GB2081085A

GB2081085A - Sheathed load bearing pedestals etc

Info

Publication number: GB2081085A
Application number: GB8122312A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Olivetti Synthesis SpA
Current assignee: Olivetti Synthesis SpA
Priority date: 1980-07-21
Filing date: 1981-07-20
Publication date: 1982-02-17
Also published as: FR2486785B3; GB2081085B; FR2486785A3; DE8121671U1; IT8053408V0

Abstract

A load bearing leg structure comprises a multi-arm horizontal star or cross welded to a support upright 12 (e.g. at the bottom of a chair or armchair) wherein the arms 13 of the cross are covered with plastics sheaths 26 which can be easily removed from the arms for replacement when worn. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Load bearing structure for furniture legs etc This invention relates to a load bearing structure for legs or supports or articles of furniture such as chairs, armchairs, trolleys, containers and soon.

Load bearing structures for chairs or armchairs are known comprising a vertical upright rigid with a horizontal star or cross consisting ofthree or more horizontal arms. The crosses are finished by painting, chromium plating or other similar processes with particular regard to their upper surfaces. These are however precisely the parts which become particularly worn either because of accidental collisions or because of normal rubbing by the shoes of the user, and they can only be restored to their original degree of finish with difficulty.

The object of the present model is to provide load bearing structures with very good finishes, and which in addition enable any worn parts to be rapidly replaced at very low cost.

This problem is solved by the load bearing structure as defined below in claim 1.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described hereinafter by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exploded partial side view of the load bearing structure; Figure 2 is a partial plan view of some details of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a plan view of a further detail of Figure 1; and Figure 4 is a plan view of the detail of Figure 3 when inverted.

With reference to Figure 1, the load bearing structure 11 is fitted by way of example to a chair and comprises an upright, vertical sleeve 12 rigid with a horizontal star comprising five equidistant arms 13 (Figure 2). Each arm 13 is constituted by an upwardly open U section bar with one end 22 welded to the upright 12 and having its upper edges tapered and provided with out-turned flanges 14 and 16. The upright 12 is provided with five bores 23 disposed in positions corresponding with the axes of the arms 13, between the edges of each section bar. Each arm 13 carries a wheel 18 at one end 17 (Figure 1) in order to facilitate movement of the chair. In detail, each wheel 18 is mounted on a support 20 rotatable on a pin 19 which is fixed to a strengthening plate 21 for the arm 13 and is kept in position by a bore provided in the arm.

Each arm 13 is covered by a plastics sheath 26. The sheath 26 comprises a central flat part 27 and three dependent edges, of which two edges 28 (Figure 4) and 29 are provided on the sides of greater length and are arranged to fit over the flanges 14 (Figure 2) and 16 of the arms 13, and a third edge 31 (Figures 1 and 41 spans the two edges 28 and 29 beyond the ends 17 of the arms 13. A fourth edge 32 opposite the edge 31 is shaped to conform to the outer profile of the upright 12. The sheath 26 further comprises an element 33 constituted by a tongue or lug disposed at the bottom of the edge 32 and which is inserted into the bore 23 (Figure 1) in the upright 12 when the sheath 26 is mounted on the arm 13. The sheath 26 also comprises a strengthening socket 34 adjacent to the edge 31 and arranged to cooperate with a fixing element 36 for fixing one end of the sheath 26 to the arm 13.

The fixing element 36 comprises a pin housed in two bores 38 and 39 in the arm 13 and strengthening plate 21, and having either a part which is forced into a bore 41 in the part 34, or a self-tapping screw which is screwed into the part 34. The sheath 26 (Figure 4) comprises on its underside four ribs 42 disposed at 90 apart and arranged to stiffen the part 34, three ribs 43 disposed parallel to the edges 28 and 29 and arranged to stiffen the flat part 27, three ribs 44 arranged to stiffen the edge 31 which is deeper than the edges 28 and 29 and covers the end 17 when the sheath 26 is mounted on the arm 13, and a rib 46 which connects the three ribs 43 to the edges 28 and 29.

In order to mount the sheath 26 on the arm 13, the tongue 33 is inserted into the corresponding bore 23 and the sheath 26 is then lowered towards the arm 13 to engage the edges 28 and 29 over the respective flanges 14 and 16 and the edge 31 with the free end 17, until the flat part 27 rests against the upper surface of the flanges 14 and 16. The fixing element 36 is then inserted by guiding it through the bores 38 and 39 until it engages the bore 46 in the part 34. The sheath 26 is thus rigidly fixed both to the upright 12 by means of the lug 33 engaged in the bore 23, and to the arm 13 by means of the fixing element 36.

Furthermore, the rigidity of the edges 28,29 and 31 does not allow lifting either of the intermediate part of the sheath 26 between the lug 33 and the part 34, or of that part thereof which projects beyond the free end 17 of the respective arm 13.

It is therefore apparent that replacement of the sheath 26 on the arm 13 is very rapid, it being sufficient merely to remove the fixing element 36 and exert a pressure on the edges 31,28 and 29 to lift the sheath 26 and then withdraw the lug 33 from the respective bore 26.

Modifications and improvements can be made to the load bearing structure for legs or supports of chairs, armchairs, trolleys, containers and the like, both in the shape and in the arrangement of the various parts, without leaving the scope of the invention as claimed. In this respect, without detracting from its usefulness, the covering sheath can befitted to a structure having a different shape from the star shape described heretofore, for example in all those cases in which the load bearing structure comprises parts which extend substantially parallel to the floor.

1. A load bearing structure for legs or supports of articles of furniture, characterised by a sheath arranged to removably cover the structure.

2. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 1, comprising an upright rigid with a horizontal arm, and wherein the sheath covers the horizontal arm as is fixed at one end by interengagement with the upright and at the other end to the horizontal arm.

3. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the sheath has a part at the said one end inserted into a bore in the upright in order to fix the

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. SPECIFICATION Load bearing structure for furniture legs etc This invention relates to a load bearing structure for legs or supports or articles of furniture such as chairs, armchairs, trolleys, containers and soon. Load bearing structures for chairs or armchairs are known comprising a vertical upright rigid with a horizontal star or cross consisting ofthree or more horizontal arms. The crosses are finished by painting, chromium plating or other similar processes with particular regard to their upper surfaces. These are however precisely the parts which become particularly worn either because of accidental collisions or because of normal rubbing by the shoes of the user, and they can only be restored to their original degree of finish with difficulty. The object of the present model is to provide load bearing structures with very good finishes, and which in addition enable any worn parts to be rapidly replaced at very low cost. This problem is solved by the load bearing structure as defined below in claim 1. A preferred embodiment of the invention is described hereinafter by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exploded partial side view of the load bearing structure; Figure 2 is a partial plan view of some details of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a plan view of a further detail of Figure 1; and Figure 4 is a plan view of the detail of Figure 3 when inverted. With reference to Figure 1, the load bearing structure 11 is fitted by way of example to a chair and comprises an upright, vertical sleeve 12 rigid with a horizontal star comprising five equidistant arms 13 (Figure 2). Each arm 13 is constituted by an upwardly open U section bar with one end 22 welded to the upright 12 and having its upper edges tapered and provided with out-turned flanges 14 and 16. The upright 12 is provided with five bores 23 disposed in positions corresponding with the axes of the arms 13, between the edges of each section bar. Each arm 13 carries a wheel 18 at one end 17 (Figure 1) in order to facilitate movement of the chair. In detail, each wheel 18 is mounted on a support 20 rotatable on a pin 19 which is fixed to a strengthening plate 21 for the arm 13 and is kept in position by a bore provided in the arm. Each arm 13 is covered by a plastics sheath 26. The sheath 26 comprises a central flat part 27 and three dependent edges, of which two edges 28 (Figure 4) and 29 are provided on the sides of greater length and are arranged to fit over the flanges 14 (Figure 2) and 16 of the arms 13, and a third edge 31 (Figures 1 and 41 spans the two edges 28 and 29 beyond the ends 17 of the arms 13. A fourth edge 32 opposite the edge 31 is shaped to conform to the outer profile of the upright 12. The sheath 26 further comprises an element 33 constituted by a tongue or lug disposed at the bottom of the edge 32 and which is inserted into the bore 23 (Figure 1) in the upright 12 when the sheath 26 is mounted on the arm 13. The sheath 26 also comprises a strengthening socket 34 adjacent to the edge 31 and arranged to cooperate with a fixing element 36 for fixing one end of the sheath 26 to the arm 13. The fixing element 36 comprises a pin housed in two bores 38 and 39 in the arm 13 and strengthening plate 21, and having either a part which is forced into a bore 41 in the part 34, or a self-tapping screw which is screwed into the part 34. The sheath 26 (Figure 4) comprises on its underside four ribs 42 disposed at 90 apart and arranged to stiffen the part 34, three ribs 43 disposed parallel to the edges 28 and 29 and arranged to stiffen the flat part 27, three ribs 44 arranged to stiffen the edge 31 which is deeper than the edges 28 and 29 and covers the end 17 when the sheath 26 is mounted on the arm 13, and a rib 46 which connects the three ribs 43 to the edges 28 and 29. In order to mount the sheath 26 on the arm 13, the tongue 33 is inserted into the corresponding bore 23 and the sheath 26 is then lowered towards the arm 13 to engage the edges 28 and 29 over the respective flanges 14 and 16 and the edge 31 with the free end 17, until the flat part 27 rests against the upper surface of the flanges 14 and 16. The fixing element 36 is then inserted by guiding it through the bores 38 and 39 until it engages the bore 46 in the part 34. The sheath 26 is thus rigidly fixed both to the upright 12 by means of the lug 33 engaged in the bore 23, and to the arm 13 by means of the fixing element 36. Furthermore, the rigidity of the edges 28,29 and 31 does not allow lifting either of the intermediate part of the sheath 26 between the lug 33 and the part 34, or of that part thereof which projects beyond the free end 17 of the respective arm 13. It is therefore apparent that replacement of the sheath 26 on the arm 13 is very rapid, it being sufficient merely to remove the fixing element 36 and exert a pressure on the edges 31,28 and 29 to lift the sheath 26 and then withdraw the lug 33 from the respective bore 26. Modifications and improvements can be made to the load bearing structure for legs or supports of chairs, armchairs, trolleys, containers and the like, both in the shape and in the arrangement of the various parts, without leaving the scope of the invention as claimed. In this respect, without detracting from its usefulness, the covering sheath can befitted to a structure having a different shape from the star shape described heretofore, for example in all those cases in which the load bearing structure comprises parts which extend substantially parallel to the floor. CLAIMS

3. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the sheath has a part at the said one end inserted into a bore in the upright in order to fix the sheath to the upright, and has a reinforcement at the said other end arranged to cooperate with a fixing element fixing the sheath on to the arm.

4. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the arm is constituted by an upwardly open U section bar comprising on its upper edges two out-turned fianges, and the sheath is of plastics material and comprises a substantially flat part which on its two opposite sides of greater length comprises two dependent edges which fit over the flanges of the bar.

5. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 3 or4, wherein the said one end of the sheath conforms to the outer profiie of the upright, and the part of the sheath which is inserted into the upright comprises a lug at the said one end and arranged for housing in the bore in the upright.

6. A load bearing structure as claimed in claim 5, wherein the sheath comprises a further edge atthe said other end which has a greater depth than the edges of greater length, a set of ribs arranged to stiffen the said further edge which covers Be distal end of the arm, and a set of ribs disposed parallel to the edges of the greater length and arranged ta stiffen the flat part.

7. A load bearing structure for legs or supports of articles of furniture, substantially as described and with reference and as shown in the accompanying drawings.