La-Z-Boy Wireless Remote & Cradle for Motion Furniture 2019

Designers: La-Z-Boy, Dayton, Tennessee, USA and Creature LLC., Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Manufacturer: La-Z-Boy, Dayton, Tennessee, USA

What is it? 

The La-Z-Boy Wireless Remote is designed to control La-Z-Boy’s motion furniture for the home, such as sofas, recliners, and loveseats with adjustable backrests, headrests, lumbar supports, and legrests. 

What was the challenge? 

Motion furniture offers a whole new level of seating/reclining comfort by allowing users to individually control the positon of the backrest, headrest, legrest, and lumbar support. However, multiple users often use the same chair and have different preferences that need to be re-entered each and every time. Additionally, when a user wants to rise up from a reclining position, they need to press and hold multiple buttons for the whole duration while the furniture returns to its normal upright position. 

User research showed that most consumers did not want to control their motion furniture with tethered controllers or with their smart phones – they wanted dedicated controllers that they wouldn’t lose. 

How is the solution innovative? 

The La-Z-Boy Wireless Remote is a cordless remote that can be conveniently stored in the Cradle mounted on the side of the furniture. This storage solution helps the consumer to maintain a clutter free home. It’s sleek, simple design has clear, optimized graphics for easy operation. The back of the Remote has an ergonomic shape with a nice finish for a comfortable grip. 

Perhaps the biggest innovation comes with the addition of two insightful features: 1) two “Memory” buttons allowing two people in the household to store their favorite position, and adjust to them with one simple button press, and 2) a “Home” button that returns the chair to an upright, non-reclined position with one button press, allowing the user to easily get up. This thoughtful addition is completely new to the market, and uniquely implemented by La-Z-Boy. 

The Cradle that is mounted on the side of the furniture features permanent magnets to hold the Wireless Remote, coupled with a “scoop” shape feature for easy removal. The Cradle also has the Home and Memory buttons which allows the consumer to operate the unit even if the remote was misplaced. There are two additional controls on the Cradle located under the Wireless Remote, so only accessible when the Wireless Remote is removed: 1) a Find Me button, which causes the Wireless Remote to beep and illuminate in case the user has lost it, and 2) a Do Not Disturb slider, which disables the Wireless Remote against a family member playing pranks! 

The Cradle includes a convenient USB charging port, so the user can recharge their phone or tablet while relaxing in their La-Z-Boy.