WO2022253708A1

WO2022253708A1 - Modular system for simulation video games

Info

Publication number: WO2022253708A1
Application number: PCT/EP2022/064437
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hartmut SCHÜRG; Elmar Deegener; Oliver Krockenberger
Original assignee: Recaro Holding Gmbh
Priority date: 2021-06-02
Filing date: 2022-05-27
Publication date: 2022-12-08
Also published as: DE102021114364A1; DE102021114364B4

Abstract

The invention relates to a system (59) for temporarily fixing a chair (10), which has a base (18) having chair castors (24), in particular to a piece of furniture (11), such as a desk (12), while a video game simulation is being performed, wherein the system (59) comprises: a frame (60); and a chair unit (70), which defines a fixing position in which the chair unit (70) is connected to the frame (60) and in which a position of the chair (10) is fixed; wherein the chair unit (70) is designed to detachably receive the base (18) of the chair (10) in the chair unit (70) by means of an interlocking fit while a video game simulation is being performed.

Description

Building block system for simulation video games

The present disclosure relates to a modular (building-block) system for temporarily fixing a chair having a base with chair casters, particularly for fixing to a piece of furniture such as a desk while performing a video game simulation.

Document US 7,828,157 B2 relates to a steering wheel stand, see figure 19, adapted for use with a chair or sofa to give a more realistic feeling to a user playing a video racing game on his television at home. The tripod includes a three-legged base section at one end and a two-legged U-shaped head section at an opposite end. A first plate is attached to the foot section in a height-adjustable and pivotable manner. Another plate is attached to the head section. The first plate is used to hold and attach a pedal. The second plate serves to accommodate and attach a steering wheel belonging to a video game console. The tripod can be used in an oblique orientation (see FIG. 19A) or in a vertical orientation (see FIG. 19B). In the vertical For orientation, the tripod stands exclusively on the three legs of the foot section and is therefore susceptible to changes in the position of the tripod relative to the screen, which can be caused during use by steering wheel movements and/or pedal actuations. In the oblique orientation, the tripod stands on two legs of the foot section and is also supported loosely on the two legs of the head section on the seat of the chair. To ensure that the head section does not slip off the chair while playing, a chair that is mounted immovably, ie a chair without chair castors, should be used. A chair with casters is unsuitable for use because an Actuate supply of the pedal with the user's feet - but also steering wheel movements - generates forces that in a relative movement of the chair - and thus in a slipping of the head portion of the tripod from the chair - result.

The document US 2011/0254327 A1 relates to a foldable (camping) chair, i.e. a foldable chair which is arranged for attachment of a steering wheel and a pedal. The corresponding mounting plates are firmly installed with the folding chair. The steering wheel is firmly attached to the chair. The pedal is provided separately and is subsequently (detachably) attached for the purpose of use. The folding chair represents an independent solution that cannot be combined with a conventional, rollable office chair.

An extension of this approach is shown in the documents WO 2018/117845 A1 and US 2005/0159219 A1. There the tripod or a frame is extended by another plate on which an application-specific, professional seat is permanently installed. The seat is adjustable in terms of inclination and distance relative to the screen, but is inextricably linked to the frame. With this approach, a cockpit of a vehicle (e.g. a racing car or airplane) is simulated as realistically as possible. It is not possible to temporarily attach a conventional office chair that has castors while the video game is being used.

There are also professional simulators, such as flight simulators or racing car simulators, which also have hydraulically and/or electrically operated actuators that move the seat and/or the entire frame according to the movements of the simulated vehicle, so that forces act on the user "from outside". increase the user's sense of reality. Such solutions come from the professional field and are usually too expensive for private users and require too much space.

It is therefore an object of the present disclosure to create a possibility for a computer or video game simulation that is as realistic as possible in a private environment, in the home office or in the office using an existing rollable office or gaming chair.

This object is achieved by a (modular) system for temporarily fixing a chair, which has a base with chair castors, in particular to a piece of furniture, such as a desk, while a video game simulation is being carried out, wherein the system comprises: a frame; and a chair unit that defines a fixing position in which the chair unit is connected to the frame and in which a position of the chair is fixed, the chair unit being set up to detach the base of the chair by means of a form fit while the video game simulation is being carried out included in the chair unit.

[0008] The system enables a user to transform his usual office or home office environment into a professional simulator by fixing the user's chair with regard to a position, and in particular also an orientation. The fixation takes place in a predefined position (and preferably orientation). The user assumes an ideal sitting position during the simulation. This sitting position corresponds to that of a professional.

The system can be customized to almost any piece of furniture, especially at each

Desk, to be adjusted and also attached to it. The system offers the user many adjustment options that are comparable to the adjustment options of a seat in a car, for example. This means that every user can find an ideal sitting position, regardless of their size.

The chair unit prevents unwanted movements of the chair, especially those that cannot be blocked by adjustment functions in the chair (rolling over the rotatable chair castors, turning the seat around the gas pressure spring, turning the seat using the star base, etc.).

About the chair unit, the player can be firmly connected to his chair with a pedal unit and the desk. The seat unit can be adjusted to the height of the user and, for example, connected to the pedal unit via a plug-in connection.

The chair can also be easily separated from the chair unit again to use the chair normally for office or home office purposes.

Usually, the connection of the chair to the chair unit takes place in two stages, during which the user remains seated. In a first step, the user can block the chair from rotating about the gas spring. This is done, for example, via a claw hitch treatment, which is attached to a first coupling part on an underside of the chair and a Ge counterpart of the clutch is attached to the gas pressure spring. The player can operate a lever that unlocks the gas spring and moves the seat to a lowest position. There, for example, the claw coupling blocks the rotary movement of the seat around the gas pressure spring in the bottom 15 mm. A detent of the claw coupling can be 72°, for example, if the base has five arms (5 x 72° = 360°) Since the claw coupling can engage, the seat in the lowest position with the gas pressure spring open must be turned to the left or right until the clutch engages. When the coupling is engaged, two of the five arms of the base always point parallel to the front. This greatly simplifies a second stage of the connection process. In the second stage, the user rolls the chair in a (predetermined coupling) direction towards the desk. At this point, two of the five arms are pointing forward in parallel. As the chair approaches the chair assembly, the rollers of the forward-facing base arms can be guided first, and then the arms themselves can be guided until they hit optional front stops. At this moment, a plate-like receiving member can grasp the gas pressure spring from below and snap into place, so that the chair is firmly connected to the chair unit. The receiving member holding the gas spring may be attached to a spring loaded arm. If the arm is pushed down from above by the user's foot, the chair can be released from the connection again.

The form fit is therefore preferably formed between the chair unit on the one hand and a gas spring of the base of the chair (and/or at least one, preferably two, of the chair rollers on the base of the chair) on the other hand when the chair is moved by a user from a freely movable , Non-coupled position is moved along a predetermined coupling direction in the fixing position.

The gas spring and the castors of the chair are standard components of every chair. The relative positions of the gas spring and the castors are fixed or standardized so that the chair unit can be shaped accordingly.

In particular, the chair unit has a receiving member with a recess which is designed for positive reception with the gas spring and/or the at least one castor chair.

It is further preferred if the receiving member has an inclined surface which rises in the predetermined coupling direction and which is adjacent to the depression in the predetermined coupling direction. Preferably, the sloping surface is mounted pivotably against a vertically oriented spring force about a pivot axis that is oriented perpendicularly to the predetermined coupling direction.

The inclined surface is used to guide the receiving member, while the user

pushes the chair into the chair unit. The gas spring or one of the rollers comes into contact with the inclined surface during the movement of the chair. The role overcomes a height difference. The gas spring presses the receiving member downwards against a spring force. At the end of the pushing movement, the roller and/or the gas spring engages in the recess (positive locking in the coupling direction) and thus fixes the chair.

[0019] Alternatively or in addition, the form fit can also be formed between the chair unit and a chair mechanism if the chair is freely released from its position by a user. away, decoupled position is moved along the predetermined coupling direction into the fixing position.

The chair mechanism is part of the base of the chair. The chair mechanism is an alternative component to the gas spring and chair casters to fix the chair in position.

In particular, the system also has a fastening unit which is connected to the frame and which is set up to attach the frame firmly to the piece of furniture, in particular by clamping the frame in a force-fitting manner within a cavity or intermediate space of the piece of furniture or by Frame is firmly attached to a frame of the piece of furniture.

The fastening unit causes the frame of the system to be permanently, firmly and releasably attached to the piece of furniture. Forces that the user exerts on the chair during the simulation are introduced into the piece of furniture. A movement of the chair relative to the piece of furniture is prevented. The chair is fixed in position.

The system can also have a pedal unit, which has a preferably pivotably mounted plate to which a pedal can be fastened.

The pedal unit is an expression of the modular system. The system can be expanded with a pedal unit. The impression of the simulation is further reinforced by the pedal unit. The pedal unit is also fixed in position.

Furthermore, the system can have a guide unit which is set up to guide at least one of the rollers and/or one arm of the base by contact into an end position which corresponds to the fixing position when the chair is in the predetermined coupling direction in the chair unit is moved in.

The guide unit ensures that the base of the chair rotates independently into a desired orientation while the chair is being moved into the chair unit. The guide unit forces the base of the chair to be guided. The user does not have to laboriously pre-align the chair before the user can move the chair into the chair unit. The base of the chair can be oriented in any way relative to the chair unit. All the user has to do is sit down and move the chair into the chair unit.

Preferably, the guide unit has at least one guide rail, the at least one guide rail being shaped such that the chair is constrained to be guided over its base into the fixing position while the chair is being moved into the chair unit in the predetermined coupling direction.

In particular, two guide rails are provided which, viewed in the coupling direction, define an opening angle between them.

The two guide rails, which define an opening angle between them, ensure that the base rotates automatically to a predetermined orientation as the chair is pushed into the chair unit.

Preferably, at least one of the guide rails includes an end stop, which also defines the fixing position.

Thus, several components of the base of the chair, such as the gas springs, the rollers and the arms, can be fixed in fixed positions at the same time, which improves the positional fixation of the chair.

[0032] In a further embodiment, the system can also have an anti-rotation unit.

The anti-rotation unit ensures that the seat cannot rotate relative to the base of the chair. Preferably, the anti-rotation device is a dog clutch having a first clutch part and a second clutch part, the first clutch part being configured to be rotationally fixed to a gas spring and the second clutch part being configured to be rotationally fixed to a chair mechanism so that the positively interlocking coupling parts are locked into one another in a non-rotatable manner by lowering the seat to its lowest position.

In a further embodiment, the frame has a base plate which is dimensioned such that the chair stands completely on the base plate when the chair is in the fixing position.

The position is fixed via the weight of the chair and the user. If necessary, the weight of the base plate can also contribute to fixing the position. The bottom plate is then preferably made of a heavy material (e.g. metal).

In particular, the system may further include a steering wheel unit configured to permanently attach a steering wheel thereto.

The modular building block character of the system is also expressed here. The system can be expanded to include a steering wheel, which further reinforces the impression of the simulation.

The frame of the system is preferably set up to receive the steering wheel unit in a form-fitting manner when the steering wheel unit is plugged into the frame.

The steering wheel is mounted, for example, by plugging it in. The plugging can easily be carried out by the user. The steering wheel can be easily removed if the steering wheel is not required.

It is understood that the steering wheel could be augmented and/or replaced with other cockpit instruments. It goes without saying that the features of the invention mentioned above and those yet to be explained below can be used not only in the combination specified in each case, but also in other combinations or on their own, without departing from the scope of the invention.

Further features and advantages of the invention result from the following description of preferred exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings.

Show it:

1 is a block diagram illustrating components of a chair;

2 is a block diagram of an office or home office environment illustrating components of the environment;

Figure 3 is a block diagram of a kit for use in the environment of Figure 2;

4 is a perspective view of the system during a simulation application, with the system mounted on a desk;

5 shows a seated posture of a professional racer (FIG. 5A) and a seated posture using the system of the present disclosure (FIG. 5B);

FIG. 6 shows a perspective detail view of a chair unit, a guide unit and an anti-rotation unit of the system of FIG. 4;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along a line VII-VII in Fig. 6;

8 shows a fixed position (continuous lines) and a freely movable position

(dashed line) of the system of the present disclosure; Figure 9 is a perspective view of the anti-rotation assembly of Figure 4 looking down on the chair;

Fig. 10 shows a modified chair unit (Fig. 10A) and a sectional view (Fig. 10B) taken along a line XB-XB in Fig. 10A;

FIG. 11 shows the chair unit of FIG. 10 supplemented by a pedal unit;

Fig. 12 shows the pedal unit of Fig. 11 in combination with a modified chair unit (Fig. 12A) and a sectional view (Fig. 12B) along a line XI I B - XI I B in Fig. 12A;

Figure 13 shows a further modification of the chair unit;

Figure 14 shows yet another modification of the chair unit;

Figure 15 shows yet another modification of the chair unit;

Fig. 16 shows another modified chair unit including a large base plate (Fig. 16A) and a sectional view (Fig. 16B) taken along a line XVIB-XVIB in Fig. 16A.

17 shows a modified fastening unit;

18 shows a modified frame; and

Figure 19 shows a conventional system during use with a chair (Figure 19A) and without the chair (Figure 19B).

The present disclosure relates to a system 59, preferably of modular design, see FIG. also briefly referred to as "chair 10", relative to a piece of furniture 11, preferably a desk 12, is used. The chair 10 is a device to sit on.

[0045] The term “fixation” is understood below to mean holding or maintaining a (relative) position and/or position of an object. The location or the alignment of the object does not change. Fixation is a spatial determination of an object.

[0046] When an item is "attached" to another item, the item is firmly attached to the other item. The attached object cannot be easily separated from the other object.

1 shows a block diagram of components or parts of the chair 10. It should be understood that the components shown in FIG. 1 can be part of an office chair or a gaming chair. In the following no specific distinction will be made between these chair types.

The chair 10 is optimized for use at a desk 12 (see FIG. 4) and, for reasons of ergonomics, is regularly height-adjustable in steps or infinitely variable. As components, the chair 10 includes a seat (or a seat) 14, a Rückenleh ne 16 and a base 18 which supports the seat 14. Optionally, a headrest 20, which can also be integrated into the backrest 16, and/or at least one armrest 22 can be provided.

Historically, the office chair 10 has evolved from a plain and rigid wooden chair for desk work 12 to a modern steerable (and preferably rotating) chair 10 supported by casters 24 (chair). A height adjustment of the seat 14 is often done with a gas (pressure) spring 26. The seat or the seat surface 14 can have a mechanical tilt adjustment, which is part of a chair mechanism 28, for horizontally rocking and/or oscillating storage. By storing the chair 10 on the (usually five single or double) Rollers 24 can be used to move the chair 10 comfortably while sitting, ie positioned anywhere relative to the table 12.

The base 18, i.e. a supporting lower section of the chair 10 to which the chair rollers 24 are attached, is also referred to as a base, the base 18 usually having arms 30 arranged in a cross or star shape. The rollers 24 are attached to the arms 30 so as to be rotatable about a horizontal (and optionally also a vertical) axis. For reasons of stability, the base usually has five or six arms 30.

In the central area of the star base, where the arms 30 meet, the gas pressure spring 26 is arranged, with which the seat height of the chair 10 can be adjusted more easily and quickly than with an (obsolete) spindle drive. On an upper end of the gas pressure spring 26, the chair mechanism 28 is supported, such as. e.g. the inclination adjustment, a rocking mechanism (not shown), a height adjustment mechanism (not shown) and/or the like. The chair mechanism 28 is essentially connected to the seat 14 and possibly also to the backrest 16 and sometimes also to the armrests 22 . The chair mechanism 28 is located directly below the seat 14 .

The gas pressure spring (also referred to as gas spring for short) 26 is a pneumatic spring that stores gas under high pressure to provide a spring force. The advantages over coil springs or similar are the force that is almost independent of spring deflection, the small space requirement and the option of integrating a damping mechanism into the spring. Gas pressure springs 26 serve, among other things, to balance the weight.

The gas pressure spring 26 is a hydropneumatic adjustment element and comprises an outer pressure tube (cylinder) 32 and an inner movably mounted piston (not shown) as well as suitable connections. The gas spring 26 is filled with a compressed gas, the amount of which determines the preset internal pressure. The piston fulfills two tasks. A longer part of the piston has a smaller diameter and runs in a seal on the pressure tube. The pressure acts on its cross-sectional area. This results in a force in a (vertical, upward) extension direction. a The stronger (end) part of the piston (plate) has a larger diameter with an overflow opening and is used for damping and guidance.

Parts of the gas spring 26, in particular a housing of the cylinder thereof, protrude downwards from an underside of the base 18, i.e. from the star base, and can be used to fix the position of the chair 10, as will be explained in more detail later .

The base 18 thus usually includes the rollers 24, the arms 30, the gas spring

26 and the chair mechanism 28. The chair 10 is fixed by means of a form-fitting fixation of the base 18. During the coupling, one or more of the components of the base 18 listed above are held in such a form-fitting manner that the chair 10 can no longer be moved.

Figure 2 schematically illustrates an environment 40 in which the system 59 of the present disclosure is deployed.

The environment 40 can be an office, a home office or a private living space. The office and the home office (i.e. the office at home or in the private living space) represent a place or a room where primarily professional activities such as writing, reading, arithmetic and meetings are carried out.

The equipment of the environment 40 includes the chair 10, the piece of furniture 11 and an electrically operated video or computer game system 41, which will also be referred to as “game or simulation system 41” for short below.

Pieces of furniture 11 are (movable) pieces of furniture that are mainly used indoors in homes, shops and offices and outdoors (e.g. garden furniture). In the following, the desk 12 will be considered as an exemplary piece of furniture 11 on and/or on which the gaming system 41 is built. It goes without saying that shelves, wall units and similar furnishings can also be used to install the game system 41 . The simulation system 41 usually includes a data processing device (eg a computer 42) and at least one screen 44. A keyboard 46 and/or a mouse 48 can also be provided. A joystick 52 can also be provided. Alternatively, the computer 42 can also be a (video) game console 50 . The game console 50 can also be provided in addition to the computer 42. Game consoles 50 are electronic devices that, unlike general purpose computers such as computer 42, are intended solely or primarily for running video games. In addition to playing video games, modern game consoles 50 can also be used for other purposes, such as video or music streaming, video conferencing and the like.

The desk 12 includes a table top 56 supported by a supporting frame 54 having a plurality of table legs 58, for example. It is understood that frame 54 may be formed from legs 58 alone. Furthermore, the table 12 can be designed to be adjustable in height.

The at least one screen 44 is arranged on or at the table 12 such that a user 78 (see FIG. 4) has a good view of the screen 44 and sees a screen area in full. Of course, the screen 44 can also be hung on a wall or positioned separately. In this situation, the user 78 sits on his office or gaming chair 10 (cf. FIG. 1), which the user 78 positions directly in front of and possibly also under the table 12 by the user 78 crossing the chair 10 with his feet moves its rotatably mounted rollers 24 to the desired position relative to the table 12. In a normal office application, neither the chair 10 as a whole nor its casters 44 or base 18 are specifically fixed. The chair 10 is free to move, i.e. not fixed, in normal office use.

In order to convert the environment 40 from an office application to a computer game simulation application that is as realistic as possible, the modular system 59 is proposed, which is shown in FIG. 3 and which is described in more detail below. The kit-like system 59 brings a professional gaming experience into the private four walls by making the office environment 40 a world of experience with just a few simple steps (in particular a locking chair movement), for which no conversion of the environment 40 itself is required. The system 59 is already integrated into the environment 40. By moving the chair 10 along a predetermined coupling direction, the chair 10 and the desk 12 become a realistic simulation with perfect ergonomics in the shortest possible time. The chair 10 becomes a (high-performance) piece of sports equipment.

Typical (computer game) simulation applications are, for example, racing car, truck, tractor or airplane simulations, in which the corresponding vehicles are realistically simulated. On the screen 44, the user 78 is regularly shown the driver's view of the simulated environment (e.g. race track) and often also of a cockpit of the simulated vehicle. The real world thus faces serious competition. The virtual world is becoming even bigger, more important and more attractive.

The simulations are additionally supported by optional accessories (not illustrated here), such as a steering wheel 62, one or more pedals 64, a shift lever 66 and the like (see FIG. 4), so that the simulation can still be carried out feels more real, because real control organs are available, can be operated and possibly even give haptic and/or acoustic feedback. In the following, a racing simulation will be considered as an example, in which driving in a racing car ("Sim Racing") is simulated.

The system 59 includes a base frame 60, which will also be referred to below as "frame 60" for short, and a chair unit 70. The system 59 can be supplemented by any additional modules, i.e. units. The system 59 may include a pedal assembly 72, a steering wheel assembly 74, a mounting assembly 75, a shifter assembly 76, a guide assembly 77, and/or a dog clutch assembly 79, for example. This list is not to be understood as exhaustive.

4 shows a perspective view of an exemplary (office or home office) environment 40 in which the system 59 is used. In Fig. 4, the user 78 is sitting in his chair 10 at his desk 12. The Rückenleh ne 16 of the chair 10 can be slightly tilted backwards to bring the user 78 in an ergonomically favorable sitting position that optimally an ideal sitting posture of a professional racing driver.

Fig. 5 illustrates a schematic comparison between an ideal sitting posture of a professional racing driver (Fig. 5A), which comes from a study by the Volkswagen Group ("Sit like a Pro", Skoda MOTOR5PORT), and an actual sitting posture of the user 78 (FIG. 5B) using the system 59 of FIG. 3 in the environment of FIG. It can be seen that the sitting postures are almost identical, although the conventional office chair 10 is used in FIG. 5B. 5B also shows horizontal and vertical distances and angles at which the system 59 is preferably used.

In FIG. 4 the chair 10 is fixed in the chair unit 70 . A freely movable, decoupled position of the chair 10 is not visualized in FIG. In the free position, the chair unit 70 and the chair 10 are unconnected and spaced further apart relative to one another than is shown in FIG.

4 shows the chair 10 in a predetermined fixing position, in which the chair unit 70 is (detachably) connected to the frame 60 of the system 59 and in which the position of the chair 10 is fixed. The chair 10 is fixed in the chair unit 70 in such a way that the position of the chair 10 relative to the chair unit 70, the table 12 and the screen 44 does not unintentionally change while the racing simulation is being carried out, which sometimes requires violent movements by the user 78 (movements of the steering wheel 62 , actuations of the pedals 64, actuations of the shift lever 68, etc.) can change.

The chair unit 70 is generally adapted to releasably receive the base 18 of the chair 10 in the chair unit 70 by means of a form fit during the performance of the video game simulation. In the example of FIG. 4 , the gas spring 26 is accommodated in the chair unit 70 in a form-fitting, detachable manner. The fixation by means of the form circuit can with a single component (eg roller 24 or gas spring 26) or with several components (e.g. roller(s) 24 and gas spring 26) of the chair 10 or the base 18 of the chair 10 can be formed. 10-15, 17 and 18 show alternatives to the positive reception of the chair 10 in the chair unit 70 via the gas spring 26, which will be described in more detail below.

In FIG. 4, the (basic) frame 60 includes, for example, a linkage 80 which has one or more rods 82 (cf. also FIG. 3). The linkage 80 of Figure 4 is positioned on the floor. The chair assembly 70 and the pedal assembly 72 are permanently (detachably) connected to the linkage 80 . The fastening unit 75 is implemented, for example, by an egg-shaped profile which is open at the bottom in order to be guided from above over a crossbar (not specified here) of the table 12. The crossbar in this case is part of the table frame 54 and extends between the rear table legs 58 on the floor. Optional clamping screws (not shown) or the like can be provided on the C-profile in order to fasten the fastening unit 75 to the table with a force fit.

Alternatively, the crossbar can also be a component of the fastening unit 75, which in this case is formed by a circumferentially closed profile, in which the two-part crossbar is accommodated telescopically to the left and right, preferably spring-loaded, in order to the transverse direction in a cavity or inter mediate space of the table 12 between the legs 54 fixed, preferably braced to be.

It goes without saying that the fastening unit 75 shown in FIG. 4 is merely of an exemplary nature. Fig. 17 shows an alternative (and/or supplementary) fastening unit 75 in the form of mounting plates 84 at the upper ends of two vertically oriented rods 82 which are fastened to the table top 12 (not shown) from below, e.g. by means of screws (not shown). shown) to permanently fix the frame 60 to the table 12.

Figure 6 shows an enlarged perspective view of the chair assembly 70 of Figure 4. The chair 10 is not shown. However, a guide unit 77 is shown in FIG. 6 and a dog clutch unit 79 which is not shown in FIG. 4 is shown. the leadership unit 77 and the dog clutch 79 are described in more detail below who the.

The chair assembly 70 generally includes a receiving member 86 having a recess 88 therein. Recess 88 is configured to positively (interlock) receive a component such as gas spring 26 (see Fig. 4) and/or rollers 24 (see Figs. 10-14, e.g.) of base 18.

The receiving member 86 of Fig. 6 is formed, for example, in the shape of a plate and has a hole 90 which forms the recess 88 in its center. The receiving member 86 of Fig. 6 has a frusto-conical cross-section which tapers upwards and has the hole 90 in the center, see the cross-sectional view of Fig. 7 along the line VII-VII in Fig. 6. The hole 90 or the recess 88 is adapted for the form-fitting reception of an unte ren end of the gas spring 26, which is indicated in Fig. 7 with a dashed line and which projects from the star base downwards, as shown in Fig. An inner diameter of the hole 90 or of the depression 88 is adapted to an outer diameter of the component of the base 18 to be coupled, here the gas spring 26 . A top surface of receiving member 86 defines a sloping, upwardly sloping surface 92 to guide gas spring 26 into recess 88, or to guide receiving member 86 from a lowered position (not shown) to a normal upright position, which is in Fig. 6 shows ge.

The receiving member 86 is connected to an arm 94 of the chair unit 70. As shown in FIG. The arm 94 can be pivoted about a horizontal pivot axis 96 . The arm 94 is preferably biased vertically upwardly to its normal position, shown in FIG. 6, by spring means (not shown) and is lowered by the gas spring 26 through contact with the inclined surface 92 when the chair (not shown). 10 is moved from the free, ie unfixed, position along the predetermined, ie predetermined, coupling direction 98 into the chair unit 70 to reach the fixing position shown in FIG. The chair 10 is brought into the fixing position by the user 78 by means of muscle power (eg by pushing with the feet while the user 78 is seated). The coupling direction 98 is oriented parallel to the arm 94 and perpendicular to the pivot axis 96 . As the chair 10 is moved in the docking direction 98, the receiving member 86 continues to lower until the gas spring 26 is received by the recess 88 in the receiving member 86 so that the receiving member 86 is returned to its normal position by the spring means is moved back and a movement opposite to the coupling direction 98 is prevented. The receiving member 86 acts like a latch. The Gasfe of 26 is locked in this state. To unlock or separate the chair 10 from the chair unit 70, the user 78 can step on the arm 94 with his foot in order to lower the arm 94 - and thus the receiving member 86 - vertically, and the (horizontal) path for the gas spring 26 release to be removed from the receiving member 86 who the.

The system 59 may also include a guide unit 77, shown in FIG. The guide unit 77 is set up to guide at least one of the rollers 24 and/or at least one of the arms 30 of the base (mechanically) into a predetermined end position which corresponds to the fixing position of the chair 10 .

The guide unit 77 generally includes one or more guide rails 100. The guide unit 77 includes, by way of example, three guide rails 100-1 to 100-3. The guide rails 100-1 and 100-2 are arranged on a base plate 102 and take the arm 94 (horizontally and vertically) between them. The guide rails 100-1 and 100-2 serve to restrain two adjacent rollers 24. While the user 78 pushes the chair 10 in the coupling direction 98 (forward), sooner or later one of the rollers 24 comes with one of the rails 100-1 or 100-2 in touch. The rails 100-1 and 100-2 are aligned in a V-shape, with a spacing of the rails 100-1 and 100-2 relative to the arm 94 in the coupling direction 98 increasing. The positive guidance of the rails 100-1 and 100-2 is supported by a further, third rail 100-3. Rail 100-3 is positioned higher than rails 100-1 and 100-2 to contact arms 30 and guide arms 30 to desired final positions. Rail 100-3 is generally transverse to the arm 94 oriented. In a plan view, a curvature of rail 100-3 transitions seamlessly into curvatures of rails 100-1 and 100-2, as shown schematically in FIG. Figure 8 illustrates the restraint of two immediately adjacent rollers 24-1 and 24-2 and the corresponding arms 30-1 and 30-2. As the chair 10 is moved from any free position, cf. dashed lines, in the coupling direction 98, one of the rollers 24-1 or 24-2 with the corresponding first or second rail 100-1 or 100-2 comes in first Contact. Later, the corresponding arm 30-1 or 30-2 also comes into contact with the third rail 100-3. The star base thus rotates about its vertical axis, which is perpendicular to the plane of the drawing in Fig. 8, into the desired end position, see solid lines in Fig. 8. The end position can also be defined by one or more horn-shaped end stops 104. End stops 104 are provided in FIG. 6 in outer end portions of third rail 100-3 and block continued movement of base 18 in mating direction 98. End stops 104 are spaced to accommodate two immediately adjacent rollers 24 be able. This means that the distance between the end stops 104 corresponds to the distance between two directly adjacent rollers 24 .

The horn-shaped design of the end stops 104 also serves to accommodate the rollers 24 in a form-fitting manner and to fix the position. It is understood that the end stops 104 do not have to come into direct contact with the rollers 24, but can also come into contact with bearings, (vertical) axles or other components of the rollers 24. The same applies to the rails 100.

The guiding unit 77 thus guides the base 18 in the horizontal plane and aligns the base 18 about a vertical axis which is perpendicular to this plane. Furthermore, the guide unit 77 limits a movement of the chair 10 in the coupling direction 98 in such a way that a sliding movement of the chair 10 is stopped in the fixing position, where the gas spring 26 of FIG. 4 then automatically positively engages with the receiving member 86.

The optionally provided anti-rotation unit 79 is designed as a claw coupling and serves to secure or fix the seat 14 against rotation. The claw coupling comprises first and second coupling parts 106-1 and 106-2. The first coupling part 106 is non-rotatably attachable to the gas spring 26 such that the first coupling part 106 - 1 cannot rotate about the gas spring 26 even if the seat 14 is rotated. That The second coupling part 106-2 can be fastened to the seat 14 and/or to the adjustment mechanism 28 in a non-rotatable manner. The first and second coupling parts 106-1 and 106-2 have claw elements in sections facing one another, which engage in a form-fitting manner with a pitch of 72° (corresponding to the number of arms 30) when the seat 14 - and thus also the adjustment mechanism 28 - is moved vertically to a lowest position.

Figure 9 illustrates the lowest position in which parts 106-1 and 106-2 are non-rotatably engaged with each other. In this way, relative rotation about a vertical axis is prevented. In other words, this means that a degree of freedom that is usually present in chair 10, namely that seat 14 can be rotated freely about its vertical axis, is omitted, which is desirable in order to put user 78 (not shown) in the previously defined sitting position (cf 5B).

Even the angle of inclination of the user 78 relative to the horizontal can be (optionally) predetermined in this way by a contour of the parts 106 being shaped accordingly, as illustrated in FIG. 9, which is a detailed perspective view from below indicates. FIG. 9 also makes it clear that the shape of the second part 106 determines the inclination of the seat 14 indices.

Modifications of various components of the system 59 are visualized in the following figures. It goes without saying that these modifications only ever relate to individual specific aspects, but they can be combined with one another in order to modify several aspects at the same time. For example, modified chair assemblies 70 may be combined with modified pedal assemblies 72, although the combination is not explicitly illustrated. Finally, the system 59 is modular and kit-like out forms.

Figure 10A shows a perspective view of a modified chair assembly 70' and a modified anti-rotation assembly 79'. The chair unit 70' is fixedly attached to a rod 82-1 of the frame 60. FIG. Other portions of frame 60 that implement connection to other components, such as pedal unit 72, are not shown in FIG. 10A, although they are present. The chair unit 70' comprises a profile 108 which is U-shaped in cross-section (cf. FIG. 10B) and which is open at the top, with an adjoining entry slope 110 so that the roller 24 can move in the coupling direction 98 in the U- Profile 108 can be pushed. The U-profile represents the receiving member 86, which is set up to increase two wheels 24 at the same time. The U-profile 108 also has an upwardly open recess 88 which positively receives rollers 24, as shown in FIG. 10B. Furthermore, a bottom portion of the U-profile 108 can be provided with two holes 90-1 and 90-2, which are arranged at a distance from the rolls 94 to one another. Holes 90-1 and 90-2 allow the weight of chair 10 and user 78 to be transferred into the floor without loading channel 108. The U-profile 108 can be made of metal, eg by means of extrusion or edging, and can be provided with side covers 112, which are preferably made of plastic and only one of which is shown in FIG. 10A.

The anti-rotation unit 79' also has one or two coupling parts 106-1 and 106-2. Coupling member 106-1 is a T-shaped bracket that attaches to channel 108 and engages seat 14 and/or recliner mechanism 28 (not shown) when seat 14 is lowered. The coupling part 106-2 is a (clamping) ring, e.g. with a 72° serration, which can be fastened to the gas spring 26 in a rotationally fixed manner.

The bar 82 may include a height scale 114 to secure the bar 82 to the pedal assembly 72 at an ergonomic spacing corresponding to the height of the user 78, as illustrated in FIG

The pedal unit 72 of FIG. 11 also includes a base plate 102, similar to the guide unit 77 of FIG. 6.

The pedal unit 72 of FIG. 11 also includes an adapter 116, preferably foot-operated, for fastening the rod 82 to the base plate 102. A pedal plate 118 is also provided, to which the pedal or pedals 64 can be fastened. The pedal plate 118 is mounted pivotably about a horizontally oriented pivot axis 120 . Fig. 12 shows a perspective view of another system 59 and Fig. 12B shows a sectional view along the line XIIB-XIIB in Fig. 12A.

The system 59 of Fig. 12 is identical to the system 59 of Fig. 11 with the exception of the chair unit 70''. The chair unit 70'' of Fig. 12 differs slightly from the chair unit 70' of Figs. 10 and 11. The 70" chair unit is also designed to accommodate two 24 castors. However, the indentations 88 for receiving the rollers 24 are formed differently. The depressions 88 are defined by a pivotably mounted entry slope 110' and a C-shaped element 122.

In a top view, the entry slope 110' is T-shaped and pivoted in the C-element 122 against a spring device 124, which is arranged in a middle section below the entry slope 110' and which the entry slope 110' at the top so that it can be lowered by foot pressure from the user 78 (not shown), see arrow 126.

The chair units 70"" and 70"" of Figures 13 and 14 are provided without spring means. The entry ramps 110 are rigid, i.e. not pivotable. In order to move the caster(s) 24 out of the receiving members 86, the chair 10 must be raised, slightly reducing comfort but not functionality. The receiving member 86 of FIG. 13 is designed to receive a single roll 24 in a form-fitting manner, whereas the receiving member 86 of FIG. 14 is designed to receive two rolls 24 (with a positive fit).

The chair unit 70""" of FIG. 15 interacts exclusively with the chair mechanism 28 and not with the rollers 24 or the gas spring 26.

The receiving member 86 has a recess 88 for positively receiving a

(Not shown) element of the chair mechanism 28 (not shown). Furthermore, a bolt 128 for closing the depression 88 can be provided. The locking bar 128 can be displaceable (see arrow 130) or pivotable (see arrow 132). Furthermore, projections 134 can be provided which (positively) engage in corresponding recesses (not shown) of the chair mechanism 28 in order to simultaneously implement the anti-rotation device.

16 shows a variant of the system 59 in which the receiving member 86 interacts with the gas spring 26. FIG. The chair 10 is thus fixed (exclusively) by the gas spring 26 . Fig. 16A is a perspective view, and Fig. 16B is a sectional view taken along line XVIB-XIVB in Fig. 16A.

The receiving member 86 of FIG. 16 has a pivotable retaining plate 134 which, in turn, has the depression 88 in the form of a hole, in which the gas spring 26 is captured in a form-fitting manner. The retaining plate is biased upwards by a spring device 124 and can be lowered vertically by a foot release device 136 in order to release the gas spring 26, see sectional view in FIG.

It should also be noted that a single base plate 102 is provided, which is so large that the chair 10 (not shown) with all the wheels 24 is in its fixed position on the plate 102 to the system 59 by the weight of the user 78 to fix alone. In this case, the fastening unit 75 can be dispensed with. The system 59 is therefore not fastened to the piece of furniture 11 but is fixed solely by the weight of the user 78 .

17 shows a fastening of the system 59 of FIG. 12 by means of the mounting plates 84 already mentioned above from below on the table 12 (not shown). The corresponding rods 82 are attached to the bottom plate 102 of the pedal unit 72 .

FIG. 18 shows a side view of a variant of the frame 60 that is set up to receive the steering wheel unit 74 by plugging it in below the table top 56, as is visualized as an example in FIG. 5B. REFERENCE LIST

10 (office or gaming) chair 70 chair unit

11 piece of furniture 72 pedal unit

12 (writing) table 74 steering wheel unit

14 seat (surface) 75 fastening unit

16 backrest 76 shift lever unit

18 base 77 guide unit

20 headrest 78 users

22 Armrest(s) 79 Anti-rotation unit

24 castor(s) 80 linkage

26 gas (pressure) spring 82 rod(s)

28 chair mechanism 84 mounting plate(s)

30 arms 86 pick-up link

32 pressure tube 88 recess

40 environment 90 hole

41 video/computer game system 92 sloping surface

42 computers 94 arm of 70

44 screen 96 pan axis

46 Keyboard 98 Pairing Direction

48 Mouse 97 pan movement

50 console 100 guide rail(s)

52 joystick 102 floor plate

54 frame of 12 104 end stop

56 table top 106 coupling part(s)

58 table leg(s) 108 U-profile

59 System 110 entry slope

60 frame 112 cover

62 steering wheel 114 height scale

64 pedal(s) 116 adapters

66 shifter 118 pedal plate Swivel axis C-element spring device foot pressure bar push direction swivel direction retaining plate foot release device

Claims

patent claims

A system (59) for temporarily fixing a chair (10) having a base (18) with chair rollers (24), in particular to a piece of furniture (11), such as a desk (12), while performing a Simulating a video game, the system (59) comprising: a chassis (60); and a chair unit (70) defining a fixing position in which the chair unit (70) is connected to the frame (60) and in which a position of the chair (10) is fixed, the chair unit (70) being set up releasably accommodate the base (18) of the chair (10) in the chair unit (70) while the video game simulation is being performed.

2. System according to claim 1, wherein the form fit between the chair unit (70) on the one hand and a gas spring (26) of the base (18) of the chair (10) and/or at least one, preferably two, of the chair castors (24) of the base (18) of the chair (10) is formed on the other hand when the chair (10) is moved by a user (78) from a freely movable, decoupled position along a predetermined coupling direction (98) into the fixing position.

3. System according to claim 2, wherein the chair unit (70) has a receiving member (86) with a recess (8) which is designed for positively receiving the gas spring (26) and/or the at least one chair roller (24).

The system of claim 3, wherein the receiving member (86) has an inclined surface (92) that rises in the predetermined coupling direction (98) and which is adjacent to the recess (88) in the predetermined coupling direction (98).

5. System according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the inclined surface (92) is pivotally mounted against a vertically oriented spring force about a pivot axis (96) which is oriented perpendicular to the given coupling direction (98).

6. System according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the form fit between tween the chair unit (70) and a chair mechanism (28) of the chair (10) is formed when the chair (10) by a user (78) from a freely movable, decoupled position along a predetermined coupling direction (98) is moved into the fi xing position.

7. System according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a fastening unit (75) which is connected to the frame (60) and which is adapted to attach the frame (60) firmly to the piece of furniture (11), in particular in that the frame (60) is braced in a non-positive manner within a cavity or intermediate space in the piece of furniture (11) or is firmly attached to a frame (54) of the piece of furniture (11).

8. System according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a pedal unit (72) having a, preferably pivotally mounted, Pe dalplatte (118) to which a pedal (64) can be fastened.

9. System according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a guide unit (77) arranged to bring at least one of the rollers (24) and/or an arm (30) into an end position by contact with the base (18). lead, which corresponds to the fixing position when the chair (10) is moved in the predetermined coupling direction (98) into the chair unit (70).

10. System according to claim 9, wherein the guide unit (77) has at least one guide rail (100), the at least one guide rail (100) being shaped in such a way that the chair (10) is constrained over its base (18) into the fixing position while the chair (10) is moved in the predetermined coupling direction (98) into the chair unit (70).

11. System according to claim 10, wherein two guide rails (100-1, 100-2) are provided, which viewed in the coupling direction (98) define an open angle between them.

12. System according to claim 10 or 11, wherein at least one of the guide rails (100-3) comprises an end stop (104) which also defines the fixing position.

13. System according to any one of claims 1 to 11, which further comprises an anti-rotation unit (79).

14. System according to claim 13, wherein the anti-rotation unit (79) is a claw coupling which has a first coupling part (106-1) and a second coupling part (106-2), the first coupling part (106-1) being set up to be fixed in a rotationally fixed manner to a gas spring (26), and the second coupling part (106-2) is set up to be fixed in a rotationally fixed manner to a chair mechanism (28), so that the coupling parts (106), which engage in one another in a form-fitting manner, can be released by lowering a seat (14th ) can be locked into one another so that they cannot rotate.

15. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the frame (60) has a base plate (102) which is dimensioned such that the chair (10) is completely constantly on the base plate (102) when the chair (10) is in the fixing position.

16. System according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a steering wheel assembly (74) adapted to permanently attach a steering wheel (62) thereto.

17. System according to claim 16, wherein the frame (60) is configured to receive the steering wheel unit (74) in a form-fitting manner when the steering wheel unit is plugged into the frame (60).