US130283A - Improvement in wheel crutches or perambulators - Google Patents

Description

S. A. DARRACH.

' Improvement in Wheel-(Hutches or Perambulators.

Patented Aug. 6,1872.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL A. DARRAOH, OF ORANGE, NEW JERSEY.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 130,283, dated August 6, 1872.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL A. DARRAGH, of Orange, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented anew and useful Improvement in Wheel Grutches or Perambulators and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable those skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, in which drawing Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the apparatus, showing it occupied by a patient. Fig. 4 is a detached sectional view of one of the wheels.

Similar letters indicate corresponding parts.

This invention relates to apparatus for aiding locomotionboth of children and adults in cases of weakness of the legs or back, spinal disorders, paralytic aifections, and other diseases which impede or prevent the natural use of the body for walking. The invention consists in a strong, light frame, open at one side to admit the patient, and provided with rollers or wheels to allow the apparatus to be moved with small eflort over the floor. The frame is so constructed as to have a broad bearing on the ground or floor, and is ad ustable vertically to difi'erent heights, and its upper part is provided with a yielding socket or breast piece, which receives the chest of the patient, his arms coming over its edge and his hands graspin g'the frame below. The wheels orrollers are so arranged as to prevent the apparatus from swaying or moving in a direct lateral line, but permit it to be moved forward or on a curve toward the right or left; I and to this end the side rollers or wheels are placed at the rear ends of the apparatus, and are arranged parallel with each other in rigid bearings.

TheletterAdesignates'amovable frame, com- .posed, in this example, of a horizontal base bar,

B, by preference made of hollow piping for strengthandlightness,andbentsothatitisopen at the rear, in which direction, also, its sides are expanded, so as to give it greater breadth across the rear than across the flout. Under the front part of the frame I place casterwheels 0, which enable the apparatus to be turned and moved on any course. The rear part of the frame is supported upon wheels or rollers D D, which are placed in stationary bearings arranged parallel with the longitudinal axis of the frame, so that the revolutions of the wheels are always made in the same planes with respect to said axis. From the bar B rise standards E, three iii number in this example, consisting of hollow piping for lightness and strength, one of said standards. being arranged at the front and the other in the rear at the sides of the apparatus. The standards are bent inward as they ascend, so that the upper part of the frame shall be narrower than the base, thus obtaining for it a broad bearing for greater security to the patient. The standards E support an adjustable frame, F, composed of horizontal curved bars G G, two or more, united to each other, and ar ranged so as to receive and support the body and chest of the patient, being made open at the rear and of suitable width and depth, according to the size required. From the under side of the frame F extend rods H, which pass into the standards E, in which theyare adjusted, and held by set-screws I at any elevation required. The upper bar G of the adjustable frame F is smaller in diameter than the lower bar G, and they may be united to each other, as ishere shown, by the prolongations of the same rods, whose lower ends enter the upper ends of the standards. Within the frame F I place a yielding breast-piece, J, open at the rear, and curved to conform generally to the chest and sides of the human body, but wider in front, where it comes opposite to the chest, than at the sides. The breast-piece is arranged in a vertical position, and is supported at its ends from the rear part of the adjustable frame F on pivots K K, on which the breast-piece can turn; and the front part of the breast-piece is hung to the frame F by means of elastic fabric or a spring, L, which allows it to yield to the weight of the patient.

As the apparatus is intended for use in dwellings it is desirable that it be noiseless, and that the wheels or rollers shall work little injury to carpets. In order to attain these objects I provide the wheels or rollers with yielding tires S, made of rubber, leather, or other yielding material, which are let into, or in case of rubber may be sprung into, grooves M, made in the rollers.

periphery of the wheels or In order that the hollow base bar shall not be weakened by connecting the same with the standards, I provide sockets N to receive the lower ends of the standards, the front socket being formed on a sleeve, 0, which is clamped around the bar, while the rear sockets are formed on the upper sides of the parts P P, which form the bearings of the rear wheels of the apparatus. The parts P P are connected to the ends of the base bar B by means of threaded horizontal sockets Q formed on their ends, which screw over the threaded ends of the bar. The breast-piece J is provided with a stiffening-frame, R, of sheet metal or other suitable rigid material, and the same is suitably upholstered to give a soft surface for con- 7 tact with the person of the patient.

In using my invention I bring the apparatus up to the patient, who then places himself or is placed in the breast-piece, the arms extending outside of and resting on the edges of the breast-piece, so that the hands can grasp the lower bar G, which I upholster to obtain a pleasant surface. The upper frame F, which contains theyielding breast-piece, is adjusted so as to allow the feet to rest on the floor, and

the patient is then able to propel himself along without danger of falling or of upsetting the apparatus, and can thus safely obtain the ex ercise required for the healthy development of the limbs without any strain on the spinal column or other weak parts of the body or limbs.

By this apparatus the body is securely and comfortably supported, while the legs have opportunity for free natural motion without being overburdened with the weight of the body, and the intermitting strain necessary in using ordinary crutches is avoided. It thus affords a safe and easy means for moving about, and in many cases gives opportunity for exercise where ordinary crutches could not be used without risk, owing to insufficient power or lack of skill. It is especially useful for children when crippled or diseased, and often, by a timely use,'wi1l prevent bow-legs, knock-knees, or otherwise deformed limbs. can also be used with marked benefit in some conditions of spinal disease by permitting exercise without taxing the back, thus promoting general health and counteracting the tendency to paralysis and contraction.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The frame A, supported on parallel wheels or rollers in the rear and caster-wheels or rollers in the front, combined with a frame, F, for supporting the human body, substantially as described.

2. The yielding breast-piece J combined with the upper frame F, substantially as described.

3 The parts P P, forming rigid bearings for the rear wheels, and containing sockets to receive the ends of the bar B and the standards, substantially as described.

4. In combination with the apparatus A, tires S, made of yielding material, arranged on wheels and casters, substantially as and for the purpose described.

S. A. DARRAGH.

Witnesses:

. E. F. KAsTENHUBER, J. VAN SANTVOORD.

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