DE29820137U1 - Multifunctional children's furniture - Google Patents

Description

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Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, EJescrieiöungJ &iacgr; * **· · * 1/4

Description
Multifunctional children's furniture

In order to enable children to reach higher objects, children's stools or footstools are usually used. These have the disadvantage of being too low, especially for smaller children, e.g. to enable sensible use of a washbasin or sink. In addition, (folding) stepladders and normal chairs for adults can be used, which offer sufficient height, but often do not meet the appropriate requirements for children in terms of safe and easy handling or stability. Children's seating can also be used to raise the standing position. In addition to standard children's chairs and sofas, some of which raise concerns about stability, there are also stable children's chairs with different or adjustable seat heights (e.g. Gbm. GM 7441900, G8712911.6, G9100631.7). However, the disadvantage of being too low still exists here. Finally, there are mobile stairs with three steps that offer sufficient height and safety. However, all of these aids are generally tied to a specific purpose and offer only a few play and usage options. With the exception of children's stools and children's seating, they are not geared towards children's needs. - Well-known multi-purpose furniture (e.g. Gbm. G8217150.5), which can be used as a stepladder, stool and children's chair, do meet the stability requirements and offer the uses mentioned, but are also not geared towards children's needs and are only suitable to a limited extent as play furniture.

The invention is based on the task of developing a play furniture which, on the one hand, enables children to reach higher objects (especially washbasins) and, on the other hand, offers as many other interesting uses and play options for children as possible without having to be rebuilt, while meeting the highest safety requirements.

This task is solved with the features listed in claim 1. The arrangement and flatness of the plates (3) and (4) makes the furniture into a mobile staircase with two steps in at least one position. In this position, the furniture can also be used as a chair, with the plate (3) becoming the seat and the wall (2) the backrest. The geometry of the furniture also allows different uses simply by placing the furniture on different sides: If the plate (3) points downwards, you have a box at the top with the wall (2) as the base and the side parts (1) and the elements (4) and (5)

Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, f$BschteiÖungJ J * **l II 2/4

as walls. If the plate (3) points upwards, then with a suitable design of the wall (2) two children can sit back to back, with the wall (2) forming the seat, which is divided by the plate (3) as a common backrest. Finally, with a suitable design of a side part, a storage area (e.g. a bowl) or a table is obtained if the furniture is placed on the other side. Additional uses, e.g. a hollow space, can be created by using further elements connecting the side parts (see the examples below). The first feature formulated in claim 1 prevents the furniture from tipping over even when the edges are loaded, thus ensuring the required stability.

The high stability of the furniture in its function as a table, even when children climb on it, is ensured by the design according to protection claim 2, provided that the side parts are sufficiently rigid. A certain overhang is necessary, for example, if one wants to simultaneously meet the feature of protection claim 9 (rounding of the corners and edges).

The design of the furniture with detachable connections according to protection claim 3 enables the furniture to be dismantled for transport and storage purposes or for conversion (see also protection claim 7 and the corresponding embodiment below).

The use of the furniture as a table is particularly realized by the embodiment according to protection claim 4. The feature of this claim also simplifies the manufacture and packaging of the furniture for transport.

The further developments of the invention according to claim 5 increase the play value of the furniture in its function as a toy box by providing a partition wall or a lid for the box.

The feature formulated in claim 6 enables the furniture to be used additionally as a chair, on the back of which there is a box accessible from the chair. (This means that the function as a seat for two children back to back is no longer applicable.)

The special embodiment of claim 7 not only combines the advantages of the features of claims 3 and 4 but above all offers the following advantage: The design makes it possible to increase the number of possible uses or to realize different combinations of possible uses by simply converting the furniture.

Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, EteschfeitJung; J * **i &iacgr; i 3/4

The special features of the embodiments of the invention according to claim 8 serve to increase safety.

The installation of sufficiently large holes or bulges in accordance with claim 9 also allows children to easily handle and carry the furniture. Holes also allow access to any hollow spaces that may be present.

Another useful design is provided for in claim 10. If the distances are chosen as specified there, the piece of furniture can also be used as a seat for adults.

The further developments of the subject matter of the invention according to claims 11 and 12 obviously increase the play value of the furniture.

We now describe embodiments of the invention. The geometry of the first example is illustrated by Figures 1 and 2.

• Figure 1 shows the furniture in its function as a staircase or seating area.

• Figure 2 shows the furniture in its function as a box (rotated by 90° compared to the representation in Fig. 1).

The furniture has two flat, opposite side parts (1) in the shape of a square with cut corners. These side parts are connected by a rectangular plate (2) which is perpendicular to them. This plate (2) touches the side parts parallel to a pair of opposite edges and bisects their surfaces. Furthermore, the side parts are connected by four identical, rectangular plates (3) to (6) which are aligned parallel to each other and perpendicular to the plate (2). The plates (4) and (5) lie on the free edges of the plate (2) and are on the same side of the plate (2). On the other side are the plates (3) and (6). (3) is halfway up, so that (3) and (4) are arranged like the steps of a staircase. The plate (6) is in the same plane as (5). The side parts protrude beyond the connecting plates as far as their corners are cut off. This ensures feature a) of claim 1, as will now be explained.

The corners of the cuboid according to claim 1 are precisely the corners of the two squares from which the outer walls of the side parts are created by cutting off the corners. In Figure 1, these are the intersection points of the dashed lines. The convex set of points to be considered according to feature a) of claim 1 is, for example, for the lower side in Figure 1, the rectangle whose corners are the points opposite the points (7).

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are. The vertical projection of the connecting plates (2) to (6) downwards lies within this rectangle, since the side parts extend over these plates. This means that even when loaded, the center of gravity of the furniture and the person sitting on it is always within the rectangle determined by the support points, provided that the person's center of gravity is above the surface on which they are standing. Tipping over is therefore only possible if the person would also tip over on level ground. The feature of claim 2 is also met, since essentially the entire side surfaces are support surfaces.

Anti-slip devices are conveniently installed near the points opposite points (7). Furthermore, grip holes are advantageously installed at the cut corners and in the middle of the free edges of the panels (3) to (6). This makes it easier to carry and pull the furniture. (These details are not shown in the drawings.)

Another embodiment, which is a further development of the first and corresponds to it in terms of geometry, has a removable partition wall and a two-part sliding lid for the box visible in Figure 2. In addition, rollers or wheels are attached near the points (8) which make it possible to move the box. (These details are also not shown in the figures.)

For four specific embodiments with the features of claim 7, which correspond to the examples above with regard to the geometry of the side parts and in which seven connecting elements are used, the arrangements of the elements are shown schematically in Figure 3. Possible uses can be found in the following list:

a) stairs, seat, table, double seat, small box, cavity;

b) stairs, seat, table, small box, large box with partition;

c) stairs, seat, table, seat with box, large box with partition;

d) Stairs, seat, table, large box, hollow space.

Claims (12)

Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, ^chulzansprtche*j # *,.&iacgr; .* Protection claims 1. Multifunctional children's furniture consisting of two (not necessarily flat) side parts (1) and several elements connecting these side parts, characterized by the following features: a) A cuboid can be placed around the piece of furniture, which is touched on two opposite sides by one of the two side parts and whose remaining four sides are touched by both side parts. In the vertical projections of the furniture onto the last four sides of the cuboid, the image of all elements that connect the side parts lies entirely within the convex set of points on the relevant side of the cuboid, which is determined by the points of contact of the furniture with this side (math.: convex hull of the points of contact). b) The side parts are connected in particular by a (not necessarily flat) wall (2), two flat plates (3), (4) and an element (5) which are arranged as follows: the parts (3), (4) and (5) are aligned transversely to the wall (2) and the plates (3) and (4) are also aligned parallel to a pair of opposite cuboid sides; the elements (4) and (5) lie on one side of the wall (2) and the plate (4) is flush with the wall (2) along one of the edges which extend from one side part to the other; the plate (3) lies on the other side of (2) in such a way that the parts (3), (2) and (4) are arranged in a step-like manner, with (3) and (4) forming the steps. 2. Multifunctional children's furniture according to claim 1 characterized by the following additional feature: In the projections onto those two sides of the cuboid according to 1. a) that are touched by only one side part, the image of the entire piece of furniture projects beyond the convex set of points on the relevant side of the cuboid, which is determined by the points of contact of the furniture with this side (math.: convex hull of the points of contact), by less than 2 cm. 3. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 2, characterized in that all elements which connect the side parts (1) are attached to the side parts by means of detachable connections. 4. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the side parts (1) and possibly also all elements that connect the side parts are generally flat. Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, Schutianspru&he"'*'··', 2/3 5. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the space enclosed by the side parts (1), the parts (4), (5) and the wall (2) is divided by a (possibly removable) plate arranged between the parts (4) and (5) and/or is closed off by sliding covers (e.g. guided in grooves). 6. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 6, characterized in that an additional plate (6) is arranged on the same side of the connecting wall (2) as the plate (3). 7. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 or 2 characterized by the following features: a) The side panels are flat. b) The connection between the side parts consists of 5 to 9 identical, flat and generally rectangular elements. c) The individual connecting elements can be attached to the side parts by means of detachable connections, namely along the edges of four squares which are arranged together to form a square of twice the edge length and parallel to two sides of the cuboid according to claim 1. d) The connecting wall (2) according to 1. b) consists of two of these elements. 8. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 8, characterized in that all corners and edges are rounded and/or that anti-slip devices (e.g. rubber caps) are attached to some or all of the support points of the furniture when it is placed on its various sides. 9. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the side parts and/or one or more of the connecting parts have holes and/or the edges of the side parts are designed to be bead-like and thickened. 10. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the distance between the side parts and/or the distance between the plate (3) and the furthermost of the two parallel cuboid sides according to protection claim 1 is equal to the height of a chair for adults. Georg Haehn, Multifunctional children's furniture, protection requirements! · **·" 3/3 11. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the protection claims 1 to 11, characterized in that at least one of the side parts is designed as a game table, e.g. as a ball-pushing game (Boy Scouts). 12. Multifunctional children's furniture according to one of the claims 1 to 12, characterized in that wheels or rollers are attached to at least one side of the furniture.