US3774967A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Seating and sub-assembly for seats and backs
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1972-07-03
•
Granted: 1973-11-27
•
Expires: 1992-07-03
Abstract
Abstract Seats and backs for chairs and other seating units are made as a sub-assembly of sinuous spring wires. For example, a rim, typically having straight ends joined by usually parallel sides shaped as circular arcs, encloses, and its straight ends are attached to, the opposite ends of each of a series of the sinuous spring wires, which extend between them in a circular arc paralleling those of the rim sides. Each of the two extreme spring wires is preferably tangent at each cycle to one of those sides, and each wire touches its adjacent wire at least once per cycle. A thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounds the wires and follows their sinuous shape. It also surrounds the rim and links the wires and the rim together and links the wires themselves together wherever they touch, into a unitary assembly shaped as a cylindrical arc and intended to be flattened somewhat when installed on a chair frame, to place the springs in tension along a flatter cylindrical arc. The ends serve to mount the assembly on the frame, and the parallel sides enclose the springs and minimize their catching on clothing, while the tension provides one of the main forces retaining the assembly in place. In preferred forms of the invention the plastic coating has an Ascale Shore durometer between 45 and 90, so that the assembly is held together by the plastic coating without substantially restraining the flexing of the spring wires, while the coating also provides a spring action itself between the adjacent wires, by stretching and contracting, giving a two-way stretch.
Inventors
- 👤 D Rowland
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 19:52
CPC Classifications
A; A47; A47C; A47C7/00; A47C7/02; A47C7/28; A47C7/282; A47C5/00; A47C5/04; A47C5/06; A47C7/16; A47C7/285; A47C7/30; D; D01; D01H; D01H7/00; D01H7/02; D01H7/04; D01H7/045; D01H7/048; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/12; Y10T428/12333; Y10T428/24; Y10T428/24008
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 36
Claim 1
Independent Claim
160 words
A seating apparatus, including in combination: a. a frame having at least two spaced-apart rigid frame portions, b. an assembly having 1. a series of arcuate, continuous, sinuous wires, each having two ends, each said wire closely approaching each of its immediately adjacent said wires at frequent intervals, 2. fastening means firmly securing said wires adjacent their ends and positively preventing relative movement of the wires to said fastening means, and 3. a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding said wires and said fastening means, following the sinuosity of said wires and joining said wires together where they closely approach each other, said approaches being close enough for effective bridging between them by said coating, whereby said wires, fastening means, and plastic coating comprise a unitary assembly defining a cylindrical arc, and c. mounting means for securing said assembly to said rigid frame portions across a space that flattens said arc to a flatter arc and places said assembly in tension.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
160 words
A seating apparatus, including in combination: a. a frame having at least two spaced-apart rigid frame portions, b. an assembly having 1. a series of arcuate, continuous, sinuous wires, each having two ends, each said wire closely approaching each of its immediately adjacent said wires at frequent intervals, 2. fastening means firmly securing said wires adjacent their ends and positively preventing relative movement of the wires to said fastening means, and 3. a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding said wires and said fastening means, following the sinuosity of said wires and joining said wires together where they closely approach each other, said approaches being close enough for effective bridging between them by said coating, whereby said wires, fastening means, and plastic coating comprise a unitary assembly defining a cylindrical arc, and c. mounting means for securing said assembly to said rigid frame portions across a space that flattens said arc to a flatter arc and places said assembly in tension.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
22 words
The seating apparatus of claim 1 wherein said frame supports two said assemblies, one for a seat and one for a back.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
22 words
fastening means firmly securing said wires adjacent their ends and positively preventing relative movement of the wires to said fastening means, and
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
22 words
fastening means firmly securing said wires adjacent their ends and positively preventing relative movement of the wires to said fastening means, and
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
23 words
The seating apparatus of claim 2 wherein said seat arches upwardly from side to side and back arches rearwardly from side to side.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
88 words
a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding said wires and said fastening means, following the sinuosity of said wires and joining said wires together where they closely approach each other, said approaches being close enough for effective bridging between them by said coating, whereby said wires, fastening means, and plastic coating comprise a unitary assembly defining a cylindrical arc, and c. mounting means for securing said assembly to said rigid frame portions across a space that flattens said arc to a flatter arc and places said assembly in tension.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
88 words
a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding said wires and said fastening means, following the sinuosity of said wires and joining said wires together where they closely approach each other, said approaches being close enough for effective bridging between them by said coating, whereby said wires, fastening means, and plastic coating comprise a unitary assembly defining a cylindrical arc, and c. mounting means for securing said assembly to said rigid frame portions across a space that flattens said arc to a flatter arc and places said assembly in tension.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
29 words
The seating apparatus of claim 3 wherein the wires extending across the front of the seat are of thinner gauge than the wires in the remainder of the seat.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
22 words
The seating apparatus of claim 3 wherein the seat compresses 1 inch to 3 inches when sat upon by a 150-POUND person.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
24 words
The seating apparatus of claim 3 wherein the seat crowns to a height above the ends of 1/64 to 1/16 of the seat width.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
31 words
The seating apparatus of claim 2 wherein in each said assembly said wires occupy a silhouette area of about 17 percent to about 75 percent of the area of their assemblies.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
24 words
The seating apparatus of claim 2 wherein said seat arches upwardly from front to rear and said back arches forwardly from bottom to top.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
32 words
The seating apparatus of claim 8 wherein said frame has a horizontally extending member to which the rear edge of said seat and the bottom edge of said back are both secured.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
26 words
The seating apparatus of claim 8 wherein said frame is curved and said assembly is attached to the frame curve and is imparted a compound curvature.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
11 words
The seating apparatus of claim 2 wherein the seat arches downwardly.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
19 words
The seating apparatus of claim 1 wherein some of the wires are of different vibration frequency from other wires.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
15 words
The seating apparatus of claim 12 wherein some wires are of different thickness from others.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
16 words
The seating apparatus of claim 12 wherein some wires are of different arc-cycle length from others.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
15 words
The seating apparatus of claim 12 wherein some wires are of different temper from others.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
20 words
The seating apparatus of claim 1 wherein the wire diameter lies in the range of 0.05 inch to 0.15 inch.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
23 words
The seating apparatus of claim 1 wherein the coating thickness is from about 20 percent to about 100 percent of the wire thickness.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
28 words
The seating apparatus of claim 1 wherein the empty space between the coated wires occupies between 2 percent and 75 percent of the area of said assembly (b).
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
206 words
A chair or the like comprising a rigid frame with two spaced-apart frame members, and an assembly useful as a seating or back member, said assembly comprising a rim defining a closed area of a cylindrical surface, arched in one direction and straight in another direction normal to said arched direction, and having springy flexing action along said arched direction, a series of sinuous spring wires each positively anchored at opposite ends to said rim and extending across said rim in a generally circular arc parallel to the arching of said rim, the longitudinal axes of said wires being parallel to each other, each said wire very closely approaching its adjacent said wires at least once each cycle, a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding each said wire and following its sinuous shape and bridging two wires wherever they closely approach each other and also surrounding said rim, linking said wires together and to said rim in a unitary assembly shaped as a cylindrical arc having a curvature of less radius than that desired in said seat or back, and means for mounting said rim on said frame members, and for flattening said springs somewhat to place the spring wires in tension along a flatter cylindrical arc.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
206 words
A chair or the like comprising a rigid frame with two spaced-apart frame members, and an assembly useful as a seating or back member, said assembly comprising a rim defining a closed area of a cylindrical surface, arched in one direction and straight in another direction normal to said arched direction, and having springy flexing action along said arched direction, a series of sinuous spring wires each positively anchored at opposite ends to said rim and extending across said rim in a generally circular arc parallel to the arching of said rim, the longitudinal axes of said wires being parallel to each other, each said wire very closely approaching its adjacent said wires at least once each cycle, a thin sleevelike plastic coating surrounding each said wire and following its sinuous shape and bridging two wires wherever they closely approach each other and also surrounding said rim, linking said wires together and to said rim in a unitary assembly shaped as a cylindrical arc having a curvature of less radius than that desired in said seat or back, and means for mounting said rim on said frame members, and for flattening said springs somewhat to place the spring wires in tension along a flatter cylindrical arc.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
28 words
The chair or the like of claim 19 wherein there are two said assemblies, one for a seat and one for a back, both mounted on said frame.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
35 words
The chair or the like of claim 20 wherein the arc of said seat arches upwardly from side to side of said frame and said back arches rearwardly from side to side to said frame.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
32 words
The seating apparatus of claim 21 wherein the wires in the seat lying closest to the forward edge of the chair are of lighter gauge than the remaining wires of the seat.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
26 words
The chair or the like of claim 20 wherein said seat arches upwardly from front to rear and said back arches forwardly from bottom to top.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
17 words
The chair or the like of claim 23 wherein said seat and back are covered with upholstery.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
35 words
The chair or the like of claim 23 wherein the forward end of said assembly has a sharp bend, so that said assembly extends forward of the frame member to which that end is secured.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
28 words
The chair or the like of claim 25 having a double bend, with the secOnd bend lying rear of the frame member to which that end is secured.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
31 words
The chair or the like of claim 23 wherein a single frame member is secured both to the rear edge of said seat and to the lower edge of said back.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
22 words
The seating apparatus of claim 20 wherein said frame is curved to impart compound curves to both said seat and said back.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
20 words
The chair or the like of claim 19 wherein one surface of said assembly is completely covered with a pad.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
33 words
The chair or the like of claim 19 wherein the thicknesses of the seat and back areas are no less than 1/200 and no more than 1/50 the height of the seat level.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-11-26 | 1977-05-28 | 1977-11-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-11-26 | 1981-05-28 | 1981-11-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-11-26 | 1985-05-28 | 1985-11-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |