The present disclosure relates to a furniture system having a linear actuator for adjusting a component of a furniture item, e.g. for adjusting the height of a table or for adjusting the height or the position of a component of a lounging furniture item or a seating furniture item.
Linear actuators conventionally serve for adjusting two parts which are moveable relative to one another. Linear actuators are used in height-adjustable tables for lifting or lowering a table top on a rack of a table, for example. Typically, linear actuators include an electric motor, a gear mechanism and an adjustment member such as a spindle, for example. Besides the performance of the linear actuator, reliability and required construction space, the noise level of the linear actuators can be an essential quality criteria. The gear mechanism may represent a main source of noise development.
Noises in gear mechanisms, e.g. in toothed gear mechanisms, can result from production-related imprecisions, which may result in meshing errors, which in turn can induce vibration. To some extent, this problem can be reduced by gear components that are produced in a very precise manner, which however may considerably increase production costs of the linear actuator.
Linear actuators are available in two configurations. In a first configuration, the motor is arranged perpendicularly relative to the spindle system. Here, gear mechanisms with intersecting axles are employed. Worm gear or helical gear mechanisms can be used here, for example. In alternative constructions, motor and spindle can be arranged coaxially. In this case, the gear axles are coaxial as well. Planetary gears can be used, for example. However, customized solutions are possible as well, e.g. combinations of helical gears and planetary gear mechanisms.
Linear actuators of the first configuration can generally have of low noise level due to the design of the meshing in the worm gear mechanism or helical gear mechanism, but the angular arrangement comes with considerable disadvantages, in terms of product design, inter alia. In the configurations with planetary gears, the possible coaxial design is advantageous here. Nevertheless, noise generation, which can eventually be highly tolerance-dependent, is disadvantageous here.
Passive measures for noise reduction such as encapsulation of the gear mechanism may involve high spatial requirements and thermal problems.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds