JPH0411701Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to the structure of a wheelchair for the handicapped, and particularly relates to an improvement of a wheelchair having a folding structure.

[Problems that conventional techniques and ideas attempt to solve]

BACKGROUND ART Various wheelchairs have been proposed and used in the past, each having a structure in which, in addition to front wheels and rear wheels, large-diameter handcarts are arranged outside left and right frames. Additionally, wheelchairs with a folding structure have been devised in order to make them easier to carry and to reduce installation and storage space.

By the way, the folding structure of a wheelchair is generally configured to fold by adjusting the distance between the left and right frames from the used state, but the conventional structure consists of a relatively large number of parts and is complicated. It had a similar structure.

Further, when folding, a complicated work such as adjusting the width by hand is required, making it extremely difficult to handle.

Furthermore, even when folded, the overall size did not become much smaller.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a wheelchair that has a relatively simple structure and can be easily and compactly folded.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention measures the distance between the left frame and the right frame, which are arranged at a predetermined distance from each other, the handle rotatably attached to the upper part of the left frame and the right frame, and the distance between the left frame and the right frame. The present invention relates to a wheelchair that includes: and a connection structure that connects left and right frames so as to be changed in a folded state.

The left frame and the right frame each include a front frame member, a pair of connecting rods whose front end sides are fixed to the front frame member so as to extend rearward at different height positions from the front frame member, and rear ends of these connecting rods. and a rear frame member secured to the side.

The above connection structure consists of the following pair of connection bars,
It has a connecting bar lifting means and a link mechanism.

The pair of connecting bars have outer ends rotatably attached to the rear frame members of the left frame and right frame, and are rotatably connected to each other at a connecting point on the inner end side.

The lower end of the connecting bar lifting means is attached inside the attachment point of the above-mentioned outer end of the connecting bar to the frame member. The upper end side of the connecting bar lifting means is attached to a handle position that is raised as the handle rotates when changing from a used state to a folded state. Therefore, by rotating the handle, it is possible to raise the attachment point to the connection bar and rotate the connection bar upward around the attachment point to each rear frame member, thereby bringing the left and right frames closer together. It is said that

The link mechanism is operated passively as the left and right frames are aligned by the above-mentioned connecting bars, and the left side is rotatably attached around each connecting rod fixed to the left and right frames. Upper link member, lower left link member,
It has a right upper link member and a right lower link member.

The left upper link member of the link mechanism is rotatably connected to the right lower link member at the distal end side,
On the other hand, the right upper link member is rotatably connected to the left lower link member at the distal end side, and the left and right upper link parts are rotatably connected to each other at a position closer to the center.

[Effect]

In the wheelchair of the present invention, the connecting bar lifting means is raised by rotating the handles at the tops of the left and right frames. As a result, the connecting bar attached to the connecting bar lifting means is rotated upward about the attachment point to each rear frame member, and the left and right frames are brought together and folded. In this case, the link mechanism passively changes its connection structure in accordance with this width adjustment operation.

[Explanation of Examples]

First, the overall structure of a wheelchair according to an embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1A to 2B. Figures 1A and 1B are side and rear views of the wheelchair in use.

A left frame 1 and a right frame 2, each made of a rigid member such as a metal pipe, are arranged at a predetermined distance apart. Although not particularly shown, a seat for a person to sit is arranged between the left frame 1 and the right frame 2.

The left frame 1 includes a substantially F-shaped front frame member 3 and a rear frame member 4. Connecting rods 7 shown in FIG. 3 are inserted into and fixed to portions 5 and 6 of the front frame member 3 that extend horizontally to the rear at different height positions. The rear end side of the connecting rod 7 is inserted into the rear frame member 4 and fixed. That is, the front frame member 3 and the rear frame member 4 are fixed to each other by the connecting rod 7 to form the left frame 1. The right frame 2 side is also configured in a similar manner.

In addition, in this specification, structures on the right frame 2 side that correspond to the structures on the left frame 1 side will be indicated by reference numbers with 100 added to the corresponding reference numbers, and the explanation thereof will be omitted. .

A cylindrical body 8 is attached around the connecting rod 7 and has the same diameter as the front and rear frame members and is rotatable around the connecting rod 7. Since the cylindrical body 8 constitutes a link mechanism to be described later, its details will be explained later.

A handrail 9 is spanned between the front frame member 3 and the rear frame member 4. and,
A handle 11 is attached to the upper end of the rear frame member 4 so as to be rotatable about a pin 10. The handle 11 is configured to be rotatable about the pin 10 in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 1A. In this embodiment, as the handle 11 is rotated, the left frame 1 and the right frame 2 are brought closer together by the connection structure and link mechanism described later and folded as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B.

Note that a front wheel 12 and a rear wheel 13 are rotatably attached below the left frame 1 and right frame 2, respectively. In addition, the front wheel 12
A relatively large-diameter handcart 14 is attached between the rear wheel 13 and the rear wheel 13. This handcart 14 is attached so that its center is located between the center of gravity of the wheelchair and the center of the rear wheels 13 in the front-rear direction. In a conventional wheelchair, the wheelbarrow14
was placed quite far back. This is because if the center of the wheelbarrow is aligned with the center of gravity, it will become unstable. However, since the handcart 14 is disposed at the rear, the length in the front and rear direction is extremely long.

In this embodiment, by arranging the handcart 14 as close to the center of gravity as possible, the length in the front-rear direction is shortened, thereby making it more compact. Even if it approaches the center of gravity, as long as it is placed between the center of gravity and the rear wheels 13, the balance will be maintained between the grounding point of the handcart 14 and the grounding point of the front wheels 12,
This is because accidents such as falls can be prevented.

Next, details of the folding mechanism, which is a feature of the present invention, and its operation will be explained step by step.

As mentioned above with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the handle 11 is rotatably attached to the rear frame member 4 about the pin 10.
However, the lower end of the handle 11 extends below the pin 10 (FIG. 1B), and a locking member 17 is slidably attached to the lower end of this downwardly extending portion 16. As shown in FIG. 4, the lock member 17 has a notch 17a that is open toward the bottom.

Additionally, as shown in FIG.
has an insertion part 18 inserted into a downwardly extending portion 16 of the handle 11, and the insertion member 18
It is hooked onto a pin 19 fixed within the downwardly extending portion 16 using a long hole formed in the hole. The long hole formed in this insertion part 18 and the pin 19
This prevents the slidable lock member 17 from falling off.

A spring member 20 is inserted into the upper part of the insertion portion 18 as a biasing means. The upper end of the spring member 20 is in contact with a locking member 21 whose upward movement is restricted by the pin 10. This locking member 21
may be fixed to the downwardly extending portion 16 of the handle 11 to restrict upward movement.

On the other hand, a lock pin 22 is attached to the rear frame member 4 side.
The notch 17a of the locking member 17 described above is engaged with the notch 17a. Since the notch 17a has the shape shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, that is, the rear portion 17b of the notch 17a extends further downward, the handle 11 is shaped as shown in FIGS. 1A and 4. Even if an attempt is made to rotate further rearward about the pin 10 from the state shown in FIG.

On the other hand, when it is desired to rotate the handle 11 in the direction of arrow A in FIG. What is necessary is to release the state and rotate the handle 11 around the pin 10 in that state. In this way, the handle 11 is tilted forward as shown in FIG. 2A.

To return the handle 11 to the state shown in FIG. 1A, the handle 11, which has been pushed down, may be rotated rearward about the pin 10. In this case, as shown in FIG.
Since a curved surface 17c is formed on the front side of the locking member 7a, after the locking member 17 comes into contact with the locking pin 22, the locking pin 22 smoothly enters into the notch 17a along the curved surface 17c, so that the locking member 17 can be easily opened. The state shown in Figure 4 can be restored.

Returning to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the handle 11
A pin 24 is attached to the downwardly extending portion 16 below the pin 10 via a bracket 25. A rod 26 serving as a connecting bar lifting means is attached around this pin 24 so as to be rotatable in the front-back direction. Therefore, the upper end of the rod 26 is located at the arrow A of the handle 11.
This means that it is installed so that it will rise as it rotates in that direction.

As is clear from FIG. 1A, the relatively upper portion of the rod 26 is formed in a curved shape along the rear frame member 4, and the relatively lower portion thereof is slanted downward. has been done.
The lower end of the rod 26 is attached to a left connecting bar 27. Again, the distal end of the rod 26 is configured to be rotatable within the mounting member 28. This attachment member 28 is provided near the center of the connecting bar 27.

On the other hand, the outer end of the left connecting bar 27 is rotatably attached to the left rear frame member 4 about a pin 29 . In addition, the left side connecting bar 27
The inner end side of the right side connecting bar 127 is rotatably connected to the inner end side of the right side connecting bar 127 via a pin 30.

Therefore, when the handle 11 is tilted forward as described above, the rod 26 is raised, and the left and right connecting bars 27, 127 are connected to the pins 29, 1.
29, and the inner end side is moved upward. As a result, the distance between the left frame 1 and the right frame 2 is shortened, and the widths of the left frame 1 and the right frame 2 are brought closer together. In this way, the frames 1 and 2 on both sides are aligned.

The left and right connecting bars 27, 127 are not only provided to perform the above-mentioned width adjustment operation, but also serve to determine the width between the left frame 1 and the right frame, that is, the width in use. I would like to point out that this is a thing.

Next, the link mechanism will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B. As mentioned above, a pair of connecting rods 7 are fixed between the front frame member 3 and the rear frame member 4 (see explanation in FIG. 3). Cylindrical bodies 8, 8 are rotatably attached around this connecting rod 7. A left upper link member 31 and a left lower link member 32 are fixed to the cylindrical bodies 8, 8, respectively. Therefore, the left upper link member 31 and the left lower link member 32 are rotatable around the connecting rods 7, 7, respectively.

Similarly, on the right frame 2 side, a cylindrical body is rotatably attached around connecting rods fixed at different height positions, and the cylindrical body is attached to the right upper link member 131 and the right lower link member 13.
2 is fixed.

Both upper link members 31, 131 are rotatably connected to each other by a pin 33 at a position near the center. Furthermore, the right upper link member 131
is the left lower link member 32 and pin 34 on the tip side.
are rotatably connected. Similarly, the left upper link member 31 is rotatably connected to the right lower link member 132 and a pin 134 at the distal end thereof.

By the way, both upper link members 31, 131
is a pipe-shaped member, and the lower link member 3
2,132 is a plate-shaped link member. Then,
The connection structure of the pins 34 and 134 is as shown in FIG. 6 when the pin 34 portion is viewed from below.
The structure is such that the lower link member 32 is combined with the upper link member 131 in such a manner that it is engaged with the pin 34.

The link mechanism consisting of the four types of link members described above is rotatable by the pins 33, 34, 134, and also rotatable around the connecting rod 7, so that the above-mentioned lifting of the rods 26, 126 is possible. When the left side frame 1 and the right side frame 2 are moved side by side as a result of the operation, they are moved passively. That is, as is clear from FIG. 2B, the left upper link member 31 and the right lower link member 13
2 and the right upper link member 13
1 and the left lower link member 32 is moved so that the angle formed by the lower link member 32 is narrowed. In this way, the left frame 1 and the right frame 2 are smoothly drawn together even at their central portions in the front-rear direction.

In addition, from the folded state in Figure 2A to the folded state in Figure 1A
For returning to the operating state shown in the figure, handle 1
Rotate 1,111 backwards and rotate rods 26,12
If you lower the connecting bar 2, the connecting bar 2 will move in the opposite direction to the above.
7,127 is rotated. Therefore, connecting bar 2
7, 127, the width is determined and the state shown in FIG. 1B is easily restored.

Further, in the above embodiment, the handles 11, 111
were provided separately on the left frame 1 and the right frame 2, respectively, but both frames 1,
A handle may be provided to connect the two. In that case, the handle can also be folded by configuring the center portion of the handle to be bent, so that the width of the left and right frames can be easily adjusted.

Further, in the above embodiment, the rods 26, 126
are attached to the left handle 11 and the right handle 111, respectively, but they may be attached to only one, or one rod connected to the lower part of both handles may be attached to either connecting bar 27. , 127 may be connected closer to the center.

[Effect of idea]

As described above, according to the present invention, the left frame and the right frame are brought together and folded in conjunction with the rotation of the handle, so there is no need to manually bring the frames on both sides together, making it extremely easy to fold. It is possible to fold the wheelchair while working.

Furthermore, since the device is folded by rotating the handle, the overall shape can be made quite compact by rotating the handle so that it is stored between the two folded frames.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1A is a side view of one embodiment of the present invention in use, FIG. 1B is a rear view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1A, FIG. 2A is a side view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1A, and FIG.
Figure B is a rear view of the folded state, Figure 3 is a partially enlarged side view to explain the connecting rod, Figure 4 is an enlarged side view to explain the lock mechanism, and Figure 5 is shown in Figure 4. FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the lock mechanism, and is a partial view for explaining details of the connection relationship of the link mechanism, and is a view showing the state seen from below. In the figure, 1 is the left frame, 2 is the right frame, 3, 103 is the front frame member, 4, 10
4 is a rear frame member, 7 is a connecting rod, 11, 11
1 is a handle, 17 is a lock member, 17a is a notch, 20 is a spring member as a biasing means, 22 is a lock pin, 26, 126 is a rod as a connecting bar lifting means, 27, 127 is a connecting bar, 3
1 is a left upper link member, 32 is a left lower link member, 131 is a right upper link member, and 132 is a right lower link member.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] (1) A left frame and a right frame arranged at a predetermined distance apart, a handle rotatably attached to the upper part of the left frame and the right frame, and the left frame and the right frame. In the wheelchair, the left frame and the right frame each have a front frame member and a connecting structure that connects the left frame and the right frame so that the distance between the left frame and the right frame changes between a used state and a folded state. , a pair of connecting rods whose front end sides are fixed to the front frame so as to extend rearward at different height positions from the front frame member, and a rear frame member fixed to the rear end side of the connecting rods, The structure includes: a pair of connecting bars whose outer ends are rotatably attached to each rear frame member of the left frame and the right frame, and which are rotatably connected to each other at a connection point on the inner end; and the connecting bars. The lower end side is attached to the inner side of the attachment point to the frame member on the outer end side of the handle, and the upper end side is attached to a handle position that is raised as the handle rotates when transitioning from the use state to the folded state. and by rotating the handle, the attachment point to the connection bar is raised, and the connection bar is rotated upward about the attachment point to each rear frame member, thereby bringing the left and right frames closer together. a left-hand upper link member, a left-hand lower link member, a right-hand upper link member, and a right-hand lower link rotatably attached around each of the connecting rods fixed to the left and right frames; a link mechanism having a member, the left upper link member of the link mechanism is rotatably connected to the right lower link member at a distal end, and the right upper link member is rotatable to the left lower link member at a distal end. , and the left and right upper link members are rotatably connected to each other at positions near the center. (2) The wheelchair according to claim 1, which is a registered utility model, further comprising a locking mechanism for locking the orientation of the handle to the orientation in use. (3) The lock mechanism includes a lock member attached to the handle side so as to be movable up and down, biasing means for biasing the lock member downward, and a lock pin fixed in position to the rear frame member. The wheelchair according to claim 2, wherein the locking member is formed with a downwardly open engagement notch into which a locking pin is engaged.