This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2021-0187942, filed on Dec. 27, 2021, which application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates a massage device and, more particularly, to a massage device which can be installed on a seat.
Massage has been widely used since old times to relieve body fatigue and help blood flow by kneading, pressing or tapping the body. In recent years, in addition to the massage provided by a massagist, various massage machines have been developed so that massage by a device is also used.
In a limited space, such as the inside of a vehicle, the human body moves less. Besides, as driving time increases, fatigue builds up on a driver or an occupant. Accordingly, a massage device is applied to a vehicle, such as a vehicle seat.
For example, a massage device using an air cell or a cylinder-type DC motor is installed in a seat. Since such a massage device lacks speed and strength, it does not sufficiently function as a massage device.
The present disclosure has been made in an effort to solve the above problem, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a massage device capable of providing an excellent massage function.
The object of the present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned object, and other objects not mentioned can be clearly understood to those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains (hereinafter referred to as ‘those skilled in the art’) from the following description.
In order to achieve the object of the present disclosure, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a massage device including: a striking unit; a driving unit providing a driving force for driving the striking unit; and an operation unit configured to convert a rotation force provided by the driving unit into a linear motion to linearly move the striking unit.
In order to achieve the object of the present disclosure, another embodiment of the present disclosure provides a massage device mounted in a seat of a vehicle, including: a striking unit; a driving unit providing a driving force for driving the striking unit; an operation unit configured to convert a rotation force provided by the driving unit into a linear motion to linearly move the striking unit; and a controller configured to supply power to the driving unit and control a rotation speed of the driving unit on the basis of an input from a user or collected vehicle speed information of the vehicle.
According to the present disclosure, a massage device which provides an excellent massage functionality is provided.
The effect of the present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned effect, and other effects not mentioned can be clearly recognized to those skilled in the art from the following description.
Specific structural or functional descriptions presented in exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are only exemplified for the purpose of describing the exemplary embodiments according to the concept of the present disclosure, and the exemplary embodiments according to the concept of the present disclosure can be carried out in various forms. In addition, the exemplary embodiments should not be interpreted as being limited to the exemplary embodiments described in the present specification, and should be understood as including all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present disclosure.
Meanwhile, in the present disclosure, terms such as first and/or second can be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited to the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from other components, but for example, a first component can be referred to as a second component, and similarly, the second component can also be referred to as the first component, without departing from the scope according to the concept of the present disclosure.
When a component is referred to as being “connected” or “coupled” to another component, it should be understood that the components can be directly connected or coupled to each other, but still another component can also exist therebetween. On the other hand, when a component is referred to as being “directly connected to” or “in direct contact with” another component, it should be understood that another component does not exist therebetween. Other expressions for describing the relationship between components, that is, expressions such as “between” and “directly between” or “adjacent to” and “directly adjacent to” should be also interpreted in the same manner.
Throughout the specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same elements. The terms used in the present specification are for the purpose of describing the exemplary embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. In the present specification, the singular form also includes the plural form unless otherwise specified in the phrase. “Comprises” and/or “comprising” used in the specification specifies the presence of the mentioned component, step, operation, and/or element, and does not exclude the presence or the addition of one or more other components, steps, operations, and/or elements.
Hereinafter, various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
According to the present disclosure, by providing a massage device to which a striking method is applied, it is possible to improve blood flow in the pelvis, waist, etc., of a seat occupant and ultimately effectively reduce the fatigue of the seat occupant.
The striking unit 10 directly provides a massage. The striking unit 10 may provide a massage to a target part through a striking motion. The striking unit 10 may have various shapes. As illustrated in
The driving unit 20 provides a driving force for the striking unit 10 to execute a striking motion. In an implementation, the driving unit 20 is a direct current (DC) motor. In an implementation, the driving unit 20 is a brushless direct current (BLDC) motor. In particular, when a brushless DC motor is used, a frequency and a displacement may be finely adjusted. The driving unit 20 may be supplied with power from the power unit 30 which supplies power.
The operation unit 40 performs a function of converting a driving force by the driving unit 20 into a striking motion of the striking unit 10. According to an implementation of the present disclosure, the operation unit 40 may include an eccentric shaft 41, a tubular part 42, a bearing 43, a slide shaft 44, a pin member 45, a guide 46 and a fixture 47.
As illustrated in
The tubular part 42 is coupled to an end of the eccentric shaft 41. The tubular part 42 is connected to the eccentric shaft 41 to convert a rotational motion of the eccentric shaft 41 into a vertical motion. In an implementation, the bearing 43 may be interposed between the eccentric shaft 41 and the tubular part 42. The bearing 43 performs a driving role so that an eccentric rotation is smoothly carried out.
The slide shaft 44 is connected to the tubular part 42. One end of the slide shaft 44 is connected to the tubular part 42, and the other end of the slide shaft 44 is connected to the striking unit 10. The slide shaft 44 performs a function of transferring a vertical motion of the tubular part 42 to the striking unit 10.
Coupling portions 142 are defined on the tubular part 42. The slide shaft 44 is connected to the coupling portions 142. In an implementation, the coupling portions 142 are portions which project radially outward of the tubular part 42 at both ends of the tubular part 42, and the slide shaft 44 is inserted and fixed between the coupling portions 142. In an implementation, the pin member 45 may be coupled through the coupling portions 142 and the slide shaft 44.
The guide 46 is defined on the outer circumference of the slide shaft 44. In an implementation, the guide 46 is a linear bushing. The guide 46 performs a function of guiding an upward and downward motion of the slide shaft 44. The guide 46 may be fixed to the massage device 1, and the slide shaft 44 may linearly move in the guide 46. In an implementation, the guide 46 is fixed by the fixture 47. The fixture 47 may be fixedly coupled to the casing of the driving unit 20 or a housing 50 of the massage device 1. The fixture 47 may include the guide 46 therein to fix the guide 46.
The massage device 1 may further include the housing 50. The housing 50 accommodates the driving unit 20, and mounts the striking unit 10 and the operation unit 40. In addition, the housing 50 may mount the massage device 1 to a mounting target.
According to an embodiment, a damping member 60 is defined. The damping member 60 may be disposed between the driving unit 20 and the housing 50 to reduce the vibration generated in the driving unit 20. In an implementation, the damping member 6o may be made of a rubber material.
As illustrated in
The controller 70 may be configured to be able to communicate with the external devices and systems. For example, the controller 70 is configured to be able to communicate with a vehicle including a seat on which the massage device 1 is installed. According to an implementation of the present disclosure, the controller 70 is configured to be able to communicate with a driver assistance system of a vehicle, such as a vehicle lane departure warning system and a front/rear collision avoidance system. When occurrence of a dangerous situation is recognized by the driver assistance system, the controller 70 may drive the massage device 1 to more effectively inform the occurrence of the dangerous situation. Furthermore, in an example, the controller 70 is configured to collect vehicle speed information of a vehicle. The controller 70 may adjust a rotation speed of the driving unit 20 on the basis of the collected vehicle speed information. By adjusting a rotation speed of the driving unit 20 on the basis of rotation speed information of the driving unit 20 defined in advance according to vehicle speed conditions, the controller 70 controls the massage performance felt by a seat occupant to be maintained the same.
The operation of the massage device 1 will be described below with reference to
The distance between the highest point and the lowest point of the striking unit 10 may be determined by the eccentric distance e between the center O′ of the drive shaft of the driving unit 20 and the center O of the eccentric shaft 41. Referring back to
As illustrated in
The massage device 1 of the present disclosure may be installed in a seat 400.
Referring to
The side members 415 are disposed on both sides, respectively, of the seat back frame 410. Both the side members 415 are connected by the lower cross member 417 at the lower ends thereof, and are connected by the upper cross pipe 411 and the upper cross member 413 at the upper ends thereof. Optionally, the middle cross pipe 419 may be horizontally disposed in the middle of the seat back frame 410 to secure rigidity. In an implementation, the massage device 1 according to the present disclosure may be mounted on the lower cross member 417 on which the lumbar of an occupant seated on the seat 400 is positioned. In another implementation, the massage device 1 may be mounted on the upper cross member 413.
According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the massage device 1 is configured to be movable on a mounting target or the seat back frame 410. As illustrated in
Heretofore, it has been described that the massage device 1 according to the present disclosure is applied to a vehicle seat. However, the massage device 1 according to the present disclosure may be installed not only on the seat, footrest, legrest, headrest and other cushion parts of a vehicle but also on a seat, footrest, legrest, etc., not for a vehicle, and may be applied to an office chair or a home sofa. It is possible to provide a massage function to a chair cheaper than an existing massage chair.
According to the present disclosure, a striking-type massage device with improved massage performance is provided. In case of the existing air cell massage device, it has been known that massage strength of the air cell massage device is weak. However, according to the present disclosure, by utilizing a BLDC motor and providing striking type massage, improved massage performance is provided compared to the existing pneumatic air cell massage device.
In addition, the existing massage devices require a corrugated pipe and so forth for damping during an eccentric motion, and due to this fact, problems, such as loss of a vibration force in a vertical direction, increase in noise and disadvantages in securing a space, are caused. However, since the massage device of the present disclosure has a structure which does not require a corrugated pipe, a compact package may be provided and noise may be reduced.
The aforementioned present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned exemplary embodiment and the accompanying drawings, and it will be apparent by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains that various substitutions, modifications, and changes can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present disclosure.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10-2021-0187942 | Dec 2021 | KR | national |