DE20207738U1 - Massage unit for chair fitting has compact electric motor drive to massage balls parallel to massage surface - Google Patents

Abstract

A massage unit (1) has massage balls driven (22) by electric motors (20) with drive shaft (24) parallel perpendicular to the massage surface.

Description

PFJSTER & PFISTER patent & attorneys at law

Patent Attorney, European Patent & Trademark Attorney

Dipl.-Phys. Stefan Pfister

Patent Attorney, European Patent & Trademark Attorney

Dipl.-lng.(FH) Manfred Schulz

Patent Attorney, European Patent & Trademark Attorney

Dirk Waldhauser

Lawyer

D-87700 Memmingen · Herrenstrasse 11-13

Telephone 0 83 31 / 24 12 Fax 0 83 31 / 24

Email info@pfister-pfister.de

HypoVereinsbank Memmingen (bank code 731 200 75) 2 303

Postgiroamt Munich (bank code 700 100 80) 13 43 39-805

VAT Reg.No. - N° CEE DE 182 193 017 Tax number 138/172/02904

15 May 2002

Mr Eugen Maier

Molkereistr. 2
87730 Bad Grönenbach-Ittelsburg

and

Mr Bernhard Krautmann

Settlement Way 20 88457 Oberopfingen

"Massager "

The invention relates to a massage device, in particular for installation in a chair, seat or car seat, wherein the massage device has massage elements which act on a massage surface, wherein the massage device has a drive which causes the massage elements to be moved.

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Telephone information is only binding if confirmed in writing

A massage device as described above is described in particular in the German utility model 298 23 109.3. The aforementioned massage devices are preferably installed in chairs or armchairs in order to offer the user a relaxing back massage. The massage device is therefore often located in the back of the chair or armchair. Alternatively, the massage device is also arranged in the seat, for example, in order to massage the thigh muscles.

The known massage devices are preferably installed in armchairs, which are known to be relatively bulky. In particular, the aforementioned utility model proposes a drive device which exerts a tapping movement (essentially at right angles) on the massage surface, resulting in the relatively complex mechanical structure.

There are also massage devices in which the massage element is moved lengthways (linearly) on the massage surface (the back). This massage movement, known as stretching, is often perceived as unpleasant because it is not carried out over a large area.

The invention has set itself the task of providing a massage device in which a device that achieves a pleasant massage effect is provided in a mechanical concept that is as simple as possible.

To solve this problem, a massage device as described above is proposed, wherein the drive is arranged such that the massage elements are moved into a surface, and this surface is parallel and/or at an acute angle to the massage surface.

The invention first proposes an arrangement which, in addition to the so-called tapping or stretching movement, can be used as a kneading movement

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is known. The kneading movement is essentially carried out over a large area, not just along one dimension. Since the massage surface corresponds to the shape of the back of the person being massaged, the design of the massage surface is correspondingly complex, which is why the surface in which the massage elements are moved is not always exactly parallel to it, but can also intersect it at an acute angle. Acute angle is understood to mean that the massage element does not act at a right angle on the massage surface; the term acute angle is preferably understood to mean an angle of intersection between 0° and 60°, particularly preferably between 0° and 25°. Of course, the overall effect of the massage elements on the massage surface must be taken into account in this context.

The surface defined by the movement of the massage elements is not to be understood as a (limited) flat surface within the meaning of the invention; it can of course also be curved, spherical, flat or arbitrarily formed.

Furthermore, the invention proposes that the kneading movement made possible by the massage device is of course also combined or superimposed with a tapping movement and/or a stretching movement.

It is entirely within the spirit of the invention that a movement in the area that is essentially at an acute angle to the massage surface also takes place simultaneously with a movement in the area in which this is parallel to the massage surface. This can be possible, for example, when large massage elements are moved and these reach curved areas with different inclinations in sections at the same time.

Furthermore, the invention proposes that an electric motor is provided as the drive and that the drive shaft of the electric motor is arranged substantially parallel to the massage surface and/or

is acute-angled. This variant according to the invention achieves a construction which is, under certain circumstances, very space-saving and is particularly suitable for installation in armchairs or chairs which cannot be made larger due to their intended use (for example in car seats). Regarding the arrangement of the angles in relation to one another, reference is made to the above.

The invention further relates to a chair, armchair, seat or car seat which are equipped with a massage device as described above. The advantage here is that a very space-saving massage device is provided which achieves an optimal massage effect through the kneading movement and can thus be installed in a chair so that the chair or seat can also be used in tight applications, for example in a car.

Further advantageous embodiments of the invention are described in the subordinate or independent claims. The invention is also explained in the drawing. They show:

Fig. 1 in a view the back of the

massage device according to the invention and

Fig. 2 in a view the front

of the massage device according to the invention.

The massage device 1 is usually installed in the backrest or in the back area of a chair, armchair, seat or car seat. However, the invention is not limited to this; it can also be used in the same way in the seating area to massage the buttocks or thigh muscles.

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In the embodiment shown here, the massage device 1 consists of a support plate 10 which has several guide rollers 11 on the side, by means of which the support plate 10 can be moved (for example in height) in a frame with a guide rail 12 of the chair. A spindle 13 is provided to move the support plate 10 along the guide rail 12, which can be set in rotation by a corresponding electric motor. The spindle 13 is guided in a threaded sleeve 14 which is arranged on the support plate 10, whereby the height of the support plate 10 is changed by rotating the spindle 13. This makes it possible to move the entire massage device 1 along the massage surface (for example the back).

In this embodiment, the support plate 10 is formed, for example, as a metal plate (made of aluminum or the like). Alternatively, it is possible to form the support plate 10 as a plastic injection-molded part.

The surface of the support plate 10 is also oriented parallel and/or at an acute angle to the massage surface.

In the embodiment shown here, the drive 2 for the massage elements 3 is located on the back. In this embodiment, the drive 2 is an electric motor 20 which sets a drive shaft 24 in rotation via a gear 22. The axis 27 of the drive shaft 26 of the electric motor 20 is essentially parallel and/or at an acute angle to the support plate 10 or to the massage surface or the surface in which the massage elements 3 act. The gear 22 is provided to implement this rotational movement of the electric motor 20. This is designed as a worm gear, for example, and means that the torque generated by the motor 20 is deflected by 90° and impressed into the drive shaft 24.

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In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a gear motor 21 is arranged as the drive 2, 2' . In particular, this integral construction allows a very space-saving arrangement and is particularly recommended for chairs where a space-saving arrangement is advantageous.

In particular, the gear motor 21 is already designed in such a way that the torque is redirected by 90°.

The support plate 10 has a bearing 25 for the drive shaft 24. The drive shaft 24 serves to set a support plate 30, which carries the massage elements 3, in motion. If necessary, the use of a special support plate 30 for the massage elements can be dispensed with; in this case, the drive works directly with the massage element; the invention is not restricted to this. The invention allows, for example, that the massage elements are driven in such a way that the axis 23 of the drive shaft 24 is arranged at a right angle to the massage surface. This can be achieved, for example, by a corresponding rotational movement, with the massage elements rotating in a surface around the axis 23, or a mechanical arrangement is selected that leads to a closed movement path 35 that is essentially at a right angle, as indicated by the reference number 35. This leads to a pleasant, flat, kneading-like massage movement.

For example, the following structure is suggested.

A carrier 33 is mounted eccentrically to the axis 23 and is additionally mounted in a second bearing 34 in the support plate 10. The rotary movement of the shaft 24 now leads to an up and down movement of the carrier 33, with simultaneous offset to the left and right. The carrier 33 carries the support plate 30

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the massage elements 3 directly.

The advantageous design of the massage device 1 according to the invention shown in the embodiment shows the arrangement of two drives 2, 2'. The invention is not limited to this; with a corresponding design of the drive 2, it is also possible to implement only one drive 2, which then drives a correspondingly larger number of massage elements 3.

The arrangement of two drives 2, 2' is particularly advantageous in space-sensitive areas of application, since the individual motors are then smaller in themselves, but still provide sufficient torque to allow a corresponding number of massage elements 3 to act on a corresponding massage surface.

This results in the arrangement which is preferred in the exemplary embodiment, in which two support plates 30 (left and right on the support plate 10) carrying the massage elements 3 are realized essentially symmetrically to a central axis. It is of course possible to provide a larger number of motors (each with driven massage elements) on the support plate 10, but the invention is not limited to this.

The clever arrangement of the drives 2 is shown in particular in Fig. 1 (on the back). The massage device 1 has two drives 2, 2' which are arranged next to one another in opposite directions. The opposite arrangement means that the drives, here for example two electric motors 20, are arranged between the respective shafts 24, i.e. the gears driving the shafts are on the outside. The two motors are arranged next to one another in such a way that the respective areas of the drive shafts 26 overlap.

This results in a very space-saving arrangement. At the same time, the arrangement of two essentially symmetrical, identical electric motors also allows a very space-saving arrangement of the massage device in terms of height.

The invention proposes spherical bodies as massage elements 3, for example balls, hemispheres, bowls or the like. These bodies are located on a support plate 30 and are driven by the drive 2, ^21. The drive movement can be transmitted via a rotary drive as described, but in principle it is also possible to design the drive as a linear drive. A planar movement can be achieved by superimposing the linear movement of the drive 2 with the up/down movement via the spindle drive 13. This means that the invention is not designed for a rotary drive 2, as shown, but the term drive is of course to be understood very generally.

In the embodiment shown here, each support plate 30 carries 6 massage balls 31 as massage elements 3. The size of the support plate 30 is selected in relation to the height of the support plate 10 so that the massage element 3 (as a whole of the massage balls 31) can optimally cover this height. The support plate 30 of the massage elements 3 is at least as large as the height of the support plate 10 of the massage device 1. Such a design allows a space-saving arrangement on the one hand, while at the same time allowing the massage to be carried out over the entire back, since the massage device can be moved over the entire back using the spindle drive 13. There are therefore no dead spaces where no massage effect can take place.

Due to the very complex design of the massage surface, which is based on the anatomy of the back of the person to be massaged,

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Person, it is proposed in a further variant according to the invention that the massage element is mounted elastically and/or movably with respect to the drive. Assuming that the drive is fixed at least with respect to the support plate, it is proposed according to the invention that the massage element 3 (for example directly or indirectly via the support plate 30) be mounted elastically and/or movably. This results in the massage elements being able to adjust themselves optimally to the massage surface and not being perceived as protruding in a disturbing manner when leaning against a seat, for example.

According to the invention, it is proposed that an elastic holder 32 is provided between the carrier 33 on the one hand and the support plate 30 on the other. This elastic holder can be, for example, a rubber buffer that allows a corresponding wobble adjustment. However, it is also possible, in a further development according to the invention, to provide a "bumper", which means that the elastic holder 32 is modified in such a way that a movement that is at right angles or essentially at right angles to the surface/massage surface is absorbed and compensated. In this case, the massage element 3 is not only tilted in terms of its position, but also moved back slightly. Of course, it is possible to combine the function of the shock absorber with the function of a rubber buffer.

The claims filed now with the application and subsequently are attempts to formulate without prejudice to achieve more extensive protection.

Should a closer examination, in particular of the relevant state of the art, reveal that one or other feature is indeed beneficial to the aim of the invention but not crucially important, then a formulation will of course be sought which includes such a feature,

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in particular in the main claim.

The references cited in the dependent claims indicate the further development of the subject matter of the main claim through the features of the respective subclaim. However, these are not to be understood as a waiver of the achievement of independent, objective protection for the features of the referenced subclaims.

Individual features that have so far only been disclosed in the description can be claimed in the course of the process as being of essential importance to the invention, for example to distinguish it from the prior art. The embodiment shown in the drawing is not to be seen as limited to the entirety of the features shown together, but is of course also expressly disclosed as any sub-combination of the individual features. The knowledgeable expert is expressly advised to pay attention to all sub-combinations that may not be expressly mentioned.

Features that were only disclosed in the description, or individual features from claims that comprise a plurality of features, can be incorporated into the first claim at any time to distinguish it from the prior art, even if such features were mentioned in connection with other features or achieve particularly favorable results in connection with other features.

Claims (7)

1. Massage device, in particular for installation in a chair, seat or car seat, wherein the massage device has massage elements which act on a massage surface, wherein the massage device has a drive which causes the massage elements to be moved in a surface, and this surface is parallel and/or at an acute angle to the massage surface. 2. Massage device according to the preceding claim 1, characterized in that the drive has a drive shaft via which the massage elements are driven, and the axis of the drive shaft is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the massage surface. 3. Massage device, in particular for installation in a chair, seat or car seat, wherein the massage device has massage elements which act on a massage surface, wherein the massage device has a drive which causes the massage elements to be moved, in particular according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein an electric motor is provided as the drive, and the drive shaft of the electric motor is substantially parallel and/or at an acute angle to the massage surface. 4. Massage device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the massage device has two drives which are arranged next to one another in opposite directions. 5. Massage device, in particular for installation in a chair, seat or car seat, wherein the massage device has massage elements which act on a massage surface, wherein the massage device has a drive which causes the massage elements to be moved, in particular according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the massage elements are elastically and/or movably mounted with respect to the drive. 6. Massage device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that a geared motor is provided as the drive. 7. Chair, armchair, seat or car seat with a massage device according to one or more of the preceding claims.