Furniture glide

Abstract

A furniture glide for supporting a furniture leg on a leg supporting surface. The furniture leg defines a leg free end. The furniture glide includes a slider, the slider including a slider body defining a body end surface. The body end surface has a substantially convex configuration. The body end surface is substantially covered with a plurality of substantially elongated textile fibres extending substantially away therefrom. A leg-to-slider attachment is operatively coupled to the slider for attaching the slider to the furniture leg substantially adjacent to the leg free end in an operative configuration in which the substantially elongated textile fibres extend substantially away from the leg free end with the body extending between the substantially elongated textile fibres and the leg free end. When the leg-to-slider attachment is attached to the furniture leg in the operative configuration and the furniture glide supports the furniture leg on the leg supporting surface, the slider defines a contact surface in which the slider abuts against the leg supporting surface. The contact surface includes a load transmitting portion in which the slider transmits load exerted onto the furniture leg to the leg supporting surface and an unloaded portion in which the substantially elongated textile fibres contact the leg supporting surface in a substantially unloaded state, the unloaded portion extending peripherally relatively to the load transmitting portion.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A furniture glide for supporting a furniture leg on a leg supporting surface, said furniture leg defining a leg free end, said furniture glide comprising:
 a slider, said slider including a slider body defining a body end surface, said body end surface having a substantially convex configuration, said body end surface being substantially covered with a plurality of substantially elongated textile fibres extending substantially away therefrom;   a leg-to-slider attachment operatively coupled to said slider for attaching said slider to said furniture leg substantially adjacent to said leg free end in an operative configuration in which said substantially elongated textile fibres extend substantially away from said leg free end with said body extending between said substantially elongated textile fibres and said leg free end;   wherein, when said leg-to-slider attachment is attached to said furniture leg in said operative configuration and said furniture glide supports said furniture leg on said leg supporting surface, said slider defines a contact surface in which said slider abuts against said leg supporting surface, said contact surface including
 a load transmitting portion in which said slider transmits loads exerted onto said furniture leg to said leg supporting surface; and 
 an unloaded portion in which said substantially elongated textile fibres contact said leg supporting surface in a substantially unloaded state, said unloaded portion extending peripherally relatively to said load transmitting portion. 
   
     
     
         2 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said body end surface is substantially ellipsoidal cap shaped. 
     
     
         3 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said body end surface is shaped substantially similarly to a cap of an ellipsoid, said ellipsoid defining three principal axes, said cap of said ellipsoid being obtained by cutting said ellipsoid a plane extending perpendicularly to one of said three principal axes. 
     
     
         4 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 3 , wherein said body end surface is substantially half-spheroid shaped. 
     
     
         5 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 3 , wherein said body end surface is shaped substantially similarly to a half of a spheroid, said spheroid defining a spheroid minor axis and a spheroid major axis, said spheroid major axis extending substantially perpendicularly to said furniture leg when said leg-to-slider attachment is attached to said furniture leg in said operative configuration. 
     
     
         6 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 5 , wherein said spheroid major axis has a length of from about 2 to about 5 times a length of said spheroid minor axis. 
     
     
         7 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said plurality of substantially elongated textile fibres cover said body end surface with a substantially uniform surface density. 
     
     
         8 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said load transmitting portion defines a load transmitting portion area and said contact surface defines a contact surface area, said load transmitting portion area being of from about 0.2 percent to about 4 percent of said contact surface area. 
     
     
         9 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein
 said load transmitting portion is substantially circular and defines a load transmitting portion diameter;   said contact surface is substantially circular and defines a contact surface diameter; and   said load transmitting portion diameter is from about 2 percents to about 15 percents of said contact surface diameter.   
     
     
         10 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said slider body defines an abutment flange for abutting said leg free end thereonto when said slider is mounted to said furniture leg. 
     
     
         11 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 10 , wherein said furniture leg defines a passageway extending thereinto from said leg free end, said leg-to-slider attachment being substantially elongated and insertable into said passageway. 
     
     
         12 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 11 , wherein said leg-to-slider attachment defines an attachment flange extending substantially radially outwardly for frictionally engaging said furniture leg when said leg-to-slider attachment is inserted into said passageway. 
     
     
         13 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 12 , wherein said leg-to-slider attachment is substantially resiliently deformable. 
     
     
         14 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said slider body is made out of a material selected from the set consisting of polypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, acetral, nylon, polycarbonate, polyethylene and polystyrene. 
     
     
         15 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said substantially elongated textile fibres are each partially embedded into said slider body. 
     
     
         16 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said substantially elongated textile fibres are made out of a material selected from the set consisting of Nylon, polyester, thermoplastic and rubber. 
     
     
         17 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said substantially elongated textile fibres have a length of from about 5 mm to about 10 mm. 
     
     
         18 . A furniture glide as defined in  claim 1 , wherein said substantially elongated textile fibres have substantially similar lengths.