US20130127228A1

US20130127228A1 - Furniture

Info

Publication number: US20130127228A1
Application number: US13/636,565
Authority: US
Inventors: Barrie George Colvin; James Bartholomew Blake
Original assignee: BOLLARDS INTERNATIONAL Ltd; J B A DEV SERVICES Ltd
Current assignee: JBA DEVELOPMENT SERVICES; BOLLARDS INTERNATIONAL Ltd; J B A DEV SERVICES Ltd
Priority date: 2010-03-24
Filing date: 2011-03-24
Publication date: 2013-05-23
Also published as: EP2549906A1; GB201004936D0; EP2549906B1; GB2478948A; WO2011117645A1

Abstract

The present invention provides a stool which is very versatile and comprises a simple cylindrical shape. The stool can be quickly and easily installed at any suitable location and, in particular, can be included in outside areas, for example, parks, school playgrounds and shopping precincts. The stool includes an interior chamber into which a ballast can be located in order to weigh the stool down. This ballast inhibits the easy movement of the stool and, in particular, prevents the inadvertent movement of the stool. The stool is located outside and the ballast is collected from adjacent to the installation site. The stool includes a recycled cut down drum as an inner core with a thermosetting outer covering moulded thereto. Accordingly, the stool and is environmentally friendly and is manufactured using recycled and sustainable materials and is anchored using a locally sourced sustainable ballast material.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to furniture and to a method of constructing an item of furniture. In particular, the present invention relates to street furniture and specifically an outdoor stool and to a method of constructing street furniture and specifically outdoor stools.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Items of street furniture are generally provided in parks, playgrounds, shopping precincts etc. to enable users to sit down and rest. Such seats must be weather resistant and must also be anchored to the ground to prevent the seats being easily moved, for example, to prevent the street furniture being moved by the wind or by children. In general, the seats are placed on a specially prepared foundation surface which may comprise paving slabs or the like. These paving slabs must be arranged to provide a flat surface and the seat or legs of the seat may then be anchored to the foundation surface using bolts or similar anchor members. The preparation and provision of a foundation surface significantly increases the cost and expense of the provision of the seating. In addition, the necessity for a foundation surface increases the installation time since the materials used within the foundation surface may be required to cure over a prolonged period prior to the seat being installed and anchored.
Once installed, the seating arrangement and configuration is relatively permanent and it generally requires a significant amount of time and expense to rearrange the seating plan or the seating configuration. For example, all of the installed seats would need to be unanchored from the ground and new foundation surfaces would need to be installed at the new positions. This would again require further building materials being transported to the site. In addition, the new foundation surface would again have to be allowed time to set and cure prior to the seats being anchored at the new positions.
At the present time, it is preferred to use materials that are sustainable and are preferably recycled. In particular, building materials such as concrete and cement can have a significant environmental impact and many developers prefer or require a certain proportion of recycled and/or sustainable material to be used in the apparatus and installations.
It is an aim of the present invention to overcome at least one problem associated with prior art whether the referred to herein or otherwise.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an item of furniture comprising an inner core and an outer covering, the inner core comprising a lower face and a peripheral wall and the outer covering comprising a peripheral wall and an upper surface wherein the peripheral wall of the outer covering is moulded to the peripheral wall of the inner core, the item of furniture comprising an inner hollow chamber and a sealable opening wherein a ballast is arranged, in use, to be inserted through the opening into the inner hollow chamber in order for the ballast to anchor the item of furniture.
Preferably the inner core comprises a part cylindrical inner core.
Preferably the inner core comprises a cylindrical inner core.
Preferably the inner core comprises an upper face.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a part cylindrical outer covering.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a cylindrical outer covering.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a lower face.
Preferably the upper face of the outer covering is moulded to the upper face of the inner core.
Preferably the lower face of the outer covering is moulded to the lower face of the inner core.
Preferably the peripheral wall of the outer covering is moulded to the peripheral wall of the inner core.
Preferably the item of furniture comprises a closure member which is arranged, in use, to engage over the sealable opening in order to retain the ballast within the inner chamber. The closure member may comprise a bung.
The inner core may comprise a recycled liquid chemical drum. The inner core may comprise a recycled steel drum or may comprise a recycled plastic drum.
The inner core may comprise a recycled 200 litre mild steel drum.
Preferably the inner core comprises a recycled drum and more preferably comprises a recycled oil drum.
Preferably the inner core comprises a cut down recycled drum and more preferably comprises a cut down recycled oil drum.
Preferably the inner core comprises a metal and more preferably comprises steel.
The inner core may comprise a recycled metal.
The inner core may comprise rolled steel.
The height of the item of furniture may be less than 1000 mm and preferably is less than 700 mm and more preferably is less than 600 mm.
The height of the item of furniture may be substantially 500 mm.
The height of the item of furniture may be greater than 100 mm and preferably is greater than 300 mm and more preferably is greater than 400 mm.
Preferably the item of furniture is cylindrical with a lateral circular cross-section.
The diameter of the item of furniture may be less than 1000 mm and preferably is less than 800 mm and more preferably is less than 700 mm.
The diameter of the item of furniture may be substantially 600 mm.
The diameter of the item of furniture may be greater than 100 mm and preferably is greater than 300 mm and more preferably is greater than 400 mm.
The sealable opening may be substantially circular.
The diameter of the sealable closure may be less than 100 mm and preferably is less than 70 mm. The diameter of the sealable closures may be substantially 50 mm. The diameter of the sealable closure may be greater than 10 mm and preferably is greater than 20 mm and more preferably is greater than 40 mm.
The thickness of the outer covering may be less than 40 mm and preferably is less than 30 mm and more preferably is less that 20 mm. The thickness of the outer covering may be substantially 10 mm. The thickness of the outer covering may be greater than 3 mm and preferably is greater than 5 mm and more preferably is greater than 8 mm.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a thermosetting material.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a thermosetting material. The thermosetting material may comprise polyurethane or epoxy. More preferably, the outer covering is produced from a two-part polyurethane. The two parts of the polyurethane consist of a resin component and an isocyanate component. The resin component may comprise renewable materials, and may comprise polyols which may be produced from vegetable oils. The polyols may be produces from a variety of vegetable oils including castor oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil etc. Preferably the polyol is produced from rapeseed oil and more preferably from locally-produced rapeseed oil. The resin component may also contain fillers such as sand, chalk or fly-ash. Alternatively, these fillers can be added as a third component rather than being part of the resin component.
Preferably the outer covering comprises a polyurethane based on rapeseed oil polyols.
The outer covering may comprise polyurethane.
The outer covering may comprise a painted surface which may comprise a two-part polyurethane paint.
The ballast may comprise a granular material.
The ballast may be sourced from a location adjacent to the installation site of the seat. Preferably the ballast comprises a renewable and/or recyclable material.
Preferably the ballast comprises sand, soil or the like.
The outer covering may have printed matter adhered thereto. For example, the outer covering may have a vinyl transfer applied thereto.
According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of manufacturing an item of furniture comprising moulding an outer covering to an inner core wherein the inner core comprises a lower face and a peripheral wall and the outer covering comprises a peripheral wall and an upper surface, the method further comprising providing an inner hollow chamber with a sealable opening, the method further comprising inserting a ballast through the sealable opening into the inner hollow chamber in order to anchor the item of furniture.
The method may comprise collecting ballast material from the site adjacent to the installation site of the item of furniture.
The method may comprise inverting or at least partially inverting the item of furniture whilst filling the inner hollow chamber with ballast material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will now be described by way of example only, with the reference to the figures that follow, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a seat in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a seat in accordance with the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention provides an item of furniture and, in particular, an item of street furniture. In the preferred embodiment, the item of street furniture comprises a stool 10.
The present invention provides an interior chamber 11 into which a ballast 15 can be located in order to weigh the stool 10 down. This ballast 15 inhibits the easy movement of the stool 10 and, in particular, prevents the inadvertent movement of the stool 10. In the preferred embodiment, the stool 10 is a very simple and plain stool which is essentially a cylinder.
The stool 10 is very versatile and comprises a simple cylindrical shape. The stool 10 can be quickly and easily installed at any suitable location and, in particular, can be included in outside areas, for example, parks, school playgrounds and shopping precincts. At these locations, several stools 10 can be provided which can be arranged in any pre-determined pattern or configuration, for example a snake like line.
The stool 10 is provided in a selected bright colour and can also be manufactured with emblems and/or logos moulded onto the surface or may be provided with externally applied transfers.
The stool 10 is both practical and has environmental benefits with respect to prior art stools.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the stool 10 is essentially a cylinder having a lower circular face 16, an upper circular face 12 and a peripheral wall 14 connecting the respective edges of the upper face 12 and lower face 16. In use, the lower face 16 rests on the ground and supports the stool 10. The upper face 12 provides the seating surface for users.
The stool 10 includes an inner hollow chamber 11 in which a ballast 15 can be contained in order to anchor the stool 10 to the ground and inhibit easy movement of the stool 10. The ballast thereby provides the stool with significant stability.
The stool 10 includes a sealable opening 18 over which a closure member 19 can be engaged. In particular, a ballast 15 can be inserted through the opening 18 and the closure member 19 can be engaged in order to retain the ballast 15 within the inner hollow chamber 11. The opening 18 is provided on the lower face 16 of the stool 10 and is, therefore, concealed in normal use.
Accordingly, the stool 10 is relatively lightweight when the inner hollow chamber 11 is empty but when the inner hollow chamber 11 is filled or partially filled with a ballast 15 the stool 10 is relatively heavy. The amount of ballast 15 directly influences the weight of the stool 10 and, the user can directly and easily select an appropriate amount and weight of ballast for the particular circumstances.
Since the stool 10 is lightweight, the cost and ease of transportation of the street furniture in accordance with the present invention is greatly improved with respect to prior art street furniture. In addition, the inner hollow chamber 11 and associated opening 18 mean that a ballast 15 can be easily included at the final location. The ballast 15 is preferably a granular type material selected from the final site. In particular, sand, soil and the like may be sourced from the site in order to quickly and easily weigh the stool 10 down.
Furthermore, when the life cycle of the stool 10 is complete and it is to be removed from the site, the ballast 15 can be quickly and easily returned to the original source and, therefore, this provides an effective recycling pattern. In addition, the removal of the ballast 15 means that the stool 10 can be quickly and easily removed without the requirement of removing a specially prepared foundation surface or with the problem of leaving a specially prepared foundation surface which may provide a hazard or risk.
In use, a user can simply transport a number of stools 10 to a site and these can be quickly and easily manually moved to the appropriate location. Once at the selected location, the stool 10 can be inverted, or at least partially inverted, in order for the opening to be accessible and located at a raised position. The ballast 15 may comprise sand and/or soil sourced from the site which can be quickly and easily transported to the final location in a wheel barrow or other appropriate apparatus. The ballast 15 is then inserted through the opening 18 and a funnel or other similar implement may be used for this purpose. Once the appropriate volume or amount of ballast 15 is contained in the inner hollow chamber 11, the bung 19 can be firmly engaged in the opening 18 in order to retain the ballast 15 in the inner hollow chamber 11. The stool 10 can then be orientated in order for the lower face 16 to rest on the ground and for the upper face 12 to provide a level and horizontal seating surface.
As shown in FIG. 2, the cylindrical stool 10 comprises an inner core and an outer covering. The inner core is essentially cylindrical and comprises an upper face 22, a lower face 26 and a peripheral wall 24 connecting the respective edges of the upper face 22 and the lower face 26. The inner core defines the inner hollow chamber 11 at the stool 10.
The inner core provides the strength for the stool 10. The inner core comprises a metal and in the preferred embodiment the inner core is steel and specifically rolled steel. The steel may be recycled steel.
The steel conforms to British Standard BS 4848 and is cold formed to CFA 1. The steel is protected against corrosion by coating or galvanising.
In particular, the inner core is a conventional 200 litre mild steel drum, manufactured with no specific contents in mind. The drum is ideally a recycled drum. In one embodiment the inner core may comprise a recycled oil drum. The oil drum is a conventional and standard 210 litre oil drum which is cut down in size.
The inner core is formed from the drum and the peripheral wall of the drum is cut twice in order for a section to be removed. The two remaining parts including the upper and lower faces are then welded or otherwise secured together in order to provide an inner core member having a height of approximately 600 mm.
The drum also provides an opening which can serves as the opening for the ballast in the final stool 10.
Once cleaned and cut down, the outer covering can be applied to the inner core. The outer core comprises a thermosetting material which is moulded on to the inner core. In particular, an outer covering of approximately 10 mm thickness is moulded to the upper face 22, lower face 26 and peripheral wall 24 of the inner core. The outer covering is also provided with an opening 38 which corresponds with the opening 28 of the inner core in order to provide the ballast entry opening in the stool 10.
The thermosetting material proves a tough and weather resistant material which can withstand rain, wind and sun without any significant deterioration or degradation.
The outer covering comprises a thermosetting material such as polyurethane or epoxy. The outer covering is produced from a two-part polyurethane. The two parts of the polyurethane consist of a resin component and an isocyanate component. The resin component comprises renewable materials, these are termed polyols which may be produced from vegetable oils. A variety of vegetable oils can be used in this process including castor oil, sunflower oil, peanut oil etc. However, the preferred embodiment uses locally-produced rapeseed oil for this purpose. The resin component may also contain fillers such as sand, chalk or fly-ash. Alternatively, these fillers can be added as a third component rather than being part of the resin component.
As mentioned above, the thermosetting material comprises a resin including chemical(s) derived from a renewable source(s). In particular the chemical(s) are derived from rapeseed oil. The resin has two important fillers contained within it. In an embodiment, the fillers are waste fly-ash from power stations and granulated rubber from waste tyres. Accordingly, it can be seen that the present invention is manufactured from recycled materials and renewable materials.
The outer covering comprises a environmental polyurethane and/or a “green” polyurethane. The outer covering comprises a pigmented material which uses an environmentally friendly rapeseed oil with the capacity to colour the polyurethane casting material to complement the product paint colour.
The material of the outer covering may comprise a rigid polyurethane foam.
The material of the outer covering is an engineering grade polyurethane based on rapeseed oil polyols. This material has the following characteristics:


	Hardness	70 Shore D
	Tensile Strength	>15 Mpa
	25% Modulus	>12 Mpa
	Ultimate Elongation	>100%
	Fire Rating	V0 (UL94)

Once the thermosetting material has been applied, the assembly is painted using a high quality two-part polyurethane paint. This gives a bright, glossy finish which does not chip and does not fade under bright lighting conditions. The present invention is designed to withstand long-term ageing in an outside environment.
The thermosetting material is covered with a heavy duty coating which includes a primer coat of pain. The item includes a high gloss finish with a two-part polyurethane paint to RAL/BS specification. This provides ultimate levels of weathering, colour retention, solvent resistance, abrasion resistance and wide-ranging chemical resistance leading to minimal maintenance costs.
The outer surface of the stool 10 can be finished with any suitable decorative material, for example, transfers, as required by the end user.
Overall, the stool 10 and is environmentally friendly and is manufactured using recycled and sustainable materials and is anchored using a locally sourced sustainable ballast material.
The preferred embodiment of the item of furniture in accordance with the present invention is a stool although other items of furniture could be manufactured and provided, for example a table.
The item is rust proof and is impact resistant and is resistant to chipping and the item has excellent strength. The item will not shatter and is still lightweight which makes it easy to install. The items are removable and weigh less than 25 kg which mean that the item is suitable for one man to lift.
The polyurethane casting material is coloured to complement the final paint colour. Any design can be incorporated and emblems, crests and logos can be easily incorporated.
The final item may be individually bubble wrapped for transportation.

Claims

1. An item of furniture comprising an inner core and an outer covering, the inner core comprising a lower face and a peripheral wall and the outer covering comprising a peripheral wall and an upper surface wherein the peripheral wall of the outer covering is moulded to the peripheral wall of the inner core, the item of furniture comprising an inner hollow chamber and a sealable opening wherein a ballast is arranged, in use, to be inserted through the opening into the inner hollow chamber in order for the ballast to anchor the item of furniture.

2. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the inner core comprises a cylindrical inner core.

3. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprises a cylindrical outer covering.

4. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the upper face, peripheral wall and lower face of the outer covering is moulded to the respective upper face, peripheral wall and lower face of the inner core.

5. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the item of furniture comprises a closure member which is arranged, in use, to engage over the sealable opening in order to retain the ballast within the inner chamber.

6. An item of furniture according to claim 5 in which the closure member comprises a bung.

7. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which inner core comprises a recycled drum.

8. An item of furniture according to claim 7 in which the inner core comprises a cut down recycled drum.

9. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the inner core comprises a metal.

10. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the inner core comprises steel.

11. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the height of the item of furniture may be substantially 600 mm.

12. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the item of furniture is cylindrical with a lateral circular cross-section.

13. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the diameter of the item of furniture is substantially 500 mm.

14. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the sealable opening is substantially circular.

15. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the diameter of the sealable closures is substantially 50 mm.

16. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the thickness of the outer covering is substantially 10 mm.

17. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprises a thermosetting material.

18. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprises polyurethane.

19. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprises two-part polyurethane.

20. An item of furniture according to claim 19 in which the two-part polyurethane comprises a resin component and an isocyanate component.

21. An item of furniture according to claim 20 in which the resin component comprises renewable materials.

22. An item of furniture according to claim 20 in which the resin component comprises a polyol.

23. An item of furniture according to claim 22 in which the polyol is produced from rapeseed oil.

24. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprises a polyurethane based on rapeseed oil polyols.

25. An item of furniture according to claim 19 in which the outer covering comprises a filler material.

26. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering comprise a painted surface.

27. An item of furniture according to claim 26 in which the paint comprises a two-part polyurethane paint.

28. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the ballast comprises a granular material.

29. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the ballast is sourced from a location adjacent to the installation site of the item of furniture.

30. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the ballast comprises a renewable and/or recyclable material.

31. An item of furniture according to claim 1 in which the outer covering has printed matter adhered thereto.

32. A method of manufacturing an item of furniture comprising moulding an outer covering to an inner core wherein the inner core comprises a lower face and a peripheral wall and the outer covering comprises a peripheral wall and an upper surface, the method further comprising providing an inner hollow chamber with a sealable opening, the method further comprising inserting a ballast through the sealable opening into the inner hollow chamber in order to anchor the item of furniture.

33. A method of manufacturing an item of furniture according to claim 32 in which the method comprises collecting ballast material from the site adjacent to the installation site of the item of furniture.

34. A method of manufacturing an item of furniture according to claim 32 in which the method comprises inverting or at least partially inverting the item of furniture whilst filling the inner hollow chamber with ballast material.

35. (canceled)

36. (canceled)