Abstract:
A wheelchair lift mechanism adapted for use particularly in the accessway of a train car is disclosed which comprises a generally planar collapsible platform assembly for receiving a wheelchair and its occupant thereon; a lift mechanism for lifting and lowering the platform between first and second elevations; a vertical support column mounted inside the train car adjacent the accessway having a support portion rotatably mounted thereto; and an extensible lift mechanism support assembly attached between the support portion and the lift mechanism frame to move the lift mechanism and platform assembly horizontally between a retracted position and an extended position away from the vertical support column to provide lateral clearance for the platform assembly outside the vehicle in the deployed position. The extensible assembly comprises a pair of parallel fixed sleeve members and a pair of parallel slide members telescopically attached between the frame and the support portion. A hydraulic cylinder controllably extends and retracts the slide members within the sleeve members.

Description:
BACKGROUND AND FIELD OF INVENTION 
     This invention generally relates to a lift apparatus and more particularly to a novel and improved telescoping and collapsible wheelchair lift apparatus specifically adapted for use in vehicular applications, such as, railway cars. 
     This invention is in the field of wheelchair lifts for lifting and lowering wheelchairs between the floor level of a commercial vehicle and a street or platform level. Among the objectives in such designs is to provide an assembly that takes up minimum space in storage, does not impede normal ingress and egress to and from the vehicle through its accessway, and can be easily and rapidly moved from the stored position to a deployed operational position under the complete control of the operator. 
     Representative lift mechanisms are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,479,753, to G. R. Thorley, 4,534,450 to P. Savaria, 4,299,528 to J. E. Kazeil et al and 4,140,230 to M. R. Pearson and in my previous U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,026,244 and 5,149,246. The collapsible wheelchair lift apparatus disclosed in my previous patents is particularly designed for installation in the doorway of a motor vehicle such as a commercial bus or van. A vertical column fastened to the floor and ceiling of the vehicle in the doorway supports the wheelchair lift assembly for swiveling about the column from a storage position in the vehicle to an operational position outside the vehicle, through an arc of about 180°. Since the column is mounted directly in the doorway, the lift apparatus and the column takes up a portion of the width of the doorway which would otherwise be available for passenger access. Therefore there remains a need for a wheelchair lift apparatus which provides both for an unrestricted normal ingress and egress passageway and convenient deployment of a wheelchair lift apparatus through the accessway from a stored position to the operational position outside the vehicle. 
     For railway car installation, a wheelchair lift apparatus must provide access to the car for handicapped persons from the train station platform, typically at or near track level, to the floor level of the train car, which is typically three to five feet above the track level. Many train cars cannot accommodate a support column or post in the accessway due to the narrow width of the accessway. In addition, modern train cars often do not have a vertical side wall. It may also be difficult to provide a support column immediately adjacent the accessway due to the thickness of the side wall or other structural obstruction. Accordingly there is a need for a wheelchair lift apparatus which can be supported from a vertical support inside the vehicle and spaced to the side of the accessway so as not to impede normal access; and which is capable of being expanded or extended the additional distance necessary to clear the outside wall of the railway car as well as to be collapsible into a compact arrangement for storage within the vehicle, out of the accessway. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved wheelchair lift apparatus that can be telescopically extended and retracted into a compact storage location adjacent the accessway into the vehicle and deployed to an extended operational position external to the vehicle. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus that does not extend into the accessway in the stored position in the vehicle. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus that is mounted on a vertical columnar support inside the vehicle adjacent to and to one side of the accessway which provides the necessary lateral clearance for vertical movement in the deployed, operational position. 
     It is another object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus that can be remotely operated between the storage and deployed positions. 
     It is a still further object of the invention to provide an improved economically compact wheelchair lift apparatus especially adapted for use in a railway car. 
     It is a still further object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus mounted adjacent the passenger accessway of a railway car which takes up less storage space than a wheelchair lift apparatus mounted in the accessway. 
     It is a still further object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus which is smoothly extensible in order to clear the side wall of a railway car without binding. 
     It is a still further object of the invention to provide an improved wheelchair lift apparatus having a rugged telescopic support which distributes the load of a wheelchair support platform assembly over a broad area. 
     The present invention basically involves the modification of a collapsible wheelchair lift apparatus such as is shown and described in my U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,026,244, and 5,149,246 for use in a vehicle such as a railway car requiring the accessway to remain clear when the lift apparatus is in a stored position and provide additional lateral clearance between the support post or other support structure to which the wheelchair lift assembly is ultimately secured and the outer surface of the vehicle body without enlarging the volume envelope of the stored apparatus in the vehicle. 
     The present invention generally comprises providing a remotely operable extensible support assembly between a vertical support column which is fastened to the inside of the body of the vehicle such as a train car and a collapsible wheelchair lift apparatus such as is shown and described in my U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,026,244, and 5,149,246. The apparatus as disclosed in these patents is illustrated and used throughout this specification as being merely representative of a conventional wheelchair lift apparatus which incorporates the invention. 
     More particularly, the improved wheelchair lift apparatus incorporating the extensible support assembly in accordance with the present invention comprises a collapsible, generally planar platform assembly for receiving a wheelchair and its occupant thereon; a vertical support member such as a column mounted inside the vehicle such as a railway car adjacent to and spaced from the accessway having a support portion rotatably mounted thereon; and a lift mechanism operably connected between the platform assembly and the support portion for lifting and lowering the platform between first and second elevations. 
     The extensible support assembly preferably hydraulically and telescopically moves the wheelchair lift mechanism horizontally, or laterally, between a retracted position within or to one side of the accessway and an extended position beyond or outside of the outer side wall of the vehicle. The extensible assembly when retracted enables compact storage and lateral clearance of the apparatus for rotational passage through the accessway. The support assembly is laterally extended when the apparatus has cleared the accessway to clear the outer side wall of the vehicle for deployment of the wheelchair lift platform assembly. 
     The extensible support assembly preferably comprises a pair of parallel sleeve members each having one end fixed to the wheelchair lift mechanism frame. A pair of parallel slide members each having one end fixed to the support portion of the vertical support member has their other ends telescopically received in the free ends of the fixed sleeve members. Drive means, preferably a hydraulic cylinder, is connected via linkage arms between the frame and the support portion for controllably extending and retracting the slide members within the sleeve members to move the frame between the retracted storage position and the extended operational position without binding. 
     The above and other objects of the present invention will become more readily appreciated and understood from a consideration of the following detailed description of preferred and modified forms of the present invention when taken together with the accompanying drawings in which: 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a partial elevational cross sectional view through the accessway of a passenger train car showing the wheelchair lift assembly in accordance with the present invention in a deployed position both at a level of a train station platform and at the train car floor elevation and showing the stored position in phantom; 
     FIG. 2 is a plan view of the wheelchair lift apparatus shown in FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 3 is a front view of the wheelchair lift apparatus of the present invention shown in a partially stored position in the accessway of the train car with portions broken away, showing the extensible support assembly in the extended position. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to the drawings, an elevational view of the preferred form of wheelchair lift apparatus 10 is shown by way of illustrative example mounted in a railway car. The lift mechanism and platform assembly disclosed and shown in my previous U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,149,246 and 5,016,244 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and is merely illustrative of the wheelchair lift mechanisms to which the present invention applies. FIG. 1 depicts only the right half of the railway car 12, as the cross section of the car is generally symmetrical about vertical axis A. 
     The wheelchair lift apparatus 10 broadly comprises a conventional wheelchair lift mechanism frame 14, a conventional wheelchair support platform assembly 16, and a conventional wheelchair lift mechanism 18 operably connected between the platform assembly 16 and the frame 14. The lift mechanism frame 14 basically includes a pair of spaced parallel vertical tubes and cross tubes in a rigid arrangement to support the lift mechanism 18 and platform assembly 16, the latter being hinged to the lower end of the frame for swinging movement between a horizontal position extending across the accessway, shown in full in FIG. 2, and a vertical collapsed position parallel to the lift mechanism 18, shown in dotted form in FIG. 2. The lift mechanism 18 is operable to lower the platform assembly 16 to the level &#34;T&#34; of the railway track and raise the platform assembly 16 to the railway car floor elevation &#34;F&#34;. 
     The wheelchair lift apparatus 10 includes a conventional vertical column support member 20 fastened to the floor &#34;F&#34; and to the interior side wall of the railway car 12 at a location adjacent to and to one side of the accessway 21 into the railway car 12. The vertical support column 20 is a rotation column which includes a bearing supported, rotatable support tube portion 22 which is free to rotate through about 180° about the vertical axis of the vertical support column 20. The rotatable support tube portion 22 is preferably journaled to the vertical support column 20 at top and bottom to minimize the effort required to rotate the lift mechanism and platform assembly between the storage position as shown in phantom in FIGS. 1 and 2 and the deployed and operable position shown in full in these same Figures. 
     The preferred embodiment of apparatus 10 in accordance with the present invention and illustrated herein further includes a telescoping lift mechanism support assembly 24 connected between the lift mechanism frame 14 and the rotatable support tube portion 22 of the vertical support column 20. The platform assembly 16, the lift mechanism 18 and its frame 14, a wheelchair and its occupant constitutes a substantial load on the support assembly 24, and the support assembly 24 must be capable of suspending this load for rotation about the column 20 as well as being smoothly extensible and retractable without binding. 
     Referring now to FIG. 3, the extensible support assembly 24 includes a pair of parallel, vertically spaced, fixed sleeve members 26 each having one end welded or otherwise fixed for horizontal extension from the lift mechanism frame 14. The fixed sleeve members 26 each has a generally rectangular tubular cross-sectional shape. A pair of upper and lower parallel L-shaped slide members 28 each has a longer leg portion 29 telescopically received in the other end of one of the fixed sleeve members 26 and a shorter leg portion 31 welded or otherwise fixed to the support portion 22 of the vertical support member 20. The slide members 28 in this embodiment have rectangular tubular cross-sections. The shorter leg portions 31 are integrally joined to the long leg portions 29 at an angle of about 90°. The shorter leg portions 31 of the L-shaped slide members 28 provides an offset of between about three to about six inches. This offset is provided so that the vertical support column 20 can be spaced laterally from the side of the accessway 21 and the apparatus 10 can be more efficiently stored substantially clear of the accessway 21 as is best shown in phantom in FIG. 2. 
     A hydraulic cylinder 30 is operably connected horizontally between the lift mechanism frame 14 and the rotatable support portion 22 via upper and lower converging linkage arms 32 and 34. The hydraulic cylinder 30 is preferably sandwiched between and bolted to a pair of pentagonal gusset plates 36. The gusset plates 36 each have a rectangular portion with opposing sides bolted to the spacer flanges 38 and a triangular portion having an apex oriented toward the lift mechanism frame 14. The spacer flanges 38 are in turn welded to the facing surfaces of the longer leg portions 29 of the slide members 28 adjacent the 90° angle bend between the longer and shorter legs. 
     One end of each of the converging linkage arms 32 and 34 is connected to the free end of the piston rod 40 extending out of the hydraulic cylinder 30. This connection is made by a cross pin 42 which rides in and is guided by an elongated closed slot 44 in each of the plates 36. Each slot 44 is parallel to each of long leg portions of the slides 28 and in line with the apex of the plate 36 so that extension and retraction of the piston rod 40 is constrained to move parallel to the slides 28 and the sleeves 26. 
     The other ends of the upper and lower linkage arms 32 and 34 are pivotally attached to the sleeve members 26 via hinges 46 adjacent the frame 14 so that extension and retraction of the piston rod 40 causes the sleeves 26 to telescopically slide in parallel on the longer legs 29 of the slide members 28. Each of the sleeves 26 has a plastic strip bearing between upper and lower mating surfaces of the telescoping members to facilitate smooth telescopic movement between the slide members 28 and sleeve members 26. 
     Each plastic strip bearing may be made of Teflon or other material having a low coefficient of friction under compressive load. The assembly 24 is massively designed with sleeve 26 and slides 28 of box tubular construction to carry a substantial load during extension and retraction. The double gusset plates 36 and the converging link arms 32 and 34 reinforce the slides 28 and sleeves 26 and provide a rigid four point rectangular support for the assembly 24. This arrangement distributes the load forces over a wider area to counteract the substantial moment arm developed by the platform assembly 16, lift mechanism 18 and lift mechanism frame 14 when the assembly 24 is in the extended position. 
     The longer leg portion 29 of each slide 28 has a longitudinal closed slot 48 therethrough adjacent the end disposed in the sleeve 26. A safety limit stop pin 50 passes through the slot 48 and through a pair of holes through the sleeve 26. The safety pin 50 is retained in these holes by a pair of snap ring retainers on the pin 50 on either side of the sleeve 26. The safety pins 50 ensure that the extensible support assembly 24 remains connected together in the event that the linkage arms or hydraulic cylinder connections should become disconnected. 
     Finally, cover plates 52 are fastened to opposite sides of the fixed sleeve members 26. In FIG. 3, one of the cover plates 52 is partially broken away to reveal the components of the assembly 24 described above. 
     The stroke of the hydraulic cylinder 30 and the length of the slide and sleeve members 28 and 26, respectively, are determined by the amount of horizontal and vertical clearance required in a particular vehicle installation. In addition, the length of the shorter legs 31 of the slide members 28 is determined by the desired lateral spacing of the vertical support column 20 from the accessway 21. In the embodiment shown, the stroke of the hydraulic cylinder 30 is between about 6-8 inches. This allows the collapsible wheelchair lift apparatus 10 to be efficiently stored in about the same envelope of space as a lift apparatus with a short, fixed support assembly between the vertical support member 20 and the lift mechanism frame 14. The L-shaped slide members 28 permit the wheelchair lift apparatus 10 to be mounted from a vertical support column 20 which is adjacent to and spaced from the accessway 21 so that the accessway 21 remains substantially clear when the apparatus 10 is in the storage position shown in phantom in FIGS. 1 and 2. 
     The apparatus 10 in accordance with the present invention is operated from the storage position by depressing the foot-operated latch 54 on the vertical support column 20 which releases an index pin from its storage position socket in an index flange 56 fixed to the rotatable support tube portion 22. The lift mechanism frame 14 with collapsed lift mechanism 18 and platform assembly 16 attached may then be manually or hydraulically rotated out through the accessway 21 until the index pin engages another socket 180° displaced from the first socket in the index flange 56. The operator may then remotely operate the hydraulic cylinder 30 to extend the support assembly 24 to the deployed position shown in FIG. 1. The platform assembly 16 may then be unfolded to receive a wheelchair bound passenger thereon. The operator then remotely actuates the lift mechanism 18 to lower the platform assembly 16 to the station platform or the track level T. 
     Although the extensible support assembly 24 is shown extended to the lift in FIG. 3, the hydraulic cylinder 30 is preferably only extended and retracted when the support assembly 24, frame 14, platform assembly 16 and lift mechanism 18 is rotated to the operational position outside the vehicle (to the right of the support member 20 in FIG. 3) because the accessway 21 is typically too narrow to permit the extended assembly to pass therethrough. Operation of the hydraulic cylinder 30 may be manual or, alternatively, there may be an electrical interlock provided to the power supply to a hydraulic solenoid valve supplying the cylinder 30 such that the solenoid will not operate to supply hydraulic fluid to the bottom of the piston unless the index pin riding on the index flange 56 has slipped into the deployed position socket. The hydraulic cylinder 30 may also be automatically controlled by the electrical interlock such that the hydraulic cylinder rod 44 is extended automatically when the index pin slips into the deployed position socket. Similarly, the cylinder piston rod 44 could be automatically retracted when the index pin is raised out of the deployed position socket by depressing the foot lever 54. Other interlocks may also be provided to preclude assembly actuation when the apparatus 10 is in the storage position. 
     The extensible support assembly 24 may be constructed other than as specifically described and shown in FIGS. 1-3. For example, the fixed sleeve members 26 may be attached to the support portion 22 with the slide member 28 fixed to the frame 14. In this alternative, the sleeves would be L-shaped with the slide members telescopically received within the longer leg portions of the L-shaped sleeve. 
     Another alternative would be to have one slide member and one sleeve member fixed to the frame 14 and one sleeve member and one slide member fixed to the support portion 22 of the vertical support member 20. In this second alternative, the members fixed to the support portion 22 would be generally L-shaped to provide the necessary offset between the accessway and the location of the vertical support member in the deployed position. 
     The hydraulic cylinder 30 may also be replaced by an electrical linear actuator, an electrically driven screw drive mechanism, or any other conventional drive means for extending and retracting the telescoping slide and sleeve members. 
     It is therefore to be understood that while a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been set forth and disclosed herein, various modifications and changes may be made in the specific construction and arrangement of parts comprising the present invention without departing from the spirit and broad scope thereof as defined by the appended claims and reasonable equivalents. All patents, patent applications, and other printed publications referred to herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.