Claims
- 1. A human combined seat and torso support apparatus on which a person can support his/her body while in a sitting position and still perform tasks, comprising:
- a. a main frame;
- b. a seat mounted on seat support means to said main frame in a near horizontal orientation;
- c. a chest support platform dimensioned to engage and support a portion of the torso of the person primarily in the area of the rib cage above the abdomen and having a peripheral edge thereof shaped to facilitate unimpeded arm movement by the person when the person's torso is supported on the platform; and
- d. platform support means coupled to said platform and positioning said platform above and proximate a side of said seat in a near vertical orientation, said support means supporting said platform and a portion of the weight of the person's torso in a stable position permitting relaxation of the person's back muscles and alignment of the spinal column while seated on said seat.
- 2. The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein,
- said seat support means is formed for mounting of said seat to said frame for sliding movement of said seat with respect to said frame along an upwardly concaved arcuate path having a radius of curvature centered at approximately the center of radiation of the pelvis of the person while the person is seated on said seat.
- 3. The apparatus as defined in claim 1 or 2, and
- a shin support platform mounted to said frame for movement between a deployed position below said seat supporting the person's shins while seated on said seat and a stored position for unimpeded manipulation of the person's legs while seated on the seat.
- 4. A pelvic tilt seat which allows free rotation of the pelvis of a person about a generally horizontal axis in forward and backward directions to allow adjustment of the position of the buttocks of the person in relation to the natural position of the spine for a given generally fixed position of the person's torso, comprising:
- a. a main frame;
- b. a seat dimensioned to engage and support a seated person thereon; and
- c. sliding seat support means mounting said seat to said frame for movement along an arcuate path which is upwardly concaved and has a center of curvature proximate the center of rotation of the pelvis of a person seated on the seat, said seat support means being further formed for sliding movement of said seat along said path while the person is supported on said seat.
- 5. A method of supporting the body of a person in a seated position with the upper body of the person oriented in a near vertical but forwardly tilted orientation, the method comprising the steps of:
- a. supporting the person's buttocks for sliding movement in fore and aft directions on seat means mounted for sliding movement in a plane generally transverse to the person's upper body; and
- b. supporting the person's chest by a peripherally unencumbered support platform, with said platform being supported in a stable position near vertical but forwardly tilted position permitting relaxation of the person's back muscles while seated on said seat means and permitting fore and aft adjustment of said seat means while the person's upper body is supported by said platform.
- 6. A method of supporting a person while seated comprising the steps of:
- a. positioning under the person's buttocks a supporting platform; and
- b. supporting said platform for movement along an upwardly curved path having a center of curvature proximate the axis of rotation of the pelvis of the person seated on said platform, said supporting step further including supporting said platform for sliding movement along said path while the person's weight is supported on said platform.
- 7. The apparatus as defined in claim 3 wherein,
- said shin support platform is mounted for adjustment of at least one of the height of said shin support platforms below said seat, the distance of said shin support platform forwardly and rearwardly with respect to said seat and the angle of said shin support platform with respect to said seat when said shin support platform is in said deployed position.
- 8. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 4 wherein,
- said seat support means includes a channel defining element having an arcuate guide slot therein, and a guided member slidably mounted in said slot, said channel defining member being carried by one of said seat and said frame and said guided member being carried by a remainder of said seat and said frame.
- 9. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 8 wherein,
- said slot in said channel defining member includes a support surface for sliding support of said guided element thereon which is substantially horizontally oriented over the length of said slot.
- 10. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 4, and
- means for selectively applying a friction force to vary the force required to produce sliding movement of said seat along said arcuate path.
- 11. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 4 and in combination therewith,
- a torso support means mounted for support of the torso of the user while seated on said seat, said torso support means being tilted in a slightly forward direction from vertical.
- 12. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 11 wherein,
- said torso support means is mounted to said frame for adjustment of at least one of the height above said seat at which the user's torso is engaged, the distance in front of said seat at which the user's torso is engaged, and the angle with respect to the vertical at which the user's torso is engaged.
- 13. The pelvic tilt seat as defined in claim 11 wherein,
- said torso support means is mounted to said frame for adjustment of all of the height above, distance in front of, and angle of, said torso support means.
- 14. An ergonomic chair including a frame, a torso support platform mounted to the frame in a stable position and dimensioned and shaped to engage and support a portion of the user's torso primarily in the area of the rib cage and having a peripheral edge shaped to facilitate unimpeded arm movement, a seat mounted to said frame and formed and dimensioned for support of the user's buttocks thereon, wherein the improvement in said chair comprises:
- said seat is mounted to said frame inclined in a direction tilting said seat toward said torso support platform, and
- said torso support platform is mounted to said frame to provide torso support in a plane substantially normal to the plane of said seat whereby said torso support platform can be used to support the chest of the user when the user is seated on said seat and facing said torso support platform and can be used to support the back of the user when the user is seated on said seat and facing away from said torso support platform.
- 15. The ergonomic chair as defined in claim 14 wherein,
- at least one of said seats and said torso support platform is mounted for rotation about a vertical axis to enable selective support of the user's chest and back by said torso support platform without leaving said seat.
- 16. The ergonomic chair as defined in claim 14 wherein,
- said torso support platform is mounted to said frame in spaced relation to said seat to define a clearance therebetween dimensioned for positioning of the legs and knees of the user between said platform and said seat.
- 17. The apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein,
- said platform support means is formed for all of: pivoting of said platform about a horizontally oriented axis, adjustment of the height of said platform with respect to said seat, and varying of the distance in front of said seat, with said platform support means being formed to accomplish each of said pivoting, adjustment and varying independently of the other.
- 18. The apparatus as defined in claim 17 wherein,
- said platform support means includes means for selectively locking said platform against each of pivoting, adjustment of the height and varying of the distance.
- 19. The method as defined in claim 5 wherein,
- the step of supporting the person's buttocks is accomplished by supporting said seat means for sliding movement along a curved path while the person is seated on said seat means with the path having a center of curvature proximate the center of rotation of the person's pelvis.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation application of the patent application entitled "Support Assembly for Worker" which has the same inventor, filed Dec. 31, 1984, with Ser. No. 687,921, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (14)
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
687921 |
Dec 1984 |
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