초록 ▼

A motorized wheelchair machine with stand-up support capability having independent front drive motors and wheels, drive wheels with axle centerline in vicinity of arches of user's feet, allowing more instinctive and natural maneuvering, simplified lift system using a linear actuator and collapsing p

A motorized wheelchair machine with stand-up support capability having independent front drive motors and wheels, drive wheels with axle centerline in vicinity of arches of user's feet, allowing more instinctive and natural maneuvering, simplified lift system using a linear actuator and collapsing parallelogram lifting frame design, for reduced cost and greater comfort. A preferred embodiment includes an onboard electrical cell charger, extendable and retractable charger cord compatible with standard household electrical outlets and an interlock switch that prevents use of the drive motors while charger is plugged into an electrical power receptacle and a novel leg-brace device.

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability comprising: front drive wheels comprising a plurality of independently controllable drive wheels, each having an axle centerline in the vicinity of the arches of a user's feet; drive motors to power said plurality of independent

What is claimed is: 1. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability comprising: front drive wheels comprising a plurality of independently controllable drive wheels, each having an axle centerline in the vicinity of the arches of a user's feet; drive motors to power said plurality of independently controllable drive wheels; one or more caster mounted rear wheels; a seat and a backrest; a lift mechanism to lift and lower said seat and said backrest; said lift mechanism comprising lift frames that transition said seat and said backrest from a seated position wherein said lift mechanism is oriented along an essentially horizontal axis of said motorized wheelchair to a standing up position wherein said lift mechanism is in an essentially collapsed parallelogram configuration oriented along an essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheelchair; a telescoping cylinder connected to said seat such that a lifting force pushes said seat from an essentially horizontal position to an essentially vertical position that causes the transition of said lift mechanism from the essentially horizontal axis to the essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheel chair and transitions said lifting mechanism from the essentially horizontal orientation to said essentially collapsed parallelogram orientation; at least one onboard energy source to power said drive motors and said lift mechanism; a leg brace system to hold the user's legs in straight extended position, such that said leg brace system provides support to the user's legs when in standing position, said leg brace system comprising at least one proximal shaft and at least one distal shaft, said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft meeting end to end at an interface of essentially forty-five degrees; an axle connecting said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft at said interface, said axle penetrating the interface at an angle essentially normal to the interface, such that rotation of said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft relative to one another causes said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft to transition between relative angles of essentially zero degrees for an open configuration, to essentially ninety degrees for a closed position; a brace pad attached to the other end of said at least one distal shaft, such that when said at least one distal shaft is in a retracted position, said brace pad occupies a point interior to the essentially ninety degree angle formed by said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft; and a means for adjustably mounting said leg brace system to said motorized wheelchair. 2. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, wherein said at least one onboard energy source comprises one or more electrical power cells. 3. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, wherein said lift mechanism comprises an essentially upward extending portion, with said backrest being integrated into said essentially upward extending portion. 4. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, further comprising: at least one onboard electrical power cell charger; at least one extendable and retractable charger cord compatible with standard household electrical outlets; and at least one safety interlock to prevent use of said drive motors while said at least one extendable and retractable charger cord is plugged into an electrical power receptacle. 5. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, wherein said telescoping cylinder comprises at least one linear actuator. 6. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, further comprising at least one armrest and at least one armrest mounted control console, wherein said at least one armrest mounted console can be folded down in a pitching motion or turned outward in a rolling motion. 7. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, further comprising a means for securing the user's body firmly against said seat or said backrest of said motorized wheelchair. 8. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 1, wherein no portion, part or structure of said motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability extends forward beyond an essentially vertical plane disposed at a front end portion of a footrest provided on said motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability, unless that portion, part or structure of said motorized wheelchair is retractable to a plane aft of said essentially vertical plane. 9. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability comprising: providing front drive wheels comprising a plurality of independently controllable drive wheels, each having an axle centerline in the vicinity of the arches of a user's feet; providing drive motors to power said plurality of independently controllable drive wheels; providing one or more caster mounted rear wheels; providing a seat and a backrest; providing a lift mechanism to lift and lower said seat and said backrest; said lift mechanism comprising lift frames that transition said seat and said backrest from a seated position wherein said lift mechanism is oriented along an essentially horizontal axis of said motorized wheelchair to a standing up position wherein said lift mechanism is in an essentially collapsed parallelogram configuration oriented along an essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheelchair; providing a telescoping cylinder connected to said seat such that a lifting force pushes said seat from an essentially horizontal position to an essentially vertical position that causes the transition of said lift mechanism from the essentially horizontal axis to the essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheel chair and transitions said lifting mechanism from the essentially horizontal orientation to said essentially collapsed parallelogram orientation; providing at least one onboard energy source to power said drive motors and said lift mechanism; providing a leg brace system to hold the user's legs in straight extended position, such that said leg brace system provides support to the user's legs when in standing position, said leg brace system comprising at least one proximal shaft and at least one distal shaft, said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft meeting end to end at an interface of essentially forty-five degrees; providing an axle to connect said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft at said interface, said axle penetrating the interface at an angle essentially normal to the interface, such that rotation of said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft relative to one another causes said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft to transition between relative angles of essentially zero degrees for an open configuration, to essentially ninety degrees for a closed position; providing a brace pad attached to the other end of said at least one distal shaft, such that when said at least one distal shaft is in a retracted position, said brace pad occupies a point interior to the essentially ninety degree angle formed by said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft; and providing a means for adjustably mounting said leg brace system to said motorized wheelchair. 10. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, wherein the provided at least one onboard energy source comprises one or more electrical power cells. 11. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, wherein the provided lift mechanism comprises an essentially upward extending portion, with said backrest being integrated into said essentially upward extending portion. 12. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, further comprising: providing at least one onboard electrical power cell charger; providing at least one extendable and retractable charger cord compatible with standard household electrical outlets; and providing at least one safety interlock to prevent use of said drive motors while said at least one extendable and retractable charger cord is plugged into an electrical power receptacle. 13. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, wherein the provided telescoping cylinder comprises a linear actuator. 14. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, further comprising: providing at least one armrest and at least one armrest mounted control console, wherein said at least one armrest mounted console can be folded down in a pitching motion or turned outward in a rolling motion. 15. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability as in claim 9, further comprising: providing a means for securing the user's body firmly against said seat or said backrest of said motorized wheelchair. 16. A motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability comprising: front drive wheels comprising a plurality of independently controllable drive wheels, each having an axle centerline in the vicinity of the arches of a user's feet; drive motors to power said plurality of independently controllable drive wheels; one or more caster mounted rear wheels; a seat and a backrest; a lift mechanism to lift and lower said seat and said backrest, said lift mechanism comprising lift frames that transition said seat and said backrest from a seated position wherein said lift mechanism is oriented along an essentially horizontal axis of said motorized wheelchair to a standing up position wherein said lift mechanism is in an essentially collapsed parallelogram configuration oriented along an essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheelchair, and wherein said lift mechanism comprises an essentially upward extending portion, with said backrest being integrated into said essentially upward extending portion; a telescoping cylinder connected to said seat such that a lifting force pushes said seat from an essentially horizontal position to an essentially vertical position that causes the transition of said lift mechanism from the essentially horizontal axis to the essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheel chair and transitions said lifting mechanism from the essentially horizontal orientation to said essentially collapsed parallelogram orientation, wherein said telescoping cylinder comprises at least one linear actuator; at least one onboard energy source to power said drive motors and said lift mechanism, wherein said at least one onboard energy source comprises one or more electrical power cells; a leg brace system to hold the user's legs in straight extended position, such that said leg brace system provides support to the user's legs when in standing position, said leg brace system comprising at least one proximal shaft and at least one distal shaft, said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft meeting end to end at an interface of essentially forty-five degrees; an axle connecting said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft at said interface, said axle penetrating the interface at an angle essentially normal to the interface, such that rotation of said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft relative to one another causes said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft to transition between relative angles of essentially zero degrees for an open configuration, to essentially ninety degrees for a closed position; a brace pad attached to the other end of said at least one distal shaft, such that when said at least one distal shaft is in a retracted position, said brace pad occupies a point interior to the essentially ninety degree angle formed by said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft; a means for adjustably mounting said leg brace system to said motorized wheelchair; at least one onboard electrical power cell charger; at least one extendable and retractable charger cord compatible with standard household electrical outlets; at least one safety interlock to prevent use of said drive motors while said at least one extendable and retractable charger cord is plugged into an electrical power receptacle; at least one armrest and at least one armrest mounted control console, wherein said at least one armrest mounted console can be folded down in a pitching motion or turned outward in a rolling motion; a means for securing the user's body firmly against said seat or said backrest of said motorized wheelchair; and wherein no portion, part or structure of said motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability extends forward beyond an essentially vertical plane disposed at a front end portion of a footrest provided on said motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability, unless that portion, part or structure of said motorized wheelchair is retractable to a plane aft of said essentially vertical plane. 17. A method of forming motorized wheelchair with stand-up capability comprising: providing front drive wheels comprising a plurality of independently controllable drive wheels, each having an axle centerline in the vicinity of the arches of a user's feet; providing drive motors to power said plurality of independently controllable drive wheels; providing one or more caster mounted rear wheels; providing a seat and a backrest; providing a lift mechanism to lift and lower said seat and said backrest, said lift mechanism comprising lift frames that transition said seat and said backrest from a seated position wherein said lift mechanism is oriented along an essentially horizontal axis of said motorized wheelchair to a standing up position wherein said lift mechanism is in an essentially collapsed parallelogram configuration oriented along an essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheelchair, and wherein said lift mechanism comprises an essentially upward extending portion, with said backrest being integrated into said essentially upward extending portion; providing a telescoping cylinder connected to said seat such that a lifting force pushes said seat from an essentially horizontal position to an essentially vertical position that causes the transition of said lift mechanism from the essentially horizontal axis to the essentially vertical axis of said motorized wheel chair and transitions said lifting mechanism from the essentially horizontal orientation to said essentially collapsed parallelogram orientation, wherein said telescoping cylinder comprises a linear actuator; providing at least one onboard energy source to power said drive motors and said lift mechanism, wherein said at least one onboard energy source comprises one or more electrical power cells; providing a leg brace system to hold the user's legs in straight extended position, such that said leg brace system provides support to the user's legs when in standing position, said leg brace system comprising at least one proximal shaft and at least one distal shaft, said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft meeting end to end at an interface of essentially forty-five degrees; providing an axle to connect said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft at said interface, said axle penetrating the interface at an angle essentially normal to the interface, such that rotation of said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft relative to one another causes said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft to transition between relative angles of essentially zero degrees for an open configuration, to essentially ninety degrees for a closed position; providing a brace pad attached to the other end of said at least one distal shaft, such that when said at least one distal shaft is in a retracted position, said brace pad occupies a point interior to the essentially ninety degree angle formed by said at least one proximal shaft and said at least one distal shaft; providing a means for adjustably mounting said leg brace system to said motorized wheelchair; providing at least one onboard electrical power cell charger; providing at least one extendable and retractable charger cord compatible with standard household electrical outlets; providing at least one safety interlock to prevent use of said drive motors while said at least one extendable and retractable charger cord is plugged into an electrical power receptacle; providing at least one armrest and at least one armrest mounted control console, wherein said at least one armrest mounted console can be folded down in a pitching motion or turned outward in a rolling motion; and providing a means for securing the user's body firmly against said seat or said backrest of said motorized wheelchair.