JP2000166973A - Wheel cleaning device and wheelchair provided with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wheel cleaning device to be easily maintained, by which the stain of wheels are cleaned with a simple structure, and a wheelchair provided with the device. SOLUTION: The wheel cleaning means 30 consisting of a member such as a sponge is attached in the neighborhood of each wheel so as to be freely attachable/detachable by a clip 20 to permit the means to be abutted on each front wheel and each rear wheel 13. In the device, the clip 20 is fitted to permit the sponge to be abutted on each wheel of the wheelchair in the case of coming back home, the wheelchair is travelled for prescribed distance and, then, the stain of the wheels is cleaned by the sponges.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wheel cleaning device and a wheelchair provided with the wheel cleaning device, and more particularly to a wheel cleaning device and a wheel which can clean dirt on a wheel with a simple structure and which are easy to maintain. The present invention relates to a wheelchair provided with a cleaning device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Heretofore, for example, when a person using a wheelchair goes out, he or she goes out of the room while riding on a wheelchair, and enters home while riding on a wheelchair from home.

[0003]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] A person using a wheelchair can use a wheelchair indoors (= in a house or facility) from a road or outside.
When entering, it is difficult to enter the room after wiping off the dirt attached to the wheelchair tires, so there is a problem that the dirt is brought into the room and the floor is stained by the trace of the tire,
I was bothering people involved. Therefore, a wheelchair cleaning machine has been proposed, but the conventional wheelchair cleaning machine is a large-scale device that uses tap water and electricity by spraying water to tires of wheels, and its installation place is limited, and Since it is expensive, it cannot be used in ordinary households, and it is troublesome in facilities, so there is a problem that no one wants to use it.

[0004] In the case of a commercially available tire cover, it is necessary to step down from the wheelchair once, cover the entire tire, and then get on again. was there. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and to provide a wheel cleaning device and a wheel cleaning device which can clean dirt on wheels with a simple structure and are easy to maintain. To provide wheelchairs.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is characterized in that in a wheel cleaning device, a clip means is detachably mounted near a wheel so that the wheel cleaning means made of a member such as a sponge contacts the wheel. There is also a feature in a wheelchair provided with the clip means. According to the present invention, when returning to the home, the clip means is attached so that the wheel cleaning means made of a member such as a sponge abuts on each wheel of the wheelchair, and by traveling a predetermined distance, the dirt on the wheels is made of a member such as a sponge. It is cleaned by the wheel cleaning means.

[0006]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail. FIG. 1 is a front view and a side view showing a configuration of a wheelchair to which the wheel cleaning device of the present invention can be attached.
The front wheel 11 of the wheelchair 10 is fixed to a frame by a fork 12 so as to be able to rotate and change its direction. The rear wheel 13 provided with the hand rim 17 is rotatably fixed to the frame. A clip holding component 16 as clip support means is fixed to a frame 14 of the backrest portion via a connection component 15 as a stay fitting. The cleaner to be described later is attached to the fork portion (location A in FIG. 1) for the front wheel, and to the clip holding component 16 (location B in FIG. 1) for the rear wheel. In FIG. 1, the description of the brake device is omitted.

FIG. 2 is a front view and a side view showing the structure of the clip. Clip 2 which is a component of cleaner
0 denotes two clip members 21 and 22 of the same type and a spring 2
Consists of three. The two members 21 and 22 are rotatably engaged at a fulcrum 25, and are pressed by a spring 23 from outside the fulcrum on the side of the holding portion 26. The holding portion 26 has a shape that fits into a cylindrical object.
Is provided with an opening 27 as a sponge locking means. The user opens the holding section 26 by grasping the operation section 24 of each of the members 21 and 22, sandwiches the object, and separates the object, whereby the clip 20 is attached to the object by the force of the spring 23. Note that clips as shown are commercially available.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a structure of a sponge which is an example of a wheel cleaning means which is a component of the cleaner. The sponge 30 has a structure in which a part of a rectangular parallelepiped is cut into a cylindrical shape, and for example, a material such as PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) can be used. PVA has elasticity due to inclusion of water, and is also excellent in abrasion resistance.

FIG. 4 is a front view, a back view, and a side view showing a structure of a cleaner constituted by combining the clip 20 and the sponge 30 described above. Clipping part 2 of clip 20
The sponge 3 is inserted into a rectangular opening 27 provided on the side
The sleeves 0 are pushed in and fixed by the elasticity of the sponge 30.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing how the clip 20 and the sponge 30 are combined. The vertices J, K, L, and M of both the sleeves of the sponge 30 are pushed into the openings 27 provided in the clip holding portion 26, and are fixed in a deformed state as shown in FIG. 5B. The upper surface N of the sponge 30 is a cleaning surface that comes into contact with the tire. Since the wet sponge 30 is elastic and stretches, the sponge 30 does not come off even if the clip 20 is pinched and opened in the state of FIG. 5B. A set of four cleaners combining the clip 20 and the sponge 30 is used.

Next, the method of mounting will be described. FIG.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing how to attach a cleaner to a front wheel portion of a wheelchair. Since the fork 12 and the front wheel (caster wheel) 11 on which the cleaner is mounted rotate around the axis of the fork, when the cleaner is mounted on the cylindrical portion of the fork 12, the surface N of the sponge 30 is pressed against the ground portion of the front wheel 11. When the front wheel 11 rotates, dirt on the surface is efficiently wiped off by the sponge 30.

Since the holding portion 26 of the cleaner has a shape to be fitted to a cylindrical object, the sponge 30 is attached to the front wheel 1.
When the cleaner is attached to the cylindrical portion of the fork 12 so that the sponge 30 is pressed against the front wheel 11, the cleaner is fixed at a right angle to the rotation axis of the fork 12 and in the direction of wheel travel. There is no deviation. When running a wheelchair in this state,
The surface of the front wheel 11 is wiped off by the sponge 30 and becomes clean. After cleaning is completed, remove the cleaner with fork 1
If the sponge 30 is removed and washed with tap water as it is, the sponge 30 becomes beautiful, so it is stored in a closed container until reuse.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing the structure of the clip holding component and how to attach the cleaner to the rear wheel. A cylindrical clip holding component 40 having a flange 41 is attached and fixed to an upper portion of the rear wheel 13 via a connection component 15. Since the structure of the wheelchair differs depending on the model, the connecting parts 15 need to be created according to the wheelchair to be mounted, adjusted, and installed. The clip holding component 40 is fixed at a position at a predetermined distance (several mm to several cm) from the tire on a radial extension from the center of the hub of the rear wheel 13 toward the ground contact surface of the tire.

In the example of the connecting part shown in FIG. 7, a metal plate having screw holes at both ends is used as the connecting part 15, one end of which is fixed to the clip holding part 40 by screws 43, and the other is backrest by screws 44. Frame 1
It is fixed to 4. Wheelchair backrest pipe, arm pipe, elbow pad, base pipe, skirt guard,
By connecting / fixing the clip holding component 40 to the mudguard fixing portion, the brake stay or the brake shoe via the connecting component 15 or directly, the self-propelled, assisted, or electric wheelchair is provided. The present invention can be applied irrespective of the type.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a state of the sponge 30 when the cleaner is attached to the holding component. The sponge 30 maintains a state pressed against the contact surface of the rear wheel as in the case of the front wheel. In addition, since the holding component 40 is cylindrical and has the flange 41, the cleaner can be easily fixed at a predetermined position, and the position does not shift. Further, the diameter of the holding component 40 is set to the fork 12 of the front wheel.
By making the value close to the diameter of the cylindrical portion of the above, the same cleaner can be used for the front and rear wheels.

Next, the method of use will be described. First,
When used for the first time, the four sponges 30 are moistened and attached to the clip 20 as shown in FIG. 5 to create four cleaners. Cleaner before use is sponge 30
Keep it in a closed container so that it does not lose its moisture and attach it to the wheel of a wheelchair or put it in a bag attached to the wheelchair. Alternatively, it is provided in a place that can be reached from the wheelchair at the place of use such as the entrance.

When cleaning is required, a total of four cleaners are attached to the fork portion of the front wheel and the clip holding parts of the rear wheel so that each sponge 30 is pressed against each tire. When the wheelchair is run until the rear wheel makes one rotation, the wheel rotates and the dirt on the tire surface is wiped off by the damp sponge.

The dirty sponge can be easily washed away with tap water while the driver himself attaches to the clip, so that cleaning up is easy. Washed cleaner should be kept wet in a closed container until the next use. Since the sponge can withstand hundreds of repeated uses, it is only necessary to replace it with a new sponge several times a year, which is extremely simple and economical. Further, since the clip 20 itself is inexpensive, it is possible to replace the cleaner by considering the cleaner as a consumable.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing another structure of the sponge 30. The sponge 50 of the second embodiment has a notch 53 at the center and also has through holes 51 and 52 on the left and right as a locking structure with a clip. This sponge 50
Is attached to the clip 20, the holding portion 26 of the clip 20 is inserted into the two through holes 51 and 52. Therefore, attachment / detachment of the sponge to / from the clip becomes easy. The sponge 60 of the third embodiment is obtained by changing the center notch 53 of the sponge 50 of the second embodiment to a through hole 63. This embodiment also facilitates the attachment / detachment of the sponge to / from the clip, and when one side becomes dirty, the other side can be used by turning the clip over. Sponge 7 of the fourth embodiment
Reference numeral 0 indicates that the through holes 61 and 62 in the third embodiment are changed to notches 71 and 72. In the second to fourth embodiments, the notch 53 or the through hole 6 at the center is used.
3, 73 may not be provided. When the sponges of the second to fourth embodiments are used, the clip 20 does not need the opening 27.

FIG. 10 is a front view, a side view, and a sectional view showing another structure of the cleaner. Sponge 80 of the fifth embodiment
Is a rectangular parallelepiped thinner than the above-described embodiment, and is bonded to the side surface of the holding portion 26 of the clip 20 with an adhesive 81. In the case of bonding, for example, the clip 20 is opened (the holding component 40 is sandwiched) so that the clip 20 can be opened.
The sponge 80 is adhered to the holding portion 26 in this state. Two sponges 80 may be bonded to both side surfaces of the holding portion 26. Also, the clip 20 does not require the opening 27. Further, fixing means other than the adhesive may be used. With such a configuration, when the sponge has deteriorated, it is necessary to discard the entire clip, but the sponge usage is reduced and the cost is lower than in the above-described embodiment.

While the embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed above, the present invention may have the following modifications. In the embodiment, PVA is given as an example of the material of the sponge. However, the material of the sponge is arbitrary as long as the sponge can be impregnated with water or a cleaning liquid and has elasticity. The shape of the holding component 40 and the corresponding holding portion 26, the shape of the sponge 30, and the shape of the portion 31 cut into a cylindrical shape of the sponge can be changed to any shape within a range having the same function. In the embodiment, the example in which the cleaner is directly attached to the fork of the front wheel is disclosed. However, depending on the model, the clip as disclosed may not be attached. In such a case, without attaching the sponge 30 to the clip 20, the front wheel 11 can be directly sandwiched between the column-shaped cut portions 31 of the sponge and wiped at the inner surface portion of the column.

In the present invention, the vehicle must travel a predetermined distance in order to clean the wheels. For example, if a device that includes a roller on which a wheelchair is mounted and that can rotate the wheels without traveling is used, The cleaning of the wheels is possible without the need.
Although the embodiment discloses an example in which the present invention is applied to a wheelchair, the present invention is applicable to cleaning of wheels of any device having wheels.

[0023]

As described above, in the present invention,
If only the connection parts are made according to the wheelchair to be applied, the invention can be applied to any type of wheelchair such as a self-propelled type, an assistance type, and an electric type. In addition, almost all the dirt on the tire surface is wiped off by the sponge, and the sponge can be easily washed away with tap water while being attached to the clip, so that the dirt can be efficiently removed, and the cleaning is easy. The sponge withstands hundreds of repeated uses and only needs to be replaced with a new sponge several times a year, making it extremely simple and economical. Since there is no installation place, no installation cost, no waste of water and electricity, and it is inexpensive, anyone can use it easily, and there is an effect that a clean and comfortable life can be achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view and a side view showing a configuration of a wheelchair.

FIG. 2 is a front view and a side view showing a configuration of a clip.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a structure of a sponge.

FIG. 4 is a front view, a back view, and a side view showing the structure of the cleaner.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing how to combine the clip 20 and the sponge 30.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing how to attach a cleaner to a front wheel portion of a wheelchair.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration and an attachment method of a clip holding component.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a use state of the sponge 30.

FIG. 9 is a front view showing another structure of the sponge 30.

FIG. 10 is a front view, a side view, and other views showing another structure of the cleaner.
It is sectional drawing.

[Explanation of symbols]

10, wheelchair, 11 front wheel, 12 fork, 13 ...
Rear wheel, 14 ... frame, 15 ... connecting parts, 16 ... clip holding parts, 17 ... hand rim, 20 ... clips, 2
1, 22: clip member, 23: spring, 24: operation unit,
25 ... fulcrum, 26 ... clamping part, 27 ... rectangular opening, 3
0: sponge, 40: clip holding part, 41: brim,
43, 44: screw, 50, 60, 70, 80: sponge, 51, 52, 61, 62, 73: through hole, 53, 7
1, 72 ... Notch

Claims (6)

[Claims] Claims: 1. A wheel cleaning means abuts a wheel.
A wheel cleaning device comprising: clip means removably mounted near a wheel; and wheel cleaning means removably mounted on the clip means. 2. The wheel cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein said wheel cleaning means comprises a sponge-like member, and said clip means comprises a locking means for locking said sponge-like member. apparatus. 3. The wheel cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the wheel cleaning device comprises a sponge-shaped member, and further comprises a locking structure for locking the sponge-shaped member to the clip device.
A wheel cleaning device according to any one of the above. 4. The sponge-shaped member is a rectangular parallelepiped having a band-shaped notch with a substantially circular cross section, and the clip means is for holding a cylindrical object on a side opposite to an operation unit with a fulcrum therebetween. The wheel cleaning according to claim 2, comprising: two opposing clip members each having a holding portion; and a spring member for pressing the holding portion side from the outside of a fulcrum of the two opposing clip members from the outside. apparatus. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the wheel cleaning means contacts the wheel.
A wheel cleaning device comprising: a clip unit detachably mounted near a wheel; and a wheel cleaning unit bonded to the clip unit. 6. A clip supporting means having a cylindrical member for mounting the wheel cleaning device according to any one of claims 1, 2, 3, and 5 on an upper portion of the rear wheel. Wheelchair with wheel cleaning device.