US 8,167,317 B2Granted

Wheelchair attachments

AssigneesMontefiore Medical Center, The University of Hartford

InventorsAvital Fast, Devdas Shetty, Moshe Raz, Giora Rothman

Life of this patent

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Abstract

Attachments for a manual wheelchair are provided for navigating a wheelchair over obstacles and uneven terrain, such as a typical curb on a street. The attachments provide for regulating the movement of the wheelchair as the wheelchair descends the curb and to prevent the wheelchair from flipping over during such movement. The attachments include a front caster wheel slider assembly on each side of the wheelchair, a follower wheel assembly and a track belt damping bar. The front caster wheel slider assembly includes a piston that will quickly push the front caster wheels down after they roll over the top edge of the curb. The follower wheel assembly acts as a sensor that will release the piston in the assembly after the front caster wheels roll over the top edge of the curb. As the back wheels of the wheelchair roll over and down the curb, the track belt damping bar slows the descent of the wheelchair.

Claims8

Dependent claims

An attachment for a manual wheelchair which has first and second front caster wheels and a pair of main side wheels rearward of said first and second front caster wheels, the attachment adapted to assist the wheelchair as the wheelchair descends from an upper surface to a lower surface, the attachment comprising:

a damping unit adapted to mount on a wheelchair frame, said damping unit including a differential movement component;
a rail adapted to mount on the wheelchair frame and adapted to slide along the wheelchair frame;
wherein a first end of the rail is connected to the damping unit and a second end of the rail is connected to said first front caster wheel on the wheelchair;
and
a piston rod connected to the differential movement component of the damping unit and effective to eject the rail and said first front caster wheel from a first position to a second position such that the first front caster wheel engages the lower surface independent of said second front caster wheel when a latch adapted to maintain said rail in said first position is automatically released.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 12/803,188Filed 21 Jun 2010 · division
Priority: 7 Apr 2006
Published: US 2010/0259029 A114 Oct 2010
Granted: 1 May 2012
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

A61G 5/068
With obstacle mounting facilities, e.g. for climbing stairs, kerbs or steps: with extensible supports pushing upwards, e.g. telescopic legs
A61G 5/066
With obstacle mounting facilities, e.g. for climbing stairs, kerbs or steps: with endless belts
A61G 5/1051
Parts, details or accessories: arrangements for steering
A61G 5/1054
Parts, details or accessories: large wheels, e.g. higher than the seat portion

Family

Application60/790,596Us provisional application · filed 7 Apr 2006
Application11/697,934Parent of this division · filed 9 Apr 2007
US 7,766,342 B2Parent of this division · filed 3 Aug 2010
US 2010/0259029 A1Pre-grant publication · published 14 Oct 2010
US 2008/0246251 A1Published application
US 8,167,317 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.