JP7378741B2 - Independence support vehicle for care recipients - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an independence support vehicle for a person requiring care, which enables the person requiring care to stably and easily walk independently indoors, who requires the help of an assistant when standing, sitting, or walking.

As an invention of an apparatus for assisting a person in need of care in standing up and a device for assisting in walking, an apparatus is disclosed that includes an apparatus for assisting a person in need of care in standing up by raising and lowering a support part using a gas spring. (Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2)
In Patent Document 1, in this standing-up assisting device, the support mechanism of the elbow rest includes an arm that rotates around a first fixed fulcrum provided on the left and right sides of the elbow rest, and an arm that rotates around a second fixed fulcrum. The arms and gas springs each have rotating ends that support support sections set on the user's side and the anti-user side of the elbow rest, thereby providing support on the user's side. The supporting part on the side opposite to the user is attached to a second fixed pivot point set at the rotating end of the gas spring. The arm rest is movably attached, and the arm rest is in the locked state of the gas spring, and when walking, the arm rotates around the first fixed fulcrum and the gas spring rotates around the second fixed fulcrum. Although it is configured so that it can take a normal posture and a forward-leaning posture, the ends of the arm and gas spring are configured to be rotatable, so care must be taken in manufacturing and maintaining the rotating parts. It has become something that does not exist.

Patent No. 6542634 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 9-327485

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned background technology, and is a self-reliance support vehicle for persons in need of care that uses a gas spring that is safe and easy to use, has a simple structure, is easy to maintain and inspect, and can reduce the product price. This is what we are trying to provide.

The present inventors solved the above problem by the following means.
(1) An independence support vehicle for walking and transferring a person in need of care,
A support member having a U-shape in top view for supporting the upper body of the person in need of care, a lower cart having front wheels and rear wheels, and a plurality of rods erected between the cart and the support member. and an elastic strut, in which a gas spring biased in the direction of expansion is installed, and two short lengths for gripping, on the left and right, erected on the upper support member. It is equipped with an operation button that controls the extension and contraction positions of the rod body and the support column ,
and plate-shaped elbow rests are fixedly provided on the left and right upper surfaces of the support member,
Further, the operation button is attached to the upper end of the short gripping rod.
A vehicle that supports the independence of people in need of care.
(2) The independence support vehicle for a person in need of care according to (1), wherein at least one of the plurality of elastic struts is a gas spring with a locking function.
(3) The independence support vehicle for a care recipient according to (1) , wherein the trolley is equipped with a fixture that fixes the cart so that the care recipient does not rotate when standing or sitting.

The independence support vehicle of the present invention is safe and easy to use, and contributes to a significant reduction in the stress and labor of the care recipient and the caregiver. Furthermore, since the overall structure is simple, manufacturing costs can also be reduced.
The product of the present invention facilitates independent movement indoors, such as from a bed to a toilet, for a person in need of care who has low back pain or knee pain and requires the help of a caregiver when standing, sitting, or walking.
In particular, since there are two short gripping rods on the left and right that stand upright on the support member, the person requiring care can firmly grip it with their hands and fingers and stably support their body.
In addition, plate-shaped elbow rests are provided on the left and right upper surfaces of the U-shaped support member, so
Both elbows can be supported stably, increasing the sense of security.
Furthermore, since the wheels are equipped with fixing devices to prevent the wheels from rotating when the person in need of care stands or sits down, the safety of the person in need of care is ensured when standing up using the independence support vehicle for the person in need of care of the present invention. Ru.

When the care recipient operates the operation button, the support member, which is U-shaped in top view and is held at a predetermined position at the bottom, rises due to the expansion of the gas spring biased in the expansion direction, allowing the care recipient to stand up. When the support member is held in the raised position by operating the operation button and the support member held at the upper position is released by the operation button, a gas spring is compressed by the weight of the care recipient on the support member. Since the support member is slowly lowered to allow the person in need of care to sit down, it is possible to significantly reduce the labor of the caregiver, and it also contributes to increasing the person's desire to move independently.

A perspective view of an independence support vehicle for a person requiring care according to an embodiment of the present invention A configuration diagram of the independence support vehicle for a person requiring care according to an embodiment of the present invention, (a) is a front view, (b) is a side view, and (c) is a top view. An explanatory diagram (a) of the mode of use of the vehicle for supporting the independence of persons requiring care according to the present invention is a diagram of the state before independence. An explanatory diagram (b) of the usage mode of the independence support vehicle for persons requiring care of the present invention is a state diagram at the time of starting independence. An explanatory diagram (c) of the usage mode of the independence support vehicle for persons requiring care of the present invention is a state diagram in the middle of independence. An explanatory diagram (d) of the usage mode of the independence support vehicle for persons requiring care of the present invention is a state diagram after independence.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the independence support vehicle for a person requiring care according to the present invention will be explained based on the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an independence support vehicle for a care recipient according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view (a), a side view (b), and a top view of the independence support vehicle for a care recipient according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figures (c) and 3 are explanatory diagrams of how the car for supporting independence for persons requiring care of the present invention is used. (a) is a diagram of the state before independence, (b) is a diagram of the state at the start of independence, and (c) is in the middle of independence. (d) is the state diagram after independence.
In the figure, 1 is a U-shaped support member when viewed from above, 1a is a side rod, 1b is a front rod, 2 is a trolley, 3 is an elastic column, 3' is an elastic column equipped with a gas spring, 3'a 3'b is the inner tube of the elastic strut, 4 is the wheel, 5 is the short rod for gripping, 6 is the operation button, 7 is the elbow rest plate, and 8 is the stopper.

As shown in FIG. 1, the self-reliance support vehicle for a care recipient of the present invention has a support member 1 having a short gripping rod 5 at the top for supporting the weight of the care recipient by grasping with fingers when standing, sitting or walking. It is installed and prepared.
In addition, a lower cart 2 each having two wheels 4 to assist in independent movement, and a lower cart 2 erected between the cart 2 and the support member 1, are provided so that the support member 1 can be moved up and down when the person in need of care stands or sits. It is equipped with an elastic strut 3 that allows the
Further, the right and left side rods 1a, 1a of the support member 1 are provided with an elbow rest plate 7 on the upper surface of which the elbow of the person requiring care is placed and on which to rest the weight.

In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2, at least one of the elastic struts 3 that are erected between the trolley 2 and the support member 1 and that move the support member up and down when the person in need of care stands or sits; An inner tube 3b vertically disposed on the support member 1 is slidably inserted into the outer tube 3a, and is provided with a gas spring biased in the direction of expansion. 1 is smoothly moved up and down to a predetermined position (height) and then stably fixed in that position.By pressing the operation button 6 via the wiring 6' with your finger, the elastic The support column 3 can be smoothly expanded and contracted and stopped at an appropriate position.
Note that the operation button is preferably provided near the short gripping rod 5.
Further, a stopper 8 is attached to the front of the cart 2 to ensure safety when the care recipient stands or sits.

Next, a method of using the self-reliance support vehicle of the present invention will be explained based on FIG. 3.
a. Care recipient A who was lying on bed B gets up and sits on bed B. If care recipient A is unable to do it on his own, a caregiver will help him do it.
b. Before the caregiver carries the independence support vehicle 10 in front of the care recipient A who is sitting on the bed B, the caregiver checks whether the support member 1 is lowered to a predetermined position and fixed, and if it is not lowered, After pushing down the support member 1 to a predetermined position below and fixing the support member 1 at the predetermined position below by operating the operation button 6, as shown in FIG. The short gripping rod 5 of the support member 1 can be firmly grasped with fingers, and the elbow rest plate 7 can be placed within the reach of the care recipient, and the stopper 8 can be operated to remove the independence support vehicle 10. to be fixed in that position.
c. Next, as shown in FIGS. 3(b) and 3(c), the care recipient A firmly grasps the short gripping rod 5 of the support member 1 of the fixed independence support vehicle 10 with fingers, and also uses both elbows. After placing the person on the elbow rest plates 7, 7, the operation button 6 at the upper end of the short gripping rod 5 is pressed with a finger to raise the support member 1, and at the same time slowly raise the upper body of the care recipient A.
The caregiver releases the stopper 8 after confirming that the care recipient A has stood up.
d. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3(d), the care recipient stands up and performs rehabilitation actions by walking, or moves to a destination location.
e. When returning to bed B after walking, the caregiver operates the stopper 8 to stop and fix the independence support vehicle 10 at that position after moving to the bed B side.
The care recipient A presses the operation button 6 to lower the support 1, then presses the operation button again to stop and fix it in that position, brings his buttocks into contact with the bed B, and then lowers the support body 1 to the elbow rest plate 7. Then, the user releases the elbow and fingers from the short gripping rod 5, leaves the independence support vehicle 10, and moves to the bed B.
Finally, after the caregiver leaves the care recipient, the caregiver releases the stopper 8 and moves it to the storage location, completing the series of support tasks.

As mentioned above, by using the independence support vehicle of the present invention, the labor of the caregiver who conventionally had to pick up the care recipient and transfer him or her to a wheelchair can be drastically reduced, and support can also be provided by family members living together. Furthermore, it is possible to reduce the hesitancy of a person in need of care when requesting assistance from a caregiver.

1: U-shaped support member 1a when viewed from above: Side rod 1b: Front rod 2: Cart 3: Elastic strut 3': Elastic strut equipped with a gas spring 3'a: Inner tube 3 of the elastic strut 'b: External tube of elastic strut 4: Wheel 5: Short gripping rod 6: Operation button 6' Wiring 7: Elbow rest plate 8: Stopper 10: Independence support vehicle A: Care recipient B: Bed

Claims (3)

An independence support vehicle for walking and transferring people in need of care,
a support member having a U-shape when viewed from above for supporting the upper body of a person in need of care;
a lower trolley with front and rear wheels;
It is composed of a plurality of elastic struts erected between the truck and the support member,
and a gas spring biased in the expansion direction is installed in the elastic strut,
It further comprises two short gripping rods standing upright on the support member, and an operation button for controlling the extension/contraction position of the support .
and plate-shaped elbow rests are fixedly provided on the left and right upper surfaces of the support member,
Moreover, the independence support vehicle for a person in need of care is characterized in that the operation button is attached to the upper end of the short rod for gripping . The independence support vehicle for a care recipient according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of elastic struts is a gas spring with a locking function. 2. The vehicle for supporting the independence of a person in need of care according to claim 1 , wherein the trolley is provided with a fixture for fixing the cart so that the person in need of care does not rotate when the person in need of care stands or sits down.

Images