JPH09285495A - Standing and walking operation helping device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely prevent the movement of a device at the time of helping a standing operation by providing a motor-driven movement braking device on an intermediate wheel which is a fixed wheel and performing braking based on electric signals. SOLUTION: A walking operation helping part is composed of front wheels composed of casters provided on front leg parts, rear wheels composed of the casters provided on rear leg parts 3a (3b, not shown in the figure) and the intermediate wheels 11a (11b, not shown in the figure) composed of the fixed wheels provided between the front wheels and the rear wheels. The moving operation braking parts 13a (13b, not shown in the figure) at the time of the standing operation of a user are respectively provided on the rear leg parts 3a (3b, not shown in the figure.) In the moving operation braking part 13a, when a solenoid 18a is operated, a member 19a connected to a straight motion moving part and a wheel abutting rod 16a are moved in a left direction, the wheel abutting rod 16a is abutted to the left intermediate wheel 11a and the rotation of the wheel is stopped by frictional force. When the solenoid 18a is released, the wheel abutting rod 16a is energized by a spring 17a and moved in a right direction from the left intermediate wheel 11a and the wheel becomes rotatable.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a motion assisting device for assisting a standing motion, a sitting motion (standing motion) and a walking motion of an elderly person or a person who needs rehabilitation.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an upright walking motion assisting device which does not have an electric walking motion assisting part used by an elderly person whose lower limbs have deteriorated, (i)
(1) As described in JP-A-6-225909,
It is known that casters are used as walking movement assisting means, and (ii) in a device that the user uses by himself,
(2) As described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 7-31023, there is known a device that uses casters as a walking motion assisting means.

[0003]

When assisting the standing up movement using the standing up movement assisting device which does not have the electric walking movement assisting portion, the casters are made free as the center of gravity of the user moves. If it is used in the state, there is a problem that the device moves.

In order to deal with this problem, the prior art (1)
Then, the caregiver supports the generating power by supporting the device.

[0005] When the device movement force for assisting the standing motion is large, there is a problem that a carer is required to bear a large physical burden.

[0006] For example, when the user is assisting the standing motion, the retracting force of the device in that case differs depending on the floor surface friction (depending on the floor surface material). In the case of the floor, the measurement was performed using the experimental apparatus shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, respectively. In FIG. 9, the force sensor 32 provided at the tip of the two-degree-of-freedom standing assist arm 31 so that an arbitrary trajectory can be taken is used to measure the backward force of the user when assisting the standing motion. Since the root of the standing motion assisting arm 31 is fixed to the floor, the retreat force Fb0 corresponding to the case where the floor surface friction is zero regardless of the floor surface material can be measured. Here, in order to facilitate the measurement of the acting force of the force sensor in the horizontal direction, the standing motion assisting arm 31 is configured by a parallel link mechanism so that the force sensor 32 always faces the horizontal direction.

Next, with respect to the case of a wooden floor, the device retreating force Fb at the time of assisting the standing motion using the device was measured using the spring weigher 35 as shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 shows the relationship between the human body mass W of the user and the retreat force when both devices use the same standing assistance motion trajectory to perform the standing motion assistance. The difference between Fb0 and Fb indicates the floor friction force of the wooden floor. From this, it was confirmed that there is a problem that a caregiver is required to have a large force of about 100 (N) under an environment of a floor material having extremely low floor friction.
Further, in the prior art (2), although the problem is not mentioned, it is possible to take a structure such as locking the caster by a locking mechanism provided on the caster.

However, locking the casters by the locking mechanism is a difficult operation for the user of this device with weakened lower limbs, and even if the casters are locked by some external braking device, the casters turn and rotate. Since it has two degrees of freedom of movement, there is a problem that the braking mechanism becomes complicated.

An object of the present invention is to provide a standing walking motion assisting device intended to allow a user to live independently without a caregiver. It is to provide the user with a means that can be reliably implemented in a way that is not difficult.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, in order to prevent movement of an upright walking movement assisting device during standing up movement assistance in a manner that is not difficult for a user with weakened lower limbs,
(1) As shown in FIG. 1, the walking motion assisting portion of the device is configured by a six-wheel moving mechanism in which front and rear two wheels are casters and two intermediate wheels are fixed wheels, and the intermediate wheels that are fixed wheels are electrically driven. A moving braking device is provided to enable braking based on an electric signal.
(2) As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 14 and FIG. 15, in order to realize the method in a manner that is not difficult for the user, the operating section 8 operated by the user is only the standing / seating switch, and if this switch is pressed, The moving braking device provided on the intermediate wheel is interlocked to operate.

With such a structure, the problem to be solved by the present invention can be solved.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of a stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4 and 12 to 15. FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention, FIG. 2 shows a configuration of an operating portion of FIG. 1, and FIG.
1 shows an example of the configuration of the moving operation braking unit in FIG. 1, FIG. 4 shows another example of the configuration of the moving operation braking unit in FIG. 1, and FIG.
FIG. 13 is an explanatory view of the operation principle of the moving operation braking portion, FIG. 13 shows the driving means of FIG. 1, and FIG. 14 shows the posture of the user at the start of standing using the apparatus of FIG. Figure 15
2 shows a posture of the user when assisting the walking motion using the apparatus of FIG.

The stand-up walking movement assisting apparatus of the present invention is an apparatus for electrically assisting the stand-up movement of a user with weakened lower limbs, and assisting the walking movement without power and by himself. explain.

The apparatus 1 is roughly composed of a supporting portion 6 which is moved up and down by an elevating member 4, a front leg portion 2 and a rear leg portion 3 of the main body, and non-powered wheels attached to them. In the standing motion assisting unit, the wheel unit is the walking motion assisting unit. The user grasps the grip 7 provided on the support portion 6 (see FIG. 14), and the operating portion 8 operated by the user is provided with a standing / seating instruction switch and a status display lamp. The person can give a standing / seating operation instruction while confirming whether the device is normal or abnormal.

The operation section 8 is configured to be movable left and right with respect to the grip 7 on the assumption that it is used by a hemiplegic user.

The operation of the stand-up walking motion assisting device is such that when the user deposits the buttocks on the trunk support 9 made of a belt-like member and presses the stand-up instruction switch, the elevating member 4 extends upward in the direction of the arrow 5. The standing motion is assisted, and when the user presses the seating instruction switch when seated, the elevating member 4 contracts in the downward direction of the arrow 5 and the seating motion is assisted.

The constitution of the walking motion assisting portion is such that the front leg portions 2a, 2
front wheels 10a, 10b made of casters provided in b,
Rear wheel 1 including casters provided on the rear legs 3a and 3b
2a, 12b, and intermediate wheels 11a, 11b which are fixed wheels provided between the front wheels and the rear wheels. With such a wheel configuration, although it is not possible to traverse or obliquely move, many movement assists including on-the-spot turning can be performed, and the user can move within a house with a small turning radius.

Moving movement braking portion 13 when the user stands up
a and 13b are provided at the rear portions of the intermediate wheels 11a and 11b, and the abutment members are the intermediate wheels 11a and 11b during braking.
The rotation of the wheel can be stopped by the friction force.

Next, the structure of the operation unit 8 will be described with reference to FIG. The operating unit 8 is a standing / seating instruction switch 1
4 and a status display lamp 15. Here, the case where the number of status display lamps is two is shown, but the number is not limited to this.

In the figure, a case is shown in which one battery is used for displaying the battery state and one for displaying an abnormality. By moving the standing / seating instruction switch 14 in the directions of 36a and 36b, standing / seating can be instructed, respectively. The standing / seating instruction switch 14 is a momentary type in which the switch returns to the neutral position unless the user touches the switch, and the support does not move up and down unless the switch is touched by the user.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the construction of the moving operation braking portion 13a of this apparatus. Moving motion braking parts 13a, 13b
Are respectively provided on the rear legs 3a and 3b, but here, the moving operation braking unit 13a will be described.

A moving operation braking portion 1 provided on the rear leg portion 3a.
In 3a, the member 19a connected to the linear movement part of the solenoid 18a and the wheel contact rod 16a move to the left of the arrow 45. When the solenoid operates, the wheel contact rod 1
6a comes into contact with the left intermediate wheel 11a and stops the rotation of the wheel by frictional force.

When the solenoid is released, the wheel contact rod 16a moves from the left intermediate wheel 11a to the right in the direction of arrow 45, and the wheel becomes rotatable. This release operation is performed by the rear leg 3
The spring 17a which is relatively displaced with respect to a is urged to be easily returned. The operating principle of the solenoid will be described with reference to FIG. If the solenoid presses the intermediate wheels 11a and 11b with a force of Fs, assuming that the friction coefficient between the wheel contact rod and the intermediate wheel is μ, a friction force of μFs is generated in the lower portion of each wheel. If this has a relationship represented by Formula 1 as compared with the retreat force Fb on the floor material, the movement of the device can be prevented during the assisting of the standing motion.

[0025]

[Equation 1]

Next, another example of the structure of the moving operation braking portion 13a of this apparatus is shown in FIG. In this example, the intermediate wheel 11
Rotary brakes 49a and 49b are directly connected to the rotary shafts of a and 11b. With such a configuration, the same operation as that using a solenoid can be realized. Here, the case where the rotary type brake is directly connected to the intermediate wheel is shown, but the rotary type brake may be attached to the rotary axis of the intermediate wheel via a timing belt from the rotary axis attached to the rotary type brake. By doing so, it is possible to reduce the required brake torque of the rotary type brake by decelerating with the timing belt.

Next, the driving means of this apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. A brake 38 is provided coaxially with the motor 37. When the brake 38 is released and the motor 37 is energized, the worm 39 rotates and rotates in a direction orthogonal to the worm rotation axis. The worm wheel 40 is decelerated and rotated around the axis.

The pinion gears 41a, 41b provided coaxially with the worm wheel 40 are racks 42a, 42b.
By directly moving, the lifting / lowering operation of the support portion 6 in FIG. 1 is realized. The rack 42a on one side is provided with an object to be detected (dog) 43 for detecting the moving end of the ascending / descending operation, and the upper end can be detected by the upper limit sensor 44a and the lower end can be detected by the lower limit sensor 44b. There is. With such a configuration, at the upper and lower ends, the operation in the ascending direction and the descending direction is braked based on the sensor detection information, so that the runaway of the support portion 6 can be prevented and the safety can be improved.

FIG. 14 shows the standing motion assistance from the portable toilet 48 using such a device, and FIG. 15 shows the walking motion assistance. Therefore, when assisting the standing motion, the user can realize the motion by holding the grip 7 with one hand and operating the operation unit 8 with the other hand. During walking assistance motion,
It is possible to control the operation direction while gripping the grip 7 with both hands.

Next, the structure of the control device incorporated in the main body of the standing-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 5: shows the schematic structure of the control apparatus of the standing-walking movement assistance apparatus of this invention, FIG. 6 shows an example of the detailed structure of FIG. 5, FIG. 7 shows the other example of the detailed structure of FIG. , Fig. 8
FIG. 3 shows an operation sequence of the control device of the standing up movement assist device of the present invention.

A schematic configuration of the control device for the standing-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the present control device, the central processing unit 20 reads sensor information and writes commands / displays at predetermined sampling intervals. The central processing unit 20 includes a CPU (central processing unit) and a ROM.
A (read only memory), a RAM (random access memory), and a timer are provided, and signals are exchanged with other circuits via the bus line 29. Power is supplied to each circuit from a power supply circuit 26 including a battery and a constant voltage regulator that changes the voltage level of the battery. The abnormality monitoring circuit 28 monitors for solenoid failure, battery voltage drop, and motor overcurrent. When the battery voltage drop is detected, the charging circuit 2
5 is connected to the battery, and the central processing unit sends information indicating the charging mode to the charging circuit. When the abnormality is detected, the status display lamp 15a provided in the operation unit is turned on by the drive circuit 21, and the user can know the abnormality. When the abnormality is detected, the status display lamp 15b provided on the operation unit is turned on by the drive circuit 21 and the charging operation is switched to.

When the movement limits (upper limit and lower limit) of the support portion are detected, further upward movement and downward movement are prohibited.

When the operation of the standing / seating switch is detected, the brake is released and the motor is energized, and the wheel brakes (18, 49) of the moving operation braking unit are energized, so that the intermediate wheels are turned on. Locked.

An example of the configuration of such a control device is shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.
It was shown to. FIG. 6 shows a case where the speed control of the motor is performed at the time of assisting the standing motion and assisting the sitting motion, and FIG. 7 shows a case where the speed control is not performed.

When the speed control shown in FIG. 6 is carried out, an encoder 46 for position detection is coupled to the motor 37 and is obtained by signal processing from the A and B phase waveforms of the encoder. The pulse signal is converted into an analog voltage proportional to the frequency by the F / V conversion unit, and the current command value based on the deviation from the voltage value corresponding to the speed command output from the central processing unit 20 is fed back to the feedback unit. In the PWM (pulse width modulation, pulse width modulation) generator,
Determine the WM on-duty and use the FET in the motor drive unit.
The power is supplied to the motor by PWM driving the power elements such as. Here, an analog speed control system is shown, but a digital speed control system that takes in encoder pulse information into the central processing unit 20 every sample period, generates a current command by software, and sends it to the PWM generation unit. It may be.

The wheel brakes (18, 49) are turned on / off by turning on / off the relay-3.

In the case of no speed control shown in FIG. 7, the motor 37 is used.
A sensor is not provided in the device, but the relay-2 is turned on / off based on the detection result of the operation of the standing / seating switch to energize. Compared to the case of FIG. 5, it is insufficient in terms of controlling the speed to be constant, but in reality, the speed backs up in a pseudo manner due to the back electromotive force of the motor, so a runaway operation is performed. However, it is driven by an exponential function acceleration / deceleration pattern.

The above operation sequence is shown in FIG. When the standing / seating switch is pressed, how the standing speed, the seating speed, and the locked state of the intermediate wheel change depending on the state of the limit sensor is shown. With such a configuration, the user can realize a safe standing and sitting motion.

[0039]

Since the stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects.

(1) The stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention is
It is composed of an electric standing motion assisting unit and an electric wheel moving motion braking unit, and can be turned on / off by a switch operation, so that the user can move the device when assisting the standing motion without difficulty.

(2) In the stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention, the operation switch is composed of only the stand-up / seat switch, and the operation of this switch and the operation of the wheel movement operation braking portion are interlocked. Therefore, even a user with weakened lower limbs can surely realize the standing and sitting motions without moving the device without difficulty.

(3) The stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention is
Since the operation portion is configured to be movable left and right with respect to the support portion, a hemiplegic user can also use it.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a standing walking movement assisting device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration of an operation unit of FIG.

3 is an example of a configuration of a moving operation braking unit in FIG.

FIG. 4 is another example of the configuration of the moving operation braking unit in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration of a control device of a standing walking motion assisting device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an example of a detailed configuration of FIG.

FIG. 7 is another example of the detailed configuration of FIG.

FIG. 8 is an operation sequence of the control device of the stand-up walking movement assisting device of the present invention.

FIG. 9 shows a device for measuring the retreat force during a standing assistance operation with zero floor friction.

FIG. 10 is a device for measuring the retreat force of the device during the standing up assist operation on the wooden floor.

FIG. 11 is a measurement result of the retracting force of the device during the standing up assisting operation.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the operation principle of the moving operation braking unit.

FIG. 13 is a drive means of FIG.

FIG. 14 is a posture of the user at the start of standing using the apparatus of FIG.

15 is a posture of a user using the apparatus of FIG. 1 when assisting a walking motion.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Standing walking assist device, 2 ... Front legs, 3 ... Rear legs, 4 ...
Lifting unit, 5 ... Lifting direction, 6 ... Supporting unit, 7 ... Grip, 8
... operation part, 9 ... trunk support device, 10 ... front wheel, 11 ... intermediate wheel, 12 ... rear wheel, 13 ... movement operation braking part, 14 ... standing up
Seating instruction switch, 15 ... Status display lamp, 16 ... Wheel abutment rod, 17 ... Spring, 18 ... Solenoid, 19 ... Solenoid moving section connecting member, 20 ... Central processing section, 21 ... Status display lamp drive circuit, 22 ... Support Section movement limit detection circuit, 23 ... movement operation braking section drive circuit, 24 ... standing / seating instruction switch operation detection circuit, 25 ... charging circuit, 26 ...
Battery / power supply circuit, 27 ... Motor brake drive circuit,
28 ... Abnormality monitoring circuit, 29 ... Bus line, 30 ... AC outlet, 31 ... Standing motion auxiliary arm, 32 ... Force sensor, 33 ... User, 34 ... Chair, 35 ... Spring only, 3
6 ... Standing / seating instruction switch movement direction, 37 ... Motor,
38 ... Break, 39 ... Worm, 40 ... Worm wheel, 41 ... Pinion gear, 42 ... Rack, 43 ... Detected object, 44 ... Limit sensor, 45 ... Solenoid moving part moving direction, 46 ... Encoder, 47 ... Charger, 48 ... Portable toilet, 49 ... Rotating brake for wheel braking.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Akira Endo 1250 Shimoeden, Shimodate-shi, Ibaraki Hitachi Chemical Co., Ltd. Yuki factory (72) Inventor Makoto Okada 3-9-7 Itabashi, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo Within Hitachi Chemical Co., Ltd. (72) Masamichi Tomita, 502 Kintatemachi, Tsuchiura-shi, Ibaraki Prefecture, Hiritsu Manufacturing Co., Ltd.Mechanical Research Laboratory (72) Inventor, Search for: 502, Jinmachi-cho, Tsuchiura-shi, Ibaraki, Ltd. Machinery Research Laboratory (72) Inventor Masakatsu Fujie 502 Jinritsucho, Tsuchiura City, Ibaraki Prefecture Hitate Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yoshiki Yoshida 1-280 Higashi Koigakubo, Kokubunji, Tokyo Hitachi Design Co., Ltd. In the laboratory

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A support part for supporting a user, an operating part having a standing / seating switch provided on the support part, a drive means for driving the support part, and a user's own push and move. An upright walking movement assisting device, comprising a moving means, for assisting a user's upstanding movement and walking movement, comprising an electric upright movement assisting portion and an electrically moving movement braking portion. 2. The standing walking movement assisting device according to claim 1, wherein a user's operation portion is configured to be movable left and right with respect to the support portion. 3. The upright walking movement assisting device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the presence / absence of an upright / seating operation instruction and the braking / releasing of the moving operation braking portion are operated in conjunction with each other. Walking movement assist device. 4. The standing walking motion assisting device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the front and rear two walking wheels are casters and the middle two wheels are fixed wheels. A member that can be brought into contact with the solenoid, the intermediate wheel connected to the moving portion of the solenoid, and the member that can come into contact with the intermediate wheel connected to the moving portion of the solenoid. The standing-walking movement assisting device, which is configured by a passive force generator that is urged to easily return to a position where it does not contact the intermediate wheel when the brake is released. 5. The standing walking movement assisting device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the front and rear two walking wheels are casters and the middle two wheels are fixed wheels. A rotary-type brake that is composed of a six-wheel wheel moving mechanism, and the moving operation braking unit can brake the rotation of the intermediate wheel.
An upright walking movement assisting device, characterized in that it is configured by installing the key directly on a rotary shaft of an intermediate wheel or via a timing belt.