JP4729689B2 - Wheelchairs and wheelchair controls - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a wheelchair that can be operated with one hand.

In a normal wheelchair, the left and right wheels rotate independently. The left and right wheels rotate at the same time and go straight, and only one wheel rotates to change direction. Therefore, when going straight, the wheels must be rotated using both left and right hands, and cannot be operated with one hand. Therefore, it cannot be used by a person who has difficulty with one hand. Moreover, since both hands can be taken by the operation of the wheelchair, it is impossible to move with one hand and to perform some work with the hand while moving.

Therefore, Patent Documents 1 to 4 describe a wheelchair in which left and right wheels are coupled via a clutch and rotation of one wheel is transmitted to the other wheel so that the vehicle can go straight with one hand. The direction can be changed by operating the clutch to release the connection. Further, Patent Document 4 describes that when one wheel is rotated, the other wheel is connected so as to rotate in the opposite direction, thereby enabling the wheelchair to perform a point turning operation.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-51316 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-225484 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-97605 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-141452

The wheelchairs described in Patent Documents 1 to 3 can prevent the rotation of one wheel from being directly transmitted to the other by disconnecting the left and right wheels from each other. In this state, you can change the direction of the wheelchair by rotating the wheel on one side, but the other wheel is not braked, so it will not stop rotating completely, and the moving distance at the time of turning will increase, Cannot be used in narrow places. In Patent Document 4, since the rotation of the wheel on one side is transmitted in the reverse direction to the other side in the turning mode, a pivot turn centering on the wheelchair is possible. Connecting mechanism is required.

An object of the present invention is to provide a wheelchair that can be operated with one hand while having a simple configuration.

In order to solve the above-described object, an operation member of a wheelchair according to the present invention includes a first axle attached to one wheel of a pair of left and right wheels of the wheelchair, a second axle attached to the other wheel, and a first axle. A clutch for connecting / disconnecting the axle and the second axle, a clutch operating member for switching between connecting / disconnecting the clutch, and a brake operating member for switching the brake of only one wheel in conjunction with the clutch operating member are provided. When the clutch is in the connected state, the brake is released, and when the clutch is in the disconnected state, the brake is operated only on one of the wheels .

Furthermore, the wheelchair of the present invention includes a first axle attached to one of the pair of left and right wheels of the wheelchair, a second axle attached to the other wheel, and a connection between the first axle and the second axle. A clutch that performs disengagement, a clutch operation member that switches between coupling and disengagement of the clutch at the side portion of the seat, and a brake that switches only the wheel on the side where the clutch operation member is not provided in conjunction with the clutch operation member. Having a brake operation member, releasing the brake when the clutch is in a connected state, and operating the brake only on a wheel on which the clutch operation member is not provided when the clutch is in a disconnected state It has been done.

As described above, the present invention has an effect that the wheelchair can be easily operated in a straight line and a direction change with only one hand. Therefore, it is possible to realize a wheelchair that can be used even by a person who has difficulty with one hand, and can move while holding an object or working with one hand. Moreover, since the moving distance at the time of turning is small, it can be used even in a narrow place.

The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 is a rear view showing an example of a wheelchair to which the present invention is applied, FIG. 2 is a right side view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a left side view thereof. This example shows a wheelchair operated with the right hand.

The wheelchair 1 includes a right wheel 2a and a left wheel 2b in pairs. A rim 3 is provided on the right wheel 2a on the dominant hand side. A rim is not necessarily required for the left wheel 2b. Furthermore, brakes 4a and 4b are provided for stopping the right wheel 2a and the left wheel 2b, respectively. These members are provided in a normal wheelchair.

A right axle 5a (first axle) is provided at the center of the right wheel 2a, and a left axle 5b (second axle) is provided at the center of the left wheel 2b. A clutch 6 that connects and disconnects both axles is provided between the right axle 5a and the left wheel 2b. 4 and 5 show details of the clutch 6. FIG. The clutch 6 is composed of a combination of a male coupler 7 and a female coupler 8. A female coupler 8 is provided at the tip of the right axle 5a, and a male coupler 7 is provided at the tip of the left wheel 5b. Yes. The male connector 7 is attached to a slider 9 and can advance and retreat along the axle direction. The coil spring 10 is provided to urge the slider 9 in the right direction in FIG. 4 and acts to press the male connector 7 against the female connector 8. A wire 11 is attached to the slider 9, and the male connector 7 is disconnected from the female connector 8 when pulled to the left in FIG. 4 by the wire 11.

In this example, the clutch 6 transmits rotation in both directions when connected. As shown in FIG. 5, the peripheral surface of the male coupler 7 is provided with triangular irregularities having an angle. The female connector 8 is provided with a protrusion 12 so as to engage with the concave portion of the male connector 7. When the male connector 7 and the female connector 8 are connected, the rotation of the right axle 5a is transmitted to the left axle 5b in both forward and backward rotations. When the male connector 7 and the female connector 8 are separated, the left and right wheels 2a, 2b can rotate independently.

On the right side of the wheelchair 1, a clutch switching lever 13 is provided as a clutch operating member. A wire 11 attached to the slider 9 is connected to the clutch switching lever 13. The clutch switching lever 13 can be switched between a position where the clutch 6 is engaged and a position where the clutch 6 is disengaged, and the clutch 6 is operated by this switching. The clutch switching lever 13 is also connected to the left wheel brake 4b. The brake 4b of the left wheel is released when the clutch 6 is in a connected state, and the brake is operated when the clutch is in a disconnected state.

A right brake operation lever 14 is provided on the right side of the wheelchair 1 so that the operation of switching the right brake 4a can be switched. Further, the left brake 4b is also connected to the right brake operation lever 14, and the left brake 4b can be operated / released in conjunction with the operation / release of the right brake 4a.

FIG. 6 is a detailed view of the right axle 5a. A part that can be separated is provided in the middle of the right axle 5a. There is a rotating bar 16 that can rotate around a fulcrum 15 and a fixed bar 17 that engages with the tip of the rotating bar 16. Protrusions and grooves that engage with each other are provided at the tips of the rotating bar 16 and the fixed bar 17, and the rotating bar 16 and the fixed bar 17 are connected and disconnected by rotating the rotating bar 16. Do. When the wheelchair 1 is used, the rotating bar 16 and the fixed bar 17 are connected. A cover 18 surrounding the connecting portion is provided, and the cover 18 is normally held on the connecting portion by the biasing force of the coil spring 19, so that the connection between the rotating bar 16 and the fixed bar 17 is maintained. Be drunk. When the cover 18 is slid to the right against the urging force of the coil spring 19, the connecting portion can be disconnected, so that the wheelchair can be folded.

Next, the operation of the wheelchair 1 will be described. When moving or changing the direction, the brake operation lever 14 is in a brake release state. When the vehicle travels straight, the clutch switching lever 13 is brought into the clutch engaged state. When the right wheel 2a is rotated in the forward direction by the rim 3 in this state, the rotation is transmitted to the left wheel 2b via the clutch 6, and both the wheels rotate synchronously, so the wheelchair 1 goes straight. That is, it is possible to go straight ahead simply by rotating the rim 3 of the right wheel 2a with the right hand without using the left hand. Similarly, when the right wheel 2a is rotated in the reverse direction, the rotation is transmitted to the left wheel 2b via the clutch 6, and the wheelchair 1 moves backward.

When the direction is changed, the clutch switching lever 13 is brought into a clutch disengaged state. The left brake operates in conjunction with this. When the rim 3 is rotated in this state, only the right wheel 2a rotates. If the right wheel 2a is turned in the forward direction, the wheelchair turns left, and if the right wheel 2a is turned in the backward direction, the wheelchair turns right. Here, since the left wheel 2b is fixed by the left brake 4b, the wheelchair turns with a minimum radius around the left wheel 2b, so that the movement necessary for turning the direction is minimized and used even in a narrow place. can do.

As mentioned above, although the example in the case of operating with the right hand was demonstrated about the structure and operation of the wheelchair 1, it can apply also when operating with the left hand by applying the above-mentioned structure upside down.

In the wheelchair of this example, many parts such as a frame, a seat, and wheels 2a and 2b are used as they are in a commercially available normal wheelchair. A wheelchair that can be operated with one hand is realized by adding wheelchair operation members including a wheelchair right axle 5a, a left axle 5b, a clutch 6, and a clutch switching lever 13 to this. Therefore, it can be implemented with an extremely simple configuration. Moreover, the wheelchair of this example can be produced only by making a slight change to the production equipment and production process of the conventional wheelchair. Furthermore, members constituting the operation unit such as the right axle 5a, the left axle 5b, the clutch 6, and the clutch switching lever 13 may be set as a set and supplied as a wheelchair remodeling kit. In this case, since the wheelchair that has been used so far can be modified for one-handed operation, it is possible to continue using a familiar wheelchair without purchasing a new wheelchair.

The wheelchair 1 of this example is provided with an assistant brake operation lever 21 near the handle 20. The helper operates the brakes 4a and 4b to operate / release with the helper brake operation lever 21. However, even if the brakes 4 a and 4 b are released by the assistant brake operation lever 21, the release state is maintained only while the assistant holds the handle 20. When the handle 20 is released, the brakes 4a and 4b are activated. Therefore, even if the assistant cannot continue to operate the brake for some reason, the brakes 4a and 4b are activated, and the right to operate the brake is quickly transferred to the wheelchair user. This improves safety.

FIG. 7 is a rear view showing another example of the wheelchair. In this example, an arm 22 that reciprocates around a fulcrum and a bidirectional ratchet 23 for converting the reciprocation of the arm into rotation of the right axle 2b are provided. A ratchet switching operation member 24 is provided in the grip portion of the arm 22 so that the rotation direction of the wheel 2a can be switched. The bidirectional ratchet 23 is provided with a clutch (not shown) so that the right axle 5a and the left axle 5b can be connected and disconnected. By moving the arm 22 left and right, the clutch is connected and disconnected.

In the wheelchair of this example, since the propulsion for movement is performed by the reciprocation of the arm 22, the user does not need to touch the rim 3. The clutch 22 is connected and disconnected, and the right axle is rotated forward and backward by operating the arm 22. Therefore, even a person who cannot directly operate the rim 3 by hand can use the wheelchair of this example. In normal wheelchair operation, the hem on the side operated by the user's clothes touches the wheel and the part may become dirty, but in this example such dirt can also be prevented, so it is improved in terms of hygiene . It is also suitable for use by hospitalized patients.

The present invention can be used as a wheelchair that can be operated with one hand while having a simple configuration. It can also be used by people who have been unable to use a wheelchair so far because one hand is handicapped. Moreover, the part which operates a wheelchair can be utilized as a kit for the improvement of a wheelchair, and the wheelchair which can be operated by one hand can be implement | achieved by attaching to the conventional wheelchair.

It is a rear view which shows an example of a wheelchair. It is the same right view. It is the left side view. It is detail drawing which shows a clutch. It is an exploded view which shows the structure of a clutch. It is detail drawing which shows a right axle. It is a rear view which shows another example of a wheelchair.

Explanation of symbols

1. Wheelchair 2. Wheel 4. 4. Brake Axle 6. Clutch 11. Wire 13. Clutch switching lever (clutch operating member)

Claims (2)

A first axle attached to one wheel of a pair of left and right wheels of a wheelchair; a second axle attached to the other wheel; a clutch for connecting / disconnecting the first axle to / from the second axle; A clutch operating member that performs switching of disconnection, and a brake operating member that switches the brake of only one wheel in conjunction with the clutch operating member. When the clutch is in the connected state, the brake is released, and the clutch An operation member for a wheelchair in which a brake is operated only on one wheel when in a disconnected state. A first axle attached to one of the pair of left and right wheels of the wheelchair; a second axle attached to the other wheel; a clutch for connecting / disconnecting the first axle to the second axle; A clutch operating member that switches between connecting and disconnecting the clutch at the side, and a brake operating member that switches only the wheel on the side where the clutch operating member is not provided in conjunction with the clutch operating member. A wheelchair in which the brake is released when the clutch is in a connected state, and the brake is operated only on the wheel on which the clutch operating member is not provided when the clutch is in a disconnected state.

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