JP2005237726A - Massage unit - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a massage unit capable of massaging the lesion of a person to be treated with an air bag to which heated air is supplied. <P>SOLUTION: The massage unit for massaging the lesion of the person to be treated with the air bag 21 is provided with a heater 50 for heating the air to be supplied to the air bag 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a massage unit that can massage an affected area of a user while warming, and a chair-type massage machine including the massage unit.

  There is a foot massage unit that allows the user to receive a massage by inserting a calf or toes. The massage unit for seed feet has a pair of left and right concave receiving portions extending in the front-rear direction, and is configured by arranging massage means such as an airbag on the bottom and side surfaces of the concave receiving portion. The user can receive massage by inserting a calf or a toe into the concave receiving portion and operating massage means (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-238963 (full text)

  The compressed air supplied to the air bag is in the room where the massage unit is placed, specifically the temperature near the floor, so that the affected part in contact with the air bag gets cold during the massage, especially in winter. The user may feel uncomfortable. Moreover, even if it massaged in such a state, the blood circulation promotion effect was not fully exhibited.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a massage unit capable of massaging an affected area of a user with an airbag supplied with warm compressed air.

In order to solve the above problems, the massage unit of the present invention is
In the massage unit that massages the affected area of the user with the airbag,
A heater for heating the air supplied to the airbag is provided.
Further, the affected area of the user may be directly warmed by a heater that warms the air supplied to the airbag.

Since the air supplied to the airbag can be warmed by the heater, the user does not feel cold during the massage. Further, by performing massage of the affected area with a warmed airbag, blood circulation can be promoted by the foot temperature effect, and the massage effect can be enhanced.
Furthermore, if the affected area of the user is also directly warmed by the heater that warms the air supplied to the airbag, blood circulation promotion by the sound-stimulating effect can be further enhanced.

Hereinafter, an example in which the massage unit of the present invention is applied to the foot massage unit (10) for massaging the toes will be described, but the present invention is not limited to the foot massage unit (10), The present invention can also be applied to a massage unit for calves, a backrest and / or a seat massage unit for a chair massage machine, and a bed massage unit.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the foot massage unit (10) of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the foot massage unit (10) of the present invention with the cloth cover (16) removed. As shown in FIG. 1, the foot massage unit (10) has a pair of left and right concave shapes with a U-shaped cross section for inserting the foot of the user (the part below the ankle) into the resin cover (12). Receiving portions (20) and (20) are formed. The concave receiving portions (20) and (20) are partitioned by a central wall (14) as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the upper surface of the central wall (14) is operated by the user. An operation panel (70) is provided. The inner surface of the concave receiving portion (20) is covered with a cloth cover (16).

3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X1-X1 in FIG. 2, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X2-X2 in FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is an arrow taken along line YY in FIG. FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, side airbags (21) and (21) are attached to both side surfaces of the concave receiving portion (20), and the inner surface side is covered with a cloth cover (16). The side airbags (21) and (21) communicate with each other by a coupling hose (65), and the coupling hose (65) is connected to the solenoid valve (62) and the pump (60) by an air supply hose (64). ing. The side airbag (21) is made by blow molding, and pleated inflatable portions (21a) and (21b) are formed on the front and rear sides, respectively. In addition, a urethane sheet can be laminated on a nylon fabric.
As shown in FIG. 3, the connecting hose (65) is disposed in a recess (65 a) provided in front of the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20), and includes a heater (50) and a concave receiving portion ( It is approaching so that heat can be exchanged through the bottom of 20). By arranging the connection hose (65) in this way, the compressed air supplied to the side airbag (21) through the connection hose (65) can be warmed, and the thermal effect can be enhanced.
In the figure, side air bags (21) and (21) are provided on both side surfaces of the concave receiving portion (20), respectively, but one of them can be made from an elastic member having elasticity such as sponge and urethane. .

As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20) is configured to be inclined so that the front is high and the rear is low. This is to improve the stability of the toes when the user puts the toes. Further, a standing wall (23) is formed at the rear end of the concave receiving portion (20) so as to protrude upward so that the tip of the foot does not fall off from the concave receiving portion (20). The standing wall (23) has a shape recessed toward the rear so that the heel matches. The standing wall (23) is desirably 20 to 50 mm high.
As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, massage means (30) for massaging the sole of the user is provided on the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). As the massage means (30), a means including the illustrated acupressure rods (32) and (32) can be exemplified. The acupressure rods (32) and (32) are arranged so that their tips protrude from the two long holes (25) and (25) provided on the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). The long holes (25) and (25) are opened so as to extend in the front-rear direction of the concave receiving portion (20), and around the long holes (25) and (25), ribs (26) are directed downward. Projected.

  A heater (50) is attached to the back side of the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). An example of the heater (50) is a heater wire wrapped with aluminum foil. The heater (50) can be disposed so as to surround the long holes (25) and (25), as shown in FIGS. As described above, by forming the rib (26) in the long hole (25), even if the user accidentally spills water etc. on the foot massage unit (10), the heater (50) There is no direct water. Therefore, the heater (50) can be waterproofed by providing the rib (26) in the long hole (25).

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the massage means (30) is provided on the back side of the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20) with the two acupressure rods (32) and (32) protruding from the inside of the housing (36). Is arranged. The housing (36) includes a rectangular plate (33) in which two acupressure rods (32) and (32) having a circular cross section are erected, and the plate (33) is a bottom air disposed at the bottom. It is placed on the back (34). The upper opening of the housing (36) is closed by a mounting plate (40) described later, and the acupressure rod (32) protrudes from a hole (42) formed in the mounting plate (40). Between the mounting plate (40) and the upper surface of the plate (33), a spring (35) for urging the plate (33) downward is arranged, and when the bottom airbag (34) is contracted, the plate ( 33) is pushed downward, and the protruding amount of the acupressure rods (32) and (32) is minimized.
As the bottom airbag (34), for example, a nylon cloth laminated with a urethane sheet can be used. The bottom air bag (34) is connected to the solenoid valve (62) and the pump (60) shown in FIG. 4 via an air supply hose (64). When compressed air is supplied from the pump (60) by opening and closing the solenoid valve (62), the bottom air bag (34) expands and the acupressure rod (32) moves upward. When air is extracted from the bottom airbag (34), the acupressure rod (32) moves downward by the biasing force of the spring (35).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the bottom surface of the resin cover (12) protrudes upward in the vicinity of the left and right end portions, and the rail portions (28) and (28) for supporting the massage means (30) are slidable. Forming. The rail portion (28) is formed so that the front is higher and the rear is lower in accordance with the inclination of the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the mounting plate (40) is composed of a metal plate that is long in the left-right direction. Guides (41) and (41) are provided. On the mounting plate (40), the left and right massaging means (30) and (30) are respectively screwed with the housings (36) and (36), and the shiatsu rods (32) and (32) protrude through the holes (42) ( 42) has been established. A feed nut (43) is fixed to the center of the upper surface of the mounting plate (40) by a nut fixture (44). The feed nut (43) penetrates in a state where a feed screw (45), which will be described later, is engaged, and by the rotation of the feed screw (45), the mounting plate (40) Can be moved back and forth, and the massage means (30) and (30) attached to the attachment plate (40) can be moved back and forth.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the massage means (30) is moved back and forth between the concave receiving portions (20) and (20), that is, inside the central wall (14) of the resin cover (12). A feed screw (45) is arranged to extend in the front-rear direction. As shown in FIG. 4, the feed screw (45) is supported by a frame (46) provided in the resin cover (12) so as to be inclined in accordance with the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). The pulley (45a) provided at the rear end of the feed screw (45) is connected to the pulley (47b) of the motor (47) through the belt (47a) so as to be able to transmit power. By rotating the motor (47) forward or backward, the feed screw (45) rotates forward or backward, and the feed nut (43) attached to the feed screw (45) moves on the feed screw (45). The massage means (30) (30) can be moved back and forth.

On / off of the heater (50), expansion and contraction of the bottom airbag (34) and side airbag (21), and control of the position of the massage means (30) were provided on the top surface of the central wall (14). The control of the solenoid valve (62), the air pump (60), and the motor (47) which are performed by the operation panel (70) and operate them are arranged below the operation panel (70) as shown in FIG. This is done by the control means (71).
As shown in FIG. 6, the operation panel (70) has a “switch on / off” button (73) as a power switch, operation buttons (74) (74) for selecting an automatic massage course, and a type of manual massage. Operation buttons (74a) and (74a), operation buttons (74b) for controlling the position of the massage means (30), operation buttons (74c) for selecting the strength of the massage means (30), the heater (50) being turned on, A `` heat '' button (75) that controls cutting, a `` foot size '' button (76) that moves the massage means (30) within a desired range according to the size of the foot of the user, etc. are arranged . Each button is provided with a display section (77) (77) by lighting and blinking of an LED next to the button so that it can be visually recognized which operation is being performed.

For the foot massage unit (10) having the above configuration, when the user presses the “ON / OFF” button (73), the heater (50) is first energized, and the “heat” button (75) The horizontal LED display (77) lights up. As the heater (50) is heated, the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20) is warmed.
By energizing the heater (50) at the same time as the “operation on / off” button (73) is pressed, the concave receiving portion (20) is inserted before the user inserts the foot tip into the concave receiving portion (20). Since the patient is warmed, the user does not feel cold when inserting the tip of the foot into the concave receiving portion (20). If the heater (50) is not required, press the “ON / OFF” button (73) and then press the “HEAT” button (75) to stop energizing the heater (50) (LED The display unit (77) is also turned off) and the heater (50) does not rise in temperature. Further, it may be set such that energization to the heater (50) is terminated when a predetermined time (for example, 15 minutes) has elapsed without pressing the "warm" button (75).

In this state, the user inserts the tip of the foot into the concave receiving portion (20). For example, when the toes are cold before sleep or the like and it is desired to warm the toes, the toes may be inserted with only the heater (50) heated. Thereby, the sole of the user is warmed by the thermal treatment effect and blood circulation is improved.
In particular, the heater (50) is not disposed on the entire bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20), but is disposed on the outer peripheral portion of the sole as shown in FIG. Can be promoted.

When the user inserts the tip of the foot into the concave receiving portion (20) and presses the heel against the standing wall (23), the user operates the operation button (74), so that various types of buttons corresponding to the operated operation button can be selected. You can receive foot massage.
Massage of the toes includes acupressure massage with the acupressure rod (32) of the massage means (30), a pressure massage that presses the side of the toe from the instep to the ankle with a side airbag (21), acupressure rod (32 ) Protruding and moving back and forth, and further, a massage combining these can be exemplified.

The acupressure massage can be performed by inflating and contracting the bottom air bag (34) and letting the acupressure rod (32) protrude from the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). Also, as the acupressure bar (32) goes up and down, the acupressure bar (32) is moved to a desired position by operating the operation button (74b), and reciprocated back and forth, so that the sole, especially the arch and toes Highly effective shiatsu massage can be performed at the base of the skin. During the acupressure massage, the treatment effect can be increased by warming the toes of the user with the heater (50) due to the thermal treatment effect and the acupressure treatment effect.
Expansion and contraction of the bottom airbag (34) can be performed by opening and closing the electromagnetic valve (62) and driving the pump (60). Further, the acupressure rod (32) can be moved back and forth by driving the motor (47).
The “foot size” button (76) is a button for selecting a different foot size for each person to be treated. By selecting the foot size of the person to be treated, the foot size can be used during an automatic massage course or rolling massage. The range of movement of the acupressure stick (32) is determined according to the size. FIG. 2 shows an example of the foot shape of the user by reference numeral (29).

  Since the shiatsu massage is a massage in which the sole is pushed up with the shiatsu stick (32), the foot of the user is lifted from the concave receiving portion (20). Therefore, when acupressure massage is performed, it is desirable to inflate the side airbag (21) so that the toes are not pinched by the side airbags (21) and (21). The connecting hose (65) that supplies compressed air to the side airbag (21) is in contact with the heater (50), so the supplied compressed air is heated and warm air is supplied to the side airbag (21). It is possible to warm not only the sole but also the part from the instep to the ankle.

The pressure massage is a massage in which the side airbag (21) is inflated and contracted to sandwich and press the side surface of the toe extending from the tip of the foot to the ankle with the side airbag (21) (21). Expansion and contraction of the side airbag (21) can be performed by opening and closing the solenoid valve (62) and driving the pump (60). The connecting hose (65) that supplies compressed air to the side airbag (21) is in contact with the heater (50), so the supplied compressed air is heated and warm air is supplied to the side airbag (21). In addition to the thermal treatment effect on the sole by the heater (50), the thermal treatment effect can be obtained not only on the sole but also on the part from the instep to the ankle.
The pressure massage can increase the treatment effect due to the thermal treatment effect and the pressure treatment effect.

  When performing a massage that combines acupressure massage and pressure massage, the above operations may be performed simultaneously. In this case as well, by heating the sole of the person to be treated with the heater (50) and the part extending from the instep of the foot to the ankle with the side airbag (21), the thermal treatment effect is added and the treatment effect is obtained. Can be increased.

The automatic massage course is implemented according to a program in which shiatsu massage, pressing massage, and rolling massage are appropriately determined.
Here, when performing a rolling massage, simultaneously with the start of the movement of the shiatsu rod (32), the bottom air bag (34) is inflated to project the shiatsu rod (32), that is, the shiatsu rod (32 ) Projecting, and the both projecting parts will continue to move over time, and conversely, when reaching a predetermined position before the movement end position, exhaust of the bottom airbag (34) is started and the shiatsu stick (32) is By retracting, smooth acupressure is obtained and a comfortable rolling massage is obtained. The same applies to the return path of the acupressure rod (32).
These various massages are desirably set to automatically end when a predetermined time elapses.

  The above description of the embodiments is for explaining the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the invention described in the claims or reducing the scope thereof. Moreover, each part structure of this invention is not restricted to the said Example, A various deformation | transformation is possible within the technical scope as described in a claim.

  As a means for warming the compressed air supplied to the air bag, in addition to warming the air of the hose (65), the air sent from the pump (60) is warmed by a heater and supplied to the air bag. Also good. Alternatively, the air sucked into the pump (60) may be heated with a heater.

Further, the foot massage unit (10) may be used alone as in the above embodiment, or may be arranged in the lower front part of the chair on which the user sits to constitute a chair type massage machine. In the chair, various massage means can be arranged on the backrest, the seat, or the like as desired.
Moreover, the massage unit which connected the massage unit which massages a user's calf, and the massage unit for legs (10) can also be comprised.

Furthermore, although the heater (50) is disposed on the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20), the heater may be disposed on one or both of the side surfaces of the concave receiving portion (20). Of course, these may be combined.
The acupressure rod (32) has the concave receiving portion (20) arranged to be movable in the front-rear direction, but may be configured not to move. In this case, the long hole (25) may be a hole that matches the shape of the acupressure rod (32), for example, a round hole.

  Since the massage unit of the present invention warms the air supplied to the airbag by the heater, the user does not feel uncomfortable if it is cold, and the treatment effect can be increased by the thermal treatment effect by the heater. Useful as a massage unit.

It is a perspective view of the massage unit for legs of the present invention. It is a top view of the state which removed the cloth cover of the massage unit for legs. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X1-X1 in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X2-X2 in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line YY in FIG. 2. It is a top view of an operation panel.

Explanation of symbols

(10) Foot massage unit
(20) Concave receiving part
(21) Side airbag
(30) Massage means
(32) Shiatsu stick
(34) Bottom airbag
(50) Heater
(65) Connecting hose

Claims (7)

In the massage unit that massages the affected area of the user with the airbag (21),
A massage unit comprising a heater (50) for heating air supplied to the air bag (21). The air bag (21) is connected to the pump (60) via the hose (65), the hose (65) is disposed close to the heater (50), and the compressed air is supplied to the hose (65). The massage unit according to claim 1, wherein the massage unit is heated and supplied to the airbag (21) when passing through the bag. The massage unit massages the toes of the user and has a concave receiving portion (20) for receiving the toes of the user, and an airbag (21) on the side of the concave receiving portion (20). The massage unit according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a heater (50) is arranged on the bottom surface of the concave receiving portion (20). The massage unit massages the toes of the user and has a concave receiving portion (20) for accommodating the toes of the user, and a heater is disposed on the side of the concave receiving portion (20). The massage unit according to claim 1 or 2. The massage unit according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the heater (50) starts to raise the temperature when the massage unit (10) is turned on and energized. The massage unit according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the heater (50) is arranged so as to warm the affected area of the user. A chair-type massage machine, wherein the massage unit (10) according to any one of claims 3 to 5 is disposed at a lower front portion of a chair on which a user sits.