---

Lift chair

Lift chairs for lifting physically challenged individuals from a sitting position to a standing position are well known. These chairs are generally well padded easy chairs with arm rest. The lifting mechanisms employed vary substantially. There are some lift chairs that manipulate the seat cushion only. Other chairs lift only the arm rests vertically upward. Lifting the arm rests only works for an individual that has substantial upper body strength. Moving the arms to a higher position helps a person lift his body onto his feet with his arms. A more common lift chair has a chair frame that is pivotally attached to a support base. The chair frame is pivoted relative to the support base about an axis at the front of the chair and adjacent to the floor. A lift chair is powered between a normal seat position and an elevated forwardly inclined position. Power operated lift chairs are useful for raising persons, especially those having impaired mobility, from a seated to a standing position. These chairs include a powered lift mechanism which raises and tilts the chair allowing a seated occupant to stand with a limited amount of exertion. Further, in a reverse mode, the seat may lower a user from a standing to a seated position. Power-assisted chairs may be adapted to provide the lift and tilt function in combination with a leg rest and/or reclining function. Chairs which provide such a combination of multi-positional functions generally require the use of multiple motors for driving the separate linkages. A variety of power lift mechanisms have been employed to pivot the chair frame of these lift chairs relative to the base. The power lift mechanisms include rotatable screws and fluid cylinders. Some of the mechanisms are manually powered while others are electrically powered.

---