JP2001286522A - Massage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a massage device for increasing relaxation feeling than the conventional device. SOLUTION: This massage device comprises a roller 24 as a curing piece, and motors 23, 25 as curing piece driving means, and performs manual pressure back and forth with moving vertically. The massage device comprises a curing control means for controlling the motors 23, 25 so as to simultaneously perform vertical movement of the curing piece 24 and change in a projection amount. The simultaneous performing of the vertical movement of the curing piece 24 and the change of a projection amount allows the muscle to start stretching from a chalasia state and a user to more feel relaxation comparing with the prior art.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a massage device, and more particularly to a massage device that increases a sense of relaxation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, there has been proposed a massage apparatus which performs acupressure operation in which a protruding amount of a treatment element is changed. For example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-34660 discloses a massager that performs acupressure by reciprocating the acupressure members 12 and 13 in a direction orthogonal to the back.

[0003]

When performing stretching, it is effective to gradually extend the muscles in a relaxed state. However, in the above-mentioned conventional massage device, the control of the amount of protrusion of the treatment element and the movement control in the vertical direction are independent and are not controlled in synchronization. Therefore, there is a problem that a treatment in which the muscle is gradually protruded while moving from the relaxed state cannot be performed, and there is a problem that the stretching effect is hardly obtained. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to improve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and to provide a massage device having a more relaxed feeling than the conventional device.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A massage device according to the present invention comprises a treatment element and a treatment element driving means. The massage apparatus performs acupressure massage while moving up and down. And a treatment control means for controlling the treatment element driving means so as to execute the treatment synchronously. In the present invention, by performing the vertical movement of the treatment element and the change in the protrusion amount in synchronization, the user's sense of relaxation can be increased as compared with the related art.

[0005]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the massage device of the present invention. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the overall configuration of the massage device of the present invention. The massage device includes a backrest 10, a seat 11, and an armrest 12. An electric reclining mechanism and a control device (not shown) are housed inside the seat portion 11.

A back frame 20 is arranged in the backrest 10 of the massage device. Inside the back frame 20, a massage unit 21 is held by the back frame 20 so as to be slidable up and down. The massage unit 21 is fitted with a feed screw 22, and the feed screw 22 is rotatably held by the back frame 20.

A pulley is attached to a lower portion of the feed screw 22 and is connected to a vertically moving motor 23 attached to the back frame 20 via a belt. The vertical movement motor 23 can rotate forward and reverse at an arbitrary speed under the control of a control device (CPU) described later. The rotation of the up / down motor 23 is transmitted to the feed screw 22 so that the massage unit 21 can move between upper and lower limit switches (not shown) attached to the back frame 20.

The massage unit 21 has a clutch and a treatment driving motor 25 mounted thereon, as will be described later. The rotation of the treatment driving motor 25 causes a roller (fir ball) 24 as a treatment element to swing back and forth. And perform acupressure massage or acupressure tapping massage.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view (1) showing the arrangement of parts when the massage unit 21 in the state of FIG. 1 is viewed from below.
It is. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the arrangement of the components depicted in FIG. 2 when viewed from the front. 2 and 3, only the treatment driving motor 25, the clutch, and the worm gear are illustrated. The treatment drive motor 25 is capable of normal rotation and reverse rotation at an arbitrary speed under the control of a control device described later. The rotation power is two timing belts 3
0 and 31 are transmitted to the one-way clutch 32 and the electric clutch 33.

The one-way clutch 32 taps the rotational force only during normal rotation and transmits it to the worm gear 36, and idles (stops) during reverse rotation. The electric clutch 33 is driven by the solenoid 35 to turn on / off the rotational force transmitted to the acupressure worm gear 37. The beating worm gear 36 is engaged with a beating spiral gear 38 fixed to a beating shaft 39. When the beating worm gear 36 rotates, the beating shaft 39 rotates, and the eccentric shafts 40 and 41 fixed to both ends rotate. I do.

The acupressure worm gear 37 includes a helical gear 4
The helical gear 43 and the spiral gear 42 are rotatable independently of the hitting shaft 39.
Therefore, when the acupressure worm gear 37 rotates, the helical gear 43 rotates, and the acupressure shaft 51 shown in FIG. 4 rotates. The relationship between the acupressure and beating operations and the treatment driving motor 25 and the clutch 33 is as follows. (1)
Shiatsu operation: Motor reverse rotation, clutch on, (2) Shiatsu hit operation: Motor forward rotation, clutch on, (3) Hit operation: Motor forward rotation, clutch off.

FIG. 4 shows a massage unit 21 of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory view (2) showing the structure of FIG. FIG. 4 shows the arrangement of components when the massage unit 21 is viewed from the front, and shows only the beating shaft 39, the acupressure shaft 51, the roller arm 56, and the rollers (fir balls, treatment elements) 24. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a structure when the roller arm 56 is viewed from the lateral direction.

The eccentric shafts 40 and 41 fixed to both ends of the hitting shaft 39 and the two roller arms 56 are engaged by ball joints 57, respectively. The ball joint 57 is slidable in the axial direction of the eccentric shafts 40 and 41, and the eccentric shafts 40 and 41 and the two roller arms 56 can be engaged at an arbitrary angle.

The helical gear 43 is engaged with a helical gear 50 fixed to the acupressure shaft 51. Two eccentric cylindrical members 54 are fixed to both ends of the acupressure shaft 51, and a permanent magnet 52 for detecting a rotational position.
Is fixed. Further, a Hall element 53 is disposed at a position facing the permanent magnet 52 at a rotation position where the roller 24 has a predetermined protrusion amount.

As shown in FIG. 5, a slider 55 having a substantially rectangular outer shape is rotatably mounted on the eccentric cylindrical member 54 so as to be rotatable with respect to the eccentric cylindrical member 54.
5 is a roller arm 5 which can be slid only in the vertical direction of FIG.
6 is engaged.

Next, each operation will be described. "Slap"
In this case, as described above, the treatment driving motor 25 is rotated forward and the clutch 33 is disengaged. The power of the motor 25 is transmitted to the hitting worm 36, and the hitting shaft 39 rotates. Then, since the eccentric shafts 40 and 41 arranged at the rotation positions each having a phase difference of 180 degrees rotate while being eccentric, the roller arm 5 is rotated via the ball joint 57.
6, the roller 24 is driven to rotate, the left and right rollers 24
Alternately protrude a small amount to perform a beating operation. Roller 2
4 can be hit at any protruding position.

In the case of "acupressure", the motor 25 is rotated in the reverse direction, the solenoid is driven, and the clutch is engaged. The power of the motor 25 is transmitted only to the acupressure worm gear 37, and the acupressure shaft 51 rotates. Two eccentric cylindrical members 54 are fixed to both ends of the acupressure shaft 51, and a slider 55 is mounted on the eccentric inclined cylindrical member 54 so as to be rotatable with respect to the eccentric cylindrical member 54. 55
Are slidably fitted with the roller arm 56. Therefore, when the acupressure shaft 51 is rotated, the eccentric cylindrical member 5
4 rotates, the roller arm 56 and the roller 24 largely swing back and forth around the slider 55 and the eccentric shafts 40 and 41, and the protrusion amount of the roller 24 changes.

When the acupressure shaft 51 rotates,
When the Hall element 53 detects the permanent magnet 52, for example, the protrusion amount of the roller 24 becomes the minimum position. The number of times of acupressure is counted by the detection signal of the Hall element 53. The amount of protrusion of the roller 24 is determined by the Hall element 5.
The drive voltage and the drive time of the motor 25 are determined based on the position detected in step 3. Therefore, by controlling the drive voltage and drive time of the motor 25 based on the detection signal from the Hall element 53, the roller 24
Can be arbitrarily controlled.

When performing both acupressure and beating simultaneously,
The motor is rotated forward, and the clutch 33 is turned on. Then, the power of the motor 25 is transmitted to the beating shaft 39 and the acupressure shaft 51, and the above-described acupressure and beating operations are performed simultaneously.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device of the massage device of the present invention. The operation display unit 71 includes a switch for setting various operations of the massage device and a display indicating the state of the massage device.
The operation information input / output circuit 72 detects the state of various switches on the operation display unit and outputs state information to the CPU 70. The display information output from the CPU 70 is displayed on the operation display unit 7.
Output to 1.

The limit switch 73 is mounted on at least the upper and lower portions of the back frame 20 and
Reference numerals 1 denote a plurality of switches that are turned on when they reach the mounting position. The vertical position detection circuit 74 includes the limit switch 7
3 are detected and output to the CPU 70. The output signal of the above-described Hall element 53 is the front-back position (projection amount).
It is output to the CPU 70 via the detection circuit 76.

The CPU 70 outputs a drive control signal for a motor or a solenoid for performing the acupressure operation or the abutment operation of the present invention based on the various types of monitoring information described above.
The solenoid drive circuit 77 drives the solenoid 35 based on a control signal from the CPU 70. The treatment motor drive circuit 79 controls the drive voltage of the treatment drive motor 25 based on the control signal from the CPU 70, and rotates the motor 25 forward or backward at an arbitrary rotation speed.

The up / down motor drive circuit 81 controls the drive voltage of the up / down motor 23 based on a control signal from the CPU 70, and rotates the motor 23 forward or backward at an arbitrary rotation speed. The reclining operation control circuit 83 is a CPU 70
A reclining mechanism (not shown) is controlled based on a control signal from the controller.

FIG. 8 is a waveform diagram showing an example of changes in the vertical position and the amount of protrusion of the roller in the present invention. FIG.
(A) shows a first embodiment of a change in the vertical position of the unit and a change in the protrusion amount of the roller with the elapse of the treatment operation time. The unit starts treatment operation from the lower limit,
The protrusion amount is changed from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward by a predetermined distance (time). Next, the protrusion amount is changed from the maximum to the minimum while the vertical position is fixed. This acupressure operation is repeated until the unit reaches the upper limit.

FIG. 8B shows a second embodiment of a change in the vertical position of the unit and a change in the amount of protrusion of the roller. In the second embodiment, the unit starts the treatment operation from the lower limit, and changes the protrusion amount from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward by a predetermined distance (time). Next, while moving downward, the protrusion amount is changed from the maximum to the minimum. The downward moving speed is lower than the upward moving speed. This acupressure operation is repeated until the unit reaches the upper limit.

FIG. 8C shows a third embodiment in which the vertical position of the unit changes and the amount of protrusion of the roller changes. The unit starts the treatment operation from the lower limit, and changes the protrusion amount from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward by a predetermined distance (time). Next, while the vertical position is fixed, the acupressure operation for changing the protrusion amount on the spot is repeated a predetermined number of times, and the operation of changing the protrusion amount from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward a predetermined distance (time) is performed again. . This operation is repeated until the unit reaches the upper limit.

FIG. 9 is a waveform diagram showing another example of changes in the vertical position and the amount of protrusion of the roller according to the present invention. FIG.
(A) shows a fourth embodiment of the change in the vertical position of the unit and the change in the amount of protrusion of the roller. The unit starts the treatment operation from the lower limit, and changes the protrusion amount from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward by a predetermined distance (time). Next, the protrusion amount is changed from the maximum to the minimum while the vertical position is fixed. At this time, the speed of retracting the roller is set to be faster than the speed of projecting. This acupressure operation is repeated until the unit reaches the upper limit.

FIG. 9B shows a fifth embodiment of the change in the vertical position of the unit and the change in the amount of protrusion of the roller. The unit starts the treatment operation from the lower limit, and changes the protrusion amount from the minimum to the maximum while moving upward by a predetermined distance (time). Next, the protrusion amount is changed from the maximum to the minimum while the vertical position is fixed. At this time, the speed at which the roller is retracted is set lower than the speed at which the roller is protruded. This acupressure operation is repeated until the unit reaches the upper limit.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of the treatment operation processing of the present invention in the control device. In S11, the CPU 70 moves the massage unit (roller) downward, which is the initial position, to minimize the protrusion amount. In addition, a timer is started. In S12, the protrusion amount of the roller is increased while the unit is raised at the speed V1. The increasing speed is a speed at which the amount of protrusion reaches a maximum from a minimum at a time T1 described later. In S13, it is determined whether or not the unit has reached the upper limit position. If the determination result is affirmative, the treatment operation ends.

In S14, it is determined by the timer whether or not the predetermined time T1 has elapsed. If the determination result is negative, the process returns to S12 to continue the operation. If the determination is affirmative, the timer is restarted. Then, the process proceeds to S15. In S15, the amount of protrusion of the roller is reduced while lowering the unit at the speed V2. The decreasing speed is a speed at which the amount of protrusion reaches a minimum from a maximum at a time T2 described later.

In S16, it is determined by the timer whether or not the predetermined time T2 has elapsed. If the determination result is negative, the process returns to S15 to continue the operation. If the determination is affirmative, the timer is restarted. Then, the process proceeds to S12. With the above configuration and operation, the operation of the roller as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 becomes possible.

For example, the embodiment of FIG. 8A corresponds to the case where T1 = T2 and V2 = 0 in the flowchart of FIG. In the embodiment of FIG. 8B, when T1 = T2 and V2 <V1 in the flowchart of FIG. 10, the embodiment of FIG. 9A is T1> T2 and V2 = 0 in the flowchart of FIG. In the case of FIG. 9, the embodiment of FIG. 9B corresponds to T1 <T2, V2 in the flowchart of FIG.
= 0.

While the embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed above, the present invention may have the following modifications. In the embodiment, the example in which the vertical movement speed and the changing speed of the protrusion amount are constant during one movement is disclosed. However, for example, as the protrusion amount increases, the upward movement speed increases. The motor for vertical movement or the treatment motor may be controlled at the same time, or the protrusion amount of the roller may be reduced in the first treatment cycle, and may be gradually increased to the maximum amount.
Further, the treatment cycle may also be started from a predetermined cycle and gradually become longer.

[0034]

As described above, in the present invention,
In a massage device that performs acupressure massage while moving up and down, since the treatment element driving means is controlled to execute the movement of the treatment element up and down and the change in the amount of protrusion in synchronization,
Stretching can be started from a state in which the muscles are relaxed, and effective stretching can be performed without causing pain. Therefore, there is an effect that the user's feeling of relaxation can be increased as compared with the related art.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overall configuration of a massage device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view (1) showing a component arrangement of a massage unit.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an arrangement when the components in FIG. 2 are viewed from the front.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view (2) showing the structure of the massage unit of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a structure when a roller arm is viewed from a lateral direction.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a control device configuration of the massage device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the massage device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a waveform chart showing an example of a change in the position and the amount of protrusion of the roller of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a waveform diagram illustrating another example of changes in the position and the amount of protrusion of the roller according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of a treatment operation process of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Backrest part, 11 ... Seat part, 12 ... Armrest part, 20 ... Back frame, 21 ... Massage unit, 22 ...
Feed screw, 23 ... Motor for up / down movement, 24 ... Roller (fir ball), 25 ... Motor for treatment drive, 30, 31 ... Timing belt, 32 ... 1 way clutch, 33 ... Electric clutch, 34 ... Link member, 35 ... Solenoid, 36: Tapping worm gear, 37: Shiatsu worm gear, 38: Tapping spiral gear, 39: Tapping shaft, 40, 41 ... Eccentric shaft, 42: Shiatsu spiral gear, 43, 50 ... Helical gear, 51: Shiatsu shaft, 52: Permanent Magnet, 53 ...
Hall element, 54: eccentric cylindrical member, 55: slider,
56: roller arm, 57: ball joint, 70
... CPU, 71 ... operation display unit, 72 ... information input / output circuit,
73: Limit switch, 74: Vertical position detection circuit, 7
6. Front / back position detection circuit, 77 ... Solenoid drive circuit, 7
9: treatment motor drive circuit, 81: up / down motor drive circuit, 83: reclining operation control circuit

Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification FI FI Theme Court II (Reference) A61H 23/02 357 A61H 23/02 357

Claims (3)

[Claims] A massage device comprising a treatment element and a treatment element driving means for performing acupressure massage while moving the treatment element up and down, wherein the movement of the treatment element up and down and the change of the protrusion amount are performed in synchronization with each other. A massage device comprising treatment control means for controlling a driving means. 2. The treatment control means controls the treatment element driving means to change the protrusion amount of the treatment element from a minimum to a maximum while moving the treatment element upward by a predetermined distance. The massage device according to claim 1. 3. The massage apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the treatment control means controls the treatment element driving means so that the upward moving speed increases as the protrusion amount increases.