EP0617584B1 - Chair like stool for floor work - Google Patents

Abstract

The object of the invention is to provide a chair like stool for floor works, characterized by the fact of being low, that is substantially deprived of legs; in place of the legs having at least three small feet with small wheels (2, 21).

Description

Technical Field
• My invention relates to a chair like stool for floor work.
• According to the present innovation for floor work we intend any type of interior floor that a person has to carry out such as parquets laying, tiling, laying of floor linings, floor cleaning work, hydraulic work within the floor, decorative floor workings, etc.
Background Art
• It is known that the above mentioned work types and similar the persons undertaking these operations, work with a curved back resulting in back-ache within a few hours of maintaining such a position.
• The operators prefer working on their knees however even in these conditions the knees after a little time start to hurt.
• It is also known that due to the laying of cobblestone, for example such as road porphyry, the operators, to avoid to these drawbacks, use a stool endowed with a long central peg about 20 to 30 cm long, on which they sit so as to facilitate their working position.
• This stool if suitable for the type of work, stating that one generally lays the porphyry on a sand stratum, is however unsuitable to be used for working on a floor that has a substantially rigid plane, because of the already precarious equilibrium that the single central shank provides, while being suitably adjusted as on contrary happens for use on sandy bottoms due to its sand-penetration.
• This stool with its single shank, however presents the drawback of being extract and repenetrated in the sand-earth every time the operator moves to a different position, therefore it certainly cannot be considered suitable or advantageous for use on rigid pavements as substantially found indoors.
  Some operators eventually sit on the floor during their work, but in this case, the operator self :
• is forced to raise himself every time he wants to move;
• ruins his trousers unless he uses a cushion that will result in the deterioration of and also implicates the major work of his continuous movement.
A further important factor of lost of productivity derives from the fact that the operator often needs equipment for laying and work that he must place on the floor, equipment that obstacles the movement and causes loss of time due to the continuous search and movement of them.
Chair like stool for floor work, in particular for ground garden working are well known.
FR-A-2 570 262 (HAEMMERLIN) from which the known features comprising the pre-characterizing part of Claim 1 originate, discloses a wheeled stool, having a rotating encased seat mounted by a free rotational vertical axis on a wheeled-legs frame. The preferred disclosed solution has two opposed legs with respective wheels.
To assure stability one transverse foot stand or a third wheeled leg is provided. Main drawbacks of said stool are the following:
• for the type having a foot stand, operator is obliged to move the stool in a way that said foot stand raises from the floor, this operation being difficult and obliging the operator to move itself with the stool in unstable equilibrium;
• for both types, it is not possible to move the stool in any direction, but only in a linear way, being the respective wheels not pivotally mounted.
Furthermore encased seat does not allow easy free movement of the seated operator.
US-A-2 033 037 (LANG) discloses a coaster stool in which the respective seat is mounted on a wheeled tricycle frame, said frame having two opposed unidirectional front wheels and one pivotable directional rear wheel. The two front wheels having a larger diameter than said rear pivotal wheel.
Notwithstanding, this solution is complex and does not allow easy free universal movement on the floor and the respective seat cannot be rotated, obliging the operator to rotate continuously said rear pivotal small wheel.
Other approach to solve the problem of working on the floor is disclosed in US-A-2 448 427 (GORDON) by a knee pad dolly, regarding substantially a rectangular encased platform supported very close to the floor, by four ball bearing casters affixed to each corner of the underneath side of the dolly. The casters are free to move in any direction enabling the operator to move and change the position of the dolly with the minimum effort. The platform is covered by a cushion, shaped with two large depressed portions, which are shaped to fit the knees and shins of the user and further depressed areas adapted to receive the toes of the operator's shoes.
All these solutions do not comprise in one single feature the maximum performance. Disclosure of Invention
• The object of the present invention is to avoid the above-mentioned drawbacks.
• This object is achieved by a chair like stool for floor work, of the type low to the floor having pivotable wheels fixed under the seat indirectly by means of a vertical centre axle rotating device, characterised by the fact that said pivotable wheels are mounted in a cross spoke device with a central pivoting rotating axle positioned under the seat, each spoke end having a pivotable wheeled foot.
• In this way the operator finds himself seated almost on the floor but has the advantage of being able to move himself by pushing with his legs without having to raise himself every time.
• Advantageously the small feet structure is mounted on rotational means making easier the possible rotation of the operator.
• Advantageously the rotational means have a pivot giving greater compactness and stability.
• An alternative solution could be a central pivot with radiating spokes whose ends support the respective small wheels.
• Advantageously the small wheels are pivotable and are in number of four, five or more, giving the seated operator greater mobility and stability .
• Also advantageous is that the stool is padded making being seated less burdensome.
• Also advantageously, under the seat and between the small pivoting wheels is realized a compartment or bag substantially horizontally disposed with an opening on one side of the seat.
• Substantially, said compartment or underseat bag results particularly suitable to the putting of the operators' equipment avoiding to strew them over the ground and having always to search for them.
• Finally, the seat is circular making it easier remaining seated and so facilitating the working procedure.
• These and other advantages will appear by the following description of the preferential solutions realized with the help of the included drawings whose execution details are not to be considered limitative but only supplied for example.
• Figure 1 represents a schematic view of the stool according to the present invention.
• Making reference to the Figures it is disclosed that the stool indicated by (1) is padded in a circular substantial form with underlying pivoting small wheels (2-21) and between these, under the seat, there is a compartment (3) for the housing of equipment.
• The stool can also provide a backrest as support while sitting.
• The stool may also be endowed with belts 4 in pairs 41 for buckling itself to the body so as to allow the seat to be moved with the body while working.
• Obviously the small feet with small pivoting wheels (21) can be advantageously damped (2) and adjustable in height preferably with a nut.
• In the drawings has been presented the four small feet with small pivoting wheels (2-21) secured directly under the seat (1) through a waved pivot which permits an easier rotation.
• In a less convenient solution the small wheels even in a superior number can branch off in rays to a central rotational seat attack, to which substantially lacks the shank or it is so short to be substantially considered inexistent, that is the amount necessary for a limited function of regulating the height from 10 to 30 cm, depending to the person.
• The central pivot solution from which departs a rays, pivot or cross (as for example for office chairs) can also contain a classic backward inclining device.
  The above-mentioned spoke or cross central pivot solution makes evident the advantage of greater roteability of the seat, but has the evident disadvantage of being more cumbersome, heavier and difficult in applying a tool carrying compartment underseat, that could be installed in the said shoulder or backrest (not illustrated).

Claims (11)

1. Chair like stool for floor works, of the type low to the floor having pivotable wheels (2-21) fixed under the seat (1) indirectly by means of a vertical centre axle rotating device, characterized by the fact that said pivotable wheels are mounted in a cross spoke device with a central pivoting rotating axle positioned under the seat, each spoke end having a pivotable wheeled foot.
2. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said pivotable wheeled foot is mounted on a damping interpositional device (2).
3. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that the said cross spoke foot device under the seat, in said interpositioned rotational device, incorporates height regulation means.
4. Chair like stool according to claim 1 and 3, characterized by the fact that the said height regulating device is made by screw coupling.
5. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said seat (1) has means of buckling itself (4-41) to the body of the operator.
6. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said seat (1) has means of back support for the operator backrest.
7. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that it is padded.
8. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that underneath or inside the seat (1) is realized an equipment storing compartment (3).
9. Chair like stool according to claim 12, characterized by the fact that it comprises an equipment storing compartment obtained in the thickness of the respective backrest.
10. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that it is in a substantially circular form.
11. Chair like stool according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that its height is lower than 30 centimetres.

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