TECHNICAL FI ELD

[0001] Various embodiments relate to a seating arrangement accessory support assembly and specifically to an accessory support assembly configured to releasably engage a back assembly of the seating arrangement thereby adapting the seating arrangement to support various useful accessory support assemblies.

BRIEF SUMMARY

[0002] In one embodiment, a seating arrangement accessory support assembly is configured to support a seating accessory from a back assembly of a seating arrangement that includes a pair of vertical frame members and a horizontal frame member extending between the vertical frame members, the accessory support assembly includes a first portion configured to engage an inwardly-facing surface of each of the vertical frame members of the seating arrangement, a second portion configured to engage an upwardly-facing surface of the horizontal frame member of the seating arrangement, an accessory support portion attached to at least one of the first portion and the second portion, and a seating accessory coupled to the accessory support portion.

[0003] In another embodiment, a seating arrangement accessory support assembly is configured to support a seating accessory assembly of a seating arrangement that includes a pair of vertical frame members and a horizontal frame member extending between the vertical frame members, the accessory support assembly includes a first portion configured to engage each of the vertical frame members of the seating arrangement, a second portion configured to engage at least two surfaces of the horizontal frame member of the seating arrangement, an accessory support portion attached to at least one of the first portion and the second portion, and a seating accessory coupled to the accessory support portion.

[0004] In yet another embodiment, a seating arrangement accessory support kit is configured to support a seating accessory from a back assembly of a seating arrangement that includes a pair of vertical frame members and a horizontal frame member extending between the vertical frame members, the accessory support assembly includes a support arrangement that includes a first portion configured to releasably engage each of the vertical frame members of a seating arrangement, and a second portion configured to releasably engage the horizontal frame member of the seating a rrangement, an accessory support portion attached to at least one of the first portion and the second portion, and a seating accessory coupled to the accessory support portion.

[0005] Still yet another embodiment includes a method for attaching an accessory support assembly from a seating arra ngement where the accessory support is configured to support a seating accessory from a back assembly of a seating arrangement that includes a pair of vertical frame members and a horizontal frame member extending between the vertical frame members, the method including providing a support arrangement that includes a first portion and a second portion where the second portion includes a hook-shaped portion, providing an accessory support portion attached to at least one of the first portion and the second portion, providing a seating accessory coupled to the accessory support portion, positioning the hook-shaped portion of the second portion about the horizontal frame member of the back assembly while the first portion is spaced from the vertical frame members of the back assembly, rotating the second portion with respect to the horizonta l fra me member of the back assembly until the horizontal member engages the vertical frame members of the back assembly, thereby attaching the accessory support assembly to the back assembly of the seating arrangement.

[0006] These and other features, advantages, and objects of various embodiments will be further understood and a ppreciated by those skilled in the art by reference to the following specification, claims, and appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Fig. 1A is a top, front perspective view of a seating arrangement with an accessory support assembly and supporting a headrest assembly;

[0008] Fig. IB is a bottom, rear perspective view of a seating arrangement and accessory support assembly;

[0009] . 2A is a front perspective view of a back fra [0010] Fig. 2B is a rea r perspective view of a back frame;

[0011] Fig. 3A is a top, front perspective view of a seating arrangement and an accessory support assem bly supporting a garment hanger;

[0012] Fig. 3B is a bottom, rear perspective view of a seating arra ngement and an

accessory support assembly supporting the garment hanger;

[0013] Fig. 4A is a front perspective view of a headrest assem bly;

[0014] Fig. 4B is a rea r perspective view of a headrest assembly;

[0015] Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional side view of an accessory support assembly;

[0016] Fig. 6A is a n exploded perspective view of an accessory support assembly;

[0017] Fig. 6B is a rea r perspective view of a vertical portion of an accessory support assembly;

[0018] Fig. 7A is an exploded side elevational view of an accessory support assembly;

[0019] Fig. 7B is an exploded side e levational view of an accessory support assembly;

[0020] Fig. 8A is a perspective view of a clip being attached to a back frame;

[0021] Fig. 8B is a side elevationa l view of an accessory support assembly being attached to a back frame;

[0022] Fig. 8C is an enlarged side e levational view of an accessory support assem bly

being attached to a back frame;

[0023] Fig. 8D is a rea r perspective view of an accessory support assembly being

attached to a back frame;

[0024] Fig. 8E is an enla rged rear perspective view of an accessory support assembly being attached to a back frame;

[0025] Fig. 9A is a front perspective view of an a lternative embodiment of an accessory support a rrangement supporting a garment hanger; and

[0026] Fig. 9B is a rear perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the accessory support a rrangement supporting a garment hanger.

DETAI LED DESCRI PTION OF TH E PREFERRED EMBODI MENTS

[0027] For purposes of description herein, the terms "upper," "lower," "right," "left,"

"rear," "front," "vertica l," "horizontal," and derivatives thereof shall relate to the orientations of the illustrations in Figs. 1A and IB. However, it is to be understood that embodiments may assume various a lternative orientations and step sequences, except where expressly specified to the contrary. It is also to be understood that the specific devices and processes illustrated in the attached drawings, and described in the following specification are exemplary embodiments of the inventive concepts defined in the appended claims. Hence, specific dimensions and other physical characteristics relating to the embodiments disclosed herein are not to be considered as limiting, unless the claims expressly state otherwise.

[0028] In one embodiment, the reference numeral 10 (Figs. 1A and IB) generally designates a seating arrangement that supports a seating arrangement accessory support assembly 12. I n the illustrated example, the seating arrangement 10 comprises an office chair assembly, however, the accessory support assembly 12 may also be utilized in conjunction with other seating arrangements, including variously configured office seating, vehicle seating, home seating, stadium seating, theater seating, and the like. The seating arrangement 10 includes a pedestal support assembly 14 that includes a plurality of caster assemblies supporting the pedestal support assembly 14 above a ground surface 18, a control assembly 20, a seat assembly 22, a back assembly 24 and a pair of arm assemblies 26.

[0029] The back assembly 24 includes a rigid back frame 28, a flexibly-resilient back shell

30, a fabric and cushion assembly 32 having a forwardly-facing supporting surface 34, and a vertically adjustable lumbar assembly 36. The elements of the back assembly 24 and their specific connection and relationship to one another are described in greater detail in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 14/029,985, entitled Chair Construction, filed September 18, 2013, the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0030] As best illustrated in Figs. 2A and 2B, the back frame 28 includes a pair of vertically-extending side frame members 38, a top frame member 40 extending horizontally between upper ends of the side frame members 38, and a bottom frame member 42 extending horizontally between lower portions of the side frame members 38. A connection portion 44 extends forwardly from the lower portions of each of the side frame members 38 and is coupled to the control assembly 20. In the illustrated example, the back frame 28 is shown as an integral, single-piece unit, however, multiple separate pieces may be used to construct the same. As illustrated, each side frame member 38 includes an inwardly-facing surface 46, a rearward ly-facing surface 48, an outwardly-facing surface 50, and a forward ly-facing surface 52. The top frame member 40 includes an upwardly-facing surface 54, a forwardly-facing surface 56, a downwardly-facing surface 58, and a rearward ly-facing surface 60.

[0031] The accessory support assembly 12 is configured to support a plurality of seating accessories from the back assembly 24 of the seating arrangement 10. As illustrated in Figs. 1A and IB, the seating accessory includes a headrest assembly 62. However, other seating accessories may also be supported using the accessory support assembly 12, such as a garment hanger assembly 64 as shown in Figs. 3A and 3B, and which is described below.

[0032] The accessory support assembly 12 (Figs. 4A and 4B) includes a horizontal portion

66, and a vertical portion 68. In the illustrated example, the horizonta l portion 66 and the vertical portion 68 are formed as an integral, single-piece unit, however, multiple components may be utilized. The horizonta l portion 66 extends outwardly from the vertical portion 68 that is located near a mid-point of the horizontal portion 66, and includes a pair of distal ends 70. Each end 70 includes a downwardly-extending engagement arrangement 72. Each engagement arrangement includes a first wall 74 extending in a lateral direction and a second wall 76 extending orthogonally from the first wall 74 in a general fore-to-aft direction. Each second wall 76 includes an aperture located along the second wall 76, and an upwardly-extending tab 78.

[0033] The vertical portion 68 (Figs. 4A-5) of the accessory support assembly 12 includes an elongated body portion 80, and an engagement portion 82. In the illustrated example, the body portion 80 is configured to be slidably engaged by the headrest assembly 62, while the engagement portion 82 is configured to releasably engage the top frame member 40 of the back frame 28. The elongated body portion 80 includes a flexibly-resilient pawl 83 movable in the directions 85. The engagement portion 82 includes a hook-shaped arrangement 84, including a bottom portion 86 configured to abut the bottom wall 58 of the top frame member 40, a rear portion 88 configured to abut the rearwardly-facing surface 60 of the back frame 28, an upper portion 90 configured to abut the upwardly-facing surface 54 of the back frame 28, and a front portion 92 configured to abut the forwardly-facing surface 56 of the back frame 28. [0034] As best illustrated in Figs. 6A -7B, the body portion 80 further includes a pair of T- shaped track arrangements 94 spaced above and below the pawl 83. An elongated cover member 96 includes an open ended channel 98 that allows the cover member 96 to be positioned beneath the track arrangements 94. A headrest support member 100 is placed over the cover member 96 and is secured thereto by a plurality of mechanical fasteners, such as screws 102 extending through apertures 104 of the cover member 96 and threadably received within bosses 106 of the headrest support member 100, thereby slidably coupling the headrest support member 100 and the cover member 96 to the body portion 80 of the accessory support assembly 12. The headrest member 100 includes an elongated body portion 108 and a headrest support portion 110 extending orthogonally forward from the body portion 108 and including a distal end 112 from which a headrest member 114 (Figs. 4A and 4B) is pivotably coupled for pivotable adjustment about a pivot axis 116. In operation, the vertical position of the headrest member 114 with respect to the horizontal portion 66 of the accessory support assembly 12 is adjusted by sliding the headrest member 110 with respect to the body portion 80 in the vertical directions 118. The pawl 83 allows the headrest support member 118 to be positioned at a selected vertical position by selectively engaging a plurality of teeth 120 longitudinally-spaced along a center rib 122 extending longitudinally along the headrest support member 100.

[0035] As best illustrated in Figs. 8A-8E, the accessory support assembly 12 is attached to the back assembly 24 of the seating arrangement 10 by first installing a pair of clips 124 about the rearwardly-facing surface 48, the inwardly-facing surface 46 and the forwardly- facing surface 52 of the associated vertical portion 68 of the back frame 28. Each clip 124 is configured to frictionally engage the vertical portion 68 of the back frame 28 and includes a spring biased tab 126. The accessory support assembly 12 is positioned such that the hook-shaped arrangement 84 is arranged about the top frame member 40 of the back frame 28 and the horizontal portion 66 of the accessory support assembly 12 is spaced from the side frame members 38. The vertical portion 68 of the accessory support assembly 12 is then rotated in a direction 128 with respect to the top frame member 40 until the first wall 74 of the engagement arrangement 72 engages the inwardly-facing surface 46 of the side frame member 38 and the second wall 46 of the engagement arrangement 72 engages the rearwardly-facing surface 48 of the side frame member 38. In this configuration, the bottom portion 86 of the hook-shaped arrangement 84 engages or abuts the downwardly-facing surface 58 of the top frame member 40, the rear portion 88 of the hook-shaped arrangement 84 engages or abuts the rearwardly-facing surface 60 of the top frame member 40, the upper portion 90 engages or abuts the upwardly-facing surface 54 of the top frame member 40, and the front portion 92 of the hook-shaped arrangement 84 engages or abuts the forwardly- facing surface 56. The engagement of the horizontal portion 66 and the vertical portion 68 with the side frame members 38 and the top frame member 40, respectively, couple or attach the accessory support assembly 12 to the back frame 28 of the back assembly 24. As best illustrated in 8D and 8E, the engagement arrangement 72 of the accessory support assembly 12 is pressed forwardly in a direction 129 until the clip 124 is received into the aperture 77 of the corresponding engagement arrangement 72, thereby preventing the accessory support assembly 12, thereby securely attaching the accessory support assembly 12 with the back frame 28. The tab 78 of each engagement arrangement 72 is configured to engage the forwardly-facing surface 56 of the top frame member 40, thereby assisting in preventing undesired rearward disengagement of the engagement portion 82 from the side frame members 38.

The reference numeral 12a (Figs. 3A, 3B, 10A, 10B) generally designates another embodiment of the accessory support assembly. As discussed above, the accessory support assembly may be utilized to support a plurality of various seating accessories, including the headrest assembly 62 and the garment hanger assembly 64. Since the accessory support assembly 12a is similar to the previously described accessory support assembly 12, similar parts appearing in Figs. 1A, IB and 4A - 8E and Figs. 3A, 3B, 10A and 10B respectively are represented by the same, corresponding reference numeral, except for the suffix "a" in the numerals of the latter. The accessory support assembly 12a is similar to the previously described accessory support assembly 12 with the most notable exception being that the vertical portion 68a is configured to support a garment hanger 64. In the illustrated example, a lower end of the vertical portion 68a is coupled to a mid-point of the horizontal portion 66a such that the vertical portion 68a extends upwardly therefrom. An upper end of the vertical portion 68a supports a pair of outwardly-extending, cantilevered arms 130 configured so as to support a garment, such as a coat or jacket, thereon.

[0037] The seating arrangement accessory support assembly adapts the associated seating arrangement to support a variety of variously configured useful assemblies, effective increasing the utility of the seating arrangement at minimal expense and while simultaneously maximizing use of limited floor plan space. The accessory support assembly may be easily coupled to existing seating arrangements with alterations to the seating arrangements, may be installed by non-specialized personnel, is effective in use, and capable of a long operating life.

[0038] In the foregoing description, it will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that modifications may be made to one or more embodiments without departing from the concepts disclosed herein. Such modifications are to be considered as included in the following claims, unless these claims by their language expressly state otherwise.