US20200375362A1

US20200375362A1 - Knock Down Furniture Construction

Info

Publication number: US20200375362A1
Application number: US16/887,798
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward Hale; Megan Czaja
Original assignee: Williams Sonoma Inc
Current assignee: Williams Sonoma Inc
Priority date: 2019-05-29
Filing date: 2020-05-29
Publication date: 2020-12-03

Abstract

A furniture piece includes a seat deck and a seatback. The seatback is pivotally connected to the seat deck so as to pivot between a folded configuration for storage and shipping and an upright configuration for assembly and use. A pair of arms are removably attached to opposing side edges of the seatback and the seat deck. Latches may be used to secure the seatback in the upright configuration and the pair of arms to the seat deck.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/854,186, filed May 29, 2019, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to furniture and, more particularly, to a furniture construction that allows a piece to be placed in a compact shipping configuration with ease of assembly after delivery.

BACKGROUND

Furniture products often must be shipped from manufacturers or retailers to customers. A compact shipping configuration is desirable in order to save valuable cargo space during transport and to also protect the furniture piece from breakage. In addition, furniture items are typically stored in inventory after manufacture, where space is also of premium value.
Customers, however, must assemble the furniture piece upon receipt. A furniture piece featuring a knock-down construction and that is easily assembled is desirable.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

There are several aspects of the present subject matter which may be embodied separately or together in the methods, devices and systems described and claimed below. These aspects may be employed alone or in combination with other aspects of the subject matter described herein, and the description of these aspects together is not intended to preclude the use of these aspects separately or the claiming of such aspects separately or in different combinations as set forth in the claims appended hereto
In one aspect, a furniture piece includes a seat deck, a seatback pivotally connected to the seat deck so as to pivot between a folded configuration and an upright configuration and a pair of arms removably attached to opposing side edges of the seatback and the seat deck.
In another aspect, a process is provided for assembling a furniture piece and includes the steps of pivoting a seatback from a folded configuration to an upright configuration with respect to a seat deck, securing the seatback in the upright configuration by latching a bottom edge of the seatback to a bottom surface of the seat deck and attaching a pair of arms to opposing side edges of the seatback and the seat deck.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the furniture piece of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the furniture piece of FIG. 1 in a disassembled configuration;

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of the seat deck and seatback of the furniture piece of FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrating pivoting of the seatback from a folded configuration to an upright configuration;

FIG. 3B is a perspective view of the seatback of FIG. 3A being latched in the upright configuration;

FIG. 4A illustrates the seatback and seat deck of FIGS. 3A and 3B in the upright configuration

FIG. 4B illustrates assembly of a pair of arms to the seatback and seat deck of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 4C illustrates the pair of arms being latched to the seat deck of FIGS. 4A and 4B;

FIG. 5A illustrates legs being attached to the furniture of FIG. 4C;

FIG. 5B illustrates seat cushions being placed on furniture piece of FIG. 5A;

FIG. 5C is a perspective view of the assembled furniture piece of FIGS. 5A and 5B.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

A sofa that features an embodiment of the construction of the disclosure is indicated in general at 10 in FIG. 1. It is to be understood that while a sofa is illustrated and described below, the furniture piece instead could be a chair or other type of furniture item. In the illustrated embodiment, the sofa 10 knocks down to a compact shipping configuration so that it may be shipped and stored in a single box. In addition, the construction of the sofa 10 enables it to be assembled using a minimal number of, or in some embodiments no, tools.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the sofa includes a back rest or seatback 12 and a seat deck 14. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the seatback 12 and seat deck 14 are joined via a hinge 16 which, as an example only, may be a piano hinge. As a result, the seatback 12 may be folded from an upright position (illustrated in FIG. 2) to a folded position (with the front surface of the seatback resting against the top surface of the seat deck) for shipping, as illustrated by arrow 18. The piano hinge 16 may run approximately the full length of the seatback and seat deck. In alternative embodiments, a single hinge of a different width, or multiple hinges may be used in place of the piano hinge.
With continued reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the sofa also includes a pair of arms 22 a and 22 b, a pair of back cushions 24 a and 24 b and seat cushions 26 a and 26 b. The arms 22 a and 22 b ship in a disassembled configuration, as illustrated in FIG. 2, and are attached to backrest 12 and seat deck 14, as explained in greater detail below.
While pairs of back cushions and seat cushions are illustrated, the sofa may instead include a different number of each.
When the sofa is in the disassembled configuration illustrated in FIG. 2, and with the backrest 12 folded down against the seat deck 14, in the direction of arrow 18, the pieces may be compactly stored in a container, such as a box, for economical shipping and storage. As described below, legs illustrated at 32 a, 34 a and 32 b, 34 b in FIG. 1 are secured to the bottom of the seat deck 14 after shipping.
Assembly of the sofa 10 of 1 and 2 after receipt by a customer will now be described.
As illustrated in FIG. 3A, the seat back 12 is pivoted in the direction of arrow 36 into an upright configuration with respect to seat deck 14 as an initial step during assembly of the sofa for use. As illustrated in FIG. 3B, rear latches 40 a-40 d extend between the bottom surface of the seat deck 14 and the bottom end of the seatback 12 when fastened and are used to secure/fix the seatrest 12 in the upright configuration. As an example only, the rear latches 40 a-40 d may be draw latches. An enlarged view of rear latch 40 c is provided in circle 42. Any other latch assembly known in the art may be used, and the number of latches may differ from the four rear latches 40 a-40 d shown.
With the seat deck 14 positioned on a surface and the seatback 12 generally upright, as illustrated in FIG. 4A, assembly of the pair of arms to the side edges of the seat deck and seatback is ready to begin. FIG. 4B illustrates the arms 22 a and 22 b being connected to the seatback 12 and seat deck 14. This may be accomplished via mating fittings which may be, as an example only, tapered bed fittings. More specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4B, the arm 22 b is provided with a lower arm fitting 44 b and an upper arm fitting 46 b. As illustrated in FIG. 2, corresponding seatback fittings and seat deck fittings are provided at 52 b and 54 b, respectively. With continued reference to FIG. 2, arm 22 a is provided with lower and upper arm fittings 44 a and 46 a, while with reference to FIG. 4B, the seatback 12 is provided with seatback fitting 52 a while the seat deck is provided with seat deck fitting 54 a. Enlarged views of lower arm fitting 44 b and seat deck fitting 54 b are provided in oval 56 of FIG. 4B, and enlarged views of upper arm fitting 46 b and seatback fitting 52 b are provided in oval 58. Arm fittings 44 a and 46 a of arm 22 a slidingly engage seat deck fitting 54 a and seatback fitting 52 a, respectively, while arm fittings 44 b and 46 b of arm 22 b engage seat deck fitting 54 b and seat back fitting 52 a, respectively so that the pair of arms 22 a and 22 b are attached to the seatback and seat deck, as illustrated in FIG. 4C.
As illustrated in FIG. 4C, side latches 62 a, 64 a, 62 b and 64 b, which may be draw latches (such as draw latch 40 c in FIG. 3B), are then used to secure the arms 22 a and 22 b to the seat deck 14.
With reference to FIG. 5A, the legs 32 a, 32 b, 34 a and 34 b may be attached to the bottom of the seat deck 14 and the bottom edge of the seatback 12 by fasteners known in the art. As examples only, the fasteners may be screws or bolts or each leg may be provided with a threaded stud or other fastener that engages a corresponding socket or mating fastener positioned on the seat deck bottom or seatback bottom edge. In alternative embodiments, all of the legs may be attached to the bottom of the seat deck or to the bottom edges of the arms 22 a and 22 b or combinations of the arm and seatback bottom edges and seat deck bottom. The number of legs illustrated may be varied (i.e. the sofa may be provided with six legs instead of the illustrated four). The legs 32 a, 32 b, 34 a and 34 b may optionally be interchangeable in that a single sofa may be provided with multiple sets of legs that may alternatively be used to provide a purchaser with the ability to customize or vary the appearance of the sofa.
Turning to FIG. 5B the user completes assembly of the sofa by placing the seat cushions 26 a and 26 b on the seat deck 14 and the seatback cushions 24 a and 24 b against the seatback 12. The assembled sofa, illustrated in FIGS. 5C and 1 is then available for use.
While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A furniture piece comprising:

a. a seat deck;

b. a seatback pivotally connected to the seat deck so as to pivot between a folded configuration and an upright configuration; and

c. a pair of arms removably attached to opposing side edges of the seatback and the seat deck.

2. The furniture piece of claim 1 further comprising a back cushion and a seat cushion configured to be positioned on the back rest and the seat deck, respectively, when the seatback is in the upright configuration.

3. The furniture piece of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of legs removably attached to a bottom surface of the seat deck.

4. The furniture piece of claim 1 further comprising a piano hinge and wherein the back rest is pivotally connected to the seat deck by the piano hinge.

5. The furniture piece of claim 1 further comprising a rear latch connected to a bottom edge of the back rest and a bottom surface of the seat deck and configured to secure the back rest in the upright configuration.

6. The furniture piece of claim 5 wherein the rear latch includes a draw latch.

7. The furniture piece of claim 5 further comprising a plurality of rear latches connected to a bottom edge of the back rest and a bottom surface of the seat deck and configured to secure the back rest in the upright configuration.

8. The furniture piece of claim 5 further comprising a plurality of fittings configured to secure the pair of arm sections to the seat deck and the back rest.

9. The furniture piece of claim 8 wherein the pair of arms includes a first arm and a second arm and the plurality of fittings includes:

d. a first upper arm fitting and a first lower arm fitting positioned on the first arm, a first seatback fitting positioned on the seatback and configured to be engaged by the first upper arm fitting and a first seat deck fitting positioned on the seat deck and configured to be engaged by the first lower arm fitting;

e. a second upper arm fitting and a second lower arm fitting positioned on the second arm, a second seatback fitting positioned on the seatback and configured to be engaged by the second upper arm fitting and a second seat deck fitting positioned on the seat deck and configured to be engaged by the second lower arm fitting.

10. The furniture piece of claim 9 further comprising a first side latch connected to a bottom edge of the first arm and a bottom surface of the seat deck and a second side latch connected to a bottom edge of the second arm and a bottom surface of the seat deck.

11. The furniture piece of claim 10 wherein the first and second side latches are draw latches.

12. The furniture piece of claim 9 wherein the plurality of fittings includes tapered bed fittings.

13. The furniture piece of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of fittings configured to secure the pair of arm sections to the seat deck and the back rest.

14. The furniture piece of claim 13 wherein the pair of arms includes a first arm and a second arm and the plurality of fittings includes:

d. a first upper arm fitting and a first lower arm fitting positioned on the first arm, a first seatback fitting positioned on the seatback and configured to be engaged by, the first upper arm fitting and a first seat deck fitting positioned on the seat deck and configured to be engaged by the first lower arm fitting;

15. The furniture piece of claim 14 further comprising a first side latch connected to a bottom edge of the first arm and a bottom surface of the seat deck and a second side latch connected to a bottom edge of the second arm and a bottom surface of the seat deck.

16. The furniture piece of claim 15 wherein the first and second side latches are draw latches.

17. The furniture piece of claim 13 wherein the plurality of fittings includes tapered bed fittings.

18. The furniture piece of claim 1 wherein the furniture piece is a sofa.

19. The furniture piece of claim 1 wherein the furniture piece is a chair.

20. A method of assembling a furniture piece comprising the steps of:

a. pivoting a seatback from a folded configuration to an upright configuration with respect to a seat deck;

b. securing the seatback in the upright configuration by latching a bottom edge of the seatback to a bottom surface of the seat deck; and

c. attaching a pair of arms to opposing side edges of the seatback and the seat deck.