JPH037551B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a transport vehicle equipped with a patient chair etc. that mainly descends stairs, and more specifically relates to a crawler-type transport vehicle that is equipped with a patient chair and the like and mainly descends stairs, and more specifically, a crawler-type transport vehicle that can occupy a small volume when stored. About cars.

[Conventional technology]

In recent large hospitals, inpatient rooms are often located on the upper floors of high-rise buildings, and these hospitals are equipped with elevators and stairs, and patients who are unable to walk are required to use wheelchairs, stretchers, or mobile beds. Since you can move from an upper floor to a lower floor using an elevator, there is usually no anxiety or inconvenience.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] However, once an emergency situation such as a fire occurs, elevators cannot be used due to safety issues, and elevators must be operated by nurses managing inpatient rooms and other assistants. Patients who are unable to walk on their own must be evacuated using stairs.
However, when there are many hospitalized patients, it is extremely difficult for a small number of nurses to evacuate the patients in a short period of time, and once a fire breaks out, there are many casualties.

Therefore, this invention enables relatively weak nurses to easily evacuate hospitalized patients who are unable to walk down the stairs by themselves, and also folds up when not in use to minimize the occupied volume. To provide a transport vehicle which can be stored under a bed or the like.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a vehicle body with a frame body that also serves as a patient chair, etc., and a crawler mechanism in which a crawler is wound between a locking wheel and an idler wheel. In a car, an idler wheel support mechanism is provided in which the frame body is pivotally connected to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable in the longitudinal direction, and an idler wheel support mechanism is provided that can move the idler wheel along a vertical plane in conjunction with the rotation of the frame body. The wheel support mechanism includes an idler wheel support rod that is pivotally supported on the vehicle body side, and has a holding mechanism that attaches an idler wheel to the tip of the rod and holds the idler wheel in a running state, so that the frame body is in a horizontal position. In the retracted state in which the crawler is rotated so that the crawler is rotated, the upper circumferential surface of the crawler is flat along the frame.

[Effect]

With the above structure, the carrier of the present invention can fold the frame body and the idler wheel into a flat shape and store them under the bed when not in use, and when in use, the frame body can be rotated and the idler wheel The idler wheels are held in a running state via the support rods, and the patient can be carried down the stairs. Further, switching between the used state and the non-used state can be easily and quickly performed by simply rotating the frame in one direction.

〔Example〕

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The structure of the present invention will be explained below with reference to embodiments shown in the attached drawings. First, FIG. 1 is a side view showing an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a patient evacuation carrier, and this carrier has a crawler mechanism 20 for traveling and an idler wheel 23 of this crawler mechanism 20.
The vehicle body 10 includes a floating wheel support mechanism 30 that supports the crawler mechanism 20, a patient chair 40 that also serves as a frame as a loading platform, and the like.

This vehicle body 10 has an inclined part 11a that stands up at an angle of about 30° to 45° at one end, and a horizontal part 11b that extends horizontally.
Two side frames 11 having a diameter are arranged in parallel, and a horizontal frame 12 is installed between the side frames 11, and the inclined part 11a and horizontal part 11b of this side frame 11 also serve as crawler guides.

A crawler mechanism 20 is installed along both sides of the vehicle body 10, and a crawler 21 of the crawler mechanism 20 moves along the horizontal portion 10 of the vehicle body 10.
It is wound between a locking wheel 22 attached to the open end of a and an idler 23 disposed via an idler support mechanism 30 (described later) provided near the connection point of the inclined portion 11a and the horizontal portion 11b. has been done.

This crawler mechanism 20 has a wheel mechanism 24 attached to the side surface of the vehicle body 10, and when traveling on a flat surface, the wheels of the wheel mechanism 24 are in contact with the ground. This wheel mechanism 24 has wheels 24 mounted on both ends of a substantially triangular wheel support plate 241.
2, 243 are attached via shafts 242a, 243a, and one end of a support shaft 245 fitted into a bearing tube 244 fixed to the vehicle body 10 is fixed at the center of the top of the wheel support plate 241. As the support shaft 245 rotates within the bearing tube 244, the wheel support plate 241 can see-saw. Further, a flange 24 is provided at the other end of the support shaft 245.
6 is fixed, and a tension spring 247 is locked along the horizontal direction including the center line of the support shaft 245, and the end of this tension spring 247 is locked to the vehicle body 10.

The wheel mechanism 24 configured in this way is attached to the vehicle body 10.
and approximately in the center of the horizontal portion 11b and near the base of the inclined portion 11a. A bottom clearance K is formed.

Further, the shaft 22a of the engaging wheel 22 has a brake drum 221.
An inwardly expanding brake shoe is disposed within the brake lever 21, and the swinging motion of the brake lever 222 expands the brake shoe to apply braking force. The brake lever 222 is operated by a wire 223 with an operating lever, which will be described later, and is always operated by a return spring 224.
The behavior is given in the direction of release.

The idler wheel 23 is an idler wheel support mechanism 30 which will be described in detail later.
The idler wheel 23 is supported by the tip of the idler wheel support rod 31, and the other end of the idler wheel support rod 31 serves as a stopper 31a that contacts the vehicle body 10. The intermediate portion thereof is pivotally attached to the vehicle body 10, and by placing the idler wheel support rod 31 in a posture parallel to the inclined portion 11a of the side frame 11, the crawler 21 can also be connected to the inclined portion 21a and the horizontal portion 21b. This prevents interference with the final step when descending the stairs, and by placing the idler wheel support rod 31 in a horizontal state, the inclined portion 21a of the crawler 21 is aligned parallel to the flat surface. In this state, the upper circumferential surface of the crawler 21 and the horizontal portion 21b can be parallel to each other.

And, this idle wheel support mechanism 30
Idler wheel support rods 31 pivotally supported near the base of the inclined portion 11a are located on both left and right sides of the vehicle body 10, and pivot shafts 32
penetrates between the idler wheel support rods 31 along the width direction of the vehicle body 10.

This pivot 32 has a patient chair 40 that also serves as a frame.
There is a holding arm 33 that maintains the usage posture of the holding arm 33, and this holding arm 33 is restrained from upward movement by a holding mechanism 34, which will be described later.
It has a slope at a.

This holding mechanism 34 has a holding hook 344 whose base is a branch pipe 343 fitted to a support shaft 342 installed between branch pieces 341, 341 provided on the horizontal member 12 forming the vehicle body 10. It can be rotated around a support shaft 342 using a release handle 345 provided. This holding hook 344 is configured to have the habit of always standing up due to a spring 346.

Further, a pair of right and left support arms 35 that support a patient chair 40, which also serves as a frame body, are attached to the pivot shaft 32, and a locking frame 36 bent in a right angle direction is provided at the upper end of the support arms 35. Left and right support arms 35
A pressing rod 37 for pushing the idler wheel support rod 31 is installed between them, and the rotational movement of the idler wheel support rod 31 causes the pressing rod 37 to protrude from the side edge of the support arm 35. Rod 37 is now in contact with it. The lower limit of the idler support rod 31, which is rotated by the pressing rod 37, is limited by a stopper 38 on the inclined portion 11a of the vehicle body 10. The locking frame 3
6, a mouth-shaped locking hook 361 that catches the backrest frame 41 of the patient chair 40, which also functions as a frame, is attached to a shaft 36 that is horizontally suspended on the locking frame 36.
2, and the upper edge 3 of the locking hook 361
61a has a hook function, its lower edge forms a release lever 361b, and the spring 3 wound around the shaft 362
63, the habit of turning clockwise in side view is given in FIG. The locking hook 361 is attached to the horizontal member 3 of the locking frame 36.
64, this horizontal member 364 also functions as a spring receiver for the spring 363.

A horizontal member 411 is attached to the back frame 41 of the patient chair 40 which also serves as a frame.
A locking protrusion 412 is fixed at approximately the center position of 11, and a tip edge 412a of this locking protrusion 412
is sloped, and the locking hook 36
It is designed so that it can rotate while touching the upper edge 361a of 1.

The backrest frame 41, which also serves as a frame body, is pivotally supported at the end of the support arm 35 by a pivot 41a.
An end of a seat frame 42 that also serves as a frame body is also pivotally connected to the seat frame 42, and an upper end of a footrest frame 43 that also serves as a frame body is pivotally attached to the other end of the seat frame 42 via a pivot 42a that also serves as a horizontal member. and the lower end engaging wheel 2 of the footrest frame 43
The pivot 43a is attached to the vehicle body 10 at a position substantially above 2.
It is pivotally connected via.

A backrest frame 41 and a seat frame 42, which also serve as frames, are covered with canvas or other fabric 44, and a headrest 45 is provided at the top of the backrest frame 41.
Additionally, a wire 46 is provided to limit the opening of both frames.
connects the backrest frame 41 and the seat frame 42 near their pivot points.

The top end of the backrest frame 41 is a handle 47 that is operated by an attendant, etc., and a brake lever 18 is attached to this handle 47, and by operating the brake lever 48, braking can be performed via a wire 223. A seat belt 49 is provided at the bottom of the backrest frame 41 to restrain a passenger on board.

Next, the patient evacuation work will be explained. The patient being transported is seated on a patient chair 40 that also serves as a frame, and is restrained using a seat belt 49. On a flat surface such as a hallway, the wheel mechanism 24
An attendant such as a nurse moves by pushing the handle 47. In this case, since the crawler 21 is not in contact with a flat surface, it can run quickly without resistance.

When the front wheel mechanism 24 comes off the flat surface from the hallway to the stairs, the wheel support plate 241 forming the wheel mechanism 24 tilts about the support shaft 245, the wheels 242 go up and the wheels 243 go down.
As a result, the crawler 21 moves to the corner E of the stairs S.
The attendant feels some braking in his hand pushing the handle 47, so he lowers the front of the carrier at that position. Then, the crawler 21 moves the lug 21
A catches corner E and starts descending naturally under the weight of the carrier. If the speed of the transport vehicle is accelerated while descending the stairs, the attendant must press the brake lever 48.
By applying braking to the engaging wheels 22 by operating the carrier, the vehicle descends the stairs at a moderate descending speed, and the attendant does not need to press the handle because the carrier descends naturally due to gravity.

When moving from the final stage to a flat landing, the rear part of the crawler 21 has an inclined part 21a, so the crawler 21 is not interfered by the final corner part E, and smoothly contacts the ground sequentially starting from the wheels 243 and 242 of the front wheel mechanism 24.

On a landing, it is necessary to turn the running direction by 90 degrees or more, and in this case, if all four wheel mechanisms are in contact with the ground, the turning resistance due to the wheel group will be large, so the attendant should put a little weight on the handlebar 47. The front wheel is suspended, and the vehicle turns using only the rear wheel mechanism.

Once again, the vehicle descends down the stairs, and the movement of the stairs is ensured by the rolling motion of the crawler 21. On the stairs, the wheel mechanism 24 tilts in the front-back direction, so each wheel 243, 242 overcomes each corner E while resisting the elasticity of the spring 247 (eighth
(see figure).

Next, a case will be described in which the evacuation carrier shown in FIG. 1 is brought into a compact storage state. First, the locking mechanism 34 is released, but the release handle 34
5 against the elasticity of the spring 346 to remove the holding hook 344 from the holding arm 33, and then rotate the release lever 361b of the locking hook 361 located below the backrest frame 41 against the elasticity of the spring 363. and turn counterclockwise, the upper edge 361 of the locking hook 361
a is removed from the locking protrusion 412 and the backrest frame 41
release the restraints. Then, pull the handle 47 toward you to rotate the support arm 35 clockwise about the pivot 32, and rotate the support arm 35 along with the backrest frame 41 to the pivot 41a.
When the seat frame 42 and the footrest frame 43 are rotated to the forward position, the pivot points of the seat frame 42 and the footrest frame 43 are lowered and moved toward the handle 47, resulting in the state shown by the dotted line in FIG.

As the patient chair 40 becomes flattened, the support arm 35 further rotates, and the pressing rod 37
The idler wheel support rod 31 is pushed down to rotate the idler wheel 23 about the pivot 32. As a result, the idler wheel 23 is located at the same level as the locking wheel 22, and the crawler 21 is in a flat state, and the entire structure is in a flat shape suitable for storage.

In order to change the stored state to a state in which evacuation is possible, in other words, a state in which a patient can be boarded, the support arm 35 is moved by raising the backrest frame 41 to the state shown in FIG. This causes the idler wheel support rod 31 to lift up the idler wheel 23. When raising the backrest frame 41, first raise the seat frame 4.
2. The footrest frame 431 does not rise, and the seat frame 42 and the footrest frame 4 do not rise until the wire 46 is tensioned.
3 follows and stands up. Further, the holding arm 33 fixed to the pivot 32 is captured by the holding mechanism 34, and the locking hook 361 is slightly rotated along the slope of the locking protrusion 412 while the locking protrusion 412 is rotated slightly.
By restraining the locking protrusion 412 at the upper side of the patient 12, the patient riding posture is maintained.

In the above description, the present invention has been described as an example of a carrier for evacuation of a patient, but it can also be applied to a carrier that travels up and down stairs, and in this case, it is necessary to replace the engaging wheels with drive wheels.

Furthermore, although the description has been given of a case in which the brake drum 221 is provided on the shaft 22a of the engaged wheel 22, this brake drum may be replaced with a brake unit having a constant speed braking function such as a centrifugal brake. Moreover, both can also be used together.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As is clear from the above description, the carrier of the present invention is capable of swinging the idler wheel around which the crawler is wound along the vertical plane by rotating the frame. Because of this structure, when it is stored, it is possible to use a flat crawler mechanism without an inclined part, and the occupied volume can be reduced. Moreover, switching between the use state and the storage state of the frame body and the crawler can be performed in a very simple manner and in a short time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a side view showing an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a patient evacuation carrier, Fig. 2 is a cutaway plan view of the same part, Fig. 3 is a cutaway side view of the same part, and Fig. 4 is a holding A partial plan view showing the mechanism, Fig. 5 is Fig. 4 V-
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line V, FIG. 6 is a plan view taken along the arrow in FIG. 1, FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken from the same side, and FIG. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10...Vehicle body, 11...Side frame, 11a...Slanted part, 11b...Horizontal part, 12...Horizontal member, 20...
...Crawler mechanism, 21...Crawler, 21a...
Inclined part, 21b... Horizontal part, 22... Engaging wheel, 2
2a... Axis, 23... Idle wheel, 24... Wheel mechanism, 241... Wheel support plate, 242, 243...
Wheel, 244...Bearing tube, 245...Spindle, 24
6...Flange, 247...Tension spring, 221...
...Brake drum, 222...Brake lever, 2
23... wire, 224... return spring, 30...
Idler wheel support mechanism, 31... Idler wheel support rod, 31a
... Stopper, 32 ... Axis, 33 ... Holding arm,
34... Holding mechanism, 35... Support arm, 36... Locking frame, 37... Pressing rod, 38... Stopper, 40
...Patient chair that also serves as a frame body, 41...Backrest frame,
42...Seat frame, 43...Footrest frame, 44...
Fabric, 45...Headrest, 46...Wire,
47...handle, 48...brake lever.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A transport vehicle that mainly descends stairs, which has a frame body that also serves as a patient chair, etc., and a crawler mechanism in which a crawler is wound between a locking wheel and an idler wheel, An idler wheel support mechanism is provided, in which the body is pivotally connected to the vehicle body so as to be rotatable in the longitudinal direction, and the idler wheel can be moved along a vertical plane in conjunction with the rotation of the frame body, and this idler wheel support mechanism is configured to: It has an idler wheel support rod that is pivotally supported on the vehicle body side, and a holding mechanism that attaches an idler wheel to the tip of the rod and holds the idler wheel in a running state, and the frame rotates so that it is horizontal. A transport vehicle characterized in that, in a stored state, the upper peripheral surface of the crawler is flat along the frame.