CN-114052423-B - Apparatus and method for manufacturing fabric suspended seating structure

Abstract

A seat assembly includes a fabric member having a seating surface and a frame including an interior section directly attached to the fabric member. The inner section extends from the intermediate section, the intermediate section having a flex resistance greater than the flex resistance of the inner section.

Inventors

• Craig Martin olman
• SMITH SAMUEL
• Robert A. britty
• LONG MICHAEL
• Kelly Washburn

Assignees

• 伊利诺斯工具制品有限公司

Dates

Publication Date

20260508

Application Date

20210803

Priority Date

20210720

Claims (15)

1. 1. A seat assembly, comprising: a fabric member having a seating surface; a frame extending around the textile element and comprising an inner section molded directly to the textile element and an intermediate section extending outwardly around the inner section, and A skirt integrally formed with the frame, Wherein the intermediate section has a greater flex resistance than the inner section, The skirt is coupled to the interior section of the frame by a living hinge and extends inwardly from the interior section of the frame relative to the center of the fabric member, and Wherein the skirt is configured to be molded to the fabric member.
2. 2. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein said webbing member is at least partially surrounded by said frame.
3. 3. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein the fabric member is configured to extend across the frame in tension.
4. 4. A seat assembly as set forth in claim 1 wherein said fabric member is at least partially constructed of a resin material.
5. 5. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein the skirt has a flex resistance less than that of the frame, and wherein an upper surface of the skirt is molded to a bottom surface of the fabric member or the fabric member is partially embedded within the skirt.
6. 6. The seat assembly of claim 5 wherein the skirt is constructed at least in part of a material having a melting temperature that is higher than a melting temperature of a material of the fabric member.
7. 7. The seat assembly of claim 5 wherein the skirt includes a plurality of gaps along the skirt.
8. 8. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein said skirt includes an inner edge facing away from said living hinge, said skirt having a flex resistance that decreases in a direction moving inwardly from said living hinge to said inner edge of said skirt.
9. 9. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein the skirt extends along at least a portion of a periphery of the fabric member.
10. 10. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the webbing member is configured to rotate about an interior section of the frame.
11. 11. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein the skirt includes a plurality of undulations along the skirt.
12. 12. The seat assembly of claim 1 wherein the skirt includes an inner edge facing away from the living hinge, the skirt having a reduced thickness between the inner edge and the frame.
13. 13. A method of manufacturing a seat assembly, the method comprising: receiving the fabric blank within a first molding block; applying tension to the fabric blank within the first molding block; Attaching a heat shield to a side of the fabric blank exposed to a second molding block, wherein the heat shield comprises a polyester material; moving at least one of the first or second modules toward the other; Injecting a liquid thermoplastic material through a mold cavity in the first mold block to form a frame extending around the fabric blank and including an interior section molded directly to the fabric blank, and a skirt integrally formed with the fabric blank, coupled to the interior section of the frame by a living hinge, and molded onto the fabric blank; removing the first or second molding block from the other molding block; expelling the seat assembly, the seat assembly comprising the fabric blank and the frame; Discarding excess fabric from the seat assembly, and The heat shield is separated from the seat assembly.
14. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the heat shield is reusable.
15. 15. The method of claim 13, wherein a cooling line is formed within the first molding block or the second molding block, or within both the first molding block and the second molding block.

Description

Apparatus and method for manufacturing fabric suspended seating structure RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application No. 63/062,002, filed 8/6/2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Background Technical Field Examples of the present disclosure relate generally to fabric suspended seating structures, and more particularly to fabric suspended seating structures with molded frames. Background Seat assemblies such as office furniture typically use a fabric suspension structure. Typically, fabric suspended seating structures include a support frame disposed along the periphery of the fabric. The fabric extends across the support frame to provide a surface upon which a user may sit. The fabric is typically secured to a carrier member, which is then attached to a support frame. In some examples, the support frame includes a return flange for supporting the fabric surface in a load bearing state, and a channel for receiving the carrier. The carrier is typically over-molded to the stretched fabric. However, the return flange can be expensive and impractical to manufacture. Some fabric suspension seating structures have omitted the carrier and return flange, but such seating structures may result in increased stress points and thus increased failure points. Disclosure of Invention In one aspect, a seat assembly includes a fabric member having a seat surface and a frame including an interior section to which the fabric member is directly attached. The inner section extends from the intermediate section, the intermediate section having a greater flex resistance than the inner section. In some examples, the textile element may be at least partially surrounded by the frame. The fabric member may be configured to extend across the frame in tension. Further, the textile element may be at least partially composed of a resin material. In some examples, the seat assembly includes a skirt that may be configured to be molded to the fabric component and have less flex resistance. The skirt may be at least partially constructed of a material having a melting temperature that is higher than the melting temperature of the material of the textile element. Further, the skirt may include a plurality of gaps along the skirt. Moreover, a living hinge may be formed between the skirt and the frame. In another example, a seat assembly includes a seat member, a frame, and a skirt integrally formed with the frame and the seat member. In some aspects, the skirt may extend along at least a portion of the periphery of the seat member. Further, the skirt may be coupled to an interior section of the frame. Moreover, the flex resistance of the interior section of the frame may be greater than the flex resistance of the skirt. A living hinge may be formed between the interior section of the frame and the skirt. At least a portion of the seat member may be configured to rotate about an interior section of the frame. In one aspect, the flex resistance of the skirt decreases in the direction of inward movement from the living hinge to the inner edge of the skirt. The skirt may include a plurality of undulating structures along the skirt. Further, the skirt may be reduced in thickness between the inner edge and the frame. In yet another example, a method of manufacturing a seat assembly includes receiving a fabric blank within a first mold block, applying tension to the fabric blank within the first mold block, and attaching a heat shield to a side of the fabric blank exposed to a second mold block. The heat shield may comprise a polyester material. Further, the method may include moving at least one of the first or second molding blocks toward the other, injecting a liquid thermoplastic material through a mold cavity in the first molding block to form a frame, removing the first or second molding block from the other molding block, and ejecting a seat assembly. The seat assembly may include the fabric blank and a frame. Additionally, the method may include discarding excess fabric from the seat assembly and separating the heat shield from the seat assembly. In some aspects, the heat shield may be reusable. Furthermore, cooling lines may be formed within either the first or second module, or both. Drawings FIG. 1 is a plan view of one example of a seat assembly; FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the front, top, left and right sides of the seat assembly of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the seat assembly of FIG. 1 taken along section line 3-3 of FIG. 1; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the seat assembly of FIG. 1, taken along section line 3-3 of FIG. 1, wherein the fabric member is depicted as being transparent; FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the seat assembly of FIG. 1, taken along section line 3-3 of FIG. 1, wherein the fabric is depicted as transparent and in a loaded state; FIG. 6 is a simplified illustration of a m