Chair Seat Pivoting Mechanism for Space-Saving Alignment Without Wear

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing office chairs that allow for stacking or lining up are either inefficient in space usage or suffer from increased wear and tear due to the need for seats to be narrower than backrests, leading to discomfort and structural issues when trying to align multiple chairs.

Innovation Solution

A chair design where the seat surface pivots out of the receiving area in the raised position, allowing for space-saving alignment without direct contact between seat surfaces, using defined contact surfaces and a carrier with inner and outer receiving areas to guide and secure chairs, minimizing wear by only allowing contact at non-visible points.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the seat surface is made narrower to allow stacking and lining up, then chairs can be stacked and lined up, but seating comfort deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestacking and lining up capabilityVSAvoidseating comfort
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The seat surface is made dynamically movable relative to the backrest through a pivoting mechanism. The seat surface can be tilted relative to the backrest, allowing it to be narrower when stacked while maintaining full width when in use, thus resolving the contradiction between stacking capability and seating comfort

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Adaptability or versatility

If the seat surface remains in the receiving area during lining up, then chairs can be aligned, but wear and tear increases due to direct contact between seat surfaces

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvealignment capabilityVSAvoidseat surface durability
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The seat surface is designed to pivot dynamically between two positions: remaining in the receiving area for alignment purposes, and moving out of the receiving area during lining up to prevent contact between seat surfaces. This dynamic movement eliminates wear while maintaining alignment capability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The seat surface is extracted from the receiving area during the lining up process through pivoting. This extraction prevents the seat surfaces from contacting each other, thereby eliminating wear and tear while still allowing chairs to be aligned using the carrier's receiving areas

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Reliability

If the seat surface is raised to free the receiving area, then chairs can be lined up without wear, but the mechanism becomes more complex

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvewear reductionVSAvoidpivoting mechanism complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The pivoting mechanism that raises the seat surface is merged with the existing tilt mechanism between seat and backrest. This integration allows the seat surface to pivot out of the receiving area using the same mechanical components already present in the chair design, thereby reducing wear while minimizing additional complexity

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentEP3337353B1Chair
Publication Date: 2019.09.11 STOERIKO PROD DESIGN GMBH
  • EP3337353B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3337353B1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP3337353B1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

The invention relates to a chair (10) comprising a base frame (40) and a support (20) hinged thereto, which is coupled to a seating surface (11) and supports same, wherein the seating surface (11) is connected to the support (20) for turning or pivoting about an axis of rotation (30) between a sitting position and an erect position and wherein the support (20) has at least one receiving region (28, 29) for aligned abutment of an adjacently arranged structurally identical chair (10). In the erect position, the seating surface (11) is pivoted out from the receiving region (28, 29) of the support (20) and releases same. As a result, a chair (10) is created which can be arranged adjacently to other structurally identical chairs (10) for storage in a space-saving manner.