Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
WO90/11709 ~U~ PCT/GB90/00526
TITLE: PEDESTAL
Descri~tion
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Technical Field
The invention relates to pedestals and particularly,
but not exclusively, to pedestals which provide bases for
swivel chairs and other articles of furniture.
Backqround Art
Pedestals are well known, for chairs and other
articles, which comprise a central socket supported in
use by arms or legs extending radially therefrom. The
socket can receive an upright column (e.g. a tube or a
rod) which carries the chair or other article. Such
pedesta}s are usually made of metal, the parts being
welded together, or cast in one piece. It is however
known to make such pedestals as plastics mouldings, the
arms, in cross section, being formed as inverted
U-sections whereby the upper surfaces of the arms present
a rounded appearance.
Disclosure of Invention
It is an object of the present invention to provide
a pedestal, particularly for swivel chairs but which i5
capable of other uses, as a moulding, and which is more
versatile than the known pedestals.
According to the invention, a pedestal comprises a
socket for receiving an upstanding column and a plurality
of arms extending radially from the socket to support it
on a floor, characterised in that the socket and its
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WO90/11709 ~ ; PCT/GBsO/00526
supporting arms are moulded in one piece, e.g. from
plastics, the arms are hollow with tops which are open
when moulded, and separately formed cover strips are
attached to the tops of the arms to close them.
5The invention therefore permits a pedestal to be
produced mainly by a single moulding operation but with
the subsequent addition of cover strips.
The cover strips are preferably formed by moulding
from plastics. They may be moulded with underlying
resilient projections having detents which are engageable
under abutments in the arms to hold the cover strips in
place. Alternati~vely the cover strips may be apertured
~ to permit the passage of resilient projections on upper
-~ strips, the projections having detents engageable under
: ~ 15 abutments in the arms to hold the cover strips and upper
strips in place. The cover strips or upper strips may
have any desired decorative or ornamental material
applied to them, so that pedestals in accordance with the
invention can readily be produced with a wide variety of
different surface appearances on the arms.
For stability of the pedestal, there~will normally
be at least three supporting arms, but preferably the
pedestal is provided with five arms.
The ends of the arms distant from the socket are
preferably provided with recesses for receiving castor
wheels.
The invention also provides a chair having a base in
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WO90/11709 2 0 4 16 6 C PCT/GB90/00526
the form of a pedestal as hereinbefore defined, a
column mounted in the socket and a seat secured to the
top of the column.
The following is a description, by way of example,
of one embodiment of the invention, with reference to the
accompanying schematic drawings.
srief Descri~tion of Drawinqs
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a pedestal in
accordance with the invention, the pedestal being shown
fitted with castor wheels;
Fig. 2 is a sectional view, excluding the castor
wheeIs, on line A-A of Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is a sectional view, excluding the castor
wheels, on line B-B of Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a plan view of an alternative form of
main cover strip for an arm of the pedestal of Fig. 1;
Fig. 5 is a cross sectional side view of the strip
of Fiq. 4;
Fig. 6 is a cross sectional end view of the strip
of Fig. 4 taken on the line A-A of Fig. 5;
- Fig. 7 is an underneath plan view of an upper or
decorative strip, and
Fig. 8 is a side view of the strip of Fig. 7.
Best Modes for CarrYinq Out the Invention
The pedestal shown in the drawings is a chair base
comprising a central socket 10 from which extend five
tapered supporting arms 11. The arms extend radially
WO9OJ11709 ~ 6 ~ PCT/GB90/00526
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from the socket in equi-spaced relationship and in a
plane normal to the axis of the socket. Each ar~ 11 is
provided at its outer end with a recess 22 of circular
cross-section for receiving the carrying spindle of a
castor wheel 12. The arms 11 are moulded from plastics
in one piece with the socket 10 and are, except at their
end portions in the region of the recesses 22, of hollow
U-s~haped configuration and provided at intervals along .
their length with internal cross-panels (not shown) for
strengthening purposes. At said end portions, each arm
has flat upper and lower sides defined by the ends of a
central boss 23 provided with a recess 22, an outer
open-ended circular wall 24 spaced from and co-axial with
the~boss~ 23 and a plurality of radial webs 13 connecting
the~boss with the circular wall and extending parallel to
the axis thereof. The recess ~2 opens through the lower
end of the boss 23 and communicates co-axially with a
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rectangular upper passageway opening through the upper
énd of:the boss and providing steps or abutment surfaces
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17 at the junction of the recess and passageway. The
arms:11 are provided at intervals along their length with
: further bosses 23 of similar formation to the boss
described above but without the outer wall and radial
~: webs. Longitudinally extending webs interconnect said
- 25~ further bosses and said cross panels in each arm and the
ends of the arm and a longitudinal web may co-operate
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with crossing diagonal webs to interconnect the outer
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WO90~11709 PCT/GB90/00526
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wall 24 and the nearest cross-panel. A1l of the
parts hereinbefore described with reference t~o the
drawings are moulded in one piece. The tops of the arms,
which are open when moulded, are closed by separately
5 moulded cover strips 14 which clip into position by pairs
of integral, resilient, depending flanges 15 having
detents 16 which project sideways and engage below the
abutment surfaces 17 in the bosses 23. The arms 11 may
be provided with any desired ornamentation or decoration
on the outer surfaces of their cover strips, for example
in the form of thinner strips secured by adhesive.
In an alternative arrangement shown in Figures 4 to
8 of the drawings, the cover strips 14, which are
otherwise similar to those of Figs. 1, 2 and 3, do not
themselves carry detents but are apertured at 18 to
permit the passage of resilient pro~ections 19 on upper
- ~ strips 20, which projections have detents 21 engaging
below abutment surfaces 17 in the arms 11, the upper
strips 20 being wider than the apertures 18 in the strips
14 so that when the detents 21 engage below the abutment
surfaces the assembly of strips and arms i9 held securely
together. The upper strips may also provide any desired
ornamental effect.
Industrial ApPlicabilitY
In use, the socket 10 contains an upright column,
e.g. a tube or shaft, carrying a seat or other object.
Normally, the the socket is conicàl and the bottom end
WO90~11709 2 0 4 1 6 ~ ~ PCT/GB90/00526
the tube or shaft is correspondingly shaped so that
it can be wedged in the socket.
Clearly it would be possible to mould a pedestal
incorporating the teachings of the present invention in
materials other than plastics, e.g. in metals such as
aluminium. Also it would be possible to construct a
pedestal in which the main part is made from one
material, e.g. aluminium, and the cover parts are made
from plastics, and vice versa.
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