JP2000333311A - Electric vehicle for traveling - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve steering with a feeling where passengers drive a vehicle with their own leg force, facilitate the move to a desired location, and improve the effect for function recovery training, by calculating the rotary angle and rotary speed of a drive wheel based on the detection signal of a pedal rotary angle detection sensor for controlling a drive means. SOLUTION: A pedal 7 is provided at the position of the front end part of a machine body frame where passengers can steps the pedal 7 with their leg force, and a rotary angle detection sensor 15 for detecting the rotary angle of the pedal 7 is provided in the machine body frame. Also, a load-applying means 9 is further connected to the rotary part of the pedal 7 so that a load can be applied when the pedal 7 is to be rotated. More specifically, in the load-applying means 9, a friction plate is provided at the rotary part of the pedal 7 so that a load can be applied to the friction plate when the pedal 7 is to be rotated. Then, the load-applying means 9 is provided with an adjustment means 10 such as an adjustment knob, thus adjusting the size of the load when rotating the pedal 7 by adjusting force being applied to the friction plate according to the degree of functional recovery training.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mobile electric vehicle that drives driving wheels in conjunction with the rotation of a pedal, and performs function recovery training for a disabled person who aims to recover leg function and an elderly person whose leg power is declining. An electric vehicle for movement that can be moved to a desired place.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Medical facilities and care houses are provided with various types of rehabilitation support devices for enabling persons with leg disorders or elderly people who have weakness in leg strength to walk on their own. By using this function, it is possible to perform leg function recovery training. However, when the patient recovers to a predetermined level and is discharged from the facility and returns home, the main practice is to provide a handrail indoors and perform walking training while being guided by the handrail, so that sufficient leg function recovery training is continuously performed. It is difficult.

[0003] On the other hand, wheelchairs are used exclusively for the disabled and elderly people to move on their own indoors and outdoors by themselves. It is a comfortable means of transportation that does not cost. In particular, in recent years, electric wheelchairs using a motor as a driving means have appeared, and as a result, disabled people and elderly people are welcomed as a means of moving to a desired place without requiring physical strength.

[0004] However, from the viewpoint of functional recovery training, when using the above-described electric wheelchair, no load is applied to the disabled leg, which may lead to a decrease in leg strength. For the elderly and the elderly,
There is a problem that the function recovery training does not exert a sufficient effect by frequently using the electric wheelchair.

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, a method has been devised in which the function of the leg is maintained by using the leg in a wheelchair used by a disabled person or an elderly person during function recovery training. That is, this is an electric assist wheelchair provided with a pedal, and the function of the leg strength is maintained by part of the propulsion of the wheelchair by pedaling.

In the above-mentioned wheelchair of the electric assist type, when the pedal needs a certain load or more, an electric motor is activated so that the load on the leg force does not exceed a certain value. When a load such as a sloping road is applied, the driving force is switched to the driving force of the electric motor or the driving force is combined with the driving force of the motor.

[0007] In the electric assist wheelchair of this type, two driving forces are used by a human power and an electric motor, so that a control device for switching between the two driving forces or synthesizing the two driving forces becomes complicated. In addition, there is a problem that since the mechanism becomes complicated, the number of components increases and the weight increases. In addition, there is a problem that the mechanism becomes complicated and the price increases.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above problems, there is provided a mobile electric vehicle used by a person with a disability in a leg or an elderly person who has a weakened leg strength, wherein a passenger uses the leg to drive the vehicle. By having a mechanism to generate it, it is useful for function recovery training, and by eliminating a torque transmission mechanism such as a chain or gear, the mechanism is simplified and reduced in weight, and furthermore, it is easy to maneuver and comfortable to ride It is an object to provide an electric vehicle for movement.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An electric vehicle for movement according to the present invention has a pedal operated by a rider using a leg, a sensor for detecting a rotation angle of the pedal provided on the pedal, and a driving wheel for driving the vehicle. A driving unit for applying a force, and a control unit for controlling the driving unit, wherein the control unit outputs to the driving unit a command value of a rotation angle and a rotation speed of the driving wheel calculated based on a detection signal of the sensor. It is characterized in that the driving means is controlled by means of the driving means.

[0010] In particular, in the electric vehicle for movement according to the present invention, the control means controls the rotation direction of the pedal and the rotation direction of the drive wheel in correspondence with each other so as to output a command value of a rotation angle and a rotation speed of the drive wheel. It is characterized by being done.

Further, in the electric vehicle for transportation according to the present invention, the control means has a function of smoothing the rotational speed of the drive wheel, or changing a rotational speed ratio of the drive wheel to the rotational speed of the pedal in accordance with the rotational speed of the pedal. It is characterized by having a function of causing

Further, the electric vehicle for movement according to the present invention is characterized in that a load applying means is provided in a rotating portion of the pedal.

Further, in the electric vehicle for transportation according to the present invention, an encoder may be used for the sensor, or an electric motor may be used for the driving means.

[0014]

The moving electric vehicle according to the present invention is configured so that the moving amount and the moving speed of the moving vehicle are determined by the pedal operated by the passenger with the foot, and the pedal and the driving wheels are mechanically connected. Despite not having a power transmission mechanism,
It is configured such that the same effect as when driving wheels are directly driven by a pedal is obtained.

Further, in the electric vehicle for transportation according to the present invention, the control means has a function of smoothing the rotational speed of the drive wheels;
Alternatively, it has a function of changing the rotation speed ratio of the drive wheels to the rotation speed of the pedal according to the rotation speed of the pedal. Therefore, there is no sudden acceleration or deceleration of the electric vehicle for movement, and the occupant can easily operate in a low speed range or a high speed range.

On the other hand, since the pedal portion is provided with a mechanism for applying a load in accordance with the occupant's leg strength, the occupant can operate the moving vehicle with a sense as if it is driven by his or her own leg strength. Therefore, the disabled person and the elderly can easily move to a desired place, and also have the effect of the function recovery training.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. Further, in the present embodiment, an example is shown in which the electric vehicle for movement has four wheels because of its excellent stability. However, in order to simplify the mechanism of the electric vehicle for movement, a vehicle having three wheels may be used. Good. In the case of a three-wheel electric vehicle for movement, either the front side has one wheel and the rear side has two wheels, or the front side has two wheels and the rear side has one wheel. .

FIG. 1 is a moving electric vehicle 1 according to this embodiment.
3A is a front view as viewed from the front, FIG. 3B is a side view, and FIG. 3C is a rear view as viewed from the rear of the mobile electric vehicle.

A pair of front wheels 3L and 3R are provided at the front end of the body frame 2 of the electric vehicle 1 for movement, and a pair of rear wheels 4 are provided at the rear end.
L, 4R are attached. Drive motors 41L and 41R are connected to the rear wheels 4L and 4R, respectively.
Each of L and 4R is independently driven and controlled.

At the center of the body frame 2, there is provided a boarding seat 5 on which the occupant sits. Above the backrest of the occupant seat 5, a grip 6 for holding by a caregiver is provided.

A steering wheel 8 for turning in the traveling direction of the moving electric vehicle 1 is rotatably held by a steering wheel indicator 14 provided at the front end of the body frame 2, and further detects the rotation angle of the steering wheel 8. A turning angle detection sensor 71 is provided. The traveling direction is determined and controlled according to the angle detected by the turning angle detection sensor 71.

A pedal 7 is provided at a front end of the body frame 2 at a position where the pedal 7 can be used by a passenger.
Rotation angle detection sensor 15 for detecting the rotation angle of pedal 7
Is provided inside the body frame 2.

A load applying means 9 is connected to the rotating portion of the pedal 7 so that a load is applied when the pedal 7 is further rotated. The load applying means 9 is an adjusting means 10 for changing the intensity of the load according to the degree of the function recovery training.
Is provided.

For example, the load applying means 9 is configured such that a friction plate is provided on a rotating portion of the pedal 7 and a load is applied when the pedal 7 is rotated by applying an elastic force to the friction plate in the rotation axis direction of the pedal 7. I do. The load applying means 9 is provided with adjusting means 10 such as an adjusting knob to adjust the force applied to the friction plate to adjust the magnitude of the load when the pedal 7 is pedaled.

A control device 11 for controlling the entire electric vehicle 1 for movement, a driver 42 of the drive motor 4 and a battery 13 for power supply are attached to a lower portion of the body frame 2.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the control system. The rotation angle of the pedal 7 is detected by a rotation angle sensor 81, and the output is sent to the control unit 11. The rotation angle and the rotation speed of the drive wheel 4 are controlled such that a predetermined relationship with the rotation angle and the rotation speed of the pedal 7 is maintained. That is, when the rotation of the pedal 7 is slow, the rotation of the drive wheel is slow, and when the rotation of the pedal 7 is fast, the drive wheel 4 is fast. Also, if you reverse the pedal rotation,
The drive wheel 4 rotates in the reverse direction, and is controlled by the control device 11 so that the drive wheel 4 stops when the pedal 7 stops at a certain position.

When calculating the rotational speed of the drive wheel 4, the control device 11 has a function of smoothing out the input value from the pedal 7 and outputting a command value of the rotational speed of the drive wheel 4 when the input value suddenly changes. ing. If the control means does not have the smoothing function and transmits the speed change of the pedal 7 faithfully, when the speed change is suddenly applied to the pedal 7, the moving electric vehicle 1 changes its speed suddenly and falls into a dangerous state. Sometimes. Safe operation can be ensured by limiting rapid changes in speed with the smoothing function.

Further, the control device 11 comprises a pedal 7 and a driving wheel 4.
To output a command value of the rotation speed of the drive wheels 4 by changing the rotation speed ratio of the drive wheel 4 in accordance with the rotation speed of the pedal. I have. For example, by making the rotation speed ratio small in the low speed and high speed regions and increasing it in the medium speed region, it is possible to control the speed slightly by changing the speed in the low speed region. With this, the speed can be easily increased. On the other hand, since the rotation speed ratio is suppressed in the high speed range, the speed is prevented from excessively increasing, and danger can be prevented.

Next, the electric vehicle 1 for moving by the handle 8
Will be described. The moving electric vehicle 1 of the present embodiment is a rear-wheel drive four-wheeled vehicle, and has two rear wheels 4L, 4R.
Are driven independently of each other, the two rear wheels 4L, 4R
The turning radius and turning angle of the electric powered vehicle 1 can be controlled by controlling the respective rotation amounts. Accordingly, the rotation angle and the rotation speed of the drive wheels are calculated by the control unit 11 based on the turning angle of the steering wheel 8 detected by the turning angle detection sensor 16, and the calculation results are output to the respective drive motor controllers 42. The turning angle of the electric vehicle for movement is controlled. The drive motors 41L, 41R for the drive wheels incorporate an encoder for detecting the rotation angle, and the motor controllers 42 of the drive wheels 4L, 4R control the position command and the speed command so that the output of the motor matches. Movement is controlled.

In this embodiment, the handle 8 and the turning angle detection sensor 16 are used as means for turning the electric vehicle 1 for movement. However, the present invention is not limited to this. By transmitting the output calculated by the control unit based on the above to the driving wheels, the electric powered vehicle 1 may be configured to turn.

Next, the operation and operation of the mobile electric vehicle 1 will be described. In the motor vehicle 1 of the present embodiment, when the rider rotates the pedal 7 in the forward direction (clockwise direction in FIG. 1B), the motor vehicle 1 moves forward and moves backward (FIG. When the pedal 7 is rotated in the counterclockwise direction in (b)), the electric vehicle 1 moves backward.
When the pedal 7 is held at a fixed position, the electric vehicle for movement 1 stops at the fixed position. If the rotation speed of the pedal 7 is low, the electric vehicle for movement 1 moves slowly,
If the rotational speed of the vehicle is high, the moving speed of the electric vehicle for moving becomes high. That is, the pedal 7 serves as a moving distance control device of the electric vehicle for movement and also serves as a speed control device.

Therefore, the operation of the pedal matches the feeling of maneuvering the electric vehicle 1 for movement, so that it is easy to maneuver. When the pedal is maintained at a fixed position, the drive motor does not move forward or backward and stops at the fixed position, so that no special brake mechanism is required.

When moving the electric vehicle 1 for traveling straight,
The steering wheel 8 is set at a neutral position. At this time, since the same position command based on the movement of the pedal 7 is output to the pair of left and right drive motors 41 of the rear wheels (drive wheels), the electric vehicle for movement 1 Go straight. If the steering wheel 8 is now turned to the right, the mobile electric vehicle 1 is turned to the right by outputting a position command to rotate the drive motor of the left drive wheel more than the right. Similarly, when the steering wheel 8 is turned leftward, the electric vehicle for movement 1 turns leftward on the same principle.

Since the pedal 7 and the rear wheel (drive wheel) 4 of the electric vehicle 1 according to the present invention are configured as described above, the pedal and the drive wheel are not mechanically connected. Regardless, it is configured to give the occupant a feeling as if the pedal and the drive wheel are mechanically connected by a chain or the like, and since the pedal 7 has the load applying means 9 incorporated therein, Disabled persons and elderly people undergoing function recovery training can be used for movement, and function recovery training can be performed together.

On the other hand, by attaching a position command and speed command device such as a joystick and a lever mechanism in place of the pedal 7, the device can be easily converted to an electric vehicle which can be operated by hand.

[0036]

According to the present invention, an electric wheelchair is often used to move a disabled person or an elderly person to a desired place by himself / herself during a functional recovery training, but the leg strength is reduced because no load is applied to the disabled leg. There is a problem that leads to. Also, an electric assist wheelchair has been proposed for the purpose of maintaining the function of the leg by using the leg function. However, since two driving forces are used for human power and an electric motor, switching between two driving forces or two driving forces is required. There is a problem that a control device for synthesizing the two driving forces becomes complicated, and a mechanism becomes complicated, so that the number of components increases and the weight increases. In addition, there is a problem that the mechanism becomes complicated and the price increases.

In the electric vehicle for transportation according to the present invention, the pedal unit is provided with a mechanism for applying a load corresponding to the leg force of the occupant, so that the passenger drives the electric vehicle for transportation with his / her own leg force. Since it is possible to operate the vehicle as if it were a sensation, it is possible for a disabled person and an elderly person to easily move to a desired place, and also has an effect of function recovery training.

Further, in the electric vehicle for movement according to the present invention, the moving amount and the moving speed of the moving vehicle are determined by a pedal operated by a passenger with his / her feet.
Without having a power transmission mechanism for mechanically connecting the pedal and the drive wheel, the structure is such that the same effect as when the drive wheel is directly driven by the pedal is obtained, and the mechanism is simplified. Thereby, weight reduction and low price are achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view showing a moving vehicle according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a control system according to the present embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 electric vehicle 2 body frame 3, 3 L, 3 R front wheel 4, 4 L, 4 R rear wheel (drive wheel) 5 passenger seat 6 gripper 7 pedal 8 handle 9 load applying means 10 load adjusting means 11 control unit 12, 12L, 12R driver 13 Battery 14 Handle Holder 15 Rotation Angle Detection Sensor 16 Turning Angle Detection Sensor 41, 41L, 41R Motor 42, 42L, 42R Sensor

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A pedal operated by a rider using a leg, a sensor provided on the pedal for detecting a rotation angle of the pedal, a driving unit for applying a driving force to driving wheels of a vehicle, and the driving unit being controlled. Control means for controlling the drive means by outputting to the drive means a command value of the rotation angle and the rotation speed of the drive wheel calculated based on the detection signal of the sensor. Electric vehicle for transportation. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit outputs a command value of a rotation angle and a rotation speed of the drive wheel in association with a rotation direction of the pedal and a rotation direction of the drive wheel. An electric vehicle for transportation according to claim 1. 3. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit outputs a command value of the rotational speed of the drive wheel by smoothing a transition with respect to the rotational speed of the drive wheel. Electric vehicle for transportation. 4. The control means outputs a command value of the rotational speed of the drive wheel by changing a rotational speed ratio between the pedal and the drive wheel in accordance with the rotational speed of the pedal. The mobile electric vehicle according to claim 1 or 2. 5. The mobile electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a load applying means is provided on a rotating portion of the pedal. 6. The electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the sensor is an encoder. 7. The mobile electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said driving means is an electric motor.