Nesting Table Top Design to Reduce Stacked Height and Storage Space
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional banquet tables are cumbersome due to their large size, weight, and material costs, requiring significant storage space and posing challenges in transportation and assembly, with existing solutions often involving heavy materials and complex reinforcement structures that increase weight and manufacturing complexity.
Innovation Solution
A table design featuring a lightweight, molded plastic table top with a simplified frame structure that allows for easy assembly and disassembly, enabling nesting and stacking configurations to reduce storage and transportation needs, utilizing a limited number of parts and fasteners, and incorporating features like recesses and compression edges for enhanced strength and stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If table tops are constructed from wood, particle board or metal, then the table top is strong and durable, but the table becomes heavy and expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The table top is constructed from composite materials including a particle board core layer sandwiched between two wood veneer layers. This composite structure provides the strength and durability of solid wood while significantly reducing the overall weight and material cost compared to traditional solid wood or metal table tops.
2Adaptability or versatility
If conventional banquet tables are designed with large table tops and folding legs, then the tables can be used in various configurations, but the storage area required becomes quite large
Solution Approach 1:
The table legs are designed to nest within the table top structure when folded, with the legs fitting into recesses or compartments in the table top. This nesting arrangement allows the table to be compacted to a fraction of its extended size, dramatically reducing the storage area required while maintaining the ability to configure the table in various settings when deployed.
3Strength
If additional reinforcing members and structural parts are added to strengthen the table top, then the table top strength increases, but the weight and manufacturing complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The reinforcing members are integrated directly into the table top structure during the manufacturing process, with metal reinforcement bars embedded within the particle board core and veneer layers. This merging of structural elements eliminates the need for separate assembly steps and additional fasteners, reducing manufacturing complexity while providing the necessary strength and rigidity to the table top.
Data Source
AI summary
A table may be sized and configured to nest with another table to reduce a height of a plurality of stacked tables in a nested configuration. The table may include a nesting portion formed in an upper surface and sidewall of the table top. The table may also include a frame with one or more engaging portions sized and configured to be disposed in the nesting portion of an adjacent table when the tables are nested together. In addition, the table top may include a compression edge sized and configured to be disposed in a nesting portion of an adjacent table when the tables are nested together. The compression edge and engaging portions may be sized and configured to be simultaneously disposed in the nesting portion of the adjacent table when the table is nested with the adjacent table.