Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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1 BACKGEIOuND OF T~IE INVENTION
l. ~ield of the Invention
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~ he present invention xelates to a resili~nt
furniture covering which is especially adapted, bu~
6 not exclusively limited to, seats or similar ec~uip~ent
employed in public locations and, more partioularly,
in public transportation vehicles.
In effect, it has been noted tha. during constclnt
usage, the seats which are in.stalled in publi~ buildings
10 or public transportation vehicles are frequently subjec~ed
to acts of vandalism and, as a result, are often found in
a dilapidated condltion so as to be rendered unfit for
use.
Thus, for instance, the coverin~s of seats employed
15 in public use are very frequently ripped or lacerated b~
means of kniv~s, blunt or sharp ob;eots and, as a consequencq!,
must be frequently replaced.
. Discussion of the Prior Art
It is presently known that SUGh furniturQ coverings
20 comprise, in general, an outer covering of fabric or of a
plastic material which, in turn, covers a resilient padding
or stuffing constituted, for example, of horsehair, kapok
: . or a foclmed plastic material and, according t~ the thick-
~; ness and the type of seat under consideration, is supported
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; 25 on either a rigid base, or on some ri~id straps mounted
on a ~rame, or ven on a spriny assembly.
~; It is apparent, from its praperties and its thin-
ness, that the material serving as the outer covering
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¦ 1 c~nnot withs~and the tearing action of a sharp object
and that, due to its very nature, the stuffing which is
even less resistant to such an attack, renders it easy
; for the object to penetrate 1:herethrough.
5 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to eliminate this disadvantage, the
present invention contemplates, initially, the utiliæation
o~ an outer covering formed of a relatively lhic~, pliable
plastic material, and ~hich is reinforced through th~ use
10 o a network of tear-resi.stant fibers such as, fvr example,
metallic fib~rs.
The foregolng constxuction allows, comprehensively,
for the substantial elimination of the risk o~ lacexation,
nevertheless, this improvement is fre~uently accomplished
15 at the expense of a reduction .in comfort.
Accordingl~, it is an object of the present
invention to eliminate all of the disadvantac3es encountere.d
in the tate of the art. To this effect, the invention
proposes a resilient ~urnishin~ or furniture seat which
20 allows one to attain:
a degree of comfort comparable or superior to
that conferred b~ standard furniture structures;
an excellent resistance to laceration;
and an aasy method of manufaature capable of heing
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2~ automated, which permits the cost of any recovering of the
: furniture to be cbnsiderably reduced and, moreover, affords
the possibility of mass production with a resul~ant reductio~
in labor costs.
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Accordingly, the present invention provides a lacera-
tion resistant resilient furniture covering, comprising a flexi-
ble cover layer of dense plastic material, an lntermediate foamed
plastic layer attached to the cover layer, and a chain-link as-
sembly of interlocked spiral metal springs having axes parallel
to the cover layer having a portion only of their turns extremely
into the intermediate layer, said,assembly thereby forming a con-
tinuous barrier layer resistant to the penetration of a sharp
object only partly embedded in said intermediate layer~
In accordance with another feature of the inventi.on, the
above-mentioned outer cover i.s formed of a coating of solid poly-
vinyl chloride. In this instance, in order to obtain an effec-
tive bond between the outer cover and the foamed plast.ic material,
the latter consists of blown or expanded polyvinyl chloride foam.
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1 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF TIIE D~WINGS
An embodiment of ~he invention will now be
described hereinbelow having specific reference to
the accompanying drawings; in which:
Figure l is a txansverse sectional view of a
portion of the furniture covering accordiny to ~he
invention; and
Figure 2 is a perspective secti~nal view of the
covering illustrated in Fig. l.
10 DETAXLED DESCRIPTION
Havin~ refeL-ence to Figs. l and 2 of the drawings,
the elements of the furniture covering comprise a resilient
outer cover l consisting of a layer or ~heeting of solid
polyvinyl chloride ~(PVC). This outer cov~er ltis reinforced
15 by a network 2 formed by a sheet of~spiral metallic springs,
such as generally emplo~ed in standard metal spring
mattresses, through the intermediary of a layer 3 o~
foamed polyvinyl chloride (PVC). This foamed PVC thus
adheres firmly to the outer cover and envelops the
2~ upper portion of the trellis or spring spirals.
In the illustrative example~ the network 2 iq
afixed at its periphery to a frame ~ which i9 formed
o~ a continuous cixcul~r rod el~ment.
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It is evident that such an a~sembly allows for the
25 collective effect of ~he flexible properties imparted to
~¦ ~ the outer cover l~, the roamed PVC layer 3, and the resilient
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; network 2. Moreover, the intermediate layer 3 of foamed PVC
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1 provent~ on~ from feeling the spires o~ layer or ~rinys
- ~, for example, when one is seated on the furniture or
seat. Moreover, it ensures t:he preservation and the
firmness of the outer cover.
In effect, in the inst:ance where this intermediate
: ~ayer is not present and in which the resilient network
is attached directly to the outer cover by the top o~ it~
;: spires, the outer cover tends to become deformed and
forms hollows intermediate each of the points o~ attachment
0 50 as to cause the exterior appearance of the furniture
coverin~ to become unsightly.
On the other hand, in the furniture cover.inq accordin~
to the present invention, the outer cover is evenly ~upporte~
b~ the intermediate la~er which, due to its resiliency,
15 causes the outer aover atex changing shape to return to
its original form. ~nother advantage of such an arrange-
~` ment lies in that, because the combination of the elements
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constituting the outer cover and the.intermediate layer
is ~uperior to that which would be obtained by using only
20 a Ringle l~yer, i~ i.s possible to provide a le s firm and,
as a result~ a lighter and less expensive resil.ient network.
: In addition, the resistance to laceration of such
~ furnishings is excellent, in essence:
r~ ~ First of all, the piercing action o a sharp object,
:~: 25 such as a knife, will be immediately resisted by the
relatively thick llayer of the outer aover l;
. the penetr~tion of the knife will then be stopped
by the metallic netwoxk 2. ~ :
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1 ~t this stacJe, the transverse stress caused ~y the
cuttiny of the furniture cover~ng will be contained by the
~pires of the txellis or sp~ings 2 which will hold back
the point o~ the knife.
Consequently, the only damage to which such furniture
is subject will consis~ of slits of limited dimensions,
¦ which are easily reglueable.
It will be noted that the layer of PVC comprising
the outer cover l can advantageously be firepxoo~ed 80 as
10 to thereby impart, by reason of its thicknes~, an excellent
fire resistance to the laminated covering structure of the
furniture. This also applies to the layer 3.
;; In the event of the rupture of one of the metallic
spires of the network or springs 2, the end of this broken
15 spire will be able to penetrate the outer cover or surace
layer onl~ with great difficulty, thus eliminating the ris~ ;
of in juring the user of the furniture or seat.
The methods, previously de~cribed, of attaching the
furnituxe covering to a seat can be varied and will depend
20 upon the type of seat under consideration. In particular,
the ~nventive covéring can be used as a hammock because
of its qualities o~ suppleness and resiliency, or else it
can be utilized a~ a standard furniture covering mounted
on a spring skele~on frame~
It will be noted that the manufacture of this
furnitu~e covering can be effected as ~ollows:
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1 In a first step, the solid layer of PVC (outer
cover l) is molded into its desired form;
; in a second step, a layer 3 o ~oamed PVC i8 applied
to the inside ~urfaGe of this layer l which bonds together
5 with the solid PVC layer l;
. and in a third step, ~he metallic network 2, i.e.
: spring~, is applied on ~he oamed PVC 3, either before o~
during polymeri~ation, in such a manner that the upper
portion of its spires o~ the sprinys is e~bedded in the
: 10 foam 3.
These different manufacturing operations can be
effectuated automatically, such as b~ using appropriate
e~uipment, thereby resulting in much lower production
costs than would be in making the standard furnishings
15 by hand.
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