Patent Application
20150250321
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to support devices in general and in particular to a method and apparatus for supporting and assisting a user to get into and out of a kneeling position.
2. Description of Related Art
Kneeling is a position which is frequently difficult or uncomfortable for many people. Many people have difficulty with the act of getting into and staying in a kneeling position. In particular, many people find remaining in a kneeling position to be hard on the outer surface of their knees. This is particularly the case where the person is kneeling on rough or hard surfaces.
A further difficulty many people experience is the act of lowering themselves into a kneeling position from a standing position. It will also be appreciated that the movement of returning to standing from a kneeling position is likewise similarly difficult for such people. Such movements may be difficult for people either due to reduced muscular strength or due to injury or weakness within their knees themselves. For other people, the movement into and out of a kneeling position places a painful level of strain on their back.
Previous attempts have been made to provide knee supports for a user so as to reduce the difficulty required to get into and out of as well as remain in a kneeling position. Some attempts have been made to provide a padded surface on which the user may kneel. Such devices have located such surface at a fixed position which does not however aid the user in getting into and out of the kneeling position. Examples of such devices may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,756 issued Aug. 16, 1988 to Horan.
According to a first embodiment of the present invention there is disclosed an apparatus for supporting and assisting a user to get into and out of a kneeling position comprising a platform extending between first and second edges, each edge having two corners, a frame accommodating the platform therebetween and at least one biased arm extending between the platform and the frame, the biased arm being adapted to bias the platform from a first position located proximate to a ground surface to a second position vertically spaced above the first position.
The apparatus may further comprise an upright located proximate to each of the corners of the first and second edges of the platform wherein the uprights located proximate to two corners of a common edge of the platform are connected by a top connecting portion.
The platform may be supported at the second position at an angle with a rear edge of the platform being lower than a corresponding front edge. The angle may be selected to be between 0 and 30 degrees.
The frame may include stoppers for supporting the platform in the first position. The arm may be collapsible. The arm may comprise first and second arm portions with a pivot therebetween. The pivot may be biased to extend the arm. The pivot may include a spring. The spring may comprise a torsion spring.
Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the invention wherein similar characters of reference denote corresponding parts in each view,
Referring to
The platform 12 extends between first and second side edges, 16 and 18, respectively and front and rear edges 20 and 22, respectively. The platform 12 may optionally include padded portions 24 on the top surface 14 thereof sized and positioned to receive the knees of a user thereon which may comprise a portion or the entire top surface of the platform. The platform 12 may be substantially rectangular as illustrated or any other suitable outline, such as, by way of non-limiting example, square, oval, circular, octagonal, hexagonal or irregular. The platform may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non-limiting example wood, metal, plastic or composite materials and may have a thickness sufficient to support the weight of the user thereon. The platform 12 will further have a size selected to be able to receive a user thereon while permitting such a user to grasp the top portions of the frame for support. In practice, it has been found that a width of between 6 and 12 inches (152 and 305 mm) and a length of between 18 and 30 inches (457 and 762 mm) has been useful although it will be appreciated that other dimensions for the platform may be useful as well. The platform 12 may be angularly oriented, by an angle, generally indicated at 25 such that the front edge 20 is higher than the rear edge 22. The angle 25 assists in providing a more comfortable position for the user and may be selected to be any angle between 0 and 30 degrees.
The frame 30 comprises a pair of parallel space spaced apart inverted u-shaped members 32 each comprising front and rear uprights, 34 and 36, respectively with a top connecting portion 38 between the top ends thereof. As illustrated in
The front brace 46 may extend between first and second collars 92 and 94, respectively surrounding a portion of the front uprights 34. The first and second collars 92 and 94 may be rotatable around the front uprights so as to permit the u-shaped members 32 to be rotated relative thereto in a direction generally indicated at 96. It will be appreciated that such rotation will permit the apparatus 10 to be folded substantially flat for ease of storage and transportation as illustrated in
The collapsible arms 100 extend between the front brace 46 and the platform 12. Each arm 100 comprises a first and a second arm portion, 102 and 104, respective with a center hinge 106 therebetween. The center hinge 106 will include a biasing element, such as, by way of non-limiting example, a torsion spring therein adapted to bias the first and second arms 102 and 104 to the extended or second position illustrated in
Although two arms 100 are shown herein, according to other embodiments a single arm or more than two arms may be used as well. The arms shown in this embodiment has a single fold at a center thereof. Multiple folds may be useful as well, such as with an arm arranged in a zigzag shape. The center hinge 106 and first and second end hinges 108 and 110 may also be adapted to have range of a range of motion limited to position the platform 12 at providing the desirable angle 25 when in the up-position as shown in
The arms 100 may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non-limiting example, metal, plastic or composite materials. The arms have sufficient resilience to permit the platform 12 to be brought down to the down-position from the up-position under the weight of the knees 6 of the user 8 and to permit the platform 12 to be brought back to the up-position when the user 8 tends to stand up. As illustrated in
In operation, a user approaches the apparatus from the rear and places their knees 6 upon the pads 24. The user then permits their weight to press the platform downward to the position illustrated in
The arms 100 may be selected to provide a suitable bias based upon the intended user 8 and the amount of assistance required by such person to return to the standing position. In practice, it has been found that arms 100 providing between 10 and 200 pounds of lift to the platform 12 will be sufficient although other biasing forces will be useful as well.
The pair of the inverted u-shaped members 32 are connected by at least one front brace 46 preferably towards the bottom for better stability. Additional front braces 46 may be used as well. Optionally, the frame 30 may include more bottom braces 44 extending between the bottom portions of the front and the rear uprights 34 and 36 to provide additional stability to the apparatus 10.
According to a further embodiment of the apparatus 10, the first end hinges 108 and center hinges 106 may be releasably locked in the first or down position as illustrated in
For the above embodiments as described with the apparatus 10, the frame 30 may be provided with features to adjust the height of the platform 12, to suit the height of the user 8. The frame 30 may optionally include features (not shown) to permit the user 8 to adjust the height of the apparatus 10 as are commonly known in the art, such as with the use of telescopic members in the front and rear uprights 34 and 36. It will also be appreciated that the frame 30 may also be useful for hanging other objects, such as, by way of non-limiting example, tool trays or holders as are commonly known in the art.
While specific embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated, such embodiments should be considered illustrative of the invention only and not as limiting the invention as construed in accordance with the accompanying claims.
