JPH08112316A - Motor-driven wheelchair for care - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a motor-driven wheelchair for care which is superior in operability and travel performance. CONSTITUTION: This wheel chair is so constituted as to travel through a couple of right and left large-diameter front wheels 4 and 4 which are driven through a differential device 3 and a couple of right and left small-diameter rear wheels 5 and 5. Further, a battery 6 and a control box 7 are mounted on the vehicle body and covered with a cover 8, a chair 10 is mounted in the center, and handles 11 and 11 equipped with an operation box 12 are attached to the back part of the chair 10.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric care wheelchair that can be moved by carrying a person who needs care, such as an elderly person, a physically handicapped person, or a sick person who has a weakened leg.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an electric care wheelchair, there is a wheelchair that can be operated by a caregiver by moving the joystick operation portion of a normal electric four-wheel wheelchair, which is generally commercially available and operated by the passenger himself, to the rear. However, since this joystick operation controls all the traveling speed and traveling direction by tilting a single lever standing in a neutral position, it is extremely difficult to operate while walking. or,
In this type of electric four-wheel wheelchair, the power steering device that operates in conjunction with the operation of the joystick lever changes the direction of the front wheels, which are caster wheels, to change the running direction, and the pair of drive rear wheels has a special motor. There is a type in which the vehicle is mounted and the rotational speed of each is controlled to change the traveling direction, but these require an expensive drive control device. Further, the front wheels of the small-diameter casters are easily affected by the running resistance of pebbles and the like, and the ability to climb over a step is low, which makes it difficult to operate.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention intends to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and to provide an inexpensive electric care wheelchair with good operability.

[0004]

[Means for Solving the Problems] A motor 2 is provided at the front of a vehicle body 1.
And a pair of left and right large-diameter front wheels 4 and 4 which are driven by a differential device 3 from the left and right, and a rear wheel 5 and 5 composed of a pair of left and right small-diameter caster wheels. The batteries 6, 6 and the control box 7 are mounted on the chassis 1 between the front and rear wheels 4, 5.
Etc. are mounted and covered with a cover 8, and a chair 10 is attached to a supporting rod 9 attached to the center of the vehicle body 1 and extending upward through the cover 8 from the rear portion of the chair 10. The electric wheelchair for electric care is configured such that a pair of left and right operation handles 11 are extended rearward and upward and an operation box 12 capable of controlling the motor 2 and the like is provided on the handles 11.

[0005]

[Operation and Effect of the Invention] The care receiver is placed on the chair 10.
The caregiver holds a pair of left and right operation handles 11, 11 extending upward and rearward from the back surface of the chair 10 and operates each operation switch of an operation box 12 provided on the handles 11, 11 to run. During this traveling, the operation of changing the traveling direction is performed by the operator pushing the pair of handles 11 and 11 to the left and right to rotate the differential device 3 of the driving front wheels 4 and 4 and the rear wheels 5 and 5 including caster wheels. Around the center of the vehicle body 1 as a center of rotation, the vehicle body 1 can be turned with a light operating force and a small turning radius.

Further, since the front wheels 4 and 4 are drive wheels having a large diameter and the rear wheels 5 and 5 are caster wheels having a small diameter, the ability to ride over a step is high, and the running resistance of pebbles and the like is high. It excels in adaptability to, has good straightness, and allows the caregiver to take a wide foot, which does not hinder walking.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the illustrated example, 13 is a floor plate of the vehicle body 1,
A bent standing wall 51 is formed only above the front part, and the other part is bent downward to form a reinforcing structure. One end of each of the pipe frames 14 and 14 is welded to both sides of the rear portion of the floor plate 13 and extended upward by a predetermined height, and then bent and extended toward the front to form the standing wall 51.
The bumper 15 is welded to the upper surface, further extended downward and forward, bent inward, and connected at the front of the vehicle body 1.

The axle pipes 16 of the front wheels 4 and 4 are fixed to the front portions of the pipe frames 14 and 14, and a gear box 17 in which the differential 3 is mounted is provided on one side of the axle pipes 16. The left and right axles 18, 18 can be driven. 19 is the left and right pipe frames 14, 14
It is an arch-shaped connecting frame provided between and has one end of the gear box 17 supported. Also, gearbox 1
A motor 2 is attached to one side of 7. Floorboard 1 of car body 1
3 Square pipe 52 is welded to the rear center,
A pivot shaft 53 is formed at the rear end of the member fitted in the shaft, and a support rod 54 extending upward is pivotally supported on the pivot shaft 53 so as to be swingable in the left-right direction. A rear wheel frame 55 extending in the left-right direction is welded to the upper portion of the supporting rod 54, and rear wheels 5 and 5 are provided at both ends thereof.

Further, the rear wheel frame 55 is formed in an inverted U shape in plan view, the vertical bosses 20 and 20 are welded to the left and right rear ends thereof, and the rear wheels 5 and 5 of small diameter having a caster angle are formed. The vertical axis is rotatably supported. A vertical pipe 21 is erected in the center of the floor plate 13 of the vehicle body 1 and is reinforced and connected by a standing wall 51, a support rod 22 and the like. A mounting plate 23 is attached to the upper end of the vertical pipe 21 so that the chair 10 can be attached and detached.

A pair of batteries 6 and 6 are provided on both left and right sides of the vertical pipe 21 attached to the floor plate 13, and the batteries 6 and 6 are also provided.
A control box 7 is mounted on the rear side of the vertical pipe 21 between them. Reference numeral 56 denotes a charging transformer, which is attached by extending the abutment from the vertical pipe 21 forward. The cover 8 covers a driving portion such as the front motor 2 and extends laterally along the large-diameter front wheels 4 and 4 to integrally form a wheel cover 24, and also extends rearward to extend to a control box. 7, the batteries 6, 6 etc. are covered and attached to the floor plate 13 in front of the rear wheel frame 55.

A vertical pipe 21 extends upward from the opening of the cover 8.
The chair 10 which is extended and is detachably provided on a mounting plate 23 at the upper end thereof includes a seat plate 25 and a back plate 26 made of an elastic material, and a support frame 27 which integrally supports them. Side frames 28, 28 having U-shape in side view are attached to both sides of the frame 27, and armrests 29, 29 made of elastic material are attached to the upper portions thereof. Further, stopper frames 30, 30 are provided at the lower front ends of the U-shaped side frames 28, 28 extending downward and forward along the cover 8 to prevent the vehicle body 1 from tipping forward. is there. Reference numerals 32 and 32 are footrests, and a connecting pipe 3 for connecting and reinforcing the stopper frames 30 and 30.
A shaft 35 is fixed between the mounting plates 34 and 34 attached to 3, and the base portion is pivotally supported by the shaft 35 so as to be rotatable and housed.

On the rear surface of the support frame 27 of the chair 10, a pair of left and right mounting members 36, 36 are attached.
The pair of left and right pipe-shaped handles 11, 11 are attached to the mounting member 3
6 and 36 are fixed by screws 37 and 37.
Note that the handle height can be changed by changing the insertion depth of the handles 11, 11. The pair of left and right handles 11, 11 are bent and extended rearward at predetermined height portions, further bent and extended inward, and are formed on the grips 38, 38 with a predetermined gap between their inner ends. .

Reference numeral 39 denotes a connecting pipe, which connects the left and right handles 11, 11 and the operation box 12 is attached to the connecting pipe 39. An input shaft 4 connected to a potentiometer (not shown) on both sides of the operation box 12.
0 is projected, an L-shaped accelerator lever 41 is attached to the input shaft 40, and an operating portion thereof is provided below the grip 38. A battery meter 42, a power switch 43, a forward / backward changeover switch 44, a speed change switch 45, a horn switch 46, etc. are provided on the front surface of the operation box 12. Reference numeral 47 is a headrest, and 48 is a cord reel, and a plug 49 of the charging cord is projected outward from the opening of the cover 8. 50 is a basket, which is locked to the mounting members 36, 36.

The cared person is placed on the chair 10, and the caregiver is positioned on the back of the chair 5 and the grips 3 of the handles 11, 11 are placed.
While holding 8, 38, each operation switch of the operation box 12 is operated to travel. The accelerator lever 41 is provided along the lower side of the grip 38, and the operator can pull up the accelerator lever 41 together with the grip 38 and grasp the accelerator lever 41 at the same time, and can easily operate even in a walking posture. Further, the front surface of the operation box 12 is opened by providing a predetermined space between the inner ends of the left and right grips 38, 38, and the operation switches can be easily operated.

When changing the traveling direction, a pair of left and right grips 38, 38 are grasped and pushed left and right,
The front wheels 4 and 4 generate a rotation difference due to the differential device 3 in the gear box 17, and the rear wheels 5 and 5 have their axes pivoting in the vertical bosses 20 and 20 depending on the caster angle. The turning operation can be easily performed with a small turning radius with the center of 1 as the turning center. Further, since the front wheels 4 and 4 are configured as large-diameter pneumatic tires and are configured as driving wheels, the traction force is strong, the adaptability to the running resistance of pebbles and the like is excellent, the straightness is good, and the step climbing ability is high. Since the rear wheels 5 and 5 are caster wheels having a small diameter, the rear wheel frame 55 is formed in an inverted U shape in a plan view, and the rear wheels 5 and 5 are attached to the rear ends of the front and rear shafts. The long distance allows the stability of the fuselage to be secured, and the operator's feet are wide so that there is no obstacle to walking.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view with a part cut away.

FIG. 2 is a plan view.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main part.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 vehicle body 2 motor 3 differential device 4 front wheel 5 rear wheel 6 battery 7 control box 8 cover 9 support rod 10 chair 11 operation handle 12 operation box

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A pair of left and right large-diameter front wheels (4), (4) driven by a motor (2) through a differential (3) is mounted on a front portion of a vehicle body (1), and , Rear wheels (5), (5) consisting of a pair of left and right small diameter caster wheels on the rear of the vehicle body (1)
Is mounted on the chassis (1) between the front and rear wheels (4), (5), and the batteries (6), (6), the control box (7), etc. are mounted on the chassis (1) and covered with the cover (8). A chair (10) is attached to a support rod (9) which is attached to the vehicle body (1) substantially at the center and extends upward through a cover (8). An electric wheelchair for nursing care, in which the operating handle (11) is extended rearward and upward and the operating box (12) capable of controlling the motor (2) and the like is provided on the handle (11).