JP2720327B2 - wheelchair - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a medical device,
The present invention relates to a wheelchair used by persons with disabilities who have difficulty in walking due to disability in lower limbs.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Wheelchairs are an indispensable means for a disabled person who has difficulty walking to use them for their daily life independently or for a caregiver to move the disabled person. Transferring from a wheelchair to a target means such as a bed, a toilet seat, or a bathtub for bathing, and conversely, transferring from such a target means to a wheelchair are extremely difficult tasks.

[0003] This transfer method varies depending on the degree of disability of the disabled person. However, if the disabled person can move his / her upper body, the movement of the upper body alone can be used to set the armchair of the wheelchair or the location of the target means. The transfer is carried out while being held by a handrail provided on a wall surface or the like and supporting the weight, and in the case of a severely disabled person, the transfer is carried out by holding a caregiver. For example, a wheelchair disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-220194 has been proposed as a device capable of easily performing the transfer operation.

[0004]

Generally, a wheelchair has an armrest or a backrest higher than a seat,
The moving direction of the disabled person is limited to the movement from the released direction without the armrest or the backrest, and it is necessary to change the posture and the direction largely according to the purpose means. Also, if you try to transfer without changing the posture or direction of the disabled person, the armrests and backrest mentioned above will be in the way and you will need to lift up a lot, or part of your body will be caught on the armrests or backrest during the movement. However, such wheelchairs often hinder transfer due to structural reasons.

[0005] In addition, when a part of the body of a disabled person is caught on an armrest, a backrest, a seat, or the like during the transfer, the wheelchair is often pulled and moved, which hinders the transfer. Even when the person can move his / her upper body, this transfer operation sometimes requires the assistance of a caregiver.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and makes it possible to transfer a wheelchair to a target means with less change in the posture of a disabled person, thereby reducing the burden on a disabled person or a caregiver. The purpose is to do so.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a seat, a backrest and an armrest are provided on a main body provided with a rotating wheel, and elevating means capable of raising and lowering the backrest and the armrest with respect to the seat are provided. The upper surface of the armrest and the backrest is configured to be substantially flat with respect to the seat or lower than the seat in the lowered state by the elevating means.

[0008] Further, a bar-like portion integrally formed from the backrest or the armrest is provided, and the backrest or the armrest is provided.
And the armrest is lowered via the elevating means, and when the rod-shaped part is lowered, a brake mechanism is provided for pressing the rod-shaped part against the outer peripheral surface of the rotating wheel to brake the rotation.

In addition, a rolling direction changing means configured to change the rolling direction of the rotating wheel is provided, and the rod portion is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the rotation center of the rolling direction changing means and the descending rod shape are formed. The axis of the part is matched.

[0010] In addition, a rod-shaped portion integrally formed from the backrest or the armrest is provided, and the backrest or the armrest is provided.
And the armrest is lowered via the elevating means, and when the rod-shaped part is lowered, a tip end of the rod-shaped part is pressed against the ground to brake the rotation of the rotating wheel.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS By providing a backrest and an armrest, which are generally provided at a high position with respect to a seat, so as to be able to ascend and descend with respect to the seat, the disabled person can transfer from a wheelchair to a target means with the assistance of a caregiver. backrest 及 is when
By substantially it is positioned lower than the flat or seat state to seats their top homolog manner lowers the fine armrest, with respect to all directions ERROR becomes easy without significantly changing the posture of the disability.

Further, a bar-shaped portion is provided which is integrally formed from a backrest or an armrest. When the user moves from a wheelchair to a target means, the bar-shaped portion is simultaneously lowered when the backrest and the armrest are lowered, and is rotated by a brake mechanism. Since the rod-shaped part presses against the outer peripheral surface of the wheel to brake the rotation of the rotating wheel, even if a part of the disabled person's body touches the wheelchair, the rotating wheel is braked and the wheelchair is stably stopped without moving Is maintained, and transfer can be easily performed.

Further, a rolling direction changing means configured to change the rolling direction of the rotating wheel is provided, and the rod portion is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a rotation center of the rolling direction changing means and an axis of the descending rod portion are provided. Is provided so that the rotating wheel can be reliably braked and the wheelchair can be stopped and maintained regardless of the direction in which the rolling direction changing means faces.

Further, a rod-shaped portion is formed which is integrally formed from a backrest or an armrest. When the rider transfers from the wheelchair to the target means, the rod-shaped portion is simultaneously lowered when the backrest and the armrest are lowered, and the ground is moved by the brake mechanism. Since the rod-shaped part presses against the wheel to brake the rotation of the rotating wheel, even if a part of the body of the disabled person comes into contact with the wheelchair, the rotating wheel is braked and the wheelchair can be easily transferred without moving.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 6 show one embodiment of the present invention. The present invention includes a seat 2 supported between a pair of seat support frames 1, an armrest 3 provided on both sides of the seat 2, and a backrest 4 provided between the armrests 3, In this embodiment, the armrest 3 and the backrest 4 are integrally formed by a U-shaped frame 5.
On the lower surface of each of the left and right seat support frames 1, cylindrical legs 6 are provided at the front and rear ends thereof, and a total of four legs 6 are erected, and a rotating wheel 7 is provided at the lower end side. The wheelchair is configured to be movable. Here, the main body provided with the rotating wheel is constituted by the seat support frame 1, the legs 6, and the rotating wheel 7.

A bar 8 is formed on the lower surface of the U-shaped frame 5 so that the bar 8 can be inserted into the cylindrical leg 6 through the opening 9 of the seat support frame 1. The first rod-shaped portion 8A provided in the seat support frame 1
And a second rod-shaped portion 8B inserted into the guide hole 10 of the first embodiment. The two types of rod-shaped portions 8 are provided on the left and right, respectively, to constitute an elevating means.

The armrest 3 and the backrest 4 fixed to the U-shaped frame 5 are guided by the rod-shaped portions 8 so as to be able to move up and down with respect to the seat 2 vertically or manually or by electric means.

When the lifting operation is performed manually, an engaging means (not shown) is provided, and the engaging means can be locked and released by an operating unit (not shown). Alternatively, the engagement means may be locked at the lowered position to fix the armrest and the backrest. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, an engaging means including a rotating cam 51 having a claw portion 50 is provided on the rod portion 8 </ b> B, and is provided so as to be able to engage with the upper end corner of the guide hole 10 of the seat support frame 1. The cam 51 is supported by the rod portion 8B on a shaft 52, and the claw portion 50 is fixed to the rod portion 8B by a spring 53 provided coaxially with the shaft 52.
Is biased outward to maintain the claw 50 in the locked state. Then, connect the rotating cam 51 and the operation unit 54 with a wire.
It is connected by 55, and the spring 53
The cam 51 is rotated against the urging force of
Is disengaged by being pulled inwardly to enable the descending operation. When the operation is performed by electric means such as a motor (not shown), the elevating means is driven using, for example, a rack and a pinion or a worm gear device. The armrest and the backrest may be configured to stop at the position or the lowered position.

The operation section is not limited to manual operation and electric operation, and is preferably provided on the armrest 3 when the disabled person who can move the upper body is used. For example, it is desirable to provide the backrest at a position near, for example, four backrests where the caregiver can easily operate.

The rods 8 support the U-shaped frame 5 provided with the armrests 3 and the backrest 4 and also serve as a guide for moving the U-shaped frame 5 up and down in a substantially horizontal state.

With this configuration, when the U-shaped frame 5 is lowered, the upper surfaces of the armrests 3 and the backrest 4 are substantially flat or lower than the seat, and the lower part of the backrest 4 is located between the left and right seat support frames 1. Since it is stored on the lower side, when the disabled person transfers from a wheelchair to a bed, a toilet seat, a bathtub for bathing, or the like with the assistance of a caregiver, transfer from the seat 2 Since there is no obstacle to the movement of the handicapped person, it is possible to smoothly move in the lateral direction from the seat 2, and it is easy to transfer in all directions without greatly changing the posture of the disabled person.

In this case, since the armrest 3 and the backrest 4 move downward rather than in the widthwise direction, it is suitable for performing the transfer operation in a narrow place.

The first rod portion 8A is provided so as to be inserted into the cylindrical leg portion 6 through the opening 9 of the seat support frame 1, and the backrest 4 and the armrest 3 are lowered so that the first rod portion 8A is formed.
Protrudes from the lower part of the leg 6 toward the ground when
The outer peripheral surface of the first rod portion 8A is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the rotating wheel 7 and a brake mechanism 11 for braking the rotation of the rotating wheel by the frictional force of the first rod portion 8A is provided.

In this case, for example, when the first rod portion 8A is made of steel, the outer peripheral surface of the rotating wheel 7 may be formed of silicon rubber or the like, and the friction performance may be increased to improve the braking performance.

Therefore, by providing the brake mechanism 11, even if a part of the body of the disabled person comes into contact with the wheelchair, the wheel 7 is braked, so that the wheelchair can be easily transferred without moving. .

The rotating wheel 7 is provided with rolling direction changing means 12 capable of changing the rolling direction to any direction. The rolling direction changing means 12 is a bearing body for supporting the rotating wheel 7.
13 is configured to be rotatable with respect to the leg 6 by a ball bearing 14, and the bearing body 13 is provided so as to rotate with respect to the leg 6 so that the rolling direction of the rotating wheel 7 can be changed in any direction, The wheelchair can be moved in a desired direction.

At this time, the center of rotation of the rolling direction changing means 12 and the axis of the first rod portion 8A descending the hollow portion 15 of the leg 6 are made to coincide with each other, and the first rod portion 8A is formed. It is formed in a cylindrical shape.

By doing so, the rolling direction changing means 12
No matter which direction the first rod-shaped portion 8A
Of the rotating wheel 7 is pressed against the outer circumferential surface of the rotating
Can be braked, and the wheelchair can be stopped and maintained.

FIG. 7 shows another embodiment of the present invention, in which the outer peripheral surface of a rotating wheel 7 is formed in a V-shaped cross section. By doing so, the first rod-shaped portion 8 descending
The two inclined surfaces 7a are pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the first rod-shaped portion 8A in the V-shaped cross section of the rotating wheel 7 against A, and the braking force of the rotating wheel 7 is further increased by the wedge effect of both. Is what you can do.

The second rod portion 8B descends along with the lowering of the U-shaped frame 5 for fixing the armrest 3 and the backrest 4 along the guide hole 10 of the seat support frame 1 like the first rod portion 8A described above. I do. The brake mechanism 16 includes a second rod-shaped portion 8B.
Is pressed against the ground, thereby braking the rotation of the rotating wheel 7 by the frictional force between the two.

At this time, the second rod-shaped portion 8B is provided with a member such as silicon rubber having elasticity and a large friction coefficient between the second rod-shaped portion 8B and the ground to improve the braking performance.

Similarly, the first rod-shaped portion 8A may be brought into contact with the ground to form the brake mechanism 11 which also has the brake mechanism 16.

In the above-described embodiment, the armrest 3 and the backrest 4 are integrally formed by the U-shaped frame 5 so as to be raised and lowered integrally. 5 without using armrest 3 and backrest 4 separately
You may comprise so that it may go up and down coherently.

[0034]

According to the present invention, a seat, a backrest and an armrest are provided on a main body provided with a rotating wheel, and elevating means for vertically moving the backrest and the armrest with respect to the seat are provided. Since the upper surface of the armrest and the backrest is substantially flat with respect to the seat or lower than the seat in the descending state by the means, the disabled person himself or from the wheelchair with the help of a caregiver. When transferring to the objective means, lowering the backrest or armrests and placing their upper surfaces almost flat with respect to the seat or lower than the seat, there is no obstacle that can hinder the transfer, so there is no obstacle Transfer is easy in all directions without significantly changing the posture of the person.

Further, the rod-shaped portion which is suspended integrally formed from said backrest or the armrest is provided, said back 及
And the armrest is lowered via the elevating means, and when the rod-shaped part is lowered, the rod-shaped part is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the rotating wheel to provide a brake mechanism for braking the rotation. Even if a part of the body comes into contact with the wheelchair, the rotating wheel is braked, so that the wheelchair does not move, the stably stopped state is maintained, and the rider can easily transfer.

In addition, a rolling direction changing means configured to change the rolling direction of the rotating wheel is provided, and the rod portion is formed in a columnar shape, and the rotation center of the rolling direction changing means and the descending rod shape are formed. Since the shafts are aligned with each other, the rotating wheel can be reliably braked and the wheelchair can be stopped and maintained regardless of the direction in which the rolling direction changing means is oriented.

Further, the rod-shaped portion which is suspended integrally formed from said backrest or the armrest is provided, said back 及
And the armrest is lowered via the elevating means, and when the rod-shaped part is lowered, a tip end of the rod-shaped part is brought into pressure contact with the ground to provide a brake mechanism for braking the rotation of the rotating wheel. Even if a part of the wheel is in contact with the wheelchair, the wheel is braked so that the wheelchair can be easily transferred without moving.

With the above configuration, the change of the posture of the disabled person can be reduced, the transfer between the wheelchair and the objective means can be easily performed, and the burden on the disabled person or the caregiver can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway side view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a main part of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a main part of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a main part of another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Seat 3 Armrest 4 Backrest 7 Rotating wheel 8, 8A, 8B Rod 11, 16 Brake mechanism 12 Rolling direction changing means

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A body having a rotating wheel, a seat, and a backrest.
And an armrest, and the backrest and the seat
The armrest and the backrest can be lifted and lowered in an integrated manner, and the upper surface of the armrest and the backrest is substantially flat with respect to the seat or lower than the seat. Wheelchair to do. 2. A bar-shaped part which is integrally formed from said backrest or said armrest is provided, and said backrest and said armrest are lowered via said elevating means, and said rod-shaped part is lowered. 2. The wheelchair according to claim 1, wherein a brake mechanism is provided for pressing the rod portion against the outer peripheral surface of the rotating wheel to brake the rotation. 3. A rolling direction changing means configured to change a rolling direction of the rotating wheel is provided, and the rod portion is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a rotation center of the rolling direction changing means and the descending rod shape are provided. 3. The wheelchair according to claim 2, wherein the axis of the part is made coincident with the axis. 4. A bar-shaped part which is integrally formed from said backrest or said armrest is provided, and said backrest and said armrest are lowered via said elevating means, and said rod-shaped part is lowered. 2. The wheelchair according to claim 1, further comprising a brake mechanism configured to brake the rotation of the rotating wheel by pressing the tip of the rod-shaped portion against the ground.