Folding mesh chair with nesting hoops

• US 8,038,221 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2009
• Issued: 10/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mity-Lite, Inc. (MITY Holdings of Delaware, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Mity-Lite, Inc. (MITY Holdings of Delaware, Inc.)
• Inventors: Smith, Richard D., Farnsworth, Orrin C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dunn; David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Allred; David E
• Application Number:
  US12/422,821
• Publication Number:
  US 20100156151A1
• Time in Patent Office: 918 Days
• Field of Search: 297/55, 297/440.11
• US Class Current: 297/440.11
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 3/04 Stackable chairs; Nesting chairs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 4/28 Folding chairs with flexible coverings for the seat or back elements
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 4/38 with cross legs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 4/44 with legs pivotably connected to seat or underframe
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 5/06 Special adaptation of seat upholstery or fabric for attachment to tubular chairs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/002 Chair or stool bases A47C3/20 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/282 with mesh-like supports, e.g. elastomeric membranes

Abstract

A folding mesh chair includes a seat and a backrest carried between opposite frame sides. The chair has an unfolded seating position in which the seat pivots to extend from the frame sides and bottoms of front and rear legs move apart, and a folded position in which the seat pivots toward the frame sides and the front and rear legs move together. One or both of the seat and the backrest have a continuous sheet of flexible and elastic mesh or patterned open texture plastic held across and substantially covering an opening in an all-plastic hoop fixed between the frame sides. The hoop includes inner and outer plastic mating hoops with the mesh extending over an outer perimeter of the inner hoop and into an interface between the inner and outer hoops.

Claims

1. A folding chair, comprising:

a) a seat and a backrest carried between opposite frame sides each with a backrest support, a front leg and a rear leg, and having an unfolded seating position in which the seat pivots to extend from the frame sides and bottoms of the front and rear legs move apart, and a folded position in which the seat pivots toward the frame sides and the front and rear legs move together;

b) one or both of the seat and the backrest having a continuous sheet of flexible and elastic mesh held taut across and substantially covering an opening in an all-plastic hoop coupled between the frame sides;

c) the hoop including inner and outer plastic mating hoops with the mesh extending over an outer perimeter of the inner hoop and into an interface between the inner and outer hoops;

d) the inner hoop forming substantially an entire inner circumference of the opening in the all-plastic hoop; and

e) the outer hoop including lateral hooks extending inward with respect to the outer hoop and engaging the inner circumference of the inner hoop to retain the inner hoop from pulling inward under tension placed on the sheet of mesh.

2. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the inner and outer plastic mating hoops further comprise:

a plurality of projecting hooks formed on one of the inner and outer mating hoops; and

a plurality of notches formed in another of the inner and outer mating hoops and receiving, respectively, the plurality of hooks to retain the inner hoop to the outer hoop.

3. A chair in accordance with claim 2, wherein the plurality of hooks further comprises:

a plurality of opposite adjacent hook pairs facing in opposite directions with each hoop pair received within a notch.

4. A chair in accordance with claim 2, wherein the one of the inner or outer mating hoops and the plurality of hooks are formed as a single, integrally formed, plastic unit.

5. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the seat has the all-plastic hoop and further comprises:

an interior projecting flange formed on the outer hoop; and

a plurality of cut-outs formed in the flange.

6. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein

the all-plastic hoop of the backrest and the all-plastic hoop of the seat form the sole structural support between the frame sides above a bottom of the frame sides.

7. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the backrest has the all-plastic hoop and wherein

the all-plastic hoop of the backrest forms the sole structural support between the backrest supports of the frame sides.

8. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the seat has the all-plastic hoop, and wherein

the all-plastic hoop of the seat forms the sole structural support between the frame sides at a middle of the frame sides.

9. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the seat has the all-plastic hoop, and wherein the all-plastic hoop of the seat weighs between 1.25-2.5 lbs.

10. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the backrest has the all-plastic hoop, and wherein the all-plastic hoop of the backrest weighs between 0.5-1.5 lbs.

11. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the all-plastic hoop of the seat and the all-plastic hoop of the backrest together weigh between 1.75-4 lbs.

13. A chair in accordance with claim 1, wherein the seat has the all-plastic hoop forming an all-plastic seat hoop;

and wherein only lateral sides of the all-plastic seat hoop are coupled to the frame sides.

14. A chair in accordance with claim 1, further comprising:

a plastic lobe formed with the outer hoop of the seat and extending downwardly from the outer hoop of the seat in the unfolded seating position; and

a pair of pivotal couplings including the front leg pivotally coupled to the lobe and the rear leg pivotally coupled to the hoop of the seat.

12. A folding chair, comprising:

a) a seat and a backrest carried between opposite frame sides each with a backrest support, a front leg and a rear leg, and having an unfolded seating position in which the seat pivots to extend from the frame sides and bottoms of the front and rear legs move apart, and a folded position in which the seat pivots toward the frame sides and the front and rear legs move together;

b) one or both of the seat and the backrest having a continuous sheet of flexible and elastic mesh held taut across and substantially covering an opening in an all-plastic hoop coupled between the frame sides; and

c) the hoop including inner and outer plastic mating hoops with the mesh extending over an outer perimeter of the inner hoop and into an interface between the inner and outer hoops; and

d) the inner and outer plastic mating hoops further comprising;

a plurality of oppositely projecting hook pairs adjacent one another and facing in opposite directions formed on one of the inner and outer mating hoops; and

a plurality of notches formed in another of the inner and outer mating hoops and receiving, respectively, the plurality of oppositely projecting hook pairs with a hook pair in each notch to retain the inner hoop to the outer hoop.