AU2010100717A4 - Reconfigurable furniture - Google Patents

Description

Regulation 3.2(2) AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INNOVATION PATENT Application Number: Lodged: Invention Title: Reconfigurable furniture The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: 1 RECONFIGURABLE FURNITURE FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to children's furniture, of the type which can 5 be configured to form different items of furniture. BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION Children's furniture, in many cases, is suitable only for a short period in a child's life. For example, a cot may be suitable for a year or two of a child's life, 10 but is of no use after that time. Similarly, if a smaller bed is used for the initial stage after a child is removed for a cot, this is also only suitable for a few years at best. This short term usage creates a situation where, as the furniture item is only used for a limited period of time, a less durable item is often purchased. PCT/AU2010/000328 to Boori International Pty Ltd describes an example 15 of a furniture system in which parts are re-used to make new configurations of the product so that the components are more fully re-used. However, the box sections and protective sides of the furniture system of PCT/AU2010/000328 limit its alternative configurations. It is an object of the present invention to provide a reconfigurable children's 20 furniture system which is suitable for a longer period of use in a child's life. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a modular furniture kit including a cot base, a first end component, a second end 25 component, side components, and at least one base extension component, the furniture kit being configurable to form: a cot including the cot base, the first and second end components, and the side components, said components extending from the cot base to form an open box structure; and 30 a bed including the first end component forming the head of the bed, the second end component forming the foot of the bed, and the cot base operatively engaged with the at least one base extension component to form a bed base, the bed base being connected to the first and second end components, wherein the 2 length and width of the bed base is larger than that of the cot base for receiving a bed mattress of a larger dimension. In one embodiment, the cot base forms a substantial portion of the bed base. In another embodiment, the dimension of the bed base is about 188cm X 5 92cm, for receiving a single bed mattress. The furniture kit may also be further configurable to form: a junior bed including the first end component forming the head of the junior bed, the second end component forming the foot of the junior bed, and the cot base connected to the first and second end components forming the base of 10 the junior bed; and/or a sofa chair including the first and second end components forming the arms of the sofa chair, the cot base connected to the first and second end components forming the seat of the sofa chair, and the at least one side component extending from the cot base forming the back of the sofa chair. 15 The furniture kit may also be adapted to be supplied as a flat packed kit. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS An illustrative implementation of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 20 Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a first configuration of one implementation of the present invention; Figures 2A and 2B illustrate an end and side view of the first configuration of shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 illustrates a perspective view of a second configuration of this 25 implementation; Figure 4 illustrates a perspective view of a third configuration of this implementation; and Figure 5 illustrates a perspective view of a fourth configuration of this implementation. 30 DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT It will be appreciated that the following description of embodiments of the invention is purely illustrative, and is not intended to be limitative of the scope of 3 the present invention, It is also noted that the present invention can be implemented with a wide range of aesthetic features altered as desired by the designer in each case. This may include, for example, details of surface features, shape of components, perforations and other openings in component, details of 5 construction (for example, as a solid part or as a slat type construction) and dimensions. The furniture item according to the present innovation is capable of being assembled in four different configurations: a cot; a junior bed; a single bed; and a sofa chair, 10 Referring to Figure 1, a first configuration of the furniture item is illustrated. The furniture item is configured to form a cot 10 having a cot base 12, two end pieces 14, 16 and two side pieces 18, 20. The components are assembled to form a cot having an open box structure. It is preferred that the furniture item be supplied as kit, for example flat 15 packed, as is nowadays common practice for many furniture types, with assembly to be completed by the user. As will be apparent from the discussion following, it is intended moreover that the item be assembled and reconfigured as required by the user. In the example provided, the cot 10 is preferably assembled from flat components (the base, sides, etc) by the user. Any suitable fasteners, for 20 example screws, bolts and similar fixing devices as are known in the art, may be used to affix the components of the furniture item together. The cot base 12 is affixed to the end pieces 14, 16 and side pieces 18, 20 by fasteners, such as screws, suitable bolts or the like. Suitable holes may be provided, for example, to allow the height of the base to be adjusted as required. 25 Figure 2A and 2B illustrate end and side views of the cot 10 according to Figure 1. Figure 3 illustrates the junior bed 30 configuration of the furniture item. In this form, the side pieces 18, 20 are removed, One end piece 14 is used as the head of the junior bed, and a reconfigured form of the other end piece 16A is 30 used as the foot of the junior bed 30. The cot base 12 is used as the base for the junior bed 30. The dimension of the base 12 is approximately 133cm X 77cm for receiving a junior bed mattress of this size.

4 Thus the furniture item, if initially configured and used as a cot 10, may be reconfigured to a junior bed 30 and can still be used by the child as the child grows and the cot is no longer suitable. If the junior bed 30 is not of a suitable size for the grown child, or as the child further grows out of the junior bed 30, the 5 furniture item may be reconfigured to form a single bed 40 as illustrated in Figure 4. Shown in Figure 4, the ends 14, 16A are used as the head and foot of the bed. The cot base 12 is used in this configuration in conjunction with bed extension pieces 42A, 42B, 44, 46 to form the bed base 48. Elongate side panels 10 42A, 42B are attached to the ends 14, 16A to define the edges of the bed base 48. Cot base 12 is attached to the side panels 42A, 42B and forms the substantial part of the bed base 48. Additional pieces, for example slats 44, 46, may also be added to strengthen the bed base 48. As can be seen, the addition of the bed base extension pieces 42A, 42B, 15 44, 46 increases the length and width of the bed base 48. This single bed 40 configuration thus has a larger bed base suitable for receiving a mattress larger than a junior bed mattress, for example a standard single bed mattress approximately of the size, 188cm X 92cm. It is to be noted that the bed extension pieces 42A, 42B, 44, 46, although shown as formed from slats, or from a solid 20 material, may be formed of any other suitable material design as desired by a person skilled in the art. The embodiment shows the bed base 48 formed of the cot base 12 attached to several bed extension pieces 42A, 42B, 44, 46. Alternative embodiments include the bed base 48 formed by attaching the cot base 12 to one bed extension piece, or more than one bed extension pieces. For 25 example, the bed extension pieces 42A, 42B; 44, 46 may be integral in one piece. Further, the cot base 12 may not form a substantial part of the bed base 48, depending on the relative size of the cot base 12 to the bed base 48. The cot base 12 may also be located other than at the centre of the bed base 48, although this may be preferred when considering weight bearing and comfort 30 factors.

5 In the single bed 40 configuration, the furniture item is able to be used by the growing child, or another person. Component pieces from the cot stage are re-used in this configuration which saves cost and reduces wastage, whilst extending the useful life of the furniture item. 5 If the cot or bed configurations are not desired, the furniture item can be reconfigured to form a sofa chair 50. Figure 5 illustrates a fourth configuration of the furniture item forming a sofa chair 50. As shown in the figure, reconfigured end pieces 14A, 16A form the sofa chair arms, the cot base 12 form the sofa chair seat, and one side piece 20 forms the back of the sofa chair 50. 10 The embodiment shows the one or more of the end pieces 14, 16 being reconfigured when used in the cot, bed or the sofa chair configurations. In the bed configurations, one end piece is reconfigured as a design choice to show differentiation between the head and foot of the bed. In the sofa chair configuration, the end pieces are reconfigured to achieve a smaller sofa chair 15 arms design. These are to be taken as optional design choices and are not essential to the invention. The present invention may be implemented using the same end pieces, or alternative reconfigured forms of the end pieces. As can be seen from all of the figures, the components are relatively flat and thus may be supplied as a flat packed kit. 20 The implementation provides a cot, junior bed, single bed and sofa chair using mostly the same components. It is simple to change the configuration, so that the same item of furniture can be adjusted to suit the needs of a child at different stages of growth and development. Further, there is no need for expensive or complex conversion kits, and the furniture does not require major 25 disassembly to change between configurations. It will be appreciated that suitable mattresses, cushions, etc are required to be added to the furniture at each stage in order to make the item comfortable. By suitable design, these can also be fully or partly re-usable between stages. Although the various sections are shown as formed from slats, or from a 30 solid material, it will be appreciated that this is purely a matter of design choice. The material for each can be selected as desired from one of these alternatives, or formed for example from perforated material, or any other suitable material. It is preferred that furniture item is formed from wood. However, one or more of the 6 pieces may be formed from alternative material, for example a synthetic material such as plastic or simulated wood, metal, or other natural materials. It will be appreciated that there are many alternative constructions possible, within the general inventive scope of the present invention. 5 10

Claims (5)

1. A modular furniture kit including a cot base, a first end component, a second end component, side components, and at least one base extension component, the furniture kit being configurable to form: 5 a cot including the cot base, the first and second end components, and the side components, said components extending from the cot base to form an open box structure; and a bed including the first end component forming the head of the bed, the second end component forming the foot of the bed, and the cot base operatively 10 engaged with the at least one base extension component to form a bed base, the bed base being connected to the first and second end components, wherein the length and width of the bed base is larger than that of the cot base for receiving a bed mattress of a larger dimension.

2. The modular furniture kit according to claim 1, wherein the cot base forms 15 a substantial portion of the bed base.

3. The modular furniture kit according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the dimension of the bed base is about 188cm X 92cm.

4. The modular furniture kit according to any one of claims I to 3, further configurable to form: 20 a junior bed including the first end component forming the head of the junior bed, the second end component forming the foot of the junior bed, and the cot base connected to the first and second end components forming the base of the junior bed; and/or a sofa chair including the first and second end components forming the 25 arms of the sofa chair, the cot base connected to the first and second end components forming the seat of the sofa chair, and the at least one side component extending from the cot base forming the back of the sofa chair. 8

5. The modular furniture kit according to any one of claims I to 4, adapted to be supplied as a flat packed kit. BOORI INTERNATIONAL PTY LTD 5 WATERMARK PATENT & TRADE MARK ATTORNEYS UIP1236AU00