System for dense packing of ready-to-assemble articles of furniture

Abstract

A system for constructing and shipping full-sized (or larger) RTA articles of furniture in a smaller volume, resulting in more efficient and dense packing of multiple articles on standard international cube shipping containers. Each full-sized or larger RTA article of furniture is constructed so that it in a partially assembled state it can be arranged and packed in a shipping box or container of 26.5 inches or less in height and 30.6 inches or less in width. Lengths may vary, but common lengths are 45 inches, 66 inches, and 90 inches. The system thus results in a substantial increase (approximately 33%) in the number of articles of furniture that can be shipped in a single standard international cube shipping container, thereby greatly reducing the shipping cost per article of furniture.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A Ready-To-Assemble furniture system, comprising:
 a plurality of ready-to-assemble furniture items, each with an assembled configuration and an shipping configuration, wherein in the assembled configuration the respective furniture item is full-size or larger, and in shipping configuration the respective furniture item has been partially disassembled into one or more components with said components arranged and packed into a single shipping carton approximately 26.5 inches or less in height and approximately 30.6 inches or less in width.   
     
     
         2 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the shipping carton has a length of approximately 45 inches. 
     
     
         3 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the shipping carton has a length of approximately 66 inches. 
     
     
         4 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the shipping carton has a length of approximately 90 inches. 
     
     
         5 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the shipping carton is 26.5 inches in height, 30.5 inches in width, and 45 inches in length. 
     
     
         6 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the shipping carton is 26.5 inches in height, 30.5 inches in width, and 23 inches in length. 
     
     
         7 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the furniture item comprises a base assembly, a back assembly, and a seat assembly, wherein the base assembly, back assembly, and seat assembly are connected by snap-fit connectors in said assembled configuration. 
     
     
         8 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , further comprising at least one foam insert with one or more slots or holes configured to securely receive one or more elements of said one or more components in said shipping configuration. 
     
     
         9 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein said shipping carton further comprises a closable and sealable access door in a side of the shipping carton, configured to allow access to a control element connect port in a component of the article of furniture in the shipping configuration while in the shipping container. 
     
     
         10 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein said articles of furniture comprise one or more of the following: sofas, recliner-sofas, loveseats, recliner-loveseats, chairs, recliner-chairs, sectional pieces, ottomans, rockers, rocker-recliners, gliders, glider-recliners, swivels, swivel rocker, swivel-recliners, and sleeper-sofas. 
     
     
         11 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein said article of furniture is a recliner with a back assembly with a cushion side and right and left wing cushions, a seat assembly a right arm with a cushion and a left arm with a cushion, said seat assembly further comprising a cushion side and a base side, and a base assembly with a top side;
 further wherein the shipping configuration for said recliner when placed in the shipping carton comprises, from the bottom of the shipping carton: (1) the back assembly with cushion side up; (2) the seat assembly with cushion side down, with the right arm and left arm aligned with the right and left wing cushions; (3) at least one foam insert with one or more slots or holes; (4) the base assembly with top side down and rotated 90 degrees with respect to the seat assembly when in the assembled configuration.   
     
     
         12 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein the arrangement of components in the shipping configuration is inverted. 
     
     
         13 . The furniture system of  claim 1 , wherein one of said articles of furniture comprise one or more arm components, wherein said arm components are hollow and configured to receive one or more pillows or cushions from the article of furniture when in the shipping configuration. 
     
     
         14 . A method of packing a plurality of ready-to-assemble furniture items as described in  claim 1  in a standard-sized intermodal shipping container with internal width of 92 inches and internal height of 106 inches. comprising:
 packing each of a plurality of ready-to-assemble furniture items in a shipping configuration in a single shipping carton approximately 26.5 inches or less in height and approximately 30.6 inches or less in width; and 
 stacking a plurality of said shipping cartons in a dense packing arrangement within said intermodal shipping container so that packing efficiency exceeds 95.5% internal space used.