Transfer assistance mechanism and wheelchair having the same

Abstract

To provide a transfer assistance mechanism that can transfer a care recipient from a bed to a stretcher, a wheelchair or the like by a simple mechanism and that can easily be mounted on the stretcher, the wheelchair or the like.SOLUTION: Provided is a transfer assistance mechanism that assists transfer of a care recipient from a fixed bed to a transport bed or from a transport bed to a fixed bed, the transfer assistance mechanism including: a transfer board for transferring the care recipient between the fixed bed and the transport bed; a connecting member connectable to the transfer board; and an actuator provided on the transport bed side and configured to move the transfer board back and forth in a width direction of the transport bed via the connecting member. The transfer board comprises a board body to which the connecting member is connected, and an endless conveyor belt that rotates around the board body in response to the advancement and retreat of the actuator to transport the care recipient.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a transfer assistance mechanism for assisting a care recipient lying on a bed to transfer to a stretcher or a wheelchair.

Background Art

[0002] In hospitals, elderly care facilities, etc., there are many situations where a care recipient is transferred from a bed to a stretcher or a wheelchair, or from a stretcher or a wheelchair to a bed for movement within the facility. At this time, if the care recipient cannot transfer independently, the caregiver has to move the care recipient while lifting or holding the care recipient, which imposes an excessive burden on the caregiver.

[0003] Conventionally, as a device for assisting such transfer of a care recipient to reduce the physical burden on the caregiver, a transfer assistance mechanism disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. This mechanism includes a stretcher body disposed adjacent to a bed on which a care recipient lies, a bed that is movably provided with respect to the stretcher body and can enter and exit on the bed, and a closed-loop conveyor belt that circulates around the bed. As a usage method, first, a part of the bed is advanced onto the bed and inserted under the right or left half of the care recipient. When the conveyor belt is rotated around the bed in this state, the care recipient can be placed on the bed. Further, when the care recipient has completed boarding the bed, the bed is returned from the bed onto the stretcher body, so that the care recipient can be transferred to the stretcher.

[0004] In addition, Patent Document 2 discloses a transfer assistance mechanism in which the stretcher bed itself is movably provided by a closed-loop conveyor belt. In the mechanism of this Patent Document 2, the stretcher bed, which is the transfer destination of the care recipient, moves toward the bed side of the transfer origin as the conveyor belt rotates, thereby facilitating the care recipient's boarding onto the bed. Further, when the care recipient has completed boarding the bed, by rotating the conveyor belt in the reverse direction, the bed can be drawn from the bed side to the stretcher side, enabling the care recipient to be transferred onto the stretcher together with the bed.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] However, the transfer assistance mechanisms disclosed in these documents have a configuration in which the stretcher bed itself reciprocates between the stretcher (transfer destination) and the bed (transfer origin) as the conveyor belt rotates. Therefore, a mechanism for supporting the movement of the bed is required, and moreover, the bed with the care recipient on it must be held in a cantilever state, necessitating the provision of a complex and robust mechanism on the stretcher side.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and an object thereof is to provide a transfer assistance mechanism that can transfer a care recipient from a bed to a stretcher, a wheelchair, etc. with a simple mechanism and can be easily equipped on a stretcher, a wheelchair, etc.

[0008] That is, the present invention is a transfer assistance mechanism for assisting the transfer of a care recipient from a fixed bed to a transfer bed or from the transfer bed to the fixed bed, comprising a transfer board for transferring the care recipient between the fixed bed and the transfer bed, a connecting member that can be coupled to the transfer board, and an actuator provided on the transfer bed side for moving the transfer board back and forth in the width direction of the transfer bed via the connecting member. The transfer board is composed of a board body to which the connecting member is coupled, and an endless conveyor belt that rotates around the board body in response to the forward and backward movement by the actuator to transfer the care recipient.

Advantages of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention configured as described above, by using an actuator to move the transfer board between the fixed bed and the transfer bed, the endless conveyor belt rotates around the transfer board, and the care recipient M is moved between the fixed bed and the transfer bed. Therefore, it is possible to transfer the care recipient between the fixed bed and the transfer bed while minimizing the movement amount of the transfer board, and it is possible to realize the transfer of the care recipient with a simple mechanism. In addition, it is possible to easily equip the transfer assistance mechanism to a stretcher or a wheelchair.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, the transfer assistance mechanism of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an electric wheelchair 1 to which the transfer assistance mechanism according to the present invention can be applied. This electric wheelchair 1 automatically transports a care recipient to a destination by autonomous driving and is equipped with four driving wheels 2 that run on the floor surface. The driving wheels 2 are omnidirectional driving wheels, and for example, mecanum wheels (registered trademark) can be used. An electric motor, a controller, and a battery as a power source for controlling the rotation of these driving wheels 2 are housed in a driving unit 3. In addition, reference numeral 5 in the figure is a grip when a caregiver manually operates this electric wheelchair.

[0013] A seat 4 on which a care recipient M rides in the electric wheelchair 1 is composed of a seat surface portion 40, a backrest portion 41, a headrest portion 42, a lower leg support portion 43, and a footrest portion 44. The portions adjacent to each other are bendable, and it is configured to be able to realize an optimal seat shape according to the physical condition of the care recipient M. Also, as shown in FIG. 2, the aforementioned seat surface portion 40, backrest portion 41, headrest portion 42, lower leg support portion 43, and footrest portion 44 can be deployed horizontally. In this case, it is possible to deform the electric wheelchair 1 into a stretcher (transport bed). The bending or deployment of the seat is performed by the driving unit.

[0014] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, plate-like movable locking portions 45 are provided on both the left and right sides of the seat surface portion 40, the backrest portion 41, and the lower leg support portion 43. In a state where the care recipient M is seated, the movable locking portions 45 stand upright perpendicular to the seat surface portion 40, the backrest portion 41, and the lower leg support portion 43, preventing the care recipient M from slipping off the seat 4. Further, the movable locking portions 45 can be deployed 90 degrees to the outside of the seat, and when deployed, the movable locking portions 45 form the same plane as the seat surface portion 40, the backrest portion 41, and the lower leg support portion 43. Thereby, when the electric wheelchair 1 is deformed into a stretcher and the stretcher is laid horizontally on a permanent bed used by the care recipient M, the movable locking portions 45 can be deployed on the permanent bed to assist in transferring the care recipient M between the permanent bed and the stretcher.

[0015] FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a transfer assistance mechanism equipped on the electric wheelchair 1.

[0016] This transfer assistance mechanism includes a transfer board 6 for transferring the care recipient M between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S, a connecting member 7 coupled to the transfer board 6, and an actuator 8 for advancing and retracting the connecting member 7 in the width direction (left - right direction of the paper surface) of the stretcher S. The connecting member 7 and the actuator 8 are provided one by one between the seat surface portion 40 and the backrest 41 of the seat 4, and between the backrest portion 41 and the headrest portion 42.

[0017] The actuator 8 is configured by looping a closed-loop crawler belt 82 around a plurality of sprockets including a drive sprocket 80 and a driven sprocket 81. By rotating the drive sprocket 80 with an electric motor (not shown), the crawler belt 82 can be reciprocally rotated. The connecting member 7 is coupled to a part of the crawler belt 82 and moves in the width direction of the stretcher S by rotating the crawler belt 82. The connecting member 7 is a rod-shaped member that extends from the stretcher S to the permanent bed B and couples the crawler belt 82 of the actuator 8 to the transfer board 6 installed on the permanent bed B.

[0018] Note that the actuator 8 is not limited to the one that reciprocally rotates the crawler belt 82 with the drive sprocket 80 as long as it can move the connecting member 7 forward and backward in the width direction of the stretcher S and move the transfer board 6 coupled to the connecting member 7 in the same direction. For example, a ball screw actuator that converts the rotational motion of an electric motor into a linear reciprocating motion of the connecting member 7 by a ball screw device may be used.

[0019] FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the transfer board 6, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line V-V of FIG. 4. This transfer board 6 includes a board body 60, a plurality of rollers 61 provided on both sides in the width direction (vertical direction in the drawing) of the board body 60, and a plurality of endless conveyor belts 62 wound around the rollers 61 so as to wrap the board body 60. The board body 60 is obtained by reinforcing the periphery of a synthetic resin plate material with a metal square pipe and is covered with an inner covering sheet material (for example, a fluorine fiber sheet) having excellent low friction properties. Further, a support member that rotatably holds the roller 61 is fixed to the square pipe.

[0020] In the transfer board 6 of this embodiment, six of the rollers 61 are arranged in series on one side of the board body 60, and separate conveyor belts 62 are wound around each roller 61. As a result, six conveyor belts 62 are rotatable around the board body 60. Further, each conveyor belt 62 is formed from a sheet material excellent in low friction properties (for example, a fluorine fiber sheet).

[0021] In the transfer board 6, gaps are provided between the adjacent conveyor belts 62 corresponding to the positions of the shoulders and waist of the care recipient M using this (the position of the arrow A in FIG. 4), and the connecting member 7 provided on the stretcher S can be coupled to the board body 60 of the transfer board 6 at these positions. That is, when the connecting member 7 is moved in the width direction of the stretcher S by the actuator 8, the transfer board 6 coupled to the connecting member 7 moves back and forth between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S.

[0022] FIGS. 6 and 7 are views showing a state in which the care recipient M is transferred from the permanent bed B to the stretcher S using the transfer support mechanism of the present invention. Note that these figures are drawn with the actuator 8 and the connecting member 7 omitted.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 6, first, the stretcher S is placed beside the permanent bed B, and the movable locking portion 45 close to the permanent bed B is deployed outside the stretcher S. Thereby, the gap between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S is blocked by the movable locking portion 45, and it becomes possible to support the reciprocation of the transfer board 6 between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S.

[0024] Next, the transfer board 6 is slid under the care recipient M lying horizontally on the permanent bed B, and the care recipient M is placed on the transfer board 6. It is not necessary to place the entire body of the care recipient M on the transfer board 6. It is sufficient to place only the half body on the permanent bed B side on the transfer board 6. If the care recipient M is temporarily placed in a lateral position on the permanent bed B (see Fig. 3), the transfer board 6 can be slid under the care recipient M.

[0025] On the other hand, in the stretcher S, the actuator 8 is driven to move the connecting member 7 toward the permanent bed side B, and the connecting member 7 is projected from the stretcher S side onto the movable locking portion 45 toward the permanent bed B side. Thereby, it becomes possible to couple the tip of the connecting member 7 to the board body 60 of the transfer board 6 placed on the permanent bed B.

[0026] When the connecting member 7 is connected to the transfer board 6, the actuator 8 is driven to retract the connecting member 7 toward the stretcher S side, and the transfer board 6 to which the connecting member 7 is coupled is moved in the direction of arrow X in Fig. 6. Since the transfer board 6 is pressed against the permanent bed B by the weight of the care recipient M, when the transfer board 6 is moved in the direction of arrow B, the conveyor belt 62 wound around the periphery of the board body 60 of the transfer board 6 automatically rotates around the transfer board 6. As a result, the care recipient M, who had only half of their body on the transfer board 6, will have their entire body pulled onto the transfer board 6 as the conveyor belt 62 rotates.

[0027] At this time, since the moving amount of the surface of the conveyor belt 62 is twice that of the moving amount of the transfer board 6, when the transfer board 6 is moved from the permanent bed B toward the stretcher S, the care recipient M will move on the transfer board 6 by twice the moving amount of the transfer board 6. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 7, when the transfer board 6 advances from the permanent bed B toward the stretcher S, the care recipient M passes over the transfer board 6 and moves onto the stretcher S. That is, it is possible to transfer the care recipient M to the stretcher S without pulling the entire transfer board 6 into the stretcher S.

[0028] Then, as shown in FIG. 7, when the entire body of the care recipient M is placed on the stretcher S, the movement of the connecting member 7 by the actuator 8 is stopped. At this time, although half of the care recipient M's body is placed on the transfer board 6, if the care recipient M is temporarily placed in a lateral position on the stretcher S, the transfer board 6 can be removed from under the care recipient M. Further, when removing the transfer board 6, the connection between the connecting member 7 and the board body 60 of the transfer board 6 is released. Thereby, the transfer board 6 can be separated from the stretcher S and stored.

[0029] On the other hand, when transferring the care recipient M from the stretcher S to the permanent bed B, the procedure described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7 is performed in reverse. Thereby, it is possible to easily transfer the care recipient M on the stretcher S to the permanent bed B.

[0030] After transferring the care recipient to the stretcher S, the seat 4 can be bent according to the physical condition of the care recipient and used as the electric wheelchair 1 as shown in FIG. 1.

[0031] As described above, according to the transfer assistance mechanism of the present invention, when the transfer board 6 is moved between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S using the actuator 8, the conveyor belt 62 wound around the transfer board 6 rotates as the transfer board 6 moves, and the care recipient M is moved between the permanent bed B and the stretcher S, and moreover, the moving speed thereof is twice the moving speed of the transfer board 6.

[0032] Therefore, it is possible to transfer the care recipient between the permanent bed and the stretcher while minimizing the movement amount of the transfer board 6 by the actuator 8, and it is possible to realize the transfer of the care recipient with a simple mechanism. In addition, it becomes easy to equip the transfer assistance mechanism on a stretcher or a wheelchair.

[0033] Further, rollers for supporting the rotation of the conveyor belt are rotatably provided on the transfer board, and even when the weight of the care recipient acts on the transfer board, the conveyor belt can be easily rotated. Therefore, the resistance acting on the movement of the transfer board is reduced, and the actuator can easily move the transfer board forward and backward. Also in this regard, the transfer assistance mechanism can be downsized and easily equipped on a stretcher or a wheelchair.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0034] 1... Electric wheelchair, 2... Driving wheel, 4... Seat, 6... Transfer board, 7... Connecting member, 8... Actuator, 45... Movable locking portion, 60... Board body, 61... Roller, 62... Conveyor belt, B... Permanent bed, S... Stretcher

Claims

1. A transfer assistance mechanism for assisting the transfer of a care recipient from a fixed bed to a transfer bed or from the transfer bed to the fixed bed, comprising a transfer board for transferring the care recipient between the fixed bed and the transfer bed, a connecting member that can be coupled to the transfer board, and an actuator provided on the transfer bed side for moving the transfer board back and forth in the width direction of the transfer bed via the connecting member. The transfer board is characterized by comprising a board body to which the connecting member is coupled, and an endless conveyor belt that rotates around the board body in response to the forward and backward movement by the actuator to transfer the care recipient.

2. The transfer assistance mechanism according to claim 1, wherein rollers for supporting the rotation of the conveyor belt are rotatably supported on the board body of the transfer board.

3. The transfer bed is divided into a backrest portion, a seat portion, and leg portions, and can be deformed into a chair shape as a whole when the backrest portion is bent upward with respect to the seat portion while the leg portions are bent downward with respect to the seat portion. The transfer assistance mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the actuator is disposed between the backrest portion and the seat portion and between the seat portion and the leg portions.

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