LIFTING/TRANSPORTING APPARATUS FOR PATIENTS/DISABLED PERSONS

Abstract: A lifting and transporting apparatus for patients/dis­ abled persons comprises a mobile U-shaped frame (1) having two substantially horizontal and parallel legs (1a, 1b) and a transverse member (1c); a vertical column (2) mounted on the transverse member (1c) wich a concentric, telescopic­ ally movable pipe (3) that can be raised and lowered by means of an actuator (3a); and a crossbar (4′) with two lifting bars (5a, 5b) mounted thereon extending substantially paral­ lel with and in the same direction as the legs (1a, 1b) of the frame (1). At the middle section thereof, the crossbar (4′) is provided with a securing means (4) that is longitudinally movable on but non-rotatable about the telescopic pipe (3), and one end of each respective lifting bar (5a, 5b) is provided with individually movable, non-rotatable securing means (8) on the crossbar (4′), permitting asymmetrical adjustment of the lifting bars relative to the U-shaped frame (1) of the app­ aratus.

Description: The present invention relates to a lifting/transporting apparatus for patients or disabled persons, of the type recited in the preamble of the appurtenant independent patent claim 1. With the aid of this apparatus, a disabled or handicapped person can be raised from or lowered into a sitting position. The lifting bars of the apparatus are placed beneath the armpits of the person, and the bars are then raised or lowered by means of an actuator which causes a telescopic pipe to move vertically up or down. With the bars in the raised position, the person can utilize devices such as a walker chair with maximum support of the upper body. The lifting bars can also be lowered to a lower elevation so that the person can support himself on the bars with his hands. In conjunction with suitably formed lifting straps, the apparatus can also be used for raising and lowering a person to and from a bed, and for moving the person to a bathtub or toilet, for example. A lifting and transporting apparatus of the above type is described in Swedish Patent Pub. 365,711. However, the prior art lifting and transporting apparatuses for disabled persons have certain drawbacks because the lifting bars are not sufficiently adjustable in the vertical direction. With the above-cited prior art apparatus, for example, it is not possible to lower the bars sufficiently to enable them to be placed beneath the armpits of a person sitting on the floor, for lifting the person up from the floor into a sitting position on a chair or into a standing position, and viceversa. Neither is it possible, using conventional lifting straps, to lift a person lying on the floor, perhaps after a fall from a bed or chair, into a horizontal position for placement in a bed. In the prior art lifting and transporting apparatus wherein the lifting bars are in a fixed position in relation to the mobile U-shaped apparatus frame, difficulties can arise when the apparatus is to be positioned vis-a-vis a chair for lifting a person up from the chair or for lowering the person into the chair. The chair legs may obstruct the access of the U-shaped frame so that it is necessary to position the lifting apparatus at an angle, and in that case the lifting bars will not be in direct alignment with the chair, so that the person has to be set down at an angle on the chair or the person has to turn sideways to permit the lifting bars to be placed correctly beneath his armpits. The same situation arises when the person needs to be lifted using lifting straps connected to the lifting bars. In addition, the lifting bars on the prior art apparatus are spaced a fixed distance apart, which may cause problems when a person is being lifted: into or out of an automobile, because the back of the car seat, the edge of the door frame, or the car's steering wheel may obstruct one of the lifting bars. The object of the present invention is to provide a lifting and transporting apparatus for patients/disabled persons in which the above drawbacks are eliminated. With these drawbacks eliminated, the apparatus has a very wide area of application, and it can be used to lift severely disabled persons to and from a toilet, up and down from a bed or bathtub, and in and out of automobiles without undue physical exertion on the part of the assisting or nursing personnel. This object is obtained according to the invention by means of the characterizing features recited in the characterizing clause of the appurtenant independent claim 1 and in the succeeding dependent claims. An exemplary embodiment of the invention, together with a description of its various functions and possibilities, will be discussed in greater detail in the following with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 shows the lifting and transporting apparatus seen in side view, Figure 2 shows the apparatus as seen from above, and Figure 3 shows the lifting bars of the apparatus in perspective, with a lifting seat suspended from the bars for lifting a person into and out of an automobile. The lifting and transporting apparatus consists of a mobile U-shaped frame 1, composed of a framework of welded tubing comprising two substantially horizontal and parallel legs la, lb and a transverse member lc at the base of the U. At the corners where the legs la,lb meet the transverse member lc and at the ends of said legs, pivotable and lockable wheels 6 are mounted. In connection with the wheels 6, horizontal bumper wheels 9 are also provided, which project beyond the outer edge of the frame 1 to protect walls, door openings, etc. which the U-shaped frame 1 might encounter when the apparatus is being moved. Mounted on the transverse member lc of the U-frame 1 are a fixed vertical column 2 and a concentric, vertically telescopic pipe 3. The telescopic pipe 3 is raised and lowered by means of an actuator 3, which may comprise a battery and an electric motor mounted on the transverse member Ic of the U-frame 1. Said motor operates a lifting mechanism of any known type, for example a hydraulic pump which delivers pressure medium to a pressure cylinder connected to the vertical column 2 and the telescopic pipe 3, or a screw shaft arranged in the vertical column 2 for moving the telescopic pipe 3. The lifting mechanism can be manoevered from a control panel connected to the actuator 3a for the lifting mechanism by a special cord, and the control panel may optionally be detachable from the lifting and transporting apparatus. The telescopic pipe 3 carries a crossbar 4', and there is a securing means 4 mounted at the center section of the crossbar 4', said securing means 4 being vertically movable on but not rotatable about the telescopic pipe 3. On each half of the crossbar 4', lifting bars 5a,5b are provided. At one end of each bar 5a,5b there is a securing means 8 attached to the crossbar 4', said securing means being individually movable in the longitudinal direction of the crossbar but non-rotatable about the crossbar. These securing means 8 comprise non-round sleeves, corresponding to the cross section of the crossbar 4'. With this arrangement, each of the lifting bars 5a,5b can be individually moved to and fro on the crossbar 4', permitting the lifting bars to be positioned asymetrically in relation to the vertical column 2 and the frame 1. In addition, the crossbar 4' can also be moved vertically up and down the telescopic pipe 3 by means of its securing means 4, which comprises a known per se, self-locking, sleeve-like member 4 which surrounds the telescopi-c pipe 3 and which owing to the lever action applied to the lifting bars 5a,5b in the vertical plane is brought into locking engagement with the telescopic pipe 3. To ensure that the sleeve-like member 4 cannot accidentally slide down the telescopic pipe 3, this pipe is provided with projections or notches 3b arranged in alignment with each other and spaced an equal distance apart along the length of the telescopic pipe 3, for cooperation with complementary locking means on the sleeve-like member 4. The locking means on the sleeve constitutes the lower edge of the sleeve-like member 4, which engages with the projections or notches 3b on the telescopic pipe 3. The cross sectional dimension of the sleeve-like member 4 in a direction parallel with the lifting bars 5a,5b is larger than the cross sectional dimension of the telescopic pipe 3 in the same direction, so that by pushing upwardly on the lifting bars 5a,5b, the sleeve-like member 4 becomes tilted and is released from the locking position on the telescopic pipe 3 (its engagement with the projections or notches 3bur, whereby the sleeve 4 can be moved vertically up or down, after which the lifting bars 5a, 5b are again lowered and the member 4 is once again brought into fixed engagement with the telescopic pipe 3. In a preferred embodiment, five projections 3b are provided so that the crossbar 4' and thereby the lifting bars 5a,5b can be adjusted at five different heights on the telescopic pipe 3. In addition to this height regulation, the telescopic pipe 3 can also be raised and lowered by the lifting mechanism via the actuator 3a. Each of the two lifting bars 5a,5b consists of an elongated pipe of rectangular or oval cross section. A soft armpit pad 7 is arranged on each lifting bar, and the pads can be moved longitudinally on the bar or optionally be removed. As mentioned above, the bars 5a,5b can be adjusted asymmetrically in relation to the frame 1 and the vertical column 2, thereby permitting the lifting bars of the apparatus to be positioned directly opposite the person for lifting and lowering the person without difficulty in situations where it is not possible to orient the motorized U-shaped frame 1 symmetrically facing a chair or wheelchair, owing to the interference of the chair legs or wheels of the wheelchair. To lift a handicapped person from a wheelchair or some other article of furniture to a toilet, the lifting bars 5a,5b are lowered to a height about 10 cm below the person's armpits, and the bars 5a,5b are inserted beneath the armpits. The lifting bars 5a,5b are then adjusted sideways on the crossbar 4' so that the pads 7 lie close up against the person's body. A broad supporting strap with a self-locking buckle (not illustrated) can then be inserted beneath the person's thighs and suspended from the lifting bars 5a,5b. If the person is severely disabled, additional broad straps or belts can also be used for supporting the person's upper body in relation to the lifting bars 5a,5b. After arranging the person's clothing, the person is then moved over to the toilet and lowered to the desired height. The person does not have to be released from the lifting equipment, but can benefit from the support this provides while sitting on the toilet. With the aid of the control panel mentioned previously, the patient himself can raise or lower his body into a convenient sitting position. The use of this lifting method and apparatus prevents undue physical exertion on the part of the nursing personnel, while at the same time the operation is simpler, easier and more comfortable for the disabled person. With the use of this apparatus and lifting method, washing and attending to the patient after toilet use are made substantially easier. In the same manner as described above, disabled persons can be lifted and transported to and from beds, to and from all types of chairs, and to and from the bathtub or shower. The lifting and transporting apparatus can also be used as a walker chair, and the user himself can help himself up from a prone or sitting position. The apparatus can also be used for lifting a person who has fallen down on the floor, utilizing a lifting strap that is placed around the chest and under the arms of the person. The strap is hung on the lifting bars 5a,5b of the apparatus, which in this case will have been lowered into the lowest possible position by moving the bars down on the telescopic pipe 3 and by lowering the telescopic pipe 3 into its lowest position. The person can then be lifted up to a chair or the like. The lifting and transporting apparatus is extremely well suited for lifting and transporting persons to and from an automobile, using the lifting seat shown in Figure 3. This seat is placed under the person, and the lifting bars 5a,5b are adjusted to the desired height and are oriented transversely of the person, i.e., with one bar behind the personas back and the other in front of his chest, while at the same time the bars 5a,5b are inserted through loops 10 at the corners of the lifting seat. Then, by raising the lifting bars 5a,5b, the person can be lifted from a chair and moved into the car and lowered into position, or vice-versa. The lifting bars 5a,5b are then withdrawn from the seat loops 10, and the person can remain sitting on the lifting seat inside the car, so that the seat is ready for use when removing the person from the automobile. The lifting equipment on the apparatus can be disassembled without the use of tools, and the telescopic pipe 3, cross- bar 4' and lifting bars 5a,5b can be lifted off the vertical column 2. In this way, the apparatus is substantially easier to transport and carry.

Claims: Patent Claims I. A lifting and transporting apparatus for patients/ disabled persons, comprising a mobile U-shaped frame (1) having two substantially horizontal and parallel legs (la,lb) and a transverse member (lc); a vertical column (2) mounted on the transverse member (lc) together with a concentric, telescopic pipe (32 that with the aid of an actuator (3a) can be raised and lowered; and mounted on the pipe (3), a crossbar (4'2 that supports two lifting bars (5a,5b) which extend substantially parallel with and in the same direction as the legs (la,lb2 of the frame (1), characterized in that the crossbar (4'), at the middle section thereof, is provided with a securing means (4) arranged to be vertically movable on but non-rotatable about the telescopic pipe (3), and that the lifting bars (5a,5b) at one end of each respective bar are provided with individually adjustable securing means (8) that are longitudinally movable on but non-rotatable about the crossbar (4'). 2. An apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the securing means (4) constitutes a known per se, selflocking, sleeve-like member (4r surrounding the telescopic pipe (3), which owing to the lever action applied to the lifting arms (5a,5b). in the vertical plane is brought into locking engagement with the telescopic pipe (3). 3. An apparatus according to claim 2, characterized by projections or notches (3b) that are mutually aligned and spaced equidistantly along the telescopic pipe (3) for engagement with complementary locking members on the sleevelike member (4), whose cross sectional dimension in a direction parallel with the lifting bars (5a,5b) is larger than the cross sectional dimension of the telescopic pipe (3) in the same direction. 4. An apparatus according to claim I, characterized in that the securing means (8) for the lifting bars constitute non-round sleeves (8) mounted on the crossbar (4'), which has a complementary cross sectional configuration.

Inventors: ANDRESEN, HANS KASPER
Applicants: ACTUATOR A/S
Application year: 1984
Main classification: A61G7
IPC codes: A61G1, A61G7