US3882949A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Universal wheelchair for the severely disabled
Assignee: United States Department of Health and Human Services
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Filing: 1972-11-16
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Granted: 1975-05-13
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Expires: 1992-11-16
Abstract
Abstract A universal, adjustable-height powered wheelchair is disclosed for the severly disabled, such as quadriplegic, driver. The wheelchair has a powered elevating mechanism capable of raising the seat and occupant from a height of 6 inches to 26 inches above the ground. It is capable of climbing a 12 inch high curb and may be used while driving any standard-sized two door sedan.
Inventors
- 👤 David M Anderson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 06:20
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61G; A61G5/00; A61G5/10; A61G5/1056; A61G5/1059; A61G3/00; A61G3/02; A61G3/06; A61G3/062; A61G3/063; A61G5/04; A61G5/041; A61G5/045; A61G5/06; A61G5/12; A61G5/128; A61G5/14; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S180/00; Y10S180/907; Y10S280/00; Y10S280/10; Y10S297/00; Y10S297/04
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 42
Claim 1
Independent Claim
138 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position 8 inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground, said raising and lowering means comprising an actuator, connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair; and curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lengthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
138 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position 8 inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground, said raising and lowering means comprising an actuator, connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair; and curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lengthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
25 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 1 further including heavyweight means on said frame for accepting the manual adjustment of the width of the wheelchair.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
35 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 1 further including narrowing means connected to said frame for causing powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
45 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 3 wherein: said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said seat from the uppermost position thereof.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
136 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a foot rest; and linkage means connected to said foot rest and said seat for causing said foot rest to extend without contacting ground when said seat is in a lowered position and to retract to a position such that no portion of the occupant''s foot positioned on said foot rest protrudes farther forward than the knee of the occupant when said seat is in a raised position, said linkage means being responsive only to the height of said seat.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
136 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a foot rest; and linkage means connected to said foot rest and said seat for causing said foot rest to extend without contacting ground when said seat is in a lowered position and to retract to a position such that no portion of the occupant''s foot positioned on said foot rest protrudes farther forward than the knee of the occupant when said seat is in a raised position, said linkage means being responsive only to the height of said seat.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
19 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 5 further including power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
83 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 6 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat, the wheelchair further including curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lengthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
38 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 6 further including: a seat back connected to said seat; and tilting means connected thereto for causing the powered tilting of said seat without a concomitant total reclining of said seat back.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
25 words
A wheelchair in accordance with clain 6 further including heavyweight means on said frame for accepting the manual adjustment of the width of the wheelchair.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
25 words
A wheelchair in accordance with clain 6 further including heavyweight means on said frame for accepting the manual adjustment of the width of the wheelchair.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
43 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 6 wherein said linkage means is located under said seat and said foot rest whereby in at least the raised position there are no encumbrances to hamper the transfer of the occupant to and from the wheelchair.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
47 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 6, further including: a seat back connected to said seat; and reclining means connected to said seat back for causing the powered reclining of said seat back with respect to said seat when said seat is in the lowermost position thereof.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
23 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 4 wherein said reclining means is responsive only to the motion of said raising and lowering means.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
72 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 5 wherein said raising and lowered means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said acutator thereby raising and lowering said seat; the wheelchair further including narrowing means connected to said frame for causing the powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
52 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 13 wherein: said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said top portion during the lowering of said seat from the uppermost position thereof.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
52 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 13 wherein; said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said top portion during the lowering of said seat from the uppermost postion thereof.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
46 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 13, further including: a seat back connected to said seat and to said actuator; and reclining means connected to said back for causing the reclining of said seat back when said power means shortens said actuator beyond said lower position.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
47 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 16, further including: curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lengthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
94 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a seat back connected to said seat; and reclining means connected to said seat back for causing the powered reclining of said seat back with respect to said seat when said seat is in the lowermost position thereof.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
94 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a seat back connected to said seat; and reclining means connected to said seat back for causing the powered reclining of said seat back with respect to said seat when said seat is in the lowermost position thereof.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
19 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 18 further including power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
45 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19, further including a back rest slidably mounted on said seat back whereby said back rest slides down said seat back upon reclining to avoid sliding between the seat back and the back of the occupant of the wheelchair.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
25 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19 further including heavyweight means on said frame for accepting the manual adjustment of the width of the wheelchair.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
33 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19 further including: tilting means connected to said seat back for causing the powered tilting of said seat without a concomitant total reclining of said seat back.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
83 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; the wheelchair further including curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lengthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
23 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19 wherein said reclining means is responsive only to the motion of said raising and lowering means.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
63 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 24 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat back; and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat and for causing the reclining of said seat back when the shortening of said actuator is continued beyond said lowered position.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
72 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 19 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; the wheelchair further including narrowing means connected to said frame for causing the powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
52 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 26 wherein: said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said top portion during the lowering of said seat from the uppermost position thereof.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
85 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a seat back connected to said seat; and tilting mEans connected thereto for causing the powered tilting of said seat without a concomitant total reclining of said seat back.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
85 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground; a seat back connected to said seat; and tilting mEans connected thereto for causing the powered tilting of said seat without a concomitant total reclining of said seat back.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
19 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 28 further including power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
22 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 29 wherein: said tilting means is powered by the motion of said raising and lowering means.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
72 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 29 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; the wheelchair further including narrowing means connected to said frame for causing the powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
52 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 31 wherein: said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said top portion during the lowering of said seat from the uppermost positon thereof.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
83 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 29 wherein said raising and lowering means comprises: an actuator connecting said frame and said seat and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; the wheelchair further including curb climbing means connected thereto for causing the powered climbing of the wheelchair onto and off of curbs while keeping said seat substantially level, said curb climbing means being powered by the lenthening and shortening of said actuator.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
115 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground, said raising and lowering means comprising an actuator, connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; narrowing means connected to said frame for causing powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
115 words
A universal wheelchair for the severely disabled, comprising: four wheels; a frame connecting said wheels; a seat; raising and lowering means connected to said frame and said seat for causing the height of said seat to be continuously adjusted between a lowered position eight inches above ground and a raised position about 24 inches above ground, said raising and lowering means comprising an actuator, connecting said frame and said seat, and power means connected to said actuator for lengthening and shortening said actuator thereby raising and lowering said seat; narrowing means connected to said frame for causing powered narrowing and widening of the width of the wheelchair in response to the motion of said actuator.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
19 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 34 further including power means connected to said frame for propelling the wheelchair.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
52 words
A wheelchair in accordance with claim 35 wherein: said narrowing means causes powered narrowing of the wheelchair automatically in the top portion of travel of said actuator during the raising of said seat and causes powered widening in said top portion during the lowering of said seat from the uppermost postion thereof.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-05-12 | 1978-11-11 | 1979-05-13 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-05-12 | 1982-11-11 | 1983-05-13 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-05-12 | 1986-11-11 | 1987-05-13 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |