Patent ID: 6890030

Claim:
In a chair comprising: a base having a support frame; a seat supported on said support frame, said seat comprising a horizontally enlarged chair shell having an upward facing support surface for supporting the seat and thighs of a chair occupant, said shell having a rear shell section which is disposed over said support frame and a front shell section which extends from said rear shell section so as to extend forwardly of said support frame in cantilevered relation therewith, said seat defining an effective seat length of said support surface which extends from a rear portion of the occupant's seat to a contact location on said front shell section wherein said support surface separates from the thighs of an occupant, said support surface having a contour defined by said front and rear shell sections; and an adjustment mechanism having a manually actuatable handle and a connector member engaged with said front shell section forwardly of said support frame and operated by said handle wherein said connector member maintains said front shell section in a first position and manual movement of said handle deflects said front shell section vertically relative to said rear shell section away from said first position to an adjusted second position which varies the contour of the support surface to adjust the contact location between said support shell and the thighs of the occupant and adjust the effective seat length, said connector member being moveable in a downward direction in response to the weight and/or movements of an occupant to permit deflection of said front shell section away from said adjusted second position to a user-responsive third position.