JP2529722Y2 - Wheelbarrow for walking assistance - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a walking aid wheelbarrow for assisting an elderly person who has difficulty walking alone or a person with a leg with a disability to walk on his own.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional device of this type, a wheelbarrow type device is known. It consists of a self-supporting number of wheels, usually four wheels, a frame supporting it, a carrier or seat plate formed on this frame,
It is also composed of a hand-pressed portion formed at the upper end of the frame. When walking, grabbed by the hand pushing part and pushing it, even people with weak legs or people with disabilities
Like a healthy person, he can move indoors and outdoors by himself.

[0003]

The person using such a device for assisting walking is usually an elderly person, and is generally weaker than a healthy person. However, such a conventional device for walking assistance has a problem that it is too large and too heavy for such a weak person to handle. For this reason, for example, when carrying these devices to a destination such as a park or a shopping center by car, the dimensions are too large, and it is often difficult to load them on a trunk, a cargo bed, or the like. Also, because of the heavy weight, loading and unloading operations are difficult, and the present situation requires human assistance.

[0004] An object of the present invention is to propose a walking assist wheelbarrow that can easily store, carry, etc., by focusing on such problems.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in a walking assistance wheelbarrow of the present invention, the main body thereof is composed of an upper half portion and a lower half portion, and these can be detachably attached with a so-called one touch. With a simple structure, the upper and lower parts are separated during storage and transportation so that a weak person can easily handle it and the storage can be made compact.

More specifically, a walking assist wheelbarrow of the present invention includes a pair of side shafts extending in the vertical direction, a connecting plate bridged between these side shafts, a seat plate attached to the side shafts,
And an upper half provided with a push handle and the like attached to the side shaft, a plurality of wheels, and a lower half provided with legs supporting these wheels. The lower end of each of the side shafts of the upper half is fitted into a fitting hole formed on the side of the leg of the lower half as an end for connection with the lower half. The upper half and the lower half are connected.

[0007] In the walking assisted wheelbarrow having this configuration, when the upper half is separated from the lower half during storage and transportation, the upper half can be easily disassembled up and down, and the upper half and the lower half can be separated. Can be handled separately.

In the present invention, the connecting end has a tapered outer surface tapered toward the distal end, and the fitting hole has a tapered inner surface tapered toward the bottom. It is preferable to keep it.

Here, in order to further simplify the operation of separating the upper half from the lower half, these connecting portions may have the following structure. That is, a screw hole is formed in the distal end surface of the connecting end portion, and the fitting member is attached to the fitting hole so as to penetrate the bottom surface so that the screw member is rotatable but does not move in the axial direction. Then, a portion protruding into the fitting hole is screwed into the screw hole, and a handle portion for turning the screw member is formed in a portion protruding downward through the fitting hole of the screw member. .

In this way, when the upper and lower portions are separated, the screw member is turned relative to the lower half by turning the handle of the screw member in a direction in which the screw member is loosened from the screw hole. Since it does not move in the axial direction, the connecting end of the upper half that is fitted in the fitting hole of the lower half moves in the direction that comes out of the fitting hole. Therefore, the connection between the upper half and the lower half can be easily released.

In order to simplify the work of separating the upper half from the lower half, these connecting portions may have the following structure. That is, a groove is formed in a circumferential direction on the outer peripheral surface of the connecting end, and a lock pin mounting hole is formed in the leg at a position connectable to the groove of the connecting end. A lock pin having a notch formed on the outer peripheral surface is mounted in the lock pin mounting hole. By rotating the lock pin around its axis, the state in which the lock pin is engaged in the groove, and the lock pin is substantially retracted from the peripheral groove by the notch, and the engagement between the lock pin and the lock pin is reduced. It is preferable to be able to switch to a state where the combination has been released.

In this way, when the upper and lower portions are separated from each other, the engagement between the lock pin and the groove at the connecting end can be released by turning the lock pin. The bond can be easily broken.

In this case, at least one end of the lock pin is provided with a lever for turning the lock pin, and a leg is formed with a concave portion in a region corresponding to the rotation range of the lever. Preferably, the lever is arranged in the recess.

The seat plate attached to the upper half part is
It is preferable to be able to fold from a horizontal state to a side of the connecting plate attached to the side shaft so as not to be an obstacle during storage and transportation, with a portion attached to the side shaft as a center.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Embodiment 1 Overall Configuration FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a walking assist wheelbarrow of the present embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. The wheelbarrow 1 of the present embodiment includes an upper half 2 and a lower half 3. The upper half 2
A pair of left and right side shafts 21 extending slightly inclined in the vertical direction,
22 and the connecting plate 2 for the backrest attached between them.
3, a hand-push handle 24 attached to the upper ends of the pair of side shafts 21 and 22, and a seat plate 25 attached to the front side of the pair of side shafts 21 and 22. on the other hand,
The lower half 3 includes a pair of left and right leg frames 31 and 32 having a substantially U shape, and casters 33 and 34 supported by front ends 31F and 32F of the leg frames 31 and 32, respectively.
The leg frames 31, 32 are basically composed of wheels 35, 36 supported on rear ends 31R, 32R, and the left and right leg frames 31, 32 are connected by a connecting bar 37.

Between the lower ends of the pair of side shafts 21 and 22 of the upper half 2 and the apexes of the pair of leg frames 31 and 32 of the lower half 3, the upper half 2 and the lower half 3 are arranged. Are formed. These coupling mechanisms 4,
5 has a structure that can be attached and detached with one touch without using a tool or the like. Although details of these connecting mechanisms 4 and 5 will be described later, FIG. 3 shows a state in which the handcart 1 of this example is vertically separated. FIG. 4 shows the separated upper half 2
An example of a state in which storage and the like are performed with the lower half 3 overlapped is shown.

The wheelbarrow 1 of this embodiment is provided with a brake mechanism 6 on the back side thereof. The brake mechanism 6 has a brake handle 61 attached below the hand pushing handle 24 of the upper half 2, and by pulling up the brake handle 61, a left and right through a link mechanism formed of a brake wire and the like (not shown). The brake plate 62 arranged near the outer periphery of the wheels 35, 36 can be pressed against the wheels 35, 36, thereby applying a brake.

Upper half structure A pair of left and right side shafts 21, 2 forming both sides of the upper half 2
Reference numeral 2 denotes a cylindrical pipe made of, for example, stainless steel, and a resin cover is attached to an outer periphery thereof.
Both ends of the handle 24 are inserted into these upper openings. The pushing handle 24 is, for example, a cylindrical pipe made of stainless steel. The push handle 24 has a shape in which both sides are bent at a right angle toward the front, and their tips are bent downward at a substantially right angle. These left and right bent ends 24R, 24L are The shafts 21 and 22 are inserted and fixed in upper end openings 21a and 22a, respectively.

The connecting plate 23 for the backrest connecting the pair of side shafts 21 and 22 is a molded product made of, for example, a synthetic resin or the like, and has a shape curved toward the rear side. At the upper and lower ends of both side edges of this connecting plate, side shafts 2 are respectively provided.
Connection pipes 231R, 232R and 231L, 232L through which the first and the second 22 can penetrate are integrally formed, and are fixed to the side shafts 21 and 22 via these through fasteners such as screws.

On the other hand, the seat plate 25 attached to the front side of the side shafts 21 and 22 is also a molded product such as a synthetic resin.
The seat plate 25 is supported so as to be pivotable between a substantially horizontal posture shown in FIG. 1 and a folded state in contact with the connecting plate 23, with a portion attached to the side shafts 21 and 22 as a center. The seat plate 25 is attached to the side shafts 21 and 22 so that the height thereof can be adjusted. More specifically, referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a pair of metal seat plate support plates 251 and 252 are fixed to both sides of the seat plate 25. These support plates 251 and 252 have their original ends bent upward, and these bent ends 2.
51 a and 252 a are rotatably mounted on the side shafts 21 and 22. In this mounting structure, since both the support plates 251 and 252 have a symmetrical structure, only one of the support plates 251 will be described. The bent end 251a of the support plate 251 is formed by a protruding plate 2 formed on the outer periphery of a conical washer stay 253 mounted on the side shafts 21 and 22.
It is rotatably attached to the shaft 53a via a shaft pin 254.

The washer stay 253 is mounted on the side shaft 21 with its upper side narrowed. This washer stay 25
Inside of 3 is a taper collar 2 which is also conical cone
55 is movably mounted on the side shaft 21. Further, a ring-shaped washer stopper receiver 256 having a slit therein is provided inside the tapered collar 255.
It is attached to the outer periphery of. This washer stopper receiver 25
Reference numeral 6 denotes a molded product such as a resin. Washer stopper receiver 256
On the inner peripheral surface, an engaging protrusion 256a protruding inward is formed over a predetermined angular range in the circumferential direction. On the other hand, the outer peripheral surface of the side shaft 21 is provided at regular intervals in the axial direction with the annular groove 21b with which the above-mentioned engaging protrusion 256a can be engaged.
Are formed. Accordingly, when the washer stopper receiver 256 is positioned in the annular groove 21b at the target height position and the tapered collar 255 and the washer stay 253 are pushed in from above, the engagement protrusion 256a is engaged with the engagement groove 211. This engaged state is maintained by the weight of the seat plate or the like. When the height is changed, the engagement is released by lifting the seat plate 25. In this state, the washer stopper receiver 256 may be adjusted to a predetermined height, and the seat plate 25 may be lowered.

The structure of the lower half 3 of the handcart 1 of this embodiment is attached to the lower ends of the side shafts 21 and 22 via the coupling mechanisms 4 and 5, as described above. Leg frames 31 and 32 and casters 33 and 34 attached to the front ends of these frames.
And wheels 35, 3 attached to the rear ends of these frames
6. The leg frames 31 and 32 have the same shape, and have a U-shaped or chevron shape such that a substantially central portion becomes a vertex. The leg frame 31 has a central apex portion formed of, for example, a metal cylindrical connection fitting 31.
1, a pair of connecting portions 312, 313 protrude from the outer peripheral surface in the front-rear direction. These connecting parts 31
Connecting pipes 314 and 315 are connected to the pipes 2 and 313 in a state of being inclined downward in the front-rear direction. A caster 33 is attached to the front end 31F of the front connection pipe 314, and the rear connection pipe 315
The wheel 35 is rotatably attached to the tip 31R of the. Since the leg frame 32 on the other side has the same structure, the description is omitted.

The coupling mechanism between the upper half and the lower half portion Next, with reference to FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, the structure of the coupling mechanism 4 in one. As shown in these figures, the lower end of the side shaft 21 is formed with a frusto-conical connecting end 211 which is narrowed downward, and a screw at the center of the distal end surface of the connecting end 211 is provided. A hole is formed. In this example, a screw hole is formed by fixing the nut 212 coaxially to the distal end opening. On the other hand, the connection fitting 311 on the side of the leg frame 31 is formed with a conical fitting hole 311a that is narrowed downward, and the connection end 211 of the side shaft 21 is opened from its upper end opening. , The conical surface (tapered surface) of the connecting end 211 is firmly fitted into the conical inner peripheral surface (tapered surface) of the fitting hole 311a, and is fixed thereto.

The lower end surface of the connection fitting 311, that is, the bottom surface of the fitting hole 311 a, has a through hole 3
11b is formed. A cylindrical handle portion 41 is located below the connection fitting 311, and a bolt 411 projects coaxially from an upper end surface of the handle portion 41. The bolt 411 passes through the through hole 311b, and is inserted into the fitting hole 311.
11a for connection at the tip of the side shaft fitted in 11a
Is screwed into the nut 212. Here, bolt 4
Reference numeral 11 has an annular groove 411a formed on the outer periphery of a root portion protruding into the fitting hole 311a, and a substantially C-shaped stopper plate 412 for retaining is fitted into the annular groove 411a. As described above, the handle portion 41 is attached to the connection fitting 311 such that the handle portion 41 can freely rotate but does not move in the axial direction.

The other connecting mechanism 5 is the same as the connecting mechanism 4 described above. Therefore, description of the connecting mechanism 5 is omitted.

Attaching / detaching operation of upper half and lower half Next, an attaching / detaching operation of the upper half 2 and the lower half 3 in the walking handcart 1 of this embodiment will be described. In the state of use as shown in FIG. 1, these upper and lower portions are firmly connected by the left and right connecting mechanisms 4, 5. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the connection end 211 at the lower end of the side shaft 21 is fitted into the fitting hole 311a from above, and the bolt 41
1 connects both.

In order to separate the upper half 2 and the lower half 3 in this state, first, turn the handle 41 so that the bolt 41
Loosen one. Although the bolt 411 is rotatable, it is attached to the connection fitting 311 of the lower half 3 so as not to move in the axial direction, so that when the bolt 411 rotates, the nut 212 screwed therewith. And the side shaft 21 to which it is fixed moves upward. As a result, the end 211 for connecting the side shaft to the fitting hole 311a.
The fitted state of the parts is released. When the bolt 411 is further loosened, the bolt 411 comes off the nut 212. After this, hold the upper half 2 by hand and pull it up.
Can be completely separated from the lower half 3 (see FIG. 3). In addition,
As for the brake mechanism 6, for example, its brake wire (not shown) may be easily detachable from the lower half.

When the upper half and the lower half are separated and then stored or loaded into a car or the like, the seat plate 25 can be folded down.
The separated parts can be superimposed compactly.

Next, in order to join the separated upper half part 2 and lower half part 3, as shown in FIG. , Positioned in the fitting hole on the lower half 3 side, and inserted from above. As a result, the nut 212 of the connecting end 211 is inserted into the fitting hole 3
It is in a state of being positioned by the bolt 411 protruding into the inside 11a. After that, turn the handle 41 to tighten the bolt 41
Tighten 1. The bolt 411 is screwed into the nut 212,
The connecting end 211 and the fitting hole 311a are firmly fitted into the fixed state. As a result, the upper half 2
And the lower half 3 can be connected.

As described above, the walking assist wheelbarrow of this embodiment has a structure in which the upper half and the lower half are connected via the connecting mechanisms 4 and 5. And these connecting mechanisms 4, 5
Can be connected by a simple operation of inserting and fixing the upper half to the lower half and turning the handle. Also, in the removal operation, the upper half can be separated from the lower half by a simple and less forceful operation of turning the handle.

[Embodiment 2] Next, a walking assist wheelbarrow according to Embodiment 2 will be described.
The walking assist wheelbarrow of the present embodiment differs from the walking assist wheelbarrow according to the first embodiment only in the coupling mechanism between the upper half and the lower half, and the other parts have the same configuration. I have. Therefore, in the following description, only the coupling mechanism between the upper half and the lower half will be described, and the other portions will be denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0033] coupling mechanism 9 between the upper half and the lower half portion is shown one arrangement of the coupling mechanism 7 of the walking assist wheelbarrow pair of coupling mechanisms. As shown in this figure, the lower end of the side shaft 21 extends straight as an end 711 for connection with the lower half 3 side. On the other hand, the connection fitting 811 on the side of the leg frame 31 has a connection end 711.
A fitting hole 811a having an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the side shaft 21 is formed, and the connecting end 711 of the side shaft 21 is inserted into the fitting hole 811a by inserting the connecting end 711 of the side shaft 21 from the upper end opening. Is fixed here. In addition, a through hole 811b is formed at the center on the lower end surface of the connection fitting 811, that is, on the bottom surface of the fitting hole 811a.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, a peripheral groove 721 is formed around the connecting end 711. On the other hand, a lock pin mounting hole 821 is formed on the side of the connection fitting 811 in a tangential direction of the peripheral groove 721 so as to be connected to the peripheral groove 721, and the lock pin mounting hole 821 has a round bar shape. Lock pin 900 is inserted. A lever 901 is attached to the lock pin 900 on the base end side. Further, a ring mounting groove 902 is formed on the tip side of the lock pin 900, and the lock pin 90
By inserting a washer 903 and a ring 904 into the circumferential groove 902 with the “0” inserted into the lock pin mounting hole 821 from the front end side, the lock pin 900 is mounted in the lock pin mounting hole 821 in a rotatable state around the axis. I have.
Here, when turning the lock pin 900, the lever 901 is rotated. In order to define this rotation angle range, the connecting bracket 811 is formed with a sector-shaped concave portion 831 around the lock pin mounting hole 821. , This recess 83
The lever 901 is arranged in the inside 1. For this reason, the lever 901 does not unnecessarily protrude from the side surface of the connection fitting 811 and the rotation angle range is defined. A small projection 905 is formed on the back side of the lever 901 to reduce the frictional force when turning the lever 901. A hole 840 is formed at an upper position in the concave portion 831 so that when the lever 901 is turned, the small protrusion 905 fits in the hole 840 so that the lever 901 can be held in an inclined position. Has become.

Here, a notch 904 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the lock pin 900. However, as shown in FIG. 9, when the lever 901 is set to the hanging position, the lock pin 900 is moved to the circumferential groove 72 of the connecting end 711.
1 and the connecting end 711 is inserted into the fitting hole 811a.
It is prevented from getting out of. In contrast, FIG.
When the lever 901 is rotated about 63 ° as shown in FIG.
When the notch 904 comes to the position of the peripheral groove 721, the engagement between the lever 901 and the peripheral groove 721 is released, and the connecting end 711 can be pulled out from the fitting hole 811a.

Since the other connecting mechanism is the same as the connecting mechanism 7, its description is omitted.

[0037] In the upper half portion and the lower half of the detachable operating connection mechanism 7 walking auxiliary wheelbarrow using such a configuration, when connecting the upper half 2 and lower half 3, 11 As shown in the figure, the lever 901 is tilted,
In this state, the connecting end 711 is inserted into the fitting hole 811a. During this time, the small protrusion 905 of the lever 901 fits into the hole 840 in the concave portion 831 of the connection fitting 811 and holds the lever 901 in an inclined posture. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, when the lever 901 is directed directly downward, the lock pin 900 enters the circumferential groove 811a, and the connecting end 711 is fixed in the fitting hole 811a.
In this state, the walking pushcart is used. However, since the lock pin 900 remains hanging under its own weight, the engagement between the lock pin 900 and the circumferential groove 811a does not come off.

In order to separate the upper half 2 and the lower half 3 from this state, the lever 901 is inclined by about 63 °, and the lock pin 900 is substantially retracted from the circumferential groove 811a as shown in FIG. Return to the state. Thereafter, the upper half 2 can be completely separated from the lower half 3 by lifting the upper half 2 by hand.

As described above, the walk-assisting handcart of this embodiment is a simple and less forceful operation of turning the lever 901 when attaching and detaching the upper half 2 and the lower half 3.
The upper half 2 can be separated from the lower half 3.

It should be noted that also in this embodiment, the connecting end 711 is provided.
Of the fitting hole 811a may be a tapered inner peripheral surface narrowed toward the bottom.

[0041]

As described above, in the walking handcart of the present invention, the upper half and the lower half are connected by a one-touch detachable connection mechanism without using a tool or the like. Therefore, the walking aid wheelbarrow of the present invention can be easily separated into an upper half and a lower half, and therefore, there is an effect that the number of installation places is small when storing, transporting, and the like. In addition, since separation can be performed in this way, there is an effect that work such as loading into and unloading from an automobile can be easily performed by a less powerful person as compared with a case where a handcart is handled as an integrated product.

Further, in the present invention, the joined state of the upper half and the lower half can be released by a simple and less forceful operation of turning the handle to which the screw is attached. Therefore, the work of separating the upper half and the lower half can be performed more easily. Also, when the lock pin is rotated to engage and disengage with the groove of the connecting end, the upper half and the lower half can be easily separated by a simple and forceless operation. be able to.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view illustrating a walking assist handcart according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the walking assistance handcart shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state in which the walking handcart of FIG. 1 is vertically separated.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a separated upper half and a lower half are overlapped in the walking assistance wheelbarrow of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a structure of a mounting portion of a seat plate of the walking assistance handcart of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing a coupling mechanism of an upper half part and a lower half part of the walking handcart of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a cross section of a lower end portion of a side shaft of the walking assistance handcart of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a side view of a handle portion with a bolt taken out of the connection mechanism of the walking assistance handcart shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a partial longitudinal sectional view showing a coupling mechanism of an upper half portion and a lower half portion of a walking assist handcart according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing a lower end portion of a side shaft and a leg frame constituting the coupling mechanism shown in FIG. 9;

11 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a state in which a locked state between a lower end portion of a side shaft and a leg frame is released in the coupling mechanism shown in FIG. 9;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Walk assist wheelbarrow 2 ... Upper half part 3 ... Lower half part 4, 5, 7 ... Connection mechanism 211, 711 ... Connection end part of lower end of side shaft 212 * .. Nuts 311, 811... Connection fittings 311 a, 811 a. ..Peripheral groove 831 ... Recess 900 ... Lock pin 901 ... Lever 904 ... Notch

Claims (6)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. An upper half provided with a pair of side shafts extending in a vertical direction, a connecting plate bridged between these side shafts, and a hand pushing handle attached to the side shafts, a plurality of wheels,
And a lower half provided with legs supporting these wheels, wherein the lower end of each of the side shafts of the upper half is an end for connection with the lower half, A wheelbarrow for assisting walking, which is fitted into a fitting hole formed on the side of the leg of the lower half to connect the upper half and the lower half. 2. The connecting end according to claim 1, wherein
A wheelbarrow for walking assistance, comprising a tapered outer peripheral surface narrowed toward a distal end side, and the fitting hole includes a tapered inner peripheral surface narrowed toward a bottom. 3. A screw hole according to claim 2, wherein a screw hole is formed in a tip end surface of said connecting end portion, and said fitting hole penetrates a bottom surface thereof, and said screw member is rotatable, but said shaft line. It is attached so as not to move in the direction, the part projecting into the fitting hole is screwed into the screw hole, and the part projecting downward through the fitting hole of the screw member is provided with the screw member. A handcart for walking assistance, wherein a handle portion for turning is formed. 4. The connection end according to claim 1, wherein a groove is formed in an outer peripheral surface of the connection end in a circumferential direction, and the leg is connectable to the groove of the connection end. A lock pin mounting hole is formed at a position, and a lock pin having a notch formed on an outer peripheral surface is mounted in the lock pin mounting hole, and the lock pin is turned around its axis to form the lock pin mounting hole. The lock pin can be switched between a state in which the lock pin is engaged and a state in which the lock pin is substantially retracted from the inside of the peripheral groove by the notch and their engagement is released. Wheelbarrow for walking assistance. 5. The lock pin according to claim 4, wherein a lever for turning the lock pin is provided at at least one end of the lock pin, and the leg corresponds to a rotation range of the lever. A wheelbarrow for assisting walking, wherein a recess is formed in a region, and the lever is disposed in the recess. 6. The side plate according to claim 1, wherein a seat plate is attached to the pair of side plates, and the seat plate is attached to the side shaft from a horizontal state centering on an attachment portion to the side shaft. A wheelbarrow for walking assistance, characterized in that it can be folded to the side of the connecting plate.