Desk chairs, what are your problems with using them?

drgcommander

drgcommander

drgcommander

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Hi, I'm relatively new to using this forum, so please bear with me. I'm a student studying BA (Hons) Product Design and I'm on my final major project.

I'm designing a desk chair but I would like to know what problems people have had from the pre-existing desk chairs (includes, computer desk chairs, study room desk chairs, in educational facilities, out of educational facilities, at home, at your friends' homes, etc.)

If you've had or someone you know has had problems with their desk chairs, no matter in what situation, please leave a comment or opinion about it. It would be even better if you also have suggestions in which to improve them.

I've also made a questionnaire (sorry in advance, it has 2 parts) which should only take about 5-10 mins overall. Please click the link below, I would really appreciate you contributing to it.

Part 1
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/856NP9M
Part 2
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LTBJVH2

Thanks :)
 
If you're looking at improving your run of the mill chair I would say adjustable arm rests is something lacking from a lot of them. And maybe a brake for the castors to stop it rolling (personally I use rubber glides instead).
 
dont have any major problems with my chair either at home or at work but will say the more adjustments the better and a decebnt DSE assesment helps most people

armrests on some chairs leave a lot to be desired adjustment wise both for height width and towards or away from desk and for angle a lot of chairs dont allow this. also squab slide front to rear can be lacking. adjustable lumbar support is sometimes an issue when peoploe are shorter or taller than the average

i find bassically the more you pay generally the better you get.

RH extend highback all the way for me
 
I have done the surveys for you. I am a manufacturing engineer (circa 70% the same as product design engineering) so would be interested in seeing the results of your project when it is all finished :).
 
I sure you know this but just make sure its fully adjustable for 1st%-99th%ile ranges of your intended demographic anthropomorphically.

Adultdata?
 
norm said:
If you're looking at improving your run of the mill chair I would say adjustable arm rests is something lacking from a lot of them. And maybe a brake for the castors to stop it rolling (personally I use rubber glides instead).
Click to expand...

Adjustable arm rests would be an epic win on any chair, also maybe a recliner back, not to the point of being totally laid down but say around 45 degrees
 
My main problem is that they are ridiculously expensive for a decent chair. Seriously, over £1,000 for a good office chair? that's bonkers.

So find a way to design a good chair at an affordable price, so that people don't resort into buying ****py un-ergonomical chairs from B&Q or other main store chains for their children's desks, giving them all sorts of back problems later on in life.
 
Done.

Do you often do exercise away from your office chair?

No, I tend to take my chair with me to badminton.
 
norm said:
If you're looking at improving your run of the mill chair I would say adjustable arm rests is something lacking from a lot of them. And maybe a brake for the castors to stop it rolling (personally I use rubber glides instead).
Click to expand...

I also think a brake would be useful, as rolling around when you don't want to is annoying.

Good lower back support is important.

I find arms on chairs annoying, so easy way to attach/detach them would be good.

Rgds
 
nice one guys, thanks for the replies. :D

so it seems that the majority of problems are the adjustability of chair back rests and arm rests especially for those whose body measurements are beyond the average percentiles.

the price of chairs is not something i can fully control as materials may be expensive anyway, when it gets to retail price it'll probably be something like double or triple the material costs. but i'll definitely put cheaper materials as a major consideration.

as for the issue of castor wheels being used, my desk chair is a little special as i'm gonna use 'ball transfer units' to give it freedom of mobility. but how much mobility should i give it, should i have some sort of leg stump to stop it from moving?
 
I work in several hot-desk offices, so I've got a fair bit of experience of trying different chairs.

Back height adjustment that doesn't break over time. So many of them use a friction/ratchet type system that gets worn out, so the backrest can no-longer be raised in height.

I'm not particularly tall, but most office chairs don't allow the lumbar support section to be raised heigh enough. I end up with the big lump on my tailbone and nothing supporting the curvature of my spine.

Removable/washable covers would be nice. They get nasty pretty quickly when lots of people are using them.
 
Look at the Staples Kashmir. I agree with adjustable arm rests which this needs and also the cushion for your backside gets flattened too easy so it's become quite hard.
 
Does anyone know anything or have any images of the lumbar support mechanism or at least how it works? i may try to incorporate this mechanism inside the desk chair's back rest to make it easier for people find and use (kind of like sitting in car). so far, i can only find images of car seats, scarce drawings of the mechanism, but no explanation on how it works. if i only i knew..... anyway, if anyone come from engineering, your input here would greatly be appreciated.
 
I like to cross my legs when sitting in my chair but was restricted for space so I have put in spacers giving me more room. it took me ages to find a suitable chair as others were uncomfortable in the back rests with this chair I took the padding out. Now it's an excellent chair.
 
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drgcommander said:
Does anyone know anything or have any images of the lumbar support mechanism or at least how it works? i may try to incorporate this mechanism inside the desk chair's back rest to make it easier for people find and use (kind of like sitting in car). so far, i can only find images of car seats, scarce drawings of the mechanism, but no explanation on how it works. if i only i knew..... anyway, if anyone come from engineering, your input here would greatly be appreciated.
Click to expand...

I used a chair where the lumbar support was an inflatable cushion inside the back rest. You'd pump it the required amount to give you the necessary support.
 
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