WO2001058403A1

WO2001058403A1 - Chassis for an electric driven wheel chair

Info

Publication number: WO2001058403A1
Application number: PCT/NO2001/000046
Authority: WO
Inventors: Stefan Solberg
Original assignee: Stefan Solberg
Priority date: 2000-02-09
Filing date: 2001-02-08
Publication date: 2001-08-16
Also published as: NO311555B1; AU2001234262A1; NO20000650L; NO20000650D0

Abstract

Chassis for an electric drivel wheel chair for combined use outdoor and indoor and as a working chair, where each of the two driving wheels (1) of the wheel chair are supported on a pivoting lever (3), that each pivoting lever (3) being supported on a transversally arranged shaft (4), that each shaft (4) being supported axially displaceable and rotatable in a bushing (5) being rigidly connected with the chassis, the shafts (4) being rotatable from a position where the wheels (1) lifts the chassis from the surface to a position where the chassis or the wheel chair rest on the surface and the wheels (1) are free from the surface, and that the rear, freely rotatable wheels (2) being supported in such a way on a cross plate (8) being displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the chair, that the distance between the two rear wheels (2) may be increased to increase the stability of the chair.

Description

Chassis for an electric driven wheel chair

The present invention is related to an electric driven wheel chair for combined use outdoor and indoor and as a working chair.

Wheel chair users normally have two wheel chairs, some have three, namely one wheel chair adapted for indoor use, i.e. for use on a flat surface, especially on a floor. Such wheel chairs may also carefully be used for driving on for example asphalt and such.

Wheel chairs intended for use outdoors are normally large and almost impossible to use indoors. There exists further one type of wheel chairs, which in the principle are intended for use outdoors, but which with some limitation also may be used indoors.

Electrical wheel chairs are expensive to purchase which means large payments for the government, and additionally there are large disadvantages for some users to maintain and store two maybe three wheel chairs.

With the wheel chair according to the present invention, the above mentioned disadvantages are avoided as one wheel chair covers all ranges or use. The wheel chair according to the present invention likewise well suited as a children's chair and combines further embodiments, such as a specific series for children's chairs.

The above mentioned disadvantages with known wheel chairs and advantages with the wheel chair according to the present invention are achieved with the wheel chair as defined by the features stated in the claims.

The drawing discloses in figure 1 schematically a side view of a wheel chair according to the invention and figure 2 discloses a ground view of the chassis of the wheel chair.

Each of the front wheels 1, the driving wheels, of the wheel chair, are secured with a motor on a pivoting lever 3 which at a distance from the wheel support, is connected with a shaft 4. The shaft 4 from each wheel is guided into a bushing 5, which is rigidly connected with the frame of the chassis. When the pivoting levers 3 are tilted upwardly, the chassis will be lowered until the footrest 6 of the wheel chair rests on the ground or floor. If the pivoting levers 3 are rotated further, the wheels 1 are lifted up in such a way that the wheels are free from the ground. In this position, the shafts 4 may be displaced into and out of the bushings 5 to change the track width of the wheels 1, such as from a narrow position for indoor use to a wider and more stable position for outdoor use.

In this position the wheels also may be cleaned as they may be moved up to brushes secured to the wheel chair and may be rotated by the normally driving means of the wheel chair. The rear wheel 2 of the wheel chair is completely rotatable and secured to a triangulate plate, the other corner of which being rotatably connected with a guiding bar 9. The third corner of the triangulate plate 7 being rotatably secured to a cross plate 8 which again is displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the wheel chair. In the retracted position of the cross plate 8 the wheels 2 will be arranged relatively short behind the front wheel 1 and relatively closely together, in such a way that the wheel chair is well suited for indoor use when also the front wheels 1 are adjusted closely to each other.

By displacing the cross plate 8 rearwardly, preferably by a telescopic guidance, the guiding bar 9 will control the triangle plates 7 in such a way that the front ends 10 of the guiding arms each make contact with one guiding ring 11, the triangulate plates 7 thereby will be rotated outwardly when the cross plate 8 still is displaced backwardly in such a way that the wheels 2 are brought outwardly to a maximum width and thereby an increased stability.

With the pivoting levers 3 the seat of the wheel chair may be adjusted according to the users desires, from a negative tilting, i.e. with the surface of the seat facing forwardly, to a desired positive tilting and further, depending on the length of the pivoting levers 3.

All movements are electrically, such as the rotation of the pivoting levers 3 around the shafts 4, the axial displacement of the shafts 4 and the displacement of the cross plate 8 in the longitudinal direction of the wheel chair.

With the possibility of a 180° rotation of the seat of the wheel chair, the wheel chair with the chassis according to the present invention also is well suited as a working chair by corresponding adjustments of the driving wheels 1 and the rear wheels 2 respectively.

Claims

P a t e n t C l a i m s

1. Chassis for an electric driven wheel chair for combined use outdoor and indoor and as a working chair, characterized in each of the two driving wheels (1) of the wheel chair being supported on a pivoting lever (3), that each pivoting lever (3) being supported on a trans versally arranged shaft (4), that each shaft (4) being supported axially displaceable and rotatable in a bushing (5) being rigidly connected with the chassis, the shafts (4) being rotatable from a position where the wheels (1) lifts the chassis from the surface to a position where the chassis or the wheel chair rest on the surface and the wheels (1) are free from the surface, and that the rear, freely rotatable wheels (2) being supported in such a way on a cross plate (8) being displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the chair, that the distance between the two rear wheels (2) may be increased to increase the stability of the chair.

2. Chassis according to previous claim, characterized in a triangulate plate (7) from each side being rotatably connected with the transversal plate (8), that a rear wheel (9) being rotatably connected with each triangulate plate (7) and that each triangulate plate (7) in the hindmost position being rotated in such a way by a guiding bar (9) that the wheels assume a maximum distance from each other.