A bean bag (also beanbag) is a sealed bag containing dried

bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...

s, PVC pellets, expanded

polystyrene Polystyrene (PS) is a synthetic polymer made from monomers of the aromatic hydrocarbon styrene. Polystyrene can be solid or foamed. General-purpose polystyrene is clear, hard, and brittle. It is an inexpensive resin per unit weight. It is a ...

, or expanded

polypropylene Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer propylene. Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefins and ...

. The bags are commonly used for

throwing game Throwing sports, or throwing games, are physical, human competitions where the outcome is measured by a player's ability to throw an object. The two primary forms are throwing for distance and throwing at a given target or range. The four most p ...

s, but they have various other applications.

Furniture

Designed by Piero Gatti, Cesare Paolini and Franco Teodoro and produced by the Italian company Zanotta in 1969, beanbags have become a globally recognised piece of furniture. It is said that they noticed the staff would sit on bags filled with

styrofoam Styrofoam is a trademarked brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam (XPS), commonly called "Blue Board", manufactured as foam continuous building insulation board used in walls, roofs, and foundations as thermal insulation and water barrie ...

during their coffee and cigarette breaks. The original beanbag chair is called "Sacco", which is a pear-shaped leather bag filled with styrofoam beans and is still in production today. Bean bags can be made from materials including leather, suede, corduroy and fake fur. Polyester bean bags are waterproof and can be used outdoors. Giant bean bags can also be used as a cheap alternative to buying a sofa or couch. Quite a variety of bean bags are sold, including baby bean bags that are known for helping babies that suffer from

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube ( small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content out ...

. They are also known for helping with

plagiocephaly Plagiocephaly, also known as flat head syndrome, is a condition characterized by an asymmetrical distortion (flattening of one side) of the skull. A mild and widespread form is characterized by a flat spot on the back or one side of the head cause ...

or more commonly referred to as flat head syndrome in babies. In August 2014, Ace Bayou Corp recalled 2.2 million bean bag chairs in the United States due to a design fault which allowed the chairs to be unzipped by children. Two children died from suffocation after climbing inside the chairs and inhaling the foam beads.

Games

* Beanbag was a game referred to at the turn of the twentieth century by

Finley Peter Dunne Finley Peter Dunne (born Peter Dunne; July 10, 1867 – April 24, 1936) was an American humorist, journalist and writer from Chicago. In 1898 Dunne published ''Mr. Dooley in Peace and in War'', a collection of his nationally syndicated Mr. Dooley ...

as the antithesis of roughness of politics, ''Politics ain't beanbag!''. *

Cornhole Cornhole (also known regionally as sack toss, or bags) is a lawn game popular in North America in which players or teams take turns throwing fabric bean bags at a raised, angled board with a hole in its far end. The goal of the game is to score ...

is a bean bag tossing game similar to horseshoes and quoits, played with bean bags and two goals. *

Footbag A footbag is a small, round bag usually filled with plastic pellets or sand, which is kicked into the air as part of a competitive game or as a display of dexterity. "Hacky Sack" is the name of a brand of footbag popular in the 1970s (currently o ...

(also known as Hacky Sack, a trademark) is a type of ball-shaped bean bag that is used to play various games. * Bean bags are also commonly used for

juggling Juggling is a physical skill, performed by a juggler, involving the manipulation of objects for recreation, entertainment, art or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling. Juggling can be the manipulation of one object o ...

. * In

gridiron football Gridiron football,"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Ret ...

beanbags are used to mark the point of a change of possession (where a punt or

kickoff Kickoff or kick-off may refer to * Kick-off (association football) * Kickoff (gridiron football) * ''Kick Off'' (series), a series of computer association football games * ''Kick Off'' (album), a 1985 album by Onyanko Club * ''Kick Off'' (magaz ...

is caught, an

interception In ball-playing competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for a player of the same team b ...

is made, or a

fumble A fumble in gridiron football occurs when a player who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed (tackled), scoring, or going out of bounds. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking, punting, or successful ...

occurs) * Bean bags are often used for a game similar to

dodgeball Dodgeball is a team sport in which players on two teams try to throw balls and hit opponents, while avoiding being hit themselves. The objective of each team is to eliminate all members of the opposing team by hitting them with thrown balls, cat ...

where small square bean bags are slid across the floor with the object to hit the opposing team's players in the foot. The game is particularly popular in American elementary schools as a safer alternative to dodgeball.

Other uses

* Bean bags are used as

bean bag round A bean bag round, also known by its trademarked name flexible baton round, is a type of baton round, fired from a shotgun, and used for less lethal apprehension of suspects. Description The bean bag round consists of a small fabric "pillow" fi ...

ammunition for non lethal impact weapons. * In

benchrest Benchrest shooting is a shooting sport discipline in which high-precision rifles are rested on a table or bench — rather than being carried in the shooter's hands — while shooting at paper or steel targets, hence the name "benchrest". Bot ...

and

long-range shooting Long range shooting is a collective term for shooting disciplines where the distance to target is significant enough that shooter has to put effort into calculating various ballistic factors, especially in regards to the deviating effects ...

, bean bags or "shooting bags" are often used to support the gun's fore-end and

buttstock A gunstock or often simply stock, the back portion of which is also known as a shoulder stock, a buttstock or simply a butt, is a part of a long gun that provides structural support, to which the barrel, action, and firing mechanism are attached ...

, and allows the shooter to fine-adjust the aim by gently squeezing the rear bag. * Clutching technology for robots makes use of bean bags. * Smaller bean bags can be used to stabilize a camera when a tripod is not available.

References

External links

* * wikiHow To Make a Bean Bag {{DEFAULTSORT:Bean Bag Bags Physical activity and dexterity toys Articles containing video clips