JPH10277110A - Walking assisting wheelchair - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable a user to dispense with the moving around the seat part when the posture is changed between walking and seating. SOLUTION: When a user walks, the user stands behind the seating part 13 in the state that a movable handle 15 is put in the position for walking and holds the movable handle 15, then the user can walk while supporting his own body by the movable handle 15 and while pushing a walking assisting wheelchair. When the user takes a rest, after the movable handle 15 has been displaced to the seating position, only if the user changes his posture backwards on the spot, then he can seat on the seating part 13 as he is. Since the user can avoid moving around the seating part 13 at the time when the posture is changed between walking and seating, the burden to the user can be remarkably reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a walking assist vehicle provided with a seat.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 shows a conventional walking assist vehicle used by elderly people. The walking assist vehicle A has a frame 1 having wheels 2 attached to a lower end, a luggage storage unit 4 provided on the frame 1 and having a seating portion 3 on the upper surface, and a rear portion of the frame 1 extending upward. A handle 5, armrests 6 provided on both sides of the frame 5, and a backrest 7 raised at the rear of the seat 3. When walking by pushing the walking assist vehicle A, the upper body can be supported by standing behind the walking assist vehicle A and grasping the handle 5, and when taking a break,
Around the front of the walking assist vehicle A, the user can sit down on the seating section 3 and support the arms and back with the armrest 6 and the backrest 7. In the walking assist vehicle A, the user must move from the rear side to the front side of the walking assist vehicle A when he stops walking and sits down, and must move from the front side to the rear side of the walking assist vehicle A when he starts walking again. However, considering that the user of the walking assist vehicle A is an elderly person who has difficulty in physical freedom, requesting the operation of moving the walking assist vehicle A back and forth as described above requires: This implies a heavy burden on the user.

As another conventional walking assist vehicle B, there is one disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-22661. As shown in FIG. 7, the armrest is removed from the side of the walking assist vehicle B, and the handle frame 8 is displaced from a standing state (not shown) to a laid state shown in FIG. It is intended to be used as an armrest or a backrest. Since there is no armrest beside the walking assist vehicle B, the walking assist vehicle B can sit sideways with respect to the walking assist vehicle B, and therefore, the distance traveled when starting to sit or start walking is shown in FIG. There is an advantage that it can be shorter than the walking assist vehicle A. However, this walking assistance vehicle B has the same disadvantages as the walking assistance vehicle A in that it forces the user to perform a burdensome operation of moving between a standing position when walking and a standing position when sitting. No change. Further, since the handle frame 8 plays only one of the role of the armrest and the backrest, there are disadvantages that the comfort at the time of sitting is poor and the body cannot be stably held. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a walking assist vehicle that does not require a user to move around a seating part when changing posture between walking and sitting. It is intended to be. Another object of the present invention is to improve comfort when sitting and improve stability of body holding.

[0004]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a frame provided with wheels and capable of moving on a road or the like includes:
A seating portion and a movable handle are provided, and the movable handle is configured to protrude upward at a rear portion of the seating portion so that a user can hold the seated portion in a posture standing behind the seating portion. It is possible to displace between a seating use position in which the seated portion is retracted from the rear portion to the front portion and a user standing behind the seated portion can sit backward on the seated portion. The configuration is as follows.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the movable handle includes a horizontally long grip for gripping and a pair of arms extending from both ends of the grip. A backrest capable of supporting the user's back at the sitting use position is provided, and the arm is provided with an armrest capable of supporting the user's arm at the sitting use position.

[0006]

Actions and effects of the present invention

<Invention of claim 1> When a user walks, if the user stands behind the seat and grips the movable handle while the movable handle is in the walking use position, the user will have his / her own body. It is possible to walk while pushing the walking assist vehicle while supporting with the movable handle. When taking a break, after the movable handle is displaced to the seating use position, if the user changes his posture backwards on the spot, the user can sit on the seating portion as it is. When walking is started again, the user may stand up, reverse his or her posture on the spot, turn forward, and displace the movable handle to the use position for walking. As described above, since the user does not need to move around the seating part when changing his posture between walking and sitting, the burden on the user can be greatly reduced.

<Invention of Claim 2> In a state where the movable handle is displaced to the use position for sitting and sits on the seating portion, the backrest supports the back of the seated person and the armrest supports the arm of the seated person. Thus, the upper body of the seated person is stably held, and the comfort when seated is improved.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Embodiment 1 Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The walking assist vehicle according to the present embodiment includes a frame 10, a seat 13, and a movable handle 15.
It is comprised including. The frame 10 includes a horizontally long front guard frame 10A disposed at the lower end of the front part of the walking assist vehicle, a pair of left and right front side frames 10B that extend diagonally upward and rearward from both left and right ends of the front guard frame 10A, Frame 10B
A pair of left and right rear side frames 10C that are welded to the upper end of the front side and extend obliquely downward and rearward, and a rear support frame 10 that has both left and right end parts welded to both rear side frames 10C.
D. At the left and right ends of the front guard frame 10A and at the lower ends of both rear side frames 10C, respectively,
A wheel 11 is attached, and the frame 11 can be moved on a road or the like by the wheel 11.

The frame 10 has a box-shaped luggage storage section 12.
Is mounted by being supported by the front side frame 10B and the rear side frame 10C, and a lid-like seating portion 13 capable of opening and closing an opening on the upper surface of the luggage storage portion 12 is mounted by a hinge mechanism (not shown). . In a state where the seat 13 is leveled so as to close the opening of the luggage storage unit 12, the user of the walking assist vehicle can sit down on the seat 13. This seat 13
A pad material in which an elastic material such as urethane is covered with a skin, vinyl, or the like is attached to the seating surface. Note that the above-described rear support frame 10D is arranged along the rear surface of the luggage storage unit 12, so that the user can move the luggage storage unit 1
2, that is, the rear support frame 10D does not need to be in the way when the leg is placed behind the seat 13.

A movable handle 15 is attached to upper ends of both front side frames 10B of the frame 10. The movable handle 15 includes a handle body 15A formed by bending a pipe so as to form a substantially rectangular frame, and a pair of left and right arms 15 welded to both left and right sides of the handle body 15A.
B and the handle body 15A when viewed from the side.
And the arm 15B have a substantially "T" shape. The movable handle 15 is rotatably supported at the extending ends of both arms 15B by the upper end of the front side frame 10B via a hinge mechanism 16.

The hinge mechanism 16 will be described with reference to FIG. 5. Two bearing portions 17A and 17B are formed at the upper end of each front side frame 10B, respectively, between the two bearing portions 17A and 17B. A protruding rotating plate 18 is fitted to the extending end of the arm 15B, and the bearing portions 17A, 17B
The rotation plate 18 and the rotation plate 18 are connected by a support shaft 19 in the left-right direction so as to be relatively rotatable. The cylindrical body 20 is attached to the arm 15B.
A stopper pin 22 is provided in a state where the stopper pin 22 is housed in the housing and is urged in the protruding direction by the compression coil spring 21. . When the stopper pin 22 is fitted in the recess 23, the arm 15B is held at a position (hereinafter referred to as a walking use position) that extends linearly with respect to the front side frame 10B.

When the operation pin 24 projecting from the stopper pin 22 is pulled up against the bias of the compression coil spring 21, the stopper pin 22 comes off the concave portion 23, and the movable handle 15 is tilted forward with respect to the front side frame 10B. Is acceptable. When the movable handle 15 is displaced forward, the distal end of the stopper pin 22 is pressed against the outer periphery of the bearing 17A by the compression coil spring 21.
Since the outer periphery of 7A has a smooth arc shape, both the forward tilt displacement of the movable handle 15 and the return displacement in the rising direction are performed smoothly.

To the front side frame 10B, a triangular stopper rib 25 for restricting the movable handle 15 from further tilting forward by contacting the arm 15B tilted forward is fixed by welding. In a state where the arm 15B is in contact with the stopper rib 25 (hereinafter, referred to as a seating use position), the arm 15B is substantially horizontal and the handle body 15A is substantially vertical. As described above, the movable handle 15 is rotatable between the walking use position and the sitting use position, which protrude obliquely upward at the rear portion of the seat 13 around the support shaft 19.

The handle body 15 of the movable handle 15
The side of the pipe frame constituting A, which is on the rear side in the walking use position, is a grip 26 that can be gripped by the user.
(See FIG. 2). The grip 26 has a thickness suitable for being gripped by the user, and the user can walk while pushing the walking assist vehicle by gripping the grip 26. In the pipe frame of the handle body 15A, a protrusion 27 (see FIG. 2) is provided on both sides of the grip 26. When the elbow is stretched while the grip 26 is gripped, the arm protrudes. It can rest on the movable handle 15 on the part 27.

The handle body 1 of the movable handle 15
5A is provided with a backrest 30, and the arm 15B is provided with an armrest 31. The backrest 30 has a pad in which an elastic material such as urethane is covered with a skin or vinyl or the like is attached to a substrate (not shown), and the pad is faced to the rear side in a state where the movable handle 15 is in a seating use position. The handle body 15 </ b> A is fixed so as to fit inside the pipe frame of the handle main body 15 </ b> A. The armrest 31 has a pad in which an elastic material such as urethane is covered with a skin, vinyl, or the like is attached to an elongated substrate, and the pad faces upward in a state where the movable handle 15 is in the seating use position (for walking). The substrate is fixed so as to be along the upper surface of the arm 15B so that the substrate faces the rear side in the use position).

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
When pushing the walking assist vehicle of the present embodiment to walk, as shown in FIG. 1, the movable handle 15 is raised to the walking use position. At this time, when the movable handle 15 reaches the walking use position when the stopper pin 22 is retracted and slides on the outer periphery of the bearing portion 17A, the stopper pin 22 is fitted into the recess 23 by the elastic force of the compression coil spring 21 and is movable. The handle 15 is held at the walking use position. In this state, the movable handle 15 projects obliquely rearward and upward at the rear portion of the seat 13, so that the user stands behind the seat 13 and moves the movable handle 1 as shown in FIG.
5, the user can walk while pushing the walking assist vehicle while supporting his body with the movable handle 15 as shown in FIG. 3.

At the time of a break, the operation pin 24 may be pulled up against the elasticity of the compression coil spring 21 to remove the stopper pin 22 from the recess 23, and the movable handle 15 may be tilted forward. Then, the movable handle 15 is held at the seating use position by the arm 15B contacting the stopper rib 25 (see FIG. 2). At this time, the arm 15
If the user pushes the movable handle 15 until B is tilted forward from the vertical, the movable handle 15 is tilted forward by its own weight.
You do not need to press 5. When the movable handle 15 is displaced to the seating use position, the handle main body 15A of the movable handle 15 is positioned so as to be retracted from the rear portion of the seat portion 13 upward to the front end portion. Is an open space without any obstruction. Therefore, the user can use the seat 13 as in the case of walking.
If you change your posture backwards on the spot while standing behind, you can sit on the seat 13 as it is (see FIG. 4). In the seated state, the back of the user is supported by the backrest 30 and the arm is supported by the armrest 31, so that the upper body of the seated person is stably held and a comfortable feeling of use is obtained. In addition, when walking is started again, the user only needs to stand up, reverse his or her posture on the spot, turn forward, and displace the movable handle 15 to the use position for walking.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the user does not have to move around the walking assist vehicle when changing his posture between walking and sitting, so that the user is free to move freely like an elderly person. The burden on users who have become more difficult to use is greatly reduced. The movable handle 15 has a backrest 3.
0 and armrest 31 provide high stability when seated,
Excellent sitting comfort. <Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and illustrated in the drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. Various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

(1) In the above embodiment, when the movable handle is displaced to the seating use position, the movable handle is tilted forward about the horizontal support shaft. However, according to the present invention, the movable handle is centered about the vertical axis. You may make it rotate. (2) In the above embodiment, the backrest and the armrest are provided on the movable handle. However, according to the present invention, only one of the backrest and the armrest may be provided, and neither the backrest nor the armrest is provided. Can also.

(3) In the above-described embodiment, the movable handle is provided in a "U" shape having a horizontally long grip and a pair of arms, and the armrests are provided on both the left and right sides. The armrest can be either left or right as a character shape. (4) In the above embodiment, the backrest is fixed to the movable handle. However, according to the present invention, the backrest may be adjustable in angle. (5) In the above embodiment, the backrest is mounted so as to be located below the grip of the movable handle at the seating use position. However, according to the present invention, the backrest may be arranged above the grip. You may provide so that it may protrude both up and down of a grip.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a movable handle is displaced to a use position for walking in a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a movable handle is displaced to a seating use position in the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a state in which a movable handle is displaced to a use position for walking in the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a state in which a movable handle is displaced to a seating use position in the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a displacement mechanism of a movable handle in the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a conventional example.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Frame 11 ... Wheel 13 ... Seating part 15 ... Movable handle 15B ... Arm 26 ... Grip 30 ... Backrest 31 ... Armrest

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A frame provided with wheels and capable of moving on a road or the like is provided with a seating portion and a movable handle, and the movable handle is configured to protrude upward at a rear portion of the seating portion. A walking use position in which a user can hold the seat in a posture standing behind the seating portion, and a user standing behind the seating portion in a form retracted from the rear portion of the seating portion to the front portion. A walking assist vehicle characterized in that it can be displaced from a seating use position that allows the user to sit backward on a part. 2. The movable handle includes a horizontally long grip for gripping and a pair of arms extending from both ends of the grip, and the grip can support a user's back in the seating use position. The walking assist vehicle according to claim 1, wherein a backrest is provided, and the arm is provided with an armrest capable of supporting a user's arm at the sitting use position.