Jay Medical, Ltd.

Rik Medical, L.l.c.

Other

Bestop, Inc.

Sunrise Medical Hhg, Inc.

John C Dinsmoor, Iii

Eric C Jay

Grant C Denton

Richard R Runkles

John A Dyer

Barry VanEveren

Pamela C DeBellis

Barry Van Everen

Dallas L Vernon

Michael W Johnson

Russell C Miller

Greg S Wilson

Brian C Coppom

A seat assembly (21) for a wheelchair including a relatively rigid seat base (12) of substantially uniform thickness with an upwardly facing contoured top surface (14) and a cushion assembly mounted on the seat base. The cushion assembly includes a relatively soft foam member (30) substantially covering the seat base (12) for localized deformation of the foam member and for communication of the influence of contours on the seat base (12) through the foam member (30) to the user. In the preferred form, a flexible pouch (40) having a viscous fluid-like material contained therein is positioned in a recess (38) in the foam member (30) in the area of the user's ischial tuberosities and coccyx, and a water-impervious, flexible elastomeric envelope (50) completely surrounds the foam member (30) and the fluid-containing pouch (40). The fluid pouch (40) has a size greater than the plan area of recess (38) in the foam member (30) and is placed in a semi-collapsed condition in the recess so as to be displaceable without hammocking. Additionally, elastomeric envelope (50) has a sheet area greater than the area of the semi-collapsed fluid pouch (40) to ensure that the envelope (50) does not hammock under the user's weight. Finally, a hydrophobic cover (60) can be mounted over the cushion assembly and to the seat base (12). A method of supporting a user on a wheelchair seat assembly is also disclosed.

Wheelchair seat assembly with contoured seat pan and cushion and method

A hardtop roof assembly for a passenger vehicle. The roof assembly includes a hard cover over the passenger cockpit. The cockpit cover is completely removable from the remainder of the roof assembly and vehicle and can be selectively secured over the opening above the passenger cockpit or to a rear storage rack for transport with the vehicle. Because it is completely removable, the cockpit cover can also be stored inside the vehicle or left at home if desired. The cockpit cover uses common securing members to selectively secure it over the opening above the passengers or to the rear storage rack. The cockpit cover and storage rack also have corresponding shapes that assume a neat, strong, and compact mating relationship when secured to each other. Additionally, the side edge portions of the cover and storage rack have vertically extending surfaces that abut and substantially mate with each other to add lateral stability and prevent any side-to-side movement of the cover when it is secured to the storage rack.

Vehicle roof assembly with removable and storage cockpit cover

An anti-thrust seating system and low profile, adjustable back system primarily intended for use in a wheelchair. The anti-thrust seating system includes a base seating member with a forward section to support the user's thighs and a rearward section to support the user's buttocks including the ischial tuberosities. The upper surfaces of the forward and rearward sections meet to form an edge extending across the base seating member. The upper surface of the rearward section has two portions which form a first step face or anti-thrust barrier to the user's ischial tuberosities. The seating system further includes at least one separate step means that can be removably positioned adjacent and rearwardly of the first step face wherein the separate step means has a second step face. The separate step means also has an upper surface which serves to effectively extend the thigh supporting surface or shell rearwardly. The adjustable back system has first and second relatively rigid shell members with a back cushion removably attached to the second or forward shell member. In their retracted positions, portions of both the first and second shell members and cushion extend between and along the back posts of the wheelchair and very little of the back extends forward of the back posts.

Seating and back systems for a wheelchair

An anti-thrust seating system and low profile, adjustable back system primarily intended for use in a wheelchair. The anti-thrust seating system includes a base seating member with a forward section to support the user's thighs and a rearward section to support the user's buttocks including the ischial tuberosities. The upper surfaces of the forward and rearward sections meet to form an edge extending across the base seating member. The upper surface of the rearward section has two portions which form a first step face or anti-thrust barrier to the user's ischial tuberosities. The seating system further includes at least one separate step means that can be removably positioned adjacent and rearwardly of the first step face wherein the separate step means has a second step face. The separate step means also has an upper surface which serves to effectively extend the thigh supporting surface or shelf rearwardly. The adjustable back system has first and second relatively rigid shell members with a back cushion removably attached to the second or forward shell member. In their retracted positions, portions of both the first and second shell members and cushion extend between and along the back posts of the wheelchair and very little of the back extends forward of the back posts.

An adjustable back system for releasable attachment to spaced-apart substantially vertical wheelchair frame posts (52). The back system includes a relatively rigid shell back (36) formed to extend transversely between the posts (52) for support of a user's back, a plurality of post-engaging assemblies (50) coupled to shell back (36) by a plurality of independently adjustable coupling assemblies. The post-engaging assemblies (50) including an upper pair of post-engaging assemblies extending transversely from opposite sides of shell back (36) and a lower pair post-engaging assemblies extending transversely from opposite sides of shell back (36) below upper post-engaging assemblies. The post-engaging assemblies (50) each are formed to releasably secure shell back (36) to the posts (52), and the adjustable coupling assemblies are formed for independent fore and aft adjustment of the position of coupling of post-engaging assemblies (50) for adjustment of the angle and depth at which shell back (36) is mounted to posts (52). The adjustable coupling assemblies further including connecting members (79) extending between upper post-engaging assembly and lower post-engaging assembly on each side of shell back (36), the connecting members (79) being formed to rigidly interconnect the coupling assemblies to enable fore and aft adjustment of the depth of shell back (36) relative to posts (52) while maintaining substantially the same angle of shell back (36) relative to posts (52).

Deformity back system

A seating system primarily intended for use in wheelchairs and similar applications for reducing the development of decubitus ulcers. The seating system includes a relatively rigid, shaped tray and a pressure relieving fluid pad. The tray has a thigh supporting shelf and a depressed seating well. The fluid pad preferably has a plurality of fluid pouches positionable over the thigh supporting shelf of the tray and an array of rearward pouches positionable over the depressed seating well. The rearward pouches in the seating well are wedge shaped and taper downwardly in vertical thickness from one end portion to the other. Each rearward pouch has its thicker end portion overlying a central part of the seating well and its thinner end portion positioned over the upwardly inclined, outer rim section of the seating well. In this manner, the resulting arrangement of the rearward pouches concentrates the bulk of the fluid toward the center or middle of the seating well to substantially prevent any undesirable bottoming out of the user's ischial tuberosities and coccyx on the rigid tray.

Seating system with pressure relieving pad

A wheelchair back assembly suitable for detachable mounting to the back-supporting posts of a wheelchair. The back assembly includes a relatively rigid shell member carrying post-engaging hooks and a plurality of mounting units formed to be mounted on the wheelchair posts. The mounting units are further formed to slidably receive and automatically releasably lock a pair of the post-engaging hooks on the shell member to the posts against unintentional removal of the back assembly from the wheelchair during normal use of the wheelchair. The mounting units are also formed for single-handed automatic unlocking and release of the pair of hooks from the mounting units and posts upon rotation of the shell member forwardly over the wheelchair seat by an amount in excess of any displacement occurring during normal use of the wheelchair.

Wheelchair back system

A mattress pad primarily intended for use with a standard hospital bed frame to reduce the development of decubitus ulcers or bed sores in patients using the pad. The pad is multi-layered and includes a cover or casing containing interior strata of a plastic film layer atop a fluid bladder layer supported on an underlying layer of foam. The pad is specially designed to reduce lateral and normal pressures and forces on the patient which can lead to the development of such ulcers. The reduction of the lateral shearing forces is accomplished in a number of ways including by oversizing the plastic film layer and fluid bladder layer on the underlying layer of foam and by positioning microbeads between the plastic film layer and fluid bladder layer to dramatically reduce the frictional drag or lateral shearing forces between the layers. Similarly, the normal pressures and forces are reduced and controlled in a number of manners including oversizing, modifying the configuration, filling, and size of the discrete fluid pouches of the fluid bladder layer, and varying the spring characteristics of the support columns in the underlying foam layer by hollowing them out to differing degrees, adjusting their spacing, and selectively tying adjacent columns together.

Anti-decubitus mattress pad

Seating system with pressure relieving fluid pad

A prosthetic device primarily intended for use by amputees and in particular, leg amputees. The prosthesis includes a relatively rigid, support shell dimensioned to receive a portion of the residual limb and a pad member having a plurality of pouches at least partially filled with fluid. The pad member substantially encircles the leg with its fluid pouches being positioned adjacent one another about and along the leg. Each pouch is supported between the leg and the shell and has inner and outer pouch layers with the fluid being contained between them. Portions of each inner layer fold back on one another to form wrinkles wherein slack is maintained in the inner layer so that it can conform to the user's leg without hammocking or being drawn taut. It can also accommodate and move with the user's leg relative to the support shell without being tensioned or distended.

Prosthetic device for amputees

A wheelchair back system adapted to provide a customized fit to the user. The system includes a rigid back shell removably affixed to the wheelchair, a plurality of foam blocks, and a pad member containing flowable fluid material. The back shell has a forward facing, front surface and the foam blocks are removably positionable forward of the back shell to form a substantially continuous layer of foam of substantially uniform depth forward of the back shell. Each foam block is individually and separately removable to provide a recessed area in the otherwise continuous layer of foam to provide a customized fit to the user. The pad member overlies the front surface of the foam blocks and is received in any recessed area formed by the removal of a foam block. In this manner, the system can be customized to the deformities or other abnormalities of each individual user.

A seating system for wheelchairs and other applications. The seating system includes a base member with an upper surface and a fluid pad positioned on the upper surface. The upper surface is preferably contoured and dimensioned to have areas corresponding to the user's ischial tuberosities and coccyx as well as the user's femurs including trochanters. The fluid pad in the preferred embodiment is one piece and has at least three separate and distinct pouches filled with fluid. Each pouch includes seals to contain the fluid in each pouch and to isolate and prevent fluid communication with the fluid in the other two pouches. Each pouch of the pad is then respectively positioned on the upper surface of the base member under the user's ischial tuberosities and coccyx. In this manner, each of the user's ischial tuberosities and coccyx is thereby supported on its own separate and distinct fluid pouch.

Seating system

A seating system primarily intended for use with wheelchairs. The seating system includes a relatively rigid, shaped tray and a fluid pad. The tray has a forward section to support the user's thighs and a rearward section with a depressed, contoured seating well to support the user's buttocks including his ischial tuberosities. The seating well includes a bottom portion and a U-shaped rim portion extending about it. The fluid pad contains a fixed volume of incompressible fluid and is provided and dimensioned to be bunched up and received in the seating well of the tray. The seating system also includes a self-adjusting feature to automatically and properly fit a user based on his weight. This is accomplished in the preferred embodiments by adding a layer of resilient, compressible foam over the upper surface of the rim portion of the seating well between the fluid pad and the rim portion. The foam is dimensioned and chosen to selectively occupy varying amounts of the volume of the seating well (i.e., creating an effective seating well volume) in proportion to the weight of the user. In all embodiments, the resulting seating system automatically modifies the effective seating well volume of the tray in proportion to the user's weight for a safe and proper fit for all users including both light and heavier ones.

Growing community of inventors

Westminster, CO, United States of America

John C Dinsmoor, Iii