Panasonic Electric Works Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Matsushita Electric Works, Ltd.

Takeo Iijima

Masamichi Miyaguchi

Takayoshi Tanizawa

Daisuke Tsukada

Fumihiro Nishio

Yuichi Nishibori

Satoshi Kajiyama

Motoharu Muto

Shinji Tsutsui

Junji Nakamura

Yuki Yoda

Yousuke Kurata

A massage chair is adapted to give a massage to a user using a massaging element attached to a massaging unit. The massage chair comprises a body-shape-information acquisition section for acquiring body-shape information of the user based on loads imposed on the massaging element from respective regions of the user, a shoulder-position detection section for detecting a shoulder position of the user based on the body-shape information, and a shoulder-position identification section. The shoulder-position identification section is operable to thrust the massaging element in a direction for a target protrusion distance at the detected shoulder position while measuring a load imposed on the massaging element. Then, the shoulder-position identification section is operable, based on the measured load, to determine whether the detected shoulder position is a true shoulder position. Further, when the detected shoulder position is determined to be mismatched with the true shoulder position, the shoulder-position identification section is operable to vertically move the massaging unit while re-measuring a load imposed on the massaging element, so as to identify the true shoulder position based on the re-measured load.

Massage chair

A chair type massager includes a seat part on which a person to be treated sits on, a backrest part with a reclining mechanism to perform a raising/tilting operation, and right and left armrest parts in which the arms are inserted. The massager further includes air bags provided at the armrest parts, the air bags holding the arms placed in the armrest part by being swelled by air supplied from an air supply pump; a control part for controlling the raising/tilting operation of the backrest part and the air supply to the air bags; and a manipulation part for giving instructions to the control part. When controlling the reclining mechanism to tilt the backrest part in response to the instructions from the manipulation part to perform the arm stretch, the control part controls the air supply pump to supply air into the air bags intermittently.

Chair type massager

A massage chair of the present invention includes an electric reclining mechanism for moving a backrest into different sloping positions, left and right holding mechanisms for respectively holding user's left and right forearms, and a controller for controlling operations of the mechanisms. The controller separately controls operations of the electric reclining mechanism and the left holding mechanism as well as operations of the electric reclining mechanism and the right holding mechanism. When controlling the former operations, the controller controls (A) allow the left holding mechanism to hold the left forearm, (B) allow the electric reclining mechanism to recline the backrest to any of the different sloping positions, (C) allow the electric reclining mechanism to raise the backrest to any of the different sloping positions, and (D) allow the left holding mechanism to release the left forearm. Similarly, the controller controls the latter operations.

A massage chair including an electric reclining mechanism for moving a backrest into different sloping positions, a holding mechanism for holding at least one forearm of a user to fix to the base side, and a controller that controls operations of these mechanisms. The controller allows the holding mechanism to hold the at least one forearm and allows the electric reclining mechanism to move the backrest into at least one sloping position before moving the backrest into a final position. An inclination of the at least one sloping position from a sloping position of the different sloping positions when the at least one forearm is held by the holding mechanism is smaller than an inclination of the end position from a sloping position of the different sloping positions when the at least one forearm is held by the holding mechanism.

Message chair

This massage machine comprises a seat, a leg-rest, a footrest, an electric extendable mechanism, a link mechanism, and a controller. The footrest is movably linked to a lower end of the leg-rest to be movable relative to the leg-rest, and is provided with air bagsconfigured to restrain a foot of the user. The electric extendable mechanism and the link mechanism are configured to move the footrest relative to the leg-rest. The controller gives the user a leg stretching mode, and in the leg stretching mode, the controller controls the electric extendable mechanism and the air bags such that the electric extendable mechanism moves the footrest relative to the leg-rest while the air bags restrains the foot of the user.

Growing community of inventors

Hikone, Japan

Takeo Iijima