Pivoting Lounge Backrest for Compact Shipping and Easy Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Lounge furnishings, due to their large and uneven size, face inefficiencies in packaging, leading to higher delivery costs, unwanted shifting during shipping, uneven weight distribution, and assembly challenges for customers who lack proper tools or training.
Innovation Solution
A configurable lounge furnishing with a rotatable backrest pivotally coupled to a seat via hinges, allowing the backrest to transition from a shipping configuration where it is below the armrests to a use configuration where it protrudes above, enabling efficient packaging and protection of the pivotal mechanism from the user.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the backrest is designed to be fully assembled at the factory, then assembly simplicity for customers is improved, but shipping cost and packaging efficiency worsen due to large and uneven size
Solution Approach 1:
The backrest is divided into multiple segments that can be collapsed into a compact configuration for shipping, then reassembled into a fully functional form at the customer's location. This segmentation allows the furniture to be shipped in a space-efficient manner while still providing a complete assembled product, resolving the contradiction between assembly simplicity and shipping cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The backrest incorporates dynamic collapsing and expanding mechanisms that allow it to transition between a compact shipping configuration and a fully assembled use configuration. This dynamic capability enables the furniture to adapt its form factor for efficient shipping while maintaining the benefit of being fully assembled for the customer, addressing both shipping cost and assembly simplicity concerns.
2Productivity
If the furnishing is packaged in a compact configuration, then shipping efficiency is improved, but the pivotal mechanism may interfere with upholstery during assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The pivotal mechanism is extracted or removed from the furnishing during the packaging process, allowing the backrest to be collapsed into a compact configuration that fits efficiently within the packaging. The pivotal mechanism can then be reinstalled at the customer's location, eliminating interference with upholstery during shipping while maintaining packaging efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The pivotal mechanism is preliminarily removed or disconnected before packaging, enabling the backrest to be positioned in a compact configuration without the mechanism interfering with upholstery or other components. This preliminary action prevents harmful interference during shipping while maintaining packaging efficiency, and the mechanism can be reconnected during final assembly.
3Ease of operation
If the backrest is positioned above armrests in use configuration, then comfort and functionality are improved, but packaging space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The backrest is designed with dynamic collapsing capabilities that allow it to be positioned above the armrests in a use configuration for optimal comfort and functionality, while being able to collapse into a compact configuration that reduces packaging space requirements for shipping. This dynamic adaptability resolves the contradiction between comfort/functionality and packaging space.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enhances packaging efficiency, reduces shipping costs and damage, and simplifies assembly by allowing the backrest to be safely positioned during use while minimizing interference with upholstery, thus addressing the challenges of size and assembly complexity.
Implementation Method 1
A backrest that is pivotally coupled to a seat by at least one hinge is rotated from a first position where the backrest is entirely positioned below a pair of armrests to a second position where a top of the backrest is located above the pair of armrests
Data Source
AI summary
A furnishing includes a seat and a base that supports the seat. The furnishing further includes a geometrically shaped backrest that is pivotal relative to the seat and has at least a front, a back, a bottom, a right side and a left side that is substantially parallel with the right side. The furnishing further includes at least one hinge including a first hinge body attached to and protruding from the seat and a second hinge body attached to and protruding from the backrest. The first hinge body is coupled to the second hinge body at a pivot point. The pivot point is spaced apart from the seat and spaced apart from the backrest.