A stairlift, for transporting a load along a staircase
AssigneeHandicare Stairlifts B.V.
InventorDov Rosenthal
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A stairlift with an elongated rail includes a first side running surface and a second side running surface; and a carriage movable along the rail. The carriage having a first roller including a first roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the first side running surface for guiding the first roller; and a second roller including a second roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the second side running surface for guiding the second roller; and a first bridge. The first roller being rotatable around a first axis at a first end of the first bridge and the second roller is being rotatable around a second axis at a second end of the first bridge.
Claims20
A stairlift, for transporting a load along a staircase, comprising:
- an elongated rail comprising a first side running surface and a second side running surface opposing the first side running surface;
- and
- a carriage movable along the rail said carriage comprising:
- a first roller comprising a first roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the first side running surface for guiding the first roller;
- and,
- a second roller comprising a second roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the second side running surface for guiding the second roller;
- and
- a first bridge, the first roller being provided rotatable around a first axis at a first end of the first bridge and the second roller being provided rotatable around a second axis at a second end of the first bridge, wherein the first bridge is turnably mounted in the carriage around a third axis substantially parallel to the first and/or second axis and the first bridge is constructed to support the load at a position closer to the first roller than to the second roller the elongated rail is mountable at a lower end and an upper end of the staircase such that the stairlift can move the load up and down the elongated rail from the lower end to the upper end and vice versa, the first roller being constructed closer to the lower end of the elongated rail than the second roller.
A method of operating a stairlift for transporting a load along a staircase over an elongated rail comprising a first side running surface and a second side running surface opposing the first side running surface and mountable at a lower end and an upper end of the staircase such that the stairlift can move the load up and down the elongated rail from the lower end to the upper end and vice versa by:
- suspending a load from a first bridge of the stairlift at a position closer to a first roller than to a second roller, the first roller being constructed closer to the lower end of the elongated rail than the second roller;
- rotating the first roller comprising a first roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the first side running surface around a first axis in a front end of the first bridge;
- rotating the second roller comprising a second roller friction surface which is in frictional engagement with the second side running surface around a second axis in a rear end of the first bridge;
- and
- allowing the first bridge to turn around a third axis substantially parallel to the first and/or second axis.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.