P9L is a comfortable lounge chair manufactured in a CNC router. The chair is made out of 14 interlocking parts that are connected to each other using woodglue adding structural integrity. The biggest challenge with this chair was creating an organic design from flat surfaces. The seat and backrest is each composed of 3 flat parts that conforms to the body making it sleek and ergonomic.
The design and manufacturing process is downloadable from www.instructables.com, it’s also easy to edit and adjust for different material thicknesses or make design changes to customize the design. The chair can be cut and assembled in less than 2 hours.
CNC furniture is emerging. One of the main reasons is that CNC routers have become not only affordable but also fairly easy to make. You can actually download DIY instructions to make a fully working CNC router. The maker movement has allowed the community to spread their knowledge and experience to millions of people. The result is a fabrication movement where we can share digital designs and let other people fabricate them across the globe. After putting the design online at instructables website I’ve received emails with photos of people making the chair at their local Techshop or using their own CNC router. It’s been the most rewarding experience as a designer.
Another interesting thing about CNC furniture is that you are able to make a better use of the material. Basically you can arrange the parts and optimize the material usage. The chair is manufactured in a CNC router by machining a 3/4″ (18mm) plywood. The whole design requires just 1.5 sheets of 4 ft x 2 ft although you can actually fit 3 chairs in a full 8 x 4 feet sheet.
I used a 2.5D process to create pockets (holes) and profiles (cuts). The pockets work as mortises where the tenons would be inserted and joined with glue. The result is very clean because the joinery is invisible. I decided to use this type of joinery across the whole chair since this will also increase the structural integrity of the chair.
This laid-back lounge chair is designed to be comfortable and lightweight. The angles between the 3-part seats conforms the body giving a relaxed feel while the backrest embraces it making it cozy and pleasing.
