Assist device

Abstract

To suppress unintentional knee bending without hindering movement of the legs of a user and a change of a direction, with respect to an assist device capable of assisting the user in holding a standing position.SOLUTION: An assist device 10 for allowing a user S to hold a standing position by himself / herself includes: a support post 31 (first base part) installed in a floor Y or a wall K; an upper half body support part 20 disposed in the support post 31 and allowing a front face part SA of the upper half body of the user S in a standing position to lean; a support part 40 (second base part) installed in the floor Y, the wall K or the support post 31; and a support part 50 disposed in the support part 40, arranged below the upper half body support part 20 and capable of supporting from downward a knee part SB (a part or the whole from kneecap to upper shin part) of the user S when knee bending occurs in the knee of the user S leaning on the upper half body support part 20.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an assistance device. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, a handrail device has been disclosed that is provided with a cushion body extending approximately horizontally at the middle section of a frame body fixed upright on a base, or at both the intermediate section and the upper end (see Patent Document 1).

[0003] Also disclosed is a standing posture assisting device having knee and shin pads that stabilize the posture of a user when the user stands up from a sitting position or in a standing position (see Patent Document 2). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2019-97900 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2015-202334 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In the handrail device described in Patent Document 1, the person being assisted can lean their thighs against the cushion body and place both hands on the cushion body provided at the upper end, thereby allowing them to maintain a standing posture safely and accurately with almost no physical strain.

[0006] Furthermore, the standing aid of Patent Document 2 not only assists the user in maintaining a standing position for a short period of time, but also enables the user to rest his or her upper body against it while performing tasks such as putting on or taking off clothes.

[0007] However, when a user stands up from a wheelchair or a toilet and leans on a standing aid, the user may change the direction or position of the legs to get closer to the standing aid. Also, when a user sits on a wheelchair or a toilet from a standing aid, the user may move the legs to change the direction of the body. During these movements, the user may not be able to exert force on the knees due to factors such as motor paralysis or muscle weakness, and the user's knees may bend unintentionally, making it impossible to maintain a standing posture. On the other hand, if a knee and shin pad as described in Patent Document 2 is simply provided to prevent the knees from bending, the knee and shin pad may hinder the user's leg movement or change of direction.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide an assistance device capable of assisting a user in maintaining a standing posture, which is capable of preventing unintentional bending of the knees without interfering with the movement or change in direction of the user's legs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The assistance device of the first aspect is an assistance device for enabling a user to maintain a standing position by himself / herself, and has a first base to be installed on a floor or a wall, an upper body support part provided on the first base and against which the front part of the upper body of a user in a standing position can lean, a second base to be installed on the floor, the wall or the first base, and a support part provided on the second base and positioned below the upper body support part, capable of supporting part or all of the area from the kneecap to the upper shin from below when the knee of the user leaning on the upper body support part bends.

[0010] In this assistance device, the front part of the upper body of a user in a standing position can rest against the upper body support part. Also, when the knee of the user in a standing position leaning against the upper body support part bends, the support part supports part or all of the area from the kneecap to the upper shin from below, preventing the knee from bending. When the knee is not bent, the support part does not hinder the movement or change of direction of the user's legs.

[0011] In a second aspect, in the care device according to the first aspect, the frontmost part of the support part is located further forward than the frontmost part of the upper body support part.

[0012] In this assistance device, the frontmost part of the support part is positioned further forward than the frontmost part of the upper body support part, so that even if the knees of a user in a standing position leaning against the upper body support part begin to buckle, the progression of the buckling can be suppressed in the early stages.

[0013] In a third aspect, in the assistance device according to the second aspect, the support portion is formed so as not to come into contact with the kneecap and upper shin of a user leaning against the upper body support portion when the knee of the user is extended.

[0014] With this assistance device, when a user leans against the upper body support part with their knees extended, the user's kneecaps and upper shins do not come into contact with the support part, so the movement of the user's legs and changes in direction are not hindered.

[0015] In a fourth aspect, in the assistance device according to the third aspect, the frontmost part of the support part is positioned below the kneecap of the extended knee of a user leaning against the upper body support part and further back than the upper shin.

[0016] In this care device, the support parts are positioned so that when a user leans against the upper body support part with his / her knees extended, the user's kneecaps and upper shins do not come into contact with the front part of the support parts.

[0017] In a fifth aspect, in the care device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the support section is retractable from a supportable state to a back side.

[0018] In this assistance device, the support section can be stored from a supporting state, so that turning space for the wheelchair can be easily secured even in a limited space. Effect of the Invention

[0019] According to the present invention, in an assistance device capable of assisting a user in maintaining a standing posture, unintentional bending of the knees can be suppressed without impeding the movement or change in direction of the user's legs. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an assistance device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a support unit is stored in the care device according to the present embodiment. [Diagram 3] 1 is a plan view showing a toilet in which an assistance device according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed. [Figure 4] 1 is a side view showing a state in which the front part of the upper body of a user is leaning against an upper body support part in the care device according to the present embodiment. FIG. [Diagram 5] 5 is a side view showing a state in which a part or the whole of the area from the kneecap to the upper shin is supported from below by the support portion when the knee bends in the state of FIG. 4. FIG. [Figure 6] 5 is a side view showing a state in which the user bends his / her knees to put on or take off lower body clothing, following the state shown in FIG. 4. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Components indicated by the same reference numerals in each drawing are the same or similar components. Note that duplicated descriptions and reference numerals in the embodiments described below may be omitted. In addition, all drawings used in the following description are schematic, and the dimensional relationship of each element, the ratio of each element, etc. shown in the drawings do not necessarily match the actual ones. In addition, the dimensional relationship of each element, the ratio of each element, etc. between multiple drawings do not necessarily match.

[0022] 1 to 6, the assistance device 10 according to this embodiment is an assistance device for enabling a user S to maintain a standing posture by himself / herself. The assistance device 10 has a support pole device 30 as an example of a first base, an upper body support section 20, a support section 40 as an example of a second base, and a support section 50. In FIG. 3, the assistance device 10 is installed near a seat-type toilet 16 in a toilet T used by a wheelchair user, for example. Around the seat-type toilet 16, an armrest device 15, for example, is provided. Considering use by a wheelchair (not shown), the assistance device 10 is installed so that the upper body support section 20 and the support section 50 face in a direction intermediate between the front-rear direction F of the seat-type toilet 16 and the direction E in which the wheelchair enters and exits.

[0023] The support pole device 30 is installed on the floor Y of the toilet T. Specifically, the support pole 31 is mainly composed of, for example, a base plate 32 installed on the floor Y, and a hollow pipe support pole 31 erected on the base plate 32. The support pole device 30 is erected vertically upward from the floor Y by fixing the base plate 32 to the floor Y. A rib-shaped reinforcing member 33 is attached to the lower end of the support pole 31 and the base plate 32 to suppress tilting of the support pole 31.

[0024] The upper body support 20 is provided on the support 31, and is a portion on which the front part SA of the upper body of the user S in a standing posture can be leaned. The front part SA of the upper body is mainly the chest. The upper body support 20 may be capable of leaning not only the chest of the user S but also the abdomen and head. The upper body support 20 may be a portion that supports the standing posture of the user S. As an example, the upper body support 20 has a pair of vertical grip bars 21 on the left and right that extend in the vertical direction, and each vertical grip bar 21 is curved so as to be convex toward the front side. The interval between the vertical grip bars 21 is set to be smaller than the shoulder width of the user S. The user S is capable of leaning the front part SA of the upper body on the pair of vertical grip bars 21. Incidentally, the "front side" refers to the side of the user S leaning against the upper body support part 20 with the front part SA of the upper body (the front side as seen from the user S).

[0025] The lower ends of the pair of vertical grip bars 21 are connected to each other by a lower connecting portion 22 extending substantially horizontally. In the illustrated example, the pair of vertical grip bars 21 and the lower connecting portion 22 are integrally configured, but the lower connecting portion 22 may be configured separately from the pair of vertical grip bars 21. The upper ends of the pair of vertical grip bars 21 are connected to each other by an upper connecting portion 23. The upper connecting portion 23 has a pair of first wall portions 23A extending from the pair of vertical grip bars 21 to the rear side, and a second wall portion 23B connecting the rear ends of the pair of first wall portions 23A to each other. The second wall portion 23B is located on the rear side of the pair of vertical grip bars 21 and is fixed to a base portion 26 provided at the upper end of the support 31. A support portion (not shown) is provided at the upper portion of the support 31, and the base portion 26 is fixed to this support portion. A pad portion 24 is provided on the base portion 26. The pad portion 24 is located between the pair of vertical grip bars 21, between the upper connecting portion 23 and the lower connecting portion 22. Note that the "rear side" refers to the front side of the user S who leans against the upper body support portion 20 with the front portion SA of the upper body.

[0026] The support unit 40 is installed on the support column 31. In this embodiment, the support unit 40 is provided on the support column 31 below the upper body support unit 20. The support unit 40 has, for example, an attachment unit 42 and a pair of arm units 44. The attachment unit 42 is attached at a predetermined height, for example, so as to sandwich the support column 31 in the radial direction. The attachment unit 42 may be formed so that the attachment height relative to the support column 31 can be changed. The pair of arm units 44 are supported on the support unit 40 so as to be rotatable within a predetermined range. The predetermined range is a range necessary for switching the support unit 50 between a supportable state and a stored state, which will be described later. The support unit 40 may have a stopper, a plunger, or the like that can hold the angular position of the arm unit 44 at the upper and lower limits of the predetermined range.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 2, the support unit 50 may be retractable to the back side. As described above, the pair of arms 44 supporting the support unit 50 are rotatable within a predetermined range on the support unit 40. In the illustrated example, the support unit 50 is in a retractable state when the pair of arms 44 are rotated upward to flip up the support unit 50. This retractable state may be maintained by a stopper, a plunger, or the like that can hold the angular position of the arms 44. On the other hand, the support unit 50 is in a supportable state when the pair of arms 44 are rotated downward from the retracted state to become substantially horizontal (FIG. 1). In the supportable state, the support unit 50 is capable of supporting the knee SB of the user S whose knee has been bent.

[0028] The support section 50 is provided on the support section 40 and is disposed below the upper body support section 20, and can support a part or all of the area from the kneecap to the upper shin of the user S (hereinafter referred to as "knee section SB") from below when the knee of the user S leaning against the upper body support section 20 bends. The support section 50 has, for example, a frame 52 and a pad section 54. The frame 52 connects the front ends of the pair of arm sections 44 and is disposed substantially horizontally. The frame 52 extends in the left-right direction of the user S leaning against the upper body support section 20 at the front part SA of the upper body. Both ends of the frame 52 protrude further left and right than the front ends of the pair of arm sections 44. The length of the frame 52 is set to be wider than the distance between the knees of the user S in a standing position leaning against the upper body support section 20, so that the knees can be supported even if the position of the legs moves slightly left and right.

[0029] The pad section 54 is provided so as to cover, for example, the upper portion of the frame 52, the front side, and further downward. The pad section 54 has, for example, urethane foam and a surface skin. The outer shape of the pad section 54 is formed, for example, in an arc-shaped cross section. The range of the arc-shaped cross section of the pad section 54 is not limited to the example shown in the figure. It is sufficient that at least the range of the pad section 54 that comes into contact with the knee section SB of the user S with bent knee has an arc-shaped cross section.

[0030] 5, when the knees of the user S in a standing position leaning against the upper body support part 20 bend, the support part 50 in the supportable state supports the knee part SB from below, thereby preventing the knees from bending. The knee joint angle θ when the support member 50 supports the knee part SB is preferably 10 degrees or more, and more preferably 20 degrees or more. The knee joint angle θ when the support member 50 supports the knee part SB is preferably 60 degrees or less, and more preferably 50 degrees or less.

[0031] In the supportable state of the support section 50, the frontmost part of the support section 50, i.e., the frontmost part of the pad section 54, may be located closer to the front than the frontmost part of the upper body support section 20, i.e., the frontmost part of the vertical grip bar 21. In addition, the support section 50 may be formed so as not to come into contact with the knee section SB of the user S when the knee of the user S leaning against the upper body support section 20 is in an extended state in the supportable state. In other words, the frontmost part of the support section 50 may be located lower than the kneecap of the extended knee of the user S leaning against the upper body support section 20 and further back than the upper shin (FIG. 4).

[0032] Furthermore, the support part 50 may be formed so as not to come into contact with the knee part SB of the user S when the user S bends his / her knee in the supportable state. As shown in Fig. 6, even when the user S bends his / her knee to put on or take off clothes for the lower body, the knee part SB of the user S does not come into contact with the support part 50. Therefore, the support part 50 is unlikely to be an obstacle when putting on or taking off clothes.

[0033] Specifically, when support section 50 is in a supportable state, the distance A in the front-rear direction between the frontmost part of support section 50 and the frontmost part of upper body support section 20 is, for example, about 20 mm. Also, the height H from floor Y to the uppermost position of support section 50 is about 400 mm. Although the knee height differs depending on the physique of user S, such dimensional settings make it possible for support section 50 to comfortably support the knees of user S who is, for example, 140 to 180 cm tall.

[0034] (action) This embodiment is configured as described above, and its operation will be described below. When the user S transfers between the wheelchair and the sit-down toilet 16, the user S first assumes a standing position in order to put on and take off clothing on the lower half of the body. In FIG. 4, in this embodiment, the front part SA of the upper body of the user S in the standing position can lean against the upper body support part 20. When the knees of the user S leaning against the upper body support part 20 are in an extended state, the knee parts SB of the user S do not come into contact with the support part 50 in a supportable state, so that the movement of the user S's legs and changes in direction are not hindered.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 5, when the knee of the user S in a standing position leaning against the upper body support part 20 bends, the support part 50 in the supportable state supports the knee part SB from below, thereby suppressing the knee bending. In particular, since the most proximal part of the support part 50 is located closer to the front than the most proximal part of the upper body support part 20, even if the knee of the user S in a standing position leaning against the upper body support part 20 bends, the progression of the knee bending can be suppressed at an early stage of the knee bending. By appropriately setting the position of the support part 50, even if the height of the knee part SB differs depending on the physique of the user S, the support part 50 can support the knee part SB in the same way. By making the upper surface and the front surface of the support part 50 curved, the knee part SB can be supported in the same way even if the direction in which the knee part SB abuts against the support part 50 changes slightly.

[0036] Thus, according to this embodiment, in an assistance device capable of assisting the user S in maintaining a standing posture, unintentional bending of the knees can be suppressed without impeding the movement or change in direction of the user S's legs.

[0037] A toilet T used by a wheelchair user as shown in FIG. 2 requires space for the wheelchair to turn. However, in the assistance device 10 of this embodiment, the support part 50 can be retracted from the supporting state to the storable state, so that it is easy to ensure space for the wheelchair to turn even in a limited space such as the toilet T.

[0038] [Other embodiments] An example of an embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the above, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0039] Although the support device 30 has been given as an example of the first base, the first base may also be a wall bracket. That is, the upper body support 20 may be attached to the wall K by a wall bracket. The upper body support 20 is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and may be anything on which the front portion SA of the upper body of the user S in a standing position can lean.

[0040] Although the support part 40 as an example of the second base part is installed on the support pillar 31 in the above embodiment, it may be installed on the base plate 32. The second base part may be installed on the floor Y or the wall K. To ensure a turning space for the wheelchair, it is preferable that the support part 50 is retractable from the supporting state to the rear side, but it is also possible to fix the support part 50 in the supporting state. [Explanation of symbols]

[0041] 10 Assistive devices 20 Upper body support part 30 Prop device (1st base) 40 Support part (second base) 50 Support Department K wall S user SA front part SB Knee (part or all of the area from the kneecap to the upper shin) Y Floor

Claims

1. An assistance device for enabling a user to maintain a standing posture by himself / herself, A first base portion that is installed on a floor or a wall; an upper body support portion provided on the first base portion, on which a front portion of the upper body of a user in a standing position can rest; A second base installed on the floor, the wall, or the first base; a support part provided on the second base and disposed below the upper body support part, capable of supporting a part or the whole of the user's knee from the kneecap to the upper shin from below when the knee of the user leaning on the upper body support part is bent; An assistance device having the above structure.

2. The care device according to claim 1 , wherein the frontmost portion of the support portion is located further forward than the frontmost portion of the upper body support portion.

3. 3. The care device according to claim 2, wherein the support portion is formed so as not to come into contact with the kneecap and upper shin of the user when the knee of the user leaning against the upper body support portion is in an extended state.

4. 4. The care device according to claim 3, wherein the frontmost portion of the support portion is positioned below the kneecap of the user's extended knee and behind the upper shin of the user leaning against the upper body support portion.

5. The care apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the support section is retractable from a supportable state to a rearward state.

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