US3091497A

US3091497A - Pew construction

Info

Publication number: US3091497A
Application number: US123451A
Authority: US
Inventors: Houser Raymond Joseph
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1961-07-12
Filing date: 1961-07-12
Publication date: 1963-05-28
Anticipated expiration: 1980-05-28

Description

4 Sheets-Sheet 1 I Filed July 12, 1961 1 f1? Venlf'or: Fay/2701704]: f'l'ouser; 63 MM Mtmor-nqgs OusE PEW CONSTRUCTION 4 Sheet s 2 Filed July 12, 1961 figmanajfl er; .9

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4 Sheets-Sheet 4 May 28, 1963 R. J. HOUSER PEW CONSTRUCTION Filed July 12, 1961 United States Patent Ofifice 3,091,497 Patented May 28, 1963 Filed July'IZ, 1961, Ser- No. 123,451 4 Claims. (Cl. 297-45) This invention relates generally to multiple seating devices, and more particularly to pew construction of the type ordinarily employed in churches.

In the past, pews have been formed exclusively of wood and thus, even though production in substantial quantity might be involved, the component parts of such prior pew constructions were required to be fabricated on woodworking machinery inherently involving substantial hand labor and therefore making such prior constructions rela tively costly. Further and importantly, there 1s a pronounced tendency for the seat and back rest portions of wooden pews to develop cracks as the wood dries and to the best of the present applicants knowledge, no satisfactory method has been discovered permanently to repair such cracks.

It is accordingly an object of my invention to provide an improved pew construction.

Another object of my invention is to provide an improved pew construction wherein at least the seat and back rest portions are formed of an integral sheet of rela tively thin plastic material, such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin.

A further object of my invention 18 the PI'OVlSlOIl of an improved pew construction characterized by its capability of mass production, ease of assembly, and relatively low cost.

Further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent by reference to the following description and the accompanying drawing, and the features of novelty which characterize my invention will be pointed out with articularlity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this specification.

My invention in its broader aspects comprises two spaced-parallel upstanding pew ends respectively having at least one recess formed in their facing sides. A seat assembly is provided spanning the pew ends, the assembly having portions respectively seated in the recesses and supported thereby. The assembly comprises seat and back rest portions formed of an integral sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material, and a back portion also formed of a sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic mater al spaced from the back rest portion and defining a cavity therewith.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective showing a pew incorporating my invention;

FIG. 2 is a broken away exploded view in perspective of the pew of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary broken away view in perspective further illustrating the construction of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view showing a feature of the construction of FIGS. 2 and 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view showing a slightly modified form of the construction of the previous figures;

FIG. 6 is a broken away exploded view in perspective showing another embodiment of my invention;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing still another embodiment of my invention;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing further features of the embodiment of FIG. 7; and

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along the line 9-9 of FIG. 7.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 through 4 inclusive, there is shown a church pew, generally indicated at 10 having spaced parallel upstanding pew ends 12 with a seat assembly 14 spanning the ends, as shown.

In this embodiment, the pew ends 12 are formed of wood in the conventional fashion and respectively have generally L-shaped, outwardly facing, channel members 16 recessed in their facing surfaces 19, as best seen in FIG. 4; it will be seen that the L-shaped channel members 16 are inclined slightly in order to provide the usual inclination of the seat and

back rest portions

18 and 26 of the seat assembly 14.

An elongated top or cap rail support member 22 is provided, preferably formed of rolled metal so as to be generally tubular in cross-section, as shown, however, the supporting member 22 may in the alternative be formed as a piece of seamless tubing. Flange or anchor plate members 24 are secured to the ends of the supporting member 22 in any suitable manner, as by welding.

An elongated front supporting member 26 is provided likewise preferably formed of rolled metal to form a generally tubular cross-section but which again may take the form of a section of seamless metal tubing. Flanges or anchor plates 28 are secured to the ends of the front supporting member 26 in any suitable manner, as by weldmg.

Flanges

24 and 28 of supporting

members

22 and 26 are respectively seated within channel members 16 adjacent the ends of its legs and are held in assembled relation by means of suitable lag screws 30 and 32 respectively extending through suitable openings in the

flanges

24 and 28 and in the bottom wall of channel member 16 into the pew end, as best seen in FIG. 4.

An elongated center or fillet supporting member 34 is provided formed of metal and having the cross-sectional configuration shown; center supporting member 34 has an outwardly concave surface or fillet 36 and a rear wall 38 having a reentrant flange 40 extending from its bottom edge. The center support member 34 is secured at its ends to the sides of angle-shaped anchor plates 42, as by welding. The angle plates 42 are in turn seated in the channel member 16 at the junctions of its legs and the assembly is completed by means of suitable lag screws 44 which extend through suitable openings in the angle plates 42 and the channel member 16 and into the wood of the pew ends 12.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the seat portion 18, back rest portion 20 and back 46 of the seat assembly :14 are formed of a single integral sheet 48 of relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglassreinforced polyester resin. Sheet '48 has its front marginal edge 50 formed to fit over the front supporting member 26 and secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by a suitable resinous adhesive. Sheet 48 has its center section 52 conformingly engaging fillet 36 of the center member 34 and again is secured thereto by suitable adhesive. The seat 48 is formed to fit over the top supporting member 22, as at 54 and may be, but need not necessarily be, secured thereto by suitable adhesive. The bottom marginal edge 56 of the back portion 46 engages the rear wall 36 of center member 34 and has an inwardly formed flange portion 58 which engages flange 40 of center member 3 and is secured thereto, as by suitable adhesive.

It will readily be seen that the back 46 is spaced from and defines a cavity 69 with the back rest portion 20. In accordance with my invention, this cavity is preferably substantially filled with a core 62 of cellular honeycomb material. The provision of the core 62 increases the rigidity of the back rest and thereby provides resistance against depressions. It also deadens the noise which could otherwise be provided by the drum-like characteristics of back rest portion 20 and back 46.

The assembly is completed by means of fillet member 64 formed of suitable resilient material, such as rubber, which engages seat and

back rest portions

18 and 20 at their junctions with the inner faces 19 of the pew ends 12.

Referring now momentarily to FIG. in which like elements are indicated by like reference numerals, the seat and back rest portions 18 and 211 on the one hand and the back 46 on the other hand may be formed of

separate sheets

66 and 68 respectively of relatively thin rigid plastic material. Here, the top marginal edge 76 of sheet 66 is tor-med over top supporting member 22 and is secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by adhesive. The top marginal edge 72 of sheet 6 8 is joined to the marginal edge 7110f sheet 66 and is likewise secured to the top supporting member 22 by suitable adhesive. Here, it may be desirable to provide suitable screws 74 at spaced intervals for securing the top marginal edge 72 of sheet 68 to the top supporting member 22.

Referring now to FIG. 6, I show a pew construction incorporating pew ends 76 which are substantially formed of plastic material rather than entirely of wood as in the case of the embodiment of FIGS. 2, 3 and 4. Here, each pew end 76 has an outer cover 78 molded from suitable relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglassreinforced polyester resin. Outer cover 78 has an outer side 81) and marginal sides 82 defining the requisite pew end configuration and a cavity 8 4. A generally L-shaped supporting member 86, preferably formed of wood, is positioned in cavity 84 and secured to the inner surface of front side 84) in any suitable manner, as by encasing it in the plastic of the pew end during the forming of the latter. It will be observed again that the L-shaped member 86 is inclined slightly to provide the requisite inclination for the seat assembly. The remainder of cavity 84 is filled with a core 88 of suitable cellular honeycomb material.

An inside cover member 90 is provided molded from suitable relatively thin rigid plastic material such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin. Inner cover 90 conforms to the outline configuration of the outer cover 78 and has a generally L-shaped recess 92 formed in its face 94. The surface of the supporting member 86 is recessed slightly from the plane of the edges of the peripheral sides 82 0f the outer cover member 78 so that when the inner cover 90 is arranged abutting marginal sides 82, the inner surface of the bottom wall of recess 90 abuts the outer surface of supporting member 86.

In this embodiment, the seat assembly 14 has its seat and backrest portions 18 and formed of suitable relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin. Here, the front marginal edge 94 0f the seat portion 18 is rolled over, as shown, and the top marginal edge 96 is likewise rolled over, as shown. Seat portion 18 has a depending rib 98 integrally molded thereon and an integrally formed end wall .100. It will bereadily seen that in this embodiment the seat and

back rest portions

18 and 20, rolled over

portions

94 and 96, rib 98 and end walls 100 are preferably formed as an integrally molded body.

The ends of the seat assembly 14 of the embodiment of FIG. 6 are seated in the recesses 92 in the inner cover members 90 of pew ends 76, it being observed that the generally L-shaped recesses 92 conform generally to the outline configuration of the seat assembly 14. The components are held in assembled relation by means of suitable lag screws 162 which extend through suitable apertures in end'walls 1111) of seat assembly 14, the bottom walls of recess 92, and into the supporting members 86.

A back 1114 formed of a separate sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin is provided having its top marginal edge 166 secured to the rolled-over portion 98 and having its bottom marginal edge 108 secured to rib 98, as shown. It will be seen that the back 1194 again defines a cavity 1 119 with the back rest portion 213 in which a core 1-12 of suitable cellular honeycomb material is preferably positioned;

It will be readily comprehended that the seat and back rest construction of FIGS. 2 and 3 may equally advantageously be employed with the fabricated pew ends 76 of PEG. 6.

Referring now to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9, here pew ends 114 are again preferably fabricated in the manner of pew ends 76 of FIG. 6, but may be fabricated the same as pew ends 12 of FIG. 2. Here, pew ends 114 comprise an outer cover 116 having an outer side 118 and marginal sides 120 defining cavity 122. A generally L-shaped supporting member 124, again preferably formed of wood, is positioned in the cavity 122 and is secured to the outer side 118 in any suitable manner, as by suitable adhesive.

An elongated top supporting member 126 is provided which in this embodiment may be formed of wood. Likewise, an elongated front supporting member 128 is rovided shown as being formed of two

segments

130 and 132, again preferably formed of wood. An elongated center supporting member 134 is provided shown as being formed of two

segments

136 and 138, again preferably formed of wood. It will be seen that the center supporting member 134 is generally L-shaped in cross-section with the

segments

136 and 138 forming the legs thereof.

The supporting member 124 of the pew ends 114 has

suitable recesses

140, 142 and 144 formed in its inner surfaces conforming respectively to the cross-sectional configurations of the elongated supporting

members

126, 128 and 134, as shown. An inner cover member 146 is provided, again preferably formed of suitable relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin, the inner cover member 146 having apertures formed therein conforming to the

recesses

140, 142 and 144 in the supporting member 124. The ends of the top, front and

center supporting members

126, 128 and 134 respectively extend through the apertures in the inner cover member 146 and into the

recesses

140, 142 and 144 in the supporting member 124, as best seen in FIG. 9.

Here, seat and back rest

portions

18 and 20 are formed from a single integral sheet 159 of relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglassreinforced polyester resin. Sheet 50 has its front marginal edge 152 formed over the

segments

130 and 132 of front supporting member 128 and is secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by suitable adhesive. The top marginal edge 154 of sheet is formed over the top elongated supporting member 126 and may be secured thereto with suitable adhesive. It may also be found desirable to secure the top marginal edge 154 to the top supporting member 26 by spaced screws 156.

A back 158 formed of a single sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material, such as fibreglass-reinforced polyester resin is provided having its top marginal edge 160 secured to top elongated supporting member 126 with suitable adhesive and also preferably with spaced screws 162. The bottom marginal edge 164 of the back 158 is formed as a flange which initially has a slight angular inclination with respect to the bottom leg 138 of the center supporting member 134. Flange 164 is secured to leg 138 of center supporting member 134 as by suitably spaced screws 166. It will be seen that when screws 166 are employed for pulling the flange 164 into engagement with the leg 138 of center supporting member 134, back 158 will be bowed out slightly thereby making it taut and less likely to be deflected or deformed by pressure thereon from the knees of the occupants of the next rearmost pew. It will be seen again that back 158 defines a cavity 168 with the back rest portion 20. Again, a core 170 formed of suitable cellular honeycomb material is preferably positioned in the cavity 168.

It will now be seen that I have provided a pew assembly in which at least the seat and back rest portions are formed of suitable plastic sheet material thus completely eliminating the previous tendency for the seat and back rest portions of wooden pews to crack. it

will further be seen that my construction lends itself to mass production with relatively unskilled labor and also ready assembly and installation.

While I have illustrated and described specific embodiments of my invention, further modifications and improvements will occur to those skilled in the art and I desire therefore in the appended claims to cover all modifications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of my invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A pew construction comprising: two spaced, parallel, upstanding pew ends, each of said pew ends having three recesses formed therein generally defining an L; top, center and front elongated members spanning said pew ends and having their ends respectively seated in said recesses and supported thereby; a first sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material having top and front marginal edges respectively secured to said top and front elongated members, said first sheet having a curved portion engaging said center elongated member and being supported thereby to define seat and back rest portions; and a back formed of another sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material having top and bottom marginal edges respectively secured to said top and center elongated members and defining :a closed cavity with said back rest portion.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said center member has a generally L-shaped cross-section with the edges of its two legs respectively engaging said first sheet and with one leg generally horizontally disposed, and wherein said back has its bottom marginal edge formed as an integral flange portion which is secured to said one leg of said center member, said flange portion initially defining an angle with said one leg of said center member whereby said back is bowed outwardly when said flange portion is secured to said one leg.

3. A pew construction comprising: two spaced, parallel upstanding pew ends, each of said pew ends comprising an outer cover formed of molded relatively thin rigid plastic material, said cover having an outer side and marginal sides defining a cavity, a generally 'L-shaped support member within said cavity and secured to the inner surface of said outer wall, an inner cover formed of relatively thin rigid plastic material secured to said marginal sides of said outer cover and closing said cavity, said support member having three recesses formed therein generally adjacent the ends of its legs and the junction of its legs respectively, said inner cover having apertures formed therein communicating respectively with said recesses; top, center and front elongated members spanning said pew ends and having their ends respectively extending through said apertures and being seated in said recesses, said center elongated member having a generally L-shaped cross-section with one leg thereof generally horizontally disposed; a first sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material having top and front marginal edges respectively formed over and secured to said top and front elongated members, said first sheet having its center portion engaging the edges of the legs of said center clongated member and being supported thereby to define seat and back rest portions; and a back formed of another sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material having top and bottom marginal edges, said top marginal edge of said back being secured to said top elongated member, said bottom marginal edge "being formed as a flange portion engaging and secured to said one leg of said center elongated member, said flange portion initially defining an angle with said one leg of said center member whereby said back is bowed outwardly when said flange portion is secured to said one leg; said back defining a cavity with said back rest portion; and a core in said last-named cavity formed of cellular honeycomb material for preventing distortion of said back.

4. A pew construction comprising: two spaced, parallel upstanding pew ends respectively having at least one recess formed in their facing sides; and a seat assembly spanning said ends, said assembly having portions respectively seated in said recesses and supported thereby, said assembly comprising seat and backrest portions formed of an integral sheet of relatively thin rigid plastic material, a back portion formed of 'a sheet or" relatively thin rigid plastic material spaced from said backrest portion and defining a cavity therewith, said seat and backrest portions respectively having front and top marginal edges, said seat and backrest portions having a curved section joining the same, said back portion having top and bottom marginal edges, front, center and top elongated supporting members respectively spanning said pew ends and having their ends seated in respective recesses in said pew ends and supported thereby, said front and top marginal edges of said seat and backrest portions being respectively formed over and secured to said front and top supporting members and supported thereby, said back portion having its top marginal edge joined to said top marginal edge of said backrest portion and its bottom marginal edge secured to said center supporting member, said curved section of said seat and backrest portions engaging said center supporting member and being supported thereby.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,762,622 Gray June 10, 1930 2,518,532 Edwards Aug. 15, 1950 2,711,786 Weiss June 28, 1955 2,786,513 Hoven et al Mar. 26, 1957 2,847,061 Morton Aug. 12, 1958

Claims

1. A PEW CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING: TWO SPACED, PARALLEL, UPSTANDING PEW ENDS, EACH OF SAID PEW ENDS HAVING THREE RECESSES FORMED THEREIN GENERALLY DEFINING AN L; TOP, CENTER AND FRONT ELONGATED MEMBERS SPANNING SAID PEW ENDS AND HAVING THEIR ENDS RESPECTIVELY SEATED IN SAID RECESSES AND SUPPORTED THEREBY; A FIRST SHEET OF RELATIVELY THIN RIGID PLASTIC MATERIAL HAVING TOP AND FRONT MARGINAL EDGES RESPECTIVELY SECURED TO SAID TOP AND FRONT ELONGATED MEMBERS, SAID FIRST SHEET HAVING A CURVED PORTION ENGAGING SAID CENTER ELONGATED MEMBER AND BEING SUPPORTED THEREBY TO DEFINE SEAT AND BACK REST PORTIONS; AND A BACK FORMED OF ANOTHER SHEET OF RELATIVELY THIN RIGID PLASTIC MATERIAL HAVING TOP AND BOTTOM MARGINAL EDGES RESPECTIVELY SECURED TO SAID TOP AND CENTER ELONGATED MEMBERS AND DEFINING A CLOSED CAVITY WITH SAID BACK REST PORTION.