, 30, two substantially horizontal side members 32, 32, and a connecting strut 34 spanning the side members 32, 32. The second frame part, like the first, may be fabricated from metal tubing.

The side members 24, 24 embrace the side members 32, 32 and are rigidly connected thereto in any suitable manner, as by means of welds 36. A substantially flat first panel or anchor plate 38, preferably of sheet metal, spans the side members of the frame, and is rigidly mounted thereon at its opposite ends, preferably by means of welds 40. At locations spaced from the ends of panel 38, the panel is provided with anchor means which, in the case of FIG. 1, consists of a series of substantially circular apertures or holes 42 spaced from the longitudinal side edges of the panel.

At 44 is indicated a chair seat which may be padded if desired, and which comprises a flat base 46 or wood or other suitable material to overlie the horizontal side members of the chair frame. To the underside of seat base 46 is secured, as by means of screws 48 or equivalent fasteners which project through holes 148, a second panel 50 which may be in the form of a flat plate constructed of any suitable material, for example sheet metal, fiber board, or the like. Panel 50 is adapted to carry a plurality of anchor means or fasteners, which in FIGS. 1 through 8, are shown in the form of spring clips or resilient fasteners 52 of conventional type, such as are commonly known as Tinnerman dart clips. The Tinnerman clips are manufactured by Eaton Corp. in the U.S.

Spring clips or fasteners such as 52 include an enlarged head 54 from which the resilient fingers thereof depend. For applying the fasteners 52 to panel 50, the panel may be provided with holes 56 through which the astener fingers are projected downwardly beyond the panel, while the fastener heads rest atop panel 50 to abut the underface of seat base 46. The holes 56 are located to align with the holes 42 of fixed panel 38, so that the fasteners supported by seat panel 50 will enter and frictionally engage the holes of frame panel 38 when the seat is lowered onto the chair frame, to the position of FIG. 5. The seat may be removed from the chair frame by prying apart the panels 38 and 50.

In the modification, FIGS. 9, 10 and 11, the frame panel 138 is similar to panel 38, with the exception that the apertures 142 are in the form of elongate slots spaced from the side and end edges of the panel, for receiving registering down-turned lugs 60 punched from the metal of panel 150. Panel 150 is provided with screw holes 62 to accommodate panel mounting screws such as 48 of FIG. 1. The lugs 60 after entry into the slots, may be bent over onto the underface of panel 138, to interlock the panels and thereby secure the seat relative to the chair frame.

FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 show a slight modification of the preceding FIGS. 9 - 11, wherein notches 64 are substituted for the slots 142 in panel 238. FIG. 13 indicates how the fastener lugs 60 may be bent over to provide an interlock with panel 238, this applying also to the corresponding panel 138. The interlock mentioned may be considered either a permanent or a separable connection. To separate the interlock, it is necessary to bend the lugs back to the initial position of FIG. 12.

FIGS. 15 through 18 illustrate a modification wherein the cooperative seat and frame panels 350 and 338 carry a different form of interlock or fastener means. Here the panel 338 is provided with spaced pairs of fastener receptive apertures 68 arranged in rows extending lengthwise of the panel, said aperture being preferably rectangular of shape, and all being located intermediate the panel ends 70. As will be understood, ends 70 are in practice welded or otherwise fixed to the substantially horizontal side members of the chair frame.

Panel 350, which is metallic, carries holes 72 located near its ends for accommodating screws to mount the panel upon a chair seat, and is machine punched to produce resilient tangs or lugs 74 in pairs, for entry into the several apertures 68 of panel 338. The tangs or lugs possess the inherent resiliency of the metal from which they are struck, and each is provided with a rounded portion or nose 76 to frictionally engage and then yieldingly advance along an adjacent edge of an aperture 68 to effect a yieldable interlock with panel 338 (FIG. 18). The free ends 78 of the tangs of each pair, are turned toward one another, as best shown in FIG. 18, to facilitate entry of the tangs into apertures 68. The structure of FIGS. 15 through 18 provide an interlock whick is firm, yet separable by prying apart the two panels. The tangs 74 preferably remain in yielding contact with the undersurface of panel 338 at the abutment edges of the apertures 68, according to FIG. 18.

In conclusion, it is pointed out that the apertured or notched frame panel serves to rigidify the chair frame at all times, and to thereby assume all twisting or bending stresses and strains that would otherwise be imposed upon the less durable fasteners. The seat mounting and fastening means is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and use thereof expedites and facilitates assembly of the chair without the employment of tools or mechanical skill.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A chair comprising a frame and a seat, said frame including a pair of laterally spaced, substantially horizontal side members; a first, frame panel secured at its opposite ends to said side members in spanning relation thereto and bracing said frame; and interlocking fastener and alignment means on said panel and on the undersurface of said seat, said interlocking fastener and alignment means including a plurality of downwardly projecting fasteners on the undersurface of the seat and a plurality of aligned openings through the panel through which the fasteners extend to align and secure the seat relative to said panel and thus to said frame.

2. A chair as called for in claim 1, wherein the side adjacent edges of the seat overlie and are supported by the side members of said frame.

3. A chair as called for in claim 1, wherein the interlocking fastener means are located intermediate and spaced inwardly from the side members of the frame.

4. A chair as called for in claim 1, wherein the fastener means are deformable for securing the seat to the panel against accidental or unintentional displacement therefrom.

5. A chair as called for in claim 1, wherein said fastener means includes a series of bendable metallic lugs fixed relative to the seat, and adapted to be bent onto said panel for securing the seat in a final position.

6. A chair as called for in claim 5, wherein is included a second, metallic panel secured to the undersurface of the seat in substantial parallelism therewith, and from which second panel said lugs are struck and initially extended.

7. A chair as called for in claim 1, wherein is included a second, metallic panel secured to the undersurface of the seat in substantial parallelism therewith, and adapted to overlie flatwise the first-mentioned panel upon assembly of the chair.

8. A chair as in claim 1, wherein a second, seat panel is secured to and carried by the undersurface of the seat.

9. A chair as called for in claim 8, wherein the opposite ends of the first panel are fixedly secured to the side members of the frame, and wherein the width of said first panel is substantially less than the length of the said side members.

10. A chair as called for in claim 8, wherein the projecting fasteners are carried by the second panel and are selectively receivable in the openings of the first panel.

11. A chair as called for in claim 10, wherein the fasteners of the second panel comprise upstanding tongues struck from said panel, said tongues receivable in and projectable through the openings of the first panel with the terminal ends of the tongues disposed beyond and interlockingly engaging the undersurface of the first panel.

12. A chair as called for in claim 10, wherein the fastener receptive openings of the first panel are disposed in axially spaced pairs longitudinally of said panel, and wherein the fasteners of the second panel comprise pairs of axially spaced, oppositely extending rounded tangs struck from said second panel and extending beyond the outer surface thereof, the tangs of each pair receivable in and projectable through corresponding openings of the first panel with the rounded portions of said tangs resiliently engaging the undersurface of the first panel, immediately adjacent the edge of said openings.

13. A chair as called for in claim 10, wherein the side adjacent edges of the seat overlie, engage and are supported by the side members of the frame, and wherein the length of the second panel is less than the spacing between the side members of the frame.

14. A chair as called for in claim 13, wherein the side members constitute the primary support for the seat, and wherein the seat is secured to the frame by the interlocking means of the first and second panels.

15. A chair as called for in claim 8, wherein said first and second panels are substantially flat, and the second panel upon assembly of the chair rests substantially flatwise in superposed relationship upon said first panel.

16. A chair as called for in claim 8, wherein the fasteners of said second panel include base heads in abutment upon the undersurface of the seat.