Walker

Abstract

To enable a person to easily and safely stand up from a seated position on a chair, bed, toilet seat, etc. [Solution] A walker 11 having a front frame 12 and left and right side frames 13 and four legs 14, 15 is provided with a knee restriction member 31 that restricts forward movement of the knee at a position facing the user's knee in the middle in the front-to-rear direction inside the area surrounded by the front frame 12 and the left and right side frames 13. Also, an air jack 52 that expands with a supply of air is provided as a buttocks lifting means 51 that lifts the buttocks of a user who is in a seated position facing the walker 11. This stabilizes a user who is trying to stand up and allows the movement to be performed smoothly.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This invention relates to a walker suitable for people with leg and back pain, people who have difficulty maintaining balance, people who find walking unsteady with a cane, and people with weak muscles. [Background technology]

[0002] Walkers with four legs are widely used. They are composed of a front frame and two side frames, and the user moves while holding the left and right side frames with both hands toward the walker to support the body. Some of the four legs are equipped with casters. Some also have two grips, one at a high position and one at a low position, that the user holds. In addition to supporting walking, walkers have a U-shape rotated 90 degrees to the left in a plan view, so in addition to supporting walking, they can be used to assist with physical movement in the toilet by placing them around the toilet, and if a seat is provided in the area surrounded by the front and side frames, they can also be used as a chair for bathing. As mentioned above, walkers with grips at low positions are especially used to assist with standing up from a seated position on a chair or bed. As walkers can be used for other purposes besides assisting walking, they are widely used not only in facilities such as hospitals, but also in ordinary homes and outdoors.

[0003] However, some users have difficulty standing up when using a walker to assist in standing up. That is, when standing up, the user places their hands on the walker placed in front of the body, shifts their weight forward, and puts strength into their feet to stand up, but the walker does not have a part to support the knees of the user who moves forward. Therefore, when the user has weak leg strength or has difficulty putting strength into their feet or legs, the user has no choice but to support themselves with their arms when trying to stand up, which can make the user's posture unstable. In such cases, the user is unable to stand up smoothly and may fall over unexpectedly. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Therefore, the main objective of this invention is to improve the standing up assistance function. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] To achieve this objective, the present invention provides the following walker.

[0006] In other words, it is a walker having a front frame and left and right side frames, with four legs, and is equipped with a knee restricting member located opposite the user's knee in the middle of the fore-and-aft direction within the interior area surrounded by the front frame and the left and right side frames, which restricts the forward movement of the knee.

[0007] In a walker of this configuration, the knee restriction member supports the user's knee when it hits it as it tries to move forward, and also prevents and inhibits the knee from moving forward. In other words, when a user in a seated position tries to stand up in front of the walker (the walker according to this invention), the knee restriction member supports the knee moving forward instead of the caregiver, stabilizing the user's posture and encouraging the user to exert force to extend the leg. On the other hand, when walking, the knee restriction member prevents the user from moving too far inside the walker. The knee restriction member can be made of a hard material that does not deform or does not easily deform, but is preferably made of a deformable sheet-like body that does not cause pain when the knee hits it and allows the walker to be folded. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to this device, the knee restraining member supports the knees of the user who moves forward when trying to stand up from a seated position, making it easier for the user to stand up by himself and reducing the burden on the caregiver. Also, when walking with the walker, the knee restraining member prevents the user from moving forward more than necessary, preventing the user from losing balance and falling backward while walking, enabling safe use. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. [Diagram 2]FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] One embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0011] 1 shows a perspective view of a walker 11 with an improved standing-up assist function. This walker 11 is equipped with a knee restriction member 31 that restricts the forward movement of the user's knees, and a buttocks lifting means 51 that lifts the buttocks of a user who is in a seated position toward the walker 11.

[0012] The basic structure of the walker 11 itself is the same as that of existing walkers, and includes a front frame 12 and side frames 13 on both the left and right sides, with four legs 14, 15. The front frame 12 and the side frames 13 are integrally joined, and the walker 11 shown in the figure is constructed by joining the front legs 14 of the side frames 13, which have legs 14, 15 at the front and rear, to the front frame 12. In addition to the front frame 12, left and right connecting rods 16 extending in the left and right direction are provided at the upper end of the side frame 13, which provides sufficient strength and allows the side frame 13 to be folded into a shape along the front frame 12. The side frame 13 is provided with grips 17, 18 that the user can grasp with the hands at a position close to the front legs 14 at the upper end and at a position lower than that close to the rear legs 15. In addition, below the grips 18 at the lower level on the side frame 13, there are front and rear connecting rods 19 that extend in the front and rear direction in the unfolded state to reinforce the shape of the side frame 13. The illustrated example of the walker 11 has four rod-shaped legs 14, 15, but they may also be equipped with casters.

[0013] In walker 11 having such a basic configuration, knee restraining member 31 is provided at a position facing the user's knees in the middle in the front-to-rear direction inside the area surrounded by front frame 12 and left and right side frames 13. Whether the user is sitting on a chair or bed or standing, there is no significant difference in the height (vertical position) of the user's knees from the floor surface (the surface on which walker 11 is placed) and so knee restraining member 31 is provided at a fixed position on walker 11.

[0014] The knee restraining member 31 can be made of a rod-shaped member, plate-shaped member, sheet-shaped member, or the like with an appropriate surface, so long as it supports the knee when it comes into contact with the knee and inhibits or prevents further movement of the knee. The knee restraining member 31 can be attached to an appropriate portion of the side frame 13 using appropriate fixing means. For example, it may be tensioned using fixing means such as a wire or rope. The knee restraining member 31 can also be attached detachably.

[0015] The knee restriction member 31 in the illustrated example is composed of a deformable rectangular sheet-like body that is long in the left-right direction, and both longitudinal ends are fixed to the front-rear connecting rod 19. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, a partially cutaway perspective view of the knee restriction member 31, and Fig. 3, an exploded perspective view of the main parts, it is fixed via fixing members 32 attached to the front-rear connecting rod 19.

[0016] The knee restraining member 31 can be made of any suitable deformable sheet material, such as a vinyl sheet or woven fabric, but more preferably is one that is resistant to deformation in the short direction or bulging deformation, although it can undulate in the longitudinal direction as shown by the imaginary line in Figure 3. Tarpaulin or the like is preferably used because of its stain resistance, light weight, waterproofness, tensile strength, printing characteristics, etc.

[0017] The length (left-right and longitudinal length) of the knee restraining member 31 corresponds to the width between the left and right side frames 13, but the length in the up-down direction (short side direction) is appropriately set taking into consideration the up-down position of the user's knee and the height (up-down position) at which the front and rear connecting rods are provided.

[0018] The upper and lower edges of the knee restraining member 31 may be provided with a reinforcing structure (not shown) such as wire or piping to maintain the shape and prevent downward sagging depending on the material.

[0019] The fixing member 32 is composed of a cylindrical body 33 that can be inserted into the front-rear connecting rod 19, and a fixing plate 34 provided at the end of the cylindrical body 33 in the longitudinal direction. The cylindrical body 33 is fixed to the front-rear connecting rod 19 by a fixing pin 35 such as a rivet that penetrates in the radial direction at the middle part in the longitudinal direction, and is immobile in both the longitudinal direction and the circumferential direction of the front-rear connecting rod 19. In FIG. 3, 33a is an insertion hole through which the fixing pin 35 is inserted. The fixing plate 34 is provided on the side of the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical body 33 that corresponds to the inside of the walker 11, and is a rectangular plate that is long in the vertical direction. The length of the fixing plate 34 is a length that can hold the knee restricting member 31, and specifically corresponds to the length of the knee restricting member 31 in the short direction. The fixing plate 34 is hard and has a rigidity that does not easily deform.

[0020] The longitudinal end 31a of the knee restraining member 31 overlapped on the surface of the fixing plate 34 is pressed down by a hard pressing plate 36 and clamped and fixed by a fastener 37 such as a rivet. The shape of the pressing plate 36 is the same as that of the fixing plate 34.

[0021] In the drawing, 31b and 36a are semicircular cutouts provided in the knee restraining member 31 and the pressing plate 36, respectively, to correspond to the shape of the fixing plate 34.

[0022] The buttocks lifting means 51 may be one that operates by utilizing the force of the user or the caregiver, but in order to make the standing up movement easier, it is preferable that it lifts the buttocks without requiring such force. Specifically, an air jack 52 that is inflated by supplying air can be suitably used. The air jack 52 is composed of an inflation / deflation bag 53, an electric air pump 54, and an air bleed valve 55. The inflation / deflation bag 53 is a cushion-like bag that has an area required to lift the buttocks of the user and an inflated volume that can lift the buttocks to a desired height, and is inflated by supplying air and deflated and flattened by discharging air. As shown by the imaginary lines in FIG. 1, it is preferable that the inflation / deflation bag 53 is in a form that lifts the rear of the buttocks higher. The electric air pump 54 is an existing device that supplies air by operating a switch, and is connected to the supply / exhaust tube 53a of the inflation / deflation bag 53 and is detachably fixed to the side frame 13 of the walker 11 via a holder (not shown) as shown by the imaginary lines. An air vent valve 55 is interposed between the air supply tube 54a of the electric air pump 54 and the air supply / exhaust tube 53a of the inflation / deflation bag 53. The air vent valve 55 is structured to release the air inside the inflation / deflation bag 53 when manually opened.

[0023] The walking frame 11 having the above-mentioned configuration is used as follows when a user sitting on a chair, bed, toilet, or the like stands up.

[0024] First, as shown in FIG. 1, the walker 11 is placed in front of the seating position P, and the inflation / deflation bag 53 of the air jack 52 is sandwiched under the buttocks of the user sitting at the seating position P. Then, the user (see the thin line in FIG. 4) who is about to stand up will sit shallowly, grasp the lower grip 18 with both hands, and move slightly diagonally downward while leaning forward as shown by the imaginary arrow A1. Then, as shown by the imaginary line, the knees move forward and hit the knee restriction member 31, and the knees are supported and the posture is stabilized. At this time, or slightly before this, the switch of the electric air pump 54 of the air jack 52 is turned ON, and the inflation / deflation bag 53 will inflate and push up the buttocks. This allows the buttocks to easily leave the floor as shown by the arrow A2, and then the movement of the center of gravity is continuously shifted to the movement of raising the center of gravity by the force of the legs as shown by the arrow A3. When the buttocks leave the seated position P, the knees are supported by the knee restriction member 31, reducing the need for the user to brace himself / herself with leg strength, and still providing stable support, so the user can focus on raising the center of gravity and perform the standing up motion.

[0025] In this way, when standing up using the walker 11 or when using the walker 11 simply as a standing aid, the user's knees are supported and the user's posture can be stabilized, so that when standing up by oneself, the transition of movements is smooth and standing up can be easily performed, and when standing up with the assistance of a caregiver, the burden on the caregiver is reduced.

[0026] When a standing user walks with the walker 11, the inflation / deflation bag 53 at the seating position P is deflated by operating the air release valve 55, or is held in an inflated state by hanging it from the walker 11, and the user begins to walk. During the walking motion, the knee restriction member 31 restricts the position of the user relative to the walker 11 so that the user does not move too far forward. In other words, an inexperienced user may move their body too far forward while walking, which may cause them to lose balance and fall backward. However, the presence of the knee restriction member 31 prevents the user from moving too far forward, which has the advantage that even an inexperienced user can walk safely with the walker 11.

[0027] If the inflation / deflation bag 53 remains inflated when the user tries to sit down after walking, the user can place the inflation / deflation bag 53 at the seating position P, sit down on it, and open the air release valve 55, allowing the user to sit down without putting strain on the knees and deflate the inflation / deflation bag 53 at the same time.

[0028] The above configuration is one embodiment for carrying out the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above configuration, and other configurations can also be adopted.

[0029] For example, as shown in Fig. 5, the inflation / deflation bag 53 may be provided with a carrying handle 56 for easy portability. Although the inflation / deflation bag 53 itself may be provided with a handle or hook, it is preferable to form the handle 56 on a hard, flat support plate 57 and to integrally fix the underside of the inflation / deflation bag 53 to the upper surface of the support plate 57 by adhesive or the like. The size of the support plate 57 should be equal to or larger than the size of the inflation / deflation bag 53 flattened flat. Although the handle 56 is shown as an example formed by drilling a through hole with no open area around it in part of the support plate 57, any configuration may be used as long as it can be hung by hand or hung from the walker 11, such as a hook with an open area around it or one formed by attaching a separate member.

[0030] With such a handle 56, the support plate 57 is hung when moving, making it easier to handle than holding the shapeless inflation / deflation bag 53. Furthermore, since the support plate 57 is hard, it can be effectively used to assist standing up without reducing the expansion of the inflation / deflation bag 53, even if the seating position P is soft.

[0031] The inflation / deflation bag 53 may be provided with a protective cover 58 to prevent it from getting dirty so that it can be used in a toilet, for example. The protective cover 58 may be detachable from the inflation / deflation bag 53 and may be washable or disposable. The protective cover 58 illustrated in Fig. 5 is formed in a bag shape with an opening 58a on one side, and a gusset 58b is formed on the side of the protective cover 58 to allow the inflation / deflation bag 53 to expand. In addition to being in this bag shape, the protective cover 58 may be in the form of a sheet that can be attached and detached to the upper or lower surface of the inflation / deflation bag 53 with a re-adhesive adhesive or the like.

[0032] 6 shows another example of a knee restraining member 31 whose position can be changed in the front-rear direction. That is, the configuration of the fixing member 32 is the same as that described above except that it is fixed by a fixing pin 35 that cannot be removed, and the front-rear connecting rod 19 is provided with a plurality of through holes 19a that can be selected as fixing positions. The cylindrical body 33 of the fixing member 32 is formed to be slidable on the front-rear connecting rod 19, and holds a detachable fixing pin 38 that can be inserted into and removed from the insertion hole 33a of the cylindrical body 33 and the through hole 19a of the front-rear connecting rod 19.

[0033] By configuring the knee restraining member 31 in this manner so that its position can be changed in the front-rear direction, a walker 11 that is easy to use and can be adapted to the user's body type can be obtained.

[0034] In addition to the above, for example, the air jack 52 can be omitted. Since the electric air pump 54 is detachably attached as described above, it is easy to change the specifications to one without the air jack 52.

[0035] Furthermore, the knee restraining member 31 may be provided detachably with respect to the walker 11. In the case of the above-mentioned configuration example, the cylindrical body 33 of the fixing member 32 can be made detachable by, for example, forming it into two pieces. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 11. Walker 12…Front frame 13...Side frame 14...front leg (leg) 15...hind legs (legs) 19…Front and rear connecting rod 31...Knee restraining member 51...Buttocks lifting means 52...Air jack 56…Handle 58…Protective cover

Claims

1. A walker having a front frame and side frames on both the left and right sides, and four legs, A knee restriction member for restricting forward movement of the knee is provided at a position facing the knee of the user in the middle of the front-rear direction within the space surrounded by the front frame and the left and right side frames. Walker.

2. The knee restraining member is made of a deformable sheet-like body. The walker of claim 1.

3. The knee restraining member is provided on a front-rear connecting rod extending in the front-rear direction on the side frame.

3. A walker as claimed in claim 1 or 2.

4. The knee restraining member is movable in the front-rear direction.

3. A walker as claimed in claim 1 or 2.

5. The walker is provided with a buttocks lifting means for lifting the buttocks of a user in a seated position toward the walker.

3. A walker as claimed in claim 1 or 2.

6. The buttocks lifting means is constituted by an air jack that is inflated by supplying air.

6. The walker of claim 5.

7. The air jack is provided with a handle for carrying.

7. The walker of claim 6.

8. The air jack is provided with a removable protective cover.

7. The walker of claim 6.

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