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Two-position desk chairTwo-position desk chair description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070063569, Two-position desk chair. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
FIELD [0001] The present invention pertains to office furniture; more particularly, the present invention pertains to an ergonomic chair which may be used in conjunction with a table or a chair. BACKGROUND [0002] In offices or study areas located in businesses, residences, or educational institutions, it is not uncommon to find workers or students seated in front of a computer screen for extended periods of time. Unfortunately, the chairs used with the desk or the table on which a computer is located do not properly position the user's body in the most comfortable position for the size or skeletal structure of a particular user. Even when a chair is approximately the correct size for the user of a computer, muscle fatigue is a common result of sitting in one position for long periods of time. [0003] When computers first became small enough to be placed on the desks of office workers, in home offices, or in study areas, those who studied ergonomics recommended the use of a backless chair on which a computer user was supported in a partial kneeling position by placing the user's knees on a first forward pad and the user's buttocks on a second rear pad. While such chairs may have provided better skeletal and muscular support, most computer users found these backless chairs uncomfortable for long periods of use. Accordingly, many computer users reverted to conventional chairs and simply assumed a variety of different positions in the conventional chairs to find more comfortable ways of sitting to combat the effects of joint and muscle fatigue. The health impact was that many office workers and computer users suffered from both muscular fatigue and joint ailments, particularly lower back ailments, from not having proper support for their backs while sitting for long periods of time in front of a computer screen. Such lower back ailments include low back pain and sciatica. [0004] Therefore, a need still remains in the art for an ergonomic chair usable by persons spending extended periods of time before a desk or a table--particularly those with chronic lower back ailments--that will provide skeletal and muscular support in different positions. SUMMARY [0005] A two-position ergonomic chair suitable for use over extended periods of time before a desk or a table that provides proper skeletal and muscular support in different positions is provided by the disclosed invention. [0006] The disclosed two-position ergonomic chair has a conventional back support, a seat, a base to support the seat, and a retractable knee cushion assembly. The base of the disclosed chair is built around a column or post. [0007] The disclosed two-position ergonomic chair includes a one-piece tiltable seat cushion having a front portion and a rear portion. Behind the rear portion of the tiltable seat cushion is a conventional, substantially vertical back support. Underneath the one-piece tiltable seat cushion is located a retractable knee cushion assembly. A mechanical system of support arms provides for movement of the knee cushion assembly from underneath the tiltable seat cushion to an extended position in front of the chair. Accordingly, a user may use the disclosed ergonomic chair as a conventional chair when the knee cushion assembly is located under the tiltable seat cushion. When the knee cushion assembly is moved out from under the chair to the extended position in front of the chair, the user may assume a partial kneeling position by placing the user's knees on the knee cushion assembly as the user's buttocks remain supported by the tilted seat cushion. When the user desires to return to a conventional sitting position, the knee cushion assembly is moved back under the seat cushion, and the seat cushion is returned to a level position. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES [0008] A better understanding of the ergonomic two-position desk chair of the present invention may be had by reference to the drawing figures wherein: [0009] FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the ergonomic two-position desk chair of the present invention with the knee cushion assembly retracted under the tiltable seat cushion; [0010] FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the ergonomic two-position desk chair of FIG. 1 with the knee cushion assembly extended and the seat cushion tilted; [0011] FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are side elevational views of the ergonomic two-position desk chair illustrating the changes between FIG. 1 and FIG. 2; and [0012] FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the ergonomic two-position desk chair. DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS [0013] As may be seen by a comparison of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the disclosed two-position ergonomic desk chair 10 provides a user the opportunity for assuming two supported body positions. In FIG. 1, the user 100 is in a conventional sitting position with the legs 102 supported by the seat cushion 20 and the substantially vertical back support 40 in close proximity to the user's back 104. The knee cushion assembly 60 is stowed beneath the seat cushion 20. In the seated position, shown in FIG. 1, the low back muscles are stagnant. [0014] In FIG. 2, the knee cushion assembly 60 has been extended out in front of the seat cushion 20, providing a support on which the user may rest the user's knees 106. The user's buttocks 108 remain on the seat cushion 20 which has been moved to a tilted position. In this position, the user's back 104 has been moved away from the substantially vertical back support 40, and the stabilizer muscles in the low back are activated. By moving a lever 90 located near the user's hand 110, the configuration of the disclosed two-position chair 10 may be easily changed between the configurations, shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The lever locks by causing it to have a travel path which requires lever 90 to be first pushed inward before the lever may be moved up or down by the user 100. [0015] A better understanding of the construction of the disclosed two-position ergonomic desk chair 10 may be had by an observation of the movement of the ergonomic chair between configurations, as shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C. Support for the ergonomic chair is provided by a base assembly 30. The base assembly 30 in the preferred embodiment includes a plurality of substantially horizontal support arms 32 on which are located optional rollers 34 to enable the chair 10 to roll around. Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that a variety of different base configurations may be used without departing from the scope of the invention. Opposite the optional rollers 34 on the substantially horizontal arms 32 is a central post or column 36. This central post or column 36 provides both support for the tiltable seat cushion 20 and the mechanism 62 which enables movement of the knee cushion 64 from a stowed position to a position in front of the tiltable seat cushion 20. If desired, the central post 36 may be extendable to adjust the vertical location of the seat cushion 20 with respect to the floor. If desired, a swivel mount well known to those of ordinary skill in the art may be used to connect the top of the central post 36 to the bottom 24 of the seat cushion 20. [0016] Extending outwardly from the front 66 of the knee cushion 64 is a retractable floor support 68. In the stowed position, as shown in FIG. 3A, the retractable floor support 68 is tucked under the tiltable seat cushion 20. When the lever 90 on the side of the chair 10 is pushed in and down, as shown in FIG. 3B, the knee cushion 64 moves out from under the front 26 of the tiltable seat cushion 20, thus extending the retractable floor support 68 out between the user's legs 102. In FIG. 3C, the retractable floor support 68 has reached the limit of its travel and extends downwardly in front of the horizontal support arms 32 of the base assembly 30 and contacts the floor. This contact of the retractable floor support 68 with the floor enables the weight of the user 100 resting on the knee cushion 64 to be supported by the floor on which the two-position ergonomic desk chair 10 rests. [0017] By a comparison of the position of the seat cushion shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C, it may be seen that, by the downward movement of the lever 90 on the side of the chair 10, the rear portion 22 of the tiltable seat cushion 20 is elevated. This movement of the tiltable seat cushion 20 provides a forward tilt, of about 24.degree. in the preferred embodiment, to the seat cushion 20. When the user 100 tires of the partial kneeling position provided when the knee cushion 64 has been extended in front of the seat cushion 20, the configuration of the ergonomic chair 10 can be changed back to that of a conventional chair by activating the lever 90 on the side of the chair 10. This lever action pulls the retractable floor support 68 away from the floor and brings the knee cushion 64 back to a position underneath the tiltable seat cushion 20. At the same time the knee cushion 20 is moving back under the tiltable seat cushion 20, the rear portion 22 of the tiltable seat cushion is lowered. [0018] In the preferred embodiment, a support piece 70 attached to the base assembly 30 to provide a mounting for the back support 40. Additionally, in the preferred embodiment, a pair of arms 72 is provided which extend outwardly from the back support 40 when mounted to the bottom 24 of the seat cushion 20. If desired, the back support 40 can be connected directly to the arms 72 and mounted to an extension of the support used to position the arms on either side of the seat cushion 20. In an alternate embodiment, the support piece 70 may include an adjustment for positioning the back support at a variety of different angles with respect to the seat cushion. [0019] A still better understanding of the construction of the mechanism which enables the ergonomic two-position chair 10 of the present invention to move between configurations enabling the user to be in a conventional sitting posture and a partial kneeling position may be had by reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B, 3C, and FIG. 4. Continue reading about Two-position desk chair... Full patent description for Two-position desk chair Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Two-position desk chair patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Two-position desk chair or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Armchair folding system Next Patent Application: Height adjusting device for car seat Industry Class: Chairs and seats ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Two-position desk chair patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 0.1107 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Novartis , Pfizer , Philips , Polaroid , Procter & Gamble , 174 |
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