Wrist rest assembly

• US 6,494,418 B1
• Filed: 02/02/1998
• Issued: 12/17/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 02/06/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Original Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Inventors: Kirchhoff, Kenneth J., Wolf, Robert J., Darvell, Wayne K., Barnidge, Thomas J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramirez, Ramon O.
• Application Number:
  US09/016,996
• Time in Patent Office: 1,779 Days
• Field of Search: 248/118, 248/118.1, 248/118.3, 248/118.5, 248/918, 400/715
• US Class Current: 248/118
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2021/0378 filled with liquid or gel
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2021/0392 height adjustable
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 21/0371 Platforms for supporting wrists
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2200/009 Keyboards associated with mousepads
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 2200/0093 Wrist pad cover
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0395 Mouse pads
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2217/034 Support for hands or arms
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/918 Ancillary device support associated with a video display screen

Abstract

A wrist rest assembly for use along the front edge of a device to be operated by a person'"'"'s hands or fingers, such as in front of a computer keyboard, including an elongate base on which is supported an elongate pad comprising a layer of gel within the covering. The pad has sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and width between its edges to afford supporting a users wrists on top surface with a portion of the layer of gel beneath and conforming to the supported wrists and to afford significant motion of the top surface of the pad with the supported wrists relative to the bottom surface in a plane generally parallel to the upper surface of the base. The base has a top portion supporting the pad, a bottom portion adapted to be supported on a horizontal surface; and structure that allows the top portion to be supported on the bottom portion with the top surface of the pad at a predetermined one of several different distances above that horizontal surface.

Claims

1. A wrist rest assembly comprising:

a stable elastomeric block polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having opposite longitudinally extending edges, opposite longitudinally spaced ends, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrists, a bottom surface opposite the top surface, and a thickness between the top surface and the bottom surface, the gel layer extending between ends for a gel length and between edges for a gel width;

a rigid base having a generally flat support surface extending the gel length and the gel width for supporting the gel layer, the base having longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along the entire extent of each edge support, the edge supports extending adjacent the edges of the gel layer, and the base further including end supports which extend upwardly from the support surface adjacent the ends of the gel layer to terminate at a height, wherein the end supports are removably secured relative to the support surface;

a support layer extending between the bottom surface of the gel layer and the support surface of the base; and

a flexible cover layer extending over the gel layer and secured to the support layer, with the cover layer and support layer sealed together adjacent the ends of the gel layer;

wherein the top surface of the gel layer and the cover layer thereon extend above the common height of the edge supports and above the height of the end supports, and the gel layer has a sufficient thickness between the top and bottom surfaces thereof and a sufficient width between the edges thereof to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the wrists supported on the top surface thereof and to afford significant motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the supported wrists relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a horizontal plane, and wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s wrists to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch.

2. A wrist rest assembly comprising:

a stable elastomeric block polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having opposite longitudinally extending edges, opposite longitudinally spaced ends, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrists, a bottom surface opposite the top surface, and a thickness between the top surface and the bottom surface, the gel layer extending between ends for a gel length and between edges for a gel width;

a rigid base having a generally flat support surface extending the gel length and the gel width for supporting the gel layer, the base having longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along the entire extent of each edge support, the edge supports extending adjacent the edges of the gel layer;

a support layer extending between the bottom surface of the gel layer and the support surface of the base;

a flexible cover layer extending over the gel layer and secured to the support layer, with the cover layer and support layer sealed together adjacent the ends of the gel layer; and

an outer layer secured to the support layer to flexibly cover the top surface of the gel layer,

wherein the top surface of the gel layer and the cover layer thereon extend above the height of the edge supports, and the gel layer has a sufficient thickness between the top and bottom surfaces thereof and a sufficient width between the edges thereof to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the wrists supported on the top surface thereof and to afford significant motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the supported wrists relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a horizontal plane, and wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s wrists to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch.

3. The wrist rest assembly of claim 2, wherein the flexible cover layer secures to the support layer by forming a sleeve around the support layer, and wherein the outer layer secures the flexible cover layer to the support layer.

4. A wrist rest assembly comprising:

a stable elastomeric block polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having opposite longitudinally extending edges, opposite longitudinally spaced ends, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrists, a bottom surface opposite the top surface, and a thickness between the top surface and the bottom surface, the gel layer extending between ends for a gel length and between edges for a gel width;

a rigid base having a generally flat support surface extending the gel length and the gel width for supporting the gel layer, the base having longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along the entire extent of each edge support, the edge supports extending adjacent the edges of the gel layer, and the base having a top portion and a bottom portion, the top portion including the support surface and edge supports thereon, and further comprising;

a pair of longitudinally extending rails on the top portion; and

a pair of upwardly projecting support portions on the bottom portion, the upwardly projecting support portions having a plurality of vertically spaced sets of grooves thereon, and each set of grooves being adapted to slidably receive the rails therein;

a support layer extending between the bottom surface of the gel layer and the support surface of the base; and

a flexible cover layer extending over the gel layer and secured to the support layer, with the cover layer and support layer sealed together adjacent the ends of the gel layer;

wherein the top surface of the gel layer and the cover layer thereon extend above the height of the edge supports, and the gel layer has a sufficient thickness between the top and bottom surfaces thereof and a sufficient width between the edges thereof to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the wrists supported on the top surface thereof and to afford significant motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the supported wrists relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a horizontal plane, and wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s wrists to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch.

5. A wrist rest assembly comprising:

an elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending edges, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrists, a bottom surface opposite the top surface, and a thickness between the top surface and the bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the edges for a gel width;

a base having a generally flat support surface for supporting the gel layer along the bottom surface thereof, and the base having a top portion and a bottom portion, the top portion including the support surface, and the base further comprises;

a pair of longitudinally extending rails on the top portion; and

a pair of upwardly projecting support portions on the bottom portion, the upwardly projecting support portions having a plurality of vertically spaced sets of grooves thereon, and each set of grooves being adapted to slidably receive the rails therein;

a support layer extending between the bottom surface of the gel layer and the support surface of the base; and

a flexible cover layer extending over the gel layer and secured to the support layer to retain the gel layer therein,

wherein the gel layer has a sufficient thickness between the top and bottom surfaces thereof and a sufficient width between the edges thereof to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported on the top surface thereof and to afford motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the support surface, and wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one half inch.

6. A wrist rest comprising:

a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having opposed, spaced apart side edges to define a gel layer width therebetween, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrist, and a bottom surface spaced from the top surface to define a gel layer thickness therebetween, wherein the width and thickness of the gel layer are sufficient to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported on the top surface thereof and to afford motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the support surface, and wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch; and

a base for supporting the gel layer along the bottom surface thereof, the base having a top portion and a bottom portion, and further comprising;

a generally flat support surface on the top portion of the base for supporting the gel layer along the bottom surface of the gel layer;

a pair of longitudinally extending rails on the top portion; and

a pair of upwardly projecting support portions on the bottom portion, the upwardly projecting support portions having a plurality of vertically spaced sets of grooves thereon, and each set of grooves being adapted to slidably receive the rails therein.

7. A wrist rest assembly comprising:

a pad assembly having an upper portion and a lower portion,

the upper portion including a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending side edges, laterally extending end edges, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrist and a bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the longitudinal edges for a gel width, extending between the lateral edges for a gel length, and having a sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and a sufficient gel width to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported on the top surface thereof, and the gel layer affording motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the bottom surface, wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch, and

the lower portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the lower portion supporting the bottom surface of the gel layer and the bottom surface of the lower portion being the bottom surface of the pad assembly, the lower portion having a width and a length generally conforming with the gel width and the gel length, respectively, the lower portion of the pad assembly being less compressible than the upper portion thereof, and the lower portion having edge sections extending along the bottom surface thereof laterally beyond the longitudinally extending side edges of the gel layer; and

a base having a generally flat support surface for supporting the pad assembly along the bottom surface of the lower portion thereof and longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along and above the entire extent of each edge section of the lower portion of the pad assembly.

8. The wrist rest assembly of claim 7, wherein the edge supports of the base have a plurality of vertically spaced projections thereon which are adapted to engage the edge sections on the lower portion of the pad assembly whereby the pad assembly and base may be assembled in a plurality of relative height configurations.

9. The wrist rest assembly of claim 8 wherein the projections are adapted to slidably receive the edge sections thereon.

10. The wrist rest assembly of claim 7 wherein an upper outer edge of each edge support is rounded.

11. The wrist rest assembly of claim 7 wherein the base has a device support portion projecting therefrom which is adapted to support an input device to be operated by a user'"'"'s hands or fingers.

12. The wrist rest assembly of claim 7 wherein an upper outer edge of each edge support is rounded.

13. In a wrist rest assembly of the type having an elongated resilient pad which has a cover thereon and which is supported by and separable from an elongated pad mounting structure, the improvement which comprises:

the resilient pad having an upper pad portion and a lower pad support portion,

the upper pad portion including a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending side edges and laterally extending end edges, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrist and a bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the longitudinal edges to define a gel width, extending between the lateral edges to define a gel length, and having a sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and a sufficient gel width to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported on the top surface thereof, and the gel layer affording motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the bottom surface, wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least onehalf inch, and

the lower pad support portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the lower pad support portion supporting the bottom surface of the gel layer and the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion being the bottom surface of the resilient pad, the lower pad support portion having a width and a length generally conforming with the gel width and the gel length, respectively, and the lower pad support portion having edge sections extending laterally beyond the longitudinally extending side edges of the gel layer; and

the elongated pad mounting structure having a support surface for supporting the resilient pad along the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion thereof and longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along and higher than the entire extent of each edge section of the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad, and the elongated pad mounting structure being in engagement with only the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad.

14. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the elongated pad mounting structure is formed from a rigid material.

15. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad is less compressible than the upper pad portion thereof.

16. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the edge supports of the elongated pad mounting structure have a plurality of vertically spaced projections thereon which are adapted to engage the edge sections on the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad whereby the resilient pad and the elongated pad mounting structure may be assembled in a plurality of relative height configurations.

17. The improvement of claim 16 wherein the projections are adapted to slidably receive the edge sections thereon.

18. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the base has a device support portion projecting therefrom which is adapted to support an input device to be operated by a user'"'"'s hands or fingers.

19. The improvement of claim 13 wherein the generally circular area has a diameter of about one inch.

20. In a wrist rest assembly of the type having an elongated resilient pad which has a cover thereon and which is supported by and separable from an elongated pad mounting structure, the improvement which comprises:

the resilient pad having an upper pad portion and a lower pad support portion,

the upper pad portion including a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending side edges and laterally extending end edges, a top surface for supporting a user'"'"'s wrist and a bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the longitudinal edges to define a gel width, extending between the lateral edges to define a gel length, and having a sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and a sufficient gel width to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported on the top surface thereof, and the gel layer affording motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the bottom surface, wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch, and

the lower pad support portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the lower pad support portion supporting the bottom surface of the gel layer and the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion being the bottom surface of the resilient pad, the lower pad support portion having a width and a length generally conforming with the gel width and the gel length, respectively, and the lower pad support portion having edge sections extending laterally beyond the longitudinally extending side edges of the gel layer; and

the elongated pad mounting structure having a support surface for supporting the resilient pad along the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion thereof, longitudinally extending edge supports projecting upwardly from the support surface to a common height along and higher than the entire extent of each edge section of the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad, and laterally extending ends aligned to extend above the support surface adjacent the end edges of the upper pad portion, with each end having no portion thereof extending over any part of the upper pad portion of the resilient pad and the cover thereon, and the elongated pad mounting structure being in engagement with only the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad.

21. In a wrist rest of the type having an elongated resilient pad, wherein the resilient pad includes a layer of cushioning material with a cover thereover, and wherein the resilient pad is placed on a horizontal surface adjacent an input device to be operated by a person'"'"'s hand or fingers, the improvement which comprises:

the resilient pad having an upper pad portion and a lower pad support portion,

the upper pad portion including the cover and the cushioning material is defined as a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending side edges and laterally extending end edges, a top surface for supporting the cover which engages a user'"'"'s wrist and a bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the longitudinal edges to define a gel width, extending between the lateral edges to define a gel length, and having a sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and a sufficient gel width to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported by the cover on the top surface thereof, and the gel layer affording motion of the top, surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the bottom surface, wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch, and

the lower pad support portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the lower pad support portion supporting the bottom surface of the gel layer and the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion being the bottom surface of the resilient pad, the lower pad support portion having a width and a length generally conforming with the gel width and the gel length, respectively, and the lower pad support portion having edge sections extending laterally beyond the longitudinally extending side edges of the gel layer.

22. The improvement of claim 21 wherein the generally circular area has a diameter of about one inch.

23. In a wrist rest of the type having an elongated resilient pad, wherein the resilient pad includes a layer of cushioning material with a cover thereover, and wherein the resilient pad is placed on a horizontal surface adjacent an input device to be operated by a person'"'"'s hand or fingers, the improvement which comprises:

the resilient pad having an upper pad portion and a lower pad support portion,

the upper pad portion including the cover and the cushioning material is defined as a non-liquid elastomeric polymer gel layer, the gel layer being elongated longitudinally and having longitudinally extending side edges and laterally extending end edges, a top surface for supporting the cover which engages a user'"'"'s wrist and a bottom surface, the gel layer extending between the longitudinal edges to define a gel width, extending between the lateral edges to define a gel length, and having a sufficient thickness between its top and bottom surfaces and a sufficient gel width to have a portion of the gel layer beneath and conforming to the user'"'"'s wrist supported by the cover on the top surface thereof, and the gel layer affording motion of the top surface of the gel layer with the user'"'"'s supported wrist relative to the bottom surface of the gel layer in a plane generally parallel to the bottom surface, wherein such motion allows the user'"'"'s supported wrist to move in any direction in a generally circular area having a diameter of at least one-half inch, and

the lower pad support portion having a top surface and a bottom surface, the top surface of the lower pad support portion supporting the bottom surface of the gel layer and the bottom surface of the lower pad support portion being the bottom surface of the resilient pad, the lower pad support portion having a width and a length generally conforming with the gel width and the gel length, respectively, the lower pad support portion of the resilient pad being less compressible than the upper pad portion thereof, and the lower pad support portion having edge sections extending laterally beyond the longitudinally extending side edges of the gel layer.