JPH1128220A - Upper body support device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the burden of a person who often does work in a stooping, half-sitting position, such as a helper. SOLUTION: This upper body support device includes a pillow 1, a gas spring 3 supporting the pillow 1 and having a lock mechanism capable of adjusting the amount of projection of a cylinder rod 3A, foldable structures 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13 supporting the gas spring 3, and a movement mechanism 15 whereby the structures are movably supported. When a helper does work in an unstable position, he/she can reduce the burden of the muscles around his/her waist by resting his/her chest or abdomen on the upper body support device. In use, the height of the pillow can be set at a desired position through adjustment of the length of the gas spring, and since the device can be folded when hot used, its storage property can be enhanced.

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an upper body supporting device, and more particularly, to a person who frequently works with a bent forward / middle waist (a nurse, a caregiver, etc. (Referred to simply as a caregiver). 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, many devices for assisting persons with disabilities or injuries have been developed and used in accordance with the degree of injury or injuries or cases. However, on the other hand, no device has been developed to assist those who perform nursing and nursing (hereinafter simply referred to as nursing). [0003] When caring for a cared person in a bed, the carer often works while leaning forward or on the waist, so that a carer who performs such work for a long time or frequently has accumulated fatigue. Many people suffer from low back pain.
In particular, beds provided at hospitals and other medical institutions are kept low in case of a fall,
The burden on caregivers is even greater. Some beds designed for nursing care can be raised and lowered so that when nursing or receiving medical care, the height of the bed is increased to make it easier to perform the required work. Although it is thought that it can be reduced, raising and lowering the bed every time nursing care is not enough for busy caregivers, and in fact it is thought that in most cases nursing work is done with the bed lowered . SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0004] The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and reduces the burden on a caregiver or the like who frequently works with bending forward and mid-high. Another object is to improve the workability. [0005] For this purpose, the present invention provides:
A pillow, a gas spring supporting the pillow and having a lock mechanism capable of adjusting an amount of protrusion of a cylinder rod, a foldable structure supporting the gas spring, and a movement movably supporting the structure A mechanism and a movement inhibiting mechanism for inhibiting the movement are provided. Here, a display means for displaying the amount of protrusion can be provided. The structure includes a base frame having a front edge and both side edges to which the moving mechanism is mounted, a substantially arch shape, supporting the gas spring near a vertex of the arch, and a pair of foot portions. A spring support frame rotatably supported on both side edges of the base frame, a stay rotatably supported on a front edge of the base frame, the spring support frame or the spring support frame and the stay. May be releasably coupled to the spring support frame and a joint for preventing the stay from rotating with respect to the base frame in the coupled state. Here, the stay may have a downwardly curved shape. [0008] The structure may further include a frame protruding upward at a front edge side of a support portion on both sides of the base frame on the side of the spring support frame. The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. (First Example) FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of the structure of a body supporting apparatus of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 (A) and 2 (B).
FIGS. 3A and 3B are a front view and a side view, respectively, showing a more detailed configuration example of the apparatus of FIG. In these figures, 1 is a pillow,
The upper body is supported by contacting the chest or abdomen of the caregiver N shown by the broken line. The pillow 1 includes an appropriate cushioning material such as a gas, a liquid, a gel-like substance, a granular material, a linear material, a rubber, a foam, or an appropriate combination of any of these, and is applied to the abdomen or chest. It is highly desirable to have a form and shape that does not cause discomfort or fatigue when the caregiver's upper body is in contact with and supported. For example, in the case where air can be charged and discharged, the hardness of the cushion can be adjusted by the charging and discharging. In the case where the gel-like substance is encapsulated, the so-called "fit" can be given to the caregiver by deforming along the shape of the chest or abdomen of the caregiver. Reference numeral 3 denotes a gas spring having a lock mechanism, which is capable of releasing the lock by operating a lever 3B shown in FIG. 2A and allowing the piston rod 3A to expand or contract or adjust its length by the action of an axial compressive force. It has become. Also, as shown in FIG.
If a scale 3C is provided as a height display means in A, it is possible to provide convenience when the caregiver adjusts the height of the pillow 1 in accordance with the height of the person or the posture during care work. In addition, as the height display means, a scale provided on the piston rod 3A, and an appropriate form and an arrangement portion can be determined. For example, a combination of a linear scale having an encoder (which may be electrical, optical, or magnetic) and a display provided at a position where a caregiver can easily view the display may be used. Reference numeral 2 denotes a hinge, which supports the pillow 1 at the tip of the piston rod 3A so as to be swingable in the front-rear direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1). It is preferable that the pillow 1 can be stopped at a desired swing position by applying an appropriate frictional force to the hinge shaft or enabling screwing. In addition to allowing the pillow 1 to swing, and by allowing the pillow 1 to move back and forth with respect to the support portion by the piston rod 3A, the caregiver N can leave the body or perform nursing care. It is also preferable to be able to set to a position where the balance can be kept well.
In this case, the swing and the movement can be permitted / prevented by operating a single screw. Reference numeral 5 denotes a substantially arch-shaped spring support frame, which fixedly supports the gas spring 3 at a spring receiving portion provided at the vertex of the arch. Reference numeral 7 denotes a base frame having a substantially U-shape (which may be a U-shape) which includes a front edge portion and both side edge portions, and has a rear end edge opened to receive the caregiver's legs. . Both ends (foot portions of the arch) of the spring support frame are attached to both side edges of the base frame 7 by hinges 8, and can be folded so as to overlap the base frame 7. A stay 9 is rotatably supported at one end by a hinge 11 at the center of the front edge of the base frame 7. The other end can be connected to the gas spring 3 or the joint 13 provided on the support frame 5, and in this connection state, rotation (falling) around the gas spring support frame 5 or the hinge 8 of the upper structure thereof is prevented. . When the device of this example is not used, the support frame 5 and the stay 9 can be folded by removing the distal end from the joint 13. The joint 13 has a sliding portion 13A through which the shaft of the gas spring 3 or the spring receiving portion of the support frame 5 is inserted and which can slide along the shaft (in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 2B). The end of the stay 9 has a cap portion 13B which is fitted and abutted and locks the same.
When attaching the tip of the stay 9, first, joint 1
3 may be slid axially upward to properly position the stay tip, and then the joint 13 may be slid axially downward to cover the cap part 13B on the stay tip. The joint 13 is not limited to the above-mentioned one, but may be any suitable one. For example, instead of using a cap for simply fitting the tip of the stay, the two may be connected by a pin after the tip of the stay is inserted. Alternatively, at least one of the inner surface of the cap and the outer surface of the tip of the stay may be provided with a protruding member that is spring-biased and protruded, and the other may be provided with a hole or a groove that engages with the predetermined position. Furthermore, the joint is not slid at the time of connection and release as in the present embodiment, but a portion for latching the engaged portion by being biased by a spring, and a latch in response to the connection operation and the release operation. And a joint having a cam portion for easily removing the joint, and the joint is fixed to at least one of the shaft side and the stay tip side of the gas spring 3 or the spring receiving portion of the support frame 5. Can also. The stay 9 has a downwardly curved shape as shown in the figure, so that when the upper body support device is brought close to the bed where the care recipient is located during the care work, the stay 9 interferes with the lower surface of the bed. The structure is such that the caregiver can be as close as possible to the cared person. Further, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, a pair of stopper frames 17 are provided at appropriate positions on the front edge side of the upper hinges 8 on both side edges of the base frame 7.
Are projected upward, and when the upper body support device is brought close to the bed where the care receiver is located during care work, the lower body abuts against the lower edge of the bed so that the rotation of the support device about the vertical axis is prevented. Has become. If the stopper frame 17 has a nested (telescope type) structure, a structure that can be folded on a plane formed by the base frame, or a structure that can be attached to and detached from the base frame 17. In addition, it is possible to improve the storability of the upper body supporting device when not in use and the handleability of the upper body supporting device when the stopper frame is unnecessary. In addition, if the stopper frame 17 is configured to be expandable and contractable particularly by adopting a nesting type or the like, the height of the stopper frame can be adjusted to the height of the lower edge of the bed, so that it is possible to cope with various beds. . Further, a buffer means such as an elastic body may be added to the stopper frame 17, or the stopper frame 17 may be elastically supported by the base frame 7, or the stopper frame itself may be appropriately elasticized. By constituting with a body or the like, it is possible to alleviate the mutual impact when it is hit against the lower edge of the bed. Furthermore, if a slight inclination of the upper body supporting device with respect to the bed is allowed, restrictions on the posture of the caregiver during work can be relaxed. Reference numeral 15 denotes a caster as an example of a moving means provided at an appropriate position on an appropriate portion of the base frame 7 to facilitate movement of the upper body supporting device. FIG.
As shown in (1), the caster 15 is provided with a lock mechanism 15A for preventing the movement, and by appropriately operating the lock mechanism 15A, the stability of the caregiver during the care work or the like is secured. The lock mechanism has a form shown in FIG. 1 which is directly attached to the caster 15, and a member which protrudes downward in accordance with operation of a predetermined lever or pedal and which can contact the floor is provided. Or means for preventing the movement of the upper body supporting device by frictional force generated by the contact even if the caster does not float. Here, an appropriate mechanism such as a latch wheel in which the movable state is alternately set for each operation of the operating member such as the lever or the pedal may be added, or the operating member and the movement preventing mechanism may be connected to each other. Of course, appropriate force amplifying means can be added to the transmission mechanism between them. According to the above configuration, when the caregiver works in an unstable posture, if his or her chest or abdomen is stored in the upper body support device, the burden on the muscles around the waist is significantly reduced. Workability can be improved, and the effect of suppressing the occurrence of back pain can be expected. In using the apparatus of this embodiment, the length of the gas spring 3 can be adjusted by manually operating the lever 3B, and the height of the pillow 1 can be set at a desired position. In addition, by storing the display contents of the display means and referring to the contents at the time of adjustment, it is possible to quickly set the optimum position. Further, when the movement lock mechanism is released, free movement is possible with the upper body kept in the pillow 1. In addition, when the apparatus is not used, the joint 1
Since the stay 9 can be removed from 3 and folded, the storage is excellent. (Others) FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a modification of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 as a second example of the body supporting apparatus of the present invention. In this embodiment, the spring support frame is not a relatively simple, substantially arch-shaped frame, but a frame 50 that is bent forward on both left and right sides of the spring support. According to this example, in addition to the same effect as the above example, the effect that interference with the caregiver's leg can be avoided can be obtained. Further, it goes without saying that the present invention can be used not only for assisting a caregiver but also for assisting a person who frequently performs work with a forward bend and a middle waist. As described above, according to the present invention,
The burden on a caregiver or the like who often performs work while leaning forward or midway can be reduced, and the workability can be further improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration example of a body support device of the present invention. FIGS. 2A and 2B are a front view and a side view, respectively, showing a more detailed configuration example of the apparatus of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a main part of a modification of the upper body supporting device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2; [Description of Signs] 1 Pillow 2, 8, 11 Hinge 3 Gas spring 3A Piston rod 3B Lever 3C Scale 5, 50 Spring support frame 7 Base frame 9 Stay 13 Joint 15 Caster 15A Lock mechanism 17 Stopper frame N Caregiver

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. A pillow, a gas spring having a lock mechanism that supports the pillow and is capable of adjusting a protrusion amount of a cylinder rod, and a foldable structure that supports the gas spring. An upper body supporting device, comprising: a moving mechanism for movably supporting the structure; and a movement preventing mechanism for preventing the movement. 2. The upper body support device according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit for displaying the amount of protrusion. 3. The base body has a front edge and both side edges, and has a base frame to which the moving mechanism is attached, has a substantially arch shape, supports the gas spring near a vertex of the arch, and has a pair of feet. A spring support frame rotatably supported on both side edges of the base frame, a stay having one end rotatably supported on a front edge of the base frame, the spring support frame or the spring support frame, and 3. The joint according to claim 1, further comprising a joint that releasably couples the other end of the stay and a spring that prevents the spring support frame and the stay from rotating with respect to the base frame in the coupled state. 4. Upper body support device. 5. The upper body support device according to claim 4, wherein the stay has a downwardly curved shape. 6. The frame according to claim 4, wherein the structure further includes a frame protruding upward at a front edge side of a supporting portion of a side portion of the spring support frame on both side edges of the base frame. An upper body support device according to item 1.