Structural analysis and design of sofa front rails

Jilei Zhang, Purdue University

Abstract

Of all the members in an upholstered sofa frame, the front rail is perhaps the most difficult to design owing both to its support conditions and to the manner in which it is loaded. To date, structural analysis methods and design procedures have still not been fully developed for this member. The primary objective of this study was to develop and verify a computer-based procedure for the analytical design of the front rail in the sofa seat support system. A simplified parallel chord truss model was developed to model the deflection behavior of the front rail. The stretcher/stretcher brace system was modelled and its stiffening and reinforcement of the front rail with respect to front to back spring loads determined. The validity of these analytical procedures was verified by mechanical tests of full-scale front rail/stretcher/stretcher brace systems. The deflections of the front rail under the action of 15 simulated front to back spring loads were measured at seven points. These experimental results were compared with deflection values predicted by the analytical procedures developed in this study. The differences between predicted and measured values expressed as a percentage of predicted values differed by less than 10 percent for all test data. It was concluded from this study that the analytical procedures developed were valid and could be readily incorporated into engineering design procedures for sofa frame constructions.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Eckelman, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Wood|Technology|Design|Interior design|Mechanical engineering

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