Unique Inflatable Foam Chair Is a Bright Idea

Things may look rather gloomy when it comes to carrying some chairs from one place to another; and if you're adding the limited luggage space in the equation, everything seems even more uncomfortable. Folding chairs might look like one handy solution for the problem, but they are also space-consuming items and need a lot of room to be stored. French designer François Azambourg has come up with a nifty idea in the body of the “Pack Chair.” It's been some ten years since the initial invention was patented but we thought it was well worth giving you some more details on it; after all, back in 1999 the Internet was so very different from what it is today...

One of the major advantages of the Pack Chair is that it can be stored in your handbag or back pack with absolutely no fuss. As a matter of fact, it will take approximately the same amount of space as a folded bath robe.

The principle behind the Pack Chair is as simple as it is innovative: this chair is made from a special impermeable lining cloth and sports a small capsule containing two reactive substances. When you want to “inflate” it, just activate a switch and the two substances will interact and generate polyurethane foam, which has a very generous expanding rate – obviously, the foam will expand through the hollow chair and build up pressure, while solidifying in just minutes and becoming ready to be sat on.

The rigid foam will thus become the very structure of the Pack Chair – we're not clear yet how much weight this chair can withstand, but judging by its appearance, it doesn't look like it’s strong enough to hold a 100kg guy. And one more thing: once you have “inflated” it, there is no way you can bring it back nowhere near its original state. For the happy campers out there, this might be a cool idea, but only if you're not moving from place to place.

Apparently, the designer created this one-of-a-kind chair because it was a transport-friendly idea that was very good for mail-order sales. So far there are only 5 prototypes around the world, as the industry failed to see the potential of this invention, especially the large amount of materials and money the Pack Chair could have saved over time.

We are just a few, but there are many of you, Softpedia users, out there. That's why we thought it would be a good idea to create an email address for you to help us a little in finding gadgets we missed. Interesting links are bound to be posted with recognition going mainly to those who submit. The address is .