Portable Power-Saving and Foldable Electric Wheel Chair

• US 20070040349A1
• Filed: 06/01/2006
• Published: 02/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tianyun Zhao
• Original Assignee: Tianyun Zhao
• Inventors: ZHAO, Tianyun
• Granted Patent: US 7,624,826 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 280/250.100
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/045 Rear wheel drive
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/08 foldable
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/0825 comprising a scissor-type frame, e.g. having pivoting cross bars for enabling folding
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/1024 Brake discs
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/1032 engaging an element of the drive or transmission, e.g. drive belt, electrodynamic brake
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 5/1051 Arrangements for steering
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 180/907 Motorized wheelchairs

Abstract

The present invention relates to a kind of portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair, characterized in that there is a hand control direction device on the left elbow 10 to control the specific running direction of the electric wheel chair; the left and right rear wheels 3 are integrated with the motors 30 respectively, so as the two motors 30 can directly drive the two rear wheels; two disc brakes 20 are installed on the left and right rear wheels 3, the two disc brakes are connected to the brake handle 15 via the main steel string 24, by means of a single hand press brake handle 15, the two rear wheels 3 braked simultaneously; switches 18 for positive or inversion running control the main running direction of electric wheel chair; an intellectual control rod may also be installed on the right elbow 12 to replace the speed-adjusting turning handle 14 and switches 18 for positive or inversion running. It is also characterized mainly in that: the worm-gearing indirect driving and electric magnetic brakes used by normal electric wheel chairs are not used by the present invention, so significant power-saving is achieved; and there is a cross foldable device 1.41-1.48 in the vehicle frame 1. Compared with the normal electric wheel chair, the advantages of the invention are: the self-weight is only half of the formers, the power consumption is only less than half of the formers, the traveling distance is twice of the formers, the comparable price (all are using lead-acid battery) is as low as a quarter of the formers, and foldable than the formers (with batteries).

Claims

1. A kind of portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair, comprising a frame of wheel chair (1), two vertical pipes (1.1), two horizontally supporting pipes (1.2), two main vertical pipes (1.3), two rear wheels (3), a front direction wheel (4), a front caster (4.1), a left arm-rest pipe (5), a right arm-rest pipe (6), and two arm-rests (2), the front ends of the left and right arm-rest pipes (5) and (6) are bent as elbows (10, 12), a hand control direction device is installed on the left elbow (10), a speed-adjusting turning handle (14) and a hand press brake handle (15) are installed on the right elbow (12), characterized mainly in that the chair has a power-saving driving mode—

double motors directly driving double rear wheels, and has a power-saving braking mode—

single hand press double disc brakes;

Driving mode;

a speed-adjusting turning handle (14) is installed on the right elbow (12), there are two mounting vertical boards (19) of the rear wheels at the lower end of the left and right main vertical pipes (1.3) respectively, the rear wheels (3) with motors (30) are secured on the vertical boards (19) by bolts and nuts, the said motors (30) are DC and brushless motors with stepless adjustable speed, low rotation speed, and high torque, the housings of the motors (30) are integrated with the steel wheel plates (31), so as the two motors (30) can directly drive the two rear wheels (3) to go forward and backward or to turn left and right in situ, by means of turning the speed-adjusting turning handle (14) and switching the direction control switches (18), or by means of only switching the intellectual control rod (32), this way is the said driving mode—

double motors directly driving double rear wheels;

Braking mode;

one end is to install disc brakes (20) on the left and right rear wheels, the disc brake includes a disc brake sheet (21), a brake clamp (22) and a brake rod (23), the disc brake sheet (21) is installed by the side of the motor (30) by means of tightly screwing the female screw of the disc brake sheet (21) in the male screw on the end-cover of the motor (30), the brake clamp (22) and the brake rod (23) are fixed on the vertical board (19) via the connecting plate (27) with screws;

another end is to install the hand press brake handle (15) on the right elbow (12);

the two ends are connected to a braking steel string via the delta-shaped conversion plate (26), the upper end of the delta-shaped conversion plate (26) is connected to the brake handle (15) via the main steel string (24), the left and right lower ends of the delta-shaped conversion plate (26) are connected to the left and right brake rods (23) via the left and right branch steel strings (25) respectively, by means of a single hand to press brake handle (15) or by means of a small electric device to draw the main steel string (24), the brake rods (23) are tightly pulled so that the two brake clamps (22) tightly clip the two brake sheets (21), and the two rear wheels (3) are braked simultaneously.

2. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, is characterized by that there is a cross foldable device in the wheel chair frame (1), its base is two front cross pipes (1.41) and two rear cross boards (1.42), the upper ends of the two front cross pipes (1.41) and two rear cross boards (1.42) are connected by welding to the left and right horizontally supporting pipes (1.44) of the cushion (7.1), the lower ends of the two front cross pipes (1.41) and two rear cross boards (1.42) are connected by welding to the left and right short pipes (1.45), which may rotate around its inner pipe at a small angle;

two cross fold positioning boards (1.43) make the fold and interaction between the two rear cross boards (1.42) and the left and right main vertical pipes (1.3) keep stable by means of four slip-connecting screws (1.48), the cross points of the two front cross pipes (1.41) and the two rear cross boards (1.42) are also connected to each other via the slip-connecting screws (1.48), there is an inner pipe fixing screw (1.47) out of the two ends of the left and right short pipes (1.45) respectively, the screws tightly fix the inner pipes and non-turning outer pipes, there are totally four hook-shaped supporters (1.46) which are welded at the front and rear of the left and right horizontally supporting pipes (1.2) and at the bottom planes tightly close to the supporting pipes (1.2), and used to support the left and right horizontally supporting pipes (1.44) of the cushion (7.1), therefor the electric wheel chair is foldable even with batteries.

3. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that the switches (18) for positive or inversion running of the motors are installed on the connecting places between the front of the left armrest pipe (5) and right armrest pipe (6) and the left and right vertical pipes (1.1), to control the main running direction of the electric wheel chair—

to go forward and backward or to turn left and right in situ.

4. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that there is a hand control direction device on the left elbow (10), and the hand control direction device includes a fixing plate (11), a hollow bearing (13), a vertical hand control rod (16), a hand control direction handle (17), the vertical hand control rod (16) inserting through the hollow bearing (13), its upper end is connected to the hand control direction handle (17), its lower end is connected to the front direction wheel (4), the specific running direction of the electric wheel chair can be accurately controlled by means of holding the hand control direction handle (17) with the left hand to control the front direction wheel (4).

5. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that lithium ion battery is used for the electric wheel chair, two lithium ion battery cases (9) are hung up from the left and right horizontally supporting pipes (1.2) of the vehicle frame (1) to simplify the frame structure and to be convenient for hanging and unhanging the batteries.

6. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that the said lithium ion batteries may be replaced by nickel-hydrogen batteries or by small capacity lead-acid batteries, which are also hung up from the left and right horizontally supporting pipes (1.2).

7. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that band brakes may be installed on the left and right rear wheels (3) to replace the disc brakes, one end of the band brake is tightly secured with its own female screw screwing in the male screw on the end-cover of the rear wheel motor (30), another end of the band brake is connected to hand press brake handle (15) via the main steel string (24), the main steel string (24) is connected to the left and right branch steel strings (25) via the delta-shaped conversion plate (26), and draws the two branch steel strings (25) to control the braking rods (23) of the left and right band brakes respectively, to attain the safe effect of two band brakes braking simultaneously by means of a single hand to press the brake handle (15), or by means of a small electric device to draw the main steel string (24).

8. The portable power-saving and foldable electric wheel chair in accordance with claim 1, characterized by that an intellectual control rod (32) is installed on the right elbow (12) to replace the speed-adjusting turning handle (14) and switches (18) for positive or inversion running, the intellectual control rod (32) will interact with the hand control direction handle (17):

the intellectual control rod (32) lays stress on gross adjustment to control the current and the main running direction of electric wheel chair, which goes forward and backward or turns left and right in situ;

the hand direction control handle (17) lays stress on fine adjustment to control and adjust the specific running direction of electric wheel chair.