The present disclosure generally relates to a lifting assembly, and more particularly to a lifting assembly to be used with a lift mechanism installed in a vehicle, such as a pickup truck, or the like for hoisting, stowing and removing of a wheelchair.
Heretofore there have been provided many arrangements for lifting and transporting of wheelchairs with an automobile for providing aid to handicapped persons. For example, some vehicles, like pickup trucks, are fitted with wheelchair lifting mechanisms which lifts and stores the wheelchair in a back thereof. A typical wheelchair lifting mechanism is a power mechanism used to move the lift out from a stored position to an operating position, then to raise and lower the lift, and then to move the lift from the operating position back to the stored position. In some other wheelchair lifting mechanisms, the wheelchair is first attached to the lifting mechanism before start of the travel, and the lifting mechanism is then operated to lift the wheelchair to be stored in the vehicle, and later the lifting mechanism is again operated to remove the wheelchair from the vehicle and place it back on to the ground at the end of the travel and/or when desired by the user.
Applicant believes a related reference corresponds to Granted U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,200 (hereinafter referred to as '200 Patent) which describes an apparatus for hoisting a wheelchair into and out of an enclosure including a swivel base having a stationary section that may be secured within the closure and a section rotatable on the stationary section about a vertical axis. A motor mount is positioned above and is connected to the rotatable section of the swivel base. An angled arm is pivotally connected to the motor mount and is capable of standing rigidly upright when in use and capable of folding down when not in use. A cable, attached to a reel at one end, has a series of pulleys located on the angled arm to guide the cable over the angled arm. The reel is formed to the motor mount and is connected to a motor on the motor mount through use of gearing. A hook is formed at the other end of the cable for use in hoisting.
Typically, these wheelchair lifting mechanisms, such as the one described in the '200 Patent, require some modifications to be performed to the wheelchair in order to allow for proper attachment and engagement of the wheelchair with the lifting mechanism during the said operation. The modifications may be in the form of form of drilling holes and/or fitting mounting means to the wheelchair to allow for hooks or the like of the lifting mechanism to be attached thereto, which is generally not desirable. For instance, in the wheelchair hoisting apparatus of the '200 Patent, a ring or the like may be needed to be installed in an upper part of the wheelchair in order to allow for the hook of the lifting mechanism to engage with the wheelchair. These modifications are generally expensive, cumbersome and potentially damaging to the wheelchair.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art to provide a lifting assembly which could be utilized with existing wheelchair lift mechanisms to allow for hoisting and placement of the wheelchair without requiring any particular modifications. Other documents describing the closest subject matter provide for a number of more or less complicated features that fail to solve the problem in an efficient and economical way. None of these patents suggest the novel features of the present invention.
It is one of the main objectives of the present invention to provide a lifting assembly which can be utilized with a traditional lift mechanism.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a lifting assembly which can be employed for lifting any type of wheelchair without need of any particular modification thereto.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a lifting assembly for a wheelchair which is simple in design, portable and easy to handle.
Further objects of the invention will be brought out in the following part of the specification, wherein detailed description is for the purpose of fully disclosing the invention without placing any limitations thereon.
With the above and other related objects in view, the invention consists in the details of construction and combination of parts as will be more fully understood from the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
Illustrative embodiments of the present invention are described below. The following explanation provides specific details for a thorough understanding of and enabling description for these embodiments. One skilled in the art will understand that the invention may be practiced without such details. In some instances, well-known structures, processes and functions have not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiments.
It shall be noted that unless the context clearly requires otherwise, throughout the description, the words “comprise,” “comprising,” “include,” “including,” and the like are to be construed in an inclusive sense as opposed to an exclusive or exhaustive sense; that is to say, in the sense of “including, but not limited to.” Words using the singular or plural number also include the plural or singular number, respectively while adhering to the concepts of the present invention. Furthermore, references to “one embodiment” and “an embodiment” are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also incorporate the recited features.
Referring now to the drawings,
The utilized lift mechanism 10, cooperating with the lifting assembly 100 of the present disclosure, may be a conventional lift mechanism which may be installed in a trunk of the vehicle 12. Such lift mechanism 10 may include a base plate fixedly attached to the vehicle, a vertical support post made of a plurality of sections and supported on the base plate, and an arm assembly, generally horizontally arranged, and attached to the vertical post section. The base plate may be adapted for mounting on a base of the trunk of the vehicle. The arm assembly may be extending outward from the vertical support post for attachment to the wheelchair or the like. The base plate is designed and arranged to facilitate side movement of the vertical support post after the wheelchair has been lifted, in order to allow for hoisting of the suspended wheelchair from the ground to the trunk of the vehicle and vice-versa, as required by the user. It may be understood that the vehicle 12 being employed may be any suitable vehicle, preferably a pickup truck or a vehicle with large trunk or boot space for easy installation of the lift mechanism 10 and further storage of the wheelchair therein.
Further, as illustrated, the lifting assembly 100 includes a connecting arrangement 104 attached to the supporting structure 102. In one example, the connecting arrangement 104 may also be in the form of a cross member extending with shape of the supporting structure 102. The connecting arrangement 104 may be made of a strong material, such as stainless steel, aluminum and the like. Further, the connecting arrangement 104 may be attached to the supporting structure 102 using any suitable method, such as, welding, use of fastening members, adhesives, etc. without any limitations. As may be seen from
As illustrated in
Further, in accordance with present embodiments, the lifting assembly 100 includes at least one shackle 112 which is adapted to be fixedly attached with the lift mechanism 10. It may be contemplated that the shackle 112 may be attached with the lift mechanism 10 by means of screws or some other suitable fastening means known in the art. Moreover, the shackle 112 may be coupled with the cables 108 at their other ends (opposite to the ones coupled with the connecting arrangement 104). Thus, the shackle 112 may mechanically couple, and helps to bear and transfer weight of the supporting structure 102, to the lift mechanism 10. In one example, the shackle 112 may be designed and reinforced for supporting weights up to 8-10 tons, as may be required for the purpose of lifting a wheelchair or the like of the present disclosure. Such shackles are well known in the art and widely available in the markets for use.
With reference to
As discussed, the lifting assembly 100 of the present disclosure allows a user to lift any wheelchair, whether new or old, without any particular modification to the wheelchair. This eliminates the need of making modification to the wheelchair and the like, thus saving the user the extra expense otherwise spent on hiring a technician and material costs for making such modifications. It shall be noted that the structural modifications made to the vehicle for installing the lift mechanism can be easily removed for vehicle resale purposes or the like. The lifting assembly 100 of the present disclosure is light-weight, compact and portable making it convenient for the user to handle, and thus also can be easily stowed away in the vehicle when not in use. Furthermore, the lifting assembly 100, being compact, can be shipped directly to the customer via some courier or home delivery services. The lifting assembly 100 of the present disclosure may particularly be useful for handicapped people, old-age persons, injured patients and the like; and may particularly find its applications in, but not limited to, hospitals, old-age homes, families with one or more senior members, and the like.
The foregoing description conveys the best understanding of the objectives and advantages of the present invention. Different embodiments may be made of the inventive concept of this invention. It is to be understood that all matter disclosed herein is to be interpreted merely as illustrative, and not in a limiting sense.
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