US1361102A - Rolling crutch - Google Patents

Description

M. D. SCOTT.

ROLLING CRUTCH.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9. 1920.

1,861,102. Patented Dec. 7,1920.

1 Q /7 LL 10 UNITED STATES MILTON DARNELL SCOTT, OF KEWANEE, ILLINOIS.

ROLLING cnU'rcH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. '7, 1920.

Application filed April 9, 1920. Serial No. 872,477.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MILTON DARNELL Soorr, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Kewanee, in the county of Henry and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rolling Crutches, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is an improvement in rolling crutches, and has for its object to provide a device of the character specifiedespecially adapted for use by invalids who lack confidence in their ability to walk, after illness, injury and the like, wherein the crutch is so arranged that it will afford a firm, secure support to the user without any possibility of falling, and which may be rolled along the ground or other supporting surface as the user walks.

In the drawings:

- Figure 1 is a perspective View of the crutch;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional detail of the connection between the leg sections;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section through the arm support.

Fig. 1 is a detail section of a portion of one of the uprights.

In the present embodiment of the invention a suitable base frame is provided, preferably of rectangular formation, and consisting in the present instance of side members 1 and connecting end members 2, the side and end members being connected by unions or elbows 3, each of which carries a caster wheel 4 adapted to run upon the ground or other supporting surface of the crutch.

Each of the unions 3 is a three-way union, and a sectional leg, consisting of sections 5 and 6, is connectedwith each union, the section 6 being engaged with the union. The sections 5 at each side of the base frame are connected by a cross member 7 extending longitudinally of the base frame at their tops and near their tops, but spaced apart therefrom.

The uprights at each side of the base frame are connected by a cross bar 8. Preferably, the uprights, the cross members 7 and 8 and the base frames are of pipe of suitable size, and the sections 5 and 6 of each upright are adjustably connected by a connecting rod 9. This rod has its ends passed into the adjacent ends of the sections, and set screws 10 are threaded through the sections into engagement with the rod. As shown, the rod has openings 11 at suitable intervals for engagement by the set screws to insure that there will be no slipping between the sections and the rod.

The cross members 7, which are the arm supports, are padded, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3. A suitable layer 12 of cushioning material, as, for instance, curled hair or the like, is placed about the cross member and this layer is held in place by a sheath or cover 13 of fabric material. As shown in Fig. 3, the sheath is formed from a strip of material which is passed about the cushion 12 and secured together at its edges, as indicated at 14, by stitching or the like.

In use, the crutch is adjusted to the proper height by means of the rods 9, the height being such that the pads or cushions 12--13 will be beneath the arms of the user, while he rasps the cross members 8 with his hands.

Standing within the base frame, the user can walk within the base frame, it being understood that the frame has sufiicient area to permit this, rolling the crutch with him, that is, rolling the crutch along the ground or floor.

The caster wheels d are, in practice, rubber tired, and mounted on ball bearings.

Means is also provided for permitting the width of the crutch to be varied. The lower sections 6 of the legs are hinged to the unions 3. These unions have extending up from them a short lug 14 which is forked, as shown, and each of the sections 6 has a depending lug which is received between the arms of the fork. A bolt 15 is passed through registering openings in the arms of the fork and in the lug, and the bolt is engaged by a wing nut 16. The opposing faces of the lugs and forked arms are roughened, and it will be evident that by loosening the wing nuts at each side of the frame, the cushions 13 of the crutch maybe moved toward or from each other, and the parts may be held in adjusted position by tightening the wing nuts.

Preferably, a seat indicated at 17 is connected with the crutch. This seat, as shown, is supported from the uprights of the crutch.

I claim:

A device of the character specified, comprising an open, wheel-supported frame of substantially rectangular formation, a substantially U-shaped upright at each side of the base frame, each upright consisting of a body spaced above the base frame and arms connected with the corners thereof, the space between the uprights being open and unobstrueted to permit the entrance and exit of the user, eachupright being hinged to the base frame to swing toward and from the 10 other, and having means for fixing it in adjustable position} MILTON DARNELL SCOTT.

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