Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The presen~ inVention xelates i~ general to
wheelchair assemblies emplo~ed to provide tra~sportation
for invalids or the aged, an~ more specificall~ relates
to such assemblies that are adapted to ~ulfill a special
need the user may have.
Wheelchairs are used by a surprisingly large
percentage of the people living in the world. They are used
not only by the physically handicapped, but also by inval-
ids that, either for reasons of age or other problems, no
longer haYe the capabil`ity for walking or at least for walk-
ing any great distances.
The common wheelchair is formed from a frame sup-
portèd`by a large pair of main wheels and a smaller pair of
steering caster wheels normally located forwardly of the
drive wheels. A seat is fixed with respect to the frame so
that a user is provided support while being transported
about in the chair. However, such chairs are relatively un-
comfortable for long usage, especially for- the aged.
Other different wheelchair designs are known in
~0 the prior art for providing various specific functions. For
example, in United States Patent NoO 3~953,054 a six-wheeled
chair is disclosed. The chair is supposed to be more maneu-
verable and has a seat that can be varied in height and in-
clination. Also, the patent indica~es in an oblique fashion
~5 that there is some type of spring suspension associatedwith
the seat th~at permits the seat "to rotate against the spring
action around a horizontal axis between the hocks and a
vertical projection of the crutch of the occupant." The
chair is designed to be supported by only four of its six
wheels at a time and the occupant of the chair can control
which wheels will be supported by leaning back in the seat
or leaning forward. Apparently, the spring suspension re-
ferred to above is used to facilitate the operator's sup-
port wheel control.
Although U. S. Patent No, 3,953,054, as previous-
ly pointed out, refers to a spring suspension in use with a
seat, the patent does not show or describe any structure
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formin~ the spring suspension. Obviously, the patent is
not designed to provide a wheelchair with a rocking seat.
If the occupant a~tempted to rock in the chair, the chair
would alternate from being supported by the rear four
wheels to ~he front four wheels in a somewhat jarring
rashion that would not only be uncomfortable but would re-
quire a relatively large amount of body action that would
be tiring.
Another example of an unusual wheelchair con-
struction is shown in United States Paten~ No. 4,310,167.Such patent discloses a wheelchair with an articulated
chassis that permits an operator to change the center of
~ravity of the chair to vary its stability according to
conditions encountered by the operator. Also, the chair
lS includes a shocX absorber and spring means that positivelv
maintain a subframe and seat frame assemblies of the chair
in a predetermined relationship but permits the subframe
and seat frame assemblies to articulate relative to one
another for increasing comfort when traversing rou~h ground.
~0 It is clear from the disclosure of the U. S.
Patent No. 4,310,167 that it is neitner adapted to nor does
it show or describe the use of a wheelchair having a rock-
able seat. In United States Patent No. 3,100,638 a baby
rocker that has a rockable seat is shown and described.
~5 The baby rocker is designed to permit a baby to rock as much
as it pleases and to provide a rotating motion of the wheels
of the rocker while the seat is rocked to enhance the at-
traction of the device for the baby. Although the device
disclosed in UO S. Patent No. 3,100,638 has a rockable seat,
the patent is obviousl~ directed to a totally different
field of art than the wheelchair a~t and in no way would
lead one skilled in the axt to the present invention.
The object of the present invention is to provide
an improved wheelchair having a rockable seat that permits
a user to enjoy the rocking motion of the seat similax to
that provided by a normal rocking chair while the frame and
wheels of the ~yheelch~a~r are held in a completely stationary
position.
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The present invention therefore provides an
improved wheelchair that permits a user to rock while
seated in the chair, said wheelchair comprising:
(a) a frame having opposie spaced apart rigid
side members that are connected together by cross braces;
(b) a pair of main wheels each of which is
connected to one of said frame side members, and at least
one of which serves as a driving wheel for the chair;
(c) at least one caster wheel pivotally
connected with said frame;
(d) a seat having at least two ri~id spaced
apart support rails and a support platform attached to and
extending between said rails;
(e) rockable connection means between said
support rails of said seat and said side members of said
frame to permit said seat to rock about a horizontal axis
transverse to said side members while the frame and wheels
are completely stationery; and
(f) bias means to normally maintain said seat in
a generally horizontal alignment when the chair is
unoccupied.
In a first preferred embod.iment of the present
invention, the frame is formed from opposite, spaced
apart, rigid side members that are connected togethex by
cross braces. The support wheels for the frame include a
pair of main wheels, each of which is connected to one of
the frame side members and at least one of which serves as
a driving whePl for the chair, and a pair of caster wheels
pivotally connected with the frame forwardly of the main
wheels.
The seat includes two rigid spaced apart support
rails and a support platform connected to and extending
between the rails. The rockable connection of the seat
extends between the side members of the frame and the
support rails of the seat to permit the seat to rock about
a horizontal axis traverse to the side members. The
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rockable connection means i5 provided by a yoke member
that is fixed to at least one of said side members and
said seat support rails, and is rockably connected to the
other of said side members and said rails. In a second
preferred embodiment of the present invention, the
rockable connection means is formed by two rigid generally
V-shaped support members, each attached to one of the
support rails and one of the frame side members, with the
vertices of the support members being pivotally attached
thereto, Although both preferred embodiments illustrate a
non-motorized wheelchai.r, it should be apparent to those
skilled in the art that the present invention can be
employed with all types of wheelchairs including,
but not limited to, motorized, racing and sport
v~rsions.
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a slde perspective of a first pre-
ferred embodiment of an lmproved wheelchair of the present
invention that includes a rockable seat;
Figure 2 is a side view of the wheelchair shown
in Figure 1 with the main wheels thereof represented by
dotted lines for purposes of clarity;-
Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the
wheelchair of Figure 2 showing a locking lever assemblythat forms part of the present invention; and
Figure 4 is a view similar to that of Figure 2,
but sho~ing a second preferred embodiment of the present
invention.
Referring now to the drawings and with reference
first to Figure 1, a first preferred embodiment of an im-
proved wheelchair of the present invention is shown general-
ly at 10~ The wheelchair 10 includes a frame assembly 11,
a seat assembly 12, a pair of main wheels 13 and a pair of
caster wheels 14. Preferably, the frame assembly 11 is
constructed of high strength, lightweight tubular members
to provide a chair that is durable but yet is light enough
that it can be handled relatively easily.
The frame assembly 11 is formed o~ upright side
members 17 along each side of the chair 10. Each side mem-
ber is typically formed of front and rear upright members
18 and 19 respectively, and upper and lower horizontal
tubular members 20 and 21 respectively joined toge~her in
a generally rectangular conf.iguration. Preferably, the side
fxame members 17.are joined together by cross braces 23
and 24 (not shown in Figure 1 for purposes of clarity) and
are pinned to one anotker at 25 to peXmi~ the wheelchair 10
to be folded to bring the side members 17 adjacent to one
another, as is well known in the art,
Each side frame member 17 journals one of the
main wheels 13 and provides a downwardly opening vertically
aligned pivot socket 29 to mount the caster wheels 14 for-
wardly.of the main wheels 13~ Each of the caster wheels 14
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is carried on a horizontal axle 26 mounted in an inverted
~-shaped yoke ~7~ Preferably, foot assemblies 28 are at-
tached in cantilever fashiGn to the upright tubular mem-
bers 18 to support the feet and legs of a user.
The seat assembly 12 is extended transversely be-
tween the side frame members 17 and is formed from tubular
side support members 32 and a pliable sea~ member 33 formed
of leather fabric, nylon or the like that is attached to
and e~tends between the support members 32. The seat assem-
bly 12 may also have an armrest 35 associated with each of
the side support members 32 and a backrest 36 secured to
the rear ends of the side support members 320
As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the seat assembly 12
is rockably connected to the side frame members 17 by means
of yoke mounts 40 that each have a lower end 41 fixed to
one of the upper horizontal tubular members 20 and an upper
U-shaped end 42 that is pinned to one of the side support
members 32. Thus, the seat assembly 12 has a rocking ac-
tion freedom of movement with respect to the frame assembly
11. To normally maintain the seat assembly 12 in a hori-
æontal alignment, biasing means 43 in the form of spring
assemblies are connected between the front and rear ends
of the horizontal members 20 and side support members 32.
Although the biasing means 43 are shown as springs herein,
it should be well recognized in the art that a wide vari-
ety of other resilient members or other types of biasing
members other than springs can be employed as the means 430
Preferably, the wheelchair 10 includes a locking
assembly 48 (best shown in Figure 3) that serves to fix
the seat assembly 12 in a horizontal alignment when the
user desires as during travel. of the chair 10~ The lock-
ing assembly 48 is formed of a locking lever 49 having a
lower end 50 that is pinned to one of the side frame hori-
zontal members 20 at 50a and an upper end 51 that has a
forwardly.facing notch 52~ The lever 49 is movable from
a forward position in which it is adjacent a forward limit
of movement abutment 53 and a rearward position in which
it is adjacent a locking stud 540 As the lever 49 is
moved rearwardly, the pin connection 50a allows sufficient
pla~ between the lever 49 and the member 20 to move the
upper end 51 of the lever 49 outwardly from the member 32
to move past the stud 54.
When ~he lever 49 is in its rearward position,
the locking stud 54 that extends out~lardly from one of the
side support members 32 is received in the notch 52 so that
the lever 49 supports the seat assembly 12 from pivotal
movement. A biasing spring assembly 56 is connected be-
tween the locking lever 49 and the associated horizontal
ln member 20 ~o urge the locking lever in a forward direction
to maintain the engagement between the locking stud 54 and
the locking lever 49 when desired. The assembly 56 also
supports the forward limit of movement abutment 53.
As should be recognized in the art, a wide vari-
ety of other types of rockable connections can be employedin the present invention for attachment of the seat assem-
bly 12 to the frame assembly 11. For example, referring
now to Figure 4, another type of such connection is shown
in conjunction with a wheelchair 60 that forms a second
preferred embodiment of the present invention.
The chair 60 is similar to the chair 10 except
that rockable assemblies 61 are substituted for the yoke
mounts 40. The rockable assemblies 61 are formed in a V-
shape configuration with vertexes 62 pinned to the hori-
zontal frame members 20 at 63, and upper ends 64 and 65that are respectively fixed to the front and rear ends of
the side support members 32. As a result, the seat assem-
bly 12 has a Ereedom of rocking movement about the pin con-
nections 63. Of course, it should be noted that the rock-
able assemblies 61 could be used in an inverted condition
so that the pin connection 63 and point of rocking of the
seat assembly 12 would be at the side support members 32.
In li~e respect, the yoke mounts 40 of the wheelchair 10
could as well be inverted~
Thus, the present invention provides a unique and
improved wheelchair means that provides a comfortable sup-
port for a user comparable to that of a normal rocking
chair when desired. The chair may be used by persons of
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all ages (except for the very young) to provide a pleasant
rockiny action. Due to the rockable connections between
the frame assembly 11 and the seat assembly 12 and the
resilient action of the biasing means 43, a user of the
S chair 10 may sit normally in the seat 11 and with very
little effort expended enjoy the rocking action of the seat
assembly 12 as it rocks about its rockable connections
without any movement of the wheels 13 and 14 or the frame
assembly 11.
