Sedentary habits in the office are a common problem. However, to say that computer-bound workers never move is obviously not true, since they use the mouse and keyboard quite frequently during the day. Govert Flint, a Dutch student designer, is looking to create a chair that keeps the user active by essentially functioning as a giant mouse that people sit in.
A video featured in a story by Fast Co. Design shows the layout of the Dynamic Chair, a special seat with leg rests that allows users to manipulate their mouse on a computer screen by moving their arms and legs, which is supposed to promote more physical activity during the course of the average day.
The Guardian also features quotes from Flint, who described some of the different possible uses that this technology could have in the future, which could extend far beyond the average workday.
“In western society we tend to invent things that make everything so efficient that we don’t move at all during our working lives,” he said. “It feels like a game, so it could be developed for kids or for the gaming industry, but it also generates a big response in people who recognize its potential for physical rehabilitation.”
Though this type of chair might not become a widespread hit among offices, the basic principles behind it should be incorporated into the other chairs and desks that businesses use to keep workers from staying too still during the day in a dangerous physical position.
Office managers should consider how a new or used office chair will allow their employees to get work done and still be healthy and comfortable.
