Standing surface to encourage movement

A mat for standing, comprising:

• an upper surface;
• a lower surface attached to the upper surface;
• at least one of the upper and lower surfaces being substantially planar;
• a length measured across a greatest span of the upper surface that is perpendicular to a greatest width measured across the upper surface, the length being no longer than 39 inches and no shorter than 16 inches, the width being no longer than 25 inches;
• a generally vertically oriented edge, connecting the lower surface to the upper surface, that conforms under the weight of a standing user to the surface of at least one of the standing user's feet pressing upon the mat,
• wherein the mat is characterized by a mat thickness between 0.5 and 4 inches and has or is adjustable to have a bending rigidity between 15 and 122 lb×in−1 and a flexural rigidity between 2,000 and 101,000 lb×in2 such that the mat is self-supporting, the combination of the rigidity, the length, the width, the mat thickness, and the generally vertically oriented edge permitting the standing user with both feet positioned on opposite ends of the mat to rock the mat off the floor on one end using only the standing user's feet,
• wherein the generally vertically oriented edge comprises at least one rounded convex or concave portion such that when force is exerted at one end, the opposing end elevates off of the floor surface,
• wherein the mat is characterized by a range of linear deflection spanning downward at least 0.5 inches for a range of forces achievable by an adult sized user when standing and pushing the balls of the adult sized user's feet into the device as the adult sized user's weight shifts from one leg to another where at least 80% of the resulting deflection of the mat remains within the range of linear deflection,
• wherein the upper surface has a central region, the central region having a center compression modulus, and
• wherein the mat is further characterized by a linear edge compression modulus, wherein the edge compression modulus is significantly softer than the center compression modulus and the mat provides rebounding characteristics for a user.

A mat for standing, comprising:

• an upper surface;
• a lower surface attached to the upper surface;
• a length measured across a greatest span of the upper surface that is perpendicular to a greatest width measured across the upper surface, the length being no longer than 39 inches and no shorter than 16 inches, the width being no longer than 25 inches;
• a generally vertically oriented edge, connecting the lower surface to the upper surface, that conforms under the weight of a standing user to the surface of at least one of the standing user's feet pressing upon the mat;
• a mat thickness between 0.5 and 4 inches, a bending rigidity that is or is adjustable to be between 15 and 122 lb×in−1, and a flexural rigidity between 2,000 and 101,000 lb×in2 such that the mat is self-supporting, the combination of the rigidity, the length, the width, the mat thickness, and the generally vertically oriented edge permitting the standing user with both feet positioned on opposite ends of the mat to rock the mat off the floor on one end using only the standing user's feet;
• and
• at least a first adjustment mechanism to permit adjustment of the bending rigidity and of the flexural rigidity and also to permit adjustment of a linear center compression modulus, measured at the upper surface, to be a value within a range of 50 to 100 psi over a final 50% strain of available strain, and a given coefficient of determination value of at least 0.98
• at least one of the upper and lower surfaces being substantially planar, and
• the lower surface comprising a substantially planar central portion.

A mat for standing, comprising:

• an upper surface that accepts a standing user when the mat is placed on a firm surface;
• a length, measured across a greatest span of the upper surface, that is perpendicular to a greatest width measured across the upper surface, the length being no longer than 39 inches and no shorter than 16 inches, the width being no longer than 25 inches, the length being sufficient to permit the user to place the user's feet near opposite ends of the length;
• and
• at least a first adjustment mechanism to permit adjustment of a linear compression modulus, measured in a center area of the upper surface, to be within a range of 40 to 100 lb×in−2 over a last 50% strain of available strain, and wherein the linear compression modulus has a given coefficient of determination value of at least 0.98.

A standing mat, comprising:

• a first surface, and a second surface positioned opposite to the first surface, the first and second surfaces connected to each other by at least an edge of the mat, each surface accepting a standing user when the opposing surface is placed on a floor surface;
• a length measured across a greatest span of either the first or the second surface that is perpendicular to a greatest width measured across either the first or the second surface, the length being no longer than 39 inches and no shorter than 16 inches, the width being no longer than 25 inches;
• a rocking region extending around at least a portion of a perimeter of the mat;
• and
• at least a first adjustment mechanism to permit adjustment of a linear compression modulus, measured at an upper surface corresponding to the surface opposite to the surface placed on the floor surface, over a final 50% strain of available strain, the linear compression modulus having a given coefficient of determination value of at 0.98,
• the mat being characterized by at least one of the first surface or the second surface being substantially planar, a bending rigidity that is or is adjustable to be within a range of 15 to 122 lb×in−1, and a flexural rigidity that is or is adjustable to be between 2,000 and 101,000 lb×in2, the bending rigidity and the flexural rigidity being sufficient that the rocking region permits the user with both feet positioned on opposite ends of the mat to generate a pushback force that is felt against their first foot by significantly shifting their weight to their second foot to apply downward force to the rocking region and by rocking the board off the floor on one end, using only their feet, the feeling of the pushback force encouraging the user to move more, and
• wherein the rocking region is positioned along the perimeter of the mat, and wherein the edge operates to functionally extend the rocking region by at least partially collapsing and conforming to pressure applied by the feet.