I have spoken before about a chair’s ability (or inability) to adjust the intensity of the back rollers. Most chairs have an intensity adjustment button on the remote control for the airbags in the chair, but very few have a roller intensity adjustment. For most chairs, “what you see is what you get” when it comes to the default intensity of a chair’s roller system. Of course, if one person in your household or business likes a gentle massage and another likes a vigorous massage, but the chair comes with a very intense default roller mechanism, or vice versa, it can be tough figuring out how to get the chair to accommodate both person’s preferences.
Of the chairs we carry, these are the models that have roller intensity adjustment:
2. Human Touch HT-9500
3. HT-7450
4. HT-7120
5. ZeroG 4.0
6. Panasonic MA70
7. Panasonic EP30007
8. Panasonic EP30005
9. All Omega Montage models (Elite, Premier, Pro)
10. All Cozzia models
So, how does a chair adjust for roller intensity? I didn’t know until I visited Human Touch’s headquarters last November and saw the inner workings and “guts” of many different chairs. There are two ways, that I am aware of, that a chair can adjust intensity:
1. Airbags
I saw on the HT-7450 and HT-9500 how airbags are located on either side of the roller mechanism. When the user increases the intensity of the rollers, the airbags deflate thus allowing the body to lay closer to the roller mechanism. When the user decreases the intensity of the rollers, the airbags inflate to push the body away from the rollers. Very simple, but I’d never known about it or seen it before I saw it work on these two models. This method is the most common in massage chairs.
2. 3D Rollers
In chairs, like the Inada Sogno and the ZeroG 4.0, the rollers actually protrude further forward when the user increases the intensity of the rollers from the remote control. And, conversely, the rollers retract when the user wants a less intense massage. This technology is becoming increasingly popular in newer models. I believe that Inada pioneered the idea.
To sit in the chairs and use this function, one might never know which technology is being utilized. But, as long as the intensity can be changed and you feel more comfortable while using the chair….who really cares?!
Dr. Alan Weidner
www.massage-chair-relief.com