Wheeled Object of the Type Adapted to be Operated by a Walking Person

• US 20090001740A1
• Filed: 11/29/2005
• Published: 01/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Borringia Industrie AG
• Original Assignee: Borringia Industrie AG
• Inventors: Shahar, Amir, Thogersen, Lars, Kofoed, Henrik Nohr, Bech, Mogens Ilsted, Nielsen, Kristina, Hansen, Christian Ruegaard, Jensen, Jesper Moe
• Granted Patent: US 8,720,616 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 296/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0225 other configuration, e.g. odd number of wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0243 with lockable swivel action, e.g. fixing castor in certain direction locking of castor swivel action in general B60B33/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0268 having deployable or retractable wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0275 having driven wheels, e.g. motorised
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0287 having brakes, e.g. slowing down and/or holding details of brake actuators on castors B60B33/0078; brakes on hand carts B62B5/04; brakes in general F16D49/00 - F16D65/853
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 1/0293 stretcher supports with wheels, e.g. used for stretchers without wheels stretcher supports without wheels A61G1/06
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 7/0528 Steering or braking devices for castor wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 7/08 Apparatus for transporting beds

Abstract

A wheeled object or vehicle, such as a hospital bed (10) comprises a main chassis or frame (12) supported by a plurality of supporting wheels or rollers (11), which define the vertices of a polygonal supporting surface (21). The bed, which is usually moved by a walking person, is provided with at least one motor driven driving device (15), including at least one driving wheel or roller (18), positioned within said polygonal supporting surface. The driving device is rotatable about a substantially vertical axis (14) in relation in the chassis or frame so as to change the angular position of the driving wheel (18) in relation to the chassis or frame. Biasing means, such as a compression spring or a pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder (22, 34) is provided for biasing the driving device (15) in a direction away from the main chassis or frame (12) and towards the supporting surface (21). The biasing force is controlled such that the driving device (15) id kept in close non-skidding contact with the ground or floor surface (21) without lifting the supporting wheels (11) out or contact with the supporting surface.

Claims

1-29. -29. (canceled)

30. A wheeled object (10) of the type adapted to be operated by a walking person and comprising

a main chassis or frame (12) supported by a plurality of supporting wheels or rollers (11),

a motor driven driving device (15) engageable with a supporting surface (21) for driving the wheeled object, the driving device being mounted so as to be movable in a substantially vertical direction in relation to the main chassis or frame (12) and so as to be rotatable about a substantially vertical axis (14) in relation to the chassis or frame so as to change the angular position and the driving direction of the driving device (15) in relation to the chassis or frame, and

means (22, 34) for biasing the driving device (15) in a direction away from the main chassis or frame (12) and towards the supporting surface (21)

characterised in that the driving device (15) comprises a supporting arm (16), which at one of its ends is pivotally or rotatably mounted on the main frame (12) or on a subframe (13) about a substantially horizontal axis (17).

31. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein said plurality of supporting wheels or rollers (11) define the vertices of a polygonal supporting surface part (21), and wherein the motor driven driving device (15), includes at least one driving wheel or roller (18), positioned within said polygonal supporting surface part.

32. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein the driving device (15) and the corresponding driving motor (19) are arranged on a common sub-frame (13), which is rotatable about said substantially vertical axis (14) in relation to the chassis or frame (12).

33. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein the main frame (12) or sub-frame (13) and the supporting member (16) are interconnected by a spring, such as a coil spring or gas spring (22).

34. A wheeled object according to claim 33, wherein at least one of the connecting points of the spring (22) is movable (FIG. 13) so as to change the biasing force of the spring applied to the driving device (15).

35. A wheeled object according to claim 30, further comprising power operated driving means to rotate the driving device or the sub-frame about said substantially vertical axis between predetermined angular positions.

36. A wheeled object according to claim 35, wherein said power operated driving means are separate from the driving motor (19) for driving the driving device.

37. A wheeled object according to claim 35, wherein said power operated driving means include the driving motor (19) for driving the driving device (15).

38. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein the driving device comprises a pair of driving wheels or rollers arranged on opposite sides of and equally spaced from the intersection point between said substantially vertical axis and the supporting surface, said driving wheels being interconnected connected via a differential gear (39).

39. A wheeled object according to claim 35, wherein said predetermined angular positions comprise a position corresponding to the usual driving direction and a position perpendicular thereto.

40. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein the driving motor is an electric motor connected to the driving wheel(s) by means of a chain, belt (20), gear drive or a combination thereof.

41. A wheeled object according to claim 30, wherein said biasing means (22, 34) are adapted to gradually increase the biasing force, further comprising means (35) for determining the weight carried by the driving device, for detecting when weight carried has reached a maximum, and for subsequently decreasing the biasing force by a predetermined value.

42. A wheeled object according to claim 30, further comprising manually actuate-able means for selecting one of a number of different levels of biasing force.

43. A wheeled object according to claim 30, further comprising means for detecting the distance of the downward movement of the driving device under the influence of the biasing means (22, 34) and for restricting said downward movement in response to the relationship between said downward movement and the biasing force of the biasing means.

44. A driving assembly to be mounted on a wheeled object (10) as claimed in claim 30, said assembly comprising biasing means (22, 34) for biasing the driving device (15) into contact with the supporting surface (21) and for controlling the biasing force, so as to secure sufficient friction between the driving device and the supporting surface and so as to maintain contact between the supporting wheels or rollers and the supporting surface.

45. A driving assembly according to claim 44, wherein said biasing means (22, 34) are adapted to gradually increase the biasing force, further comprising means (35) for determining the weight carried by the driving device (15), for detecting when weight carried has reached a maximum, and for subsequently decreasing the biasing force by a predetermined value.

46. A driving assembly according to claim 44, further comprising means for detecting the distance of the downward movement of the driving device under the influence of the force applied by the biasing means and for restricting said downward movement in response to the relationship between said downward movement and the biasing force of the biasing means.

47. A driving assembly according to claim 44, comprising manually actuate-able means for selecting one of a number of different levels of biasing force.

48. A method of driving a wheeled object (10) of the type adapted to be operated by a walking person, the wheeled object comprising a main chassis or frame (12) supported by a plurality of supporting wheels or rollers (11), which defines the vertices of a polygonal part of the supporting surface (21), and a motor driven driving device (15) mounted so as to be movable in a substantially vertical direction in relation to the main chassis or frame (12) and so as to be rotatable about a substantially vertical axis (14) in relation to the chassis or frame so as to change the angular position and the driving direction of the driving device (15) in relation to the chassis or frame, the driving device (15) including a supporting arm (16), which at one of its ends is pivotally or rotatably mounted on the main frame (12) or on a subframe (13) about a substantially horizontal axis (17), said method comprising:

biasing the driving device into contact with said polygonal surface part by means of a spring interconnecting the main frame or sub-frame and the supporting arm (16),

gradually increasing the biasing force applied to the driving device,

monitoring the relationship between movement of the driving device towards the polygonal surface part and the biasing force applied, and

selecting based on such relationship the biasing force to be used.

49. A method according to claim 48 comprising gradually increasing the biasing force, monitoring the weight carried by the driving device, detecting when the weight carried has reached a maximum, and subsequently decreasing the biasing force by a predetermined value.

50. A method according to claim 48 comprising gradually increasing the biasing force, monitoring the distance of the downward movement of the driving device, restricting said downward movement in response to the relationship between said downward movement and the biasing force used.