There are many situations where an individual needs assistance standing erect. For example, roller skaters who are just leaning to skate, and injured or elderly people who need support when they walk.
In-line roller skates have become very popular, but they are much more difficult for novice skaters to master without falling frequently. Although helmets, knee pads, elbow pads and other safety accessories are used, they don""t inhibit the skater from falling, but only provide protection if the skater falls. It would be very desirable for a novice skater to have some device which would prevent him or her from falling. Although such a device is especially useful for in-line roller skaters, those using conventional skates with two pairs of wheels straddling the center line of the skate could also benefit from such a device.
Injured and elderly people sometimes use walkers that are held in front of the user and moved forward in a stepwise manner as the person walks. These walkers usually have four support legs and a handle bar at about waist level of the user. They do not, however, support the entire weight of the user. Sometimes crutches are employed which are placed under the arm pits of the user and manipulated as the user walks. Each individual crutch only has one point of contact with the supporting floor. Crutches support the entire weight of the user, but they are sometimes difficult for some individuals to use. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide a safety support device that has the advantage of ease of use of a walker and also supports the entire weight of the user like a pair of crutches.
This invention has several features, no single one of which is solely responsible for its desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of this invention as expressed by the claims that follow, its more prominent features will now be discussed briefly. After considering this discussion, and particularly after reading the section entitled, xe2x80x9cDETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS,xe2x80x9d one will understand how the features of this invention provide its benefits, which include, but are not limited to, improved safety for the user, compactness, portability, ease of manufacture, adjustability, and versatility.
The first feature of the safety support device of this invention is that it supports a user""s body above ground while using the device. In a first embodiment, the device supports a user while seated, and in a second embodiment, the device supports the user in a standing erect position. The first embodiment is particularly suited for use by skaters. The second embodiment is used by injured and elderly individuals who need support while walking. Both embodiments have a frame including a mounting section from which four legs extend, a pair of forward legs and a pair of rear legs. Each embodiment has a roller assembly attached to a distal end of a leg. These roller assemblies each include a roller member mounted so that with the weight of the user bearing down on the assembly the roller member is prevented from moving. The roller member may be either a wheel or a ball.
The second feature is that the roller assembly may (1) move between an extended position when a user is using the device and not being supported by the device and a retracted position when a user is being supported by the device, or (2) includes a cover mounted to move along a shaft. The shaft has the roller member rotatably mounted to a distal end of the shaft with a proximal end of the shaft extending outward from the cover. The cover has an intermediate portion attached to a distal end of a leg, and the cover is mounted to slide along the shaft as the roller member moves between the extended and retracted positions. A spring interacts with the cover to normally urge the roller member and the cover away from each other so that the roller member is normally in the extended position.
The third feature is the unique construction of the frame of the first embodiment, the safety and training device. This frame preferably is made of metal tubes welded or otherwise attached together. It comprises a pair of attached tubular members, each tubular member being bent in essentially an identical fashion in a curved, substantially M-shaped configuration. Portions of the tubular members form the forward legs and rear legs. These legs preferably outwardly diverge and have a length of from about 28 to about 36 inches and are arranged so that the mounting section is substantially parallel to ground. The mounting section is from about 28 to about 36 inches above ground. In this first embodiment, the length of the mounting section is from about 12 to about 18 inches, and it has a central, depressed segment across which the seat extends. Also, there is a handle member, preferably in the form of a loop, mounted to the forward end of the mounting section in advance of the seat.
The forth feature is the unique construction of the frame of the second embodiment, the walker support device. In this second embodiment, the mounting section includes a pair of under arm support members attached to the mounting section. Each arm support member engages an arm pit of the user when the user is being supported by the device, and the legs are of a length that enables the user to assume a standing position with the support members beneath the arm pits of the user""s arms and user""s feet touching the ground. The legs have an adjustable length of from about 48 to about 72 inches to accommodate the height of the user. There are hand grips extending between adjacent forward and rear legs, and the mounting section includes a pair of sleeve members, with adjacent proximal ends of the forward and rear legs extending into an individual sleeve member. The under arm support members are flexible, the hand grips are mounted to be repositioned, and legs are foldable inward to provide a compact structure. Preferably, this second embodiment includes a harness.
A third embodiment used by injured and elderly individuals who need support while walking includes is a manually release mechanism associated with each under arm support member. The release mechanism enables the user, while standing erect, to change the position of the under arm support members to accommodate the height of the individual user. Each release mechanism includes a stop member that is manually moveable between two positions: a first position engaging an associated under arm support member and holding this associated under arm support member in one of a plurality of different positions and a second position allowing the associated under arm support member to be repositioned. Preferably, each release mechanism includes a flexible, resilient handle that is connected to the stop member. The handle is manually manipulated to move the stop member between the first and second positions. The stop member is mounted on a spring element that is loaded upon manual manipulation of the handle and returns to its unloaded condition upon disengaging the handle.