US3300251A - Upholstery cover-frame connection - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 24, 1967 c. R. HELMS UPHOLSTERY COVER-FRAME CONNECTION Filed June 10, 1965 INVENTOR. C Rose/er HEAMS I I WISlIlI/IIIIIIII.

ATTORNEY r 3,300,251 a 'UPHoLsTERY COVER-FRAME CONNECTION Charles Robert Helms, ()ld Zionsville, Par, assignor to Knoll Associates, Inc New York, N.Y., a corporatio of New York i k Filed June 10, 19 65, Ser. No. 462,868

. 13 Claims. (Cl. 297445) This invention-relates to an upholstery-frame connection, and, more particularly, to an improved connector means comprising a collapsible strip connector which is permanently aflixed to upholstery about'itsborders or edges and which is receivediri locking engagement'within acooperating channel in a rigid furniture frame for securing the upholstery to the frame. I

'Theuse of either singleor superposed layers of upholstery orupholstered cushions on the 'body' supporting portions of articles of furniture is highly desirable'in that the appearance of the furniture is enhanced and the comfort of the occupant of the furniture is greatly increased. Upholstered furniture, however, generally" is more expensive'than unupholstered furniture due, in large part, to the'increased assembly costs arising from the difficulty of securing the upholstery to the frame of the furniture] In addition, upholstered'furniture is more expensive to maintain' than unupholstered furniture, since the upholstery usually becomes worn through normal use, or'soiled or damaged long before the frame of the furniture reaches a state of wear or disrepair requiring its disposal.

It is desirable,whether the furniture be ofthe type for use-in a home or in an office, or for use in a public place,-that the furniture be of strong, light weight, and relatively inexpensive construction. To minimize the manufacturing costs of the furniture, not only is it necessary to provide a'furniture frame and upholstery for use therewith" which are both relatively inexpensive, but. also it'isnecessary that the connection for joining'the uph'olsteryto'the frame permit of rapid, efficient assembly. The assembled furniture nevertheless must be esthetically pleasing in appearance and of durable construction; In particular, the connection between the upholstery and the frame should be unobtrusive and preferably'camouflaged I from view. Further, the connection must not'be subject to easy disassembly, as a result either of malicious tampering or careless use, or as a result of normal wear. Although providing a substantially'permanent assembly, it

is also desirable that the connection permit of replacement 3 of the upholstery without substantial disassembly of the frame and with a minimum of effort; the ability to replace the upholstery extends the useful life ofthe furniture and reduces the maintenance cost.

There have been proposed heretofore for use in the manufacture of upholstered furniture, numerouscombinationsof furniture frames and connections'for securing up holsteryto'the frame-s' Some of these connections also provide'for replacing the upholstery to prolong the useful life of the furniture. Most of the prior art connections,

however,"are rather difficult to assemble andthus con tribute to undesirably high manufacturing costs. In'addition, replacement of the upholstery is difiicult toachieve inthat-it requires substantial disassembly of both the connectionand the associated elements of the furniture frame.

Others of the prior art connections do not provide a suffi ciently strong, durable connection and still others require the Iuse' of metal clips andthe like which increases the expense of the connection components and complicate the assembly thereof while detracting from the appearance of along its other, or second longitudinal edge. 'A channel is providedin the frame elements to which the upholstery is to be secured, the channel having a restricted opening at the surface of theframe elements and an enlarged interior portion. The upholstery is secured to the frame elements by threading the beaded edge of the connector strip into the channel.

Since the frame elements of the furniture are substantially rigid, and the beading on the connector strips is solid, it is necessary that an inlet to theenlarged interior portion of the channel be provided to enable the thread ing of the beading into the channel. The inlet may be provided by separating butted ends of the frame to expose the channel in a transverse section; however, this provision requires subsequent reassembly of the frame to aflix the butted ends together after the threading of the beading is completed. Alternatively, a portion of the channel opening at the surface of the frame elements may be enlarged and the heading threaded through the opening. In either case, the beaded edge of the connector strip musthave a free end to permit the threading into the channel.

The threading of the beading into and through the channel is a rather time-consuming and difficult task; the threading is particularly troublesome when the frame elements are angularly related and as a result there are corresponding angles or bends in the channel through which the beading must be threaded. In replacing worn or old upholstery, the beaded connector strip must be removed from the channel by the same time-consuming threading procedure. I

These and other deficiencies of prior art upholsteryframe connectionsare overcome by the upholstery-frame connection of the invention. The components of the up holstery-frame connection of this invention are relatively low in cost of manufacture and are assembled quickly and easily to provide a connection which is substantially camouflaged from view, and which provides a very neat, finished appearance to the completed article of furniture. Further, the connection provides secure fastening of up: holstery to the rigidframe while permittingreplacement of the upholstery .when'desired. T her-connection] also is employable for securing sheet-like material to a skeletal, supporting frame wherein the sheet-like material provides an underlying supporting surface on which is received and mounted upholstered material, such as an upholstered cushion, in the assembly of upholstered furniture.

It is therefore an object of this invention to'providean improved upholstery-frame connect-ion. v H I ,Another object of this invention 'is'to provide an'improved connection for joining sheet-like material to a supporting frame for assembling upholstered furniture.

Still another object of this invention is to provide an improved upholstery-frame connection which is low in cost and which is quickly and easily asembled for securing upholstery to the rigid frame of an article of furniture.

' A further object of this invention is to provide an im proved upholstery-frame connection which is quickly and easily assembled for securing upholstery to the rigid frame of an article of furniture and which permits replacement of the upholstery without any disassembly of the furniture frame. i v

- These and other objects of this invention will become apparentas the following description proceeds.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of thein: vention, the upholstery-frame connection comprises an elongated connector strip of a resilient material including a web and a barb along a first longitudinal edge thereof extending outwardly at anacute angle from the surface of the web. A marginal section of the web adjac'entthe first longitudinal edge and underlying the bath is under cut, .or of a reduced thickness, and the web extends from the undercut section in a tapered configuration from a thicker section adjacent the undercut section to a thinner section adjacent a second longitudinal edge. The thinner section of the web is attached to the upholstery about its entire periphery, preferably by stitching, the ends of the strip being brought together, or butted, preferably at the center of the front edge of the chair seat. The connection also includes a continuous channel in associated elements of the rigid frame to which the upholstery or other sheet material is to be secured, the channel having a restricted opening defined by a lip at the surface of the frame and an enlarged interior portion, the latter being generally identical in its configuration and dimensions to the barb and its underlying web portion of the connector strip. To secure the upholstery to the frame, the barb is compressed and received in contiguous superposed relationship on the undercut section of the strip connector. When so compressed, the barb and the undercut section have a combined thickness approximately equal to that of the thicker section of the tapered portion of the web, thereby enabling their easy insertion through the restricted opening of the channel and into the channel interior. The barb resiliently unfolds or opens within the channel interior with the barb tightly engaging the interior surface of the lip to lock the barbed portion of the web within the channel. The connector is inserted into the continuous channel progressively throughout its length, thereby securing the upholstery continuously about its periphcry to the frame. To remove the upholstery, the connector strip is grasped at one of the butted ends, for example by a pair of pliers, and pulled forcibly out of the channel; the strip may then be grasped by hand and removed from the channel progressively throughout its length. New upholstery material, with a new connector affixed thereto, then is secured to the frame as hereinbefore described.

The invention will more readily be appreciated with reference to the following drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a molded-shell chair having a rigid frame with a continuous channel therein for receiving the connector strip of the invention to secure upholstery to the frame;

FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional view of the connector strip of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view of the components of the upholstery-frame connection of the invention, showing the connector strip prior to insertion into a cooperating channel in a rigid frame of an article of furniture;

FIG. 4 is a view taken in a plane passing through the line 44 in FIG. 1 and shows the upholstery-frame connection of the invention, as assembled, for securing an upholstery to the frame, the upholstery covering a cushion received on the shell;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a chair having a rigid skeletal frame including continuous channels for receiving a connector strip, in accordance with the invention, and shows an underlying supporting surface of a webbing grid secured to the skeletal frame by the upholstery-frame connection of the invention for mounting upholstered cushions (shown in broken-away fashion) on the frame; and

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken in a plane passing through the line 6-6 in FIG. 5 and shows the connection, as assembled, securing the webbing grid to the frame and supporting an upholstered cushion thereon.

In FIG. 1 there is shown a vertical cross-section of a chair 1 including a rigid, contoured frame 2 which is formed conveniently as an extrusion of aluminum or similar material. The frame 2 provides the main structural support of the body-receiving portion of the chair 1. The frame 2 (only half of which is shown) includes a back element 2a and a seat element 2b joined in continuous integral fashion by an intermediate, curved element 2c. A first channel 3 and a second channel 4 extend continuously about the inner surface of the frame 2.

A molded shell 5, preferably formed of plastic or similar material, is contoured to provide a back portion 5a and a seat portion 512, joined in continuous, integral fashion by an intermediate curved portion 5c. The shell 5 includes an integral flange 6 formed in continuous fashtion about the periphery thereof, and is mounted on the rigid frame 2 by inserting the flange 6 into the first channel 3. Both the seat shell 5 and the frame 2 are sufiioiently flexible and resilient to permit of a slight, temporary distortion for inserting the flange 6 of the shell 5 into the channel 3.

If desired, however, the frame 2 may be cut at one or more places, and the cut ends which normally are held together in butted relationship, as indicated by the numeral 7, spread apart to enlarge the dimensions of the frame 2, thereby facilitating the insertion of the flange 6 into the channel 3 to mount the shell 5 within the frame 2. Following the assembly, the frame 2 is drawn tightly about the shell 5, locking the flange 6 within the channel 3 and the cut ends of the frame 2 are joined together.

A seat support 10 includes a plurality of generally horizontal, contoured rods 12, each of which is joined at its opposite ends to a corresponding one of a pair of mounting plates 13 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1). The rods 12 are joined to the mounting plate 13 in spacedapart relationship by welding, as indicated by weld beads 14. The rods 12 are also joined to a base plate 15.

The base plate 15 is typically of a rectangular configuration and is received on the seat portion 5b of the shell 5 in a generally horizontal plane. Opposite longitudinal edges of the base plate 15 are bent upwardly to provide a pair of vertical flanges 16 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1). Each flange 16 is provided with cut-outs 17 suitably disposed therein for receiving corresponding ones of the rods 12 in spaced-apart relationship. The rods 12 are fitted within the corresponding cut-outs 17 and welded to the flange 16. If desired, the rods 12 also may be welded to the generally flat, intermediate portion of the base plate 15.

Each of mounting plates 13 includes a laterally extending flange 1301 which is received within the channel 3 of the rigid frame 2. The channel 3 may be made sufficiently large for receiving both the peripheral flange 6 of the shell 5 and the laterally extending flange 13a of the mounting plate 13 in superposed relationship. If desired, however, the shell 5 and its peripheral flange 6 may be cut out, or removed, in the portions thereof underlying the mounting plate 13 such that only the laterally extending flange 13a need be inserted into the channel 3. In such a case, the channel 3 may be of a reduced size suflicient for receiving only the mounting plate flange 13a or the shell flange 6, the flanges 6 and 13a sharing the channel 3 in alternate fashion. Pins 18 or other fastening devices may be driven through suitable aligned apertures in the frame 2 and the flanges 6 and 13a to secure the shell 5 and the mounting plates 13, respectively, to the frame 2.

The body-receiving portion of the chair 1 is mounted on a base support 20. The base support 20 includes a tubular column 21 having a coaxial tubular insert 22 telescoped within the top end thereof. The column 21 passes upwardly through an aperture 23 provided in the seat portion 5b of the shell 5 and the tubular insert 22 extends upwardly therefrom and is received within an aperture 24 in the central, generally horizontal portion of the base plate 15. The top edge of the tubular insert 22 typically is welded to the portion of the base plate 15 surrounding the aperture 24. The base support 20 further is provided with legs 26 of any suitable configuration to provide stabilizing support for the chair 1 on an underlying supporting surface such as a floor.

The upholstery-frame connection of the invention includes a connector strip 30, shown in transverse section in FIG. 2, and the channel 4 within which the strip 30 is received for attaching upholstery to the frame 2. The connector strip 30 is formed of a resilient material, such as any of various plastics; for certain assemblies the connector strip 30 may be formed of a relatively light-weight, spring steel. The degree of pliability or rigidity of, and the type of material from which the connector strip 30 is formed depends in large part upon the particular'use thereof, as explained more fully hereinafter. The connector strip 30 includes a web 31 of a generally planar configuration and a barb 32 formed integrally therewith along a first longitudinal edge thereof. The barb 32 extends outwardly at an acute angle from the surface of the web 31. The web 31 preferably is undercut, or of a reduced thickness, 'in a marginal section 31a and extends in a tapered configurationfroma thicker section 31b adjacent the undercut section 31a to a thinner section 310 adjacent a second longitudinaledge thereof. In other words, a recess is formed in the strip, and strip material 31a underlies the recess. Hence, when the barb 32 is pressed inwardly into the recess, the combined thickness of the strip material 31a and'barb 32 is substantially equal to the thickness of the strip portion 31b adjacent to the barb. I ,7

The use of the connection of the invention in a first embodiment thereof for securing upholstery to the rigid frame 2 vvill be described withfconcurrent reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. A cushion 35, preferably of' fo'am rubber and enclosed in a cover 36 of a material such as Dacron, is positioned on the shell 5 and provides resilient padding for both the seat and the back of the chair. The cushion 35 is held in place by upholstery 37 which'is secured to the frame 2 by the upholstery-frame connection of the invention. For clarity in the drawing, the upholstery 37 and cover 36 are exaggerated in size, I

The connector strip 30 is secured, preferably by one or more rows of stitching 39, to the border or edge 38 of the upholstery'37 and extendssubstantially continuously about its entire periphery. As presently preferred, the ends of the strip are butted or brought together at the front edge of the chair seatj I i The connector strip 30 is attached to the frame 2 by being inserted into the channel 4 To effect the insertion, forces F are appliedjas indicated by'the arrows labeled F in FIG. 3, to collapse the barb' 32 inwardly to be received within the undercutsection 31a, thereby enabling the first longitudinal edge of the strip 30 to be inserted through the restricted opening of the channel 4 formed by lip 4-7. The initial collapsing step, described above, is only necessary to start the insertion; there-after, due to the tapered configuration of the outer surface of the barb 32 relative to that of the web 31, the strip 30 is merely forced into the channel, collapsing automatically as it passes through the'restrictedopening, and subsequently resiliently expandingwithin the interior of the channel. Preferably, a lubricant such as silicon is sprayed onto the barb 32 to fa'cilitate'the insertion. The insertion maybe performed by hand or by any'suitable tool. p v

When received entirely within the enlarged interior portion 48 of the channel 4 and upon termination of the forces F, the barb 32 resiliently expands outwardly toward its normal configuration and engages the interior surface of the lip 47. The cross-sectional configuration and dimensions of the first longitudinal edge of the strip 30, including the barb 32, and the interior portion 48 of the channel 4are substantiallyidentical, although the portion 48 is: somewhat deeper .to' assure that the barb 32 is received completely therewithin; The resilient expanding of the barb 32 looks the strip 30 securely within the channel 4. V I v I 7 Since the barb 31 and the undercut section 31a'of the web 31 are concealed within the interior of the frame 2 and the second longitudinal edge f 'the web portion 31 is concealed within the border 38 of the upholstery 37, the upholstery-frame connection 'of theinvention is substantially concealed from View when assembled. Further, the web portion 31 of the connector strip 30, in addition to its securing function, spans the gap be tweemthe border 38. of thetcushion 35 ;and the frame 2 withjthef 'thicker"section '31 bfsubstantially nosi gm filling the restricted openingof" the channel 4 and there: by'providesaneat, finished appearance vtofthe assern bledl'furniture. V Preferably, the cushion 35, is made oversiie," and bulges the upholsteryQ37],upwardlflthereby providing a smo oth,taut surfac'e'. I: The upholstery,37,5cures the cushion 35 onsli'd in g, non-'disp'lac'eal;ile relationship on thefs'hell 5 and relative to the frame]; the connectio'n remainslsecure f and is not subject to disengagement under conditions of, normal wean, Since the connection includesgnoiprotrii ons, separate fastening elements. such as metal clips, the like, it discourages pers ons fronr inadvertently or even maliciously tamper'ingg thei ewith and assuresa long pe? 'riod of use oftheupholsteredfurniture. n

The connection offthefinvenpnenables 'heupholfstery j37 'tojbe renroved'fromRhe frame w thout-Ithe necessity of 'ainy'fdisassembly of I the frame 2.1 re;- rnoval is effected byf'grasping the connector "stri :0 seamen; at one of its abutted ends and forcibly, w thldrawingiti from withinfthe 'ohannel 4} f The grasping conveniently may I be accomplished by p a; pair of pliers The 'connectorstrip 30 then may be grasped by hand withdrawn from the'ohannel 4 progressively throughout its length." A new' cushion, to whi0h,is;sec rehhw connector strip, then is mounted onfthe 2' inthe manneri as' hereinbefore {described In th'e e b diment of F S; '4, the s el s .of the chair 1 {provides' m m-armin t po 'n 'su a on which the cushion 3 5 isflre'ceivedg The weight of an occupaht of thechair. 1 is trans mi'tted'through the] ushion 35 and s'uppotted by the shell 5; theconnector, strip 30: therefore is not're'quired' to support 'thej'weightjpf the occupant but 'r'atherfservesf primarily to secure the cush ion '35 in a fixed position on the shell 5. The connector strip 30 therefore may be made of a .relatively'ilightweight, 'pliablemiaterial, suchgas any'of various plastics. The pliability' of the materialfserlecte'd s 1d, b9 ..S1iifi cient'ito permit of bendingi'the strip 3;0 in the -plane'of its Web i3 1,"su c'h' .asfis retji lired htttilie top corners .of the back, orth'e fronfoorners' of "the seat of chair fr'anie 2 'toprovide a c-ont'inu" us peripheral ,'connectio1i Of'tlhe, 'upholstery37 thereto. I: The connection 'of'the invention' also 'm'ay be'ehipldyed with a chairfhaving nounderlying supportingfsurfa'ce for its associated upholstery, the weight of occupantof the chair beingftrians'rnitted from the upholstery 1d the chair frame' bylthe" upholstery-flame connection of the ln the ernbodimentof'the invention shown. FIGS/ 5 and 6, achair 60 has a rigid skeletal frarnend does not include ianyf underlying, supp 'f'surrh carh hs upholstery. The upholstery includes ja 'iseat cushion 7i and a back bushion'7 2 (show i1ina'brokemaway view), and webbing \grids'73 and '74 Themes br a h strip or webbingof t he'g'rids 7mm 74 f attifohed' 'to the frame'of the air 60 by' the upholstery-frame"connection ofthe invention: V I v V a I v M The frame of the chair'60 is formed conveniently an extrusionofialuminuni orj'othe r matelrial and includes a plurality of legs 61 joined at t'he topv extremities thereof to-a pair of side frame elements 62 and '63, a front element 64 and rear frame-element 65; Thefrairne le ments '62 to preferably are formed integrally: define the seat-supporting ortion ht' he chairIGOQ' KThe fname elements 62 toi65"include (a 'cent' hheh c h'ann'el 66 011' the inner surfaces thereof. There'anfranie elernent 65 'andthe'rearpair ffiegs "61 aj re ailso integral withassociated ones of a pairIof'backframe elements FIG. 6 is a view taken along a plane passing through the line 66 of FIG. and shows the mounting of the seat cushion 71 to the webbing grid 73' and the attachment of a webbing strip 73' of the grid 73 to the frame of chair 60. The back cushion 72 and its associated grid 74 are connected to the chair frame in a generally identical manner.

The side frame element 62 includes a lip 75 which defines a restricted opening at the surface of the frame element 62; the opening provides a passageway into an enlarged interior portion 76 of the channel 66.

The connection of the invention includes the channel 66 and a connector strip 30' which is received therein for securing an end of a webbing strip, such as 73', to the frame element 62. Preferably, the connector strip 30' is of a length equal to the width of its associated webbing strip 73'; since the webbing strips are attached to the frame 62 at displaced positions, an individual connector strip such as 30" is attached to each end of each webbing strip for securing the latter to the chair frame. The connector strip 30' has an identical configuration as that of the connector strip 30 of the preceding FIGS. 1 to 4 and is identified by identical, but primed numerals. The connector strip 30' is secured in any convenient manner to its associated webbing strip 73, such as by stitching or riveting.

The manner of assembling the connection of FIGS. 5 and 6 is also identical to that of FIGS. -1 to 4. Barb 32 is compressed into the undercut marginal section 31a of the web 31' for insertion through the restricted opening of the channel 66; barb 32 resiliently expands or unfolds within the enlarged interior portion 76 of the channel 66 and moves into locking engagement with the interior surface of lip 75. The tapered web 31' extends through the restricted opening and joins the webbing strip 73 to the frame 62.

All of the strips of the grid 73, 74 are attached to their associated frame elements 62 to 65 in this manner. Thereafter, the cushion 71 is positioned on the grid 73, 74 and held in place by snaps 77. As an alternative, the grid 73, 74 of webbing strips may be formed integrally or permanently with the cushion 71; in such an embodiment, the opposite ends of each-webbing strip would extend laterally from the periphery of the cushion 71 and each end would have attached thereto a connector strip such as 30 to secure the webbing strip to the chair frame. In accordance with a further alternative, the grid of webbing strips could be employed without any additional upholstered cushion or the like; such an open grid of webbing strips is comm-only employed in lawn or outdoor furniture.

If desired, plugs may be inserted into the channel 66 intermediate adjacent ones of the connector strips to hold the strips in spaced relationship; as an alternative, the channel, rather than being continuous, may be formed in short segments spaced at selected intervals along the frame.

In the embodiment of the invention of FIGS. 1 to 4, the connection of the invention primarily holds upholstery in non-sliding or non-displaceable relationship on an underlying supporting surface, namely, the contoured shell 5. In the embodiment of FIGS. 5 and 6, however, the connection of the invention provides the support for the weight of the occupant of the chair and, therefore, must be of relatively greater structural strength. The increased strength is achieved readily by increasing the dimensions of the connector strip and, necessarily, the dimensions of the channel which receives the connector strip, In addition, the connector strip is preferably formed of a more rigid, mechanically stronger material; suitable materials include relatively heavy-weight plastics and resilient metals. The material must be sufiiciently resilient to assure that the bar-b 32' unfolds intothe locking position with the lip 75 and must be sufficiently rigid to assure that the locking engagement of the connector strip 30' within the channel 66 is essentially permanent. The Webbing strips are attached to straight lengths of the chair frame; therefore, it is not necessary that the connector strips be pliable since the latter need not be formed or bent to enable their being received in locking engagement within angular or curved receiving channels. Thus, by selecting a sufficient ly rigid material and by forming the connector strip and the cooperating, receiving channel of sufiicient size, the requisite structural strength in the connection for supporting the weight of an occupant of the chair may be achieved without imposing any difi iculty in effecting the assembly of the connection.

The chair 60 is very economical to manufacture, due to the simplicity of the skeletal frame and due to the ease with which the upholstered cushions 71 and 72 are secured to their associated frame elements. It is apparent, of course, that a non-cushioned, upholstered back or a solid back chair may be made, having only the seat cushion 71. In addition, footstools may be constructed in a generally identical manner, but on a reduced size, as the seat portion of the chair 60.

In summary, the upholstery-frame connection of the invention is low in cost and is quickly and easily assembled for securing upholstery, Whether single or superposed layers of material or a woven grid of strips of material, or an upholstered cushion, to the rigid frame elements of articles of furniture. The connection may be employed primarily to hold upholstery in non-sliding, non-displaceable relationship on a chair having an underlying support surface, such as a contoured shell, on which the upholstery is received; alternatively, the connection may be employed to secure upholstery to a skeletal chair frame in which the upholstery directly supports the weight of the chairs occupant. When assembled, the connection is substantially camouflaged from view, and provides the furniture with a neat, finished appearance. The connection of the invention also permits replacement of the upholstery without requiring any disassembly of the furniture frame.

Numerous modifications and adaptations of the upholstery-frame connection of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A connection for securing sheet-like material to a rigid frame of an article of furniture, said connection comprising:

(a) an elongated connector strip of resilient material including a web and a barb, said barb being formed integrally with said web along a first longitudinal edge of said strip and extending outwardly therefrom,

(b) said strip including a recess in a marginal portion thereof adjacent said first longitudinal edge and underlying said barb, strip material underlying said recess, said recess being of a size such that when the barb is forced into the recess the thickness of the strip at the barb adjacent to the web is substantially the same as the thickness of the strip at the web adjacent to the barb,

(c) said web being secured to said sheet-like material along a second longitudinal edge thereof,

((1) said rigid frame including an elongated channel having a restricted opening at the surface of said frame, and

(e) said barb being compressible inwardly of said recess for insertion through said restricted opening and being resiliently expansible to move into locking engagement within said channel for securing said sheetlike material to said rigid frame.

2. An upholstery-frame connection for securing upholstery to a rigid frame of an article of furniture, said connection comprising:

(a) an elongated connector strip of resilient material including a web and a barb, said barb being integral with a first longitudinal edge of said web and extending outwardly from said web,

(b) said web being undercut in a marginal section thereof adjacent said first longitudinal edge and underlying said bar-b, and leaving web material underlying said barb such that, when the barb is compressed against the underlying web material, the combined thickness of the barb and underlying web material is substantially the same as the thickness of the web adjacent to the barb,

(c) said web being secured to said upholstery along a second longitudinal edge thereof,

(d) said rigid frame including an elongated channel having a restricted opening at the surface of said frame, and

(e) said barb being compressible into superposed, contiguous relationship onto said undercut marginal section for insertion through said restricted opening, and being resiliently expansible to move into locking engagement within said channel for securing said upholstery to said rigid frame.

3. A connection as recited in claim 2 wherein said web is tapered from said undercut marginal section to said second longitudinal edge.

4. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 2, wherein said barb normally extends outwardly at an acute angle from said undercut marginal section of said web, said web extending through said restricted opening.

5. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 2, wherein said elongated channel is continuous, and further including upholstery for the body-supporting portion of said article of furniture, said upholstery having a continuous edge defining the periphery thereof, and wherein the second longitudinal edge of said web is secured to said upholstery about the periphery thereof with the connector strip extending from said periphery to position said barb in juxtaposed relationship with respect to said continuous channel of said rigid frame.

6. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 4 wherein:

(a) said frame includes an elongated lip defining said restricted opening of said channel at the surface of said frame,

(b) said elongated channel has a configuration in transverse section therethrough corresponding to said marginal section of said web and said barb in the normal position of said barb, and

(c) said barb lockingly engages said lip upon resiliently expanding within said channel.

7. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 6 wherein said web is tapered from a thicker section adjacent said undercut marginal section to a thinner section adjacent said second longitudinal edge and said thicker section of said Web extends through and substantially fills said restricted opening of said channel.

8. An upholstery-frame connection for securing sheetlike material to a rigid, skeletal frame of an article of furniture, said connection comprising:

(a) body-supporting frame elements including a continuous channel extending about, and having a restricted opening at the surface thereof,

(b) a grid of webbing strips secured to said frame elements for supporting an occupant of the article of furniture,

(c) a plurality of connector strips formed of resilient material and each including a web and a barb, said barb being integral with a first longitudinal edge of said web and extending outwardly of said web,

((1) said web being undercut in a marginal section thereof adjacent said first longitudinal edge and underlying said barb,

(e) each of said connector strips being secured along a second longitudinal edge of said web to the end of an associated webbing strip, and

(f) said barb being compressible into superposed contiguous relationship onto said undercut marginal section for insertion through said restricted opening, and being resiliently expansible into locking engagement Within said channel for securing said upholstery to said rigid frame.

9. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 8 wherein each of said connector strips is of a length equal to the width of the webbing strip to which it is secured.

10. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 8 wherein an upholstered cushion is received n said grid and secured thereto by detachable connecting means.

11. An upholstery-frame connection as recited in claim 8 wherein an upholstered cushion is formed integrally with said grid and is mounted thereby to said frame.

12. An upholstery-frame connection for securing upholstery to an article of furniture as recited in claim 11, wherein said cushion is over-size and bulges said upholstery outwardly from said shell in a taut condition.

13. An upholstery-frame connection for securing upholstery to an article of furniture, said connection comprising:

(a) a seat and back structure for said article of furniture including a unitary, contoured shell having a lip extending about the periphery of said shell and a rigid frame extending about said lip of said shell in surrounding relationship,

(b) said rigid frame including a first continuous channel for receiving said peripheral lip of said shell to secure said shell to said rigid frame and a second continuous channel having a restricted opening at the surface of said frame,

(c) a cushion received on said shell and covering the seat and back areas thereof,

(d) upholstery received on said shell and covering said cushion, said upholstery having a continuous edge defining the periphery thereof and said periphery being disposed in closely spaced relationship to said second continuous channel of said rigid frame,

(e) an elongated connector strip of resilient material including a web and a barb, said barb being integral with a first longitudinal edge of said web and extending outwardly from said web,

(f) said web being undercut in a marginal section thereof adjacent said first longitudinal edge and underlying said barb,

(g) said connector st-rip being secured along a second longitudinal edge of said web to said upholstery about the periphery thereof and extending from said periphery to position said barb in juxtaposed relationship with said continuous channel of said rigid frame, and

(h) said barb being compressible into superposed, contiguous relationship onto said undercut marginal section for insertion through said restricted opening and being resiliently expansible to move into locking engagement within said channel for securing said upholstery to said rigid frame.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,114,578 12/1963 Hamilton 297460 3,179,469 4/1965 Houston 297452 3,222,696 12/1965 Grimshaw 297-452 X 3,223,450 12/1965 Pollock 297445 FRANK B. SHERRY, Primary Examiner.

CASMIR A, NUNBERG, Examiner,

Claims (1)

1. A CONNECTION FOR SECURING SHEET-LIKE MATERIAL TO A RIGID FRAME OF AN ARTICLE OF FURNITURE, SAID CONNECTION COMPRISING: (A) AN ELONGATED CONNECTOR STRIP OF RESILIENT MATERIAL INCLUDING A WEB AND A BARB, SAID BARB BEING FORMED INTEGRALLY WITH SAID WEB ALONG A FIRST LONGITUDINAL EDGE OF SAID STRIP AND EXTENDING OUTWARDLY THEREFROM, (B) SAID STRIP INCLUDING A RECESS IN A MARGINAL PORTION THEREOF ADJACENT SAID FIRST LONGITUDINAL EDGE AND UNDERLYING SAID BARB, STRIP MATERIAL UNDERLYING SAID RECESS, SAID RECESS BEING OF A SIZE SUCH THAT WHEN THE BARB IS FORCED INTO THE RECESS THE THICKNESS OF THE STRIP AT THE BARB ADJACENT TO THE WEB IS SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME AS THE THICKNESS OF THE STRIP AT THE WEB ADJACENT TO THE BARB, (C) SAID WEB BEING SECURED TO SAID SHEET-LIKE MATERIAL ALONG A SECOND LONGITUDINAL EDGE THEREOF, (D) SAID RIGID FRAME INCLUDING AN ELONGATED CHANNEL HAVING A RESTRICTED OPENING AT THE SURFACE OF SAID FRAME, AND (E) SAID BARB BEING COMPRESSIBLE INWARDLY OF SAID RECESS FOR INSERTION THROUGH SAID RESTRICTED OPENING AND BEING RESILIENTLY EXPANSIBLE TO MOVE INTO LOCKING ENGAGEMENT WITHIN SAID CHANNEL FOR SECURING SAID SHEETLIKE MATERIAL TO SAID RIGID FRAME.

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