JP2003267277A - Traveling device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To materialize a traveling device capable of being more safely used with reduced danger in driving a step ascending/descending mechanism, with a structure as simple as possible. <P>SOLUTION: A traveling device provided with a wheel 2 movably supporting a main body part 1, a support member 3 rotatably drivably attached on a part not disturbing rotation of the wheel 2 and the step ascending/descending mechanism including an arm 4 attached on a part displaced from a rotational center of the support member 3 and driven with using the support member as a foothold to move a tip part in a direction separating the same from the rotational center is provided with a cover 91 arranged at a designated arrangement position and covering at least part of the step lifting device, a cover supporting mechanism 92 supporting the cover 91 in such a manner that the cover 91 can displace from the arrangement position with receiving external force, and a safety mechanism detecting displacement of the cover 91. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a carrying device, a universal traveling machine, a care support device, a walking support device, a rehabilitation device, an electric wheelchair, a transfer support device, an electric rocking chair, a pressure ulcer prevention device, and a self-propelled robot. The present invention relates to a traveling device that is suitable for use as a vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There have been various types of traveling devices of this type. For example, a forklift, a lifter, a wheelbarrow, etc. are well known as traveling devices for carrying luggage, and a wheelchair etc. are well known as traveling devices for carrying people.

On the traveling path on which these traveling devices travel,
Occasionally, there are steps and obstacles.
Therefore, various step raising / lowering mechanisms have been developed for making the traveling device traverse the path where steps or obstacles exist.

[0004]

By the way, when a step is raised or lowered by the above traveling device, a step raising / lowering mechanism provided in the traveling device is driven, which may cause an accident in which a person's limbs or objects are caught. There is a concern. Therefore, it is desirable to provide various detection means in a dangerous place such as around the step elevation mechanism so that the occurrence of an accident can be suppressed by detecting the presence of human limbs and objects.

For example, it is possible to detect a contact with a step or an obstacle by detecting a change in current of a motor that drives the step elevation mechanism. However, when the amount of current is large, such as when the load is being lifted, it is difficult to detect contact between human limbs and other small fluctuations.

Alternatively, it is conceivable to provide a detecting means such as an optical sensor in a dangerous place such as around the step raising / lowering mechanism to detect the presence of a person's limbs or objects. However, it is extremely difficult for such a detection means to cover all of the places where there is a risk of accident occurrence in a wide range. Also, when the optical sensor is provided in the opening of the cover through which the arm of the step lift mechanism moves in and out, the movement of the arm is used to open the window of the optical sensor so that the window of the optical sensor does not become cloudy. Must be used while wiping,
I had to give the arm extra movement.

In addition, even if the presence of a person's limbs or objects can be sensed, if a time lag occurs before the step elevating mechanism stops due to inertia of motion, etc. It will lead to an accident.

In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to realize a traveling device having a simple structure as much as possible, which reduces the danger associated with driving the step elevation mechanism and can be used more safely.

[0009]

Means for Solving the Problems As a means for solving the problem of making a traveling device equipped with a step raising / lowering mechanism safer and more convenient, in the present invention, a wheel for movably supporting a main body, A support member that is rotatably mounted at a position that does not hinder the rotation of the wheel, and a portion that is attached to a portion displaced from the rotation center of the support member and is driven by the support member as a scaffold to move the tip end in a direction away from the rotation center. A traveling device including a step raising / lowering mechanism having an arm capable of moving, a cover disposed at a predetermined position and covering at least a part of the step raising / lowering mechanism, and the cover receiving an external force, A cover support mechanism that supports the cover so that the cover can be displaced from the arranged position and a safety mechanism that detects the displacement of the cover are provided.

In other words, the danger area such as the periphery of the step raising / lowering mechanism can be widely covered by the cover. Moreover, the cover is configured to be displaced by receiving an external force, and by detecting the displacement, the presence of a person's limb or object is detected, and the operation of the step elevation mechanism is stopped. With such a configuration, the number of detecting means to be installed can be small even when the range of the cover is large. Furthermore, by constructing the cover support mechanism so as to give a proper displacement range to the cover, a time lag occurs between the detection of the cover displacement and the complete stop of the step lift mechanism. Even if a limb or the like is sandwiched between the constituent element and the cover, the cover can be further displaced to release the force, and a serious result such as injury or failure does not occur. That is, the load applied to a person's limb or object is only the force for displacing the cover, and the cover can be further displaced until the operation of the step raising / lowering mechanism is completely stopped. For example, even if a person's limb or the like is sandwiched between the arm and the cover, if the cover can be displaced manually, the limb is covered by the arm's overshoot due to inertia of motion. It will not be crushed between and.

Further, the safety mechanism is provided with an electric circuit capable of being brought into a conducting state or a breaking state by contact or separation of the pair of contact pieces, and the cover is provided with a contact breaking portion which engages with at least one of the pair of contact pieces. Is provided so that the contact breaking portion is engaged with at least one of the pair of contact pieces to separate the pair of contact pieces when the cover is displaced, and the electric circuit is cut off. It is preferable that the displacement of the cover can be detected. This sensor senses the presence of human limbs and objects by turning on / off the signal flowing through the electric circuit, does not require complicated signal processing, and has a simple mechanism and high reliability.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the concept of front, rear, left and right directions in the following description is merely set for convenience of description, and does not limit the embodiment of the present invention. First,
The basic configuration of this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the main body 1 of the traveling apparatus according to the present embodiment is supported by a pair of wheels 2 so as to be capable of traveling. The step raising / lowering mechanism of the traveling device includes a crank 3 that is a supporting member that is rotatably driven at a position that does not hinder the rotation of the wheel 2, and an arm 4 that is attached to a portion displaced from the rotation center of the crank 3. It becomes. The arm 4 is the crank 3
Driven by the scaffold, it is possible to move its tip in the direction away from the center of rotation.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, an axle 5 for receiving the wheels 2 is provided outside the main body 1. Further, the crank driving actuator 6a and the arm driving actuator 6b are arranged so as to be independently driven on the same axis as the axle 5. The crank 3 has its base end fixed to the crank driving actuator 6a via a shaft 6a1 and has its tip extended between the wheels 2 so as to be rotatable around the shaft 6a1. Arm 4
Is provided on the extending end of the crank 3 via a horizontal support shaft 41. That is, the arm 4 is rotationally driven about the horizontal support shaft 41 with the extended end of the crank 3 as a scaffold (or fulcrum). The horizontal support shaft 41 has a gear 7a.
Is fixed. The gear 7 is connected to a gear 7c attached to a shaft 6b1 of the arm driving actuator 6b via an idler gear 7b provided on the crank 3. Therefore, the gear 7a fixed to the horizontal support shaft 41 is connected to the arm driving actuator 6 via the idler gear 7b.
Power is transmitted from b. Thus, the crank 3 can be driven by the crank driving actuator 6a, and the arm 4 can be driven by the arm driving actuator 6b.

Further, a grounding member 42 having an arcuate grounding surface having substantially the same diameter as that of the wheel 2 is provided on the tip end side of the arm 4, and the rotation shaft 4 is provided with the grounding member 42.
It is attached so as to be rotatable around 3. In addition, a fixing means for prohibiting relative rotation of the ground member 42 with respect to the arm 4 at a predetermined fixing position is provided. In the present embodiment, the ground member 42 is provided with an abutting surface that abuts a predetermined portion of the arm 4 and prohibits the ground member 42 from rotating in one direction, and serves as a fixing means. In the illustrated example, a stopper 421 having a rearward surface that comes into contact with the frontward surface of the arm is provided so as to project from the grounding member 42 side and below the rotary shaft 43, and the rearward surface of the stopper 421 is the arm. Rotation of the grounding member 42 in one direction is prohibited at a position where the grounding member 4 comes into contact with the front surface. That is, the ground member 42 is the stopper 421.
Due to the existence of the above, the rotation direction (counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2) cannot be rotated before the fixed position shown in FIG. 2 due to the reaction force applied from the floor surface.
On the other hand, it can rotate in the opposite direction (clockwise direction in FIG. 2) by an external force. A load is applied to the ground member 42 in advance in a direction in which the ground member 42 is rotated by a reaction force applied from the floor by an urging means such as a spring (not shown), and the stopper 421 contacts the arm 4 when no external force is applied. It is configured to be in a fixed position where it touches.

The operation of the traveling apparatus according to the present embodiment when descending a step will be described below. As shown in FIG. 3 (a), the crank 3 is rotated by the crank driving actuator 6 a and the arm 4 is driven by the arm driving actuator 6 b so that the grounding member 42 attached to the tip of the arm 4 is moved to the lower stage side. Ground to the terrace. And
The crank 3 and the arm 4 are driven so that the grounding member 42 gently approaches the axle 5 (or the shaft center of the crank driving actuator 6a), and as shown in FIG.
The traveling device is lowered to ground the wheels 2 to the lower floor. During the step-down operation, the wheel 2 freely rotates along the step.

Next, the operation when the traveling device climbs a step will be described. As shown in FIG. 3B, when the wheel 2 contacts the upper step, the crank driving actuator 6
The crank 3 and the arm 4 are driven by a and the arm driving actuator 6b to ground the ground member 42 to the lower floor. Then, as shown in FIG. 3A, the grounding member 42 attached to the tip of the arm 4 is moved in a direction away from the axle 5. That is, in a state in which the ground member 42 is in contact with the lower floor and is rolling, the crank 3 makes a rotational motion about the shaft 6a1 on which the base end of the crank 3 is pivotally mounted, and the reaction device causes the traveling device to move. It will be lifted to a position where you can clear the step.

In the traveling apparatus constructed as described above, in this embodiment, the cover 91 which is arranged at a predetermined arrangement position and covers at least a part of the step raising / lowering mechanism, and the cover 91 which receives an external force. A cover support mechanism 92 for supporting the cover 91 so that it can be displaced from the arrangement position, and the cover 9
A safety mechanism that detects the displacement of No. 1 and stops the operation of the step lift mechanism is provided.

The cover 91 in this embodiment is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 1 has a substantially box-like shape and is configured to have a size capable of accommodating a step raising / lowering mechanism therein.
The step elevation mechanism can be substantially covered by arranging it between the pair of wheels 2 below. Slots 911 into which the arm 4 and the ground member 42 can be inserted and moved are cut out at lower and lower front and rear surfaces of the housing of the cover 91, and the cover 91 prevents the operation of the step lift mechanism. I'm trying not to be. The cover 91 is preferably arranged so as not to stick out from the front edge or the rear edge of the side view wheel 2.

The cover support mechanism 92 is provided on the lower surface side of the main body 1 so as to support the cover 91 at four positions in front, rear, left and right. The structure of each cover support mechanism 92 will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 4, the cover support member 921 extends in a substantially horizontal direction and supports the cover 91 from below.
21a and a support shaft 921b that projects substantially vertically from the support shelf 921a, and the upper end of the support shaft 921b is attached to the lower surface of the main body 1. On the other hand, on the upper surface of the cover 91, the support shaft 921 is provided at a position corresponding to a mounting position of the cover support member 921 to the main body 1.
A through hole 912 that is sufficiently larger than the horizontal cross-sectional dimension of b is provided. Then, the support shaft 921b is inserted into the through hole 912 to support the upper surface of the cover 91 from below by the support shelf 921a. As a result, the cover 91 is in a state in which it can be displaced by receiving an external force in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction. That is, the cover support mechanism 92 according to the present embodiment is configured by combining the cover support member 921 provided in the main body 1 and the through hole 912 provided in the cover 91.

Next, the structure of the safety mechanism will be described in detail. As shown in FIG. 4, a contact piece member 922 is further arranged on the support shelf 921a. The contact piece member 922 has a shape such that a portion having a proper size lower than the apex of the cone is horizontally cut and the cut surface side is directed downward. Further, the support shaft 9 is provided at the central axis portion.
A shaft hole 922a having substantially the same diameter as 21b is penetrated in a substantially vertical direction. Then, the support shaft 921b is inserted into the shaft hole 922a.
The contact piece member 922 with the support shelf 921 inserted.
It is placed on a. In addition, the horizontal cross-sectional dimension of the lower surface of the contact piece member 922 is set to be slightly smaller than that of the through hole 912 provided in the cover 91, and the cover 91 is not displaced vertically or horizontally from its arranged position. In this state, the lower surface of the contact piece member 922 penetrates the through hole 912 of the cover 91 and contacts the support shelf 921a.

Therefore, the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922 are constructed by using electrically conductive equipment.
Therefore, by forming the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922 as a pair of contact pieces to be a circuit element of the required electric circuit C,
It is possible to bring the electric circuit C into a conducting state or a breaking state by contact or separation of these. However, the side surface of the support shaft 921b of the cover support member 921 is not
Cover with 23.

The support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 92 described above.
The contact / separation of the two can be performed by displacing the cover 91 from the arrangement position. That is, when the cover 91 is displaced vertically upward from the arrangement position shown in FIG. 4, the peripheral edge portion of the through hole 912 of the cover 91 is brought into contact with the contact piece member 92.
The contact piece member 922 is lifted by coming into contact with the side surface of the second partial cone, so that the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922 are separated from each other, and the electric circuit C is cut off. Alternatively, when the cover 91 is displaced in the horizontal direction from the arrangement position shown in FIG. 4, the peripheral edge portion of the through hole 912 of the cover 91 comes into contact with the partial conical side surface of the contact piece member 922, and the contact piece member 9 is provided.
22 is lifted, and the state is inserted between the lower surface of the contact piece member 922 and the upper surface of the support shelf 921a, and the electric circuit C is also cut off. In this way, the peripheral edge portion of the through hole 912 provided in the cover 91 has the contact piece member 922.
As the cover 91 is displaced, the support shelf 9
21a and the contact piece member 922 are separated from each other, and the electric circuit C is cut off. Therefore, the displacement of the cover 91 can be detected by detecting the interruption of the electric circuit C. The cover 91 is displaced by receiving an external force when a person's limb or object is in contact with the cover 91, in other words, when a person's limb or object is present in the vicinity of the step lift mechanism. Therefore, the presence of the electric circuit C can be detected by detecting the interruption of the electric circuit C, and the operation of the step elevation mechanism can be stopped before an accident occurs. That is, the safety mechanism according to the present embodiment is provided with the through hole 912 that is a contact blocking portion provided in the cover 91.
And a supporting shelf 921a which is a pair of contact pieces, a contact piece member 922, and an electric circuit C having these as circuit elements. Of course, the peripheral portion of the through hole 912 provided in the cover 91 needs to have an insulating property.
Therefore, the cover 91 according to the present embodiment is configured by using an insulating material such as plastic as an equipment.

Further, it is preferable that at least one of the pair of contact pieces which is an element of the electric circuit C is elastically biased in a direction in which the pair of contact pieces come into contact with each other. In the present embodiment, the spring 924 is provided between the lower surface of the main body 1 and the upper surface of the contact piece member 922.
Is provided to apply a downward load to the contact piece member 922,
The support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922 are surely brought into contact with each other in a state where no external force is applied. At this time,
Since the magnitude of the external force required for separating the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922 from each other is determined by the spring 924,
By adjusting the spring force, the threshold value of the magnitude of the contact force to be detected can be set.

In addition, it is desirable that a load be applied to the cover 91 in advance by a biasing means such as a spring so that the cover 91 is located at the position where it is not receiving an external force. The spring 924 also plays a part of its role, but in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the main body 1 is separated from the cover support mechanism 92 and the safety mechanism.
A biasing unit 925 is provided between the cover 91 and the cover 91. The biasing means 925 can also exert the effect of suppressing rattling of the cover 91 due to the existence of a gap between the cover 91 and the main body 1.

By the way, since the contact point formed by the pair of contact pieces is normally closed, not only the displacement of the cover 91 but also the contact failure, the breakage of the conductor wire forming the electric circuit C, the deterioration of the terminal of the circuit element, etc. It can be detected. When the safety mechanism is formed at a plurality of places, by connecting a plurality of sets of contact pieces in series, it becomes possible to grasp the whole situation by monitoring one signal.

When the contact of the person or object with the cover 91 is detected based on the interruption of the electric circuit C, an alarm is immediately output by the notifying means and control means (not shown), and the arm 4,
The drive of the crank 3 is stopped.

Although a slight time lag may occur until the arm 4 and the like are completely stopped, an appropriate width is provided in the displacement area of the cover 91 (the stroke of the spring 924 and the portion of the contact piece member 922). If the safety mechanism can displace the cover 91 further than the position where the safety mechanism detects displacement,
The amount of movement due to inertia until the arms 4 etc. are completely stopped can be absorbed, and even if a person's limb or object is sandwiched between the arms 4 etc. and the cover 91, a large force is not applied and an injury is caused. It does not cause any trouble.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, the wheel 2 that movably supports the main body 1, the crank 3 that is rotatably mounted at a position that does not hinder the rotation of the wheel 2, and the rotation center of the crank 3. A stepped elevating mechanism having an arm 4 that is attached to a portion displaced from the position of the crank 3 and is driven by a scaffolding scaffolding to move the tip in a direction away from the center of rotation. A cover 91 arranged at a position to cover at least a part of the step raising / lowering mechanism, a cover supporting mechanism 92 for supporting the cover 91 so that the cover 91 can be displaced from the arranged position by receiving an external force, and the cover. By providing a safety mechanism capable of detecting the displacement of 91 and stopping the operation of the step raising / lowering mechanism, safety is ensured by covering a dangerous place such as around the step raising / lowering mechanism. It is Mel possible. Moreover, since the cover 91 is configured to be displaced by receiving an external force, the presence of a person's limb or object is sensed by detecting the displacement, and the operation of the step elevation mechanism is stopped. Even if the range of the cover 91 is large, the number of detecting means to be installed can be small. This also leads to a reduction in manufacturing cost. Furthermore, if the cover support mechanism 92 is configured to give the cover 91 an appropriate displacement range, the cover 9
A time lag occurs between the detection of the displacement of No. 1 and the complete stop of the step raising / lowering mechanism.
Even if a limb or the like is sandwiched between and, the cover 91 can be further displaced to release the force, and a serious result such as injury or failure does not occur.

The displacement of the cover 91 is detected even when a person's limb or object comes into contact with the cover 91, and also when the arm 4 or the like makes an abnormal movement out of the original trajectory and comes into contact with the cover 91. The operation of the arm 4 and the like can be stopped. In addition, even when the lower surface of the cover 91 contacts the tread surface, the displacement of the cover 91 is detected and the operation of the arm 4 or the like is performed when the step floor having an irregular tread surface and unevenness is raised or lowered. It can be stopped. For this reason, when the arm 4 is moved, for example, when the arm 4 is pulled up and returned to the original position, the tip (or the grounding member 42) of the arm 4 may come into contact with an irregular tread or an edge of a step. You can avoid dangerous situations.

Further, the safety mechanism is provided with an electric circuit C which can be brought into a conductive state or a blocked state by contact or separation of the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 922, and the periphery of the through hole 912 along with the displacement of the cover 91. The part is engaged with the contact piece member 922 to support the support shelf 921a and the contact piece member 9
22 is configured to be separated from each other so that the displacement of the cover 91 can be detected by disconnecting the electric circuit C. Therefore, by turning ON / OFF the signal flowing through the electric circuit C, It can detect the presence of objects, does not require complicated signal processing, has a simple mechanism, and is highly reliable.

Moreover, unless the cover 91 is returned to the arrangement position, the pair of support pieces 921a and the contact piece 9 are provided.
The 22 contacts remain separated. Therefore, arm 4
It is possible to prevent accidental restart of the cover 91 or the like even after the cover 91 or the like undergoes an emergency stop due to the displacement of the cover 91.

Further, according to this embodiment, when the arm 4 and the ground member 42 are housed in the cover 91 (via the slot 911), a person's limb is sandwiched between the ground member 42 and the cover 91. In addition, not only the cover 91 can be displaced, but also the grounding member 42 can be rotated to release the driving force of the arm 4, and the safety mechanism can detect this displacement and stop the operation of the arm 4 and the like. Is possible. Since the redundancy is achieved in this way, the safety is further enhanced.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described in detail above. In particular, as a modified example of the above embodiment, the one shown in FIG. 5 can be cited. In this example, the configurations of the cover support mechanism 92 and the safety mechanism are modified, and the cover 91 is movably supported by the main body 1 via a spring 926.

More specifically, the cover 91 includes the cover 9
A protruding portion 913 that protrudes above 1 is provided. The tip portion 913a of the protruding portion 913 has a substantially conical shape with the bottom surface facing upward. The tip portion 913a is supported by the cover support portion 11 provided on the lower surface of the main body 1. In the illustrated example, a hole 11a having a cross-sectional shape slightly smaller than the cross-sectional shape of the upper end of the projecting portion 913 is bored in the cover supporting portion, and the hole 11a is made to penetrate the central portion of the projecting portion 913 and the lower portion of the tip portion 913a. The tip portion 913a
The upper portion of the cover support portion 11 (more specifically, the hole 11a
Is supported by a taper surface provided on the periphery of the cover 9
The cover 91 can be displaced when a horizontal force is applied to 1 and when an upward force is applied. That is, the cover support mechanism 92 in this example is configured to include the protrusion 913, the cover support 11 and the spring 926.

A leaf spring 927 is provided on the upper end of the protrusion 913. Tip portion 927 of the leaf spring 927
A is set so that the cover 91 is in contact with the contact 928 in the state where the cover 91 is in the arrangement position shown in FIG.

In such a structure, when an external force is applied to the cover 91 and the cover 91 is displaced, the projecting portion 913 is displaced upward and the tip portion 9 of the leaf spring 927 is displaced.
27a and the contact point 928 are separated from each other. Therefore, the electric circuit C including the tip portion 927a of the leaf spring 927 and the contact point 928 as a pair of contact pieces in the element (the contact or separation between the tip portion 927a of the leaf spring 927 and the contact point 928 is detected. ) It becomes possible to detect the displacement of the cover 91. As described above, even if a force including any direction component acts on the cover 91, it is possible to detect the force and stop the operation of the step elevation mechanism.

In addition, the means for detecting the displacement of the cover is not limited to the above-mentioned means, but a means using a limit switch, a tactile switch, a non-contact type optical switch, a reed switch, or the like is constituted. be able to.

The detection means for detecting the displacement of the cover 91 is
The cover supporting mechanism 92 can be arranged at a site completely different from the existing site. Therefore, the detecting means is used as the cover 91.
It is also possible to dispose between the main body 1 and the main body 1.

The pair of contact pieces which are the elements of the electric circuit C are not always configured as separate bodies. For example, a contact piece made of a conductive material is attached to a plurality of locations of an integral member made of an elastic resin or the like, and the contact piece comes into contact with or separates from the elastically deformed member. Can be considered.

The electric circuit C may be a circuit for supplying electric power to the crank drive actuator 6a and the arm drive actuator 6b.

The cover 91 may be supported by a center spring or the like (not shown) so as to be displaceable in any direction, and the external force can be detected regardless of which direction the external force acts. .

The contact blocking portion to be provided on the cover 91 is not limited to being configured as the peripheral portion of the through hole 912.
Further, the spring connected to the contact piece member 922 can be used as a part of the line of the electric circuit C.

The cover 91 is not limited to one made of an insulating material such as plastic. For example, the cover 91 mainly made of metal uses a member having an insulating material as the contact breaking portion, or a contact breaking member. It is possible to use a part having an insulative coating or the like.

Other than that, the specific constitution of each part is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

Incidentally, as an application example of the traveling apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to add an additional mechanism as shown in FIGS. 6 to 9. Therefore, hereinafter, as an addendum, an additional mechanism that can be added to the traveling device will be described. However, in order to clarify the configuration of the additional mechanism, the step raising / lowering mechanism (the crank 3, the arm 4 and the like in FIGS.
Etc. are omitted.

The addition mechanism shown in FIG. 6 focuses on providing the traveling device with the function of measuring the height difference of the step. This is composed of a plurality of contact members 811 (811A, 811B, 811C, 811) which are separate from the main body 1.
The base end side of D) is pivotally supported on the rear part of the main body 1, and the contact member 811 is rotatable in the front-rear direction about a shaft 813. The contact member 811 has a substantially rod-like shape that bends rearward, and the wheel 2 is roughly positioned from the base end side that is the center of rotation.
On the front side, a grounding member 812 functioning as a grounding part is attached to the tip side thereof. Grounding member 8
12 has a columnar shape, and each has a contact member 811A,
811B, 811C, and 811D are rotatably supported by the tip end portions thereof. In addition, each contact member 811A, 81
The extension lengths of 1B, 811C, and 811D are different, and the ground contact members 812 are arranged intermittently in the height direction.

The shape, dimensions, etc. of the contact member 811 and the ground contact member 812 are set so that at least a part of the ground contact member 812 and a portion that can contact the floor surface are outside the diameter of the wheel 2 in side view. Set.

Therefore, the ground member 81 according to this embodiment.
The second retracting mechanism allows the tip end portion of the contact member 811, in other words, the ground member 812, to be rotationally moved in a predetermined range substantially forward of the initial position. In addition, the main body 1 is provided with an urging means such as a spring (not shown) for pre-loading the contact member 811 rearward along the rotation direction thereof.

When the grounding member 812 or the contact member 811 of the traveling apparatus is brought into contact with the edge surface of the upper floor, the contact member 811 is pushed by the edge surface as shown in FIG. Rotate forward. At this time, the contact members that rotate according to the size of the upper step (in the illustrated example, 811B,
11C and 811D) and a contact member (811A in the illustrated example) that does not rotate. Therefore, the rotation of these contact members 811 is detected by a limit switch (not shown) or other predetermined sensor means, and the contact members 811 that are displaced and the contact members 811 that are not displaced are distinguished from each other. It is possible to measure the size of the upper step. Note that the traveling device shown in FIG. 6 is in a backward tilted posture because the step lifting mechanism is operated to balance the center of gravity of the traveling device when ascending to the upper floor side from the position shown in the figure. This is because it is required.

Further, as a modification of the above-mentioned additional mechanism for measuring the step difference, as shown in FIG. 7, a contact member 811X having a substantially partial arc shape which rotates when pushed by the edge surface of the upper floor.
The height of the step may be measured even in the middle of the step by measuring the amount of displacement of the rotation.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the contact member 811Y is provided so as to be rotatable coaxially with the axle 5, and the contact member 811Y is rotated.
By engaging the hook 814 fixed to 11Y with the arm 4 (not shown) of the step elevation mechanism and driving the arm 4, the tip of the contact member 811 can be rotated up and down. The height of the step may be measured by measuring the displacement amount of the rotation of the contact member 811Y. By the way, the bearing to be provided at the base end of the contact member 811Y is the long hole 8 as shown in FIG.
15, it is preferable to increase the degree of freedom of movement of the contact member 811Y.

The additional mechanism shown in FIG. 9 focuses on providing the traveling device with a function capable of smoothly moving up and down a step. This is one in which a guide member 821, which is separate from the main body 1, is pivotally supported by the main body 1.
The guide member 821 is rotatable about the shaft 823 in the front-rear direction. The guide member 821 has three or four arms (three in the illustrated example) from the base end side that is the center of rotation.
And a grounding member 822 functioning as a grounding part is attached to the tip end side thereof. Grounding member 82
Reference numeral 2 has a columnar shape, and is rotatably supported by the tip of the arm of the guide member 821.

The shapes and dimensions of the guide member 821 and the grounding member 822 are set so that at least a part of the grounding member 822 and a portion that can contact the floor surface are outside the diameter of the wheel 2 in side view. Set.

The retracting mechanism of the ground member 822 rotates the guide member 821 in the front-rear direction to retract the tip portion thereof, in other words, the ground member 822, within the diameter of the side view wheel 2. It is a thing. Central axis of rotation 8
It goes without saying that 23 should be arranged within the diameter of the side view wheel 2.

A mode of using the adding mechanism having such a configuration will be described. FIG. 9 shows a state in which the step raising / lowering mechanism is operated to move up from the position shown to the upper floor side.
In order to balance the center of gravity of the traveling device, the traveling device is inclined toward the upper floor side. At this time, the ground member 82
2 is in contact with the lower floor surface, and the guide member 82 together with the wheel 2
1 supports the main body 1 of the traveling device. Then, when the main body 1 of the traveling device is lifted by the step raising / lowering mechanism, the guide member 821 rotates while the grounding member 821 contacts the edge surface of the upper floor. Therefore, the ground member 821
As the main body 1 rises, it properly retracts into the diameter of the wheel 2, so that it does not hinder the step-up operation. Although not shown in the figure, the guide member 821 also supports the backward tilted posture of the traveling device when the traveling operation is completed and the traveling device is completely placed on the upper floor.

When the traveling device descends to the lower floor, the reverse of the above is performed. That is, when the traveling device is present on the upper floor or the lower floor, the guide member 821 functions to support the tilted posture of the main body 1 together with the wheels 2.
While the step-down operation is in progress, the guide member 821 rotates and the grounding member 822 appropriately retracts within the diameter of the wheel 2. As described above, the function of the additional mechanism of this example allows the traveling device to smoothly move up and down the step.

[0057]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to realize a traveling device that has a simple structure as much as possible and that can reduce the risk associated with driving the step elevation mechanism and can be used more safely.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of essential parts showing a traveling device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the relevant part.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing an operation of a step lift mechanism of the traveling device.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part showing a cover support mechanism and a safety mechanism according to the same embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of a main part showing a modified example of a cover support mechanism and a safety mechanism.

FIG. 6 is a side view of essential parts showing an application example of the traveling device.

FIG. 7 is a side view of essential parts showing an application example of the traveling device.

FIG. 8 is a side view of a main part showing an application example of the traveling device.

FIG. 9 is a side view of essential parts showing an application example of the traveling device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Main body 2 ... wheels 3 ... Support member (crank) 4 ... arm 91 ... Cover 92 ... Cover support mechanism 921a, 922 ... A pair of contact pieces (support shelf, contact piece member) C ... Electric circuit

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification Code FI Theme Coat (Reference) B62B 5/02 B62D 57/02 J

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A wheel that movably supports a main body, a support member that is rotatably driven at a position that does not hinder the rotation of the wheel, and a support member that is attached to a portion displaced from the center of rotation of the support member. A step lift mechanism having an arm capable of being driven by a scaffold to move the tip end in a direction away from the center of rotation, the step lift mechanism being disposed at a predetermined position. A traveling device provided with a cover that covers at least a part, a cover support mechanism that supports the cover so that the cover can be displaced from the arrangement position by receiving an external force, and a safety mechanism that detects displacement of the cover. . 2. The safety mechanism is provided with an electric circuit which can be brought into a conducting state or a breaking state by contact or separation of a pair of contact pieces, and a contact breaking portion which engages with at least one of the pair of contact pieces on the cover. 2. The traveling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact breaking portion is configured to engage with at least one of the pair of contact pieces and separate the pair of contact pieces when the cover is displaced.