BACKPACK WITH INDICATOR LIGHTS

DESCRIPTION

The present patent concerns backpacks, and more specifically it concerns a new backpack with indicator lights that is applied to a wheelchair.

Backpacks or rucksacks are usually made of fabric, leather or plastic materials with metal or plastic inserts or accessories.

In fact, leather, being a highly breathable material, is ideal for use in the production of backpacks and is sufficiently resistant to weather agents and to wind, dust and the small stones thrown up by the wheels of other vehicles.

It is known that the visibility of a person sitting in a wheelchair is reduced due to the fact that its profile is much lower and narrower compared to a car or van. Moreover, wheelchairs are not equipped with lights, which are particularly necessary in case of poor visibility.

Front-wheel drive devices for wheelchairs, called traction units or wheelchair motors, are known, which basically consist of a front driving wheel activated by an electric motor that is integral with a handlebar provided with brakes and control devices in general, all made integral with a wheelchair for the disabled.

This solution cannot be used in poor visibility conditions, for example at night, due to the small size of the wheelchair and the absence of rear lighting devices.

Therefore, a new backpack applied to a wheelchair has been designed and manufactured, wherein said backpack is provided with lighting devices that can be activated directly by the user while driving the electric powered wheelchair.

The subject of the present patent is a new backpack that is provided with indicator lights and an external control unit, and is attached to a wheelchair, preferably for the disabled.

It is one object of the new backpack to increase the visibility of the passenger who places it against the back of the wheelchair, even in particularly difficult conditions, such as at night or when it rains heavily.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new backpack suited to be applied to a wheelchair and provided with direction indicators for the wheelchair.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new backpack suited to be applied to a wheelchair and to improve the visibility of the wheelchair's tail and stop light.

These and other direct and complementary objects are achieved by the new backpack with indicator lights, comprising a plastic or leather or fabric backpack, one or more sets of indicator lights, a control circuit connected to the wheelchair, and an electric battery.

The indicator lights are positioned on the back and on the top of the backpack.

Said indicator lights preferably consist of LEDs, preferably in different colours depending on the indication function with which they are associated.

According to the preferred solution, the backpack is equipped with: a set of indicator lights intended to signal a left turn, a set of indicator lights intended to signal a right turn, a set of indicator lights intended to serve as tail and stop lights.

According to the invention, the backpack can be equipped with an additional set of indicators intended to signal the presence or position of the vehicle.

All said sets of indicator lights are connected to the control circuit and the electric battery of the backpack.

The control circuit supervises and controls the switching on of each of said sets of indicator lights.

Said control circuit also includes a means for communication with an external unit suited to be connected to the vehicle in general and an ON/OFF switch or button.

According to the invention, said means of communication between said control circuit and said external unit suited to be connected to the vehicle in general can be an electric cable. Preferably, said means of communication between said control circuit and said external unit suited to be connected to the vehicle in general consists of a radio transmitter/receiver.

In particular, said control circuit includes a receiver suited to be coupled with and receive signals from said external unit that can be connected to the vehicle in general. Said external unit suited to be applied to the vehicle in general comprises a detection and communication circuit, possibly suited to be physically connected to certain mechanical parts or to the electrical system of the vehicle, and a radio frequency transmitter.

Said radio frequency transmitter can be any transmitter suited to be connected and to transmit information to said control circuit located on the backpack.

Said radio frequency transmitter can operate via Bluetooth technology, or it can operate through WiFi technology, or it can operate through any other radio technology. The external unit suited to be connected to the vehicle is usually powered by means of a small battery or by the electrical system of the wheelchair itself.

In the preferred solution, the external unit suited to be fixed to the vehicle is permanently connected to it.

According to the invention, said unit suited to be connected to the vehicle can be removable and if necessary connected to a socket provided on the vehicle.

According to the invention, the control circuit can be univocally coupled with the unit suited to be connected to the vehicle at the production stage, or the control circuit can be coupled from time to time with a unit suited to be connected to the vehicle already installed on the vehicle itself.

Said solution makes it possible to turn a normal wheelchair for the disabled into a vehicle equipped with all the devices that are necessary to make it safe for road circulation.

The new backpack is therefore particularly useful for disabled people who for mobility reasons need to use a wheelchair possibly equipped with a traction device. The backpack can also be carried on the shoulders, for example by an assistant, or applied to the wheelchair, as the control circuit is activated through the connection to the external unit fixed to the wheelchair frame.

When the user switches on the taillights or the direction indicators, or brakes, the external unit attached to the handlebar detects these events and signals them to the control circuit of the backpack. Consequently, the control circuit of the backpack activates the corresponding set or sets of indicator lights.

The drawings attached hereto illustrate an embodiment of the invention by way of nonlimiting example.

Figure 1 shows a rear view of the new backpack (A) with indicator lights.

The new backpack comprises a backpack (A) made of a plastic material, at least four sets of indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4), a control circuit (C), an electric battery (D), an external unit suited to be connected to the vehicle in general (E) (Fig. 3).

The indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4) are positioned on the back and on the top of the backpack (A).

In this example, the indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4) are gathered on a panel (B) that is fixed to the top back part of the backpack (A).

Said indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4) consist of LEDs and are divided into four sets.

There are: one set of indicator lights (Bl) intended to signal a left turn, one set of indicator lights (B2) intended to signal a right turn, one set of indicator lights (B3) intended to signal braking, one further set of indicators (B4) intended to signal the presence or position of the vehicle.

All said sets of indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4) are connected to the control circuit (C) and the electric battery (D).

In this example, said control circuit (C) and said electric battery (D) are housed in the lower part of the backpack (A). The control circuit (C) supervises and controls the switching on of each of said sets of indicator lights (Bl, B2, B3, B4).

Said control circuit (C) furthermore comprises a means (Cl) for communication with said external unit (E) suited to be connected to the vehicle in general and an ON/OFF switch or button (C2).

In this example, said means of communication (Cl) uses radio frequency signals to communicate with said external unit (E) that can be connected to the vehicle in general. Figures 2, 3 illustrate the preferred use of the new backpack with indicator lights, where the external unit (E) is applied to the handlebar (Tl) of a wheelchair (T) equipped with a motor or traction unit (P) and has its own electric battery (El). Said external unit (E) is connected to the brake levers (T2) and includes at least one on/off button (E2) and two direction indicator buttons (E3, E4). When the user brakes by means of the brake levers (T2), the external unit (E) sends a signal to the control circuit (C) of the backpack, which consequently activates the corresponding indicator light (B).

When the user wants to change direction, he/she presses the corresponding button (E3, E4) on the connectable external unit (E), which sends the corresponding signal to the control circuit (C) of the new backpack (A). In turn, said control circuit (C) activates the corresponding indicator light (Bl, B2) on the new backpack (A).

The new backpack (A) made as described above has considerable advantages.

The new backpack (A) increases the visibility of the user even in particularly difficult conditions such as, for example, at night or when it rains heavily.

The new backpack (A) applied to the wheelchair (T) not only increases its visibility, but also makes it possible to communicate the user’s intention to turn, or to brake or slow down to the vehicles behind, thus allowing them to behave accordingly.

In addition, according to the invention, to ensure proper visibility of the backpack (A), the same has a rigid or semi-rigid structure designed to maintain its compactness.

According to the invention, said wheelchair (T) can also be provided with a rear footboard (P2) suited to support a person or assistant. In this case, the backpack (A) can be conveniently carried by said person.

The new solution described above allows the backpack to be used in at least three different ways: • carried on the shoulders by the user,

• applied to the back of the wheelchair,

• carried on the shoulders of the assistant on the footboard.

According to the invention, furthermore, the external control unit (A), even applicable to the vehicle (T), is a mobile phone using communication technology such as Bluetooth or wi-fi, with the corresponding application.

Therefore, with reference to the above description and the attached drawings, the following claims are made.