JP7121369B2 - Gripping aid - Google Patents

Description

The present invention is a gripping aid that is worn on the fingers and used when a person with finger dysfunction or muscle weakness grips cutlery such as spoons and forks, or tools with thin handles such as toothbrushes. It is about.

People with hand and finger dysfunctions and the elderly are restricted in their daily activities due to reduced freedom of movement, weakened muscles, and the like. For example, living activities such as eating are important factors for leading an "independent life" from the viewpoint of life rehabilitation. Accordingly, grasping aids have been proposed and used to support eating behaviors and the like. For example, such a grasping aid includes a tool such as a spoon that has a thick grip along the handle to make it easier to grip, or a belt that is attached to the handle and fixed to the palm and used with the palm facing downward. things are known.

Further, a gripping aid is disclosed in which a hole is made in the side surface of the grip, a handle of a spoon or the like is inserted into the hole, the grip and the spoon are arranged so as to be perpendicular to each other, and the grip is used by gripping (Patent Document 1). ). Unlike assistive devices that have a thick grip along the handle, this is a structure in which a spoon, etc., protrudes from the side of the grip. can.

In addition, an auxiliary tool is disclosed in which a through hole is provided in a part of a flexible belt-shaped sheet for the handle of a spoon or the like to pass through, and the belt-shaped sheet in which the spoon or the like is inserted is wrapped around the palm or fingers for use (Patent Reference 2). This can be used in a variety of gripping methods because it fixes a spoon or the like to the hand in accordance with the degree of freedom of the fingers. For example, it can be used with the palm upright, or can be used with the palm facing downward (grip). In addition, since it is a method of binding with a band-shaped sheet, it is versatile in that it can be used with instruments having thin handles such as toothbrushes.

In addition, an auxiliary tool is disclosed that includes a grip and a plurality of rods protruding from the grip (Patent Document 3). By adjusting the stick in and out according to the degree of freedom of the fingers, it can be used in a variety of gripping methods.

JP-A-2002-85486 JP 2003-284746 A JP-A-2005-46332

However, according to the above-described prior art, the grip itself cannot be used if the grip strength is reduced or the grip function is insufficient. In addition, when the band-like sheet is wrapped around the fingers and fixed, the hand is burdened, and attachment and detachment is complicated. In addition, when the rod is adjusted according to the degree of freedom of the fingers, it is necessary to determine the optimum position of the rod and adjust the insertion and withdrawal of multiple rods, so it is complicated to use according to the degree of freedom of the fingers. , If the gripping force is reduced or the gripping function is insufficient, it cannot be used.

The present invention has been made to overcome the above-mentioned problems, and the gripping aid of the present invention is a hairpin-shaped device having a curved head portion and a parallel distal end portion, which can be accommodated while clamping the handle of a cutlery . A holding portion comprising a body portion and an open ring-shaped finger hook portion, an open ring end portion of the finger hook portion being disposed at the tip portion, and a restraining portion at the tip portion and the head portion for restraining swinging of the handle of the cutlery . is provided.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a grasping aid that can be used even if the function and grasping force of the fingers are reduced, can be easily attached and detached without applying a load to the fingers, and can correspond to the degree of freedom of the fingers.

The perspective view which shows an example of the grasping aid of this invention. A plan view showing an example of a grasping aid of the present invention. 1 is a front view showing an example of a grasping aid of the present invention; FIG. The side view which shows an example of the grasping aid of this invention. An example of the grasping aid of the present invention, a schematic diagram showing how it is used with a spoon attached (Usage Example 1) An example of the grasping aid of the present invention, a schematic diagram showing how it is used with a spoon (use example 2). An example of the gripping aid of the present invention, which is a schematic diagram showing how it is used with a spoon attached (Usage Example 3). The perspective view which shows another example (Example 2) of the grasping aid of this invention.

The present invention comprises a hairpin-shaped main body portion having a bent head portion and a parallel tip portion, which can hold and hold a handle of a cutlery , and an open ring-shaped finger hook portion, wherein the finger hook is attached to the tip portion. By arranging the open ring end of the part and providing a restraining part that restrains the swinging of the handle of the cutlery on the tip and the head, people with functional disorders and muscle weakness in their fingers can use spoons, etc. It is possible to obtain a gripping aid that can be used even if the gripping force is reduced when using the cutlery, is easy to attach and detach without applying a load to the fingers, and can be used according to the degree of freedom of the fingers. can. An embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited by this example.

1 to 4 are a perspective view, a plan view, a front view and a side view, respectively, showing an embodiment of the gripping aid of the present invention. 1 is a body portion, 2 is a finger hook portion, and 3 is a holding portion.

The main body 1 is a hairpin-shaped body having a bent head and a parallel tip, and can hold a handle of a cutlery or the like inside the body and store the handle inside. be. The outer side of the hairpin-shaped body functions as a hand grip or a finger rest. The main body 1 may be made of any material as long as it has sufficient strength to withstand stress during use and can hold a handle such as a cutlery. Resin, metal, rubber, etc. can be used.

The open ring-shaped finger hook part 2 is intended to allow the fingers to be freely used without imposing a burden on the fingers with functional disorder or muscle weakness. When using a spoon or the like, healthy people often hold it with their palm upright. People with functional disorders or muscle weakness can be roughly classified into cases where they hold with their palms upright like healthy people, and cases where they hold with their palms facing downward (grip). According to the present invention, when the open ring end of the ring-shaped finger hook portion 2 is arranged at the tip of the hairpin-shaped body portion 1, the body portion 1 and the finger hook portion 2 effectively act on each other to provide freedom of fingers. It was made by finding that it can be used in correspondence with Further, by arranging the ring-opened end of the finger hook 2 at the tip of the body 1 as described above, the finger hook 2 also has the effect of enhancing the gripping function of the body 1 . Any material may be used for the finger hooking portion 2 as long as it has enough strength to withstand the stress during use. Resin, metal, rubber, etc. can be used.

The holding portion 3 is provided to prevent the handle portion of the cutlery or the like, which is sandwiched and stored in the main body portion 1, from swinging and falling off during use. The head of the main body 1 is in contact with the tip of a handle such as a cutlery, and the tip of the main body 1 is in contact with the vicinity of the neck of the handle such as a cutlery. Therefore, it is more preferable to form the holding portion 3 at the head portion and the tip portion of the body portion 1 . The shape of the restraining portion 3 is not limited as long as it can prevent the cutlery from swinging and coming off. For example, in the case of the head portion of the body portion 1, the inner surface can be formed in an arc shape and the arc end portion can be used as the holding portion 3 (FIG. 3). Also, if it is the tip of the body portion 1, a claw-like projection can be used as the restraining portion 3 (FIG. 4).

5 to 7 show an example of the grasping aid of the present invention, which is a schematic diagram showing how it is used with a spoon attached, showing that it can be used according to the degree of freedom of the fingers. FIG. 5 shows how the spoon can be used with the palm upright by sandwiching the main body 1 between the second and third fingers and inserting the second and third fingers inside the finger hook 2. (Usage example 1). This gripping method allows the spoon to be used even when the gripping force is weak because the fingers and the auxiliary tool hold the spoon as a whole. In addition, it is easy to put on and take off, and it does not put a load on your fingers. Such a gripping method can also be performed using the third and fourth fingers.

In FIG. 6, the body portion 1 is sandwiched between the second and third fingers, the first finger is inserted inside the finger hook portion 2, and the second to fifth fingers are hooked on the outside of the finger hook portion 2. , showing how a spoon can be used with the palm upright (Usage Example 2). In this gripping method, the palm and the spoon are almost perpendicular to each other, so even if it is difficult to bend the wrist or elbow, the spoon can be easily brought close to the mouth. In addition, even with this gripping method, the spoon can be used even when the gripping force is weak because the fingers and the auxiliary tool hold the spoon as a whole. In addition, it is easy to put on and take off, and it does not put a load on your fingers.

In FIG. 7, the first and second fingers are inserted inside the finger hook portion 2, and the body portion 1 is gripped with the third to fifth fingers to use the spoon with the palm facing downward (grasp). It shows how it can be done (usage example 3). In this gripping method, the spoon and the arm are almost perpendicular to each other, so even if it is difficult to bend the wrist or elbow, the spoon can be easily brought close to the mouth. In this gripping method, since the first and second fingers are inserted into the finger hook 2, the spoon can be held as a whole even if the gripping of the third to fifth fingers is weak. Similarly, it is easy to put on and take off, and it does not put a load on your fingers. The present invention enables gripping according to the degree of freedom of the fingers and arms as shown in the above examples of use, but the present invention enables various gripping methods other than the gripping method illustrated here. be.

The thickness of the handle of a spoon or the like is generally about 1 mm to 3 mm. Therefore, by designing the width of the gap inside the hairpin-like main body 1 so that it can be held therebetween, it becomes possible to use a general-purpose spoon or the like. In the case of a toothbrush or the like, since the thickness of the handle is about 5 mm, by changing the width of the gap inside the main body 1, it can be used as a general-purpose tool. Therefore, the types of household utensils to which the gripping aid of the present invention can be applied are not limited to cutlery such as spoons and forks, and are not particularly limited as long as they are small utensils with an elongated handle such as toothbrushes.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing another example of the gripping aid of the present invention. The main body part 1 and the finger hook part 2 are integrally formed, and the corner part is formed into an angular shape. A restraining portion 3 provided on the head of the body portion 1 is protruded from the side of the head. The function of the holding part 3 in the present invention is to prevent the handle of the cutlery or the like from swinging in the body part 1 and falling off during use, and the position of the holding part 3 is not limited. . The present invention shows that it is more preferable to provide the restraining portions 3 on the head and tip of the main body 1 in order to prevent the handle of the cutlery from swinging and falling off.

It can be applied to aids for people with finger dysfunction or muscle weakness when using cutlery such as spoons and forks, and daily utensils with thin handles such as toothbrushes.

1 body part 2 finger hook part 3 holding part 4 spoon

Claims (1)

A hairpin-shaped main body portion having a bent head portion and a parallel tip end portion capable of sandwiching and storing a cutlery handle; and a restraining portion for restraining swinging of the handle of the cutlery is provided on the tip portion and the head portion of the body portion.

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