Engineered molded fiberboard panels and products fabricated from the panels

Abstract

A honeycomb-shaped panel is formed from a plurality of generally sinusoidally shaped strips of molded fiberboard material each having spaced, oppositely directed flat peaks, the peaks of adjacent strips being secured together to form a plurality of hexagonally shaped cells extending perpendicular to the surfaces of the sheet. The strips may be cut from a single sheet of corrugated fiberboard sheet material and then secured together to form the honeycomb panel, or a plurality of such panels may be secured together face to face with their ribs aligned to form a stack, and selected cuts may be made through the secured, stacked panels to form a plurality of honeycomb panels of desired surface shape and height dimensions. The strips forming the cells are substantially rigid and resistant to collapse of the cells, and form a substantially rigid core when assembled between two flexible fiberboard skins, while the panel is bendable to adopt a desired panel curvature.

1 . A panel, comprising:
 a honeycomb-shaped sheet having opposite first and second surfaces and a peripheral edge;   the sheet comprising a plurality of generally sinusoidally shaped strips of molded fiberboard material each having spaced, oppositely directed flat peaks, the peaks of adjacent strips being secured together to form a plurality of hexagonally shaped cells extending perpendicular to the surfaces of the sheet; and   the assembled strips being substantially rigid in directions transverse and parallel to the cells and the cells being resistant to collapse.   
     
     
         2 . The panel of  claim 1 , wherein the sheet has opposite flat faces and is bendable into a selected curved shape. 
     
     
         3 . The panel of  claim 2 , further comprising first and second outer flat layers of molded fiberboard material secured to the first and second faces of the sheet. 
     
     
         4 . The panel of  claim 3 , wherein the sheet and outer layers are flat. 
     
     
         5 . The panel of  claim 3 , wherein the sheet and outer layers are formed into a curved shape. 
     
     
         6 . The panel of  claim 5 , wherein the curved shape is a compound curve. 
     
     
         7 . The panel of  claim 5 , wherein the curved shape includes oppositely directed curves. 
     
     
         8 . The panel of  claim 1 , wherein at least the first face of the sheet is curved. 
     
     
         9 . The panel of  claim 8 , wherein the second face of the sheet is flat. 
     
     
         10 . The panel of  claim 9 , further comprising first and second outer layers of flexible flat fiberboard sheet material secured over the first and second faces of the sheet, respectively, the first outer layer being curved to match the curvature of the first face of the sheet. 
     
     
         11 . The panel of  claim 1 , wherein at least the first face of the sheet is inclined at an angle. 
     
     
         12 . The panel of  claim 11 , further comprising first and second outer layers of flexible flat fiberboard sheet material secured over the first and second faces of the sheet, respectively. 
     
     
         13 . The panel of  claim 1 , wherein the sheet is formed from at least one cellulose fiber material. 
     
     
         14 . The panel of  claim 13 , wherein the sheet is formed from a mixture of bovine processed fiber (BPF) and old newspaper (ONP). 
     
     
         15 . The panel of  claim 1 , wherein at least a first face of the sheet is cut to form a faceted shape. 
     
     
         16 . The panel of  claim 15 , further comprising first and second outer layers of flexible fiberboard sheet material secured over the first and second faces of the sheet, respectively, the first outer layer conforming to the faceted shape of the first face of the sheet. 
     
     
         17 . The panel of  claim 1 , further comprising a second, identical sheet of corrugated fiberboard material secured to the first sheet with opposing inner peaks of the two sheets adhered together, a first flat sheet of molded fiberboard material secured to the outer peaks of the first corrugated sheet and a second flat sheet of molded fiberboard material secured to the outer peaks of the second corrugated sheet. 
     
     
         18 . A construction panel, comprising:
 first and second layers of flat molded fiberboard material, each layer having an outer face and an inner face and the inner faces of the layers being spaced apart; and   a plurality of separate strips of molded fiberboard material in the shape of at least part of a wave, each strip having opposite edges secured to the inner faces of the first and second layers, respectively, whereby the wave shapes extend generally in a direction parallel to the plane of the panel and the separate strips form a plurality of spaced ribs extending between the first and second layers.   
     
     
         19 . The panel of  claim 18 , wherein at least some of the strips are of different lengths. 
     
     
         20 . The panel of  claim 18 , wherein a greater number of strips are secured in selected panel areas. 
     
     
         21 . A multi-ply panel assembly, comprising:
 first and second outer layers of flexible flat fiberboard material;   a flexible core layer secured between the outer layers;   the assembled layers of the panel being bent to form at least one curve;   the core layer comprising an elongated sheet of molded fiberboard material of corrugated shape having opposite first and second faces and opposite side edges, each face having a plurality of alternating, longitudinally extending ribs and grooves extending along the length of the sheet, the ribs on the first face each having a first peak and the ribs on the second face each having a second peak facing in the opposite direction to the first peaks;   the sheet having at least one slotted portion which has a plurality of spaced slits cut through the ribs of at least one face and terminating short of the opposite face; and   the assembled multi-layer panel being formed into at least one curve at said one, slotted portion.   
     
     
         22 . A fiberboard product, comprising:
 a single multi-ply panel having first and second outer layers of flexible flat fiberboard material and a core layer of flexible flat fiberboard material secured between the outer layers, the layers being flexible prior to assembly and the assembled layers being substantially rigid;   the core layer including fiberboard sheet portions with voids between the portions;   the panel being cut and shaped to form a product having at least one curve.   
     
     
         23 . The product of  claim 22 , wherein the single panel is cut and shaped to form a chair having a continuous arcuate back and seat portion, a left front and rear leg formed as a continuous curve extending from the seat portion in opposite directions down to a selected floor level at the front and rear of the chair, and a right front and rear leg formed as a continuous curve extending from the seat portion in opposite directions down to the selected floor level at the front and rear of the chair. 
     
     
         24 . The product of  claim 23 , wherein the core layer comprises a sheet of molded fiberboard material of corrugated shape having opposite first and second faces, each face having a plurality of alternating ribs and grooves extending in a first direction along the sheet. 
     
     
         25 . The product of  claim 24 , wherein the sheet is oriented with the ribs and grooves extending transversely across the chair. 
     
     
         26 . The product of  claim 24 , wherein the ribs and grooves extend lengthwise along the chair from the back to the seat and legs, and the sheet has a plurality of slotted portions positioned at curve locations in the chair, each slotted portion comprising a plurality of spaced slots extending transversely through the ribs in one face of the sheet and terminating short of the opposite face of the sheet. 
     
     
         27 . The product of  claim 26 , wherein each slotted portion has slots which face inwardly relative to the curve in the chair where the slotted portion is located. 
     
     
         28 . The product of  claim 22 , wherein the core layer comprises a honeycomb shaped sheet of molded fiberboard material having a plurality of hexagonal cells oriented transverse to the outer layers.