AN ARRANGEMENT IN A WHEEL CHAIR

Abstract: An arrangement in a wheel chair comprising a back rest and a seat, said back rest being hinged to said seat in such a manner that it may be folded down into a horizontal position flush with said seat. A plate shaped support (3) for the lower part of the legs is hinged to said seat (2). At least said back rest (1) and seat (2), and preferably the support of the lower part of the legs as well, consist of or comprise conveyor bells known per se having conveying direction (14) across the sitting direction of the chair.

Description: AN ARRANGEMENT IN A WHEEL CHAIR. The present invention relates to an arrangement in a wheel chair comprising back rests and a seat, said back rest being hinged to said seat in such a manner that it may be folded down in a horizontal position so as to extend flush with said seat. Moving disabled persons, weak and decrepit patients and the like from one place to another presents big problems. it may, e.g. be necessary to move a person from a bed to a wheel chair, or vice versa, from a wheel chair to a lavatory, from a wheel chair to an ordinary chair or into a bath-tub, or from a wheel chair into a vehicle, etc. Such movement will involve problems especially if the disabled person or a weakened patient lives at home, where there is often only one person present to assist in the moving operation. It will be obvious that it is very difficult and heavy work to move a heavy person who is not able to be of much help. Even when there are two skilled nurses a big effort is needed, which ma cause injuries to an attendants back. In many cases this kin of movement is a decisive factor in the question whether a patient may stay at home or has to live in an institution. At home, it will often be possible to assist a patient with ordinary needs, like washing, changing the patient's clothes, feeding, etc., but said moving activity may be in excess of what those who are to take care of the patient can manage. Then, the patient has to go to an institution, when is often felt to a tragedy by those involved, as well as causing society very heavy expense. A transfer device for bedridden patents is known, e.-gr from Swedish publication No. 76 14019-3. Said device comprises a horizontal conveyor belt provided with a pro¬ jecting free side that may e.g. be moved onto a bed. The lying patient may then be rolled onto said belt in order to be transported across in a lying-down position onto said device, e.g. to be moved to an operating theatre or the like. It is an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement in a wheel chair by the aid of which a disabled person or a weakened patient may be moved in a simple manner and without attendants having to use much strength from a wheel chair to a bed or vice versa, from a wheel chair to a lavatory and vice versa, from a wheel chair into a vehicle and vice versa, from a wheel chair to a bath tub and vice versa, etc. According to the invention this is achieved by an arrangement of " the kind mentioned above and being characterized in that a plate shaped support for the lower part of the legs is hinged to said seat, and that at least the back rest and the seat, preferably said support for the lower part of the legs as well consist of or comprise conveyor belts known per se and having a transverse conveying direction to the sitting direction of the chair. * In a preferred embodiment of the invention said support is an extendable and contractable respectively post seated in a preferably displaceable frame. In an advantageous embodiment of the invention the lower end of said post is rigidly attach¬ ed to one side of the frame and the upper end is secured to one side edge of the lower surface of the middle plate, the plates projecting freely on the same side of said post as the frame. According to a further development of the invention both plates that are hinged to the middle plate attached to the frame are rotatable by a motor. The. invention will be disclosed in more detail with reference to the drawings showing a preferred embodiment of the in¬ vention. Figure 1 shows a side elevation of an embodiment of the invention in perspective, Figure 2 shows a front elevation of the arrangement in perspective, Figure 3 shows a side elevation of the wheel chair in a sitting position, Figure 4 is a side elevation like Figure 3, showing the wheel chair being changed into a lying position, Figure 5 shows the wheel chair in perspective with all plates in a horizontal position and as used in connection with a bed, Figure 6 shows the utilization of the wheel chair in connection with a bed, showing the movement of the patient from bed onto the wheel chair, Figure 7 shows the wheel chair in connection with a lavatory, Figure 8 shows the wheel chair in connection with a patient being moved into a bath-tub, and Figure 9 shows the wheel chair when a patient is moved into a private car. « The arrangement essentially comprises three plates 1 , 2 and 3 that are hinged together at 4 and 5 at adjacent side edges. Middle plate 2 is rigidly secured to a post 6 that is attached to web 7 of a U-shaped frame 8, the legs 9 and 10 of which extend below said middle plate 2. Plate 2 is rigid¬ ly secured to post 6 at one of its longitudinal edges. This will appear most clearly from Figures 5 and 6. The supporting plates 1 , 2 and 3 are intended for supporting the patient's back, buttocks, and thighs, and also the lower parts of a disabled person's legs. In Figures 1 to 4 and 7 to 9 the supporting surfaces are arranged in such a mutual angle that the patient is in a sitting position when using the wheel chair. Post 6 is telescopically extendable and contractable. With the arrangement according to the invention this may be done by the aid of a motor, e.g. via a worm drive on a rack or the like. As will appear from the above mentioned, middle plate 2 is rigidly attached to post 6, whereas plates 1 and 3 may be positioned at an angle to plate 2. This may be achieved by drive cylinders 12 and 13. The supporting plates 1 , 2 and 3 consist of plane conveyor belts that may be driven in the direction of arrows 14 in Figures 2, 5, and 7 to 9, that is in parallel with the axis of the hinged connection between plates 1 , 2, and 3. Details of the belts are not shown, since they do not form part of the invention. It is a question of plate endless belts, preferably comprising a carrier plate having a smooth surface between the parts in order to avoid too much sag of the belts when they.are subjected to a load. Frame 8 is provided with wheels 15, so that the wheel chair may be rolled from one place of usage to another. On the wheel chair easily mountable and dismountable arm¬ rests 16 may be provided on one side and possible on the other side 17 as well. The support surface 1 intended for supporting a person's back and forming the back rest in the chair position as shown in Figure 1 , is considerably longer than plate 3 that is intended for supporting the lower part of the user's legs. Plate 3 is advantageously made easily mountable and dismountable. The object of these features will be explained in connection with Figure 9. On frame portion 17 for the middle plate knobs are provided for con¬ trolling the different motors 11, 12, and 13, as well as motor 19, or the motors for the belts on plates 1 , 2, 3. Since the belts should always be driven with the same velocity and in the same direction one common motor provided with a transmission should be sufficient. In the position shown, e.g. in Figure 1 the arrangement may be used as a chair. In this position the patient may also be moved to a lavatory, as shown in Figure 7. The chair is moved with middle plate 2 half across the lavatory seat 20 and the belts are activated towards the lavatory. The patient is supported and moved by the aid of the arrange¬ ment until he or she sits with one buttock on the lavatory seat. The patient can then be supported in a position rest¬ ing with one thigh and one buttock on the lavatory, when the wheel chair is removed. In the same manner the patient may be moved to a wheel chair or to another chair. As apparent from Figure 3, plates 1 , 2 and 3 may be lifted or lowered to be adapted to various means in connection with which the wheel is to be used. 5 In Figures 5 and 6 we can see how the wheel chair arrange¬ ment according to the invention may be used when a patient is to be moved from a bed (and vice versa) . We assume that a patient is lying in a bed 21. He or she is rolled 10 to a position lying on one side (position a) . Plate 1 , 2 and 3 of the wheel chair are all positioned horizontally, as shown in Figure 5, and they are adjusted in height to have the plates only just passing over the mattress when they are moved adjacent the patient lying in position a. Then 15 the patient is rolled to position b and the belts are acti¬ vated in ' the direction of arrow 14 in Figure 6 so as to move the patient until he or she lies on his or her back in the middle of plates 1 , 2 and 3. Then the back rest 1 may be raised and the foot rest is lowered to the position, e.g. 20 shown in Figure 1 , the patient now sitting upright. Figure 8 shows how the arrangement according to the present invention is used when a patient is having a bath. The wheel chair is adjusted to a sitting position and is moved 25. across the seat 22 of the lift member 23 in the same manner as shown in Figure 7 in connection with movement onto and from a lavatory. The patient will then be in a sitting position on seat 22 that may be moved up and down in the direction of arrow 24 and swung in the direction of arrow 30 25 over the bath-tub 26. Then the patient may be lowered into the bath-tub. For moving a patient to a car 27 (Figure 9) the foot plate 3 usually has to be removed so as to advance the patient across the door sill of the car. Plate 3 should, thus, be 35 easily removable and remountable in connection with plate 2. However, if plate 3 is short enough the wheel chair may be advanced across the car seat without plate 3 having to be removed. In the disclosure of the embodiment shown in the drawings plates 1, 2 and 3 are all provided with conveyor belts. In a simple and inexpensive embodiment the belt on plate 3 might be omitted, the weight to be carried on that plate 5 being relatively low. 10. 15 20 25- 30 35

Claims: CLAIMS : 1. An arrangement in a wheel chair comprising a back rest and a seat, said back rest being hinged to said seat in such a manner that it may be folded down into a horizontal posit¬ ion, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that a plate shaped support for the lower part of the legs is hinged to said seat and that at least the back rest and the seat, preferably the legrest as well consist of or comprise conveyor belts known per se and having a conveying direction (14) across the sitting direction of the chair. 2. An arrangement as claimed in claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e i n that the support of plate (2) consists of a post (6) that is extendable and contractable and is seated in a displaceable frame (8). 3. An arrangement as claimed in claims 1 and 2, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that said post (6) is rigidly attached at its lower end to one side of frame (8), and that the upper post end is secured to the lower surface of middle plate (2) at one laterial edge, so that plates (1, 2, and 3) project freely from said post at the same side as the frame. 4. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that the displaceable frame (8) is U-shaped comprising a web (7) and legs (9 and 10) . 5. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that the two plates (1 and 3) that are hinged to the middle plate (2), that is rigidly secured to the post, are swingable by the aid of a motor (19) . 6. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z_e i n that switches for motors (11, 12, 13, and 19) for extending or shortening said post (6), tilting said plates (1,3) and driving said conveyor belts are provided on the frame (17) of the middle plate (2). 7. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims. c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that easily removable and mountable respectively arm rests (16, 17) are provided on one or both sides of the middle plate (2) . 8. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that one (1) of the end plates is longer than the other (3) and is intended as a back rest. 9. An arrangement as claimed in one or more of the pre¬ ceding claims, c h a r a c t e r i z e d i n that the short end plate (3) is easily removable and mountable respect¬ ively in relation to the middle plate (2) .

Inventors: BEKKELUND SVEIN, BEKKELUND, SVEIN
Applicants: BEKKELUND SVEIN, BEKKELUND, SVEIN
Application year: 1985
Main classification: A61G7
IPC codes: A61G3, A61G5, A61G7