EP0609251A1

EP0609251A1 - Chair, in particular an office chair

Info

Publication number: EP0609251A1
Application number: EP92920379A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Claus Uredat; Wolfgang Ritter
Original assignee: RODER SITZMOBELWERKE GmbH; Roeder GmbH Sitzmoebelwerke
Current assignee: RODER SITZMOBELWERKE GmbH; Roeder GmbH Sitzmoebelwerke
Priority date: 1991-10-26
Filing date: 1992-09-30
Publication date: 1994-08-10
Also published as: WO1993007782A1; DE9113321U1

Abstract

Chaise présentant un accoudoir (18) monté sur celle-ci. Cet accoudoir présente une portion d'appui du bras (22) et au moins une portion de soutènement (17, 24) s'étendant vers le bas à partir de ladite portion d'appui du bras. Il est prévu un dispositif (26) pour le réglage en hauteur de cette portion de soutènement (24).Chair having an armrest (18) mounted thereon. This armrest has a support portion of the arm (22) and at least one support portion (17, 24) extending downward from said support portion of the arm. A device (26) is provided for the height adjustment of this support portion (24).

Description

Chair, especially office chair

The invention relates to a chair, in particular an office chair, with at least one adjustable armrest arranged on the chair.

A chair with an adjustable armrest is known from GB-A-2 110 925. The latter is made of flexible material and can be adjusted to an upper or a lower position. However, an individual height adjustment is not possible, as it would be desirable in itself - to adapt to users with different body sizes.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a new chair.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by a chair and in particular an office chair with at least one armrest arranged on the chair, which has an armrest section and at least one support section running downward therefrom, and with a device for height adjustment of this support section. This makes it easy to adjust the height of the armrest section and thus to adapt it individually to the body size of the respective user.

It is particularly advantageous to proceed in such a way that the armrest has two support sections running downward from the armrest section, one of which leads to a front area of the chair and the other to a rear area of the chair, and that at least one of these support sections has a device for Height adjustment is assigned. So you get a stable and resilient armrest with an easy way to adjust the height.

A very advantageous development of this idea is characterized in that one of the support sections is connected via a joint to the armrest section adjoining it. This gives a fulcrum in the area of the transition to the armrest section, so that the height adjustment device on the other support section can be designed very simply. In a further embodiment of the invention, the chair is designed such that the support section provided with the joint is rigidly connected to the relevant area of the chair. This makes the device for height adjustment very simple and requires little effort.

The joint can preferably be designed as a flexible section of the armrest, or also as a swivel joint, and one proceeds in a particularly preferred manner in such a way that the other support section in the region of the device for height adjustment runs at least almost concentrically to this joint. This results in a technically safe and aesthetically appealing design.

Another preferred embodiment is characterized in that the one support section is connected via a swivel joint to the corresponding area of the chair, with particular advantage being that the device for height adjustment is provided on the other support section, and that the other support section is in the area this device runs at least almost concentrically to the swivel. This also makes it possible to design the height adjustment very simply, sensibly and without a large number of moving parts, and in addition in an aesthetically pleasing manner.

A particularly advantageous height adjustment is characterized in that the support section cooperating with the height adjustment device is provided in the manner of a toothed rack with teeth which mesh with a gear wheel of the device which can be rotated by the user of the chair. As a result, the support section is included directly as an active part in the device for height adjustment, the procedure being particularly advantageous in such a way that the toothing is incorporated directly into the material of the support section.

An extraordinarily advantageous development of the invention is characterized in that a manually operable drive device is provided for driving the gearwheel, which has a detent in at least one predetermined rotational position. In this case, it is not necessary to provide a separate locking device, but the device for height adjustment only has to be rotated from one latching position to the next and is then secured against unintentional adjustment. In this case, the procedure is preferably such that the gearwheel for its drive is provided eccentrically with a coupling member, which in turn is connected eccentrically to a second rotatable member, and that the coupling member is assigned the manually operable drive device. The coupling member connects the gearwheel - completely analogous to the coupling between two drive wheels of a locomotive - with the second rotatable member, so that these are positively coupled, whereby an additional coupling, for example by means of a toothed belt, may be provided, and the coupling member becomes in turn driven by the manually operable drive device when it is rotated by the user of the chair.

Further details and advantageous developments of the invention result from the exemplary embodiments described below and shown in the drawing, which are in no way to be understood as a restriction of the invention, and from the remaining subclaims. It shows:

1 is a side view of a chair according to the invention, which shows an armrest once - with solid lines - in its uppermost and on the other - with dash-dotted lines - in its lowest position,

2 shows a detail of FIG. 1,

3 shows a variant of FIG. 1,

4 shows an additional variant to FIG. 1,

Fig. 5 u. 6 additional variants of the invention,

Fig. 7 u. 8 an armrest height adjustment with one on the

- £ »Armrest provided toothing and a toothed wheel engaging in this, rotatable by a user,

9 is a height adjustment analogous to FIG. 7, which is provided with an additional catch, partially seen in the direction of line IX-IX of FIG. 11, 10 is a sectional view seen in the direction of line XX of FIG. 9,

11 is a sectional view seen in the direction of line XI-XI of FIG. 9,

12 shows a step, seen in the direction of line XII-XII of FIG. 11,

13 is a section seen in the direction of line XIII-XIII of FIG. 11,

14a to 14f different representations analogous to FIG. 13 to explain the mode of operation of the arrangement according to FIGS. 9 to 13, and

15 u. 16 shows an exemplary illustration of another, less preferred device for height adjustment of the armrest.

Fig. 1 shows an office chair 10 with a base frame 11 with rollers 12, on which a seat part 13 and a backrest 14 are attached. The seat part 13 and backrest 14 are only shown schematically, as is an armrest 18. The armrest 18 has an armrest section 22 on which the user of the chair 10 can support his left forearm. (Naturally, such an armrest 18 will be provided on both sides of the chair 10.)

A front support section 17 extends downward from the armrest section 22 and is rigidly attached to the underside of the front section of the seat part 13 at a point 16. The support section 17 extends at an angle alpha of e.g. 60 ° obliquely forwards and upwards to an articulation point 21, where it merges into the armrest section 22. In this embodiment, the latter extends from the articulation point 21 backwards and upwards and here, as shown, is convexly curved upwards. The angle at the hinge point 21 is, as shown, variable, e.g. in this embodiment approximately 100 to 110 °.

The armrest section 22 extends to a point 23 and merges there into a rear support section 24, which runs downwards and approximately concentrically with the hinge 21 and is height-adjustable in its lower section and fastened to a device 26 for height adjustment, which in turn is on the underside of the seat part 13 and at its rear area is fastened by means of a fastening part 30. The distance of the rear support section 24 from the joint 21 is denoted by R in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 2 on an enlarged scale, the joint 21 can be designed as a flexible section of the armrest 18. Alternatively, a ^" swivel joint can be provided at this point, for example, which enables rotation between the front support section 17 and the arm support section 22. In this way, it is possible to move the arm support section 22 between the uppermost position shown in solid lines in FIG. 1 and the lowest position 22 'shown in dash-dotted lines in FIG. 1 is infinitely variable.

On the rear support section 24, two stops 28, 29 are provided, of which the upper stop 28 bears against the fastening device 26 when the armrest 18 is in its lowest position, as shown by the dash-dotted line 28 ', and the lower one Stop 29 bears against the fastening device 26 when the armrest 18 is in its uppermost position. (In the lowest position shown in dash-dot lines, this stop is designated 29 '.)

3 shows another embodiment of a chair 10 'according to the invention. The basic structure of the chair largely corresponds to that according to FIG. 1, and the same reference numerals are therefore used as in FIG. 1 for the same or equivalent parts, and these parts are not described again. This also applies analogously to the following further exemplary embodiments.

The height-adjustable armrest 18 'is rotatably articulated here with its front support section 17' at a point 16 'on the underside of the front section of the seat part 13. The armrest 18 'is designed to be rigid throughout. Its front support section 17 'merges at a point 21' at an angle of approximately 110 ° into an armrest section 22 '' which can be designed similarly to the corresponding section 22 of FIG. 1. At a point 23 'the armrest section 22 passes '' at an angle of, for example, 110 ° in the downwardly extending rear support section 24 ', which is in its upper The area is straight and at the bottom merges into a curved section 24 ″ which is essentially concentric with the articulation point 16 ′ and is at a distance R * from it. The curved section 24 ″ is provided with an upper stop 28 ″ and with a lower stop 29 ″, and it is arranged on a device 26 ′ for height adjustment, which device, as shown, on the rear underside of the seat part 13 by means of a fastening part 30 is attached.

3, the armrest 18 ^r can be continuously adjusted between an upper end position, which is shown in FIG. 3 with solid lines, and a lower end position, which is shown in FIG. 3 with dash-dotted lines. The stops 28 "and 29" limit this adjustment process downwards and upwards.

The arrangement according to FIG. 4 shows a chair 10 "with a height-adjustable armrest 18" which more or less represents the mirror image of the arrangement according to FIG. 3. This has an approximately horizontal armrest section 22 "'with a rear support section 24"' and a front support section 17 ". It is designed to be rigid throughout.

The rear support section 24 '"here is rotatably articulated on a joint 35 on the underside of the rear section of the seat part 13. At its upper end 23''it merges into the armrest section 22"' at an angle of approximately 90 °, and this in turn merges at its front end 21 '"at an angle of approximately 110 ° into a straight section 17'" of the front support section 17 ". The straight section 17 '"is followed at the bottom by a curved section 17""which, as shown, runs concentrically to the articulation point 35 and is at a distance R'' ^r therefrom. The curved section 17""is at the top Stop 28 '"and a lower stop 29"', and it is arranged on a device 26 '"for height adjustment, which device, as shown, is fastened to the front underside of the seat part 13 by means of a fastening part 36.

As FIG. 4 clearly shows, the armrest 18 ″ between an upper end position, which is shown with solid lines, and a lower end position, which is shown with dash-dotted lines, can be adjusted continuously. The stops 28 '"and 29'" limit this adjustment in the manner shown above and below.

5 shows a chair 10 "'analogous to the previous figures with a height-adjustable armrest 18a. This has an approximately horizontal armrest section 22a and a front support section 17a, the latter being arranged on a device 26a for height adjustment. The latter is by means of a fastening member 37 attached to the underside of the front portion of the seat part 13.

The support section 17a here can be straight in the manner shown and, for example, run forward at an angle beta of approximately 70 to 80 ° to the horizontal (line 38). Its uppermost position is shown in solid lines in FIG. 5 and is delimited by a lower stop 29a. Its lowest position is shown in FIG. 5 with dash-dotted lines and is delimited by an upper stop 28a. The advantage here is that the armrest portion 22a yields somewhat resiliently under load, which is perceived by the user as pleasant and can be used for isometric exercises.

The arrangement according to FIG. 6 is essentially the mirror image of the arrangement according to FIG. 5. The chair 10 "" shown there has a height-adjustable armrest 18b with an approximately horizontal armrest section 22b and a rear support section 24b running downward from its rear end , which is straight and is arranged on a device 26b for height adjustment. The latter is fastened to the underside of the rear section of the seat part 13 by means of a fastening member 38.

The rear support section 24b can run obliquely downward in the manner shown here. Its uppermost position is shown in solid lines in FIG. 6 and is delimited by a lower stop 29b. Its lower position is shown in dash-dotted lines in Figure 6 and is limited by an upper stop 28b. In this embodiment too, the armrest section 22b can yield somewhat resiliently when loaded. The variants according to FIGS. 5 and 6 are particularly advantageous in connection with the device for height adjustment according to FIGS. 9 to 14.

7 and 8 show a first device H for height adjustment, as can be used in all of the exemplary embodiments described above.

A support section S of the armrest 18 (or 18 ′, 18 ″, 18a, 18b) is here partially designed in the manner of a rack 50, the teeth 51 being worked directly into this part of the support section S.

With these teeth 51 meshes a gear 52 which is connected via a shaft 53 to an actuator 40, which preferably has the shape of a handwheel. If, with reference to FIG. 8, this handwheel and thus the gearwheel 52 are turned clockwise, that is to say in the direction of arrow 54, the support section S is moved downward in the direction of arrow 55. When rotating counterclockwise, the support section S is moved upwards accordingly. A very simple adjustment is possible in this way. The handwheel 40 can be designed such that it can only be rotated if it has been previously, e.g. contrary to the action of a spring (not shown) has been shifted somewhat in the axial direction. Such locks are known per se and are therefore not shown in the drawing. The bearing of the handwheel 40 is also not shown.

The device H for height adjustment according to FIGS. 7 and 8 can be used in FIG. 1 for the device 26 there, in FIG. 3 for the device 26 ', in FIG. 4 for the device 26 "', in FIG. 5 for device 26a and for device 26b in Fig. 6. This is self-evident for the skilled reader.

A second, preferred device 60 for height adjustment is shown in FIGS. 9 to 14. Here, too, a longitudinal toothing 61 is incorporated in the support member S, and this meshes with a gear 62 which is mounted in a housing 63 in which the support member S is also guided and supported in a longitudinally displaceable manner.

The gear 62 is connected via its shaft 64 to a first rotatable part 66 connected, that is, when the first rotatable member 66 rotates, the gear 62 rotates in the same manner. The axis of rotation of gear 62 and rotatable part 66 is designated 67.

The part 66 is located in the interior of a handwheel 68, which is mounted via a central shaft 70 in a recess 72 in the right wall 73 of the housing 63 and is secured there with a snap ring 75.

A second rotatable part 76 is arranged in a recess in the interior of the handwheel 68, the axis of rotation 77 of which runs parallel to the axis of rotation 67. The rotatable parts 66 and 76 are preferably in the same plane as shown.

An eccentric pin 80 is arranged at a distance R from the axis of rotation 67 on the first rotatable part 66 and is mounted in a corresponding recess 81 of a coupling member 82.

Likewise, an eccentric pin 85 is provided on the second rotatable part 76 at a distance r from the axis of rotation 77 and is mounted in a corresponding recess 86 in the coupling member 82.

13 shows the coupling member 82 in the form of a hexagonal part. This hexagon shape has absolutely nothing to do with the function of the part, but this part only has the function, just like the coupling rod between two drive wheels of a locomotive, to force a synchronous rotational movement of the parts 66 and 76. If necessary, this can also be supported by a toothed belt 88 (FIG. 12), which also couples the parts 66 and 76 to one another. (On the wheels of a locomotive, this additional coupling is caused by the rail on which the wheels run.)

As shown in FIGS. 14a to 14f, the coupling member 82 can assume various translation positions when actuated, causing a corresponding rotation of the gear wheel 62 and thus a height adjustment of the support member S.

How are the translational movements of the coupling element 82 effected? The coupling member 82 has a circular recess 90 in its central inner region, and this is chosen so large that it is not possible in any Translated position touches the central shaft 70. A radially protruding arm 92 is fastened to the shaft 70, and at its free end there is a latching element 94, here in the form of a roller, which is pressed radially outwards by a spring 95.

This locking member 94 bears against the inner circumference of the recess 90, and when - by turning the handwheel 68 - the arm 92 is rotated, it causes a corresponding translational movement of the coupling member 82 and thereby a rotation of the gear 62.

The recess 90 has at least one latching recess on its circumference. In the exemplary embodiment, these are two locking recesses 97 and 98, which are diametrically opposed. The locking member 94 is in Fig. 13 in the locking recess 97 and thereby locked in this position, the coupling member 82 and thereby the gear 62, so that the height of the support member S can not change even when it is loaded, for example, because someone is sitting on the armrest. Further possible snap-in recesses on the circumference of the recess 90 are indicated by dashed lines and designated 101 and 102 in FIG. 13. However, these locking positions are less favorable.

To explain the mode of operation, reference is made to FIG. 14.

Figure 14a is a scaled-down view of Figure 13, with details omitted. In Fig. 14b, the arm 92 is rotated counterclockwise by about 90 ° compared to Fig. 14a, and this also rotates the two eccentric pins 80 and 85 by 90 ° counterclockwise, and thereby the gear 62, so that the support member S is moved up.

In FIG. 14c, the arm 92 has rotated by 180 ° compared to FIG. 14a and has caused the gearwheel 62 to rotate by 180 °. The locking member 94 is snapped into the locking recess 98.

Fig. 14d is identical to Fig. 14c.

In FIG. 14e the arm 92 has rotated by a further 90 ° compared to FIG. 14d and has thereby caused a further rotation of the gear 62 by 90 °. And in Fig. 14f, full rotation of arm 92 is complete, as is full rotation of gear 62. In the two locking positions according to FIGS. 14a / f and 14c / d, the coupling member 82 and arm 92 are locked together and thereby block the height adjustment of the support member S. Particularly in FIG. 14c / d, it is immediately intuitively evident that a rotation of the first rotatable part 66 is blocked, because it is a so-called dead center position. For reasons of symmetry, this also applies to FIGS. 14a / f, ie in these two rotational positions, a heavy load on the armrest in question cannot cause an undesired height adjustment. In contrast, a desired height adjustment from these two locking positions is very easily possible since only the low locking force has to be overcome.

This makes the height adjustment extremely simple and sensible, i.e. the user only rotates the handwheel 68, and even if he does not turn it into a latching position, the part 66 can at most rotate until the arm 92 has reached one of its latching positions, which is the case in the exemplary embodiment, when the armrest in question is loaded preferably correspond to the dead center positions. This also contributes to occupational safety.

15 and 16 show a third variant of a device for the height adjustment, here the support member S being shown in the form of a tube.

A tube 132 is provided below the seat surface 13, to which a pin 134 provided with an external thread 133 is fastened, which forms a shoulder 135 at its transition to the tube 132. A metal disc 136 bears against this shoulder 135 and supports a plastic part 137 which, as shown, is provided with a recess 138 for the support member S.

Adjoining the plastic part 137 is a plastic part 141, which is also provided in the manner shown with a cutout 142 for the support member S, and the plastic part 141 is followed by a second metal disk 143.

An externally knurled nut 145 made of plastic is screwed onto the external thread 133 and has the shape of a handwheel and can be easily operated by hand. As can easily be seen, by tightening the nut 145, the support member S is clamped between the plastic parts 137 and 141 and thereby fixed in terms of its height. To adjust the height, the nut 145 is loosened, the support member S is moved into the desired position, and then the nut 145 is tightened again.

In the invention, it is possible to connect the disk 136 and the part 137 rigidly or with little play to the tube 132, since the support member S runs concentrically to the joint 121 and therefore does not change its direction during an adjustment.

The invention thus enables individual adaptation to the needs of the user. The adjustment is simple and sensible, and can be carried out by the user when he is sitting on the chair, which enables an optimal and also very ergonomic adjustment.

Naturally, numerous modifications and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. The type of adjustment according to FIGS. 9 to 14 can also be used for other purposes, i.e. it also has independent meaning. A part can be attached to the arched armrest, which represents the actual armrest, e.g. a padded part, a plastic molding, or the like, as is often the case in practice, and the shape of this armrest can of course also differ from the shape of the armrest and, for example, protrude beyond it. Such and similar modifications are within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. Chair, in particular office chair (10; 10 '; 10 "; 10'"; 10 ""), with at least one armrest (18; 18 '; 18 "; 18a; 18b) arranged on the chair, which has an armrest section (22 ; 22 "; 22 '"; 22a; 22b) and at least one support section (17, 24; 17', 24 '; 17' ", 24 '"; 17a; 24b) which extends downward therefrom, and with a device (26; 26 '; 26' "; 26a; 26b; H; 60) for height adjustment of this support section.

2. Chair according to claim 1, characterized in that the device for height adjustment is arranged in the region of the seat (13) of the chair.

3. Chair according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the armrest (18; 18 '; 18 ") two from the armrest portion (22; 22"; 22' ") extending downward support portions (17, 24; 17 ', 24th '; 17 ", 24'"), one of which leads to a front region of the chair and the other to a rear region of the chair, and that at least one (24; 24 '; 17 "") of these support sections has a device ( 26; 26 '; 26 "') is assigned for height adjustment.

4. Chair according to claim 3, characterized in that one of the support sections (17) via a joint (21) with the adjoining armrest section (22) is connected.

5. Chair according to claim 4, characterized in that the support section (17) provided with the joint (21) is rigidly connected to the relevant area (16) of the chair (10).

6. Chair according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the joint (21) is designed as a flexible section of the armrest (18) (Fig. 2).

7. Chair according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the joint (21) is designed as a swivel joint.

ZBLATT

8. Chair according to one or more of claims 4 to 7, characterized in that the device (26) for height adjustment on the other support section (24) is provided, and that the latter (24) in the region of this device (26) at least almost concentrically ( Radius R) runs to the joint (21).

9. Chair according to claim 3, characterized in that the one support section is connected via a swivel joint (16 ') to the corresponding region of the chair (10') (Fig. 3).

10. Chair according to claim 9, characterized in that the device (26 ') for height adjustment on the other support section (24') is provided, and that the other support section (24 ') in the region of this device (26') at least almost concentrically ( Radius R ') to the swivel joint (16') runs (Fig. 3).

11. Chair according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that with the device (26; 26 '; 26 "') for height adjustment. Interacting support section (24; 24 '; 17" ") with at least one stop (28 , 29; 28 ", 29"; 28 "', 29"') is provided, which limits its height adjustment.

12. Chair according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the supporting portion (S) cooperating with the device (H; 60) for height adjustment is provided in the manner of a toothed rack with a toothing (50; 61) which is provided with a User of the chair rotates gear (52; 62) of the device combs.

13. Chair according to claim 12, characterized in that the toothing (50; 61) is incorporated directly into the material of the support section (S).

14. Chair according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that a manually operable drive device (68) is provided for driving the gear (61), which in at least one predetermined rotational position (Fig. 14a, Fig. 14d) has a detent (97, 98).

15. Chair according to claim 14, characterized in that the gear (62) is eccentrically connected to its drive (pin 80) with a coupling member (82) which in turn is eccentrically connected (pin 82) with a second rotatable member (76) and thereby the gear wheel (62) couples to the second rotatable member (76), and in that the coupling member (82) is associated with the manually operable drive device (68).

16. Chair according to claim 15, characterized in that the manually operable drive device is designed as an organ (68) rotatable about an axis of rotation with an actuating arm (92) which engages in a corresponding guide recess (90) of the coupling member (82) to cause a corresponding translational movement of the coupling member (82) during its rotation and thereby a rotation of the gear wheel (62).

17. Chair according to claim 16, characterized in that the actuating arm (92) is provided at its free end with a locking member (94) which with at least one associated locking recess (97, 98) in the guide recess (90) of the coupling member (82 ) interacts.

18. Chair after. Claim 17, characterized in that at least one latching position corresponds to a dead center position of the coupling member (82).

19. Chair according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that the armrest section (22; 22 "; 22 '") at both end regions each with a support section (17, 24; 17', 24 '; 17 "', 24 '") is provided, and that the armrest thus formed in the

. Side view has approximately the shape of a U or a C.

20. Chair according to one or more of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that a releasable clamping connection (138, 142) is provided for the relevant support section (S) as a device for height adjustment (Fig. 15, 16).