JP3415800B2 - Walking aid - 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 which can easily operate a braking means provided so as to be used safely for a walking aid for a person with a walking disorder and for an elderly person. It is related to vessels.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, a person with a walking disorder or an elderly person
A walking aid (hereinafter, a walking vehicle) is often used when going out without the assistance of a caregiver. Although not shown in the drawings, the walking vehicle may be, for example, a pipe frame, has four wheels, and has a grip for a user to grasp, push, and walk. Some of these pedestrians are provided with a traveling brake mechanism for stopping during walking and a parking brake mechanism for stopping at a certain place. That is, it is desirable that the walking vehicle be provided with the traveling brake mechanism and the parking brake mechanism, and that the function of the walking vehicle is that which can simultaneously brake at least the left and right wheels of the four wheels.

[0003]

However, at present, there are many traveling brake mechanisms only, or even if the traveling brake mechanism and the parking brake mechanism are provided, the left and right grips are used to brake the left and right wheels. Most of the structures have to operate each brake operating lever provided on the. The present invention has been proposed from such a background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a walking assist device that is improved in operability of a brake to make it easier to use and further enhance safety.

[0004]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is directed to a front frame having a pair of front wheels mounted thereon.
And after installing a pair of rear wheels with a brake unit
Front frame and rear frame.
And cross each other at a position near the top and
The front frame was fitted with the front wheel.
By forming a pair of front strut parts on the legs, these front strut parts
Attach a grip to each of the upper ends to provide a running brake mechanism.
Along with providing the operating levers to configure, these operating levers
On the rotating shaft of the
Each of them is provided with the traveling brake mechanism.
By operating the operating lever on the grip,
Transmission of operating force to the brake unit on the rear wheel
With the configuration, the parking brake mechanism,
By operating one of the operating means, both rear wheels can be operated.
Configuration that transmits operating force to each brake unit
And In the above configuration, the traveling brake mechanism
By the operating levers provided on the pair of grips.
A wire that transmits operating force and a wire that moves by operating force
Transfer the displacement of the ear to the wire leading to the other operating lever
And a wire connector to operate the one operating lever.
To activate the brake unit on one rear wheel
And restrain the rear wheel through the wire and wire coupler.
After operating the brake unit on the other wheel
It is configured to restrain the wheels, and the parking brake mechanism is
By operating means provided near the grip of the
Connected so that the operating force is transmitted to the wire, one operating means
By operating the brake unit on one rear wheel
To hold the rear wheel in place while holding
Brake unit on the other rear wheel is linked through a connector
It was configured to operate and restrain and hold the rear wheels.

[0005]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, a walking assist device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, showing one embodiment thereof. 1 and 2 show a four-wheeled walking vehicle 1 which is a walking aid. This four-wheeled walking vehicle 1 is formed by a pipe frame as a whole, and has relatively large front wheels 2, 2
Front frame 3 with a rear wheel and relatively small diameter rear wheels 4, 4
And a rear frame 5 to which is mounted. The front frame 3 and the rear frame 5 are crossed at a position closer to the upper part than the middle and are axially fixed to each other.

The front frame 3 is composed of a pair of glazing-type legs 3a on which the front wheels 2 and 2 are mounted, and a pair of front support columns 3b, 3b which are orthogonal to the legs 3a and project obliquely upward. There is. A grip 6 is attached to the upper ends of the front support columns 3b and 3b. Knob bolts 7 are provided near the upper ends of the front support columns 3b and 3b so that the grip 6 can be pulled out from the top ends of the support columns 3b and 3b so as to be easily used by the user. The grip 6 is provided with an operation lever 8 which constitutes a traveling brake mechanism described later so that the grip 6 can be operated.

The rear frame 5 is formed in a substantially inverted U shape. On the lower end side, a balancer 9 as a load means is additionally provided from immediately above the mounted rear wheels 4 and 4 along the upper side of the frame. On the other hand, the upper side crosses the front frame 3 and is directed obliquely forward, and the back support pad 10 is attached along the upper side so as to function as a backrest. The balancer 9 also has a function as a protective cover by being provided immediately above the rear wheels 4 and 4 along the upper side of the frame.

A small bag 11 is held in the lower space where the front frame 3 and the rear frame 5 intersect. Also, on this accessory bag 11,
A seat plate 12 also serving as a lid is arranged. As shown in FIG. 3, the accessory bag 11 is held in a hanging state by a horizontal pipe 13 in the front frame 3 and a horizontal pipe 14 in the rear frame 5. In addition, the seat plate 12 has a lateral pipe 13 on one side thereof in the front frame 3.
The other side opposite to the other side is held on the horizontal pipe 14 of the rear frame 5. Further, on one side of the seat plate 12, there is provided a projecting edge portion 15 against which the buttocks contact when sitting.

The traveling brake mechanism provided in the pedestrian 1 having the above structure will be described. This traveling brake mechanism has wires 16 respectively connected to operation levers 8 provided on a pair of grips 6 for the user to hold and support his / her body and to push in. These wires 16 are connected to a wire connector 17 attached to the accessory bag 11. The wires 16 are connected to the brake units (not shown) provided on the rear wheels 4 and 4 from the wire coupler 17 so that the operating force is transmitted to each of them. That is, in this traveling brake mechanism, the operation lever 8 of the left grip 6 and the brake unit of the right rear wheel 4 are connected by the wire 16 via the wire connector 17, and conversely, the operation lever of the right grip 6 is connected. 8 and the brake unit of the left rear wheel 4 are connected to each other via the wire connector 17, and the operation lever 8 in each grip 6 is connected.
By operating only this, the operating force is transmitted to the brake unit of the one rear wheel 4 via the wire coupler 17. At that time, the wire coupler 17 is configured to also transmit the operating force to the brake unit of the other rear wheel 4.

Furthermore, the operating levers 8 of both grips 6
Although not shown in detail, an operating means 18 constituting a parking brake mechanism is attached to the rotating shaft of the. These operating means 18 are configured to transmit an operating force to the wire 16. Also in this parking brake mechanism, the operating force is transmitted to the brake units of the rear wheels 4 and 4 via the wire 16 and the wire coupler 17 by operating the one operating means 18. .

In using the four-wheeled walking vehicle 1 as described above, first, the height position of the grip 6 is adjusted according to the extension of the user. With the knob bolt 7 near the upper ends of the front support columns 3b and 3b loosened, the grip 6 is adjusted in and out at the upper ends of the front support columns 3b and 3b.
Should be in a position that is easy to grip. Next, the knob bolt 7 is screwed in and the grip 6 is fixed so as not to shift. As a result, the user can walk by grasping and pushing in the grip 6 in a position that is easy to grasp.

Next, when it is desired to stop the walking vehicle 1, one of the operating levers 8 of both grips 6 should be gripped and operated. Of course, both operating levers 8 may be operated. When one of the operation levers 8 is grasped and operated, it is transmitted to the brake unit of the rear wheel 4 on one side through the wire 16 and the wire coupler 17, and the rear wheel 4 can be locked. At this time, the operation force is transmitted to the wire 16 connected to the other operation lever 8 through the wire coupler 17, and the operation force is transmitted to the brake unit on the rear wheel 4 on one side to lock the rear wheel 4 on one side. Can be done. In this way, the rear wheels 4, 4 can be locked by simply gripping the operating lever 8 of one of the traveling brake mechanisms, which facilitates the operation and eliminates the troubles caused by one-sided braking. You can Further, there is a great advantage that it can be used without problems even when one hand is inconvenient.

When the user wants to take a rest on the spot, this time, the operating means 1 in the parking brake mechanism is used.
Operate 8. By operating only one side of this operating means 18, the wires 16 communicating with the brake units of both rear wheels 4, 4 are displaced and moved in opposite directions via the wire coupler 17 so that both rear wheels 4, 4 are moved. Can be locked. In this case, the parking brake mechanism is the operating means 18
The locked state can be maintained even when the hand is released from. Then, the user can sit comfortably on the seat plate 12, and can take a temporary break. Even when the lock is released by the parking brake mechanism, it is possible to release the lock through the wire core member 16 that communicates with both brake units, simply by returning one of the operating means 18 to return.

[0014]

As described above, according to the present invention, both the traveling brake mechanism and the parking brake mechanism can be interlocked and unlocked by only one-sided operation, which is much easier to use and has no one arm. A user who is free can use the vehicle safely and can provide a traveling vehicle that is even more convenient.

[0015]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an example of a walking aid according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the walking assist device shown in FIG.

3 is a front view of the walking assist device shown in FIG. 1. FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 four-wheeled pedestrian 2 front wheels 3 front frame 3a legs 3b Front support 4 rear wheels 5 rear frame 6 grip 7 knob bolt 8 operation lever 9 Balancer 10 Back pad 11 accessory bags 12 seats 13,14 Horizontal pipe 15 Edge 16 wires 17 wire connector 18 Operation means

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A front frame equipped with a pair of front wheels.
And after installing a pair of rear wheels with a brake unit
Front frame and rear frame.
And cross each other at a position near the top and
The front frame was fitted with the front wheel.
By forming a pair of front strut parts on the legs, these front strut parts
Attach a grip to each of the upper ends to provide a running brake mechanism.
Along with providing the operating levers to configure, these operating levers
On the rotating shaft of the
Each of them is provided with the traveling brake mechanism.
By operating the operating lever on the grip,
Transmission of operating force to the brake unit on the rear wheel
With the configuration, the parking brake mechanism,
By operating one of the operating means, both rear wheels can be operated.
Configuration that transmits operating force to each brake unit
Walker, characterized in that the the. 2. The traveling brake mechanism comprises a pair of grips.
The operating force transmitted by the operating levers provided on each
The displacement of the wire that moves with the operating force
Wire connector that transmits to the wire that goes to the one operation lever
And is operated by operating one of the operation levers.
Operate the brake unit on the rear wheels to restrain the rear wheels
On the other hand, attach it to the other wheel through the wire and the wire connector.
The brake unit is linked to operate to restrain the rear wheels.
The parking brake mechanism is located near both grips.
The operating force applied to the wire by the operating means provided on the
To operate so that one of the operating means can be operated.
Operate the brake unit on one rear wheel with
Hold the wire while holding the wire through the wire connector
Operate the brake unit on the rear wheel in conjunction with
The walking assist device according to claim 1, wherein the walking assist device is configured to be restrained and held .