JP3249290U - Walking car - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a walking frame that allows even people with walking difficulties to travel safely and comfortably while controlling the speed of the wheels, without being bulky in weight, cost, etc. [Solution] A brake mechanism 4 is provided, which has a brake unit 20 that applies braking force to the rear wheel 2r, a brake lever 30 that operates the brake unit 20, and a wire 31 that transmits the operation of the brake lever 30 to the brake unit 20, and the brake mechanism 4 is configured so that the brake unit 20 applies a braking force to the rear wheel 2r according to the amount of lift of the wire 31 by the brake lever 30, and a speed-reducing mechanism 5 that holds the rear wheel 2r in a speed-reducing state is provided near the handle 7, and the speed-reducing mechanism 5 is configured to hold the wire 31 provided in the brake mechanism 4 in a state where it is lifted by an amount that allows the rear wheel 2r to be slowed down. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

This invention relates to a walking frame equipped with a braking mechanism.

People who have difficulty walking, such as elderly people or people with disabilities, can walk with the support of a walker by holding the handles of the walker and pushing it with their hands while resting their weight on it.

In conventional walkers, when a person with walking difficulties goes down a slope, for example, they have to walk while suppressing the rotation speed of the wheels, i.e., while slowing down the rotation of the wheels, so in addition to pushing the walker, they need to adjust their grip on the brake lever while walking. However, such braking operation is difficult and bothersome for people with walking difficulties, which is a problem.

To address this issue, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a pushcart equipped with a first brake device that locks the wheels in a stationary state while moving, allowing the pushcart to travel slowly uphill while maintaining a constant braking force, and a second brake device that reduces the driving speed.

The handcart as a walking vehicle in Patent Document 1 is configured with a brake mechanism that includes components such as wires, brake members, etc., that are independent of each other so that the first brake device and the second brake device operate independently of each other.

However, when two types of brake mechanisms consisting of a first brake device and a second brake device are provided independently, as in the walking frame of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1, there is room for improvement due to the weight, cost, and size being bulky.

JP 2002-211409 A

This invention was made in consideration of these problems, and aims to provide a walking frame that is not bulky in weight, cost, size, etc., and that allows people with walking difficulties to move safely and comfortably while effectively controlling the speed of the wheels.

This invention is a walking vehicle equipped with a brake mechanism having a brake unit that brakes the rotation of the wheels, a brake operation unit that operates the brake unit, and a wire that connects the brake unit provided near the wheels to the brake operation unit provided near the handle and transmits the operation of the brake operation unit to the brake unit, and is characterized in that the brake mechanism is configured so that the brake unit applies a braking force to the wheels according to the amount of lift of the wire by the brake operation unit, and a deceleration mechanism that holds the wheels in a deceleration state is provided near the handle, and the deceleration mechanism is configured to hold the wire provided in the brake mechanism in a state where it is lifted by the amount that can decelerate the wheels.

With this configuration, the deceleration mechanism can continue to apply a braking force to the wheels to decelerate the vehicle, regardless of whether the vehicle is stopped or moving, by using the same components as the brake mechanism, such as the wire and brake unit.

Therefore, while the weight, size, and cost of the vehicle body are kept down, users who have difficulty walking can travel safely and comfortably while effectively controlling the wheel speed without having to adjust the amount of operation of the brake operating unit while traveling.
Here, a person with walking difficulties means a person who, due to injury, disability, old age, or the like, walks slower than the average person.

In one embodiment of this invention, the deceleration mechanism includes a lifting section that rises and falls together with the wire between a deceleration release position where the wire is not pulled up and a deceleration operating position that is located above the deceleration release position and decelerates the wheel, and an operating section that controls the raising and lowering of the lifting section, and at least one of the operating section and the lifting section may be provided with an operating force transmission section that transmits the operating force of the operating section to the lifting section, and a regulating section that regulates the lifting section to the deceleration operating position.

According to the above configuration, the lifting section can be raised and lowered between a deceleration release position and a deceleration activation position by operating the operating section, and when the lifting section is regulated to the deceleration activation position by the regulating section, the wheels can be placed in a deceleration state, whereas when the deceleration release position is reached, the wheels can be released from deceleration.
This allows the user to easily switch between the speed suppression release state and the speed suppression state by operating the operating portion.
The operation of the operating section for raising and lowering the lifting section may be performed manually or by using a driving source such as a motor.

In one aspect of this invention, the lifting section is configured to be able to rise relative to the operating section to the highest deceleration operating position among a plurality of deceleration operating positions set in the vertical direction according to the degree of deceleration of the wheels, such that the higher the degree of deceleration of the wheels, the higher the deceleration operating position is, and the regulating section may be configured to be able to regulate the lifting and lowering of the lifting section for each of the plurality of deceleration operating positions.

According to the above configuration, the operation unit can adjust not only whether or not to enter the speed reduction state, but also the degree of speed reduction.
Therefore, a user of a walking frame can ride more safely and comfortably by freely setting the degree of speed reduction according to the degree of their own walking disability and the driving conditions, such as the gradient of the road surface on which they are riding.

The degree of wheel retardation, i.e., the wheel retardation level, refers to the amount of wire pulling to retard the wheel, i.e., the degree of braking force applied to the wheel to retard it.

In one embodiment of this invention, the operating force transmission unit is composed of a pinion provided on the operating unit so as to be rotatable relative to the vehicle body, and a rack provided on the lifting unit and engaging with the pinion so as to be able to move up and down as the pinion rotates, and the regulating unit may be formed of a ratchet that engages with one of a number of engaging protrusions arranged along the outer periphery of the pinion to regulate the rotation of the pinion.

According to the above configuration, by utilizing a rack and pinion mechanism consisting of the rack and the pinion, it is possible to realize a simple configuration in which the lifting unit is raised and lowered by rotating the operating unit.

Furthermore, by using a rack and pinion mechanism, the lifting stroke of the lifting section can be firmly secured, so that it is possible to set multiple deceleration operating positions along the vertical direction and to set different deceleration levels for each of the multiple deceleration operating positions, thereby allowing various degrees of deceleration to be set.

As an aspect of the present invention, the operating portion may include an operating lever for rotating the pinion.
According to the above configuration, the inclination (posture) of the operating lever changes depending on the amount of operation used to rotate the pinion, so that even if the user is, for example, an elderly person, he or she can easily visually recognize whether or not the speed is reduced and the degree of speed reduction based on the inclination of the operating lever.

In one aspect of this invention, the operating unit is configured to fit and hold the lifting unit so that it can rotate relatively around a central axis along the vertical direction, and the operating force transmission unit includes a spiral guide portion formed in a spiral shape around an axis along the vertical direction so as to be able to guide the lifting and lowering of the lifting unit in association with the rotation of the operating unit, and a spiral guided portion that engages with the spiral guide portion and is guided along the spiral guide portion, and the spiral guide portion is provided on at least one of the inner circumference of the operating unit and the outer circumference of the lifting and lowering unit, and the spiral guided portion may be provided on the other different from the one.

With this configuration, a feed screw mechanism can be used that uses the operating part and the lifting part, where the helical guiding part and the helical guided part engage, so that a simple configuration can be realized in which the lifting part is raised and lowered by rotating the operating part.

Furthermore, by using a feed screw mechanism, the amount of lift of the lifting section, which rises and falls in response to the amount of operation of the operating section, can be set according to the helical pitch of the helical guiding section and the helical guided section, making it possible to finely set the degree of speed reduction according to the amount of operation of the operating section and to provide differences in the level of speed reduction.

In one embodiment of this invention, the regulating portion includes a locking portion and a locked portion that is locked to the locking portion, and the locking portion is provided on at least one of the inner periphery of the operating portion and the outer periphery of the lifting portion, and the locked portion may be provided on the other portion different from the one.

According to the above configuration, the locking portion and the locked portion, which serve as the restricting portion provided in the deceleration operating position, are engaged with each other, so that the operating portion can be reliably restricted (positioned) relative to the operating portion in the deceleration operating position.

As an aspect of this invention, the regulating portion may be configured to regulate by a frictional force generated by the screwing of the spiral guide portion and the spiral guided portion.

According to the above configuration, the lifting section can be raised and lowered by rotating the operating section relative to the lifting section against the frictional force, while when the operating section is not rotated, the frictional force can be used to regulate (position) the lifting section to any lifting position.
Therefore, the operating portion can function as a nut and the lifting portion as a screw, so that the lifting and lowering of the lifting portion, i.e., the degree of speed reduction, can be adjusted steplessly in response to the rotational operation of the operating portion.

This invention makes it possible to provide a walking frame that is not bulky in weight, cost, size, etc., and that allows people with walking difficulties to move safely and comfortably while effectively controlling the wheel speed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the walking vehicle according to the present embodiment, seen from the front and right. FIG. 2 is an enlarged side view of the handle and its surrounding area according to the embodiment; 3A is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the speed suppression mechanism and its surroundings, with the main part of FIG. 2 enlarged and the handle joint part shown in phantom lines; FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of region Ra of FIG. FIG. 1A is a perspective view of the lower part of the handle joint portion as viewed from the rear and left side, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the lower part of the handle joint portion as viewed from the front and right side. FIG. 1A is an enlarged perspective view of a rear wheel and its surroundings as viewed from the inside of the vehicle body, and FIG. 1B is an enlarged perspective view of the internal structure of a region Rb in FIG. Cross-sectional view of the internal structure of the rear wheel brake unit as seen from outside the vehicle FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the brake mechanism and the speed control mechanism of the embodiment; FIG. 1 is an enlarged side view of a modified speed suppression mechanism and its surroundings; FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 2, showing the handle joint portion in phantom lines and partially in cross section; 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A in FIG. 11A is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a region Rc in FIG. 10, and FIG. 11B is an enlarged cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 11A when the plunger pin is not engaged with the locking hole. 10A is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 9 when the lifting section is in the low speed suppression operating position, and FIG. 10B is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 9 when the lifting section is in the high speed suppression operating position. FIG. 1A is a front view of a rear wheel showing a state where the brake is not applied by a brake unit of a modified example, and FIG. 1B is a front view of the rear wheel showing a state where the brake is applied.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In the drawing, arrow Z indicates the up-down direction of the walker 1, arrow W indicates the left-right direction (width direction) of the walker 1, and arrow Y indicates the direction perpendicular to the up-down direction Z and the left-right direction W, i.e., the front-rear direction of the walker 1. Furthermore, in the drawing, arrow Za indicates the upward direction, arrow Zb indicates the downward direction, arrow Wr indicates the rightward direction, arrow Wl indicates the leftward direction, arrow Yf indicates the forward direction, and arrow Yr indicates the backward direction.

As shown in Figure 1, the walking vehicle 1 comprises a walking vehicle body 10 formed by combining multiple frames, four wheels 2 provided below the walking vehicle body 10, a handle 7 provided above the walking vehicle body 10, a brake mechanism 4 and a speed control mechanism 5.
The walking vehicle body 10 comprises a vertical frame 11, a side frame 12, a seat support frame 13 and a reinforcing frame 14, all of which are made of metal.

The vertical frame 11 includes a pair of left and right front vertical frames 11f that extend in the vertical direction to be able to support the left and right front wheels 2f, and a pair of left and right rear vertical frames 11r that extend in the vertical direction to be able to support the left and right rear wheels 2r.

The side frames 12 are provided in a pair on the left and right sides, located near the vertical center between the front vertical frame 11f and the rear vertical frame 11r when the vehicle is in a travelling mode, so that both ends are connected to the frames 11f, 11r in the front-rear direction.

The seat support frame 13 has an X-shaped frame that is arranged in an X-shape and crosses the left and right side frames 12 approximately horizontally when in the running mode, and is connected to the vertical frame 11 and the side frames 12.

The reinforcing frame 14 is arranged in an X-shape on the plane formed by the left and right front vertical frames 11f, above the seat support frame 13 between the left and right front vertical frames 11f when in running mode, and is provided in a pair so that each end in the left-right and up-down directions is connected to these front vertical frames 11f.
The walking vehicle body 10 configured in this manner is configured to be changeable between a running form and a folding form by pivoting or sliding the above-mentioned frames 11, 12, 13, and 14 via the joint portions 16.

The wheels 2 are arranged at the four corners of the bottom surface of the walking vehicle body 10, and include front wheels 2f located on the left and right sides of the front and rear wheels 2r located on the left and right sides of the rear.
The wheel 2 is supported rotatably on the lower end of the vertical frame 11 via a caster 6. The caster 6 in this embodiment has a pair of left and right fork portions 6a that protrude downward in a bifurcated shape, and the wheel 2 disposed between the pair of fork portions 6a is supported by a shaft 6b extending in the left-right direction. In this way, the caster 6 can stably support the wheel 2 from both the left and right sides by the pair of left and right fork portions 6a.

As shown in Figure 2, the handle 7 is connected to the upper ends of the left and right front vertical frames 11f via handle joints 17 so that the height can be adjusted. Also, as shown in Figures 2 to 4, the handle 7 includes a resin handle body 711 that is gripped by the user, and a metal handle support 712 that protrudes downward from the base end (lower end) of the handle body 711.

The handle joint 17 has a frame mounting portion 171 at its lower part that is fitted and attached to the upper end of the front vertical frame 11f, and a handle mounting portion 172 at its upper part that is fitted and attached to the handle support portion 712 (see Figure 2).

As shown in Figures 1 to 3(a), the brake mechanism 4 includes a brake unit 20 that applies a brake to the rotation of the rear wheel 2r, a brake lever 30 that serves as a brake operating unit that operates the brake unit 20, and a wire 31 and a swing rod 33 (see Figure 3(a)) that serve as an operating force transmission unit that transmits the operating force of the brake lever 30 to the brake unit 20.

The wire 31 is connected to the handle joint 17 and the rear wheel 2r, and is routed between them covered by a flexible covering tube 32 made of resin or the like so that it can slide in the extension direction (see Figure 2).

As shown in Figures 5(a) and 5(b) and 6, the brake unit 20 comprises a slide member 21 that slides up and down along the fork portion 6a of the rear wheel 2r mainly in conjunction with the pulling of the wire 31, a biasing spring 22 that biases the slide member 21 to the initial position before being pulled up by the wire 31, a swing lever 23 (see Figure 5(b)) that is engaged with the lower end of the slide member 21 and swings in conjunction with the sliding of the slide member 21, and a spring 22 that is integral with the swing lever 23 and coaxially swingable with the swing lever 23. The brake system includes a roughly elliptical cam 24 (see FIG. 6) journaled on the rear wheel 2r, a brake drum 25 (rotating body) that rotates with the rear wheel 2r, a pair of brake shoes 26 that are pushed apart toward the inner circumferential surface of the brake drum 25 by the cam 24 as shown by the imaginary lines in FIG. 6, brake linings 27 (friction material) provided on the outer circumferential surfaces of the brake shoes 26, and a biasing spring 28 that is stretched across the pair of brake shoes 26 and biases the brake shoes 26 in a direction toward each other.

Additionally, as shown in FIG. 6, among the above-mentioned components of the brake unit 20, the rocker lever 23, the cam 24, the pair of brake shoes 26, the brake linings 27, and the biasing spring 28 are housed in a brake drum 25 provided in the center of the rear wheel 2r.

The pair of brake shoes 26 are each formed in a roughly semicircular arc shape that fits along the inner circumferential surface of the brake drum 25, and the opposing ends of one of the pairs that face each other in the circumferential direction are pivotally connected to each other via an anchor pin 29.

The cam 24 is interposed between the opposing free end portions of the pair of brake shoes 26 in the circumferential direction, and can be swung by the force of the spring 28 between a position where the pair of brake shoes 26 are not pushed apart and a position where the pair of brake shoes 26 are pushed apart in response to the swing of the swing lever 23 about an axis 23a (see Figure 6) that extends in the left-right direction parallel to the rotation axis of the rear wheel 2r.

As shown in Figure 5 (a), the wire 31 is attached to the wire attachment portion 8 of the caster 6 together with the covering tube 32, and extends further toward the rear wheel 2r from the side end of the covering tube 32 located at this wire attachment portion 8, and the end on the rear wheel 2r side is connected to the slide member 21.
In short, the brake unit 20 has a drum brake structure that stops the rotation of the brake drum 25 in conjunction with the pulling of the wire 31, thereby braking the rotation of the rear wheel 2r.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3(a), the brake lever 30 has a lever base 30a and a lever body 30b that protrudes directly below the handle body 711 in approximately the same direction as the handle body 711. The lever body 30b is formed to penetrate in the left-right direction so that a user of the walker 1 can place their fingers on the handle body 711 with their palm on the handle body 711.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3(a), the lever base 30a is housed inside the handle joint 17 on the vehicle body side between the frame mounting part 171 and the handle mounting part 172, and is pivotally supported around the brake lever support shaft X1 that extends left and right inside the handle joint 17.

As shown in FIG. 5(a), the upper part of the wire 31 is introduced into the handle joint 17, and inside the handle joint 17, the upper end is integrally fixed to the wire upper end fixing part 33a of the swing rod 33.

As described above, when applying a braking force to the rear wheel 2r by the brake unit 20, the brake lever 30 is gripped from the non-braking position Pa (see FIG. 7), and the operating force is input from the brake lever support shaft X1 (midway part of the swing rod 33) as the force point to the swing rod 33. As shown in FIG. 7, the swing rod 33 pulls up the wire 31 as a unit by displacing the wire upper end fixing part 33a (front end) as the force point upward with the swing rod support shaft X2 (rear end) as the fulcrum.

As a result, the brake mechanism 4 is configured to pull up the wire 31 depending on how the brake lever 30 is gripped until the maximum braking position Pb (see FIG. 7) is reached, and apply a braking force to the rear wheel 2r via the brake unit 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, a locking shaft X5 extending in the left-right direction is provided integrally with the handle joint 17 above the pivot rod 33 inside the handle joint 17. Meanwhile, a locking hole 35 is formed in the lever base 30a of the brake lever 30, penetrating it in the left-right direction. The locking shaft X5 on the handle joint 17 side is inserted into the locking hole 35.

The locking hole 35 is formed to be larger than the diameter of the locking shaft X5 so that the locking shaft X5 does not impede the above-mentioned swinging of the brake lever 30 when it is operated. In other words, the locking shaft X5 is inserted into the locking hole 35 with some play. In addition, a locking edge 35a is formed on a part of the periphery of the locking hole 35, protruding toward the locking hole 35 from the surrounding edge. As shown in FIG. 7, when the locking edge 35a of the locking hole 35 is locked to the locking shaft X5 on the handle joint 17 side, the brake lever 30 is held in the locked position Pc.

The locked position Pc is a position of the brake lever 30 in which the tip is tilted downward more than in the non-braking position Pa in order to apply the brakes to the maximum extent and maintain the rear wheel 2r in a locked state. When the brake lever 30 is in the locked position Pc, as described above, the locking axis X5 and the locking edge 35a are engaged, and the rear wheel 2r can be maintained in a locked state.

The amount by which the wire 31 is pulled up by the wire upper end fixing part 33a of the swing rod 33 when the brake lever 30 is in the locked position Pc is the same as the amount by which the wire 31 is pulled up when the brake lever 30 is in the maximum braking position Pb, where the brake lever 30 is pulled up to the maximum. In other words, the braking force when the brake lever 30 is in the locked position Pc is the same as the braking force when the brake lever 30 is in the maximum braking position Pb.

Next, the speed suppression mechanism 5 will be described.
The retarding mechanism 5 mainly comprises a brake unit 20 (see Figures 5(a)(b) and 6) which retards the rotation of the rear wheel 2r, an operating lever 41 (see Figures 2, 4(a) and 4(b)) which serves as a retarding operating unit for operating the brake unit 20, a wire 31, a rack 42 and a pinion 43 (see Figures 3(a) and 3(b)) which serve as a retarding operating force transmission unit for transmitting the operating force of the operating lever 41 to the brake unit 20, and a ratchet 50 (see the same figures) which serves as a regulating unit for regulating the brake unit to a retarded state.

In this example, the brake unit 20 provided in the retarder mechanism 5 and the wire 31 serving as the retarder operating force transmission unit share the same functions as the brake unit 20 and wire 31 in the brake mechanism 4 described above.

The operating lever 41, rack 42, pinion 43 and ratchet 50 are all provided immediately below the wire upper end fixing portion 33a of the swing rod 33 in the handle joint portion 17, as shown in FIG. 3(a).
The upper portion of the wire 31 is exposed from the covering tube 32 inside the handle joint portion 17 and is routed above and below the rack 42 and pinion 43 so as not to interfere with them, including their movable ranges.

As shown in Figures 2, 3(a) and 3(b), and 4(a) and 4(b), the operating lever 41 is integrally formed with a lever body 411 that is pivotally supported on the handle joint 17 so as to be able to swing about an axis X3 (see Figure 3(b)) that extends in the left-right direction, and an operating piece 412 that protrudes from the lever body 411 in the same direction as the handle 7 protrudes. The operating lever 41 allows the user to operate the lever by, for example, pushing the operating piece 412 down from above with the fingertip or pushing it up from below, thereby rotating the lever about the axis X3.

In this example, the operating lever 41 can be changed to either a deceleration operating position in which the rotation of the rear wheel 2r is decelerated, or a deceleration release position, which is a non-braking position in which the deceleration is not activated. Furthermore, when the operating lever 41 is in the deceleration operating position, the deceleration level can be adjusted (position can be changed). The deceleration release position is located at the top end of the vertical swing range of the operating piece 412 of the operating lever 41, and the deceleration operating position is located somewhere below the deceleration release position within the vertical swing range of the operating piece 412 of the operating lever 41, and the deceleration level is set higher the more the operating lever 41 is pressed down. In other words, in the deceleration operating positions, the deceleration level is set to be the highest when the operating piece 412 of the operating lever 41 is located at the bottom end of the vertical swing range.
The position of the operating lever 41 shown in Figs. 2, 3(a) and 3(b) indicates the retardation release position.

The above-mentioned operating lever 41 is provided immediately below the handlebar 7 and the brake lever 30 shown in Figures 4(a) and (b), so the user can easily perform the above-mentioned speed control operation using the operating lever 41.

The pinion 43 and rack 42 provided in the operating force transmission section are configured to pull up the wire 31 provided in the brake mechanism 4 by an amount sufficient to slow down the wheel 2 based on the operating force of the operating lever 41.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the pinion 43 is a gear with many teeth 43a arranged at equal pitch over the entire outer circumferential surface, and is formed as a retarding operation input unit to which the operating force of the operating lever 41 is input, and is supported so as to be rotatable about the axis X3 on which the operating lever 41 is supported. In other words, the pinion 43 is coaxial with the operating lever 41, and is supported on the axis X3 so as to be swingable integrally with the operating lever 41.

The rack 42 includes a rack main body 421 and a wire support portion 422 .
The rack main body 421 is a plate-shaped member that extends approximately linearly in the vertical direction, and on the surface facing the pinion 43 in the front-to-rear direction (plate thickness direction), a number of teeth 42a that can engage with the teeth 43a of the pinion 43 are arranged along the vertical direction.

The wire support part 422 is formed in the shape of a protrusion that protrudes approximately horizontally rearward from the upper end of the rack body part 421 so as to be able to support the upper end fixing part 33a of the oscillating rod 33, i.e., the upper end part (33a) of the wire 31, from below.

The rack 42 is configured as a lifting unit that rises or falls, i.e., rises and falls, together with the wire 31 based on the operating force transmitted from the pinion 43. As a result, the rack 42 and pinion 43 provided in the operating force transmission unit are configured to lift the wire 31, which also serves as the brake mechanism 4, by an amount sufficient to slow down the rear wheel 2r.

In more detail, when the rack 42 is at the bottom end of its lifting stroke (up-down range of movement), the wire 31 is not pulled up by the wire support part 422 in response to the deceleration release position of the operating lever 41. The bottom end position of the lifting stroke of the rack 42 is the deceleration release position Ps. On the other hand, when the operating lever 41 is pushed down from the deceleration release position, the rack 42 rises from the bottom end position of the lifting stroke in accordance with the amount of operation, and the wire 31 is pulled up by the wire support part 422. The position of the lifting stroke of the rack 42 that is higher than the deceleration release position Ps is the deceleration activation position Pt.

In other words, when the operating lever 41 is pressed down to the maximum, the rack 42 is located at the upper end of the lifting stroke and lifts the wire 31 with maximum suppression.
As the rack 42 rises, the wire upper end fixing portion 33a of the swing rod 33 is pulled up (pushed up). Accordingly, the brake lever support shaft X1 of the swing rod 33 rotates upward about the swing rod support shaft X2 as a fulcrum, so that the brake lever 30 also changes from the non-braking position Pa to the retarding operating position Pd, as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3(b), the ratchet 50 is configured as a restricting part that restricts the swing position of the operating lever 41 to a retarding operation position Pd that is lower than the retarding release position, and includes a ratchet member 51 and a torsion spring 52.

The ratchet member 51 comprises a ratchet main body 511 that is pivotally supported on the handle joint 17 on the vehicle body side so as to be swingable about an axis X4 extending in the left-right direction, a ratchet locking portion 512, and a ratchet disengagement operation portion 513. As shown in Figures 4(a) and (b), the ratchet member 51 is provided in the vicinity of the pinion 43 and the operation lever 41 inside the handle joint 17 so that only the ratchet disengagement operation portion 513 is exposed to the outside relative to the handle joint 17.

The ratchet 50 is provided with one ratchet engagement portion 512, which protrudes from the ratchet body 511 toward the pinion 43 so as to be able to engage with the teeth 43a of the pinion 43. The ratchet member 51 swings about an axis X4 extending in the left-right direction between a position in which the ratchet engagement portion 512 engages with the teeth 43a of the pinion 43 and a position in which the engagement is released.

The torsion spring 52 biases the ratchet locking portion 512 so that it engages with the teeth 43a of the pinion 43. This allows the ratchet 50 to engage with one of the teeth 43a arranged along the outer periphery of the pinion 43, and restrict the rack 42 to the deceleration release position Ps, which is higher than the lower end position (deceleration release position Ps) of the lifting stroke. In other words, the ratchet 50 can restrict (hold) the wire 31 in a state where it is raised by the rack 42.

On the other hand, the ratchet 50 is configured to rotate from a position in which it engages with the teeth 43a of the pinion 43 to a position in which it disengages, against the biasing force of the torsion spring 52, by pressing the ratchet disengagement operation part 513. As a result, by pressing the ratchet disengagement operation part 513, the downward restriction of the rack 42 by the ratchet 50 is released.

As shown in FIG. 1, the walking frame 1 of the present embodiment described above is equipped with a brake mechanism 4 having a brake unit 20 that brakes the rotation of the rear wheel 2r, a brake lever 30 as a brake operation unit that operates the brake unit 20, and a wire 31 that connects the brake unit 20 provided near the rear wheel 2r to the brake lever 30 provided near the handle 7 and transmits the operation of the brake lever 30 to the brake unit 20.

As shown in FIG. 3(a), the brake mechanism 4 is configured such that the brake unit 20 applies a braking force to the rear wheel 2r according to the amount of pulling of the wire 31 by the brake lever 30, and the retarding mechanism 5 that holds the rear wheel 2r in a retarded state is provided near the handlebars 7. And, as shown in FIG. 3(a) and (b), the retarding mechanism 5 is configured to hold the wire 31 provided in the brake mechanism 4 in a state raised by the amount of pulling that allows the rear wheel 2r to be retarded.

With the above configuration, the deceleration mechanism 5 can continue to apply a braking force to the rear wheel 2r to decelerate the vehicle 1 regardless of whether the vehicle 1 is stopped or moving, while also using the components of the brake mechanism 4, such as the wire 31 and the brake unit 20.

This allows the weight, size and cost of the vehicle to be reduced, and users who have difficulty walking can ride safely and comfortably while effectively slowing down the speed of the rear wheel 2r without having to adjust the amount of brake lever 30 operation.

As an embodiment of this invention, as shown in Figures 3(a) and (b), the deceleration mechanism 5 includes a lifting section (42) that moves up and down together with the wire 31 between a deceleration release position Ps where the wire 31 is not pulled up and a deceleration activation position Pt that is located above the deceleration release position Ps and decelerates the rear wheel 2r, and an operating section (43) that operates the lifting and lowering of the lifting section (42). At least one of the operating section (43) and the lifting section (42) includes an operating force transmission section that transmits the operating force of the operating section (43) to the lifting section (42), and a restricting section (50) that restricts the lifting and lowering section (42) to the deceleration activation position Pt.

According to the above configuration, the lifting section (42) is raised and lowered between the deceleration release position Ps and the deceleration activation position Pt by operating the operating section (43), and when the lifting section (42) is regulated to the deceleration activation position Pt by the regulating section (50), the rear wheel 2r can be placed in a deceleration state, whereas when the deceleration release position Ps is reached, the deceleration of the rear wheel 2r can be released.
This allows the user to easily switch between the speed suppression release state and the speed suppression state by operating the operation unit (43).

As an embodiment of this invention, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the lifting/lowering section (42) is configured to be able to rise relative to the operating section (43) according to the degree of retardation of the rear wheel 2r, so that the higher the degree of retardation of the rear wheel 2r, the higher the lifting/lowering section (42) is positioned. Also, the restricting section (50) is configured to be able to restrict the involuntary descent of the lifting/lowering section (42).

According to the above-described configuration, the operation unit (43) can adjust not only whether or not to enter the speed reduction state, but also the degree of speed reduction.
Therefore, a user of the walking frame 1 can ride more safely and comfortably by freely setting the degree of speed reduction according to the degree of his/her own walking disability and the driving conditions, such as the gradient of the road surface on which the user is riding.

As an embodiment of this invention, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the operating force transmission section is composed of a pinion 43 provided on the operating section (43) so as to be rotatable relative to the vehicle body, and a rack 42 provided on the lifting section (42) and engaging with the pinion 43 so as to be able to move up and down as the pinion 43 rotates, and the regulating section (50) is formed of a ratchet 50 that engages with one of a number of teeth 43a serving as engaging protrusions arranged along the outer periphery of the pinion 43 to regulate the rotation of the pinion 43.

According to the above configuration, by utilizing a rack-and-pinion mechanism consisting of the rack 42 and pinion 43, a simple configuration can be realized in which the lifting unit (42) is raised and lowered by rotating the operating unit (43).

Furthermore, by using the rack and pinion mechanism, the lifting stroke of the lifting section (42) can be firmly secured, so that it is possible to set multiple deceleration operating positions Pt along the vertical direction and to set different deceleration levels for each of the multiple deceleration operating positions Pt, thereby enabling various degrees of deceleration to be set.

In one embodiment of this invention, as shown in FIG. 3(b), the operating portion (41) is provided with an operating lever 41 for rotating the pinion 43.
According to the above configuration, the inclination (posture) of the operating lever 41 changes according to the rotation angle of the pinion 43, so that even if the user is, for example, an elderly person, he or she can easily visually recognize whether or not the speed is being reduced and the degree of the reduction based on the inclination of the operating lever 41.

In the correspondence between the configuration of this invention and the above-mentioned embodiment, the wheel corresponds to the rear wheel 2r, similarly the brake operating part corresponds to the brake lever 30, the operating force transmission part corresponds to the pinion 43 and the rack 42, the regulating part corresponds to the ratchet 50, the engaging protrusion of the pinion corresponds to the teeth 43a, and the operating part corresponds to the operating lever 41, but this invention is not limited to only the configuration of the above-mentioned embodiment, and many embodiments can be obtained.

For example, the speed-reducing operation transmission portion and the restricting portion of the present invention are not limited to the configurations of the speed-reducing operation transmission portion (42, 73) and the restricting portion (50) of the above-described embodiment, and may be in other embodiments.
More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the speed-reducing operation transmission portion of the modified example includes a speed-reducing operation cylindrical portion 61 as an operation portion, and a lifting portion 71 (see FIGS. 9 and 10).
The speed control cylinder 61 is a cylindrical outer cylinder member that fits and holds the lifting section 71 so as to be relatively rotatable about a central axis along the up-down direction.

As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the lower end of the retarder operation cylindrical portion 61 is provided with a tube upper end holding portion 66 that narrows radially inward and holds the upper end of the covering tube 32 that covers the wire 31. The tube upper end holding portion 66 holds the upper end of the covering tube 32 rotatably about an axis along the vertical direction via a socket member 55 that is fixed integrally with the upper end of the covering tube 32.

As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the retarder operation tubular portion 61 is disposed in a recess 18 formed by cutting the lower rear surface of the handle joint portion 17 forward, and is provided near the rear side of the frame mounting portion 171. The upper surface of the retarder operation tubular portion 61 is disposed so that there is almost no gap between the step portion 17a that forms the upper surface of the recess 18 in the handle joint portion 17.

The lifting section 71 is integrally formed with a main body section 72 having an outer diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the retarder operation cylindrical section 61, and an upward protrusion section 73 that protrudes upward from the top surface of the main body section 72. The main body section 72 and the upward protrusion section 73 are both formed in a cylindrical shape with a central axis along the vertical direction, and the central axes are formed coaxially with each other. The upward protrusion section 73 is formed with a smaller diameter than the main body section 72.

The wire 31 extending upward from the upper end of the covering tube 32 is routed inside the retarder operation cylindrical portion 61 and the lifting portion 71, and as described above, the upper end is fixed to the wire upper end fixing portion 33a of the swing rod 33.

As a result, the lifting/lowering part 71 moves up and down integrally with the wire 31 when the wire upper end fixing part 33a of the swing rod 33 moves up and down about the swing rod support axis X2 as a fulcrum. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9, the upper part of the wire 31 exposed from the covering tube 32 is inserted into a through hole 71a formed along the central axis of the lifting/lowering part 71 in the up and down direction, and holds the lifting/lowering part 71 integrally. As a result, the lifting/lowering part 71 moves up and down integrally with the wire 31 when the wire upper end fixing part 33a of the swing rod 33 moves up and down about the swing rod support axis X2 as a fulcrum.

As shown in Figures 9 and 10, a spiral guide groove 74 is formed in the vertical direction on the outer peripheral surface of the main body 72 of the lifting/lowering part 71, which can guide the lifting/lowering part 71 as it rotates about the central axis along the vertical direction of the retarder operating cylinder 61.

On the other hand, as shown in Figures 8 to 10, the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61 is provided with a plunger pin 62 (spiral guided portion) that protrudes toward the lifting/lowering portion 71 fitted inside. The plunger pin 62 is inserted into the guide groove 74 and engages with the edge of the guide groove 74. As a result, the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61 is held by the lifting/lowering portion 71 that is fixed integrally with the wire 31 so that it does not fall off the lifting/lowering portion 71 together with the wire upper end fixing portion 33a and the socket member 55.

Furthermore, by engaging the plunger pin 62 with the guide groove 74, the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61 is rotated about a central axis along the vertical direction, and the plunger pin 62 is guided along the guide groove 74. Therefore, the lifting portion 71 moves up and down relative to the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, when the plunger pin 62 is located at the upper end of the guide groove 74, the lifting part 71 is located at the lower end position of the lifting stroke relative to the retarder operation cylindrical part 61. At this time, the lifting part 71 does not push up the wire upper end fixing part 33a of the oscillating rod 33, and is in the retarder release position Ps where the wire 31 is not pulled up.

When the plunger pin 62 is positioned below the upper end of the guide groove 74, the lifting section 71 is positioned above the retarder release position Ps, which is located at the lower end of the lifting stroke for the retarder operation cylindrical section 61. At this time, the lifting section 71 pushes up the wire upper end fixing section 33a of the oscillating rod 33 according to the height to which the lifting section 71 rises. This causes the wire 31 to be pulled up to the retarder operation position Pt.

The plunger pin 62 and the guide groove 74 are configured to be able to restrict the lifting/lowering part 71 at the deceleration release position Ps located at the lower end of the lifting stroke in which the lifting/lowering part 71 moves up and down relative to the deceleration operation cylindrical part 61. The plunger pin 62 and the guide groove 74 are also configured to be able to restrict the lifting/lowering part 71 to either the high deceleration operating position Pth located at the upper end of the deceleration operating position Pt, or the low deceleration operating position Ptl located midway in the up-down direction, during the lifting/lowering stroke.

More specifically, as shown in Figures 10, 11(a) and 11(b), the plunger pin 62 comprises a pin body 63 which is attached integrally to the retarder operating cylindrical portion 61 by screwing it radially, a locking portion 64 formed so as to be able to protrude from the radial inner end of the pin body 63, and a spring 65 which biases the locking portion 64 towards the radial inner end of the pin body 63.

The upper end, lower end, and middle part of the groove bottom of the guide groove 74 are provided with locking holes 75 (75a, 75b, 75c) into which the locking portion 64 of the plunger pin 62 engages. These locking holes 75 are formed deeper radially inward than the other groove depths in the extension direction of the guide groove 74 so that they can engage with the locking portion 64 of the plunger pin 62.

When the user rotates the retarder operating cylinder 61 around a central axis along the vertical direction, the plunger pin 62 slides along the guide groove 74 (see FIG. 11(b)). When the plunger pin 62 is located at the upper end, lower end, or midway point of the guide groove 74, the locking portion 64 is fitted into the locking hole 75 by the biasing force of the spring 65 provided on the plunger pin 62 (see FIG. 11(a) for example). As a result, the plunger pin 62 and guide groove 74 as a restricting portion restrict the lifting and lowering of the lifting portion 71 in accordance with the upper end, lower end, and midway points of the guide groove 74.

Specifically, as shown in Figs. 9, 10, and 11(a), when the locking portion 64 is fitted into the locking hole 75a at the upper end of the guide groove 74, the lifting portion 71 can be restricted at the deceleration release position Ps. As shown in Fig. 12(a), when the locking portion 64 is fitted into the locking hole 75b at the middle of the guide groove 74, the lifting portion 71 can be restricted at the deceleration low operating position Ptl where the deceleration is activated at a low level. As shown in Fig. 12(b), when the locking portion 64 is fitted into the locking hole 75c at the lower end of the guide groove 74, the lifting portion 71 can be restricted at the deceleration high operating position Pth where the deceleration is activated at a high level.

As shown in Fig. 9 and Fig. 12(a), the upper protrusion 73 of the lifting/lowering section 71 is provided with a mark 76a indicating that the deceleration is released, and when the deceleration is activated, marks 76b and 76c are provided to indicate in two stages, a low deceleration state and a high deceleration state, depending on the deceleration level. For example, when the deceleration is released, the mark 76a indicates "0", when the deceleration is activated, the mark 76b indicates "1", and when the deceleration is activated, the mark 76c indicates "2", in that order, at the top, vertical midpoint, and bottom of the upper protrusion 73 of the lifting/lowering section 71.

On the other hand, as shown in Figures 9, 12(a) and 12(b), when the elevation position of the elevation part 71 in the handle joint part 17 is one of the deceleration release position Ps, the low deceleration operating position Ptl and the high deceleration operating position Pth, the parts that coincide with the corresponding marks 76a, 76b and 76c in a side view are provided with window parts 17b that penetrate the handle joint part 17 so that the marks 76a, 76b and 76c can be seen from the outside.

Whether the lifting unit 71 is in one of the lifting positions, i.e., the deceleration release position Ps, the low deceleration operating position Ptl, or the high deceleration operating position Pth, the posture of the deceleration operating cylinder 61 and the lifting unit 71 remains almost unchanged. However, the user can recognize the current deceleration state by the marks 76a, 76b, and 76c displayed through the window 17b.

In the walking vehicle 1a of the above-mentioned modified example, as shown in Figures 9 and 10, the speed-reducing operation tubular part 61 as the operating part is configured to fit and hold the lifting part 71 so that it can rotate relatively around a central axis along the vertical direction. The operating force transmission part is equipped with a guide groove 74 as a spiral guide part formed in a spiral shape around an axis along the vertical direction so as to be able to guide the lifting and lowering of the lifting part 71 accompanying the rotation of the operating part, and a plunger pin 62 as a spiral guided part that engages with the guide groove 74 and is guided along the guide groove 74. The guide groove 74 is provided on the outer periphery of the lifting part 71, and the plunger pin 62 protrudes from the inner periphery of the speed-reducing operation tubular part 61 toward the lifting part 71.

The above configuration makes it possible to utilize a feed screw mechanism in which the plunger pin 62 of the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61 engages with the guide groove 74 of the lifting portion 71, thereby realizing a simple configuration in which the lifting portion 71 is raised and lowered by rotating the speed-reducing operation tubular portion 61.

Furthermore, by using a feed screw mechanism, the amount of lift of the lifting section 71, which moves up and down relative to the retarder operation tubular section 61, can be set according to the helical pitch between the plunger pin 62 and the guide groove 74. This allows the lifting stroke of the lifting section 71 to be secured, and the degree of retardation can be finely set according to the amount of operation of the retarder operation tubular section 61, or retardation levels can be differentiated.

As an embodiment of this invention, as shown in Figures 9 and 10, the regulating portion has a locking portion 64 and a locking hole 75 as a locked portion that locks with the locking portion 64, the locking portion 64 is provided in the retarder operation cylindrical portion 61, and the locking hole 75 is provided at the upper end, midway portion, and lower end of the guide groove 74 on the outer periphery of the lifting portion 71.

According to the above configuration, the locking portion 64 and the locking hole 75 as the restricting portion are engaged with each other at the retarder operating position Pt, so that the lifting portion 71 that has risen relative to the retarder operating cylindrical portion 61 can be reliably restricted (positioned) at the retarder operating position Pt.

In the correspondence between the configuration of this invention and the above-mentioned modified examples, the operating portion corresponds to the retarder operating cylindrical portion 61, the helical guide portion corresponds to the guide groove 74, the helical guided portion corresponds to the plunger pin 62, and the locked portion corresponds to the locking holes 75 (75a, 75b, 75c), but this invention is not limited to only the configurations of the above-mentioned embodiment and modified examples, and many other embodiments can be obtained.

For example, although not shown, another regulating part associated with the regulating part of the modified example described above may be configured to regulate the elevation position of the elevation part relative to the operating part by the frictional force generated by the screwing together of the spiral guiding part and the guided part.

According to the above configuration, the lifting unit can be raised and lowered by rotating the operating unit against the frictional force relative to the lifting unit, while when the operating unit is not rotated, the frictional force can be used to restrict (position) the lifting unit to any lifting position.

In this way, the operating part functions as a nut and the lifting part functions as a screw, forming a feed screw mechanism that screws together, so that the lifting and lowering of the lifting part, i.e., the degree of speed reduction, can be adjusted steplessly in response to the rotation of the operating part.

In addition, in this invention, as one embodiment of the brake section, a configuration is used in which a pair of brake shoes 26 are pushed apart by a cam 24 that oscillates around an axis 23a as the wire 31 is pulled up, to apply a braking force to the rear wheel 2r, as in the brake section 20 shown in Figure 6 described above. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and for example, a configuration in which the cam 24a slides along the fork portion 6a of the caster 6 may be used, as shown in Figures 13(a) and 13(b).
In addition, Figure 13 (a) shows a state in which the cam 24a has not spread apart the pair of brake shoes 26 and no braking force is being applied to the rear wheel 2r, while Figure 13 (b) shows a state in which the cam 24a has spread apart the pair of brake shoes 26 and applied a braking force to the rear wheel 2r.

Furthermore, the brake unit of the present invention is not limited to a drum type like the brake unit 20 described above, but may be of other configurations such as a disc type, so long as it is capable of applying a braking force to the rear wheel 2r.

1, 1a... Walking vehicle 2... Wheel 2r... Rear wheel 4... Brake mechanism 5... Speed control mechanism 7... Handle 20... Brake unit 30... Brake lever (brake operation unit)
31... Wire 41, 61... Operation section 43, 71... Lifting section 42, 43... Operation force transmission section 50... Ratchet (regulating section)
41...Operation lever (operation part)
42...Rack 43...Pinion 43a...Pinion teeth (engagement piece)
61... Speed control operation cylinder portion (operation portion)
62...plunger pin (spiral guided portion)
64: Locking portion 74: Guide groove (spiral guide portion)
75 (75a, 75b, 75c)...Locking hole (locked part)
Pa...Inhibition release position Pb...Inhibition operating position Pbh...Inhibition high operating position Pal...Inhibiting low operating position

Claims (8)

A brake unit that brakes the rotation of the wheel;
A brake operating unit for operating the brake unit;
a brake mechanism for connecting the brake unit provided near the wheel and the brake operation unit provided near the handle, and a wire for transmitting the operation of the brake operation unit to the brake unit,
The brake mechanism is configured such that the brake unit applies a braking force to the wheel in accordance with an amount of pulling up the wire by the brake operation unit,
a speed reducing mechanism for maintaining the wheels in a speed reducing state is provided near the handlebars;
The speed reducing mechanism of the walking vehicle is configured to hold the wire provided in the brake mechanism in a pulled-up state by an amount sufficient to reduce the speed of the wheels. The speed reducing mechanism is
a lifting section that lifts and lowers together with the wire between a deceleration release position where the wire is not lifted and a deceleration activation position that is located above the deceleration release position and decelerates the wheel;
An operation unit for operating the lift unit to lift and lower the lift unit,
At least one of the operation unit and the lift unit is provided with
an operating force transmission unit that transmits an operating force by the operating unit to the lifting unit;
The walking vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a restricting portion for restricting the lifting portion to the speed reducing operating position. the lifting section is configured to be liftable relative to the operating section to the highest of the speed suppression operating positions set in the vertical direction according to the degree of speed suppression of the wheels such that the higher the degree of speed suppression of the wheels, the higher the position of the speed suppression operating position is,
The walking vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein the regulating portion is configured to be able to regulate the lifting and lowering of the lifting portion for each of the plurality of speed suppression operating positions. the operation force transmission unit is composed of a pinion provided on the operation unit so as to be rotatable with respect to the vehicle body, and a rack provided on the lifting unit and engaged with the pinion so as to be liftable and lowerable in accordance with the rotation of the pinion,
3. The walking vehicle according to claim 2, wherein the restricting portion is formed of a ratchet which restricts rotation of the pinion by engaging with any one of a plurality of engaging protrusions arranged along the outer periphery of the pinion. 5. The walking vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the operating portion includes an operating lever for rotating the pinion. The operation unit is configured to fit and hold the lift unit so as to be relatively rotatable around a central axis along a vertical direction,
The operation force transmission unit includes:
a spiral guide portion formed spirally around an axis along a vertical direction so as to be capable of guiding the lifting and lowering of the lifting and lowering portion in association with the rotation of the operating portion, and a spiral guided portion engaged with the spiral guide portion and guided along the spiral guide portion,
The walking vehicle described in claim 3, wherein the spiral guide portion is provided on at least one of the inner circumference of the operating portion and the outer circumference of the lifting portion, and the spiral guided portion is provided on the other portion different from the one. The restricting portion includes a locking portion and a locked portion that is locked to the locking portion,
7. The walking vehicle of claim 6, wherein the locking portion is provided on at least one of an inner peripheral portion of the operating portion and an outer peripheral portion of the lifting portion, and the locked portion is provided on the other portion different from the one. 7. The walking vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the regulating portion is configured to regulate by a frictional force generated by the screwing of the spiral guiding portion and the spiral guided portion.

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