Ortopedia Gmbh

Octopedia Gmbh

Reinhard Koster

Ruth Kruse

Ewald Linse

Hans Basedow

Hans Korber

Hans W Korber

Dieter Simmat

Dieter Lorenz

The electric wheel-chair comprises drive wheels on one axle group, and swivel wheels on a second axle group, with the swivel wheels being either freely pivotable or positively steerable by an engageable steering drive. The positive steering system may have either a purely electric configuration in the form of a pair of electric steering drives, or an electro-mechanical configuration in the form of a common steering drive and a mechanical steering mechanism with electro-mechanical disengagement of the positive steering system. Switch-over from pivoting to steering operation is monitored by position sensors provided on the swivel wheels. As the seat assembly is adapted to be rotated to a corresponding position, the swivel wheels may be operated alternatively as the front wheels or the rear wheels of the wheel-chair. Owing to the engageable steering drive, the wheel-chair is well adapted for both indoor operation and outdoor operation, thereby considerably enhancing the mobility of a disabled person.

Electric wheel-chair

As a rule, wheel-chairs have large(-diameter) drive wheels (3) and small(-diameter) steerable wheels (5), and wheel-chairs for indoor operation have their drive wheels as their rear wheels, while wheel-chairs for outdoor operation have their drive wheels (3) as front wheels. In the wheel-chair according to the invention, the seat assembly (6) is mounted for rotation about a vertical axis by means of a supporting column (14) above the chassis (1), such that, depending on the purpose of use of the wheel-chair, the large drive wheels are selectively disposed in the front or rear position with respect to the seat(ing) direction. In this way, the wheel-chair may be used both inddors and outdoors in an optimum manner. Additional positioning alernatives of the seat assembly, e.g. at .+-.90.degree. relative to the chassis, open to the user new possibilities of utilization. By an automatic switchover of the control (or steering) lever in accordance with the position of the seat assembly, optimum operation of the wheel-chair is obtained.

Growing community of inventors

Kiel, Germany

Reinhard Koster