Alternative material to the springs used in furniture

[mttrm0]

TL;DR Summary

I am looking for a cheaper, mass-produced material as an alternative to s-spring used in furniture.

Hello guys,
I started as a R&D engineer in a furniture factory. The factory asked me to find an alternative material to the s-spring and turn it into a project. This material can also be produced and should be cheaper than spring steel. The S-spring is made of 1070 and 1090 spring steels. In order for the material to be used instead of a spring, it must have sufficient strength and sufficient elasticity. The yield strength of 1070 steel is between 400 and 540 Mpa. Its tensile strength is between 620 and 700 Mpa and elongation at break is 10%. If you have alternative material suggestions for this steel, please could you share it?
Thank you.
Kind you regards.

 

[Baluncore]

Welcome to PF.

How long is your product expected to last ?
How long do you warrant your product ?

A synthetic strap like seat belt webbing is the obvious choice. Almost any spring constant can be engineered by the choice of warp and weft material in the webbing.

 

[mttrm0]

Welcome to PF.

How long is your product expected to last ?
How long do you warrant your product ?

A synthetic strap like seat belt webbing is the obvious choice. Almost any spring constant can be engineered by the choice of warp and weft material in the webbing.

First of all, thank you very much for your response.
- It should be a material that can last up to at least 15 years.
- It should be a product that can be guaranteed for 10 years.

First of all, what you said is very logical, varieties with elastic upholstery fabrics are used in furniture today. There are some disadvantages of using elastic woven columns as suspension. If the columns are not stretched very well, easy collapses occur and it is a product with high labor costs.

 

[Rive]

The yield strength of 1070 steel is between 400 and 540 Mpa. Its tensile strength is between 620 and 700 Mpa and elongation at break is 10%.

Unless you wish to use the original 's-spring' shape, these parameters does not mean much. You need to aim for the functionality and strength displayed by the spring, instead of the properties of steel.

- It should be a material that can last up to at least 15 years.
- It should be a product that can be guaranteed for 10 years.

Feels difficult. Cheap plastics (cheaper than steel) are likely out of the picture, both as solids and pressurized shapes.

Maybe some flexible wood constructs?

 

[Baluncore]

Maybe some flexible wood constructs?

It would seem sensible to use a local product, to reduce transport costs and encourage the local economy.
What is the availability of materials like bamboo, hemp or flax?

 

[berkeman]

Well, there's this option:

https://yogibo.com/collections/bean-bag-chairs

 

[Flyboy]

From where I sit (pun fully intended ), you've got a bunch of options, which doesn't help much in your effort. So, let's answer some questions to help narrow down the scope of the project....

• What restrictions do you have other than life limits?
• Does it have to fit into existing designs, or is it only for new designs?
• What material types can you use?
• Is sustainability a factor/priority?
• Does the product need to be made with local labor/resources?
• What's the development timeframe?
• Is there a cost limit?