Wheelchair access ramp

Abstract

To provide a gangplank for getting on and off a wheelchair, a gangplank which can deal with a large height between an entrance and a stopping point, merely by changing a floor structure on the entrance side.SOLUTION: A gangplank 1 for getting on and off a wheelchair can be freely rotatably housed in a storage which is formed on the floor surface on an entrance side by providing a step for the floor surface 5 inside the wheelchair. The gangplank includes: an inclined part 12 which is formed along the bottom part (inclined part 5b) of the storage formed in an inclined manner; a floor part 11 which is formed flush with the floor surface 5 inside the wheelchair; a connection part 13 which connects the inclined part 12 and the floor part 11; and a rotatable hinge part 24 which is provided in the connection part 13. With the hinge part 24 rotated in a prescribed direction, there are rotated together the connection part 13, the floor part 11, and the inclined part 12, so that the inclined part 12 and the bottom part (inclined part 5b) are consequently formed in a row to form a slope.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a wheelchair boarding / disembarking gangway that is installed on a streetcar or the like. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, with the progress of barrier-free access in public transportation, wheelchair boarding and alighting gangways have become known. These gangways span between the entrance and exit doors and the ground or bus stops to provide a slope for wheelchair users to easily board and alight from public transportation such as streetcars. A typical example of such a wheelchair boarding and alighting gangway is shown in FIG. 5. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the wheelchair boarding and alighting gangway 100 is composed of a horizontally elongated, rectangular, flat rotating plate 101 and a hinge unit 102 rotatably attached to a left end 101d of the rotating plate 101. The wheelchair boarding and alighting gangway 100 is stored in a storage compartment 110 shown in FIG. 5(b). As shown in FIG. 5(b), the storage compartment 110 is formed with a recessed step between it and a floor 111 inside the streetcar or other vehicle, and is located on the entrance and alighting side. As shown in FIG. 5(b), the bottom 110a of the storage section 110 is formed to have approximately the same length as the rotating plate 101 and is formed flat. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5(a), when the wheelchair boarding / alighting crossing plate 100 is stored in the storage section 110, the lower surface 101a of the rotating plate 101 is stored so as to be aligned with the bottom surface 110a of the storage section 110. The upper surface 101b of the rotating plate 101 is stored so as to be flush with the floor surface 111 inside the vehicle to prevent a step from occurring between the rotating plate 101 and the floor surface 111 inside the vehicle and causing injury to passengers. As shown in FIG. 5(a), a handle 103 is provided on the right end portion 101c of the rotating plate 101.

[0003] Thus, the wheelchair boarding / alighting crossing plate 100 configured as described above is used as follows. That is, when an attendant uses the handle 103 to rotate the rotating plate 101 in the direction of arrow Y100 shown in FIG. 5(b) in order to fill the height H100 between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point G, which may be the ground or a bus stop, as shown in FIG. 5(a), the hinge 102 causes the rotating plate 101 to rotate in the direction of arrow Y100 shown in FIG. 5(b). As a result, as shown in FIG. 5(b), the rotating plate 101 spans the height H100 between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point G, thereby forming a slope. The formation of this slope allows wheelchair users to easily board and alight.

[0004] In addition to the above-mentioned methods, there is also known a method in which a wheelchair boarding and alighting ramp carried by an attendant is installed between the boarding and alighting entrance and the ground or the bus stop (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-137687 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, there is a limit to the angle (e.g., 20 degrees) at which a wheelchair user can climb a slope. Therefore, with a conventional wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway, if the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the ground or the bus stop is large, it becomes necessary to increase the length of the wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway. However, even if the length of the wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway is increased, there is also a limit to the storage range of the storage section 110 as described above. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 5(b), when a slope is formed, if the ground or the bus stop is narrow, the wheelchair cannot be turned around, which causes the problem of being unable to climb the slope in a wheelchair.

[0007] To solve this problem, it is possible to lower the height of the entrances and exits so that the height between the entrances and the ground or the bus stops does not become too high. However, lowering the height of the entrances and exits would be a change that would affect the entire structure of the vehicle, such as a streetcar, and this was not an easy feat.

[0008] In view of the above problems, the present invention aims to provide a wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway that can accommodate cases where the height between the boarding and disembarking entrance and the stopping point is large, simply by changing the floor structure on the boarding and disembarking entrance side. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The above object of the present invention can be achieved by the following means: Note that the parentheses indicate reference symbols of embodiments to be described later, but the present invention is not limited to these.

[0010] According to the invention of claim 1, a wheelchair boarding / alighting crossing plate (1) is rotatably stored in a storage section (S) formed on the floor surface on the boarding / alighting entrance side by providing a step with the floor surface (5) inside the vehicle, an inclined portion (12) formed along the bottom of the storage portion (S), which is formed in an inclined shape; a floor portion (11) formed to be flush with the floor surface (5) inside the vehicle; a connecting portion (13) that connects the inclined portion (12) and the floor portion (11); times a movable rotation portion (hinge portion 24), The inclined portion (12) is formed so as to fit along the bottom of the storage space (S) which is constituted by the inclined surface (inclined portion 5b) of the floor surface (5) of the vehicle interior and the inclined surface of the frame body (second vehicle interior frame body 8) of the vehicle interior, the rotating portion is constituted by a hinge portion (24), a first arm portion (24b) of the hinge portion (24) is attached to the connecting portion (13), and a second arm portion (24c) of the hinge portion (24) is attached to an inclined surface of the frame body (second interior frame body 8) inside the vehicle; When the rotating portion (hinge portion 24) rotates in a predetermined direction, the connecting portion (13), the floor portion (11), and the inclined portion (12) rotate together, thereby and the inclined surface (inclined portion 5b) of the floor surface (5) inside the vehicle and the inclined surface of the frame body (second interior frame body 8) inside the vehicle. are formed in a series By doing , and a slope is formed.

[0011] According to the invention of claim 2, the wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway (1) described in claim 1 is characterized in that the inclined portion (12) and the floor portion (11) are connected to the connecting portion (13), thereby forming a triangular shape in cross section.

[0012] According to the invention of claim 3, in the wheelchair boarding / disembarking crossing board (1) of claim 1 or 2, the rotating part (hinge part 24) is a first rotating part, The floor portion (11) is It is not formed flush with the floor surface (5) of the vehicle interior, The floor (5) of the vehicle interior is formed to have a step therebetween, There is a difference in level with the floor surface (5) inside the vehicle. A rotating plate (101) is provided on the upper surface of the floor portion (11) so as to be flush with the floor surface (5) of the vehicle interior, The rotating plate (101) is provided with a rotatable second rotating portion (hinge portion 102), When the second rotation portion (hinge portion 102) rotates in a predetermined direction, the rotation plate (101) rotates, and thus a slope is formed by the rotation plate (101). [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] Next, the effects of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the reference symbols in parentheses are those of the embodiments described below, but the present invention is not limited to these.

[0014] According to the invention of claim 1, the inclined portion (12) The inclined surface (inclined portion 5b) of the floor surface (5) inside the vehicle and the inclined surface of the frame body (second interior frame body 8) inside the vehicle are formed in a series By doing Therefore, even if the height (H1) between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stop point (G) is high, a slope long enough to allow a wheelchair to climb the slope can be formed. Furthermore, since only the inclined portion (12) protrudes from the vehicle, even if the width of the stop point (G) is narrow, the length of the inclined portion (12) is not long, so the wheelchair can be turned around, and thus it becomes possible for a wheelchair to climb the slope.

[0015] Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to accommodate cases where the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point is large, simply by changing the floor structure on the boarding / alighting entrance side.

[0016] The shape of the inclined portion (12) and the floor portion (11) when connected to the connecting portion (13) is preferably a triangular shape in cross section as described in claim 2.

[0017] According to the invention of claim 3, if a rotating plate (101) is provided on the upper surface of the floor portion (11), a slope is formed by the rotating plate (101), so that even if the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point (G) is too low, a slope can be formed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a plan view of a wheelchair boarding / disembarking gangway according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams for explaining how to use the wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway according to the embodiment, in which (a) shows the main body stored in the storage section, and (b) shows the main body rotated. [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are explanatory diagrams for explaining how to use a wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway according to another embodiment, in which (a) shows the state before a slope is formed with the rotating plate, and (b) shows the state after a slope is formed with the rotating plate. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a method of using a conventional wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway, in which (a) shows the state before a slope is formed with the rotating plate, and (b) shows the state after a slope is formed with the rotating plate. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the wheelchair boarding / disembarking gangway according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following description, when directions such as up, down, left, and right are indicated, they refer to up, down, left, and right when viewed from the front of the illustration.

[0020] The wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway according to this embodiment is, like conventional ones, provided at the entrance / exit side of a streetcar or the like. More specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, the wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway 1 has a main body 10 that is triangular in cross section, and this main body 10 is mainly composed of a floor section 11, an inclined section 12, and a connecting section 13. Each component will be described in detail below.

[0021] <Floor description> As shown in Fig. 2, the floor section 11 is formed to be flush with the floor surface 5 inside a vehicle such as a streetcar so as to prevent passengers from falling and getting injured due to unevenness. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, the floor section 11 is composed of a floor support member 11a made of a steel plate or the like and formed in a substantially linear shape in cross section, and a floor sheet material 11b formed by adhesion or the like on an upper surface 11a1 of the floor support member 11a. The floor sheet material 11b is made of vinyl chloride or the like.

[0022] Thus, the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 configured in this manner is formed to be flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle.

[0023] As shown in Fig. 1, the floor section 11 configured in this manner is provided with a pair of handles 14 on the left and right side surfaces of the floor section 11. The pair of handles 14 are used by an attendant when rotating the main body 10 (described later).

[0024] On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 2, a pressing portion 15 is provided that covers the tip end of the floor portion 11, i.e., the right end portion 11a2 of the floor support body 11a and the right end portion 11b2 of the floor sheet material 11b. This pressing portion 15 is made of, for example, stainless steel or the like and is formed to a thickness of, for example, 1.5 mm, and is formed in an inverted shape as shown in Fig. 2. Then, as shown in Fig. 2, such pressing portion 15 covers the right end portion 11a2 of the floor support body 11a and the right end portion 11b2 of the floor sheet material 11b, and as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, it also covers a part of the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b (up to the handle portion 14 as shown in Fig. 1).

[0025] On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 2, a substantially L-shaped sliding plate 16 made of stainless steel or the like is integrally provided by welding or the like on an upper surface 11a1 of the floor support body 11a on the left end 11b3 side of the floor sheet material 11b. As shown in Fig. 2, a guide rail 17 for guiding a door (not shown) on the inside of a vehicle such as a streetcar is attached and fixed to the upper surface 16a1 of the sliding plate 16 with a screw N1. As shown in Fig. 2, the upper surface 11b1 of the left end 11b3 of the floor sheet material 11b and the upper surface 16a1 of the right end 16a2 of the sliding plate 16 are covered with a pressing portion 18.

[0026] <Explanation of the inclined part> As shown in FIG. 2, the inclined portion 12 is made of a steel plate or the like, has a generally linear cross-sectional shape, and is composed of an inclined support member 12a that slopes downward from right to left, and an inclined sheet material 12b that is bonded or otherwise attached to the underside 12a1 of the inclined support member 12a. Thus, the inclined portion 12 configured in this manner is provided so as to be integrated with the floor portion 11. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the right end portion 12a2 of the inclined support member 12a is attached and fixed to the right end portion 11a2 of the floor support member 11a by welding or the like. Therefore, the inclined portion 12 and the floor portion 11 are formed integrally. The inclined sheet material 12b is made of vinyl chloride or the like.

[0027] The slope of the sloped portion 12 configured in this manner is formed to follow the slope of the floor surface 5. To explain this in more detail, the floor surface 5 is composed of a straight portion 5a and a sloped portion 5b, as shown in FIG. 2. The straight portion 5a is disposed on a side other than the entrance side of a streetcar or the like. As shown in FIG. 2, the underside 5a1 of the straight portion 5a is supported by a straight portion support member 6a, which is supported by a first interior frame body 7 having a U-shaped cross-section. The left end portion 5a2 of the straight portion 5a is integrally formed with a sloped portion 5b. The sloped portion 5b is disposed on the entrance side and slopes along the slope of the sloped portion 12, i.e., slopes downward from right to left. As a result, the slope of the sloped portion 12 is formed to follow the slope of the floor surface 5. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower surface 5b1 of the inclined portion 5b is supported by an inclined portion support body 6b, and this inclined portion support body 6b is supported by a second vehicle interior frame body 8 that is trapezoidal in cross section.

[0028] As shown in Fig. 2, the right end 12b2 side of the underside 12b1 of the inclined sheet material 12b is covered by the above-described pressing portion 15. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 2, an inclination adjustment plate 20 having a rectangular cross-section is attached to the underside 12b1 of the left end 12b3 side of the inclined sheet material 12b. This inclination adjustment plate 20 is made of stainless steel or the like, and is adapted to contact the pressing portion 9. As shown in Fig. 2, this pressing portion 9 is attached and fixed to the upper surface 5b3 of the left end 5b2 of the inclined portion 5b, and is also attached and fixed to the second interior frame body 8.

[0029] On the other hand, as shown in Fig. 2, a tilt adjustment plate 21 made of stainless steel or the like is attached and fixed by screws N2 to an upper surface 5b3 of the right end portion 5b4 of the inclined portion 5b along the longitudinal direction as shown in Fig. 1. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 1, a pair of tilt adjustment plates 22 made of stainless steel or the like are attached and fixed to the left and right side surfaces of the upper surface 5b3 of the right end portion 5b4 of the inclined portion 5b.

[0030] The tilt adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 described above serve to adjust the tilt of the tilted portion 12. More specifically, by adjusting the tilt of the tilted portion 12, the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 is adjusted so as to be flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle. Specifically, even if the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 is designed to be flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle, after assembly after manufacture, the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 may not be flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle. Therefore, in this embodiment, the tilt adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 are provided so that the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 can be finely adjusted at the manufacturing site so that it is flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle. Specifically, reducing the thickness of at least one of the tilt adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 will slightly change the tilt of the inclined portion 12, causing the portion of the floor portion 11 formed integrally with the inclined portion 12 to slightly lower. In addition, increasing the thickness of at least one of the tilt adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 will slightly change the tilt of the inclined portion 12, causing the portion of the floor portion 11 formed integrally with the inclined portion 12 to slightly raise. Therefore, by adjusting the thickness of the tilt adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 to raise or lower the portion of the floor portion 11, it is possible to adjust the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 so that it is flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle.

[0031] <Explanation of connecting parts> 2, the connecting portion 13 is formed in a rectangular cross section, with its upper end 13a integrally connected to the left end 11a3 of the floor support 11a, and its lower end 13b attached and fixed to the left end 12a3 of the inclined support 12a by welding or the like. This results in the formation of the main body 10 in which the floor portion 11, the inclined portion 12, and the connecting portion 13 are integrally formed.

[0032] As shown in Fig. 2, a hinge portion 24 is attached and fixed to the left side surface 13c of the connecting portion 13 via a retainer portion 23 that is generally L-shaped in cross section. Specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, the hinge portion 24 is composed of a rotating shaft portion 24a that is cylindrical in cross section, a first arm portion 24b that is generally L-shaped in cross section and attached to the upper part of the rotating shaft portion 24a, and a second arm portion 24c that is generally rectangular in cross section and attached to the lower part of the rotating shaft portion 24a. As shown in Fig. 2, the first arm portion 24b is attached and fixed via the retainer portion 23 with a screw N3, and the second arm portion 24c is attached and fixed to the second interior frame body 8 with a screw N4.

[0033] Thus, the main body 10 configured in this manner is adapted to be stored in a storage section S shown in Fig. 3(b). This storage section S is formed by the floor surface 5 having an inclined section 5b, which creates a step between the straight section 5a and the inclined section 5b, and is arranged on the boarding / alighting door side.

[0034] Such a main body 10 is normally stored in a storage section S (see FIG. 3(b)), as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3(a). When a wheelchair user boards or alights, an attendant uses a pair of handles 14 (see FIG. 1) to rotate the main body 10 in the direction of arrow Y1, as shown in FIG. 3(b), to fill the height H1 (see FIG. 3) between the boarding / alighting entrance and a stop G (see FIG. 3), which may be the ground or a bus stop. This causes the main body 10 to rotate in the direction of arrow Y1 via the hinge 24, thereby forming a slope by connecting the slope of the sloped portion 12 and the slope of the sloped portion 5b, as shown in FIG. 3(b). This eliminates the need to form a slope solely using the rotating plate 101, as in the conventional case. Therefore, the length of the slope can be increased by connecting the slope of the sloped portion 12 and the sloped portion 5b, without increasing the length of the wheelchair boarding / alighting crossing board 1. Therefore, even if the height H1 between the boarding / alighting entrance and stopping point G is high (for example, 200 mm), by connecting the slope of slope 12 with the slope of slope 5b, it is possible to form a slope long enough for a wheelchair to climb up the slope. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 3(b), since only the slope 12 portion protrudes outside the vehicle, even if the width of stopping point G is narrow, the length of slope 12 is not long, so the wheelchair can be turned around and it becomes possible for a wheelchair to climb up the slope.

[0035] According to the present embodiment described above, it is possible to accommodate cases where the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point is large, simply by changing the floor structure on the boarding / alighting entrance side.

[0036] The wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway 1 shown in this embodiment is merely an example, and various modifications and alterations are possible within the scope of the gist of the present invention as described in the claims. For example, in this embodiment, the main body 10 of the wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway 1 is triangular in cross section, but this is not limiting, and the main body 10 may have any shape. However, a triangular cross section is preferable. This is because the main body 10 must be flush with the interior floor 5 to prevent a step from occurring that could cause a passenger to fall and be injured, must be connected to the slope of the sloped portion 5b, and must have a shape that does not hinder the rotation of the main body 10.

[0037] Furthermore, the placement positions of the inclination adjustment plates 20, 21, and 22 described in this embodiment are merely examples, and as long as the inclination of the inclined portion 12 can be adjusted so that the upper surface 11b1 of the floor sheet material 11b of the floor portion 11 is flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle, they may be placed only on the inclined portion 12, only on the inclined portion 5b side, or anywhere.

[0038] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the case where the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stop point G is high has been described, but of course, the case where the height is low can also be accommodated. However, in this case, if the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stop point G is too low, the main body 10 may hit the stop point G while rotating, and the slope of the inclined portion 12 may not be connected to the slope of the inclined portion 5b. Therefore, to deal with such a situation, as shown in FIG. 4, a conventional rotating plate 101 may be newly provided on the main body 10. This point will be specifically described with reference to FIG. 4. Note that the same components as those in the conventional configuration are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0039] As shown in FIG. 4(a), the rotating plate 101 is installed on the upper surface of the floor 11. At this time, the floor 11 is lowered by the thickness of the rotating plate 101 so that the upper surface 101b of the rotating plate 101 is flush with the floor surface 5 inside the vehicle. Then, a hinge portion 102 is rotatably attached to the left end portion 101d of the rotating plate 101. In this state, if an attendant uses the handle portion 14 shown in FIG. 1 or the like to rotate the right end portion 101c of the rotating plate 101 in the direction of arrow Y2 as shown in FIG. 4(b), the rotating plate 101 will span the height H2 between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point G. In this way, even if the height between the boarding / alighting entrance and the stopping point G is too low and the main body 10 cannot be rotated, the rotating plate 101 can form a slope. [Explanation of symbols]

[0040] 1. Wheelchair access ramp 5. Car interior floor 5a Straight section 5b Inclined section (bottom of storage area) 10 Main Unit 11 Floor 12 Slope 13 Connecting part 24 Hinge portion (rotating portion, first rotating portion) 101 Rotating plate 102 Hinge portion (second rotating portion) S storage section

Claims

1. A wheelchair boarding / alighting gangway that is rotatably stored in a storage section formed on the floor surface of the boarding / alighting entrance side by providing a step with the floor surface of the vehicle interior, an inclined portion formed along the bottom of the storage portion, the inclined portion being formed; a floor portion formed to be flush with the floor surface of the vehicle interior; a connecting portion that connects the inclined portion and the floor portion; a rotatable rotation part, the inclined portion is formed to fit along a bottom of the storage portion which is constituted by an inclined surface of the floor surface of the vehicle interior and an inclined surface of the frame body of the vehicle interior, the rotating portion is configured by a hinge portion, a first arm portion of the hinge portion is attached to the connecting portion, and a second arm portion of the hinge portion is attached to an inclined surface of the frame body inside the vehicle, When the rotating part rotates in a predetermined direction, the connecting part, the floor part, and the inclined part rotate together, and thus the inclined part, the inclined surface of the floor surface inside the vehicle, and the inclined surface of the frame body inside the vehicle are connected to form a slope, forming a wheelchair boarding and disembarking gangway.

2. 2. The wheelchair boarding / disembarking gangway according to claim 1, wherein the inclined portion and the floor portion are connected to the connecting portion, thereby forming a triangular cross section.

3. The rotating portion serves as a first rotating portion, The floor portion is not formed flush with the floor surface of the vehicle interior, but is formed to have a step with the floor surface of the vehicle interior, a rotating plate is provided on an upper surface of the floor portion, which has a step with the floor surface of the vehicle interior, so as to be flush with the floor surface of the vehicle interior; The rotating plate is provided with a rotatable second rotating portion, 3. The wheelchair boarding / alighting crossing plate according to claim 1, wherein when the second rotating portion rotates in a predetermined direction, the rotating plate rotates, thereby forming a slope by the rotating plate.

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