IE75686B1 - Articles of Furniture - Google Patents

Description

ARTICLES OF FURNITURE This invention relates to a method of producing articles of 5 furniture having a banded pattern on a surface area of the article.

Wood working is a widely practiced art. In wood working a wide variety of woods is used to make articles such as chairs, tables etc. Wood laminae in the form of a laminate can be used as an alternative to single wood types in wood working.

An object of the invention is to provide a method of forming wood patterns with laminates and laminate articles produced by this method.

According to the invention there is provided a method of producing wooden articles of furniture having a banded pattern on a surface area of the article comprising the steps: a) assembling a plurality of suitably shaped laminae of similar or different types of wood, and of the same or of different thicknesses; b) bonding the laminae together by means of glue layers to form a block having flat planar surfaces; c) marking on a flat planar surface of the block a plurality of patterns corresponding to the shapes of the parts of the final article to be produced; d) cutting the furniture parts from the block by cutting through the block substantially perpendicularly to the flat planar surface of the blocks; e) shaping and sculpting each individual furniture part by cutting through the outer laminae layers of the laminate, with a cutting tool at an angle to the plane of the section to expose various underlying layers of laminae, and to expose glue lines between laminae; f) varying the angle of incidence of the cutting tool to expose bands of laminae and bands of glue of varying widths to produce a wood banding pattern on the surface of the part, and simultaneously shaping the part to achieve a desired curvature, and g) assembling and joining the shaped and sculpted parts to form a finished article of furniture. - 2 Preferably, the portion of the outer laminae is removed by cutting, abrading, sculpting, shaving, carving or filing.

In a further aspect, the bandwidth of the bands is increased when the angle of incidence of the tool with the laminae is decreased.

The invention will now be described having regard to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a rocking chair produced in accordance with the method of the invention; Figure 2 is a in accordance with perspective view of a mushroom-shaped table produced the method of the invention; Figure 3 is a top plan view of the table top of the table of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a side plan view of the table leg of the table of Figure 2; Figure 5 is an end view of the table leg of Figure 4 showing the laminae of the table; Figure 6 is an enlarged front view of the leg of Figure 5 showing the curved sculpted shape of the laminae; Figure 7 shows the laminae of the table leg of Figure 5, the horizontal bands being indicative of the effect of the degree of curvature of the leg on the extent of the laminae-produced pattern on the leg; Figure 8 is a side view of a block of laminae before shaping; Figure 9 is a top plan view of the arms, seat and back of the chair of Figure 1 marked out on a laminated block; Figure 10 is a top plan view of an individual side arm section of - 3 Figure 9; Figure 11 is an end view of the side arm of Figure 10, and Figure 12 is a side view and a top plan view of an alternatively shaped and sculpted arm section 2 with the connecting broken lines indicating the correspondence of the bands with the laminae.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a rocking chair 1 of the invention. The rocking chair 1 is made up of a first side arm 2 and a second side arm 3 connected by a chair back 10 and a seat 11. The first and second sides 2, 3 are made up of first and second arms 4, 5 and first and second legs 6, 7 respectively. The rocking chair 1 can be rocked forwards and backwards on the first and second legs 6, 7.

The first and second sides 2, 3, the back 10 and the seat 11 are each single pieces which are assembled to form the rocking chair 1. Each arm 4, 5 is provided with an opening 8 while each leg 6, 7 is also provided with a opening 9. The arm openings 8 and leg openings 9 are mainly decorative and do not serve any function.

The first and second sides 2, 3, the back 10 and the seat 11 are each formed from laminates 18. The laminates 18 are made up of a multiplicity of individual plies or laminae 12 which are bonded together, typically using glue, to form the laminates 18. The glue of the laminates 18 is allowed to cure before tooling. The laminates 18 are tooled to expose contours of the underlying laminae 12 and glue lines 20 which are visible on the first and second sides 2, 3, the back 10 and the seat 11. The glue used to bond the laminates is a staining glue to produce a darkening or staining effect.

The exposure of the laminae 12 of the laminates 18 produces a contoured banded-pattern which imitates the natural wood-grain or ring effect produced using solid natural wood due to the overlapping band effect produced by the laminae 12.

Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a mushroom-shaped table 13 of the invention. The mushroom-shaped table 13 is made up of a single leg 14 and a substantially flat round table top 15. The leg 14 and the - 4 table top 15 are formed from laminates 18. The laminae 12 of the laminates 18 are exposed to produce the imitation natural wood pattern described. The table leg 14 is slightly pear shaped and has a wider base 17 for supporting the table top 15. · Figure 3 shows a top plan view of the table top 15 of Figure 2 * while Figures 4 to 7 show various views of the table leg 14 of Figure 2.

To produce a table top 15 and a table leg 14 as shown in Figure 3 a multiplicity of suitably shaped laminae 12 of similar and/or different types of wood are glued together to form a block 19.

Firstly, the laminae are laid flat against one another with the glue being smeared between the laminae 12 in glue layers 21 which form the glue lines 20 in the finished product. The glue lines 20 can vary in thickness according to the amount of glue used. The glue lines 20 contribute to the banded pattern ultimately produced and comprise another feature in the construction of laminate articles that can be varied to produce different patterns in the final product. The thickness of the glue lines 20 in the finished product is determined by the manner in which the block is tooled to expose the laminae 12.

(This shall be explained more fully below). The glue layers 21 and the layers of laminae 12 of the block 19 are visible at the edges of the block 19.

It is not necessary for each laminae 12 to be equal in sequence in the block 19 as the thickness of each laminae 12 can also be varied to produce a more varied patterned effect.

The block 19 is then sculpted and cut or abraded to expose the laminae 12 and their corresponding glue lines 20 to achieve the desired finished pattern.

The method of forming the banded pattern in the chair of Figure 1 , will now be more fully described having regard to Figures 8 to 12.

Figure 8 shows a side view of a block 19 made up of a multiplicity of laminae 12. To construct the chair of Figure 1 the block 19 is about 122 cm by 91.5 cm and has a thickness determined by the number of laminae 12. The thickness can be varied as required for example, for the side arms 2, 3 of the chair 1 the thickness should be a maximum of - 5 about 6.5 cm. The types of wood used for each lamina 12 can also be varied. The choice of wood is determined by the banding colouring required in the chair 1.

The laminae 12 are bonded together using glue as previously described. As with the laminae 12, the type of glue used can also be varied according to the colouring of glue lines 20 required. The glue line 20 becomes visible following tooling and accentuate the imitation wood banding pattern.

Figure 9 shows a top plan view of a laminae block 19 of Figure 8. Following formation of the block 19, a pattern corresponding to the shapes of the sections of the final product to be produced is marked out on the block 19. As shown in the drawing, for the construction of the chair 1, the first and second side arms 2, 3, the back 10 and the seat 11 are marked out on the block 19.

The sides 2, 3, the back 10 and the seat 11 are then cut from the block 19 following the pattern using cutting tools such as a band saw, a jig saw, a router or a circular saw.

Figure 10 shows a plan view of an individual side arm section 2 of a chair as cut from the block 19 of Figure 9. Figure 12 shows a side view and plan view of an alternatively shaped and sculpted arm section 2. As shown in Figure 12, the arm section is made up of a laminate 18 formed from a multiplicity of laminae 12. The laminate 18 can be formed from varying numbers of laminae 12 at various portions of the laminate 18. For example the laminate 18 could be made up of ten layers as shown in a lower portion of Figure 12 and seven layers, as shown at an upper portion of Figure 12. The side 2 is sculpted and shaped by cutting through the outer laminae layers 12 of the laminate 18 to expose the various underlying layers of laminae 12. The method of sculpting and shaping is selected to achieve a curvature and banding pattern effect as previously described at various sections of the first side 2. This process is repeated with the second side arm 3, the back 10 and the seat 11.

Figure 11 shows a side elevation of the first side 2 of Figure 10 showing raised portions 22 and dipped portions 23 on the upper surface 24 of the block 19. - 6 The exposure of the underlying laminae 12 also exposes the glue layers 21. The glue layers 21 generate glue lines 20 when exposed, the thickness of the glue lines 20 being determined by the angle of incidence of the cutting implement or shaping implement with the laminae 12. The glue lines 20 enhance the banding or imitation wood grain effect of the finished product. The correspondence of the laminae 12 with the banded pattern and of the glue layers 21 with the glue lines 20 is more clearly illustrated in Figure 12 in which the broken lines show the correspondence of the glue layers 21 with the glue lines 20 and of the laminae 12 with the bands.

A number of shaping and sculpting tools can be used to achieve a flowing rounded band pattern of the seat 1 for example, a router, a spoke-shave, sculpting blade (Arbotec - T.M.), spindle, disc grinder, drum sanders, lathe, die-grinder, files and rasps.

Following shaping and sculpting of each of the individual sides 2, 3, back 10 and seat 11 the components are assembled into the finished chair. The joining and assembly of the first and second sides 2, 3, back 10 and seat 11 is carried out using usual methods for example, the seat 10, and back 11 are morticed to the sides 2, 3.

As indicated previously, the thickness of the individual laminae 12 can be varied and is a matter of choice according to the ultimate pattern required. In addition, the type of wood used can also be varied and various types of wood may be used within a single block 19 to achieve various colour, pattern or other effects.

Standard laminated boards may be used in the method of the invention and may also be further laminated to enhance the thickness as required. However, it must be ensured that the individual laminae 12 are securely bonded together and that any gaps between the laminae be avoided as gaps between the laminae can give rise to breakages during sculpting and blemishes in the finished product.

As previously described, the glue type used can also be varied. Generally, a glue of a contrasting colour to the wood of the laminae 12 should be used to provide a contrast in colour. - 7 The band width or the amount of overlap of the laminae 12 exposed is determined by the degree to which the laminae 12 are cut and shaped. More particularly, as the angle of incidence between the cutting tool and the laminae 12 is decreased the band width of the laminae 12 exposed is increased to produce a larger pattern (i.e. the amount of overlap is decreased). This is more clearly illustrated in Figures 7 and 12. As shown in the drawings, the band width of the exposed laminae 12 is also determined by the degree of curvature of the surface of the block 19 which in part dictates the angle of incidence between the cutting tool and the laminae 12. As the degree of curvature of the surface of the block 19 is decreased the band width of the exposed laminae 12 is increased thereby producing a larger patterned effect. Accordingly, the pattern produced is also determined by the shape and form of the block 19.

Various cutting techniques can be used to produce the patterned effect including sculpting, shaping, carving, filing and/or sanding across laminates 18 of either similar of different types of wood to expose the individual laminae 12.

Therefore, by altering the angle of incidence of the cutting tool, the make-up of the individual laminae 12 and the shape/curvature of the block 19 a wide variety of patterns can be produced.

The invention therefore provides a highly variable artistic method of shaping and designing laminates to produce patterned articles in which the final appearance is determined by the method in which the laminates making up the article are assembled and finally treated.

Claims (2)

1. A method of producing wooden articles of furniture having a banded pattern on a surface area of the article comprising the steps: a) assembling a plurality of suitably shaped laminae of similar or <, different types of wood, and of the same or of different thicknesses; b) bonding the laminae together by means of glue layers to form a block having flat planar surfaces; c) marking on a flat planar surface of the block a plurality of patterns corresponding to the shapes of the parts of the final article to be produced; d) cutting the furniture parts from the block by cutting through the block substantially perpendicularly to the flat planar surface of the blocks; e) shaping and sculpting each individual furniture part by cutting through the outer laminae layers of the laminate, with a cutting tool at an angle to the plane of the section to expose various underlying layers of laminae, and to expose glue lines between laminae; f) varying the angle of incidence of the cutting tool to expose bands of laminae and bands of glue of varying widths to produce a wood banding pattern on the surface of the part, and simultaneously shaping the part to achieve a desired curvature, and g) assembling and joining the shaped and sculpted parts to form a finished article of furniture.

2. A method of producing wooden articles of furniture substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in, the accompanying drawings.