JPH09224978A - Electric wheelchair charging device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem and Solution] It is an object of the present invention to provide a charging device for an electric wheelchair, which can be easily charged and can be easily plugged and unplugged in a comfortable posture of a passenger. ,
As a means for solving the problem, a battery charger 17 is placed in a battery case 16 provided below the chassis frame 13 of the wheelchair body 1, and an automatic winding cord reel 4 that is connected to the battery charger 17 is provided with a cord. The cord reel unit 2 covered by the reel case 3 and its cover 5 is separated from the battery charger 17 and can be attached to any portion of the wheelchair body 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a charging device for an electric wheelchair.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally used electric wheelchairs do not have a charger in the chair body, but have a charging outlet b which can be inserted in the lower part of the seat a as shown in FIG. b is a main controller c, a battery d and a wire harness e as shown in FIG.
Connected by Therefore, when charging,
As shown in, the charging cord g from the separate charger f
Insert the power plug h at the end of the power plug into the charging outlet b of the chair body, then plug the power plug j at the end of the power cord i from the charger f into a household outlet m (100V).
After plugging in, the power switch k is turned on to charge the wheelchair for the first time.

[0003]

Therefore, in the prior art, when the user goes out, he or she may get stuck when the amount of electricity stored in the battery is exhausted, which makes the state extremely uneasy. It is conceivable to carry a spare battery charger in order to eliminate such a problem, but as shown in Fig. 6f, it is large and heavy, so it is handled by a person with a physical disability who is a wheelchair user. However, it is extremely difficult to connect and disconnect the charging outlet and plug at the same time. Even when the battery charger is installed in the vehicle, if the installation position of the self-winding cord reel that connects to the battery charger is fixed, some people with disabilities may not be able to charge the battery by inserting or removing the plug at that installation position. It may be difficult to operate, and it has been desired that each passenger be able to select the mounting position.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a charging device for an electric wheelchair that can be easily charged and can be easily plugged and unplugged in a comfortable posture of a passenger. As a means for solving the problem, a charger is mounted on the wheelchair body, and a cord reel of an automatic winding type is provided separately from the charger.

That is, according to the present invention, a battery charger is mounted in a battery case provided below a chassis frame of a wheelchair body, and an automatic winding type cord reel connected to the battery charger is a cord reel case and its cover. The cord reel unit covered by and is detachable from the battery charger and can be attached to an arbitrary portion of the wheelchair body.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a cord reel unit 2 used in a charging device for a wheelchair body 1 according to the present invention, (A) is a plan view, and (B) is a sectional view thereof.

As shown in these figures, the cord reel unit 2 accommodates a cord reel case 3 which is also substantially circular in shape in a cord reel case 3 which is formed into a vessel shape whose plane is almost circular except for a part. Then, from above, it is covered with a cover 5 overlapping the shape of the cord reel case 3.

A power cord is wound inside the cord reel 4, and an AC plug 6 is provided at the tip of the power cord, and this portion is placed in a state of protruding from the cord reel 4.

The cover 5 has a cap 7 which can be opened and closed by a hinge 7a as a portion for covering the AC plug 6.
Is integrally provided, and when the cap 7 is rotated from the closed position shown by the solid line in FIG. 1B to the position shown by the chain double-dashed line, the AC plug 6 is connected to the cord reel unit 2 at the time of charging.
When the battery is not charged, the cap 7 is returned to the closed position indicated by the solid line to prevent rainwater or the like from entering the cord reel case 3.

A cord reel wire 8 for connecting the cord reel 4 to a battery charger (not shown) is pulled out of the cord reel case 3 through a seal 9 attached to a hole of the cord reel case 3 from the cord reel 4. A plug 10 for connecting to a battery charger is attached to the. Reference numeral 3a in the drawing denotes a plurality of mounting long holes provided along the circumferential direction of the edge portion of the cord reel case 3.

FIG. 2 shows an example in which the cord reel unit 2 is attached to the wheelchair body 1. In this example, a mounting hole is provided in the armrest pipe 11 of the wheelchair body 1 and the elongated holes 3a, 3a are used. It is fixed with screws. By doing so, the cord reel unit 2 is located near the armrest 12.

The plug 10 of the cord reel wire 8 connected to the cord reel unit 2 is a battery charger housed in a battery case 16 provided between the front wheel 14 and the rear wheel 15 at the lower part of the chassis frame 13. In order to charge a battery (not shown), the passenger seated on the seat easily pulls out the AC plug 6 from the cord reel unit 2 and plugs it into a household socket (not shown). Just plug in. In the figure, 19 is a back seat, 20 is a footrest, and 21 is a wheelchair operating lever.

As described above, the cord reel unit 2 can be installed at any place where the passenger or the attendant can use it most easily.

FIG. 3 shows a modification of FIG. 1. In FIG. 1, the cord reel wire 8 is pulled out from the bottom surface of the cord reel case 3, whereas the cord reel wire 8 is pulled out from the side surface of the cover 5. To do. That is, in the example of FIG. 1, it is attached to the armrest pipe 11 on the bottom surface of the cord reel case 3 as shown in FIG. 2, but there are cases where the cord reel wire 8 interferes with the attachment.
In such a case, cover the cord reel wire 8 with the cover 5.
It can be mounted without trouble by taking it out through the seal 9 of the hole provided on the side surface of the.

[0015]

Since the present invention is constructed as described above, the following effects can be obtained. 1) Even when you are out, you can easily charge the battery by simply inserting the AC plug into the place where the household outlet is available. 2) The charging operation is easy because you only have to insert the AC plug. 3) Since the cord reel is an automatic winding type, it is easy to store the power cord. 4) Since the cord reel is covered with the cord reel case and the cover, and the AC plug at the tip of the power cord is covered with the cap, rainwater and dust are prevented from entering. 5) The cord reel unit can be installed at the most suitable place for the passenger or the attendant to use.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a cord reel unit portion of a charging device for an electric wheelchair according to the present invention, (A) is a plan view and (B) is a sectional view.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing an embodiment of installation of a charging device for an electric wheelchair according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows another modified example of FIG. 1, (A) is a plan view,
(B) is a sectional view.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a conventional electric wheelchair.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view of a conventional electric wheelchair charging system.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a conventional charging method for an electric wheelchair.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 wheelchair body 2 cord reel unit 3 battery case 4 cord reel 5 cover 6 AC plug 8 cord reel wire 13 chassis frame 16 battery case 17 battery charger

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A battery charger is mounted in a battery case provided below a chassis frame of a wheelchair body,
The automatic winding type cord reel connected to the battery charger can be attached to an arbitrary portion of the wheelchair body as a cord reel unit covered by a cord reel case and its cover, separately from the battery charger. An electric wheelchair charging device.