JPS6349653B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a vehicle lifter that is installed in a coach-type automobile or the like and that automatically raises and lowers a wheelchair so that a disabled person can get in and out of the vehicle while sitting in the wheelchair.

Conventionally, automobiles equipped with this type of vehicle lifter are not configured so that a disabled person sitting in a wheelchair can operate the lifter alone to get in and out of the vehicle interior, and only a caregiver for the disabled person can move the vehicle. After manually opening the door of the vehicle, the user operated a switch on the lifter and assisted the wheelchair to get on and off the platform of the lifter, allowing the disabled person to move up and down the vehicle along with the wheelchair. That is, conventional lifters for lifting and lowering wheelchairs are constructed on the premise that a handicapped person must be assisted by an attendant when getting on and off the wheelchair, and therefore it is difficult to get on and off the wheelchair without assistance from an attendant.

However, depending on the degree of disability, some people with disabilities may not require a constant attendant, and even if a disabled person is able to drive a car on his own, he must always use the lifter equipped with the car without the assistance of a caregiver. It would be extremely inconvenient if you could not get into or out of a car using it.

The present invention was made with attention to such problems, and the purpose of the present invention is to enable a disabled person to operate a lifter by himself to get in and out of a car. This is to prevent damage to the device due to interference between the lifter and the door due to the automatic opening and closing of the door, i.e., the lifter switch being turned on while the door is closed. Another object of the present invention is to ensure the safety of the device by configuring the lifter so that it will not operate even if the lifter switch is turned on while the door is closed.

The present invention will be explained below based on the drawings.

First, the general structure and operation of the vehicle lifter according to the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. In the figure, 1 is the body of a coach-type automobile, and 2 is a back door provided at the rear of the vehicle body 1. The back door 2 is configured to be opened and closed by a door opening/closing cylinder 3. Reference numerals 4 and 4 refer to columns erected on the floor 5 at the rear of the vehicle; 6a and 6b indicate lift arms swingably attached to the lower part of the column 4; Lifting cylinder installed (described later)
is swayed by. And this lift arm 6
A platform 8 held by a holding frame 7 is attached to the tips of a and 6b in a horizontal position. This platform 8 is constructed of mesh to reduce weight, prevent slipping, and provide rearward visibility. On both sides of the platform 8, there are handrails 9 made of metal pipes.
A lift switch 10 for raising and lowering the lift, which is operated by a handicapped person who has moved on the platform 8, is provided on the upper part of the handrails 9, 9, respectively. Further, a wheel stopper plate 8a is provided at the tip of the platform 8 and is rotatable in the vertical direction, and while the platform 8 is being raised or lowered, the wheel stopper plate 8a is rotated upward and mounted. Supports the wheels of the wheelchair to prevent it from falling. Further, the platform 8 is configured to be foldable by an opening/closing cylinder 11 in order to prevent interference with a door or the like during storage and to enable compact storage.

The back door 2 is equipped with a safety window 12 at the bottom of the door so that you can check the safety of the rear of the vehicle when operating the lifter from inside the vehicle and exiting the vehicle.
Tape switches 13a to 13a to 12c are provided, and tape switches 13a to 13a are provided to immediately stop opening of the back door 2 when it comes into contact with a rear obstacle such as a car parked at the rear when the back door 2 is automatically opened.
3e is provided on the panel part of the door.

Reference numerals 15 and 16 denote a door switch and a lift switch provided on the rear outside of the vehicle body 1. When a disabled person sitting in a wheelchair opens the opening/closing lid 17 and first operates the door switch 15, the door opening/closing cylinder 3 opens.
When the back door 2 is automatically rotated upward and opened, and the lift switch 16 is then operated back and forth, the platform 8 of the lift stored in the folded state inside the vehicle body is opened by the opening/closing cylinder 11. It is extended and deployed and becomes a horizontal position on the vehicle body floor 5.
form the same plane as Next, lift switch 16
When the platform 8 is operated left and right, the platform 8 is lowered in a horizontal position by the lifting cylinder and is brought into contact with the ground, resulting in the state shown in FIG. Then, when the disabled person moves onto the platform 8 in a wheelchair and operates the lift switch 10 provided on the handrail 9, the platform 8 begins to rise, and when it has risen a little, the wheel stopper plate 8a at the tip rotates. Then, the wheels of the wheelchair are stopped, and when the wheelchair rises further in a horizontal position and reaches the same height as the floor 5, it automatically stops. Then, the wheelchair is moved from the platform 8 to the vehicle body floor 5, and then moved to the front of the vehicle body, and then the lift switch 18 provided inside the vehicle body is operated to move the platform 8 to the opening/closing cylinder 11. It is then folded and stored in the vehicle body, and then the door switch 19 is operated to close the back door 2 by the door opening/closing cylinder 3.

Although not shown, in consideration of the possibility that there may be obstacles near the switches 15 and 16 on the outside of the vehicle body, making it impossible to operate them,
A door switch and lift switch are also installed on the side of the vehicle. However, since this switch may be operated on public roads, for safety reasons, it should be a remote control switch, and the remote control switch should be pulled out from the side of the vehicle and moved to the rear of the vehicle so that it can be operated safely behind the vehicle. There is.

Next, the specific structure of the lifter will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. Figure 2 shows the lifter platform 8 unfolded to be flush with the vehicle floor 5. 4 is a column fixed on the vehicle floor, and the lifting cylinder 21 is disposed within this column 4. The upper end of the lifting cylinder 21 is rotatably connected to the support 4 by a pin 22, and the tip of the rod 21a of the lifting cylinder 21 is pivoted to the lower part of the support 4 by a shaft 23. It is connected to a link 24 via a pin 25. Then, the lift arm 6 is attached to this shaft 23.
The lower end of the lift arm 6b is fixed to the lower end of the lift arm 6b so that it can rotate together with the shaft 23, and the lower end of the lift arm 6b is rotatably attached to the lower end of the support column 4 by a pin 26. The pins 27 and 28 whose upper ends are pivotally connected to the holding frame 7 and the pins 25 and 26 are arranged to form the vertices of a parallelogram, and the elevating cylinder 21 is contracted to rotate the link 24. and lift arm 6
a and 6b are rotated while maintaining the virtual parallelogram, and the platform 8 held by the holding frame 7 is moved downward while maintaining the horizontal posture.

Reference numeral 30 denotes an auxiliary plate rotatably attached to the pin 26. This auxiliary plate 30 has the same width as the platform 8, and when the platform 8 is expanded as shown in FIG. It is rotated by a torsion spring (not shown) engaged with the pin 26 and placed in a horizontal position, which fills the gap between the vehicle body floor 5 and the platform 8 to facilitate smooth movement of the wheelchair. Further, an actuating plate 31 is fixed to one side of this auxiliary plate 30, and this actuating plate 31
The end face 31a of the holding frame 7 is always in contact with a roller 32 attached to the lower part of the holding frame 7.

Further, 34 is a lock cylinder pivotally connected to one of the pillars 4 by a pin 35, and 36 is a rotation shaft supported by a bearing 37 fixed to the lower part of the pillar 4 and disposed in the width direction of the vehicle body. The tip of the rod 34a of the lock cylinder 34 is rotatably connected to a link 38 fixed to one end of the rotation shaft 36, and is fixed to both ends of the rotation shaft 36 by the expansion and contraction of the lock cylinder 34. A lock lever 39 and a hook 40 for a back lock fixed to the center of the rotation shaft 36 can be rotated.

On the other hand, the platform 8 is divided at the hinge 41 in the center in addition to the wheel stopper plate 8a at the tip, and is divided into a bent part 8b and a base part 8c. A platform opening/closing cylinder 11 is mounted between the bent portion 8b and the holding frame 7 so as to be rotatable.
is interposed. Furthermore, flanges 43 are fixedly installed on both sides of the tip of the bent portion 8b.
A support shaft 44 is rotatably suspended horizontally between the support shafts 44, and the wheel stopper plate 8a is fixed to the support shaft 44, and a torsion coil spring is fitted to the support shaft 44. The wheel stopper plate 8a is always biased clockwise (in the direction of arrow A). Further, a link 45 is fixed to the end of the support shaft 44, and a link 46 is rotatably supported on the flange 43 in parallel with the link 45 by a pin 47.
The operating rod 48 is connected to pins 49 and 50 at the tips of 5 and 46.
A roller 51 is attached to the lower end of the operating rod 48, and projects downward from the platform 8 when the platform is raised. 52 is the above-mentioned bent portion 8b
A V-shaped stopper is rotatably attached to the side wall of the machine by a pin 53, and this stopper 52 is always biased clockwise by a torsion spring 54.
When the platform is raised, the tip of the locking piece 52a comes into contact with the operating rod 48 to prevent rotation of the wheel stopper plate 8a, and the tip of the operating piece 52b projects downward from the platform 8. A roller 55 is also attached to the tip of this actuating piece 52b.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be explained.

From the state shown in Figure 2, lift switches 16, 10,
18 is operated in the downward direction, the lifting cylinder 21
is contracted, the shaft 23 is rotated via the link 24, the lift arms 6a and 6b are rotated clockwise, and the platform 8 is lowered in a horizontal position. Immediately before the platform 8 touches the ground, the supply of hydraulic pressure is stopped and the platform 8 descends under its own weight. First, the operating piece 52b of the stopper 52 hits the ground and rotates, and the locking piece 52a is moved from the operating rod 48. Then, the operating rod 48 hits the ground and is pushed upward by the load of the platform, and as shown in Figure 4, the wheel stopper plate 8a is rotated against the torsion coil spring and becomes horizontal. The entire form 8 is grounded. And lift switch 1
6 to the rising side, the lifting cylinder 21 is extended and the platform 8 begins to rise, the wheel stopper plate 8a is erected by the torsion coil spring, and the stopper 52 is rotated by the torsion spring 54. Locking the operating rod 48 and locking the wheel stopper plate 8
Lock a. Furthermore, when the platform 8 reaches the same height as the vehicle floor 5, the elevating cylinder 2
1 is stopped. So, next, lift switch 1
6 in the platform folding direction,
When the opening/closing cylinder 11 is contracted, first the bent portion 8b
is rotated around the hinge 41 as shown by the imaginary line B in FIG. Then, the entire platform 8 is folded up as shown by the imaginary line C in FIG. When it reaches this point, the contraction of the opening/closing cylinder 11 is automatically stopped, and then the lifting cylinder 21
is extended, and the holding frame 7 and platform 8 are further pushed into the vehicle body and stored, as shown by the solid line in FIG. At this time, the roller 32 at the lower part of the holding frame 7 pushes the actuating plate 31 to rotate the auxiliary plate 30 counterclockwise, and simultaneously stores it into the vehicle body. Then, door switch 1
5 and 19 are operated to close the back door 2, the lock cylinder 34 contracts and rotates the lock lever 39 and the hook 40 via the link 38, so that the lock lever 39 comes into contact with the lower part of the holding frame 7. A recess 59 for locking the lifter and a hook 40 provided at the lower end of the back door 2 (see FIG. 1)
The door 2 is engaged with the door 2 to lock the door 2.

Next, a sequence control system using a hydraulic circuit including hydraulic cylinders for operating the lifter and back door, and an electromagnetic switching valve for supplying hydraulic pressure to each hydraulic cylinder will be described. The switches used in this control system are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 in addition to the monolever switches 10, 15, 16, 18, and 19 that are provided inside and outside the vehicle in the above embodiment and are operated directly by passengers getting on and off the vehicle. There are microswitches a to m provided at positions as shown.

That is, as shown in FIG.
Two cams 5 are installed at the end of the shaft 23 that drives the
7 and 58 are fixed, and corresponding to the cams 57 and 58, a micro switch a is activated by the cam to stop the lifting cylinder 21 just before the platform 8 touches the ground, and the platform is pulled out as shown in FIG. microswitch b that is activated when the platform is in the open/close state to operate the platform opening/closing cylinder 11 and expands the platform 8; a microswitch d that is activated just before the platform 8 rises to be at the same height as the floor; A micro switch c is provided which is activated when the height is the same as the floor. In addition, a micro switch g is installed on the pillar 4 to detect when the platform 8 has been retracted.
A micro switch i for detecting that the back door 2 has been released by the hook 40 by the lock cylinder 34, and a micro switch j for detecting that the back door 2 has been locked are provided. e
and m are microswitches provided on the holding frame 7 to detect the folded and unfolded states of the platform. Furthermore, at the rear of the vehicle body 1,
A micro switch f for detecting the open state of the back door 2 and a micro switch k for detecting the closed state of the back door 2 are provided at the positions shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 shows an example of a control device for a back door and a parallel link type lifter. 61 to 64 are electromagnetic three-port switching valves, and the switching valve 61 has a pilot check valve 61A to switch the driving direction of the lock cylinder 34 of the back door 2.
2 are check valves 62A, 62B and throttle valve 62C,
62D and a pressure reducing valve 62E to switch the driving direction of the opening/closing cylinder 3 of the back door 2, and the switching valve 63 has check valves 63A, 63B and throttle valves 63C, 63.
D and a pilot check valve 63E to switch the driving direction of the platform opening/closing cylinder 11, and the switching valve 64 has a check valve 64A and a throttle valve 6.
4B and a pilot check valve 64C to switch the drive direction of the platform lifting cylinder 21. Hydraulic pressure is supplied to these switching valves 61-64 by a power unit 65 consisting of a pump 65A, a driving electric motor 65B, and the like.

Electric power is supplied to the respective switching solenoids of the switching valves 61 to 64 in accordance with the operation of the back door opening/closing switch 15 and the platform lifting/lowering/opening/closing switch 16 using micro switches a to m as control elements. These switches 15 and 16 are shown as being mounted on the left side outside the vehicle, but there are also switches 18 and 19 provided inside the vehicle interior, switches 10 and 10 provided on the platform handrail 9, and a remote control switch stored on the right side outside the vehicle. (not shown) are connected in parallel to each switch.

The microswitches a to m are in the switching state or the open/close state shown in the figure when the platform is stored in the vehicle interior and the back door 2 is closed. When the back door opening/closing operation switch 15 is operated to open the back door, the micro switch i forms an energizing path to the unlocking solenoid 61B of the switching valve 61 to release the lock of the back door, and responds to the completion of the release. Solenoid 62 for opening the door of the switching valve 62
Switches to forming an energizing path to F. Micro switch f closes at the back door opening completion position to form a power supply path to micro switch b when the platform lifting/lowering/opening/closing operation switch 16 is operated to the platform open side. In the retracted state, an energizing path is formed to the platform lowering solenoid 64D of the switching valve 64 to draw out the platform 8 outside the vehicle, and in response to the completion of this drawing, the micro switch b is switched and The valve 63 is switched to form an energizing path to the platform opening solenoid 63F, and the platform 8 is opened. Therefore, the micro switch f prevents the platform 8 from being pulled out of the vehicle and from being opened until the opening of the back door is completed.

The micro switch m closes in response to the completion of opening of the platform 8, and provides an energization path to the lowering solenoid 64D of the selector valve 64 when the platform lifting/lowering/opening/closing operation switch 16 is operated to the platform lowering side. and platform 8
The lowering operation of the platform 8 is inhibited until the opening of the platform 8 is completed. When the platform lifting/lowering/opening/closing operation switch 16 is operated on the descending side, the micro switch a opens in response to the descent of the platform 8 to the position just before landing, and the power unit 65 opens.
The energizing path to the electric motor 65B is cut off by the return of relay _R1 , and the platform is subsequently allowed to descend freely under its own weight.

When the platform is in the open state, the micro switch c forms an energizing path to the ascending solenoid 64E of the switching valve 64 when the switch 16 operates the platform to the rising side, and maintains a position where the platform 8 rises to match the floor of the vehicle body. When this occurs, the circuit will open in response. Therefore, when the platform is raised, the microswitch c automatically stops the platform 8 from rising when the platform rises to the floor of the vehicle body.

The microswitch d closes just before the platform 8 rises to the floor of the vehicle body, and remains open until the platform 8 rises to the floor of the vehicle body, thereby inhibiting the closing operation of the platform 8. After the micro switch d is closed, the micro switch e is a switch 16 for lifting/lowering/opening/closing the platform.
When the platform 8 is closed, an energization path is formed through the micro switch d to the solenoid 63G for closing the platform of the switching valve 63, and in response to the completion of closing the platform 8, the solenoid 64E for lifting the platform of the switching valve 64 is connected. Switch to the energized path. Therefore,
When the switch 16 is operated to close the platform, the platform is automatically closed and retracted into the vehicle interior by switching the micro switch e.

The micro switch G is closed in response to the completion of retraction of the platform 8 into the vehicle interior, and forms an energization path to the back door closing solenoid 62G of the selector valve 62 when the back door opening/closing switch 15 is operated on the door closing side. Allows closing operation. The micro switch k closes in response to the completion of closing of the back door 2, and forms an energizing path to the locking solenoid 61C of the switching valve 61, thereby locking the back door 2.

In addition, a switch 16 for raising/lowering/opening/closing the platform and a switch 15 for opening/closing the back door.
has auxiliary contacts that are linked to each operation, and except for the platform lowering operation, the power unit 6
By interlocking the opening and closing operations of the control relay _R1 of the electric motor 65B of No. 5, the control of the back door 2 and the platform 8 is interrupted when each operation is stopped midway, and that state is maintained.

Also, if the back door 2 hits an obstacle during the opening operation of the back door 2, the tape switch h, 13
When the circuits a to 13e are closed, the auxiliary relay _R2 is energized to turn off the power to each switch 15, 16, thereby preventing overloading of the mechanism and ensuring safety when the obstacle is a person.

Further, when the back door is completely closed, a micro switch j is opened to switch a lamp 66 provided inside the back door from on to off, and by turning off the lamp 66, it is possible to confirm the closed state of the back door.
In addition, a main switch M of the control device is provided near the driver's seat, so that operations by switches 15 and 16 outside the vehicle are rendered meaningless by opening the main switch M, and erroneous operations are prevented while the vehicle is running.

With this control device, when moving from the vehicle interior to the exterior of the vehicle, the switches 18 and 19 in the vehicle interior are used to open the back door, pull out the platform, and open the platform.
After moving up to this point, the platform lift switch 10 on the side of the platform is operated to the lowering side to lower the platform to the ground, allowing the vehicle to pass through the wheel stopper plate 8a and descend to the ground.

Conversely, to move from the outside of the vehicle to the inside of the vehicle, when the platform 8 is on the ground, get on the platform, raise the platform, get into the vehicle interior, and then switch the vehicle interior switch 18, 19, the platform will be closed, retracted and the back door will be closed.
is closed, switches 18 and 19 outside the vehicle
Alternatively, after taking out the platform using a remote control switch (not shown), the user enters the vehicle interior using the same procedure as the above-mentioned entry operation.

As explained above, the present invention provides a door that is automatically driven to open and close by a door opening/closing cylinder serving as an opening/closing drive unit, and a door that is disposed at an opening of the vehicle body that is opened and closed by the door, and is raised and lowered by a lifting cylinder serving as a lifting drive unit. The platform is equipped with a platform that can be expanded and folded, and a platform opening/closing cylinder serving as an expansion/folding drive means for this platform, and the door opening/closing drive means and the unfolding/folding drive means are each driven by the operation of separate switches. In addition, while the door is closed, the lifting drive means and the unfolding/folding drive means are configured so that even if the switches are operated, these drive means do not operate, so that a disabled person cannot operate the lifter alone. In addition to making it possible to get in and out of a car using the automatic door opening/closing system, it is possible to prevent damage to the door and lifter caused by interference between the lifter and the door, i.e., by the lifter switch being turned on while the door is closed. can.
In addition, in the device of the present invention, the opening and closing of the door, the unfolding and folding of the platform, and the raising and lowering of the platform are performed by separate switch operations, so it is necessary to confirm each operation before moving to the next operation. It has the effect of being extremely safe.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the rear part of a coach-type automobile equipped with a vehicle lifter according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing an embodiment of the vehicle lifter according to the present invention when the platform is unfolded. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional side view of the platform when it is folded, Figure 4 is a side view of the platform when it is in contact with the ground, showing the action of the wheel stopper at the tip of the platform, and Figure 5 is a side view of the micro switch installed on the lifter. Side view showing the mounting position, No. 6
The figure is a side view of an automobile equipped with this lifter, and FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a door and lifter control device. 2... Door (back door), 3... Opening/closing drive means (door opening/closing cylinder), 8... Platform, 10, 16, 18... Lift switch, 1
5, 19... Door switch, 21... Lifting drive means (lifting cylinder), 34... Expansion/folding drive means (opening/closing cylinder).

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A door that is automatically driven to open and close by an opening/closing drive means, a deployable or foldable platform that is disposed in the opening of the vehicle body that is opened and closed by the door, and that can be raised and lowered by a lifting drive means, and this platform. The door opening/closing driving means, the platform lifting/lowering driving means, and the unfolding/folding driving means are driven by separate switch operations, and the lifting/lowering is performed while the door is closed. 1. A lifter for a vehicle, characterized in that the drive means and the unfolding/folding drive means are configured such that the drive means are not activated even if the switches for the unfolding and folding drive means are operated.