System for wireless mobile seating platform

• US 7,477,153 B2
• Filed: 12/02/2004
• Issued: 01/13/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Yong Wong, Danny Chan, Gruteser, Marco O., McFaddin, Herbert Scott, Levas, Anthony, Moskowitz, Paul Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Phung
• Application Number:
  US11/001,141
• Publication Number:
  US 20050093696A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,503 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/500, 340/539.1, 340/3.1, 340/825.69, 340/825.19, 340/582, 340/667, 165/200, 236/1.B
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 15/004 Seating furniture for specified purposes not covered by main groups A47C1/00 or A47C9/00
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 31/008 Use of remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 31/126 for chairs
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0446 worn on the body to detect changes of posture, e.g. a fall, inclination, acceleration, gait
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0461 integrated or attached to an item closely associated with the person but not worn by the person, e.g. chair, walking stick, bed sensor

Abstract

A system includes a mobile seating platform, a wireless communications system embedded within the seating platform, and a haptic system embedded in the seating platform. The haptic system includes a plurality of vibrators disposed at a plurality of positions in the seating platform for communicating information to the occupant of the seating platform and a plurality of deformable surfaces disposed at a plurality of positions in the seating platform for communicating information to the occupant of the seating platform.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

a seating platform;

a communications system embedded within said seating platform for receiving an information carrying communication from a remote system; and

a haptic system embedded in said seating platform for communicating information carried by said information carrying communication to an occupant of said seating platform,

wherein said communications system comprises a wireless communications system,

wherein said seating platform is mobile,

wherein said haptic system comprises a plurality of vibrators disposed at a plurality of positions in the seating platform for communicating information to said occupant of said seating platform,

wherein said haptic system comprises a plurality of deformable surfaces disposed at a plurality of positions in the seating platform for communicating information to said occupant of said seating platform,

wherein a predetermined combination of said plurality of vibrators communicates information to said occupant,

wherein a predetermined combination of said plurality of deformable surfaces communicates information to said occupant, and

wherein a predetermined combination of said plurality of vibrators and said plurality of deformable surfaces communicates information to said occupant.