Library Collections: Document: Full Text

United States Patent Office.

SARAH A. POTTER, OF HARPER, KANSAS.

INVALID-CHAIR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 831,330, dated December 25,1894.

Application filed July 19, 1892. Serial No, 440,544, (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Sarah A. Potter, of Harper, Harper county, Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Invalid-Chairs, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

My invention relates to chairs for invalids, and more particularly to portable or perambulating invalid-chairs, and the object of my invention is to produce a perambulating chair which shall be simple, strong, durable and inexpensive in construction, and also easy to propel.

To the above purpose my invention consists in certain peculiar and novel features of construction and arrangement, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

In order that my invention may be fully understood, I will proceed to describe it with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which --

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portable invalid-chair embodying my invention; the dust-guards of the chair being removed. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, but with the near wheel removed. Fig. 3 comprises detached perspective views of one of the leg supports or rests, and its two supporting arms. Fig. 4 is a detached plan view of one of the main carrying-wheels of the chair, and a corresponding end of the carrying-axle and also of the rear portion of one of the propelling-shafts and the gearing between the carrying-wheel and the shaft. Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view of the removable head-rest of the chair. Fig. 6 is a detached view, in side elevation, of one of the dust-guards. Fig. 7 is a detached view, in side elevation, of the rear part of the seat-frame and the lower part of the back of the chair; said view showing one of the hinges for connecting the back to the seat-frame. Fig. 8 is a detached plan view of the back-frame of the chair, showing the sockets for the dowel-pins of the removable head-rest.

In said drawings, 1 designates the bottom-frame of the chair; this bottom-frame being of open rectangular form, and being designed to receive and support the seat-frame 2, and this seat frame being also of correspondingly rectangular form and having a seat 3 which is of plaited cane, or any other suitable or preferred material. At each side, near its rear end, the bottom-frame 1 of the chair is provided with a pendent block 4, which is suitably secured in position, and to the under sides of these two blocks are secured the upper parts of two elliptical springs 5; said springs being located beneath each side of the bottom frame, and being either of the precise structural type shown, or of any other suitable or preferred type. Each of these springs is secured at its lower portion, in customary manner to one of the end-portions of the carrying axle 5; this axle extending horizontally beneath the chair-bottom, and transversely thereof, as shown. Upon the ends of this axle 5 are mounted the two main-carrying-wheels 6 of the chair, said carrying-wheels being arranged to turn upon the ends of the axle 5, and being each preferably provided on its outer side with a circular hand-rail 7, by grasping which the occupant of the chair can propel said chair, when he or she so desires.

To the front of the bottom-frame 1, at opposite sides of the same, are bolted or otherwise suitably secured, two pendent standards 8 which extend downward at the front of the chair, and within a short distance above the ground or floor. The lower ends of these standards 8 are extended horizontally forward so as to form two brackets 9, the body-portions of which extend horizontally parallel with each other, and the outer or front ends of which are preferably extended upward and forward, as at 10. Upon the outer ends of these outwardly and upwardly curved portions 10 are formed or suitably secured two vertical sockets 11 in which work the upper vertical ends of two forks 12; two caster-wheels 13 being journaled in the lower ends of said forks, and said castor-wheels serving to support the front end of the chair. Between the two brackets 9 is secured a footboard or platform 14 the front portion 16 of which curves upward and forward coincidently with the curvatures of the ends 10 of the brackets 9.

17 designates the frame of the back of the chair, this frame being also of oblong rectangular form, and being provided with a body-portion 18 of plaited cane, or other suitable material. The lower end of this back-frame 17 is connected to the rear end of the bottom-frame 1 by two, or any other suitable number of hinges 19, these hinges being of either the precise type shown, or of any other suitable type which will permit the back-frame 17 to be moved backward and forward upon the bottom-frame. Upon the upper end of the back-frame 17 is mounted a head-rest or support 20 which is of approximately oblong rectangular form, excepting that the top of the rest or support is of arched shape. From the lower end of this head rest or support 20 depend four, or any other suitable or preferred number of dowel-pins 22, which enter removably into a corresponding number of sockets 23 in the top-bar of the back-frame. The arrangement is such that when the head rest or support 20 is in position, it is securely retained by the dowel-pins 22, and also such that the head rest or support may be removed bodily from the back-frame when desired.