Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College

John E Beard

Mehdy Sabbaghian

George LeBlanc

Randolph C Puls

James C Conwell

Jeffrey C Savela

David Showers

Oscar Banos

Franklin L Spillman

John M Fussell

David M Rothbauer

A Full Access wheelchair in which the seat can be raised to a height of about forty inches above the ground, or lowered to a height of about ten inches above the ground, while providing constant and comfortable support for the legs of a user throughout the range of motion of the seat. This Full Access wheelchair can increase the independence of many disabled individuals, and enhance their quality of life.

Full access wheelchair

A novel barbecue grill with mechanical linkages which automatically perform the following functions when the user pulls a single handle: (1) the lid opens; (2) the grill surface moves out of the grill; (3) a drip pan may optionally travel under the grill surface to catch drippings; and (4) the lid closes after the grill surface is out of the grill. The user then has access to the grill surface while the lid to the grill remains closed. Pushing on the handle reverses the sequence of events. An optional feature permits the user to lift the lid in the conventional manual manner, independently of the position of the grill surface. An optional safety feature inhibits the motion of the grill surface when the lid has been lifted manually, thus preventing the lid from accidentally slamming closed after it has been opened in the conventional manual manner.

Automatic barbecue grill

An orthosis for powering the walking movement of a paralyzed wearer, comprises torso members to be firmly connected to the opposite sides of the wearer's torso. A pair of leg braces is connected to the torso members. Each leg brace comprises a thigh member pivotally mounted at a hip joint to one torso member on one side of the wearer. A shank member connected to the shank and foot of the wearer, is pivotally mounted at a knee joint to each thigh member. A four link drive mechanism which is powered by a rechargeable power unit mounted on the torso member, swings the thigh member forwardly and rearwardly about the hip joint. A knee lock keeps the knee joint locked during the rearward movement of the thigh member and during a portion of the forward movement of the thigh member. At an appropriate point during the forward movement of the thigh member, a cam operated crank unlocks the knee joint and swings the shank member rearwardly to simulate a natural forward step. As the thigh member reaches its maximum forward position, a return spring pulls the shank member forwardly until it is substantially parallel to the thigh member. At this point, the knee joint is again locked and the wearer's foot strikes the ground. This begins the rearward swinging of the thigh member which propells the wearer's torso forwardly to complete the step. The opposite knee brace is then operated in an analogous fashion to execute a second step.

Powered gait orthosis

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Chassell, MI, United States of America

John E Beard