Acoustic Chair

Abstract

An acoustic chair includes a base, a seat, a backrest, a positionable member, and speakers. The seat can be mounted to the base. The backrest can be mounted to the seat and comprise a carriage that is moveable along tracks that are mounted to the backrest and extend substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the backrest. A positionable member is mounted to the carriage and comprises a first wing and a second wing that are on opposite ends of the positionable member. The positionable member is moveable along the tracks between a lowered configuration proximate the seat, a raised configuration proximate an upper backrest portion, and intermediate configurations between the lowered configuration and the raised configuration. Speakers are disposed in the first wing and the second wing.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An acoustic chair, comprising:
 a base;   a seat mounted to the base;   a backrest mounted to the seat and comprising a carriage that is moveable along one or more tracks that are mounted to the backrest and extend substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the backrest;   a positionable member mounted to the carriage, wherein the positionable member comprises a first wing and a second wing that is on an opposite end of the positionable member from the second wing, and wherein the positionable member is moveable along the one or more tracks between a lowered configuration proximate the seat, a raised configuration proximate an upper backrest portion of the backrest that is at an opposite end of the backrest from the seat, and one or more intermediate configurations between the lowered configuration and the raised configuration; and   one or more speakers disposed in at least the first wing or the second wing.   
     
     
         2 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the acoustic chair comprises a first armrest and a second armrest, and wherein the positionable member in the lowered configuration is substantially aligned with the first armrest and the second armrest. 
     
     
         3 . The acoustic chair of  claim 2 , wherein the first wing is substantially parallel to the first armrest, and wherein the second wing is substantially parallel to the second armrest. 
     
     
         4 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the positionable member is moveable by at least 30 centimeters between the lowered configuration and the raised configuration. 
     
     
         5 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more speakers are at least 20 centimeters from the carriage. 
     
     
         6 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the acoustic chair comprises a computing device that is connected to the one or more speakers by one or more cables, wherein the computing device is configured to control the one or more speakers, and wherein the one or more cables are disposed within the backrest. 
     
     
         7 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the positionable member is configured to engage the backrest such that there is substantially no gap between adjacent surfaces of the positionable member and the backrest. 
     
     
         8 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the acoustic chair comprises a positionable member motor unit that is operable to selectively move the positionable member between the lowered configuration, the one or more intermediate configurations, and the raised configuration. 
     
     
         9 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the positionable member comprises a sound absorbing material or a sound blocking material. 
     
     
         10 . The acoustic chair of  claim 9 , wherein a first portion of the sound absorbing material that is on an exterior surface of the positionable member that is proximate the backrest has a noise reduction coefficient of at least 0.9. 
     
     
         11 . The acoustic chair of  claim 9 , wherein a second portion of the sound absorbing material is mounted on exterior surfaces of the first wing and the second wing, and wherein the second portion of the sound absorbing material has a noise reduction coefficient of at least 0.7. 
     
     
         12 . The acoustic chair of  claim 9 , wherein a first portion of the sound blocking material is disposed within the first wing and the second wing, and wherein the first portion of the sound blocking material has a sound transmission class of at least 25. 
     
     
         13 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein a distance between the first wing and the second wing is in a range between 52 centimeters and 62 centimeters. 
     
     
         14 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the positionable member is substantially U-shaped. 
     
     
         15 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein at least one speaker of the one or more speakers is disposed in the first wing, and wherein at least one speaker of the one or more speakers is disposed in the second wing. 
     
     
         16 . The acoustic chair of  claim 15 , wherein the one or more speakers disposed in the first wing are oriented towards the second wing, and wherein the one or more speakers disposed in the second wing are oriented towards the first wing. 
     
     
         17 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein one or more microphones are disposed in at least one of the first wing or the second wing. 
     
     
         18 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the first wing and the second wing comprise inner edges that are proximate the carriage, wherein the first wing and the second wing comprise outer edges that are on opposite ends from the inner edges, and wherein the one or more speakers in the first wing or the second wing are at least 15 centimeters from the outer edges of the first wing or the second wing respectively. 
     
     
         19 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the first wing and the second wing have a length of at least 35 centimeters. 
     
     
         20 . The acoustic chair of  claim 1 , wherein the first wing and the second wing are substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the backrest.