Body Support Structure With Weight-Sensing Recline Spring Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing body support structures for sitting furniture, such as chairs, struggle to accurately and quickly adapt the spring mechanism to the weight of a person, leading to sluggish and inaccurate adjustments due to the dissipation of weight forces from backrests and armrests, and are often costly to produce.
Innovation Solution
A body support structure with a weighing mechanism that includes a leaf spring and a support system, where the leaf spring is prestressed to allow smooth movement and is only engaged when the person reclines, providing a responsive and adjustable reaction force based on the person's weight, and a movement converter that converts weighing movements into displacement movements to adjust the spring mechanism effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a spring mechanism is compressed by the weight force of a person to automatically adjust the backrest inclination, then the spring mechanism adapts to the person's weight, but weight forces from backrests and armrests are dissipated through the carrier coupling, resulting in too weak a reaction force
Solution Approach 1:
The weighing mechanism is segmented into separate components: a first spring element for weighing, a second spring element for supporting the seat, and a movement converter. This segmentation isolates the weighing function from the backrest carrier, preventing force dissipation and ensuring sufficient reaction force for reclining support.
Solution Approach 2:
A movement converter acts as an intermediary between the weighing mechanism and the backrest carrier. It translates the weighing movement into a displacement that adjusts the second spring element, thereby controlling the reaction force without directly coupling the weighing function to the carrier.
2Measurement precision
If weighing of a user takes place under load to adjust the leaf spring, then the weighing mechanism can detect weight, but the adjustment process becomes sluggish and slow and inaccurate
Solution Approach 1:
The first spring element is pre-tensioned between the support and the seat before the user sits down. This preliminary action allows the weighing mechanism to be ready to detect weight changes immediately, eliminating the sluggishness associated with adjusting under full load and enabling faster, more accurate measurements.
3Ease of operation
If the leaf spring is prestressed to allow smooth movement, then the reclining experience becomes smooth and sensitive, but the spring mechanism may not engage properly when the person reclines
Solution Approach 1:
The support is designed to move dynamically along a curved path as the user reclines, maintaining optimal contact with the first spring element. This dynamic adjustment ensures that the prestressed spring element remains engaged and provides reliable support throughout the reclining motion, preventing disengagement while maintaining smooth operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures a responsive and accurate adjustment of the spring mechanism to the person's weight, providing a smooth and sensitive reclining experience while maintaining cost-effectiveness by effectively detecting and adapting to the weight forces from all parts of the body, including backrests and armrests.
Implementation Method 1
A body support structure with a weighing mechanism that includes a leaf spring and a support system, where the leaf spring is prestressed to allow smooth movement and is only engaged when the person reclines
Implementation Method 2
The upper part is supported against the middle part by means of a second spring element
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
Figure 1c~1d
Figure 1e~1h
AI summary
The invention relates to a body support structure (1), such as a piece of furniture (1), in particular a piece of furniture for sitting on or a piece of furniture for lying on, such as, for example, chair (3), armchair, stool, bed or sofa, a seat (7) of the piece of furniture (1) being supported by a spring mechanism (SM), and the spring mechanism (SM) being capable of being set to a weight force (40) with which a person acts on the seat (7).