Chairs

Abstract

A chair which has a seat portion and a backrest portion which are mounted on a wheeled/castered base support, there being means for adjusting the height and the inclination of the seat parts/backrest portion as a unit the chair being provided with two or more of the following features: a) armrests which are adjustable in height and in relation to the seat/backrest unit; b) an adjustable lumbar support; c) a pair of laterally adjustable pelvic constraints; d) a pair of laterally adjustable thigh abductors; e) an adjustable headrest; f) a pair of vertically and laterally adjustable footrests; g) a pair of laterally adjustable head constraints to constrain an occupants head in a lateral direction; h) a detachable tray.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to chairs.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] People who are physically disabled or suffer from neurodegenerative diseases, muscle or bone wasting diseases and the like can be helped by the use of special chairs. With such people it is often advisable or necessary to restrict or predetermine their seating position in order to aid recovery or to facilitate therapy. It is also desirable to prevent such people, particularly children, from adopting physiologically undesirable seating configurations. Chairs are available that provide some means for providing medically relevant restrictions on the posture or position of an occupant, typically a child. For convenience such chairs will be referred to as “therapeutic chairs”. The present invention is connected with providing a therapeutic chair that has a more comprehensive range of adjustments/constraints than those of the prior art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0003] According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a chair which has a seat portion and a backrest portion which are mounted on a wheeled/castered base support, there being means for adjusting the height and the inclination of the seat parts/backrest portion as a unit, the chair being provided with a pair of laterally adjustable thigh abductors.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] How the invention may be carried out will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0005] FIG. 1 is a perspective front view of one embodiment of the invention;

[0006] FIG. 2 is a perspective rear view of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0007] FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the chair in a second configuration;

[0008] FIG. 4 is a fragmentary enlarged view showing the vertical or height adjustment of the chair as a whole;

[0009] FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the headrest of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0010] FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the lumbar support of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0011] FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing one armrest of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0012] FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the parallelogram linkage associated with the height adjustment shown in FIG. 4;

[0013] FIG. 9 is a fragmentary enlarged view of one of the pair of hip restraints of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0014] FIG. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the torso restraints of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0015] FIG. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary view of one of the two footrests of the chair of FIG. 1;

[0016] FIG. 12 is an enlarged fragmentary view of elbow constraints;

[0017] FIG. 13 is a fragmentary perspective view of a tray attachment for fitting to the chair shown in FIG. 1;

[0018] FIG. 14 is a view of the underside of the tray attachment of FIG. 13;

[0019] FIG. 15 is a fragmentary enlarged view of one of the adjustment devices used in the chair of FIG. 1; and

[0020] FIG. 16 is a sectional view of the base 29 of FIG. 2.

FIGS. 1 AND 2

[0021] These figures show the overall construction of a chair according to the present invention, with the exception of the optional tray which is shown in FIGS. 13 and 14.

[0022] The chair of FIGS. 1 and 2 will now be described in general terms and then with reference to the specific adjustable features which are shown in more detail in FIGS. 3 to 12 and 15.

[0023] The chair comprises a seat portion 10, a backrest portion 11, a lumber portion 12 and armrests 13a, 13b.

[0024] It also has a variety of other features all of which are adjustable and which will be described later.

[0025] The seat as a whole is mounted on a horizontal support frame 14 which is essentially of I-shaped configuration in plan and consists of four arms 14a, 14b, 14c and 14d. The support frame 14 has four ground engaging castors 15a, 15b, 15c and 15d, the rear two 15b, 15c of which are provided with releasable brakes.

[0026] The frame 14 has mounted on it a first upstanding pillar 16. The pillar 16 serves as a mounting at its lower end for a pedal 17 and at its upper end for one of the ends of a parallelogram linkage 18. The other ends of the linkage 18 are connected to a second pillar 19 the upper end of which is secured to the underside of the seat portion 10.

[0027] A first hydraulic strut 20 is located within the first pillar 16 and has its bottom end connected to the pivotal pedal 17 and its top end connected to the parallelogram linkage 18 through a yoke 21.

[0028] The purpose of the parallelogram linkage 18 is to enable the second pillar 19 and thus the seat 10 mounted at its top end to be moved vertically as indicated by the arrow A as a result of the arcuate movement indicated by the arrow B.

[0029] The purpose of the pedal 17 is twofold. The first purpose is to enable the first hydraulic strut 20 to in effect be deactivated by depression of the pedal in order to allow the height of the seat to be adjusted. The second purpose is to provide a reaction point for the lifting or lowering of the seat by a person pulling upwardly or pushing downwardly on a handle 22 which is mounted at the top end of a post 28.

[0030] The connection between the upper end of the second pillar 19 and the underside of the seat portion 10 enables the latter to pivot with respect to the pillar 19 in order to change the inclination of the seat as a whole, as indicated by the arrow C.

[0031] This pivotal movement is controlled by a second hydraulic strut 23 which is controlled by a lever 24. In order to raise or lower the seat the pedal 17 is first depressed in order to in effect deactivate the first hydraulic strut 20, the seat as a whole then being either raised or lowered by lifting or pressing on the handle 22 respectively.

[0032] Having described the basic construction of the chair and the way in which the height and inclination of the seat can be adjusted there will now follow descriptions of the other features of the chair which are illustrated in the drawings.

[0033] FIG. 5 illustrates a headrest 26 which is adjustably mounted at 27 to the top of the post 28 which is adjustably mounted at its lower end to a box 29. The adjustable connection between the lower end of the post 28 and the box 29 is shown in more detail in FIG. 16.

[0034] The basic seat structure 10, 11, 12 previously described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 is provided with a variety of adjustable arrangements the purpose of which is to support, constrain or restrict the seating position or movement of the occupant of the chair. These adjustable arrangements will now be described.

[0035] The position or movement of the occupant on the seat portion 10 can be determined or constrained by means of two pelvic lateral constraint members 30a and 30b as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Each of these pelvic lateral constraint members 30a and 30b can be moved towards or away from one another as indicated by the arrow D in FIG. 9. In addition each of the constraint members 30a, 30b can be pivoted horizontally as indicated by the arrow E by means of the adjuster 31 as shown in FIG. 9.

[0036] Lateral shoulder constraints 32a and 32b are provided. Each lateral shoulder constraint 32a, 32b is moveable in the directions of the arrows F and G respectively by means of slidable/lockable adjusters 33 in order to adjust the transverse distance between the two head constraints, as indicated in FIG. 10.

[0037] The shoulder constraints 32a and 32b are mounted directly into the back of the backrest 11 by means of bolts.

[0038] The chair is provided with a harness arrangement 34 and a lap belt 35.

[0039] The harness arrangement 34 consists of two optional shoulder straps 34a and a chest strap 34b.

[0040] The shoulder straps 34a are separate from the chest strap 34b, the latter being provided with a releasable buckle 36, a similar buckle 37 being provided to interconnect the two parts of the lap belt 35. The shoulder straps 34a are interconnected by an adjuster strap 34c the length of which can be varied by virtue of a Velcro (RTM) connection.

[0041] A very significant and important part of this embodiment is the provision of an arrangement, indicated at 38, for enabling the occupant's legs to be moved apart at the occupants thighs, this being known as abduction.

[0042] The fully closed position of the arrangement 38 is illustrated in FIG. 1 and its fully opened position is illustrated in FIG. 3.

[0043] Each of the padded and resilient elements 38a and 38b is mounted on an associated frame 39a and 39b respectively.

[0044] Adjustable footrests 40a and 40b are adjustable on L-shaped brackets 48a and 48b mounted at the lower ends of the two frames 39a and 39b respectively, by means of adjusters 41a and 41b respectively and also adjusters 42a and 42b (FIG. 11).

[0045] The footrests are provided with heal straps 43a and instep straps 43b and toe straps 43c to hold the occupant's feet in a good position.

[0046] This embodiment is provided with a detachable tray 44 shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. The tray is provided with two turn button locking mechanisms 44a and 44b on its underside which are designed to engage holes 45 in the armrests 13a and 13b.

[0047] The topside of the tray K is provided with an optional chest pad 46 and lip members 47 to prevent items on the tray from sliding off it.

[0048] FIG. 12 illustrates an arrangement of two elbow constraints 59a and 59b. The purpose of the elbow constraints is to prevent the occupant's elbows from moving backwards and off the rear edge of the tray 44.

[0049] An adjuster mechanism having the construction of those illustrated in FIGS. 5, 6, 9, 11 and 12 is shown in detail in FIG. 15.

[0050] It consists of a base member 49, a bolt 52, an adjustable clamp member 50 and an Allen socket 51 in the head of the bolt 52 by which the arrangement can be tightened or loosened.

[0051] The linear and angular/pivotal adjustments that are provided at each of the adjustment points are indicated by the linear and arcuate arrows respectively in each of the relevant figures of the drawings.

[0052] The chair described above with reference to the accompanying drawings thus provides an almost infinite variety of adjustments so that the chair as a whole can be finely adjusted to suit a particular occupant, typically a child suffering from a neurodegenerative/muscle/bone wasting disease, cerebral palsy or the like.

[0053] The particularly therapeutic feature of the chair is that it facilitates a child being supported in a position which inhibits reflex or involuntary movements caused by their condition and also facilitates improved muscle tone in children with very low tone (floppy children).

[0054] In seating the most important thing is to achieve a hip position which reduces reflex activity and promotes muscle tone improvement and symmetry. In this chair the angle at the hips and many other combinations can be achieved as well as offering an enormous range of hip abducted positions. This means that the chair can provide the ideal sitting base/hip position for most children

Claims

1. A chair which has a seat portion and a backrest portion which are mounted on a wheeled/castered base support, there being means for adjusting the height and the inclination of the seat parts/backrest portion as a unit, the chair being provided with a pair of laterally adjustable thigh abductors.

2. A chair as claimed in claim 1 in which the thigh abductors are mounted on a frame which is secured at one end to the seat portion and which has other ends on which the footrests are adjustably mounted.

3. A chair as claimed in claim 1 in which the support frame carries a first pillar on which is pivotally mounted one end of a parallelogram linkage the other end of which is pivotally connected to a second pillar which carries the seat portion so that the parallelogram linkage allows the height of the seat portion to be adjusted in relation to the support.

4. A chair as claimed in claim 3 in which the first pillar has a pedal pivotally mounted thereon and a first hydraulic strut which when in a locked condition locks the parallelogram linkage and when set in an unlocked condition by depression of the pedal enables the height of the seat to be adjusted by allowing pivotal movement of the parallelogram linkage.

5. A chair as claimed in claim 3 in which there is a second hydraulic strut connected between the second pillar and the seat portion to lock the seat portion in relation to its tilt adjustment, the second hydraulic strut being releasable to enable the tilt angle of the seat portion to be adjusted in relation to the base support.

6. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with armrests which are adjustable in height and in relation to the seat/backrest unit.

7. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with a pair of laterally adjustable pelvic constraints.

8. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with a pair of vertically and laterally adjustable footrests.

9. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with a pair of laterally adjustable head constraints to constrain an occupant's head in a lateral direction.

10. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with a detachable tray.

11. A chair as claimed in claim 1 in which the angle of the backrest portion in relation to the seat portion is adjustable.

12. A chair as claimed in claim 1, said chair also being provided with a lumbar support and a headrest, wherein the backrest portion, lumbar support and headrest are adjustably mounted on a post member the upper end of which carries a handle by which the chair may be moved and by which the tilt of the seat, back and lumbar support may be effected, the lower end of the post being adjustably connected to the seat portion so that the angle between the seat portion on the one hand and the backrest, lumbar and headrest portions on the other may be adjusted.