JP2001198162A - Foldable wheelchair - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a foldable wheelchair that is longitudinally collapsible or deployable via a simple operation. SOLUTION: The longitudinally deployable or collapsible folding wheelchair 100 comprises a frame in which a right-left pair of armrest members 12 and a right-left pair of front legs 10 are turnably coupled to the upper ends of a right-left pair of rear legs 11, the rear ends of the armrest members 12 are coupled to a right-left pair of back members 13, the lower ends of the back members 13 are coupled to sliders 40 movable longitudinally along the rear legs 11, and seat members 14 are coupled at one ends to the sliders 40 and at the other ends to the front legs 10. The sliders 40 can be locked on the rear legs 11 by lock means each including a hole and a rod member capable of reciprocation relative to the hole.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a foldable wheelchair which can be deployed and converged in a front-rear direction by a simple operation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various types of folding wheelchairs have been proposed, and among them, generally, the one shown in FIG. 15 or FIG. 16 has been proposed.

That is, this type of folding wheelchair 200
The front leg 201 and the rear leg 201 are rotatably connected to the armrest member 203 at the respective upper ends via pivot pins.
At a substantially central portion in the longitudinal direction of the rear leg, a bracket 20 that is formed by projecting upward from the rear portion of the rear leg 201 is formed.
4 is rotatably connected via a pivot pin. Above the protruding portion of the bracket 204, the open / close lock 20 which moves up and down along the push rod 205 and is normally urged downward.
6, the bracket 204 is locked by engaging a step 206a formed at the lower end of the opening / closing lock 206 and a step 204a formed at the upper end of the bracket 204 with each other. is there.

[0004]

However, in order to converge the front-rear width of the folding wheelchair 200 of this kind,
When the open / close lock 206 is lifted to release the locked state of the bracket 204, and then the push rod 205 is lifted upward, the bracket 204 is slightly rotated in the direction of arrow A around the lower pivot pin, and further pushes down the push rod. When,
The bracket 204 starts a reversing operation in the direction of arrow A. Following the operation of the bracket 204, the front legs 20
1, the operation of closing the leg in the direction of arrow B via the side bar 207, the operation of raising the push bar 205 in the vertical direction, and the operation of lowering the armrest member 203 are performed simultaneously, and finally the convergence state as shown in FIG. Becomes

That is, the user pushes the push rod 2 around the rear wheel.
05, pull it down while pulling it backwards,
A troublesome operation of inverting the bracket 204 by further pressing the push rod 205 downward is required, and there is a problem that it is difficult for a child or an elderly person to operate the bracket 204.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such problems existing in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a foldable type which can be converged or expanded in the front-rear direction by a simple operation. It is to provide a wheelchair.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems To solve the above,
Means adopted by each of the present invention will be described with reference numerals used in the embodiment. The invention according to claim 1 is a folding wheelchair 100 that can be deployed or converged in the front-rear direction, a pair of left and right rear legs 11 A pair of left and right armrest members 12 and a pair of left and right front legs 10 are rotatably connected to upper ends of the respective members, and respective rear ends of the armrest members 12 are connected to a pair of left and right back members 13, respectively. 13 is connected to a pair of left and right sliders 40 that move along the longitudinal direction of the rear leg 11,
0 and one end is connected to the front leg 1
The slider 40 is fixed to the rear leg 11 by a locking means 30 including a hole and a rod member 33 which can move in and out of the hole.
The gist of the invention is that it can be locked.

Next, a second aspect of the present invention relates to a folding wheelchair 100 which can be deployed or converged in the front-rear direction.
A pair of left and right armrest members 12 and a pair of left and right front legs 10 are rotatably connected to upper ends of a pair of left and right rear legs 11, respectively, and each rear end of the armrest members 12 is connected to a pair of left and right back members 13. The lower end of the back member 13 is connected to a pair of left and right sliders 40 that move along the longitudinal direction of the rear leg 11, and one end is connected to the slider 40 and the other end is connected to the front leg 10. The slider 40 is composed of a skeleton composed of a pair of left and right seat members 14,
The gist is that a locking means 30 for locking to the rear leg 11 by a hole and a rod member 33 which can move back and forth in the hole and an operation means 60 for operating the rod member 33 so as to be able to move in and out of the hole are provided.

Next, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a folding wheelchair according to the second aspect, wherein the operating means 60 comprises a pair of rotary members having one end rotatably connected to the rod member 33. Arms 61a and 61b, an intermediate arm 62 rotatably connected between the other ends of the rotating arms 61a and 61b so that the other ends of the arms 61a and 61b are inclined obliquely upward or downward, and an intermediate arm 62. And the operating member 63 for moving the vertical direction.

Finally, the invention according to claim 4 is based on claim 1.
4. The foldable wheelchair 100 according to claim 1.
Shield 19 provided on the armrest portion of
The gist of the present invention is that the wheelchair 100 can be folded or unfolded as the wheelchair 100 can be freely expanded or converged.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the folding wheelchair of the present invention will be described. However, this is a typical example, and the present invention will be described by the following examples unless it exceeds the gist of the present invention. It is not limited.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a folding wheelchair 100 according to the present invention. As shown, the wheelchair 100 has a frame structure including a front leg 10, a rear leg 11, an armrest member 12, a back member 13, a seat member 14, and the like as a pair of left and right side members. The elastic covers 15 each having elasticity are stretched over them. In the present embodiment, the front leg 1
The back leg 11, the back member 13, the seat member 14 and the like are each formed of a hollow round pipe member. Thus, weight reduction is realized by using a hollow pipe member.

Next, FIG. 2 shows a wheelchair 100 according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a side view showing a state in which is expanded, and FIG. FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 shows only the basic structure frame so that the structure of the folding wheelchair 100 becomes clear. As shown in each figure, a joint member 20 is fixed to the upper end of the rear leg 11. The joint member 20 is formed in a substantially T-shape as viewed in the drawing, and includes a concave portion 21 having an inner peripheral shape corresponding to the outer peripheral shape of the rear leg 11, and one and the other protruding pieces 22 and 23. Then, one protruding piece 2 of the joint member 20
2, the armrest member 12 is fixed by a pivot pin 16 that is rotatably supported in the front-rear direction. The other protruding piece 23 of the joint member 20 is connected to the upper end of the front leg 10 by the pivot pin 16.
Are connected so as to be pivotable in the front-rear direction. At the rear end of the front leg, a footrest 18 that can change the vertical position is attached. Front and rear wheels 17 are provided on the front legs 10 and the rear legs 11, respectively.
Is provided. In the rear leg 11, an upper positioning hole 31 and a lower positioning hole 32 into which a slide pin 33 described later is inserted are formed at predetermined intervals.

1, 4 or 5 is provided on the armrest portion.
As shown in FIG. 2, a shield 19 that can be folded in accordance with folding of the wheelchair is provided.

The shield 19 is made of a bendable member such as a cloth made of natural fibers or synthetic fibers, an elastic member having cushioning properties, a mesh member having air permeability and water permeability, or a plastic film member. It is formed in a quadrangular shape from a material, and on its upper side and one side is formed a tubular body 19a to be inserted into the armrest member 12 and the front leg 10.

When the front leg 10 and the armrest member 12 are converged and folded around the rear leg 11, the shielding
Numeral 9 designates a diagonal line to a vertex A formed from the upper side and one lateral side as a fold line B, and the wheelchair 100 along the fold line B.
Folded in a mountain fold towards the center of. On the other hand, when the wheelchair 100 in the converged state is expanded, the folded shield 19 is restored to the original expanded state. Thus, by providing the shield 19 that can be folded along the diagonal line as a side plate of the armrest portion, when the wheelchair 100 is in the deployed position, the shield 19 is also in the deployed state, and the armrest member 12 and the seat member 14 It is arranged between. As a result, the shield 19 can prevent the user's clothes or the like from protruding outside. When the wheelchair 100 is set to the convergent posture, the shield 19 is folded in a mountain direction toward the center of the wheelchair 100 with the folding. Therefore, the shield 19 is accommodated inside the folded wheelchair 100, and can be stored compactly as a whole.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2 or 3, the rear end of the armrest member 12 is connected to a connecting portion 13a provided on the back member 13.
Are pivotally connected to each other by a pivot pin 16. The rear leg 11 is fitted with a slider 40 that is slidable along the longitudinal direction. This slider 40
Is provided with an inner cylindrical portion 41 having an inner peripheral shape corresponding to the outer peripheral shape of the rear leg 11 having a substantially circular cross-sectional shape, and one and the other of the left and right sides of the cylindrical portion 41. Projection piece 4
2 and 43 are formed to form a substantially T-shape in the drawing. The back member 1 is attached to one protruding piece 42 of the slider 40.
The rear end of the seat member 14 is rotatably connected to the other projecting piece 43 via the pivot pin 16. .

FIG. 6 is a drawing showing the locking means 30 and the operating means 60 in the wheelchair of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is an exploded view showing the locking means 30 in detail. As shown in the drawing, communication grooves 4 communicating with the inner cylindrical portion 41 are formed on inner surfaces of the pair of left and right sliders 40 facing each other.
4 are formed. A thread groove is formed on the inner periphery of the communication groove 44, and a tubular member 31 described later is screwed thereto. In the folding wheelchair 100 according to the present invention, the locking means 30 is provided to fix the slider 40 at the upper position to maintain the deployed posture and to fix the slider at the lower position to maintain the converged posture.

Next, the folding wheelchair 1 according to the present invention.
FIG. 7 and FIG.
It will be described based on. The locking means 30 includes a slide pin 33 inserted into one of an upper positioning hole 31 and a lower positioning hole 32 formed inside the pair of left and right rear legs 11 facing each other (described as a bar member in the claims). It is composed of A lock device 50 is constituted by the slide pin 33 and the cylindrical member 34 into which the slide pin 33 is slidably inserted.

As shown in FIG. 8, the slide pin 33 is slidably inserted into a cylindrical member 34 having a slide pin hole 35 formed therein. A spring 36 is provided in the slide pin hole 35, and the slide pin 33 is urged forward and backward so as to always protrude toward the rear leg 11.

The cylindrical member 34 constituting the lock device 50
Are screwed into communication grooves 44 formed on inner surfaces of a pair of sliders 40 movably fitted along the longitudinal direction of the pair of left and right rear legs 11, respectively. Further, between the ends of the pair of slide pins 33 provided at the opposing position, an operation means 60 for moving both slide pins 33 forward and backward is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, the operating means 60 includes a pair of rotating arms 61a, 6 having one end rotatably connected to the ends of a pair of left and right slide pins 33.
1b, an intermediate arm 62 connected to the other end of each of the rotating arms 61a and 61b so as to be inclined obliquely in the drawing, and an operating member 63 for moving the intermediate arm 62 up and down. I have. The operation member 63 is formed in a rod shape. In addition, it is disposed so as to be located at the center of the back surface of the back member 13, and is fixed to a fixing portion 62 a provided at a substantially intermediate position of the intermediate arm 62.
In addition, an operation portion 64 formed by bending the distal end of the operation member 63 is provided.

According to the operating means 60 constructed as described above, the intermediate arm 62 is lowered downward in response to the depression of the operating portion 64 with a finger, and is connected to both ends of the intermediate arm 62. Pair of rotating arms 61
a, 61b are lowered. As a result, while the pair of left and right slide pins 33 simultaneously retreat, the upper positioning hole 3 of the rear leg is formed.
The engagement state is released by being disengaged from the first or lower positioning hole 32.

As shown in FIG. 10, when the operating member 63 is pulled upward, the intermediate arm 62 is pulled up, and the pair of rotating arms 61a and 61b connected to both ends of the operating member 60 are also moved. It is pulled up and is maintained in a substantially trapezoidal posture that is inclined downward and obliquely with the intermediate arm in the drawing as the upper side. In order to operate the operating means 60 maintained in this state, the operator only needs to lift the operating portion 64 upward with his / her finger. In response to this, the intermediate arm 62 is pulled upward and connected to both ends of the intermediate arm 62. The pair of rotating arms 61a and 61b are also lifted. As a result, the pair of left and right slide pins 33 are simultaneously retracted, disengage from the upper positioning hole or the lower positioning hole of the rear leg 11, and the engaged state is released.

Next, the operation of the foldable wheelchair 100 according to the present invention configured as described above will be described.

FIG. 11 shows a state before the wheelchair 100 is folded. The user holds the handle 13a provided between a pair of right and left back members 13 and holds the wheelchair 100 rearward with the rear wheel as a fulcrum. It is a figure showing the state where it was slanted. Subsequently, the user presses down the operation unit 64 with a finger while keeping the wheelchair 100 tilted rearward. Then, in response to the depression, the intermediate arm 62 is lowered, and the pair of rotating arms 61a and 61b connected to both ends of the intermediate arm 62 are pulled down. Subsequently, as the pair of left and right slide pins 33 retreat with the lowering of the rotating arms 61a and 61b, the slide pins 33 disengage from the upper positioning holes 31 of the rear leg 11 and are disengaged, and the slider 40 is released.
Are slidable in the longitudinal direction of the rear leg 11. When the engagement of the slide pin 33 is released, the front leg 1 to which wheels and the like are fixed is attached.
The slider 40 moves toward the rear leg 11 due to its own weight, and the slider 40 moves through the seat member 14 having one end rotatably connected to the front leg 10 and the other end rotatably connected to the slider 40. Is moved downward of the rear leg 11,
Lower positioning hole 32 formed on the same line of rear leg 11
And the slide pin 33 is inserted into and engaged with the lower positioning hole 32 by the urging force. Then, Figure 1
As shown in FIG. 2, the wheelchair 100 is locked in the convergent posture.

FIG. 13 shows the converged wheelchair 100.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the wheelchair is tilted forward and obliquely by holding the handle 13a provided between the pair of left and right back members 13 with one hand and lifting the handle 13a. is there. Subsequently, the user presses down the operation unit 64 with a finger while keeping the wheelchair 100 lifted so as to tilt forward. Then, in response to the depression, the intermediate arm 62 is lowered, and
2 is connected to both ends of a pair of rotating arms 61a. 61b
Is also reduced. Subsequently, as the pair of left and right slide pins 33 retreat as the rotating arm 62 is lowered, the pair of slide pins 33 is disengaged from the lower positioning hole 32 of the rear leg 11 and the engaged state is released, and the slider 40 slides in the longitudinal direction of the rear leg 11. Be free to move.
When the engagement of the slide pin 33 is released, the front leg 10 to which the wheels and the like are fixed moves toward the front of the wheelchair 100 due to its own weight, and one end is rotatably connected to the front leg 10 so that the other is rotatable. The slider 40 is moved upward through the rear leg 11 via the seat member 14 whose end is rotatably connected to the slider 40, and moves to the upper positioning hole 31 formed on the same line as the rear leg 11. The slide pin 33 is inserted into and engaged with the upper positioning hole 31 by the urging force. Then, as shown in FIG. 14, the wheelchair 100 is locked in the deployed posture.

The effect exerted by the embodiment of the foldable wheelchair 100 having the above configuration will be described.
This will be described below.

(1) In the folding wheelchair 100 in the above embodiment, the slide pin 33 is removably inserted into the upper positioning hole 31 or the lower positioning hole 32 provided on the same line over the longitudinal direction of the rear leg 11. By providing the locking means 30 described above, the whole can be easily folded in the front-rear direction and can be converged compactly.

(2) In the foldable wheelchair 100 of the above-described embodiment, since the operating means 60 for easily inserting and removing the pair of right and left slide pins 33 at the same time only by pushing down or pulling up the operating member 63 is provided. The whole can be easily developed and converged, and even the elderly can easily open and close.

(3) In the foldable wheelchair 100 in the above embodiment, the front legs 10,
Since the rear leg 11, the armrest member 12, the back member 13, and the seat member 14 are formed of hollow pipes, weight reduction can be realized, and even a weak elderly person or the like can be easily carried.

(4) In the foldable wheelchair 100 in the above embodiment, the shield 19 that can be folded along the diagonal line is provided as a side plate of the armrest portion.
When the whole is in the unfolded state, the shield 19 is also in the unfolded state. As a result, it is possible to prevent the user's clothes or the like from protruding outside by the shield. Wheelchair 100
Is set to the converging posture, the shield 19 is also folded in the mountain direction toward the center of the wheelchair 100 with the folding, so that the shield 19 is housed inside the folded wheelchair 100, and Can be stored compactly.

The configuration of the foldable wheelchair 100 according to the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and improvements and modifications within the scope of achieving the object of the present invention are included in the present invention. It is. For example, in the present embodiment, the operating means 60 includes a pair of left and right slide pins 33.
And a pair of rotating arms 61a and 61b, one end of which is rotatably connected to each of the two ends, and the other end of each of the rotating arms 61a and 61b is viewed in the drawing. An example is shown in which the intermediate arm 62 is connected to be inclined obliquely downward or obliquely in the drawing, and an operation member 63 that moves the intermediate arm 62 up and down is shown. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a wire member may be provided between the end portions of the pair of left and right slide pins 33, and the operating member may be configured to move the slide pin 33 forward or backward by raising or lowering the wire member.

[0033]

As described above, according to the first or second aspect of the present invention, the entirety can be easily folded in the front-rear direction and can be converged compactly.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the pair of right and left slide pins 33 can be simultaneously inserted and removed simply by pushing down or pulling up the operation member 63, so that the whole can be easily developed and converged with one hand. The opening and closing operation can be easily performed even by the elderly or the like.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the shield provided on the armrest portion of the foldable wheelchair according to any one of the first to third aspects is provided so that the wheelchair can be freely deployed or converged. When the entire wheelchair is in the expanded state, the shield is also in the expanded state. As a result, it is possible to prevent the user's clothes or the like from protruding outside by the shield. Further, when the wheelchair is in the convergent posture, the shield is also mountain-folded toward the center of the wheelchair with the folding, so that the shield is stored inside the folded wheelchair 100, and Can be stored compactly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a frame structure when the folding wheelchair according to the present invention is in an expanded state.

FIG. 3 is a side view when the folding wheelchair shown in FIG. 2 is in a converged state.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a shield provided on an armrest portion of the folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the shield shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a rear view showing the lock means and the operation means constituting the folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of a lock unit constituting the folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view showing a locking means.

FIG. 9 is a rear view showing the lock means and the operation means constituting the folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a rear view showing the lock means and the operation means constituting the folding wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a state before the folding wheelchair in the deployed state is converged.

12 is a perspective view showing a state in which the foldable wheelchair in the unfolded state shown in FIG. 11 is converged.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a state before the folding wheelchair in the converged state is developed.

14 is a perspective view showing a state where the folding wheelchair in the converged state shown in FIG. 13 is developed.

FIG. 15 is a side view showing a conventional folding wheelchair.

FIG. 16 is a side view showing a state in which the conventional folding wheelchair shown in FIG. 15 is converged.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 front leg 11 rear leg 12 armrest member 13 back member 14 seat member 19 shield 20 joint member 30 locking means 31 upper positioning hole 32 lower positioning hole 33 slide pin 34 cylinder member 35 slide pin hole 36 spring 40 slider 41 inner cylinder part 42 One protruding piece 43 The other protruding piece 44 Communication groove 50 Lock device 60 Operating means 61 Rotating arm 62 Intermediate arm 63 Operating member 64 Operating section 100 Foldable wheelchair

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A collapsible wheelchair that can be deployed or converged in the front-rear direction, wherein a pair of left and right armrest members and a pair of left and right front legs are rotatably connected to upper ends of a pair of left and right rear legs, respectively.
Each of the rear ends of the armrest members is connected to a pair of left and right back members, and the lower end of each of the back members is connected to a pair of left and right sliders that move along the longitudinal direction of the rear legs,
The slider comprises a frame composed of a pair of left and right seat members, one end of which is connected to the slider and the other end of which is connected to the front leg, wherein the slider is locked by means of a hole and a rod member capable of moving back and forth into the hole. A foldable wheelchair, wherein the wheelchair can be locked to the rear leg. 2. A collapsible wheelchair that can be deployed or converged in the front-rear direction. A pair of left and right armrest members and a pair of left and right front legs are rotatably connected to upper ends of a pair of left and right rear legs, respectively.
Each of the rear ends of the armrest members is connected to a pair of left and right back members, and the lower end of each of the back members is connected to a pair of left and right sliders that move along the longitudinal direction of the rear legs,
The slider comprises a frame composed of a pair of left and right seat members, one end of which is connected to the slider and the other end of which is connected to the front leg. A foldable wheelchair, comprising: lock means for locking the rod member; and operating means for operating the rod member so as to be able to advance and retreat in the hole. 3. An operating means comprising: a pair of rotating arms having one end rotatably connected to a rod member; and the other end of the rotating arm being inclined upward or downward relative to each other. 3. The folding wheelchair according to claim 2, further comprising an intermediate arm rotatably connected between said other end portions to be inclined, and an operation member for moving said intermediate arm in a vertical direction. 4. A shield provided on an armrest portion of the foldable wheelchair according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the shield is foldable as the wheelchair is freely deployed or converged. A shield characterized by the following.