HK1129560A - Massage chair with storable foot massage device - Google Patents

Description

Massage chair capable of containing foot massage device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device.

Background

As a massage chair provided with such a foot massage device, for example, patent document 1 discloses a technique.

The massage chair has a backrest part at the rear part of a seat part, a foot massage device at the front part of the seat part, a massage mechanism for massaging the back of a user at the backrest part, and a lower limb massage mechanism for massaging the lower limbs of the user at the foot massage device. The backrest portion can be reclined back and forth, and the foot massage apparatus is swingably provided in front of the seat portion via the support member.

Such a massage chair is used not only for massage but also as a chair in many cases. In particular, in such a massage chair, a soft seat cushion is often built in a seat portion or the like, and a reclining function is provided in a backrest portion, so that the massage chair is also suitably used as a sofa.

However, in the foot massage device of patent document 1, since the holding groove is formed on the front surface, the lower limbs must be fitted into the holding groove even when the massage function is not used, and the free movement of the feet is restricted, and it is difficult to obtain a comfortable posture. In addition, it is also a cause of deteriorating the appearance of the chair.

Therefore, in order to avoid such a problem, the present applicant has developed a technique as in patent document 2.

The massage chair is provided with a push-pull mechanism which can move a foot massage device between a use position and a built-in position below a seat part, the push-pull mechanism is provided with guide rails arranged at two sides of the massage chair, a push-pull rod passing in and out along the guide rails, and a bottom frame plate connected on the push-pull rod, and the foot massage device is connected on the bottom frame plate through a pin.

Therefore, when the foot massage device is positioned at the use position, the front surface (massage surface) and the rear surface (foot resting surface) of the foot massage device are freely rotatably switched.

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2002-238963

Patent document 2: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2007-75590

However, there are various demands from users of the massage chair, and there are demands for "reverse switching between front and rear surfaces of the foot massage device is not necessary", for example. On the other hand, when the mechanism of patent document 2 is used to switch the front surface/rear surface of the foot massage device between reverse rotation, the structure is complicated, and the device is large in size and heavy, which leads to a problem of cost increase.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a massage chair which is a simple mechanism and in which a foot massage device is movable and can be housed.

In order to achieve the above object, the following technical means is adopted in the present invention.

That is, the massage chair capable of accommodating the foot massage device of the present invention comprises a seat part, a backrest part provided at the rear part of the seat part and incorporating the massage device, and the foot massage device provided at the front part of the seat part, wherein an advancing and retreating mechanism disposed below the seat part is directly connected to the upper part of the foot massage device; a rotating wheel rotating on the floor is arranged at the lower part of the foot massage device; when the advancing and retreating mechanism is extended forward, the foot massage device is extended to a position capable of massaging the lower limbs of the user, namely, a use position, in front of the seat part; when the advancing and retreating mechanism retreats backward, the foot massage device is stored in a storage position formed below the seat.

Preferably, the foot massage device located at the use position is in an upright state in which the bottom surface faces the floor and the surface for massaging the lower limbs faces forward; the foot massage device stored in the storage position is in a face-up state in which the bottom face faces forward, the front edge portion of the seat portion is flush with the front edge portion of the seat portion, and the surface of the massage leg faces upward.

The forward/backward moving mechanism may include a guide rail provided below the seat unit so as to face the front-rear direction, a traveling mechanism movable along the guide rail, and a rod body attached to the traveling mechanism in a forward projecting manner, wherein a tip end portion of the rod body is rotatably connected to a rear upper portion of the foot massage device about a left/right axis, and a rotating wheel that rotates on the floor is provided on the rear lower portion of the foot massage device.

Further preferably, the guide rail has a horizontal portion on a rear side and an arc portion of an upturned shape on a front side, and the foot massage device is located at the storage position when the travel mechanism moves to the horizontal portion of the guide rail and at the use position when the travel mechanism moves to the arc portion of the guide rail.

The traveling mechanism may include a traveling shaft pivotally supported on a base end side of the rod body in a left-right direction so as to be rotatable and having a gear at both end portions, and a driving device for driving the traveling shaft to rotate, wherein rack teeth engaged with the gear of the traveling shaft are provided on an upper side of the guide rail, the driving device drives the traveling shaft to rotate, and the gear moves on the rack teeth, and the traveling mechanism is movable in a front-rear direction along the guide rail.

Further, the travel mechanism may include a guide shaft which is disposed parallel to the travel shaft, is rotatably supported on a base end side of the rod body, and has both ends moving along the guide rail.

Further, the rod body may be inclined obliquely forward and downward when the foot massage device is in the storage position, and the left and right axes may be positioned at a position lower than a central portion of the foot massage device.

Further, the seat may have a pair of seat supporting portions for supporting the seat from left and right, and the guide rail may be provided between an outer surface portion of the foot massage device and an inner surface portion of the seat supporting portion.

The seat portion may have a reclining mechanism for changing the reclining angle of the backrest portion, and a pair of left and right holding grooves into which the lower limbs are inserted may be formed in the massage surface of the foot massage device, and the reclining mechanism may be disposed on the lower surface of the seat surface and may be disposed at a position where the reclining mechanism enters one of the holding grooves of the foot massage device when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position.

The drive device of the travel mechanism may be disposed on the travel shaft at a position where the drive device does not interfere with the reclining mechanism when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position.

In particular, it is preferable that a sensor unit for detecting whether or not the lower limbs of the user are positioned in the holding groove when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position is provided at the front portion of the seat unit and/or the foot massage device.

According to the massage chair of the present invention, the foot massage device can be moved, the foot massage device can be stored, and the user can freely move his or her feet even when the massage function is not used, so that the user can take a comfortable posture.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a front view of a massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device (a sectional view taken along line a-a in fig. 2, which is a use position).

Fig. 2 is a side view of a massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of fig. 2 (when the storage position is changed to the use position).

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line a-a of fig. 2 (storage position).

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a relationship between the foot massage apparatus and the lower limbs when the storage position is changed to the use position.

Description of the reference numerals

1 massage chair

2 seat part

3 foot part (seat support part)

4 back rest

5 foot massage device

6 holding groove

7 advancing and retreating mechanism

8 guide rail

9 advancing mechanism

10 rod body

11 guide rail forming part

12 gears

13 advancing shaft

14 drive device

15-shaft support shaft

16 rotating wheel

17 sensor

18 reclining mechanism

19 guide shaft

F floor

P storage position

U use position

H lower limbs of user

Detailed Description

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 to 4 show an embodiment of a massage chair 1 capable of incorporating a foot massage device according to the present invention.

The massage chair 1 includes a seat 2 and a pair of right and left legs 3 (seat support portions) that support the seat 2 at a predetermined height. A backrest 4 is provided at the rear of the seat 2. Further, a foot massage device 5 for massaging the lower limbs H (particularly, the calf) of the user is provided at the front portion of the seat 2.

In the following description, the left-right direction in fig. 1 is referred to as the front-rear direction in the actual device, and the up-down direction in fig. 1 is referred to as the up-down direction in the actual device. The direction of fig. 1 passing through the paper surface is referred to as the left-right direction in the actual apparatus. These directions coincide with the directions as viewed from the user sitting on the massage chair 1.

The seat 2 has a sufficient width to support the buttocks of the user from below, and is disposed so as to be stretched over a base member provided between a pair of left and right footrests 3. The lower end of the backrest portion 4 and the rear portion of the seat portion 2 are pivotally supported swingably in the front-rear direction, and can be reclined by a reclining mechanism 18 (linear actuator) disposed on the right side of the lower surface of the seat portion 2. A massage mechanism for the back, which performs massage or tapping massage, is built in the backrest 4 so as to be movable up and down.

The foot massage device 5 is disposed in front of the seat 2. The foot massage device 5 is formed in a substantially quadrangular shape in front view and a boot shape in side view. The front surface 5c of the foot massage device 5 is a massage surface, and a pair of left and right holding grooves 6, 6 for fitting and holding the lower limbs H are formed. A massage device for lower limbs for massaging is incorporated in the opposing surfaces (both sides of the lower limbs H) of the holding groove 6.

As a massage device for lower limbs, a massage is performed by swinging a plate member long in the longitudinal direction of the foot in the left-right direction, or by an air bag which is inflated and deflated by supplying and discharging air.

The foot massage device 5 is movable between a position, i.e., a use position, which is located in front of the seat 2 and can massage the lower limbs H of the user, and a space portion (a storage position P) formed below the seat 2.

That is, the advancing/retreating mechanism 7 is provided below the seat 2, and the advancing/retreating mechanism 7 is connected to the foot massage device 5. When the advancing-retreating mechanism 7 is advanced forward, the foot massage device 5 is advanced to the use position U, and when the advancing-retreating mechanism 7 is retreated rearward, the foot massage device 5 is stored in the storage position P.

The advancing-retreating mechanism 7 includes a guide rail 8 provided below the seat 2 so as to face in the front-rear direction, a movement mechanism 9 movable along the guide rail 8, and a rod body 10 attached to the movement mechanism 9 in a projecting manner.

Specifically, the plate-like guide rail forming portions 11 are attached to inner side walls of the pair of right and left leg portions 3, respectively. The guide forming portion 11 is formed with a concave groove portion (guide rail 8) having a horizontal portion on the rear portion side to the middle portion side and an upwardly raised circular arc portion on the front portion side. Rack teeth are formed on one side (upper side in the present embodiment) of the upper side or lower side of the rail 8 from the front end to the rear end. The guide rail 8 is located between the outer surface of the foot massage device 5 and the inner surface of the foot 3.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the advancing mechanism 9 has a traveling shaft 13 that faces the left-right direction and has gears 12 at both ends.

A drive device 14 for driving the traveling shaft 13 in forward and reverse rotation is provided in a middle portion of the traveling shaft 13 in the left-right direction. The driving device 14 includes an electric motor and a worm gear, and transmits a rotational driving force of the electric motor to the travel shaft 13.

The travel shaft 13 is laid under the seat so as to face the left-right direction, and gears 12 provided at both ends of the travel shaft 13 are fitted into the guide rail 8 and engaged with rack teeth on the upper side. The electric motor of the driving device 14 rotates to drive the travel shaft 13, thereby moving the gear 12 on the rack teeth and moving the travel mechanism 9 in the front-rear direction along the guide rail 8.

The travel mechanism 9 has a guide shaft 19 which is disposed parallel to the travel shaft 13, is pivotally supported on the base end side of the rod 10 so as to be rotatable, and has both ends slidably movable in the guide rail 8. The end of the guide shaft 19 slides on the other side (lower side in the present embodiment) of the upper side or lower side of the guide rail.

The long rod 10 is disposed inside the pair of left and right guide rail forming portions 11 and 11 so as to face the front-rear direction, and both end portions of the travel shaft 13 and the guide shaft 19 are pivotally supported at the base end portion of the rod 10 so as to be rotatable.

In this way, the travel shaft 13 and the guide shaft 19, that is, the two rods enter the guide rail 8, and the travel shaft 13 and the guide shaft 19 are fitted into the base end of the rod 10, so that the rod 10 can move along the guide rail 8 without vibration or rattling. Further, since the rack teeth are formed on the upper side edge of the guide rail 8, the meshing state between the gear 12 and the rack teeth is very good, and the foot massage device 5 can be smoothly moved in and out. If the rack teeth are formed on the lower side edge of the guide rail 8, the gear 12 may bite into the rack teeth and not rotate due to the load of the foot massage apparatus 5, but the above-described situation can be reliably avoided.

On the other hand, the distal end portion of the rod 10 is rotatably connected to the upper portion of the foot massage device 5 about the left and right shafts (shaft support shafts 15). The rotary wheels 16, 16 that rotate on the floor F are provided in a pair on the left and right sides below the rear surface 5b (the side opposite to the massage surface) of the foot massage device 5. The rotary wheels 16, 16 are rotatable on a floor F on which the massage chair is installed.

In other words, as shown in fig. 2, the leg portions 3 are provided in a shape hanging down from both the left and right sides of the seat portion 2 in a front view, the rail forming portions 11 are attached to the inner sides of the leg portions 3, the lever bodies 10 are provided on the inner sides of the rail forming portions 11, and the foot massage device 5 is provided so as to be sandwiched by the pair of left and right lever bodies 10, 10.

The operation of the foot massage device 5 having the above-described mechanism will be described.

First, as shown in fig. 4, when the foot massage device 5 is located at the storage position P, the foot massage device 5 is in a state in which the bottom surface 5a faces forward and is flush with the front edge portion of the seat 2, and the surface of the massage lower limbs H faces upward. In this state, the travel mechanism 9 is located at the rear side of the guide rail 8, i.e., at the horizontal portion, the rod 10 is inclined obliquely forward and downward, and the shaft support shaft 15 is located at a position lower than the central portion of the foot massage device 5.

From this state, the electric motor of the driving device 14 rotates forward to drive the traveling shaft 13, and the gear 12 moves on the rack teeth, and the traveling mechanism 9 moves forward along the rail 8, and pushes out the foot massage device 5 toward the front of the seat 2 via the rod 10 (from the state of fig. 4 to the state of fig. 3). At this time, the rotating wheels 16 rotate on the floor F, so that the foot massage device 5 is smoothly moved.

After that, as shown in fig. 1 through the state of fig. 3, when the traveling mechanism 9 moves to the front portion side of the guide rail 8, that is, the arc portion, the foot massage device 5 is located at the use position U. When the foot massage device 5 is located at the use position U, the lever body 10 is inclined obliquely upward in the forward direction, and the shaft support shaft 15 is located at a position higher than the center portion of the foot massage device 5. The foot massage device 5 located at the use position U is in a state in which the bottom surface 5a faces the floor F and the surface of the leg H faces forward. In the pair of left and right holding grooves 6 of the foot massage device 5 located at this position, the user can receive a massage by the massage mechanism for the lower limbs by inserting the user into the lower limbs H.

When the foot massage device 5 is stored, the electric motor is reversed and the travel mechanism 9 is moved in the backward direction along the guide rail 8, so that the foot massage device 5 can be stored in the storage space provided below the seat 2 via the rod body 10 as shown in fig. 1 → 3 → 4. When the foot massage device 5 is located at the storage position P, the bottom surface 5a of the foot massage device 5 does not protrude from the front end portion of the seat 2, so that a comfortable posture can be obtained for a "user who does not receive a massage" sitting on the massage chair 1, and the appearance of the massage chair 1 is also very beautiful.

At this time, since the reclining mechanism 18 is provided on the right side of the lower surface of the seat surface, it enters one of the holding grooves 6, 6 (the right holding groove), and the driving device 14 is positioned on the left side on the travel shaft 13, so that the reclining mechanism 18, the foot massage device 5, and the driving device 14 do not interfere with each other when the foot massage device 5 is moved to the storage position, and the foot massage device 5 can be reliably stored below the seat section 2.

As shown in fig. 5, in the massage chair 1 of the present embodiment, a sensor 17 formed of a limit switch is provided on the front end side of the seat 2 or in the holding groove 6. Even if the user stores the foot massage device 5 in the storage position P in a state where the user inserts the foot into the foot massage device 5, the user's foot responds to the sensor 17 and stops the drawing-in of the foot massage device 5 based on a signal from the sensor 17.

This can reliably prevent the occurrence of a problem such as injury to the lower limb H of the user.

As described above, the massage chair 1 capable of housing the foot massage device 5 according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.

The present invention is applicable to a foot massage device mounted on a massage chair, and also applicable to a sofa or a vehicle seat.

Claims (11)

1. A massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device, comprising a seat part, a backrest part provided at the rear part of the seat part and incorporating the massage device, and the foot massage device provided at the front part of the seat part,

the driving and reversing mechanism arranged below the seat part is directly connected with the upper part of the foot massage device,

a rotating wheel which rotates on the floor is arranged at the lower part of the foot massage device,

when the advancing/retreating means is extended forward, the foot massage device is extended forward of the seat section to a position where it can massage the lower limbs of the user,

when the advancing and retreating mechanism retreats backward, the foot massage device is stored in a storage position formed below the seat.

2. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 1,

the foot massage device in the use position is in a standing state in which the bottom surface faces the floor and the massage surface for massaging the lower limbs faces forward,

the foot massage device stored in the storage position is in a face-up state in which the bottom face faces forward and is flush with the front edge portion of the seat portion, and the surface of the massage leg faces upward.

3. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 1,

the advancing and retreating mechanism includes: a guide rail arranged below the seat part in a manner of facing to the front-back direction, a travel mechanism capable of moving along the guide rail, a rod body arranged on the travel mechanism in a protruding manner in the front direction,

the front end of the rod body is connected to the upper part of the rear part of the foot massage device in a manner of freely rotating around a left-right axis, and the lower part of the rear part of the foot massage device is provided with a rotating wheel rotating on the floor.

4. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 3,

the guide rail has a horizontal portion on a rear side and a raised arc portion on a front side,

when the traveling mechanism moves to the horizontal portion of the guide rail, the foot massage device is located at the storage position, and when the traveling mechanism moves to the arc portion of the guide rail, the foot massage device is located at the use position.

5. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 4,

the traveling mechanism includes: a travel shaft which is rotatably supported on the base end side of the rod body towards the left and right direction and is provided with gears at two end parts, and a driving device for driving the travel shaft to rotate,

rack teeth engaged with the gear of the traveling shaft are provided on the upper side of the guide rail,

the driving device drives the traveling shaft to rotate, so that the gear moves on the rack teeth, and the traveling mechanism moves freely in the front-rear direction along the guide rail.

6. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 5,

the travel mechanism includes a guide shaft disposed parallel to the travel shaft, rotatably supported on a base end side of the rod body, and having both ends moving along the guide rail.

7. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 3,

when the foot massage device is at the storage position, the rod body is inclined forward and downward, the left and right axes are at a position lower than the central part of the foot massage device,

when the foot massage device is in the use position, the rod body is inclined obliquely upward and frontward, and the left and right shafts are located at a position higher than the center portion of the foot massage device.

8. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 3,

the seat unit has a pair of seat unit supporting portions for supporting the seat unit from left and right sides,

the guide rail is provided between an outer surface of the foot massage device and an inner surface of the seat support.

9. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 2,

the seat part is provided with a reclining mechanism for changing the inclination angle of the backrest part,

a pair of left and right holding grooves into which the lower limbs are inserted are formed on the massage surface of the foot massage device,

the reclining mechanism is disposed on a lower surface of the seat surface, and is disposed in a position to be inserted into any one of the holding grooves of the foot massage device when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position.

10. The massage chair capable of housing a foot massage device as recited in claim 9,

the driving device of the traveling mechanism is disposed on the traveling shaft at a position where the driving device does not interfere with the reclining mechanism when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position.

11. The massage chair according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein a sensor unit is provided in the front portion of the seat unit and/or the foot massage device, the sensor unit detecting whether or not the lower limbs of the user are positioned in the holding groove when the foot massage device is moved to the storage position.