Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47C—CHAIRS; SOFAS; BEDS
  • A47C9/00—Stools for specified purposes
  • A47C9/02—Office stools not provided for in main groups A47C1/00, A47C3/00 or A47C7/00; Workshop stools
  • A47C9/025—Stools for standing or leaning against, e.g. in a semi-standing or half-seated position
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47C—CHAIRS; SOFAS; BEDS
  • A47C7/00—Parts, details, or accessories of chairs or stools
  • A47C7/02—Seat parts
  • A47C7/029—Seat parts of non-adjustable shape adapted to a user contour or ergonomic seating positions

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a chair that has a saddle-type seat which is supported by a centrally located leg post whose free end is pivotally supported against the underlying support surface, e.g. the floor.
• Such "single-leg" chairs can be readily moved and provide a relatively large working radius, by virtue of the fact that the chair can be tilted or pivoted about the bottom end of the leg post, in other words at a relatively large vertical distance from the seat.
• a seating device of the kind that can be converted into a walking stick is known to the art from GB,A,2 210 784 (Home & Leisure Supplies).
• the seat and the leg of this known device can be separated one from the other, and the device includes beneath the seat a holder which enables the leg to be accommodated in two perpendicular directions, one for each of the aforesaid purposes.
• the seat must necessarily be both thin and light in weight, meaning that the design of the device is not user ergonomic when used for seating purposes.
• the device When the device is not in use, it must be supported in some suitable way, for instance in an umbrella stand or walking stick stand. In other words the device cannot be used conveniently in a place of work in which the user is forced occasionally to leave his/her chair, for instance in order to perform a task whilst in a standing position.
• FR,A, 1 154 789 (Depouilly) teaches a chair that includes a seat and a forwardly sloping chair leg and two rearwardly extending support legs which are joined to the chair leg at a point above the midway region of the leg.
• the chair is intended to stand flat on an underlying support surface or floor surface and cannot be tilted for- wards.
• the height of the seat - which is comparatively flat - can be adjusted, but the seat does not have a convenient user ergonomic.
• the high position of the con- nection between the leg post and the support legs also causes the centre of gravity of the chair to lie relatively hij,h-up, meaning that there is a significant danger of the chair toppling over when the user stands up.
• US, A, 4 183 579 (Gonzales y. Rojas) teaches a chair that comprises a leg post and a saddle-shaped seat.
• the leg post is not in contact with the underlying floor surface. Instead, the lower part of the chair is provided with three collapsible support feet and also has additional support legs which are joined to the leg post higher up, said chair thus having five contact points with the floor.
• the support feet are provided with suction cups for holding the chair in place, and the lower part of the leg post is joined to the overlying part of the post via a powerful spring which enables the chair to be tilted in any desired direction.
• the seat of this known chair arrangement does not, however, provide a user ergonomic sitting position and the chair has an unnecessarily complicated construction and is therefore expensive to produce and is difficult to move with the suction cups firmly affixed to the surface of the floor.
• the object of the present invention is to provide a chair of the aforedescribed kind which eliminates the aforesaid drawbacks and other drawbacks associated with known chairs, and which provides the user with great freedom of movement a conveniently ergonomic seating position, and which automatically moves to a rest position in which the user can take the weight off his/her feet.
• an inventive chair of the aforedescribed kind that has the characteristic features set forth in the characterising clause of Claim 1. Because the seat has a shape similar to that of a horse's saddle that includes an upper part and downwardly extending side parts that have a gentle or smooth concave curvature, there is provided for the user a highly beneficial seating position from an ergonomic aspect, with the possibility of lightening the load on the seat by the user using his/her own legs to this end when the chair is tipped forwards.
• the downwardly extending side parts of the chair enable movements carried out by the user in a sitting position to be well controlled.
• the centre of gravity of the chair is situated low down on the chair, meaning that the chair will automatically return to its slightly rearwardly sloping rest position when the user leaves the chair, for instance in order to perform a task in a standing position.
• the height adjustable upper part of the leg post further contributes to the ergonomic design of the chair and the significant mobility of the user in a seated position while using his/her own legs to bring the chair into different attitudes, for instance a for- wardly inclined attitude relative to the floor surface, with the user thus constantly sitting in a correct position with no weight acting on the user's legs.
• These charac- teristic features of the inventive chair are achieved by supporting the upper part of the leg post resiliently and telescopically by means of a gas spring mounted in the lower part of said leg post.
• the axis of the leg post in the rest position of the chair prefferably lie in a vertical symmetry plane through the centre part of the seat. This facilitates the automatic return of the chair to its rest state and ensures greater stability in this state of the chair.
• the leg post will conveniently be fitted with a ferrule or corresponding device made of rubber or some similar friction enhancing material that will function to grip against the floor surface. This will prevent the risk of the chair sliding over the floor surface when the chair is tilted in use at different angles relative to the floor.
• the rear side of the seat conveniently includes a device for adjusting the height of the seat.
• the seat will suitably be fitted with two such height adjusters, namely one each side of the seat, so that the user may adjust the height of the seat with either his left or his right hand.
• the rear side of the seat also conveniently includes a handle with which the chair can be carried, said handle being positioned between the two height adjusters in the case of the aforedescribed embodiment.
• Figure 1 is a perspective side view of an inventive chair and shows the chair in an approximately vertical use position.
• Figure 2 is a perspective side view of the chair according to Figure 1 and shows the chair in a slightly rearwardly inclined rest position.
• Figure 3 is a perspective rear view of the saddle-like chair seat and shows associated devices for adjusting the height of the chair.
• Figure 4 illustrates the seat from beneath and shows said associated chair-carrying and height adjusters, said seat being shown removed from the leg post of the chair. Description of preferred embodiments
• Figures 1 and 2 illustrate an inventive chair 1 that includes a saddle-type seat 2.
• Figure 1 shows the chair in an approximate vertical use position
• Figure 2 shows the chair in a somewhat rearwardly inclined rest position, in which two affiliated support feet 4a are in contact with the underlying floor surface.
• the support feet 4a are mounted on the free end of two support legs 4 which are joined to the central leg post 3 of the chair in the region of its lower portion.
• the seat 2 has a horse saddle shape that includes an upper part 2a having an outwardly concave curvature, and downwardly extending side portions 2b having an outwardly concave curvature.
• the leg post 3 is comprised of two main parts, these being a lower part 3 a which carries the support feet 4a, and the telescopic upper part 3b carrying the seat 2.
• the lower part 3 a of the leg post accommodates a gas spring which springily supports the upper part 3b of the leg post carrying the seat 2.
• a gas spring which springily supports the upper part 3b of the leg post carrying the seat 2.
• air-spring actuators 5 which can be manipulated by the user's right or left hand.
• the air spring is constructed so that no relative rotation will take place between the parts 3b and 3a of the leg post, but only around the points of contact of the chair with the floor sur- face. Consequently, the leg supports 4 will always be orientated rearwardly in relation to the seating direction.
• a chair carrying device 6 is provided between the two actuators 5.
• FIG. 1 shows the chair in an approximately vertical use position, from which it can be swung in different directions corresponding to the various tasks to be carried out by the user at that time, this omnidirectional movement of the chair being al- lowed by the gripping action of the feet against the underlying floor surface.
• the upwardly concave upper part 2a of the seat 2 and its downwardly extending, outwardly concave side parts 2b afford a comfortable and ergonomic, beneficial seating posture to the user.
• the user also has good control over the chair and is able to guide the chair in its different movements whilst in a seating position, with the aid of his/her legs and with his/her feet in contact with the floor.
• the chair will automatically return to the rest position shown in Figure 2, with the support feet 4a in contact with the floor.
• the chair will be held stable in said rest position and will not topple even should the user leave the chair when the leg post has a not-insignificant forward lean in relation to a vertical line, due to the low level at which the support legs 4 are connected to the leg post 3, therewith giving the chair a low centre of gravity.
• the axis of the leg post lies in a vertical symmetry plane passing through the centre portion 2a of the seat 2.
• the inventive chair enables the user to move with a high degree of freedom in an active position, and also allows the user to take the weight of his/her feet in the rest position of the chair, this position being assumed automatically by the chair as the user leans backwards.

Landscapes

• Chairs Characterized By Structure (AREA)
• Special Chairs (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=20278151

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

Families Citing this family (7)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 2000
  • 2000-01-25 EP EP00915618A patent/EP1251762B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-01-25 DE DE60026831T patent/DE60026831T2/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2000-01-25 AU AU2000236849A patent/AU2000236849A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2000-01-25 WO PCT/SE2000/000150 patent/WO2001054545A1/en active IP Right Grant
• 2002
  • 2002-07-24 NO NO20023517A patent/NO20023517L/no unknown

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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