........portfolio

the pieces chosen or designed should be multi functional and/or portable(easily moved or replaced)



................examples ...........























Chair Design Guidelines

1. The occupant should be able to sit in and get up from the chair without difficulty. The feet should rest flat on the floor without the knees projecting above the upper leg. A seat height of 16 to 18 inches fits the bill for most adults. Armrests should support the forearms without raising the shoulders (7" to 9" above seat). Half armrests enable the chair to be drawn up close to a table.
2. The depth of the seat should allow clearance from the front edge of the seat to the back of the occupant's leg. A seat that is too deep will press against the back of the legs forcing the occupant to slouch forward. A seat that is too shallow may be unstable and feel precarious. A seat depth of 15 to 18 inches is recommended for most adults.
3. The width of the seat often tapers by 2" to 3" from the front to the rear to allow clearance for legs and clothes in front while allowing elbow room in back. Many chairs have seats that are about 15" wide in the rear and 18" wide in the front.
4. For relaxed seating, the seat should slant slightly toward the back (about 5° to 8°) to keep the occupant from slipping out of the chair. However, an office desk or typist's chair often has a flat seat to facilitate leaning forward.
5. The back of the chair is often slanted backwards for comfort - up to 5° for a dining chair and 10° to 15° for a more casual chair. As the chair back angle increases, the seat should be tilted further backward to prevent forward sliding and lowered to prevent the front edge of the seat from pressing against the back of the legs.
6. The seat back should support the lumbar region without being so high as to interfere with the shoulder blades. A back height of about 12" to 16" above the seat is ideal for most adults. Note that this guideline is often ignored for formal "high-backed" dining chairs.
7. The lower portion of the seat back (first 4"-8") should curve out or be left open to allow room for the buttocks.

Chair Dimensions For Average-Sized Adults
The following dimensions apply to chairs designed for average-sized adults sitting in an upright or alert posture.

Seat width 16"-20"
Seat depth 15"-18"
Seat height from floor 16"-18"
Slope of seat front to rear 5° to 8° (3/4" to 1" drop)
Armrest height above seat 7"-9"
Armrest length (full armrest) 8" minimum
Armrest width 2" average
Set back of armrest from front 2"-3"
Seat back height 12"-16" above seat
Seat back recline angle 0°-5° (formal); 10°-15° (casual)




Desk Design Guidelines

1. A 28 to 30 inch high work surface is optimal for writing and general purpose desk use (same as a dining table). A 24 to 28 inch high work surface is recommended if the desk will be used for typing.
2. A standing desk (versus a lap desk) is normally 30 to 60 inches wide and 20 to 30 inches deep. A conventional office desk is often about 60 inches wide and 30 inches deep.
3. The knee space under the desk should be 20 to 26 inches high, no less than 20 to 24 inches wide, and 12 to 15 inches deep.
4. Drawers installed below the work surface are generally larger than those above it. Upper drawers are typically used to store small items such as pens, paper clips, stamps, and personal effects. Lower drawers are used for larger items such as paper and are usually as long as the desk is deep. Lower drawers should be at least 12" wide in order to hold a standard piece of paper (letter size) lengthwise.
5. A drawer over the knee space can usually be no more than 4 inches deep because of limiting space between the work surface and the person's knees. Drawers behind the knee space or to the side of it are commonly 4 to 10 inches deep.
6. For aesthetics, deeper drawers should be placed toward the bottom of the desk and shallower drawers toward the top.
7. File drawers should be 10 inches deep. The width should be 12 inches for letter files and 15 inches for legal files (add 1/2" to width if hanger frames to be used).



Computer Furniture

1. The key design criteria in computer furniture is flexibility since it must provide for the proper placement of the various computer components (cpu, keyboard, monitor, disk drives, printer, etc.) in relation to each other and to the computer operator. Provide for adjustability and modularity in the design. A workstation may be just a single, flat table although a more functional design provides three separate levels: one for the monitor, one for the keyboard, and one for a regular writing surface.
2. The line of sight angle from the keyboard to the top of the monitor should not exceed 60 degrees with the top of the monitor at or below eye level. For those accustomed to using a typewriter, the monitor should be placed closer to the keyboard.
3. With fingers resting on the keyboard, the angle between the upper arm and forearm should be 70 to 135 degrees. Most people find that 90 to 100 degrees is most comfortable. In general, the closer the keyboard is to the lap, the more comfortable typing will be. The keyboard height should be adjustable from 24 to 28 inches. Provide a flat area next to the keyboard and at the same height to accommodate a computer mouse.

4. The work surface should be between 20 and 30 inches deep and at least 24 inches wide. For maximum flexibility, the height should be that of a conventional writing desk, about 28 to 30 inches, with the keyboard resting on an adjustable shelf.
5. Seat height should be adjustable from 16 to 20 inches.
6. Many people prefer a printer stand that is lower than the work surface, about 18 to 24 inches, to enable easy access to the printer controls and paper.
7. Provide ample access holes for wires and heat dissipation.



Standard Dimensions of Desks
Desk Type Height Width Depth
Children's desk 20"-22" 24"-30" 18"-20"
Computer desk 24"-28" 24"-60" 20"-30"
Lap desk 4"- 6" 20"-24" 12"-18"
Pedestal desk 28"-30" 48"-72" 24"-30"
Rolltop desk 28"-30" 48"-72" 24"-30"
Secretary 28"-30" 36"-42" 18"-24"
Slant-front desk 28"-30" 36"-42" 18"-24"
Table desk 28"-30" 30"-48" 20"-30"
Typing table 24"-28" 36"-42" 16"-24"
Writing table 28"-30" 36"-40" 20"-24"



Shelf Design Guidelines

1. For ease of shelf access, bookcases are generally no higher than 84 inches. Small bookcases are usually 30 to 42 inches high. The highest shelf in a bookcase should be as high as an average-sized person can comfortably reach - about 72 to 78 inches. If the shelves will be accessed from a sitting position, the highest shelf should be no more than 60 inches above the floor. The lowest shelf should be 3 to 4 inches from the floor level.
2. Shelf width or span is determined both by aesthetics and sag considerations. A fully loaded bookshelf carries a load of 20 to 25 pounds per running foot. The eye will notice a deflection of 1/32 inch per running foot so that a fully loaded (70-80 pounds) bookshelf that is 3 feet wide, should sag no more than 3/32 inches. For most shelves made from 3/4 inch stock, a practical span is 30 to 36 inches.
3. Shelf depth is determined by the size of the items to be stored, generally within the range of 6 to 24 inches. Shelf depth for a general purpose bookshelf is usually 10 to 12 inches.
4. Shelf spacing will generally range from 7 to 15 inches with 8 to 12 inches being common for bookshelves. To prevent the case from looking and being top-heavy, use a smaller shelf spacing near the top and a larger one near the bottom.
5. A well built shelf unit will exhibit minimal side-to-side racking. One of the most effective means of preventing racking is to add a 1/4 inch plywood back that is rabbeted and tacked to the shelves. Other methods include a diagonal back brace, corner blocks, and support cleats on the top and bottom of the unit.
6. In choosing a shelving material, factor in each material's stiffness and susceptibility to creep. Solid wood is stiffer than plywood which is stiffer than particleboard. Particleboard will creep more than other materials so that an unsightly sag could develop if an excessive shelf span is used.



Table Design Guidelines

1. In choosing between a round or rectangular (including square) table, keep in mind that round tables blend in easier with other furniture and also allow easy movement around them.
2. Most tables designed for writing or dining should be 28" to 30" high (29" is common) with chair seats 11" to 13" lower. The higher the tabletop, the more uncomfortable and formal the table feels. Provide about 24" of leg room below the table (height from floor to bottom of table rail) and at least 12" for knee clearance (projection of table top beyond table leg). In figuring seating capacity, allow at least 24" of elbow room width per person and 12" to 15" depth from the edge of the table.
3. Bedside tables should not be more than six inches above the height of the bed.
4. Coffee tables are generally 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the sofa and about the same height as the sofa seat.
5. End tables should be the same height or a few inches shorter than the armrest of the sofa. Also, if a lamp is to be placed on the end table, the bottom of the lampshade should be at eye level when seated.
6. Sofa tables are designed to conceal the back side of a sofa that is not against a wall. They are usually 2/3 the length of the sofa and about the same height as the back of the sofa.
7. Additional guidelines exist for desks and tables designed for use as computer workstations.



Standard Dimensions of Tables
Type of Table Height Length Width/Depth
Card 26"-30" 30"-36" 30"-36"
Coffee, round 15"-17" 36"-42" diam 36"-42" diam
Coffee, rectangular 15"-17" 36"-60" 18"-24"
Console 28" 48"-54" 16"-18"
Dining, rectangular 28"-30" 60"-80" 36"-42"
Dining, round 28"-30" 40" min diam 40" min diam
Drafting 32"-44" 31"-72" 23"-44"
Drum 30" 36" dia 36" dia
End 18"-24" 24"-28" 18"-20"
Hallway/entry 34"-36" 36"-72" 16"-20"
Library 28"-30" 60"-84" 24"-36"
Night 16"-25" 18"-28" 16"-22"
Sewing 26" any 17" min
Sofa 26"-27" 60" 14"-17"
Workbench 32" any 26"
Writing 28"-30" 36"-40" 20"-24"

Table Seating Specifications

Here are the minimum dimensions for rectangular, square, and round tables needed to accommodate the number of people listed in the first column.

No. of (Rectangular) (Square) (Round)
People Width Length Width Diameter
No. of (Rectangular) (Square) (Round)
People Width Length Width Diameter
2 22"-28" 28"-32" 24"-30" 22"-28"
4 28"-36" 44"-52" 32"-42" 32"-42"
6 34"-42" 60"-72" 44"-52" 46"-54"
8 34"-42" 72"-90" 48"-54" 56"-72"
10 42"-48" 96"-108" 56"-62" 72"-84"



Determining Table Size

For square or rectangular dining tables, allow 24" of elbow room width per person. For round tables, allow 26" width per person for a table seating 3 to 6 people and 24" for a table seating 6 or more people. Add 2" to all of the above figures if armchairs will be used. Subtract 2" for snug seating.

The circumference of a round table equals the width per person times the total number of seating spaces and the diameter equals the circumference divided by 3.14. For example, in designing a table to comfortably seat 8 people using chairs without arm supports, the circumference equals 8 times 24 inches width per person (192 inches) and the diameter equals 192/3.14 or 61 inches. If 22" of width was allocated per person, the resultant table diameter would be about 56" (see table above).