US2641306A - Foldable wheel chair - Google Patents

Description

June 9, 1953 M. A. LRMAN FOLDABLE WHEEL CHAIR Fiied Jan. 1e, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I y E3 June 9, 1953 M. A. LERMAN 2,641,306

FOLDABLE WHEEL CHAIR Filed Jan. 16, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENToR. MOA/R05 fik/vom mm/v 12x/MW Patented `une 9, r1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FOLDABLE WHEEL CHAIR Monroe Arnold Lerman, Sunnyside, N. Y.

Application January 16, 1952, Serial No. 266,752 Solaims. (01.155-30) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in foldable wheel chairs for handicapped persons, and has more particular reference to an adjustable seat thereof.

The width of a Wheel Ichair 'is more or less determined by the width of buttocks of persons using them. The seat portion of the chair must normally be Wide enough so that the user may comfortably sit therein. However, wheel chairs thus constructed are of such widths that they are too wide to pass through narrow doors. Consequently, the handicapped person cannot conveniently enter certain rooms in the home, as for example the bathroom, which usually has a door smaller than other doors. An important feature of this invention resides in so -constructing the wheel chair that the person sitting therein may operate means for adjusting the Width of the chair to make it possible to pass through narrow doors. It is proposed that when the chair is narrowed in width the sides of the chair will squeeze against the buttocks. However, this is not objectionable since after the chair has `been lmoved through the narrow door it may again be widened to its natural width. It is proposed to so construct the width operating feature of this inventionthat it will not interfere with the normal folding of the wheel chair. Consequently the 'wheel chair may be folded in the usual way at any time. f

It is also `customary to construct wheel chairs fso that a person sits at a normal height. While this height is satisfactory most of the time there are instances when the user wishes to reach up to a higher object. It is now proposed to so construct the new wheel chair that the user may elevate the seat thereof in order to reach up whenever he so desires. It is also proposed to so construct this and other elevating features that they do not interfere in any way whatsoever with the normal folding of the chair.

Arthritic persons often find it difficult to raise themselves from a sitting to a standing position. It is another object of this invention to so construct the new wheel chair that the seat thereof may be tilted upwards from the front tothe back and that simultaneously the seat back of the chair moves up a corresponding distance in order t-o assist an arthritic person from a rsitting to a standing position.

Another object of the invention is the construction of a wheel chair as described which is simple and durable and which may be manufactured and vsold at a reasonable cost.

For further comprehension of the invention,

and of the objects and advantages thereof, reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawing forming a material part of the disclosure:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a folding wheel chair constructed in accordance with this invention.

Fig. 2 is a front Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary enlarged horizontal sectional view taken on the line 4--4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line 'I--l :of Fig. l.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional View taken on the line 8-8 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary enlarged horizontal sectional view taken on the line 9 9 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line IIJ--I Il of Fig. 6.

Fig. 11 is a fragmentary enlarged Vertical sectional view taken on the line I I--I I of Fig. 3.

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary enlarged vertical sectional view taken on the line |2-I2 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 13 is a front elevational view 0f the chair as illustrated in Fig. 1, but shown in its folded condition.

Fig. 14 is a sidev elevational view of the chair shown in Fig. 1 but illustrated with the seat thereof in an elevated position.

The new folding wheel chair, in accordance with this invention, includes a pair of side frames AIII each having a large back wheel I I and a small front wheel I2. Each frame l0 is also provided with a front foot rest I3' hingedly mounted in the usual way to move from a. horizontal position, shown in Fig. 2, to a Vertical position when the wheel chair is folded, as shown in Fig. 13. Each side frame I0 has an arm rest I4, a front Vertical arm I5, and a back substantially vertical arm I6. Each side frame I0 also has a horizontal bottom arm Il. A flexible seat back I8 is mounted between said side frames Ill.

A seat support member 2n is vertically slidably mounted on each of saidv side frames I0. Each seat support member 20 has a front forked end A2| whlch slidably engage the. front vertical arms I5, and a back forked end 22 which slidably enview of the chair shown in vframes 10.

otally connected at their centers by a pintle 26' and having their bottom ends pivotallyy connected with said side frames I0. More particularly, the bottom ends of the crossedfarms.325i

are connected with tubular umembers 21 which pivotally engage upon the horizontal bottom" Theworos'sed arms l1 of the side frames l0. arms 25 have their top ends pivotally connected with slide members 35)'vertically-1slidablymounted upon the side frame l0. The 'top ends -oi --the crossed arms 25 are .provided with tubularmemvbers 3l' which pivotally engage upon the sliding members 35i. Each slide Amember 30 is provided with a forked front-enden vwhich slidabli7 engage the front vertical arms l5 Aon the Side Each slide member 39 is also provided with a forked back end 433 -which-.slidably engage the back vertical arms I6 of the Aside yframes I6.

The slide members 30 are limited to bottom positions by stop pins 34 which Iarefmounted on the vertical arms 'l5 and vIii-of the side-frames lil. These stop pins A34 determine the-OpenDosition vof the wheel chair.- The `slide members 30 may Vslide upwards `on the vertical arms {5f-and I6 when the chair is 'foldedclosed The seat support members 23 normallyY rest upon Ythe slide members 30.

Theseat support members 20-fare :associated with means operable by v:a Aperson sitting on `the seat 23 for adjusting 'said seatsupport members '20 lto various elevated :positions for adjusting the 'elevation'.of :the -seat 23. 1 kThis means' -in'- cludes ltelescoping mem-bers :'35, 36 and 31 which are free to expand l'at any timein yorder'that said slide vmembers 30 may zbermoved completely upwards by said lcrossed. i' arms' .125 to 'perm-it `folding -of fsaid wheel chair. vThe 'itelescoping members l'36 and` 31 "comprise respectively-the extendable telescopic member `36 land vthe/istationary telescopic member 31 'ofi-ashydraulic jack 38. The telescopic member 31 rigidly connected 'with the base 33 .of '-the yjack '38 `which `is -mounted upon the Itubular Jm'ember 2-1 of lone of the crossed arms 25.` The base `xnerlflber 39 has forked clampportions 4iwhic`h' engagey down the sides yof the tubular '.portion :21; frBoltsJAl engage through the bottom vends* ofthe yforked portions 43. A strap -42 isconnected Iwi-thone -of the forked portions 40 and withran'adjacent stationary portion of the frame l for lholding the jack 33 in a stationary position w-hilesper'- mitting the tubular .portion 21 to'turnduring the folding and opening of the chair.

The hydraulic jack-38 is provided witha handle 43 which extends upwards to a-position easily reached by a person sitting .onY the seat 23'. The handle 43 is hollow. A cable 45-passescthrough this yhandle 43 and connect-sat -theltop with a knob '46 which is turnably-n ioun-ted. V `This'knob r46 'may be turned for'turning the .cable-45A. The bottom end of "the "cable 45 'connects with 'the valve vcor'trol 41'o'ftlie ja`c`k38 so that -fthelperson "arm: 50 which extends downwards.

'the rod 5I at their bottom ends.

may turn the knob 46 in one direction to cause the telescopic member 36 to be moved upwards by operation of the handle 43 when desired. I'he knob 46 may also be turned in the other direction to adjust the Valve control 41 so that the weight of the person sitting on the seat 23 forces the telescopic member 36 of the `jack 38 downwards.

The telescopic member 36 is provided with an A rod 5l is supported 'at the bottom of the arm VEll. Support arms 52 and 53 are pivotally connected with The top ends ofthe support arms 52 and 53 are pivotally connected with brackets 54 mounted on one of the fseatrsupportmembers 20. The telescopic arm vfrom-their open positions to slightlyv Anarrower .positions to narrow said wheel chair. This 4means merely 'comprises a hook 55 adapted-to rigidly connect one of said slide members .30 and one of said seat support members 2l). Asillusltrated Fig. v6, the hook-55 is supported `onia bracket-,56 rigidly connected with said-seatisup- Vport member 20. The hook 55 has a .top handle 51 by which it may be manually turned to aposition .indicated by the dot and dash'lines 55".. In this latter position the hook 55 extends Ybe- `neathftheslide member 3G.l `Now when the jack v38 is operated to elevate the seatsupport members 20, the slide member 30 will be forced upwards. This will cause the `crossed arms 25150 be-pivoted which will iforce together the side lframes HL The side frames ,l0 -may be `forced 4together so as-to clamp against the buttocks -oi a person sitting on the seat. This represents .the narrow condition of the chair yin-whichit may -be narrowed `anywhere fromv two to liive 4inches or rmore, andf-be lcapable of passi-ng through a narrow doorway.

Saidseat l23 andsaid seat back I8 yare associated .-with'each'other and with means by which the back :portion of the Vseat :23 may .be -tilted upwards and simultaneously the seat back I8 may vbe raised in orderv to assist an arthritic personfromafsitting toa standing position. More particularly, theseat back -IIS -is v provided at each -of its sides -withaslide (it).Y Each sli-de60 vertically slidably engages a-track-Sl. mounted upon the backs ofthe vertical armsl t6. Theback fork ends 22 have oneofthe iingerszextending Yrearwards and 4passing through openings 62 formed inthe bottom portions of-the slides Alill. With this constructionwhen the backends of theseat: support-members 20 are tilted upwards, the slides-.60 will vbe -forced- -upwards vand will televate-the seat back 48.v Pivot screws 63 lare attached by chains 64 `to .the .front ends ofwthe .seat support members 21).v There vis one `rpivot Preferably, one' of the openings 65 is formed with threads 66 engageable by complementary threads 61 of the screws 63 by which' the screws 63 may be held in position. The telescopic member 35 isconnected with the seat support member 26 in a certain way, see Fig. 6. This way includes a lug projecting from the seat support member 28 through which screws 'II engage and by which the telescopic member 35 is rigidly connected with the seat support member 20. This connection is used when it is desired to elevate the seat 23. However, when it is desired to tilt the seat 23 it is necessary that the screws 1I be removed. .The top of the telescopic member 35 rigidly supports a pintle I2 welded in position which slidably engages a bracket 13 mounted from front to back upon the seat support member 20. Now when the telescopic member 35 is elevated by the jack 38, the pintle 12 is capable of sliding along the bracket 13 so as not to interfere with the arcuate path of the seat support member 20 during the tilting of the seat 23. v

The top ends of the support arms 52 and 53 are connected with the other seat support member 20 in a certain way, as clearly shown in Figs. 1l and 12. More particularly, the upper ends of the support arms 52 and 53 are engaged through tubular bearings `15. Pintle pins 16 are rigidly mounted on the top of the tubular bearings 13 and slidably engage brackets 1'I mounted from front to back upon the seat support member 28. Screws 18 normally engage through the seat support member 20 to the sides of the pintles 16 to normally hold the pintles 16 from sliding along the brackets 11. The screws 18 threadedly engage the tubular bearings 'I5 and hold them stationary. This permits the seat support member 20 to be elevatedv during vertical elevating of the seat 23. However, when it is desired to pivot the seat 23, the screws 18 are removed. Now the pintles 16 may slide along the brackets 11. Each pintle 16 is provided with an enlarged head 18 engaging along one of the sides of the brackets 11 to hold the pintles 16 from accidentally disengaging from the brackets 11. Now the support arms 52 and 53 may be elevated for tilting the said seat support member 20.

The operation of the new foldable wheel chair may be understood from the following:

In Figs. 1 to 2 the wheel chair is illustrated in a condition in which the seat 23 thereof may be elevated and then moved downwards. To elevate the seat 23 it is merely necessary for the person sitting on the seat 23 to move the jack handle 43 forwards and backwards so as to cause the jack 38 to operate to extend the telescopic member 36 thereof. When the member 36 moved upwards, the telescopic member 35 will move one of the seat support members 20 upwards, and simultaneous the support arms 52 and 53 which are supported by the downwardly extended arm 50 rigidly connected with the telescopic member 36, will move the other of the seat support members 20 upwards. This elevates the seat 23. Fig. 14 illustrates in full lines a half way elevated position of the seat 23. The seat 23 may be elevated until it strikes the arm rests I4. This elevating action permits a handicapped person to raise himself to reach objects normally out of reach. The seatv 23 may be lowered merely by turning the knob 46 so that the cable 45 operates the valve connection 41 of the jack 38 to release the uid 4which'elevated'member 36. Then the weight of the person will cause the telescopiclmember 36 of the jack 38 to move downwards and the seat `23 will be moved to its lowered position.

The wheel chair may be narrowed so that it may pass through narrow doors, as follows: The person sitting on the seat 23 merely turns the hook 55 to the position 55 illustrated in Fig.- 6 so as to extend beneath the lslide member 30. Now the jack handle 43 is manipulated to operate the jack 38 so as to cause the telescopic member 36 to move upwards. The hook-55 will' drag the slide member 30 upwards. Upward motion of the slide member 36 will be communicated .by the crossed arms 25` to the side frames .I0 causing the side frames I0 to be drawn towards each other and in this way narrowing the wheel chair. The chair may be narrowed to a position in which the side frames I0 press against the buttocks of the person in the chair. This represents the narrowest position of the chair. The :wheel chair isv widened again to its normal position merely by operating the knob 46 to cause the cable 45 to adjust the valve connection I41 of the jack 38 so that the weight of the person on the seat 23 causes the telescopic member 36 of the vjack to move downwards. In this way the seat support members 20 and slide members 3i! are moved downwards and the crossed arms 25 will move the slide frames I0 outwardsto their normal positions.

The seat 23 may be tilted to assist an arthritic person from a sitting to a .standing Upositionas follows: The pivot screws 63 are engaged through the opening 65 in theforked ends 2| and the vertical arms I5 in order to pivotally connect the front ends of the seat support members 20 with the vertical arms I5. Now the seat support members 20 are capable of pivoting upwards about the pivot screws 63 as centers. The screws 1I are now removed-so as to freey thepintle 12 in relation to the brackets 13. The screws 18 are now removed in order to free the pintles 16 in relation to the brackets 11. Now the jack handle 43 is operated in the usual way so as to extend the telescopic member 36 of the jack 38. This causes the support arms 52 and 53 to be also moved upwards. The pinsI 'I6 and 12 now slide in the brackets 11 and 13, respectively, lifting the back of the seat support members 20 in order to pivot the seat support members 20. The seat support members 20 may be pivoted upwards to a position, for example, as illustrated in Fig. 14 by the dot and dash lines 20'. The extensions 22 of the forked ends 22 will simultaneously force the slides 60 upwards and in this way elevate the seat back I8 as indicated by the dot and dash lines I8' in Fig. 14. In the tilted position of the seat 23 and the raised position of the seat back I8, the person is assisted from a sitting to a standing position.

The foldable wheel chair is at all times free to be folded when desired. In order to fold the wheel chair it is merely necessary to lift the slide members 38 upwards and then press the side frames I0 together so that the side frames I 0 move al1 the way together, as illustrated in Fig. 13. It should be noted that the telescopic member 35 is automatically moved upwards in relation to the telescopic member 36 during this folding operation. This extension is necessary in order to permit the wheel chair to be manipulated to its completely folded condition. It is further pointed out that the telescopic members 35 and 36 of the jack 38 are always free to be 'extended sinceithe fluid ofia :jack lwill/not interff'erewit'h thisaction-f While I 'haveillustrated and described the '.pre-

ferred embodiment 'of my invention, it is'to fbe :understood vthat Ido not limit 'myself to the precise construction hereindisclosed and the right `is reserved to allch'an'ges and modications 'com- "ing rWithin thescope of the invention as 'dened in the appended claims;

Having thus vdescribed .my linvention, v.WhatA I `claim as tnevv and `desire rto secure' by United States Letters Patent is:y

LA foldable Wheel chair; comprising a pair'of Side Vvframes with Whee1s,` a `iiexible seat vback mounted between said frames, a Vslide "member vertically. slidably -mounted on each `of said frames; stops 'for determining the bottom .positions of "said slideV members, a I*pair f crossed arms .pivotally l'connected at ytheir centers and havingtheir.bottom-ends pivotally' connectedfwith `said side iframes and having their top ends piv- -otallyconnectedwith said 'slide members for controlling r the Hfolding 'together and opening of said side frames, 'a Iseat supportmember vertically .'slidably mounted on eachvof said :frames :immediately above said siide members, a flexible seat mounted between said seat support members,fand means.' operable bya person sitting on vsaid seat for adjusting Isaid .seat supportmembersA :to various elevated vpositions for `adjusting the elevation of said seat, said means including te'lescoping members 'Whichfare free to'extend at A.any time in order thatsaid slide members may `bewmdved 'completely-` upwards by vsaid crossed 'armste permit folding of said chair, said tele- :scoping members lincluding .a jack mounted on one of -Lsaid sideframesand having its extendable telescopic member yconnected with one Aof said seat-support -members, '.andsupport arms piv- 1otaily connected with said extendable 'telescopic member'and with said other of fsaid seat support members. l

A 4foldable wheel chair, comprising .a pair fof v"side frames with wheels, a flexible seat back mounted `between `said Vframes, a slide member vertically slidably mounted .on :leach of said frames, stopsifor v.determining the `bottom positions of said slide members, a pair of crossed rarms 'zpivotaily :connected `at their centers and -havingitheirfbottom end'slpi-votally'connected .with said-sideframesand having'their top ends'pivotally connected With-said slide members forconftrollingvzthe folding ftogetherand opening of vsaid side frames, vavseat 'support member vertically slidabl'y mounted'omeac'h of Asaid `frames imme diate'lyabove saidslide members, a flexible-seat mounted -betwee'nfsaidvseatsupport members, and means'operablebyia person sitting on said seat foradjusting -saidlseatrsupport members to vari-- ous elevated positions?foradjusting `the 'elevation of said rseat, said means 4including--telescoping members'which are `free Vto extend at anytime in order that-said'lslidemembersmay'be moved com*- ,pletely :upwards lbysaid crossed arms Cto permit -folding of saidchairy-said Achair including means `for rigidly connecting anvadjac'ent pair :of said slide members and said seat*supportmemberszfor partially closing said'side frameswhen said seat support members are adjusted upwards.

3.- A-foldable Wheel chair as'deiined in claimQ, in which said means ffor rigidly connecting lsaid members-comprises afhookzon one of said members engageable with the other of said members.

MONROE ARNOLD LERlWAN.

References 'Cited intlieflefof this patentA UNITED 'STATESIPTENTS Number Name Date 2,354,949 Duc'avich --.ma Aug. 1, 1944 2,442,303 Mayeld uw May 25, 194.8

FOREIGN PATEN TS Niunber Country Date 531,184 Great Britain 1.. Dec. `31, `194:0

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