JP2017093505A - Tension spring, and human body support device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve weight saving of a tension spring, and to achieve weight saving and simplification of a structure of a human body support device.SOLUTION: A tension spring 20 includes: a wire engaging part 20B to put a load into; and an elastic tube 44 having a sealed space to enclose gas into in the inside, and increased in a dimension to a tension direction by pulling the wire engaging part, and decreased in a dimension to a direction orthogonal to the tension direction so as to reduce a cubic volume in the sealed space as a result, and generating in the wire engaging part 20B, resilience to an opposite direction to the tension direction due to that gas in the sealed space is compressed. A waist support device 10 includes a femoral arm 16 and an upper body side frame 18 attached to a user, and the tension spring 20 provided between the femoral arm 16 and the upper body side frame 18, and pulled through displacement of the upper body side frame 18 to one side to the femoral arm 16.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a tension spring and a human body support device.

  Patent Document 1 below discloses a device (human body support device) that assists the user to get up. The device described in this document includes a member 2 arranged on the back side of the user, a member 3 attached to the member 2 and supporting the upper body of the user, and along the thigh of the user. And a member 4 in which the tension spring 11 is housed. Then, the member 2 and the member 3 are tilted with respect to the member 4 and the tension spring 11 is pulled, thereby generating a support force in a direction that causes the upper body of the user.

  Patent Document 2 below discloses a waist assist device (human body support device) that assists the user's waist by being worn by the user. The waist assist device includes a back frame that is attached to a pair of left and right side portions disposed on the side of the user's waist and is tiltably attached to the back of the user. Further, the lower back assistance device includes a lower limb frame that is attached to a pair of left and right side portions so as to be tiltable and to which a thigh plate that comes into contact with the user's thigh is fixed. Further, the lower back assistance device includes an artificial muscle having one end locked to the back frame and the other end locked to the lower limb frame via a wire. Then, the compressed muscle is contracted by supplying compressed air from the compressor or tank through the tube to the artificial muscle. Thereby, a support force in the standing direction is applied to the upper body of the user, and it is possible to reduce the load on the user's waist when lifting a heavy object.

German Patent Application Publication No. 10200408508 (A1) Specification JP 2013-75078 A

  However, the tension spring 11 that constitutes a part of the human body support device described in Patent Document 1 is made of metal. Therefore, it is difficult to suppress an increase in the weight of the human body support device that includes the tension spring 11.

  Moreover, in the human body support device used by being mounted on the user like the human body support devices described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, the human body is used from the viewpoint of reducing the load on the user and facilitating handling. It is desired to reduce the weight of the support device and simplify the configuration.

  In consideration of the above facts, the present invention has a first object to reduce the weight of the tension spring and a second object to reduce the weight and simplify the configuration of the human body support device.

  The tension spring according to claim 1 has a load input portion into which a load is input and a sealed space in which gas is sealed, and the dimension in the tensile direction is increased by pulling the load input portion. And a gas sealing portion that reduces the volume in the sealed space and compresses the gas in the sealed space to generate a restoring force in the direction opposite to the tensile direction in the load input portion. ing.

  When the tension spring according to claim 1 is pulled, that is, when the load input portion is pulled, the gas sealing portion is deformed. Thereby, the dimension of the gas enclosure part to the tension | pulling direction of a load input part is increased. Moreover, when the dimension of the gas enclosure part in the tensile direction is increased, the dimension of the gas enclosure part in the direction orthogonal to the tension direction is reduced, and as a result, the volume inside the gas enclosure part is reduced. Here, in the tension spring according to the first aspect, since the inside of the gas enclosure is a sealed space, the gas inside the gas enclosure is compressed when the volume inside the gas enclosure is reduced. Thereby, a restoring force in a direction opposite to the tensile direction is generated in the load input portion. By the way, in the tension spring according to the first aspect, a restoring force in the direction opposite to the tensile direction is generated in the load input portion by compressing the gas having a light mass per unit volume as compared with a solid such as metal. As a result, the weight of the tension spring can be reduced as compared with a tension spring in which a restoring force is generated by deformation of a solid such as metal.

  The tension spring according to claim 2 is the tension spring according to claim 1, wherein when the dimension in the tension direction is increased, the dimension in the direction perpendicular to the tension direction is reduced. It is covered with a cylindrical cover member.

  When the tension spring according to claim 2 is pulled, the gas enclosure part is deformed together with the cover member covering the gas enclosure part. That is, the dimensions of the gas sealing part and the cover member in the tensile direction are increased. Here, when the dimension of the cover member in the pulling direction is increased, the dimension of the cover member in the direction orthogonal to the pulling direction is decreased. Thereby, a gas enclosure part is pressed by a cover member, and the dimension to the direction orthogonal to the pulling direction of a gas enclosure part is reduced further. As a result, the compressibility of the gas in the gas enclosure with respect to the deformation amount in the tensile direction of the gas enclosure can be increased.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the tension spring according to the first or second aspect, the amount of gas sealed in the sealed space in advance can be adjusted.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, the restoring force generated in the load input portion of the tension spring can be adjusted by adjusting the amount of gas sealed in the sealed space in the gas sealing portion in advance.

  5. The human body support device according to claim 4, wherein the human body support device is provided between a first mounting portion and a second mounting portion to be mounted on a user, and between the first mounting portion and the second mounting portion, and the second mounting portion. The tension spring according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the tension spring is tensioned by being displaced to one side with respect to the first mounting portion.

  According to the human body support device according to claim 4, when the portion where the second mounting portion is mounted on the user is moved relative to the portion where the first mounting portion is mounted, the first mounting portion and the second mounting portion are provided. A tension spring provided between the two portions is pulled. The restoring force of the tension spring is transmitted to the site where the second mounting portion is mounted on the user, so that the support force is generated at the site where the second mounting portion is mounted on the user. Here, in the present invention described in claim 4, the human body support device is configured by using a tension spring that is reduced in weight with respect to a tension spring in which a restoring force is generated by deformation of a solid such as metal. The weight of the support device can be reduced. In the present embodiment, the gas in the gas sealing portion constituting a part of the tension spring is compressed, so that a support force is generated for the user. That is, in the present invention described in claim 4, it is not necessary to inject gas into the gas sealing portion in order to generate a support force for the user. Thereby, a compressor, a tank, a tube, etc. for injecting gas into a gas enclosure part become unnecessary.

  The human body support device according to claim 5 is the human body support device according to claim 4, wherein the first mounting portion is a leg portion mounting portion to be mounted on the leg portion of the user, and the second mounting portion. The mounting portion is an upper body mounting portion that is mounted on the upper body of the user, and the upper body mounting portion is displaced with respect to the leg mounting portion when the user tilts forward. .

  According to the human body support device of the fifth aspect, when the upper body of the user wearing the human body support device is tilted forward, the tension spring provided between the upper body mounting portion and the leg mounting portion is pulled. . The restoring force of the tension spring is transmitted to the upper body of the user via the upper body mounting portion, thereby generating a support force on the upper body of the user.

  The tension spring according to claim 1 has an excellent effect that the weight of the tension spring can be reduced.

  The tension spring according to claim 2 has an excellent effect that the restoring force of the tension spring can be increased.

  The tension spring according to claim 3 has an excellent effect that the restoring force of the tension spring can be adjusted.

  The human body support device according to claim 4 has an excellent effect that the weight can be reduced and the configuration can be simplified.

  The human body support device according to claim 5 has an excellent effect that the load on the waist of the user when lifting a heavy object can be reduced.

It is the perspective view which looked at the waist | hip | lumbar part support apparatus from the diagonally forward side. It is the side view which looked at the waist support device from the side. (A) is a side view which shows a natural length tension spring, (B) is a schematic diagram which shows typically the elastic tube and mesh sleeve of the tension spring of the state shown by (A). (A) is a figure which shows the tension spring of the natural length set to the tension tester, (B) is a figure which shows the tension spring pulled with respect to the natural length. It is a side view which shows the state in which the user with which the waist | hip | lumbar part support apparatus was mounted | worn leaned forward. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the user's forward tilt angle and support torque in a waist | hip | lumbar part support apparatus.

  A waist support device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, the front side in the front-rear direction viewed from the upright user wearing the lumbar support device is indicated by the arrow FR, the right side and the left side are indicated by the arrow RH and the arrow LH, and the upper side in the vertical direction is indicated by the arrow. Indicated by UP. Further, in the following description, when simply indicating the front / rear, left / right, and up / down directions, the front / rear, left / right, and up / down directions viewed from the upright user wearing the waist support device are shown. .

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a lumbar support device 10 as a human body support device is attached to a base portion 12 and a pair of left and right base portions 12 arranged on the side of the user's lumbar region. And a waist belt 14 attached to the user's waist. Further, the lumbar support device 10 is disposed along the thigh of the user and is attached to the base 12 so as to be tiltable, and a thigh arm 16 as a leg mounting unit and a user's thigh. A second mounting portion that is disposed along the upper body and is attached to the base portion 12 so as to be tiltable, and an upper body side frame 18 as the upper body mounting portion. A tension spring 20 is attached to the body side frame 18.

  The base portion 12 includes an outer plate 22 and an inner plate 24 that are formed in a plate shape. The outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24 are formed in substantially the same shape in a side view (viewed from the right side or the left side). The outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24 are connected via a plurality of connection pins 26 and the like. Accordingly, the outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24 are arranged in parallel to each other with a predetermined interval in the left-right direction.

  A first pulley 28 and a second pulley 30 are rotatably provided between the outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24. The first pulley 28 is attached to the lower side of the outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24 with the left-right direction as the rotation axis direction. The rotation axis of the first pulley 28 is a first axis C1 corresponding to the hip joint of the user. The first pulley 28 includes a wire locking portion 28A where a part of a wire 48 described later is locked and a thigh arm mounting portion 28B where a thigh arm 16 described later is mounted. The second pulley 30 is attached to the upper side of the outer plate 22 and the inner plate 24 and the rear side of the first pulley 28 with the left-right direction as the rotation axis direction. The rotation axis of the second pulley 30 is a second axis C2 corresponding to the user's sacroiliac joint. In addition, a guide groove 30 </ b> A for guiding an intermediate portion in the longitudinal direction of the wire 48 described later is formed on the outer peripheral portion of the second pulley 30. Further, the second pulley 30 is extended toward the rear side, and includes a body side frame attachment portion 30B to which a body side frame 18 described later is attached.

  The waist belt 14 includes a wide pad 14 </ b> A that is disposed along the rear side and the side of the user's waist by being formed in a substantially C shape with the front side open as viewed from above the user. ing. Further, the waist belt 14 includes front extending portions 14B extending from both ends in the left-right direction of the wide pad 14A. Then, in a state in which the circumference of the annular portion formed by the wide pad 14A and the pair of front extending portions 14B is adjusted to the length around the user's waist, one front extending portion 14B is connected to the other front. The waist belt 14 is attached to the user's waist by being locked to the extension 14B.

  The thigh arm 16 includes an arm main body 32 extending along the thigh of the user and a thigh pad 34 attached to the arm main body 32. The arm main body 32 is formed by bending a plate-like member or the like, and the arm main body 32 is a side-side extending portion disposed on the side of the user's thigh. 32A, and a front side extending portion 32B extending from the lower end side of the side side extending portion 32A toward the front side of the user's thigh. As shown in FIG. 2, the side extending portion 32 </ b> A is inclined forward as it goes downward, and the upper end portion of the side extending portion 32 </ b> A is a thigh arm of the first pulley 28. By being attached to the attachment portion 28B via the hinge 36, the thigh arm 16 is attached to the base portion 12 so as to be tiltable with the first axis C1 as a tilt (rotation) axis. In the present embodiment, since the hinge 36 is configured to be rotatable in the left-right direction, the thigh arm 16 can be tilted in the left-right direction with respect to the base portion 12.

  The thigh pad 34 has a curved shape along the front side surface of the user's thigh, and the thigh pad 34 is attached to the front side extending portion 32 </ b> B of the arm body 32. Further, the thigh pad 34 is rotatable with respect to the arm body 32 by a predetermined angle with the left-right direction as the axial direction. Thereby, the contact state of the thigh pad 34 and the front side surface of the user's thigh can be changed to a desired contact state.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the upper body side frame 18 is formed in a substantially U shape (V shape) with the lower side opened in a front view (viewed from the front side of the user). The upper body side frame 18 is arranged with a pair of tension spring mounting portions 38 having a tension spring accommodating portion 38A (see FIG. 2) in which the tension springs 20 are disposed and spaced apart in the left-right direction. And a connecting portion 40 that connects the upper portion of the tension spring mounting portion 38 in the left-right direction. The pair of tension spring attachment portions 38 are inclined to the right side and the left side of the user as they go from the upper side to the lower side in a front view. The pair of tension spring mounting portions 38 is provided with a body mounting belt mounting portion 38B to which a body mounting belt 42 to be mounted on the user's upper body is mounted. The upper body mounting belt 42 includes a right side mounting belt 42R mounted on the user's right shoulder and a left side mounting belt 42L mounted on the user's left shoulder. The length of the mounting belt 42L is adjustable.

  Further, the lower ends of the pair of tension spring attachment portions 38 are fixed to the upper body side frame attachment portion 30 </ b> B of the second pulley 30. Thereby, the upper body side frame 18 can be tilted with respect to the base portion 12 with the second axis C2 as a tilting (turning) axis.

  As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the tension spring 20 is configured in the same manner as a so-called McKibben type artificial muscle. One end portion in the longitudinal direction of the tension spring 20 is a frame locking portion 20A that is locked to the upper end portion of the tension spring mounting portion 38 (see FIG. 2) of the upper body side frame 18. The other end in the longitudinal direction is a wire locking portion 20B as a load input portion to which a wire 48 (see FIG. 2) described later is locked. The tension spring 20 includes an elastic tube 44 as a gas sealing portion formed in a tubular shape using an elastic material such as rubber, and a cylindrical mesh sleeve 46 as a cover member that covers the elastic tube 44. It is configured.

  The elastic tube 44 has a sealed space in which gas (air) is sealed. The elastic tube 44 is disposed between the frame locking portion 20A and the wire locking portion 20B. The elastic tube 44 can be filled with air via a valve 50 (see FIG. 4A). Thereby, the amount of gas (gas mass) sealed in advance in the sealed space in the elastic tube 44 can be adjusted.

  The mesh sleeve 46 is formed, for example, by weaving a wire such as a high-tensile fiber having a low stretchability. Further, both end portions in the length (axis) direction of the mesh sleeve 46 are fixed to the frame locking portion 20A and the wire locking portion 20B, respectively. When the tension spring 20 is pulled from the natural length state shown in FIG. 4A to the state shown in FIG. 4B (the direction in which the wire locking portion 20B is separated from the frame locking portion 20A). ), The dimension of the mesh sleeve 46 in the pulling direction (arrow A1 direction) is increased, and the dimension in the direction orthogonal to the pulling direction (arrow B direction) is decreased. As a result, the dimension of the elastic tube 44 disposed in the mesh sleeve 46 in the tension direction (arrow A1 direction) is increased and the dimension in the direction orthogonal to the tension direction (arrow B direction) is decreased. It is like that. As a result, the volume in the sealed space in the elastic tube 44 is reduced, and the gas in the sealed space is compressed. Thereby, a restoring force in the direction opposite to the tensile direction (the direction of the arrow A2) is generated in the wire locking portion 20B. In the tensile test shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the length L between the frame locking portion 20A and the wire locking portion 20B in the natural length and in the tensioned state is 228 mm, respectively. And 246 mm. Moreover, the outer diameter D of the center part of the longitudinal direction of the elastic tube 44 in the natural length and the tension | pulling state is 36 mm and 22 mm. Here, since the elastic tube 44 and the mesh sleeve 46 are in close contact with each other, it is assumed that the outer diameter of the elastic tube 44 and the outer diameter of the mesh sleeve 46 coincide with each other. In this test, the tension spring 20 is pulled from the natural length state shown in FIG. 4A to the state shown in FIG. The volume is reduced by about 60 percent.

  Further, the waist support device 10 of the present embodiment includes the four or two tension springs 20 described above. In the configuration including the four tension springs 20, two tension springs 20 are provided in each of the pair of tension spring attachment portions 38 (see FIG. 1). In the configuration including the two tension springs 20, one tension spring 20 is provided in each of the pair of tension spring mounting portions 38 (see FIG. 1).

  As shown in FIG. 2, one end portion of the wire 48 is locked to the lower end portion (wire locking portion 20 </ b> B) of the tension spring 20 disposed in the tension spring accommodating portion 38 </ b> A of the upper body side frame 18. . Further, the wire 48 is led out from the lower end side of the upper body side frame 18, and the other end portion of the wire 48 is locked to the wire locking portion 28 </ b> A of the first pulley 28.

(Operation and effect of this embodiment)
Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the waist belt 14, the upper body mounting belt 42, and the thigh arm 16 are respectively mounted on the waist P <b> 1, the upper body P <b> 2, and the thigh 16 of the user P, The waist support device 10 is attached to the user P.

  When the user P tilts forward to lift the heavy object 54 placed on the floor 52, the upper body frame 18 is tilted forward with the thigh arm 16 as a fulcrum. As a result, the tension spring 20 is pulled. And the restoring force which arises in the wire latching | locking part 20B of this tension spring 20 is transmitted to the upper body P2 of the user P via the upper body side frame 18, and causes the upper body P2 of the user P leaning forward. Support force in the direction is generated. Thereby, when the user P lifts the heavy object 54 placed on the floor surface 52, the load generated on the waist P1 of the user P can be reduced.

  Here, FIG. 6 shows a graph showing the relationship between the forward tilt angle θ of the user P and the support torque T. The forward tilt angle θ of the user P is an angle formed by the floor 52 and the direction in which the upper body frame 18 extends when the user P is viewed from the side, and the support torque T and Is a torque around the second axis C <b> 2 (see FIG. 2) generated in the upper body side frame 18.

  In the lumbar support device 10 including the four tension springs 20, the pressure in the elastic tube 44 of the tension spring 20 is adjusted while the user P is standing upright (the forward tilt angle θ is 120 °). When set to 0.08 MPa, a support torque of about 100 Nm can be obtained when the forward tilt angle is 0 °, as indicated by the characteristic line indicated by reference numeral T1.

  Further, in the lumbar support device 10 including the two tension springs 20, the user P is in an upright state (with the forward tilt angle θ being 120 °), and the elastic tube 44 of the tension spring 20 is within the elastic tube 44. When the pressure is set to 0.2 MPa, a support torque of about 100 Nm can be obtained when the forward tilt angle is 0 °, as shown by the characteristic line indicated by reference numeral T2. As described above, the number of the tension springs 20 and the pressure of the air sealed in the elastic tube 44 of the tension spring 20 are the weight of the heavy object 54 lifted by the user P, the resistance when the user P tilts forward, and the like. May be set as appropriate.

Note that the characteristic line indicated by reference numeral T3 indicates that in the waist support device 10 provided with the four tension springs 20, air is supplied from the outside into the elastic tube 44 of the tension spring 20, so It is a characteristic line when the pressure of is kept at 0.3 MPa.
A characteristic line indicated by reference numeral T4 is a characteristic line when the pressure in the elastic tube 44 is kept at 0.5 MPa in the waist support device 10 including the two tension springs 20.

  Moreover, the tension spring 20 which comprises a part of the waist | hip | lumbar part support apparatus 10 of this embodiment compresses the air whose mass per unit volume is light compared with solids, such as a metal, and is a direction opposite to a tension | pulling direction. A restoring force is generated in the wire locking portion 20B. As a result, it is possible to reduce the weight of the tension spring 20 as compared with a tension spring in which a restoring force is generated by deformation of a solid such as metal, and to reduce the weight of the waist support device 10 including the tension spring 20. Can be planned.

  Further, in the present embodiment, in order to generate a restoring force in the wire locking portion 20B, that is, in order to generate a support force in the upper body P2 of the user P, air is supplied into the elastic tube 44 of the tension spring 20. There is no need to inject. This eliminates the need for a compressor, tank, tube, and the like for injecting gas into the elastic tube 44. As a result, the configuration of the waist support device 10 can be simplified.

  In this embodiment, the example in which the waist support device 10 is configured using the tension spring 20 in which the elastic tube 44 is covered with the mesh sleeve 46 has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, it is good also as a tension spring of the type which couple | bonded the wire latching | locking part 20B and the frame latching | locking part 20A with the both ends of the longitudinal direction of the elastic tube 44, respectively. As described above, whether or not the elastic tube 44 is provided may be appropriately set in consideration of the compressibility of air in the elastic tube 44 when the tension spring is pulled, the tensile strength of the tension spring, and the like.

  Moreover, although this embodiment demonstrated the example which comprised the waist | hip | lumbar part support apparatus 10 using the tension | pulling spring 20, this invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can be applied to a human body support device that supports a user's thigh raising, arm raising, rising from a sleeping state, and the like.

  Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above, and various modifications other than the above can be implemented without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Of course.

10 Lumbar support device (human body support device)
20B Wire locking part 20B (load input part)
44 Elastic tube (gas filling part)
46 Mesh sleeve (cover member) 10 Lumbar support device 16 Thigh arm (first mounting part and leg mounting part)
18 Upper body side frame (second mounting part and upper body mounting part)

Claims (5)

A load input section to which a load is input;
There is a sealed space in which gas is enclosed, and when the load input portion is pulled, the dimension in the pulling direction is increased and the volume in the sealed space is reduced, and the gas in the sealed space is reduced. A gas-filled portion that generates a restoring force in the load input portion in a direction opposite to the tensile direction by being compressed;
A tension spring.   The tension spring according to claim 1, wherein the gas sealing portion is covered with a cylindrical cover member whose dimension in a direction orthogonal to the tension direction is reduced when the dimension in the tension direction is increased.   The tension spring according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the amount of gas previously sealed in the sealed space is adjustable. A first mounting portion and a second mounting portion to be mounted on a user;
The first mounting portion and the second mounting portion are provided between the first mounting portion and the second mounting portion is pulled by being displaced to one side with respect to the first mounting portion. Any one of the tension springs according to claim 1;
A human body support device. The first mounting unit is a leg mounting unit that is mounted on the leg of the user, and the second mounting unit is a body mounting unit that is mounted on the upper body of the user. And
The human body support device according to claim 4, wherein the upper body mounting portion is displaced relative to the leg mounting portion when the user tilts forward.