Hey! Welcome back to the 7th—and probably final—installation of our series Sit On It, where we’re gonna take a look at a massage chair feature, and break it down for you. This week, we’re talking about 3D/4D mechanism designs, and the differences between them to work for your benefit.
3D/4D?
This isn’t exactly what you think it is. When 3D/4D comes to mind, the first thought is probably a movie theater. However, in the case of a massage chair, 3D/4D is the way a massage mechanism—explained in the 5th installation— is designed. There is a basic way the massage mechanism is able to massage your back: massaging as it glides along the roller track. This is referred as a 2D mechanism. So what makes a mechanism 3D? And what makes it 4D? In order to answer that, we have to look at the way the massage mechanism moves.
What’s the Difference?
The reason a 2D mechanism is designated as 2D is due to the fact that it glides along the contour of your body. Despite there being different massage techniques that change the roller movement, the mechanism stays static along the track. Now there’s 3D. The 3D mechanism moves the rollers further out from the track. Because of this—instead of the roller moving along the contour of the body—it introduces an extra dimension of complexity: it pushes roller outwards from the mechanism itself. What does this mean? It means that, instead of having regular movements and motions from the mechanism, the massage mechanism is now able to dig deeper into your back muscles from the introduction of the rollers being able to be protruded outwards. With this, the massage feels deeper, and (for most people) rougher, which can bring greater relief that a 2D mechanism would not be able to do.
And 4D takes that an extra step further. On top of what 3D is capable of, 4D introduces variation in speed. So to imitate a professional’s hands, the massage mechanism is able to dig deep into your muscles, while introducing that variation in speed—meaning your body is getting repeatedly loosened up with various massage techniques. This all comes together to loosen up many more back muscles, giving you the relief that you deserve.
So a 3D/4D massage mechanism can do wonders for your body, allowing it to dig deeper into your muscles, or introduce variation in movement , all in the name of making your massage experience closer to that of a real therapist. And that’s what it’s really about. It is about innovating, and developing new ways to relieve stress, so that you can tackle the new day. To do that though, you’d need to Sit On It.
Thanks for reading! This series is aimed at tackling popular massage chair features, and breaking down what they do for you during a massage session. In doing so, we hope we can bring some insight as to how a massage chair will utilize various features to produce an effective, powerful massage. We’ll be back again with another new series, so ’til next time!