AU2006235966B2

AU2006235966B2 - Personnel hoist

Info

Publication number: AU2006235966B2
Application number: AU2006235966A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Peter Gargett
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-06-05
Filing date: 2006-11-10
Publication date: 2010-01-07
Anticipated expiration: 2022-06-05
Also published as: AU2006235966A1

Description

P/00/011 Regulation 3.2 AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: "PERSONNEL HOIST" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: 1 TITLE: PERSONNEL HOIST BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention THIS INVENTION relates to a personnel hoist. 5 The invention is particularly suitable for, but not limited to, a personnel hoist for transferring a person between a wheelchair and a seat in a vehicle. The hoist may also be used to transfer animals or loads into, or out of, vehicles. The term "person" shall be used to include animals, loads 10 or the like. 2. Prior Art The number of persons requiring the use of wheelchairs is increasing, eg., due to disability, illness or infirmity, or as a result of accidents. The mobility of such persons is of considerable concern. Often, 15 the mobility of such persons is severely limited, due to the difficulties encountered by carers in transferring persons between their wheelchairs and motor vehicles for transport. There have been many proposals for methods, and apparatus, for transferring persons between wheelchairs and vehicles. One example is 20 a specially designed unit fitted between the vehicle floor and an existing passenger seat, enabling the passenger seat to be swung to a position outside the vehicle adjacent a wheelchair. However, such a unit does not assist the carer in transferring the person from the wheelchair to the vehicle seat.

2 SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a hoist which enables a person to be transferred between a wheelchair and a vehicle seat. 5 It is a preferred object of the present invention to provide such a hoist that allows the person to sit in the original seat of a vehicle. It is a further preferred object of the present invention to provide a hoist where no modifications are required to the interior of the vehicle. 10 It is a further preferred object of the present invention to provide such a hoist where the carer or helper does not have to lift or slide the person from the wheelchair into the car. It is a still further preferred object of the present invention to provide a hoist where most, or all, of the hoist can be removed from the 15 vehicle when not required. It is a still further preferred object to provide a hoist which incorporates a removable, or retractable, stabilizing leg, strut or like device. Further preferred objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description. 20 In a broad aspect, the present invention resides in a personnel hoist, operable to transfer a person from a wheelchair to a vehicle seat, or vice versa, including: 3 track or rail means having a fixed rail mountable on the roof of a vehicle and a movable rail operable to be moved between a first, retracted, position above the vehicle and a second, extended, position extending past the roof of the vehicle adjacent a doorway of the vehicle; Preferably the track 5 or rail means is telescopic wherein the movable rail is telescopically mounted to the fixed rail. In an alternative embodiment, the movable rail may be pivotally attached to the fixed rail. hoist means at a distal end of the movable rail; and a sling means on the hoist means operable to engage at least 10 the torso of a person to be transferred from the wheelchair to the vehicle seat or vice versa. While the fixed rail may be permanently mounted on the roof of the vehicle, it is preferably releasably mounted on brackets, or on a roof rack assembly, to enable removal when the hoist is not required. 15 Preferably, bearing means, eg., roller or ball bearings, are provided between the fixed and movable rails. While the hoist means may be a manually operable hoist, it is preferable that it be electrically operable, and may have one or more rechargeable batteries or be connectable to the accessory outlet of the 20 vehicle. Preferably, the sling means is releasably connectable to the hoist means and may include a first sling member operable to be engaged under the person's rump and/or upper legs, and a second sling member operable to engage the person's upper torso, preferably, the upper back and 25 under the armpits.

4 A remote control unit may be provided to control the hoist means and be connected thereto by a suitable cable. To reduce the load on the vehicle roof, or mounting brackets, support means,' may be releasably attached to the fixed rail or to the 5 movable rail. Preferably, the support means has a post, connectable to the movable rail, With an adjustable foot. The post may be hingedly or releasably connected to the movable rail. In one embodiment the post may comprise two legs separable to form an inverted "V" support. 10 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS To enable the invention to be fully understood, a preferred embodiment will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the hoist assembled to lift a 15 person from a Wheelchair into a vehicle; FIG. 2 is a similar view showing the person and attendant carer; FIGS. 3 to 7 are perspective views showing the steps of assembling the hoist from the transport position to the lifting position; 20 FIG 8 is a perspective view of an embodiment in which the post is formed by two legs; and FIG 9 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG 8 in a stowed configuration.

5 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIGS. 1-2, the personnel hoist 10 is operable to transfer a person 100 between a wheelchair 101 and the existing car seat 102, eg., the passenger's seat, of a (left-hand drive) vehicle 103, assisted by 5 a carer 104. The adjacent door 105, shown in dashed lines, is shown in the open position. The personnel hoist 10 has a telescopic rail assembly 20 (optionally releasably) mounted on support brackets 106 (on a roof rack) on the roof 107 of the vehicle 103. 10 The telescopic rail assembly 20 has a fixed rail 21 (eg., of rectangular hollow section (RHS) steel or aluminium), in which is telescopically mounted a movable rail 22, eg., of lipped C-channel section) supported by suitable bearings (or bushes) not shown. A hook member 30, of C-shape in front view, has a top arm 31, 15 with rollers 32, enagageable in the movable rail 22, where the leg 33 is received in the slot 23 in the underside of the movable rail 22. A lower arm 34 has a lip or stop 35 and is adapted to be engaged by a loop or anchor 41 at the distal end of a cable 42 extending from the portable electrical hoist or lifter 40. 20 The hoist or lifter 40 may have a rechargeable battery pack and/or may be connectable to an electrical accessory outlet in the vehicle 103. The hoist or lifter 40 may be operated by integral controls; or by a remote control (not shown) operated by the carer 104. A sling assembly 50 is releasably connectable to hooks 43 on the hoist or lifter 40. The sling 25 assembly 50 may have a first sling member 51 to pass under the person's 6 legs and a second sling member 52 to engage the person's torso. To provide additional stability to the hoist 10, to counteract the weight of the person 100 and/or increase the load support capability of the vehicle roof 107, a support assembly 60 has post 61 releasably connectable 5 to the distal end of the movable rail 22, with an adjustable foot 62. While the foot 62 has been illustrated with a screw-threaded adjustment 63, the foot 61 can have an extension, with holes, receivable in the post 62 and a removable pin (not shown) can engage aligned holes in the post 61 and the foot extension to effect the adjustment. 10 The operation of the hoist will now be described. Referring to FIG. 3, the personnel hoist 10 is shown in the transport mode. (Usually, the hook member 30, the hoist or lifter 40 and sling assembly 50 will be carried in the vehicle (or in the luggage compartment thereof.) 15 As'shown in FIG. 4, the support assembly 60 is pulled from the movable rail 22, the post 61 being nested therein (and the foot 62 providing a weatherproof cap). The movable rail 22 is then pulled to its extended position, as shown in FIG. 5,. The upper arm 31 of the hook member 30 is inserted into the 20 movable rail 22,'with the leg 33 extending down through the slot 23 in the underside of the movable rail 22, and the rollers 32 engaging the inturned lips or flanges 24 of the movable rail 22 - see FIG. 6. The upper end of the post 61 of the support assembly 60 is connected to the distal end of the movable rail 22, by a suitable connector 25 (not shown) and the foot 62 is adjusted to engage the adjacent surface.

7 The loop or anchor 41 of the hoist or lifter 40 is connected to the lower arm 34 of the hook member 30. The person 100 is wheeled in the wheelchair 101 adjacent the open door 105 and the slings 51, 52 of the sling assembly 50 are engaged 5 with his legs/torso. The hoist or lifter 40 is lowered, by reeling out the cable 42, until the slings 51, 52 can be engaged with the hooks 43 or the hoist or lifter 40. The hoist or lifter 40 is raised, by reeling in the cable 42, until 10 the carer 104 can pull the wheelchair free. The carer 104 pushes the hook member 30 inwardly, so that the top arm 31 travels along the movable rail 22, until the person 100 is above the vehicle seat 102. In one embodiment, a powered drive may be provided to advance and retract the hook member. A simple electrical worm 15 drive may be used. The hoist or lifter 40 is lowered to place the person 100 in the seat 102 and the slings 51, 52 are detached from the hoist or lifter 40 and are removed from under/around the person 100. The assembly steps of the personnel hoist 10 are reversed to 20 ready it for transport, as per FIG. 3. To lift the person 100 from the seat 102, the personnel hoist 10 is assembled as hereinbefore described and lifts the person 100 from the vehicle seat 102 to the wheelchair 101. The personnel hoist 10 can be arranged to lift persons/ loads 25 into/out of doors at the front, sides and/or rear of the vehicle 103.

8 FIG 8 shows an alternative arrangement of a personnel hoist 110 having a post 161 formed by two legs 161A and 161B which are separable to provide an inverted "V" support. This further stabilises the hoist 110 in use. In this case the legs 161A and 161 B may be swung up alongside 5 the rail assembly 120 for storage. The legs are formed by two telescopic sections locked in place by lock pins 162. The rail assembly 120 may then be pivoted around pivot point 111 and laid back parallel to the longitudinal midline of the vehicle in travel, thereby minimising drag. In this embodiment the hook member 130 is formed with an outer sleeve 131 dimensioned to fit 10 over the rail assembly 120 and slide along it. Both are formed with complementary circular cross sections. Depending on the anticipated load, the sleeve and rail may be simply surface to surface or may include an appropriate roller assembly. The surfaces may be low friction surfaces. FIG 9 shows the personnel hoist pivoted and stowed for travel. 15 The rail assembly 120 may be rotatable through 90 degrees to better stow the legs. For animals or packages, different slings are used. Other potential applications are possible. It will be readily apparent to the skilled addresee that the carer 20 does not have to lift a person from the wheelchair to the vehicle seat or vice versa. Advantages of the present invention include: 1. It utilises a battery-powered hoist which can also be used in house for lifting disabled people on/off toilets, beds, etc., provided 25 suitable tracks are installed. The hoist may comprise a self contained worm 9 drive motor powered from the cigarette lighter of the vehicle to provide lifting. (This can represent considerable savings as it obviates the need for duplication of the lifting unit.) 2. It allows the person to sit in the original seat of the 5 vehicle. 3. No modifications are necessary to the interior of the vehicle. 4. ' It is fixed (or optionally removable) from the brackets or roof rack on the vehicle. 10 5. The carer or helper does not have to lift or slide the person from the wheelchair into the vehicle. 6. The majority of the personnel hoist can be removed from the vehicle when not required - the telescopic rails can be removed from the brackets or roof rack when long periods of non-use are anticipated. 15 7. The personnel hoist is relatively inexpensive to manufacture/purchase, and is easily operable. 8. The design incorporates provision for posts at the outer end thereby changing the load from a cantilever force to a simple beam this dramatically reduces the loads on the car. This is a significant factor as 20 there are less and less cars being manufactured with roof gutters. (The track, with the posts folded alongside, may swivel to lie parallel to the length of the car and be fastened to the roof racks for travel.) 9. The design can be used on cars where the roof rack facility is built into the roof, as in the majority of such cases, the roofs are not 10 designed for the loads which would be involved in the cantilever configuration. 10. As the built in roof rack provisions in many cars terminate on or about the line of the central pillar and would not allow access 5 to the front seat, the design incorporates provision for an accessory to enable the assisted person to sit in the front passenger seat of the car. Various changes and modifications may be made to the embodiment described and illustrated without departing from the present invention.

Claims

1. A personnel hoist, operable to transfer a person from a wheelchair to a vehicle seat, or vice versa, including: track or rail means having a fixed rail mountable on the roof of 5 a vehicle and a movable rail operable to be moved from a first, retracted, position above the vehicle and a second, extended, position extending past the roof of the vehicle adjacent a doorway of the vehicle; hoist means at a distal end of the movable rail; a sling means on the hoist means operable to engage at least the torso of a person to be 10 transferred from the wheelchair to the vehicle seat or vice versa; and a support member releasably attached to the fixed rail on the movable rail.

2. The personnel hoist of claim 1 wherein the movable rail is telescopically mounted to the fixed rail. 15

3. The personnel hoist of claim 1 wherein the movable rail is pivotally mounted to the fixed rail.

4. The personnel hoist of Claim 1 wherein: the fixed rail is permanently mounted on the roof of the vehicle.

5. The personnel hoist of Claim 1 wherein the fixed rail is 20 releasably mounted on brackets or on a roof rack assembly to enable removal when the hoist is not required.

6. The personnel hoist as claimed in Claim 1or Claim 2 wherein: bearing means are provided between fixed and movable rails.

7. The personnel hoist as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 6 12 wherein: the hoist means is a manually operated hoist.

8. The personnel hoist as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 6 wherein: 5 the hoist is electrically operable, having one or more rechargeable batteries or is adapted for connection to an accessory electrical outlet of the vehicle.

9. The personnel hoist as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 8 10 wherein: the sling means is releasably connectable to the hoist means, and includes a first sling member operable to be engaged under a person's rump and/or upper legs, and a second sling member operable to engage the person's upper torso, including the upper back and/or under the armpits. 15

10. The personnel hoist as claimed in Claim 8 wherein: a remote control unit is provided to control the electrically operable hoist means.

11. The personnel hoist as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 10 wherein: 20 the support means comprises a post, connected to the movable rail, the post having an adjustable foot.

12. The personnel hoist of claim 11 wherein the post is formed by two legs separable to form an inverted "V" support.

13. The personnel hoist of any one of Claims 1 to 12 wherein the 13 support member folds alongside the movable rail or rail assembly and is pivotally mounted thereto.

14. The personnel hoist of any one of Claims 1 to 13 wherein the support member and track or rail means pivot through 90 degrees to lie 5 along the direction of travel in storage.

15. A personnel hoist substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to FIGS 1 to 7 or FIGS 8 and 9.

16. A method of transferring a person from a wheelchair to a vehicle, or vice versa, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference 10 to the accompanying drawings.