JPH11206842A - Bathing assist device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify a bathtub structure to reduce failures for safe bathing, by laying a base frame on the upper face of a bathtub, holding a vertically middle part of a guide column part on the base frame, attaching a seat part elevatably on the guide column part, placing an elevating drive mechanism to elevete the seat part onto the guide column. SOLUTION: A base frame 1 is laid on the upper face 10a of a bathtub 10. A guide column part 2 is held on laterally inside edge 1a side of the base frame 1. A seat part 3 is elevatably attached on the guide column part 2. An elevating drive mechanism E to elevate the seat part 3 is equipped on the guide column part 2. A pair of engaging protrusions 11b are detachably engaged with a pair of engaging hole parts 11a among vertically plural pairs of engaging hole parts 11a equipped on the vertically middle position of right and left side walls, i.e., right and left vertical members 7, of the guide column part 2. The guide column part 2 is held clamped by a holding member 8 attached on an attaching plate part 4 of the base frame 1.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a bathing assistance device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional bathing assisting device for assisting a bathing of a care recipient such as a handicapped person or an elderly person, a base mounted on a bottom surface of a bathtub, a lifting column held by the base, and a lifting column are described. There has been known a seat having a seat portion which is attached to the seat so as to be able to move up and down, and a telescopic actuator which is provided inside a hoisting column for moving the seat portion up and down.

[0003]

However, in this conventional bath assisting device, since the elevating column is immersed in hot water in the bathtub, a sealing material is provided between the inner cylinder and the outer cylinder of the actuator. Although the elevating column is covered with a bellows member to cover and waterproof it, hot water may flow into the actuator due to wear of the sealing material or breakage of the bellows member, causing a failure. . In addition, there is a possibility that the machine oil may contaminate the hot water in the bathtub. Furthermore, since the seat cannot be folded vertically, there is a risk that the care-receiver's feet may be erroneously pinched between the seat and the bottom of the bathtub while the seat is descending, resulting in injury. .

[0004] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a bathing assisting device which has a simplified structure, has few troubles, and can take a bath safely.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a bathing assistance device according to the present invention has a base frame mounted on the upper surface of a bathtub and an upper and lower intermediate portion held by the base frame. A guide column, a seat mounted on the guide column so as to be able to move up and down, and an elevating drive mechanism provided on the guide column and moving the seat up and down.

Further, the seat portion can be vertically folded and freely deployed horizontally. Further, the guide column is made detachable from the base frame.

[0007] A pair of left and right holding members for holding the guide column portion in a sandwiched manner from the left and right are provided on the base frame.
The holding member has a fixed portion fixed to the base frame, and a clamp block portion detachably attached to the fixed portion, and the guide column is detachable from the base frame.

In addition, a plurality of pairs of upper and lower locking holes are provided at the upper and lower intermediate positions of the guide column, and locking projections are provided to be removably locked in the locking holes. The locking projection attached to the stop hole is hooked on the upper edge of the holding member to hold the guide pillar so that the height of the guide pillar can be adjusted.

[0009] An elevating drive mechanism is provided on the guide column so as to be able to move up and down, a seat mounting slide member, a rotary pulley provided at the lower end of the guide column, and at the upper end of the guide column. A winding cylinder, one end of which is attached to the upper horizontal rod of the slide member and is wound a plurality of times on the upper winding cylinder, extends downward, is suspended by the rotary pulley, and has the other end connected to the lower horizontal rod of the slide member. And a flexible member attached to the second member.

In addition, two stopper pieces are pivotally connected to one end or both ends of an upper horizontal rod projecting from a vertically long hole formed in the left and right side walls of the slide member in an inverted V-shape.
A stopper shaft is attached to the slide member so as to abut against the lower edge of each of the stopper pieces, and the stopper piece is opened and fixed in the guide groove of the guide pillar portion in a stretched state when the flexible member is cut. It was done.

In addition, a detection rod with a roller pressed by a flexible member stretched between the winding drum and the upper horizontal rod is provided at the upper end of the guide column so as to be swingable, and the roller pressed by the roller is pressed. A limit switch that is pressed and turned on by the attached detection rod is provided, and when the tension applied to the flexible member at the time of winding and lowering the flexible member is reduced by the winding cylinder, the limit switch is turned off and the winding cylinder is turned off. Is stopped.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings showing embodiments.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a bathing assistance device according to the present invention. The bathing assistance device includes a base frame 1 placed on an upper surface 10a of a bathtub 10, and left and right inner edges 1 of the base frame 1.
a, 1a, and a guide column 2 held on the side of
A lifting / lowering drive mechanism E provided on the guide column 2 and raising / lowering the seat 3;
It has.

The base frame 1 is of a portal type having a left side portion A, a right side portion B, and a rear side portion C, and has a large width mounting plate on inner edges 1a, 1a of the left and right sides A, B. The mounting plates 4 and 4 are provided with holding members 5 and 5 (described later). Further, a sheet-shaped anti-slip member 6 is attached to the lower surface of the base frame 1, and the base frame 1 is placed so that the upper surface 10 a of the bathtub 10 is not damaged. In addition, on the lower surface of the base frame 1, a ridge portion 39 (described later with reference to FIG. 10) for locking to the bathtub 10 is provided.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG.
A pair of left and right vertical members 7, 7 having a guide groove 7a formed on an inner edge thereof, and a substantially U-shaped cross section vertical cover member 8 provided between the pair of left and right vertical members 7, 7; , Vertical member 7,
And two upper and lower connection plates 9 and 9 for connecting the first cover 7 and the vertical cover member 8 to each other.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, a plurality of pairs of upper and lower locking holes 11a are provided at the right and left side walls of the guide column 2, that is, at the upper and lower intermediate positions of the left and right vertical members 7,7. And
A pair of locking projections 11b, 11b are detachably locked in the pair of locking holes 11a, 11a of the plurality of upper and lower pairs of locking holes 11a. That is, a screw hole is provided in the locking protrusion 11b, and the locking protrusion 11b is screwed into the screw 12 inserted into the locking hole 11a from the inner surface side of the vertical member 7 so that the locking protrusion 11b is Projecting on the outer surface side of. The locking projection 11
A male screw may be formed on the shaft of b, and the locking protrusion 11b may be screwed into a female screw formed on the locking hole 11a.

The holding members 5 and 5 (described above) mounted on the mounting plates 4 and 4 of the base frame 1 hold the guide column 2 in a sandwiched manner from the left and right. A fixing portion 13 composed of a flat plate portion 13a fixed to the upper surface of the portion 4 and a substantially J-shaped contact plate portion 13b contacting the outer surface and the front surface of the vertical member 7; And a clamp block 15 which is detachably connected to the clamp 13 and abuts on the rear surface and the inner surface of the vertical member 7.

Thus, the locking projections 11b, 11b attached to the vertical members 7, 7 are connected to the contact plate portions 13 of the left and right holding members 5, 5.
b and 13b are placed on the upper edge of the guide column 2 and received by the left and right holding members 5 and 5 in the direction in which the guide column 2 falls down, so that the guide column 2 becomes vertical. keeping.

Further, even when the guide post 2 is held by the holding members 5 and 5, the guide post 2 can be slid up and down by removing the locking projections 11b, 11b. The child 11b, 11b is inserted into the locking hole 11 at a desired position.
The vertical height of the guide column 2 can be adjusted by locking the guide pillars 2a and 11a. Further, the holding members 5, 5
By removing the clamp blocks 15, 15, the guide column 2 can be easily removed from the base frame 1.

The holding members 5 and 5 (not shown)
Holes are formed in the contact plate portions 13b, 13b, and female screws are formed in a plurality of pairs of upper and lower locking holes 11a provided in the guide column portion 2, so that bolt members are inserted through the holes. Further, the height of the guide column 2 may be adjustable by being detachably attached to female screws of a pair of left and right locking holes 11a at desired positions.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, the lifting drive mechanism E includes a sliding member 16 for mounting the seat 3 which is mounted on the guide column 2 so as to be able to move up and down, and a lower end of the guide column 2. , A winding drum 18 provided at the upper end of the guide column 2, and a flexible member 19 that is raised and lowered by the rotating winding drum 18 to raise and lower the slide member 16. Have.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 and 6, the slide member 16 has a main body 20 formed by bending a plate material and having a U-shape in plan view, and a rotatable left and right side wall of the main body 20. Two pairs of upper and lower rollers 25, which are pivotally mounted and run in the guide grooves 7a of the guide post 2, and long holes 21 in the vertical direction, which are provided in the upper and lower middle portions of the left and right side walls of the main body 20. An upper horizontal rod 22 having both ends protruding from the upper side, a lower horizontal rod 24 having both ends fixed to the left and right side walls of the main body 20, and a backrest attached to the front surface of the main body 20
41 and has. Note that stopper pieces 23 are provided at both ends of the upper horizontal rod 22, which will be described later in detail.

Left and right projections 26, 26 (see FIG. 1) are attached to the lower portion of the front surface of the main body 20 of the slide member 16, and the frame 3a of the seat 3 is supported by the projections 26, 26. It is pivotally connected via a shaft 27. As a result, the seat 3 is vertically foldable and horizontally deployable.

As shown in FIG. 2, a pair of right and left (only one is shown in the figure) left and right mounting pieces 28, 28 are provided on the inner surface of the vertical cover member 8 of the guide column 2 so as to protrude forward.
Are provided rotatably via a support shaft.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the winding drum 18 is provided on the connecting plate 9 above the guide column 2 so as to be rotatable around the left and right horizontal axes. Is transmitted to the winding drum 18 via the reduction gear group K. Reference numeral 33 denotes a detachable rechargeable battery. In addition, the connecting plate 9 has its winding drum.
A window 35 for inserting the flexible member 19 is formed at a position corresponding to 18.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 6, and 7, the flexible member
19 is, for example, a wire formed of stainless steel wire, chain or belt, a metal wire such as steel coated with plastic, or a wire or a band made of high-strength plastic. It is formed without being rusted. This flexible member 19
One end 19a is attached to the upper horizontal rod 22 of the slide member 16,
A plurality of windings are wound around the upper winding drum 18 and extended downward to be suspended by the rotary pulley 17, and the other end 19b is connected to the lower horizontal rod 24 of the slide member 16 via a resilient member 30 (pull spring) for preventing loosening. It is attached to. Although not shown, a part of the flexible member 19 wound around the winding drum 18 is inserted into a radial hole penetrating the winding drum 18 and screwed. The flexible member 19 of the part suspended between the winding drum 18 and the rotary pulley 17 passes through the inside of the vertical cover member 8.

When the motor M rotates forward / reversely (or reversely / forwardly), the winding drum 18 rotates forward / reversely, and the flexible member 19 is wound up / down.
16 and the seat 3 are raised and lowered. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, stopper plates 37, 37 are provided at the lower ends of the left and right vertical members 7, 7 of the guide post 2, and the descending slide member 16 is connected to the stopper plate portion. Stop at 37, 37 at the predetermined lowering position.

Further, the bathing assistance device of the present invention has two safety mechanisms (stopper mechanisms). As shown in FIG. 6, the first safety mechanism includes a detection rod with a roller 34 pressed by a flexible member 19 stretched between the winding drum 18 and the upper horizontal rod 22 of the slide member 16, And a limit switch 36 that is turned on by the detected detection rod 34.

More specifically, one end of the detecting rod 34 is pivotally connected to the vicinity of the window 35 of the connecting plate 9 on the upper part of the guide post 2, and the roller part is a flexible member from behind.
It is arranged to contact 19. The limit switch 36 is normally pressed from the front at the other end of the detection rod 34. That is, the other end of the detection rod 34 is pressed rearward by the tension of the flexible member 19, whereby the limit switch 36 is pressed and turned ON.

Thus, the first safety mechanism comprises a motor M
In a state where the winding drum 18 is rotated by the driving force from and the seat portion 3 is raised or lowered, the flexible member 19 between the winding drum 18 and the upper horizontal rod 22 of the slide member 16 is moved. When the tension of the sensor decreases, the pressing force from the detecting rod 34 decreases, and the limit switch 36
FF, and the motor M and the winding drum 18 are configured to stop. That is, when the care receiver's foot is caught between the seat 3 and the bottom of the bathtub 10 during the descent, or when the flexible member 19 is slackened by the slide member 16 reaching the predetermined lowering position (as described above), When the flexible member 19 is cut, the motor M automatically stops. When the flexible member 19 is loosened by the lowering and the limit switch 36 is turned off, and the flexible member 19 is wound up from this state, the limit switch
The electric circuit is configured so that the motor M can be driven to rotate even when the switch 36 remains OFF (not shown).

The second safety mechanism prevents the slide member 16 and the seat 3 from dropping when the flexible member 19 at the portion between the winding drum 18 and the upper horizontal rod 22 of the slide member 16 is cut off. It is for doing.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 8, the slide member 16 projects outwardly from vertically extending long holes 21 and 21 formed in the left and right side walls of the main body 20 of the slide member 16. Horizontal rod
At both ends of 22, two stopper pieces 23 (described above) are pivotably mounted in an inverted V-shape. Further, contact shafts 38 contacting the lower edges of the stopper pieces 23 are provided on the left and right side walls of the slide member 16, respectively. The stopper pieces 23 are provided in the guide grooves 7a of the vertical member 7 and are not in contact with the guide grooves 7a.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the upper horizontal rod 22 connected to the flexible member 19 is normally pulled up to the upper edge of the elongated holes 21 and 21 as shown in FIGS. Flexible member
When 19 is cut, first, as shown in FIG.
Falls (falls) with respect to the elongated hole 21 (main body portion 20), whereby each pair of stopper pieces 23, 23 slides in contact with the respective contact shaft 38, and opens to be fixed in the guide groove 7a in a stretched manner. . That is, the drop of the upper horizontal rod 22 stops immediately. Accordingly, as shown in FIG.
The upper edge 21 slightly descends and stops at a position where it hits the upper horizontal rod 22.

As described above, even if the flexible member 19 is cut, the second safety mechanism prevents the seat portion 3 from dropping.
There is no possibility of injuring the care receiver sitting on the seat 3 with his or her feet. It is also preferable to provide a non-slip material having a high frictional resistance at the contact portion of the stopper piece 23 that contacts the guide groove 7a. Further, the stopper piece 23 is
May be provided only in one of the left and right sides.

As shown in FIG. 10, on the lower surface of the base frame 1, a ridge 39 having a shape along the inner surface 10b of the bathtub 10 is provided. A stopper 6 is provided. That is, the protrusion 39 is locked to the upper edge of the bathtub 10 via the non-slip member 6, thereby preventing damage and preventing the front-rear and left-right displacement. The ridges 39 are provided on the left and right sides A and B of the base frame 1,
It may be provided on the left and right sides A and B and the rear side C.

FIG. 11 shows another embodiment in which a clamp member 40 is attached to the base frame 1. That is, the clamp member 40 includes a clamp main body 40a having a U-shaped cross section fixed to the lower surface of the base frame 1, a bolt member 40b screwed into a screw hole provided in an outer wall of the main body 40a, And clamp the upper edge of the bathtub 10 to the main body.
The base frame 1 is fitted outside at 40a and tightened with bolt members 40b so that the base frame 1 does not deviate from the bathtub 10. A non-slip member 6 is attached to the inner surface of the clamp body 40a and the tip of the bolt member 40b.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, the base frame 1 may be configured so that the width of the base frame can be adjusted so as to be compatible with various bathtubs, and the guide column 2 may be formed of various types. It is also preferable that the angle of the guide column 2 can be adjusted so as to be able to cope with a large bathtub backrest angle.

[0038]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, the following effects can be obtained.

Since the upper and lower intermediate portions of the guide column 2 are held by the base frame 1 placed on the upper surface 10a of the bathtub 10 (in accordance with claim 1), the direction in which the guide column 2 falls down (front-back direction). Moment decreases. Therefore, the load applied to the base frame 1 is reduced, which is advantageous in mechanical strength, and the stability of the guide column 2 is improved. In addition, since the base is not placed on the bottom surface of the bathtub 10 as in the related art, an intrusive base does not hit the feet of the care recipient who takes a bath.

When the care receiver is seated on the seat 3 and lowered into the bathtub 10 (according to claim 2), the care receiver's feet are erroneously pinched between the seat 3 and the bottom of the bathtub 10. Even if it is, the seat 3 swings upward and escapes, so that no injury is caused. In addition, during bathing, when the care receiver descends from the seat 3 and sits on the bottom of the bathtub 10 in order to be sufficiently immersed in the hot water to the shoulder, if the seat 3 is folded vertically, the bathtub 10 is widened without disturbing. Can be used.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the guide column 2 is detachable from the base frame 1, it is easy to carry and takes up little space when not in use. (Claim 4
According to the above), the attachment / detachment portion of the holding member 5 is attached to the clamp block portion.
By setting it to 15, it is possible to obtain strength enough to withstand the moment in the falling direction of the guide column 2. Further, it is easy to form a screw hole for connection with the fixing portion 13. According to the fifth aspect, the vertical height of the guide column 2 can be adjusted with respect to the base frame 1, so that it can correspond to the depth of the bathtub 10.

(According to claim 6) The lifting drive mechanism E is
Since the flexible member 19 is configured so as to raise and lower the flexible member 19 to raise and lower the seat 3, no seal material or bellows for waterproofing hot water in the bathtub 10 like a conventional actuator is required. The structure is simplified, and there are few failures and excellent durability.

Even if the slide member 16 and the flexible member 19 for suspending the seat 3 are cut during use, each pair of the stopper pieces 23, 23 is opened instantaneously and the guide is opened. In order to prevent the slide member 16 from dropping by being fixed to the guide grooves 7a, 7a of the pillar portion 2 in a stretched manner, the care receiver may be hurt by putting his / her foot between the seat portion 3 and the bottom of the bathtub 10. It is safe without hurting your back.

If the care receiver's foot is erroneously caught between the seat 3 and the bottom of the bathtub 10 during the descent (according to claim 8), the winding drum 18 automatically stops and the seat is stopped. It is safe to stop the lowering of the part 3.

When the flexible member 19 is cut during the lowering, the lowering of the flexible member 19 by the winding drum 18 is stopped.
Also, no lowering force is applied to the seat portion 3. That is, a force for forcibly lowering the seat portion 3 acts to guide the groove 7.
It is safe that the stopper pieces 23 fixed to the a and 7a do not come off.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of a main part showing a state where a guide pillar is removed from a base frame.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional plan view of a main part showing a slide member and a guide pillar.

FIG. 4 is another cross-sectional plan view of a main part showing a slide member and a guide pillar.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a state where a clamp block portion of a holding member is removed.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a lifting drive mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional front view of a main part showing a connection portion between a flexible member and a slide member.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional side view of a main part showing the unlocked state of the stopper piece.

FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory view showing a locked state of a stopper piece.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary sectional front view showing a state where the base frame is placed on the upper edge of the bathtub.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional front view of a main part showing another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Base frame 2 Guide pillar part 3 Seat part 5 Holding member 7a Guide groove 10 Bath 10a Top surface 11a Locking hole 11b Locking protrusion 13 Fixing part 15 Clamp block part 16 Slide member 17 Rotary pulley 18 Winding drum 19 Flexible member 19a One end 19b Other end 21 Slot 22 Upper horizontal rod 23 Stopper piece 24 Lower horizontal rod 34 Detecting rod with roller 36 Limit switch 38 Contact axis E Elevating drive mechanism

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Atsuro Takeuchi 2-1-1 Nakajima, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu-shi Inside East Ceramics Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Takeshi Takeshi 2-1-1 Nakajima, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu-shi No. Touchi Koki Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Seiichi Komura 4-1-2-3, Teizuka Yamanaka, Sumiyoshi-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka (72) Inventor Katsuhiko 3-9-1 Nishiyuge, Yao-shi, Osaka Komura Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yasushi Sawada 3-9 Nishiyuge, Yao-shi, Osaka Inside Komura Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A base frame 1 mounted on an upper surface 10a of a bathtub 10, a guide column 2 whose upper and lower intermediate portions are held by the base frame 1, and a guide column 2 attached to the guide column 2 so as to be able to move up and down. A bathing assistance device, comprising: a seat portion 3; and an elevating drive mechanism E provided on the guide pillar portion 2 and configured to move the seat portion 3 up and down. 2. The bathing assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the seat 3 is vertically foldable and horizontally deployable. 3. The bathing assistance device according to claim 1, wherein the guide pillar portion is detachable from the base frame. 4. A pair of left and right holding members 5, 5 for holding the guide column 2 in a sandwiched manner from the left and right are provided on the base frame 1, and the holding member 5 is fixed to the base frame 1. The bathing assistance device according to claim 3, further comprising a portion (13) and a clamp block (15) detachably attached to the fixing portion (13), wherein the guide column (2) is detachable from the base frame (1). 5. A plurality of pairs of upper and lower locking holes 11a are provided at an upper and lower intermediate position of the guide pillar 2, and locking protrusions 11b are provided to be removably locked in the locking holes 11a. Guide pillar 2
5. The bathing assistance device according to claim 4, wherein the locking projection 11b attached to the locking hole 11a is hooked on the upper edge of the holding member 5 to hold the guide pillar 2 in a vertically adjustable manner. 6. A sliding member 16 for mounting a seat portion 3 mounted on the guide column portion 2 so as to be able to move up and down, the lifting and lowering drive mechanism E;
The rotary pulley 17 provided at the lower end of the guide column 2, the winding drum 18 provided at the upper end of the guide column 2, and one end 19 a are attached to the upper horizontal rod 22 of the slide member 16 and Winding drum
18 and extended downward to rotate the pulley
A flexible member 19 suspended at the other end 19b and attached to the lower horizontal rod 24 of the slide member 16.
The bathing assistance device according to 4 or 5. 7. Two stopper pieces 23, 23 are provided at one end or both ends of an upper horizontal rod 22 protruding from vertically long holes 21, 21 penetrating through the left and right side walls of the slide member 16, respectively. At the same time, when the flexible member 19 is cut, the stopper piece 23 is opened and the guide post is opened by attaching a contact shaft 38 which contacts the lower edge of each of the stopper pieces 23. The bathing assistance device according to claim 6, wherein the bathing assistance device is configured to be fixed to the guide groove 7 a of the portion 2 in a stretched manner. 8. A detection rod with roller 34, which is pressed by a flexible member 19 stretched between the winding drum 18 and the upper horizontal rod 22, is provided at the upper end of the guide column 2 in a swingable manner. Provided is a limit switch 36 which is pressed and turned on by the pressed detection rod 34 with a roller, and the winding member 18 winds the flexible member 19.
8. The bathing assistance device according to claim 6, wherein when the tension applied to the flexible member during the lowering decreases, the limit switch is turned off to stop the rotation driving of the winding drum.