JP2005261801A - Stretcher - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stretcher of simple structure with reduced parts which enables user to go up and down the stairs and to change directions, and is suitable for downsizing and for emergency capable of being carried with minimum persons and inexpensive. <P>SOLUTION: The stretcher to transport a patient lying on it provides an approximately flat bed (10), a carriage (50) mounted on the undersurface of the bed (10), main wheels (54) held at the carriage deviating away from under the approximately center of the bed (10) into one direction, an endless traveling belt (56) crossing in an anteroposterior direction near the center of the bed (10) and one edge of the belt is positioned near the main wheels (54) when viewed from the side. The stretcher can be pushed to be transferred with only the main wheels (54) contacting the ground while the edge opposite to the main wheels (54) of the bed (10) is held up a little. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a movable stretcher that is used when a patient is moved.

  A stretcher is used when moving a patient in a hospital or the like. For example, a so-called stretcher is known in which a bed part on which a patient is laid horizontally and a carriage below the bed (integrated carriage type), a structure in which the carriage part can be folded like that used in an ambulance, and the like are known. In such a stretcher, when the cart is raised, the four wheels can be grounded and run, and when the cart is folded by a stretcher, a caregiver such as a nurse moves around the cart.

  However, transporting home patients in a general house without an elevator is a heavy burden for caregivers, and raising and lowering the stairs is particularly difficult. In hospitals, it is necessary to move to different floors by elevator, and some houses have elevators. However, elevators can be disabled, especially in the event of an emergency such as a fire. For this reason, it is required that a patient can be transported promptly and by as few caregivers as possible in a house or hospital, and that the stairs can be raised and lowered easily.

  For this purpose, a crawler type self-propelled transport vehicle provided with an endless traveling zone (so-called crawler belt, caterpillar) has been proposed. For example, the center of the caterpillar can be folded upward in a “h” shape, and when the stairs are raised or lowered, the folded part of the caterpillar is placed on the edge of the uppermost tread (step) of the stairs to change the posture of the stretcher Some have been made smooth (Patent Document 1).

  There is a stair lift that attaches a crawler type traveling part that can adjust the downward tilt angle to the body on which the wheelchair is placed, and changes the inclination of the crawler type traveling part by an electric or hydraulic cylinder (patent) Reference 2). In this case, the elevator travels while the caregiver pushes it by hand.

  In addition, the first and second tandem wheel mechanisms are provided near the center and the rear end of the crawler so as to be swingable in the front-rear direction. When traveling on a flat ground (floor surface), the tandem wheel mechanism is grounded and the stairs are moved up and down. There is sometimes an emergency evacuation vehicle in which a crawler rides on the edge of a tread surface (Patent Document 3). This transport vehicle travels while being pressed by a caregiver.

JP-A-8-58642 JP-A-7-76288 JP-A-9-262256

  In Patent Document 1, the track sled that holds the crawler belt (caterpillar) against the floor is divided into two parts in the front and rear, and the crawler belt and the track sled are bent at this divided part. A hydraulic cylinder is required. For this reason, there is a problem that the entire apparatus is complicated, the number of parts is increased, the size is increased, and it is too large for a general house and is not suitable for being equipped.

  The one disclosed in Patent Document 2 requires an electric or hydraulic cylinder to change the angle of the crawler-type traveling unit, which is also complicated because the device is complicated and the number of parts increases, and it is installed in a house to increase the size. Too exaggerated to do. In addition, since the crawler travels when pushed by hand, there is a problem that traveling resistance increases, a burden imposed on a caregiver increases, and operation becomes heavy.

  In the one disclosed in Patent Document 3, since the front and rear tandem mechanisms are grounded on a flat floor, only the wheels are grounded and travel, so the travel resistance is reduced. However, when the direction is changed while pushing the flat floor by hand, it is necessary to slide the front and rear tandem mechanisms laterally on the floor, which makes it difficult to continuously change the direction. At this time, since the subsequent tandem mechanism is usually located near the feet of the caregiver, a large floor area is required for the direction change. Further, each tandem mechanism holds the front and rear wheels on a swingable support plate, so that the structure is complicated, the number of parts is increased, and the size is increased.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, has an extremely simple structure, reduces the number of parts, can move up and down stairs and changes direction smoothly and easily, is suitable for downsizing, and provides care for a small number of people. It is an object of the present invention to provide a stretcher that can be operated by a person and is particularly suitable for emergency use and can be extremely inexpensive.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, in a stretcher for laying and moving a patient, a substantially flat bed part, a carriage attached to the lower surface of the bed part, and a lower part near the center of the bed part And a main wheel that is biased to be held by the carriage, and an endless traveling zone that crosses the vicinity of the center of the bed portion in the front-rear direction and has one end positioned near the main wheel in a side view. This is achieved by a stretcher characterized in that only the main wheel is grounded and can be manually conveyed while the end of the portion opposite to the main wheel is slightly lifted.

  The main wheel is held on the carriage by deviating from the lower part near the center of the bed (usually the front, which is the foot side of the patient laid down), and one end (front end) is located near the main wheel in a side view. When the car is traveling on a flat floor, an endless travel zone is provided on the carriage so that the caregiver can lift and lift the end (rear end) opposite the main wheel of the bed. Can be transported to the main wheel with less resistance, and can be easily changed around the main wheel as a fulcrum, making handling easier. Further, when moving up and down the stairs, the endless traveling zone can be placed on the edge of the tread board to reduce the impact and move up and down smoothly. At this time, the bed part tilts forward from a substantially horizontal position to the same angle as the stairs, but does not tilt excessively and does not give the patient a sense of fear.

  In addition, a special power source such as an electric or hydraulic cylinder is not required, and the apparatus is extremely simple, the number of parts is small, and maintenance is unnecessary or extremely simple. For this reason, it can be downsized and inexpensive, and is convenient for use in ordinary houses and hospitals or for emergency use. Particularly when transporting on a flat floor, only the main wheel is grounded, so the running resistance is small and the direction can be changed easily, and it can be handled by a small number of people (one or two people).

  If one end (front end) of the endless traveling zone is overlapped with the main wheel in a side view, the transfer from the main wheel to the endless traveling zone can be performed smoothly when riding on the edge of the step of the stairs. . While the caregiver removes his / her hand from the bed and the bed is substantially horizontal, the main wheel and the substantially entire lower surface of the endless traveling zone may be grounded together (Claim 3). And the rear end of the endless traveling zone (the end opposite to the main wheel) may be grounded simultaneously.

  According to the former (where the main wheel and the entire lower surface of the endless traveling zone are in contact with the ground), the impact when getting over the edge of the tread surface of the stairs is reduced, and the stairs are smoothly raised and lowered. According to the latter (the main wheel and the rear end of the endless traveling zone are in contact with the ground), when transporting a flat floor, the endless traveling zone is completely separated from the floor by slightly lifting the rear end of the bed. It is possible to prevent the endless traveling zone from rubbing the floor from increasing the running resistance and increasing the direction change.

  If the main wheel is a pair of left and right, the bed portion is prevented from swinging left and right during traveling and is stable (claim 5). If a pair of left and right endless traveling zones is provided, it can be prevented from swinging left and right when the stairs are raised or lowered, but the endless traveling zone may be widened. In the present invention, the main wheel includes one, three or more, and the endless traveling belt includes one, two or more.

  If the bed part can be bent near the patient's waist, and the patient's waist is supported by this bent part (Claim 6), the patient can be stably held on the bed part particularly when the stairs are raised and lowered. It is possible to relieve fear by tilting the body when the stairs are raised and lowered. The bed portion may be bent at two places so as to support not only the vicinity of the patient's waist but also the vicinity of the back side of the knee (claim 7). In this case, the patient's posture is further stabilized.

  It is desirable that the carriage is provided with a brake device that applies a braking force to travel in at least the forward direction (the patient's foot direction) of the endless travel zone (claim 8). In this way, it is possible to prevent the carriage and the bed part from sliding down due to the inclination of the stairs when the stairs are raised and lowered, and the raising and lowering is facilitated.

  If this brake device always applies braking force to the endless traveling belt in both directions (forward and backward direction) so that braking can be released by operation with a manual operation lever etc., the stretcher will be unexpected when left on a flat floor. While moving down the stairs, speed control can be performed while appropriately controlling the braking force when the stairs are lowered, and the vehicle can be slowly lowered. Since it is desirable that no braking force is applied when ascending the stairs, a one-way clutch may be provided on the wheel of the endless traveling zone.

  It is desirable that the carriage be removable from the bed part (claim 8). In this case, when the patient is put on the stretcher or moved from the stretcher to the bed, the carriage does not become an obstacle and the operation becomes easy.

  FIGS. 1 to 3 are diagrams for explaining the principle of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a state where the apparatus is placed on a flat floor, FIG. 2 shows a state of transport on a flat floor, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which a bed portion of a stretcher according to an embodiment is horizontally extended, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the bed portion is bent for ascending and descending stairs, and FIG. 6 is a bed portion attaching / detaching mechanism. FIG. 7 is a detailed perspective view of the attachment / detachment mechanism. 8 is a plan view and a bottom view of the bed portion, FIG. 9 is a view showing a folding process of the bed portion, and FIG. 10 is a view showing a bent state.

  In these drawings, reference numeral 10 denotes a bed portion. The bed 10 can be bent at two places as shown in FIGS. 8 (A) is a plan view in a flat state, (B) is a bottom view, FIG. 9 (A) is a side view in a horizontally extended state, and (B) is a fold of one place near the back side of the knee. FIG. 10 is a side view of a bent state, and FIG. 10 is a side view of a bent state near the back side of the knee and the vicinity of the waist.

  The bed section 10 includes three floor plates 12, 14, 16 surrounded by outer frames 18, 20, 20, 22 having a square cross section. The floor plates 12, 14, 16 can be bent by hinges 24, 26. It is. Here, a hinge 24 connecting the rear floor plate 12 and the intermediate floor plate 14 is located near the center of the bed 10 in the longitudinal direction, and the intermediate floor plate 14 and the front floor floor 16 of the patient (the patient's foot side) are connected. The connecting hinge 26 is at a position in the vicinity of ¼ in the longitudinal direction. The front end of the floor board 16 is a footrest board 28 bent at a substantially right angle.

  The outer frame 18 is fixed to the floor board 12 so as to surround the outer edge of the floor board 12. The outer frames 20 and 20 are fixed to both side edges of the intermediate floor plate 14. The outer frames 18, 20, 20 can be locked by slide members 30, 30. That is, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 (A), the slide members 30 and 30 engage with the opposite ends of the outer frames 18 and 20 to lock them both in a straight line. As shown, it can be unlocked by sliding to the outer frame 18 side and exiting from the outer frame 20.

  The intermediate outer frames 20 and 20 have a cylindrical shape with a square cross section, and the front outer frame 22 is substantially U-shaped, and both ends have a small diameter and can be inserted into the outer frames 20 and 20. In the state where the front outer frame 22 is pulled out from the intermediate outer frame 20 (FIG. 8), the front floor board 16 is locked in a horizontal position by a lock mechanism (not shown), and this is when the front floor board 16 is bent downward. The front outer frame 22 can be pushed into the intermediate outer frame 20. FIG. 9B shows this state. At this time, the outer frame 22 is locked at a position shown in FIG. 9B where the front floor board 16 is bent downward by a lock mechanism (not shown).

  In this state, the floor plates 14 and 16 form a first bent portion 32 that holds the patient's knee from the back side. If the slide member 30 is moved rearward and the floor plate 14 is bent upward, the second bent portion 34 that holds the vicinity of the patient's waist can be formed. The floor plates 14 and 12 can be locked by a lock mechanism (not shown).

  In FIGS. 1-6, 50 is a trolley | bogie. The carriage 50 can be attached to and detached from the lower surface of the bed portion 10. As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the carriage 50 has a substantially trapezoidal frame 52 with a lower portion protruding forward and a rear side substantially vertical in a side view, and a pair of left and right main wheels 54 attached to the front end of the lower side of the frame 52. , 54 and a pair of left and right endless traveling zones (crawler belts, caterpillars) 56, 56 arranged back and forth along the lower side. Here, the endless traveling belt 56 has a length that can be passed over at least two step edges of the stairs described later.

  The endless travel zones 56, 56 extend rearward from between the left and right main wheels 54, 54, and the front ends thereof overlap the main wheels 54 in a side view. The contact surface of the endless traveling zone 56 is higher than the contact point of the main wheel 54 as shown in FIG. Therefore, when the carriage 50 is stationary, the main wheel 54 and the rear portion of the endless traveling zone 56 are grounded as shown in FIG.

  The top surface of the carriage 50 is a rectangular frame 58 as shown in FIG. The bed portion 10 can be attached to and detached from the frame 58. That is, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, engaging members 60, 60 that are slidable by a predetermined dimension in the width direction are attached to the lower surface of the floor plate 12 after the bed portion 10, and the engaging members 60, 60 are framed. 58 can be engaged and disengaged from the inside.

  The engaging member 60 is made of a sheet metal bent in a crank shape in cross section, and a return habit in the outward direction is given by a spring (not shown). The engaging members 60, 60 are engaged with and disengaged from the frame 58 by levers 62 (FIGS. 6 and 7) provided on the rear lower surface of the bed portion 10. That is, a slide plate 64 (FIG. 7) is held between the engagement members 60, 60 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction, and the slide plate 64 and both engagement members 60, 60 are connected by four links 66. Thus, the engaging members 60 and 60 are translated in the width direction by the link 66 by the slide in front and rear of the slide plate 64.

  The slide plate 64 is given a return habit by a coil spring 68 and is connected to a lever 62 by a wire 70. For this reason, when the lever 62 is pulled rearward, the slide plate 64 moves rearward, and the engaging members 60, 60 move inward (in a direction approaching each other) and come off the frame 58. When the lever 62 is released, the slide plate 64 returns to the front by the spring 68, and the engaging members 60, 60 move outward (in a direction away from each other) and engage with the frame 58.

  Next, the usage method of this stretcher is demonstrated using FIGS. 1-3. When transporting the patient 72, the patient 72 is placed on the bed unit 10. At this time, if the bed part 10 is separated from the carriage 50 and placed on the bed where the patient is sleeping, the patient 72 can be easily transferred. When the patient 72 is placed on the bed portion 10, the front and back of the bed portion 10 are supported by two caregivers and lifted, and the bed portion 10 is placed on the carriage 50 and locked. FIG. 1 shows this state. In this state, the main wheel 54 and the rear portion of the endless traveling zone 56 are grounded.

  With the patient 72 thus placed, the caregiver 74 slightly lifts the head side (rear part of the bed portion 10) of the patient 72 and separates the endless traveling belt 56 from the floor as shown in FIG. Since only the main wheel 54 is grounded in this state, the caregiver 74 can easily move the stretcher forward and backward. In addition, the direction can be changed smoothly.

  When ascending and descending the stairs, the stretcher is once stopped as shown in FIG. 1, and the first and second bent portions 32 and 34 (see FIG. 10) of the bed portion 10 are bent so that the patient 72 is waisted. And hold on the back side of the knee (FIG. 3). In this way, when entering the stairs while the patient 72 is stably held on the bed portion 10, the endless traveling belt 56 travels while riding over the edges of two consecutive steps.

  When going down the stairs, as shown in FIG. 3, the patient 72 moves forward with the foot side forward (down), the head side back (up), and the foot side forward. On the other hand, when going up the stairs, the head side is raised. That is, the caregiver 74 proceeds while retreating. When the ascending / descending of the stairs is finished, the bed portion 10 may be extended again horizontally and moved to the target position in the state shown in FIG.

  In the above-described first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 10, it is desirable that the stretcher does not move unexpectedly when stationary (FIG. 1), and when moving up and down the stairs (FIG. 3) It is desirable that a braking force acts on the movement. For this purpose, it is preferable to provide a brake mechanism that applies a braking force to the traveling of the endless traveling zone 56.

  FIG. 11 is a side view of the carriage 50A provided with a brake mechanism, and FIG. 12 is a rear view for showing the arrangement of the main wheels 54 and the like. In these drawings, the same parts as those shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated. The second embodiment is different from the first embodiment (FIGS. 1 to 10) in that a brake shoe 76 that is in sliding contact with the rear end of the endless traveling belt 56 is provided and can be controlled by a wire cable 78.

  That is, the brake shoe 76 is swingably held on the frame 52 above the guide wheel 80 around which the rear end of the endless traveling belt 56 is wound, and one end of a wire cable 78 is connected to the brake shoe 76. The other end of the wire cable 78 is connected to a brake lever (not shown) that is operated by the care giver 74 (FIGS. 1 to 3) pushing (or pulling) the stretcher. In this way, a braking force is applied to the endless traveling belt 56 when the caregiver 74 is required. 11 and 12, the wiring of the wire cable 78 is simplified. However, in practice, the brake lever and the brake shoe 76 are of course interlocked via an appropriate member such as a bell crank or a pulley. The wire cable 78 is preferably separable when the bed portion 10 and the carriage 50A are separated.

  FIG. 13 is a side view of a cart 50B according to another embodiment. In this embodiment, an auxiliary wheel 82 protruding forward from the main wheel 54 is attached on the main wheel 54. The auxiliary wheel 82 has a function to prevent the main wheel 54 from hitting the lowermost floor 84 when the steep stairs are lowered and the cart 50B and a bed portion (not shown) integrated therewith to fall forward.

  11 to 14, the braking force is applied to the endless traveling belt 56 by the brake shoe 76, but the braking force may be applied by other mechanisms. For example, a one-way clutch is built into the guide wheel 80 of the endless traveling zone 56, and the one-way clutch is locked and locked when moving forward (when the stairs are lowered), while the one-way clutch is free when moving backward (when the stairs are raised). It is possible to make the endless traveling zone 56 travelable.

  In addition, a continuous braking force is always applied to the endless traveling zone, while a braking operation is released by a manual operator or the like only when the stairs are lifted to allow traveling in the upward direction. In this case, since the braking force always acts on the endless traveling belt 56 when the stretcher is stationary, the stretcher does not move unexpectedly.

Principle explanatory diagram of the present invention (at rest) Principle of the present invention (when transporting a flat floor) Illustration of the principle of the present invention (when going up and down stairs) Perspective view of stretcher (when bed is level) Perspective view of stretcher (when bed is bent) The perspective view which shows the attachment or detachment mechanism of a bed part. Partial enlarged view of the bed attachment / detachment mechanism Diagram showing the structure of the bed Illustration of the folding process of the bed Illustration of the bent state of the bed Side view showing another embodiment of the cart Rear view with some parts omitted Side view showing another embodiment of the cart Rear view with some parts omitted

Explanation of symbols

10 Bed part 32 1st bending part (back side holding part of knee)
34 Second bent part (waist holding part)
50, 50A, 50B Bogie 54 Frame 56 Endless traveling zone (Crawler belt, Caterpillar)
76 Brake shoes

Claims (9)

On the stretcher to lie down and move the patient,
An almost flat bed,
A carriage attached to the lower surface of the bed,
A main wheel biased to one side from below the center of the bed portion and held by the carriage,
An endless traveling zone that traverses the vicinity of the center of the bed portion in the front-rear direction and has one end positioned near the main wheel in a side view,
A stretcher characterized in that only the main wheel is brought into contact with the bed while the end of the bed opposite to the main wheel is slightly lifted so that it can be conveyed by hand.   2. The stretcher according to claim 1, wherein one end of the endless traveling zone overlaps the main wheel in a side view.   The stretcher according to claim 1 or 2, wherein both the main wheel and the substantially entire lower surface of the endless traveling belt are grounded in a state where the bed portion is substantially horizontal.   The stretcher according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the main wheel and the lower surface of the end portion on the opposite side of the main wheel of the endless traveling zone are in contact with each other in a state where the bed portion is substantially horizontal.   The stretcher according to claim 1, comprising a pair of left and right main wheels and an endless traveling zone extending between the main wheels.   The stretcher according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the bed part can be bent at at least one place, and the bent part can support the vicinity of the waist of the patient.   The stretcher according to claim 6, wherein the bed part can be bent at two places, and the two bent parts can support the patient's waist and the vicinity of the back side of the knee.   The stretcher according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the carriage is provided with a brake that applies a braking force to travel in at least a patient's foot direction in the endless travel zone.   The stretcher according to claim 1, wherein the carriage is detachable from the bed portion.

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