Seating Construction

Abstract

A seating construction with a seat and backrest wherein the seat is formed of a molded base member with a central recessed area filled with a soft resilient cushioning material. The base member is molded and formed of a generally non-deformable, relatively soft, foamed synthetic material, such as foamed polystyrene or foamed polyurethane. A lateral slot extends across a front portion of the upper surface of the base member and retains therein a nail-retaining block. Upholstery material is tacked to the nail-retaining block and drawn around the top front edge and front surface of the base member as a covering therefor. The backrest is similarly formed of a molded relatively soft non-deformable foamed synthetic material with a dished or recessed area in the front surface thereof filled with a soft resilient material such as foam rubber. A loose or bound back cushion desirably is provided in front of the backrest and a loose cushion is preferably provided over the seat portion.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to seating constructions. In one of its aspects, it relates to a seating construction for upholstered furniture having a seat and backrest.

2. State of the Prior Art

Upholstered furniture such as sofas and chairs conventionally are constructed with a frame which includes a seat portion and a backrest portion. Cushions, either looseback or bound, are positioned in front of the backrest portion and loose cushions are provided over the seat portion. Typically, both the backrest and the seat portions contain springs or other material for providing resiliency beneath the cushions. One problem with some of the constructions is that the front edges of the seats break down with repeated use whereby the seats will sag at the front. To overcome this problem, wood edges have been put at the top front edge of the seat foundations to avoid the sagging problem. In spite of the fact that a layer of padding is usually provided over the wood parts, the wood is too hard to use at the front of the seating base.

It has been proposed to mold chairs from foamed plastic materials which may include a rigid shell, as, for example, disclosed in the patent to Taylor U.S. Pat. No. 3,642,323. A rigid shell is provided for strength in the structure and various layers of the formable foamed materials are used for cushioning. Such structure and other structures which employ molded plastic make it difficult to securely attach upholstery material to the plastic. Generally, the rigid foamed plastic material does not hold screws and nails as well as wood and thus, it is difficult to secure the upholstered material to the front of the base portion.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A seating unit has now been devised whereby adequate support for the seat and backrest portion are provided by molded synthetic plastic material, yet a resiliency is provided for the greatest weight-bearing area of the seat and back portion. Further, means are provided for securely retaining upholstery fabric and any padding material which must be drawn over the front surface of the seating portion. The seating unit is of a type wherein loose back or bound cushions are provided for the backrest portion and wherein a loose cushion is provided for the seat portion.

According to the invention, a molded base member has a central recessed area and is formed of a generally non-deformable, relatively soft, foamed synthetic material. A layer of a resilient soft material fills the central cavity and forms a substantially continuous surface with the top of the base member outside of the central cavity. The layer of resilient material can be of any suitable resilient foamed rubber. An elongated slot is formed at a front portion of the upper surface of the molded base member at a spaced distance from and parallel to the front edge thereof. A nail-retaining block of material different from the base material is secured within the slot and upholstery fabric is tacked to the block and drawn over the front edge of the base member to cover the front surface thereof. Desirably, the nail-retaining block and the slot have upwardly sloping and converging sides so that the slot retains the block. To this end, the block is molded into the base member so that it is securely retained thereby.

Wood frame members including legs can conveniently be provided for supporting the base member and the backrest portion of the seating construction. The backrest portion is formed of a generally non-deformable, but relatively soft foamed synthetic material which has a central cavity at a front face thereof filled with a layer of soft resilient material. A cushion is provided in front of the backrest support as well as on top of the seat member. The non-deformable foamed synthetic material desirably is formed of a rigid foamed polystyrene material, generally known as Styrofoam. Suitable foamed materials are presently available and used for packing. Relatively soft, rigid polyurethane can also be employed as the non-deformable foamed material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view in section of a seating construction according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view taken along lines 2--2 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view taken along lines 3--3 of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a seating unit having a seat portion 12 and a backrest portion 14. The seat portion 12 has a frame comprising a plurality of elongated stringer supports 16 secured at the ends thereof to a front frame piece 18 and a rear frame piece 20. Legs 22 are secured at front and back portions of the frame and extend downwardly thereof to support the seating unit. The frame pieces are desirably made of wood and are secured together in a conventional fashion.

A molded seat base member 24 of a soft but semi-rigid foamed plastic material has a plurality of central hollow portions 26, a recessed rear portion 28 and a recessed front portion 30. The front frame piece 18 fits snugly within the front recessed portion 30 and the rear frame piece 20 fits snugly within the rear recessed portion of the seat base member 24, whereby the seat base member 24 is securely retained by the seat frame. In addition to the above mentioned interfitting portions of the seat base member 24 and the frame, fastening means (not shown) such as screw adhesives and the like can also be used to secure the seat base member 24 to the seat frame.

The seat base member 24 has a molded slot 32 extending across the width of the base member 24 for retaining a trapezoidal shaped block 34 of a wood or other suitable nail-retaining means. The block 34 as well as the slot 32 have upwardly and inwardly sloping sides so that the block 34 is securely retained by the slot 32. The slot 32 is formed at a forward portion of the upper surface of the seat base member 24, but at a spaced distance from the front edge thereof. An upholstery fabric 38 is secured at one edge to the block 34 through tacks 54, is wrapped around the front edge of the base member 24 and is secured at the other end to the front frame piece 18 through tacks 52. Padding 50 is secured between the fabric 48 and the base member 24. The fabric 48 and padding 50 extend along the entire width of the base member 24.

A central dished depression 36 is formed in the upper surface in a central and rear portion of the base member 24. The depression 36 corresponds to the area of greatest force by the seat occupant. The depression 36 extends substantially completely across the base member 24 and is mounted at the sides thereof by walls 38. A soft resilient cushioning layer 40 is formed to fit within the depression 36, the cushioning layer 40 having a curved bottom surface 42 and a flat top surface 44. Thus, the top surface 44 of the cushioning layer 40 is coplanar with the top surface of the base member 24 outside of the dished depression 36.

A loose cushion 46 is positioned on top of the base member 24 and cushioning layer 40. The loose cushion 46 may be formed of any conventional materials, such as foam rubber, down, or springs.

The tack retaining block 34 is illustrated in a position jut forwardly of the edge of the depression 36 as this is the preferred location for the same. However, the depression 36 may extend forwardly into the area where the block is positioned or the block may be positioned back further slightly into the depression 36. The depression 36 is far enough back from the front edge of the seat base member 24 so as to form a resilient cushion in an area of the seat which receives the greatest amount of force when the seating unit is in use. The block 34, on the other hand, is far enough forward so that it avoids the area of the seat which receives the most weight, and so that it may retain the upholstery fabric 58 at the front of the base member 24. Yet the block 34 must be spaced far enough back from the front edge of the seat base member 24 so that the edge of the fabric 48 does not show when the seat is in normal use, and so that the block 34 does not form a hard edge at the front of the seat base member 24.

Desirably, a fabric 80 is stretched over the top surface of the base member 24 and the resilient cushioning layer 40 and secured to the frame of the seat by tracks 88 or other suitable fastening means. At the front edge, the fabric 80 is secured to the fabric 48 which is blind tacked to the block 34. For purposes of simplicity the blind tacking has not been shown.

The backrest 14 is secured to the seat 12 through a conventional frame comprising a plurality of vertical stringers 56, ends pieces 58 and 60. A molded back support 62 has inset portions 68 and 70 for receiving the end piece 60 of the frame at the upper portion and a block 72 at the lower portion, respectively. Additional fastening means (not shown) such as screws, nails, adhesives, etc., can be employed to securely fasten the back support 62 to the back frame. A dished surface 74 defines a recessed area at a front surface of the back support 62 for receiving a soft resilient cushioning layer 78. The dished surface 74 extends substantially completely across the front face of the back support 62 and is bounded by walls 66 at the side edges thereof. The recessed area formed by the dished surface 74 also defines an area of greatest force or strain which is applied by the back of an occupant of the seating unit. The resilient cushioning layer 68 is shaped to fit within the depression formed by the dished surface 74 and provides a flat surface at the front thereof. A fabric layer 86 desirably is stretched around the frame, back support 62 and cushioning layer 78 and secured thereto in conventional fashion with tacks 88. A loose cushion 84 can be provided at the front surface of the cushioning layer 78. The back cushion 84 can be made of any conventional material such as foam rubber, down or can be spring filled. The cushion 84 is covered with a suitable fabric in conventional fashion.

The back cushion 84 is shown as a loose back cushion for purposes of illustration. The back cushion can also be secured through upholstery fabric in conventional fashion to the backrest frame so that the back cushion is bound to the backrest frame.

The seat base member 24 has been illustrated with a plurality of central hollow portions 26 to conserve on molded material. However, the base member 24 can be made in a solid piece if desired.

The seat base member 24 and the back support 62 are preferably molded from a relatively soft but rigid foamed material such as a semirigid urethane foam or Styrofoam. The hardness of the foam should be substantially less than that of wood, yet of sufficient strength to avoid crushing or deformation in use.

The rubbery cushioning layers 40 and 78 are made from a rubbery material which may be synthetic or natural. The rubbery material is a resilient springy material, for example, foam rubber, which is commonly used as upholstery filling material.

The seat and backrest can be made by first molding the base member 24 in a conventional mold into the desired shape with the trapezoidal block 34 integrally molded into the seat base member 24. In other words, the trapezoidal block 34 is positioned in the mold and the seat base member 24 is molded around the block 34. After the molding of the seat base members 24 and the back support 62, the cushioning layers 40 and 78 can be molded in situ directly in the depression 36 and dished surface 74 respectively, or can be molded to the proper shape in a separate mold and then secured by conventional adhesives in position on the respective molded parts. The fabric 48 and padding 50 can then be secured through tacks 52 and 54 to the front portion of the base member 24 and the other upholstery fabrics can be then conventionally tacked to the frames in conventional manner.

Reasonable variation and modification are possible within the scope of the foregoing disclosure, the drawings, and the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A seating foundation for use in upholstered furniture wherein loose cushions are placed over the base and a soft cushion is provided at a backrest, said seating foundation having a seat portion and a backrest portion, said seat portion comprising:

a molded base member formed of a non-deformable, relatively soft, foamed material;

a slot formed in an upper front portion of the upper surface of said base member a spaced distance from a front edge thereof and extending in a direction parallel to said front edge;

a block of nail-retaining material in said slot;

means for retaining said block within said slot; and

a fabric material secured to said block at one end portion, drawn over the front edge of said base cover, and secured at another end portion to an underside of said molded base member, so that said fabric covers the front surface of said base member.

2. A seating foundation according to claim 1 wherein said nail-retaining block and said slot have upwardly converging sides so that said block is retained by said slot.

3. A seating foundation according to claim 1 and further comprising a backrest support formed of a generally non-deformable, but relatively soft foamed synthetic material, and having a central cavity at a front face thereof, and a layer of soft resilient material filling said backrest support central cavity and secured therein, said layer of resilient material forming a substantially continuous surface with said front face of said backrest support; means for rigidly supporting said backrest in an upright position in spaced relationship to said base member; and a cushion positioned in front of said backrest support and layer of resilient material.

4. A seating foundation according to claim 3 wherein said central cavity is dished and formed by surfaces which slope gradually to the edges thereof.

5. A seating construction according to claim 1 wherein a central cavity is formed in said base member and tapers forwardly to said slot and a layer of soft resilient material is secured to and fills the central cavity, the resilient material forming a substantially continuous surface with the top of the base member outside of the central cavity.

6. A seating foundation according to claim 1 wherein said base member is formed of a foamed polystyrene.

7. A seating foundation according to claim 1 wherein said base member is formed of a non-deformable, soft foamed polyurethane.

8. A seating foundation according to claim 1 and further comprising a separate cushion of a resilient material positioned on the top of the base member.