Aspen Seating, LLC

Steve Maurus

Thomas R Hetzel

Joseph S Bieganek

Aaron D Pierce

Joshua A Middel

Edward J Gillman

Thomas Hetzel

A technique for capturing a three-dimensional digital image of a customized shape for a wheelchair seat and back and subsequently producing a seat and back from the image. The captured image may include one or more datum points therein to provide a reference plane for the seat and back. The datum points may be in a color-coded layer located relative to the bottom edge of the seat. The color code may indicate the size of the user and seat at a coarse level. The customized shape may be captured from a shape capture bag or bags that capture one or both of the shape of the user's back and bottom. The shape capture bag used to capture the shape of the user's bottom, for use in manufacturing the seat, may be enhanced by a pre-formed layer that contains a contour or one or more components that together form a contour that biases the shape capture bag toward the shape of the user's bottom when gravity is acting upon the user to sink into a cushioned seat.

Techniques for shape capture and wheel chair seat creation

A flexible seat cushion, such as a wheelchair cushion, has an upper surface with a support contour for establishing relatively less pressure on skin adjacent to the bony prominences of the person's pelvic area and relatively more pressure on skin covering adjacent tissue masses. A support member is attached to the rear corner of the cushion. The support member has relatively less flexibility than the seat cushion. The support member is retained to a longitudinal and/or transverse side of the cushion to cause the support member to resist deformation of the support contour from contact with the pelvic area of the person when seated on the seat cushion. Connector member may be connected to the support member to extend along longitudinal and/or transverse sides of the cushion to deform and thereby adjust the support contour for better support of the pelvic area.

Method of reinforcing and adjusting a contoured seat cushion

A flexible support structure of a seat cushion, such as a wheelchair cushion, has an upper surface with a support contour having relief areas for establishing relatively less pressure on skin adjacent to bony prominences of a user's pelvis and having a support area for establishing relatively more pressure on skin covering a tissue mass spaced from the bony prominences. A slit is formed in the rear corner of the support structure and an insertion member is inserted into the slit to change a position of the support area to thereby adjust the support contour for better support of the pelvic area. A cover encases the support structure to resist outward deformation of the support structure. The cover has an extension portion that expands the cover at the rear corner to increase a dimension of the cover to encase an increase dimension of the corner caused by the insertion of the insertion member.

Seat cushion with adjustable contour and method of adjusting the contour of a seat cushion

Reinforced and adjustable contoured seat cushion and method of reinforcing and adjusting the contoured seat cushion

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Littleton, CO, United States of America

Steve Maurus