US3669496A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Chair and seat and back unit therefor
Assignee: JJB ACQUISITION Corp A CORP OF
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Filing: 1970-12-03
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Granted: 1972-06-13
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Expires: 1990-12-03
Abstract
Abstract A chair comprises a frame, which may be somewhat flexible, and a unitary blow-molded plastic seat and back unit including a hollow, relatively non-bendable seat portion, a hollow, relatively non-bendable back portion, and a relatively bendable portion intervening between and connecting the seat and back portions. The seat and back unit is blow-molded in substantially, i.e. generally, flat, over-all condition, in which it may be stored and shipped, and is conditioned for mounting on the chair frame by bending about the intervening connecting portion. The latter is formed to provide for controlled bending with avoidance of sharp localized bends, and to provide for such lateral flexing of the seat and back portions as to conform to a sitter''s position, such as a slouched position, and to prevent stressinduced edge cracks. The seat and back unit is attached to the chair frame by bolts engaging internally threaded fastening elements molded in situ in the plastic unit, the bolts extending through and beyond the fastening elements and biting into the plastic to lock the bolts against unintentional unscrewing.
Inventors
- 👤 William A Chisholm
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 12:15
CPC Classifications
B; B29; B29C; B29C49/00; B29C49/0031; A; A47; A47C; A47C5/00; A47C5/12; A47C7/00; A47C7/02; A47C7/16; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S297/00; Y10S297/02
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 35
Claim 1
Independent Claim
73 words
A chair comprising a supporting frame; an integral blowmolded seat and back unit comprising a relatively non-bendable hollow seat portion, a relatively non-bendable hollow back portion, and a relatively bendable portion intervening between and connecting said seat and back portions, said relatively bendable portion being of the same material as and being substantially less in cross section than said relatively nonbendable seat and back portions; and means attaching said unit to said frame.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
73 words
A chair comprising a supporting frame; an integral blowmolded seat and back unit comprising a relatively non-bendable hollow seat portion, a relatively non-bendable hollow back portion, and a relatively bendable portion intervening between and connecting said seat and back portions, said relatively bendable portion being of the same material as and being substantially less in cross section than said relatively nonbendable seat and back portions; and means attaching said unit to said frame.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
17 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which said bendable portion is solid, that is not hollow.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
75 words
A chair according to claim 2 in which said seat portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, said back portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner major walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other, said extensions being united to each other to provide said solid bendable portion.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
30 words
A chair according to claim 3 in which said solid bendable portion is substantially twice as thick as the inner and outer major walls of said seat and back portions.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
25 words
A chair according to claim 3 in which said solid bendable portion has a plurality of spaced grooves extending transversely with respect to the chair.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
34 words
A chair according to claim 5 in which said grooves are in the part of said solid bendable portion constituted by the extension of said outer major walls of said seat and back portions.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
31 words
A chair according to claim 5 in which said grooves extend close to but terminate short of the edges of said solid bendable portion respectively at the sides of the chair.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
87 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which said seat portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, said back portion includes spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other; and in which the outer major wall of said seat portion is of undulating peak-and-valley formation, the peaks and valleys extending transversely with respect to the chair.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
41 words
A chair according to claim 8 in which said frame comprises two laterally spaced fore-and-aft extending seat portion supporting members; and in which said seat portion outer major wall has similarly laterally spaced fore-and-aft extending grooves respectively receiving said supporting members.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
36 words
A chair according to claim 8 in which said peaks and valleys of said peak-and-valley formation extend close to but terminate short of the edges of said seat portion respectively at the sides of the chair.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
55 words
A chair according to claim 8 in which, in an intermediate part of said seat portion fore-and-aft of said chair, said seat portion inner and outer major walls are united or at least touch one another and in which other parts of said seat portion inner and outer major walls are spaced from one another.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
62 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which said seat portion includes inner and outer major walls, said seat portion inner and outer major walls being united or at least touching one another in a fore-and-aft intermediate part of said seat portion, said inner and outer major walls being spaced from and in non-contacting relation in other parts of said seat portion.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
130 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which each of said seat and back portions comprises opposed mainly spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner major walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other; and in which the inner and outer major walls of said back portion are spaced from one another throughout most of the area of said back portion, said back portion inner and outer major walls being united in a relatively small area adjacent to but spaced from the free edge of said back portion opposite said bendable portion, thereby to provide a reinforcing box structure extending along said free edge of said back portion.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
27 words
A chair according to claim 13 in which said extensions of said inner and outer major walls are united to each other to provide said bendable portion.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
115 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which said means attaching said unit to said frame comprises an internally screw threaded member molded in the material of said unit in axial alignment with an opening in said material having a diameter less than the diameter of the screw threads at their roots and substantially equal to the diameter of said screw threads at their crests; and an externally threaded fastening screw extending through said frame, threaded into said internally screw threaded member, and projecting beyond the latter and into said opening, the threads on the projecting part of said screw biting into the wall of said opening and thereby locking said screw against unintentional unscrewing.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
199 words
A chair according to claim 1 in which said frame comprises a rear upstanding back supporting part and two laterally spaced fore-and-aft extending seat portion supporting members; and in which both the seat portion and the back portion of said seat and back unit include opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer walls from one to the other; said seat portion being of undulating peak-and-valley formation with the peaks extending transversely with respect to the chair, the outer major wall of said seat portion having two laterally spaced fore-and-aft extending grooves respectively receiving said seat portion supporting members of said frame; the outer major wall of said back portion being grooved vertically to receive said frame rear upstanding back supporting part; and said bendable portion being flexible substantially in all directions, whereby to enable said seat portion to adjust in position so as comfortably to accommodate a sitter sitting in such position that the sitter''s weight would not otherwise be evenly distributed on said seat portion, as when sitting in a slouched or non-erect position.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
13 words
A chair according to claim 16 in which said chair frame is resilient.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
50 words
A chair according to claim 16 in which the inner and outer major walls of said back portion are more widely spaced from each other in sections extending along the side and top edges of said back portion than in the area surrounded by said sections and said bendable portion.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
76 words
A chair according to claim 16 in which said solid bendable portion has a plurality of spaced grooves in the part of said bendable portion constituted by the extension of said outer major walls, said grooves extending transversely with respect to the chair and terminating close to but short of the sides of said bendable portion, thereby leaving ungrooved marginal edge lips providing for evenly resisted bending of said bendable portion without localized sharp bending thereof.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
64 words
An integral blow-molded seat and back unit for a chair, said unit comprising a relatively non-bendable hollow seat portion; a relatively non-bendable hollow back portion; and a relatively bendable portion intervening between and connecting said seat and back portions, said relatively bendable portion being of the same material as and being substantially less in cross section than said relatively non-bendable seat and back portions.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
64 words
An integral blow-molded seat and back unit for a chair, said unit comprising a relatively non-bendable hollow seat portion; a relatively non-bendable hollow back portion; and a relatively bendable portion intervening between and connecting said seat and back portions, said relatively bendable portion being of the same material as and being substantially less in cross section than said relatively non-bendable seat and back portions.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
19 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 20 in which said bendable portion is solid, that is not hollow.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
77 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 21 in which said seat portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, said back portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner major walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other, said extensions being united to each other to provide said solid bendable portion.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
32 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 22 in which said solid bendable portion is substantially twice as thick as the inner and outer major walls of said seat and back portion.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
27 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 22 in which said solid bendable portion has a plurality of spaced grooves extending transversely with respect to said unit.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
36 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 24 in which said grooves are in the part of said solid bendable portion constituted by the extension of said outer major walls of said seat and back portions.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
27 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 25 in which said grooves extend close to but terminate short of the longitudinal edges of said solid bendable portion.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
89 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 20 in which said seat portion includes opposed spaced inner and outer major walls, said back portion includes spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other; and in which the outer major wall of said seat portion is of undulating peak-and-valley formation, the peaks and valleys extending transversely with respect to said unit.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
38 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 27 in which said peaks and valleys of said peak-and-valley formation extend close to but terminate short of the edges of said seat portion respectively at the sides of said unit.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
57 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 27 in which, in an intermediate part of said seat portion fore-and-aft of said chair, said seat portion inner and outer major walls are united or at least touch one another and in which other parts of said seat portion inner and outer major walls are spaced from one another.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
64 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 20 in which said seat portion includes inner and outer major walls, said seat portion inner and outer major walls being united or at least touching one another in a fore-and-aft intermediate part of said seat portion, said inner and outer major walls being spaced from and in non-contacting relation in other parts of said seat portion.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
132 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 20 in which each of said seat and back portions comprises opposed mainly spaced inner and outer major walls, and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner major walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer major walls from one to the other; and in which the inner and outer major walls of said back portion are spaced from one another throughout most of the area of said back portion, said back portion inner and outer major walls being united in a relatively small area adjacent to but spaced from the free edge of said back portion opposite said bendable portion, thereby to provide a reinforcing box structure extending along said free edge of said back portion.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
117 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 20 in which said seat and back portions both include opposed spaceD inner and outer major walls and said bendable portion is constituted by an extension of said inner walls from one to the other and an extension of said outer walls from one to the other, said inner and outer major walls of said back portion being more widely spaced from each other in sections extending along the side and free end edges of said back portion than in the area surrounded by said sections and said bendable portion, whereby to provide more stiffness in the periphery of said back portion than in portions of the central area thereof.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
29 words
Seat and back unit according to claim 31 in which said extensions of said inner and outer major walls are united to each other to provide said bendable portion.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1975-06-13 | 1975-12-13 | 1976-06-13 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1979-06-13 | 1979-12-13 | 1980-06-13 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1983-06-13 | 1983-12-13 | 1984-06-13 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |