This invention relates to wheelchairs. In particular it relates to an improved wheelchair especially suitable for geriatric purposes.
Wheelchairs of many designs are known. Generally some wheelchairs are structured for severely disabled persons, and relatively little thought has been given to refined aesthetics associated with the chair. Geriatric users and particularly persons in homes and skilled nursing facilities are confined to relatively unsightly chairs for most of their waking hours.
In hospital critical-care-type wheelchairs, part of the unsightliness arises from the harsh frame structures associated with these chairs. The seating may be of a commode type form for medical purposes, and generally there is extensive use of exposed metal surfaces for handles, foot rests, support structures, mechanical features and attachments. Also, the support from the seating section and back rest is generally of a rigid nature, not necessarily taking comfort into account. Such chairs accordingly do not address fully the needs of geriatric patients who would prefer to sit in more comfortable chairs with a more aesthetic appearance than has previously been available.
This form of permanent non-collapsible kind of wheelchair has a complicated unsightly physical structure, with the components themselves being visually unrefined mechanical elements specifically addressing the needs of chronic care situations.
In wheelchairs of the foldable type, the seat section and the backrest section consist of a foldable material which permits the chair to collapse director-chair style when not in use. During use, this material is stretched loosely between the two sides of the chair. Since there is inadequate tensioning, the foldable material sags in the center in both the seat and the backrest portion. This form of chair therefore rotates the hips inwardly, creating seating discomfort, and provides inadequate lower back support as well.
Comfortable supporting seats for a chair are generally disclosed as part of a regular non-wheeled chair as the subject of patents by the applicant, such patents being U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,529,246, 4,595,235 and 4,555,139 and also application Ser. No. 937,485 filed Dec. 3, 1986, the contents of which are incorporated by reference herein. Such structures have, however, not been applied in a wheelchair structure.
There is thus no chair available for long-term sitting needs which by itself provides adequate comfort or enhanced aesthetic characteristics.
There is accordingly a need to provide wheel chairs with improved comfort and more aesthetic configurations and mechanical detailing.