ARC | 2020

Designers: Dan Harden, Whipsaw, Inc., San Jose, California, USA
Manufacturer: Whipsaw, Inc., San Jose, California, USA

ARC is a compact folding event chair that is used for temporary seating events like conferences, weddings, or school auditoriums.

Unlike all other event chairs that stack vertically, the ARC chair stacks horizontally so you never have to lift chairs to stack; just slide them together.

The back legs slide in between the front legs, and the chairs nest closely together. When stacked, many ARC chairs together create a beautiful pattern of nesting form.

There are no limits to a stack... They can stack in an infinitely long chain. When set up in rows, the seat remains folded up, so people can pass by easily—just like theater chairs. ARC also has magnets in its side uprights that click chairs together to make neat rows.

Design Innovation

● ARC stacks horizontally (recumbent) so you never have to pick them up.
● When stacked, ARC perfectly nests together, with no wasted space between.
● There is no limit to the stack quantity because of its unique overlapping leg geometry.
● To stack, the back legs slide in between the front legs of another chair, making a very space-efficient tight nest. This has never been done before (patent search revealed).
● ARC’s seat lifts up, so when they are lined up in rows, you have room to pass by. It is the ONLY event chair that does this. (Stacking event chairs need wide legs to overlap for stacking; the seat doesn't fold; and folding event chairs collapse if you try to put the seat up).
● ARC has only one moving part (the seat) compared to a conventional folding chair that has three moving parts (seat, front legs, and back legs), so it is efficient to make, and less to break.
● The seat hinge is in the very back, and when the seat folds down, it securely rests on the leg crossbar. When folded up, the seat goes past 90 degrees to stay up, allowing the hinge to be utterly simple with no springs or special mechanism (see section view).
● ARC has a very unique appearance which differentiates it from competitors.
● Most folding chairs are ugly whereas ARC is very attractive.
● Magnets in ARC’s curved uprights allow chairs to “click together” when lined up in rows. This keeps rows neat and tidy throughout entire events.