In your opinion, is the one on the prototype I have made big enough or do you think that it would need to be bigger still? Also, is the back support provided by the harness much of a feature for you (if it became easier to put on and the vertical pole also folded down) or not so much?
Dylan, my kneeler pad is 40cm x 16 cm. From the photograph, yours looks wider.
I would certainly like a width of 30cm.
The back support is less of a feature for me as I have no problem getting up using the handles, 38cm high from the pad, which allows for sideways movement when kneeling.
The kneeling pad I have designed is approximately 50cm by 30cm so there is plenty of room there!
The harness etc is less to help the user get up from leaning over but more to help them lean over for a long time, not putting any strain on their back or back muscles
50 x 30 seems good, especially compared to most but, for example, when planning places at a tale for dinners and banquets and such, 60cms are allowed per person to give shoulder space as well as chair space. 50cms between the two uprights at either side of the kneeler is a bit restrictive to movement so making them adjustable or removable would help.
When we're kneeling to garden it's because we want to get down close to remove weed thoroughly without disturbing plants we want to keep but it also allows us to see any good seedlings and do dead heading close down. As we go we see what's either side of us and tend to swing sideways rather than shuffle to have the object of our intentions directly in front.
That's why we need the flexibility.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I was laughing out loud at pansyface's first response. Glad I'm sat at home on my own and not reading in the local coffee shop!.
I know it's a prototype but the hand grips would need to be rounded. Knee pad, as somebody else mentioned, needs to be firm. It seems counter intuitive but I find I can kneel for longer periods on a firmer pad, like the green pad shown on the other kneeler in the photo.
My main concerns would be the the whole thing seems very bulky, and the need to remove the harness every time you want to shift along the border a bit.
There does seem to have been a lot of thought put into designing a product to address a need rather then dreaming up a product and trying to find a use for it. Well done.
Thank you KT53! My justification for the unit being difficult to move along the flower bed was that, using the harness, the user can garden further away from the kneeler, hence covering a larger area and being able to stay in one place for longer.
Posts
Dylan, If a kneeler came onto the market, with a larger pad, I would buy one.
In your opinion, is the one on the prototype I have made big enough or do you think that it would need to be bigger still? Also, is the back support provided by the harness much of a feature for you (if it became easier to put on and the vertical pole also folded down) or not so much?
Dylan, my kneeler pad is 40cm x 16 cm. From the photograph, yours looks wider.
I would certainly like a width of 30cm.
The back support is less of a feature for me as I have no problem getting up using the handles, 38cm high from the pad, which allows for sideways movement when kneeling.
The kneeling pad I have designed is approximately 50cm by 30cm so there is plenty of room there!
The harness etc is less to help the user get up from leaning over but more to help them lean over for a long time, not putting any strain on their back or back muscles
Yes, I can see that the back support would be useful for someone with a back problem or even a general physical weakness.
Your idea of the "four point racing harness" is good.
50 x 30 seems good, especially compared to most but, for example, when planning places at a tale for dinners and banquets and such, 60cms are allowed per person to give shoulder space as well as chair space. 50cms between the two uprights at either side of the kneeler is a bit restrictive to movement so making them adjustable or removable would help.
When we're kneeling to garden it's because we want to get down close to remove weed thoroughly without disturbing plants we want to keep but it also allows us to see any good seedlings and do dead heading close down. As we go we see what's either side of us and tend to swing sideways rather than shuffle to have the object of our intentions directly in front.
That's why we need the flexibility.
Dylan, the Forum will be out of action for posting for a week starting on Wednesday.
I was laughing out loud at pansyface's first response. Glad I'm sat at home on my own and not reading in the local coffee shop!.
I know it's a prototype but the hand grips would need to be rounded. Knee pad, as somebody else mentioned, needs to be firm. It seems counter intuitive but I find I can kneel for longer periods on a firmer pad, like the green pad shown on the other kneeler in the photo.
My main concerns would be the the whole thing seems very bulky, and the need to remove the harness every time you want to shift along the border a bit.
There does seem to have been a lot of thought put into designing a product to address a need rather then dreaming up a product and trying to find a use for it. Well done.
Thank you KT53! My justification for the unit being difficult to move along the flower bed was that, using the harness, the user can garden further away from the kneeler, hence covering a larger area and being able to stay in one place for longer.
Good thinking - as long as they can be free of those uprights.
Have you observed several gardeners working on their knees or just the one? I don't know any that do it in one line from their kneeling position.