The present invention relates to a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement.

Stairlift devices are known which make it possible to scale one or more flights of stairs when seated and they are generally used for elderly persons or persons with reduced mobility.

Such stairlift devices consist, substantially, of a conveyor assembly that can slide along a pair of parallel guides, one upper and one lower, which are connected to a vertical fixed structure adjacent to the stairs. The conveyor assembly generally has a frame to support a small armchair and a footboard for carrying the passenger and means of sliding actuation along the guides, which must enable the advancement of the entire assembly while keeping the armchair and the footboard in a fixed position with respect to the horizontal plane independently of the variation in inclination of the path defined by the guides, for example at landings.

In order to contain the space occupation of the stairlift when not in use, various solutions are available which enable the independent or simultaneous movement of the seat of the armchair and of the footboard between a closed, inactive configuration and an open configuration of use.

For example a solution is known that involves the user translating the seat forward by pulling it out and, once seated thereon, actuating the subsequent movement of the footboard by way of a suitable lever, or there is a version in which the footboard and the seat are supported by a tilting frame that is moved by the user between two configurations, raised and lowered, and when the frame is in the lowered position the footboard is rotated to the horizontal position by acting on a suitable lever.

Such solutions however are not optimal, since they require actuating two separate movements, both during opening and during closing, by the users, who very often have limited range of movement and possibility to exert effort. In order to facilitate the movement of the seat and the footboard by the users, a solution is known in which the seat and the footboard are pivoted to the frame about respective horizontal pins and a system with a stay cable acts in the direction of opening in order to obtain the simultaneous movement of the seat and the footboard.

This solution too, however, is not devoid of drawbacks among which is the fact that during closing the two elements must in any case be moved individually by the user.

Furthermore, the effort required to activate the opening of the seat and the footboard is considerable, given the resistance offered by the system.

The aim of the present invention is to eliminate the above mentioned drawbacks in the background art by providing a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement that enables the simultaneous movement, both during opening and during closing, of the seat and the footboard, while minimizing the actions and the effort required of the users.

Within this aim, an object of the present invention is to optimize the level of comfort for the users, taking account also of their reduced motor capacities and of their physical conditions, sometimes debilitated.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple structure that is easy and practical to implement, safe in use and effective in operation, and low cost.

This aim and these and other objects that will become more apparent hereinafter are achieved by a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement, comprising an assembly for conveying a passenger associated slideably along a pair of mutually parallel guides that can be associated with a substantially vertical fixed structure, said conveyor assembly comprising a frame for supporting an armchair with seat and a footboard, the seat and the footboard being associated respectively with a first rotation shaft and with a second rotation shaft, which are supported by said frame, and being movable by rotation between an open configuration of use and a closed, inactive configuration, and means being provided of moving said seat and said footboard between said configurations, characterized in that said movement means comprise a driving pulley that is integral with said first shaft, an additional rotation shaft that is integral in rotation with a transfer pulley, and at least one flexible element wound around said pulleys so as to define mutually opposite portions and having at least one point that rotates integrally with each one of said pulleys, means of transmitting rotation being further provided which are interposed between the additional shaft and the second shaft for the simultaneous movement of the seat and of the footboard both during opening and during closing.

Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become better apparent from the detailed description of two preferred, but not exclusive, embodiments of a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement, which are illustrated for the purposes of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevation view, partially transparent, of a first embodiment of a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement, according to the invention, with the seat and the footboard in the open configuration;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II of Figure i ;

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III of Figure i ;

Figure 4 is a front elevation view, partially transparent, of a stairlift of Figure 1 with the seat and the footboard in the closed configuration;

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V of Figure

4;

Figure 6 is a cross- sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of Figure

4;

Figures 7 and 8 are two views corresponding to Figures 2 and 5, which show a second embodiment of the stairlift according to the invention, which incorporates an alternative version of the movement means with a single flexible element.

With particular reference to such figures, the reference numeral 1 generally designates a stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement.

The device 1 comprises an assembly 2 for conveying a passenger which is associated slideably along a pair of mutually parallel guides 3, 4, an upper one 3 and a lower one 4, which in use are mounted in a cantilever fashion against a substantially vertical fixed structure, such as a wall or a railing adjacent to the stairs where the device is installed.

The guides 3 and 4 are constituted by respective profiled bars that are contoured to follow the path that the conveyor assembly 2 is to travel in relation to the shape structure of the stairs where the device 1 is to be installed.

The conveyor assembly 2 comprises a frame 5 for supporting an armchair 6 with seat 7 and a footboard 8.

The frame 5 is constituted by a substantially box-like housing closed by a front cover, not shown, inside which are accommodated translation actuation means 9 of the conveyor assembly 2 along the guides 3 and 4.

The armchair 6 with the corresponding seat 7 is arranged above the frame 5, while the footboard 8 is in front of it.

Advantageously, the seat 7 and the footboard 8 are associated, respectively, with a first rotation shaft 10 and with a second rotation shaft 11, which are supported rotatably and with horizontal arrangement by the frame 5.

The seat 7 and the footboard 8 are, therefore, movable by rotation about the respective shafts 10 and 11 between an open configuration of use (Figures 1-3), in which they are positioned substantially horizontal, and a closed, inactive configuration (Figures 4-6), in which they are rotated upward so as to be closed, respectively, toward the seat back of the armchair 6 and toward the frame 5, thus reducing the space occupation in plan view of the device 1.

The device 1 comprises, further, means 12 of moving the seat 7 and the footboard 8 both during opening and during closing.

The movement means 12 comprise a driving pulley 13 that rotates integrally with the first shaft 10, an additional shaft 14 that rotates integrally with a transfer pulley 15, and two flexible elements 16 and 17, rigid under traction, the respective mutually opposite ends of which are integral with the pulleys 13 and 14 and wound around them so as to define respective mutually opposite portions of an ideal ring wound around them.

The movement means 12 comprise, further, means 18 of transmitting rotation from the additional shaft 14 to the second shaft 11 in order to simultaneously actuate both the opening and the closing of the seat 7 and of the footboard 8.

During opening, in fact, the user imparts an anticlockwise (with reference to Figure 5) rotation to the seat 7 which rotates integrally with the first shaft 10 and with the driving pulley 13, in so doing pulling the flexible element 17 which actuates the rotation of the transfer pulley 15 with the additional shaft 14 and, therefore, by way of the transmission means 18, the rotation in the direction of opening of the footboard 8 of the second shaft 11.

Conversely, during closing, the user imparts a clockwise (with reference to Figure 2) rotation to the seat 7, which rotates integrally with the first shaft 10 and with the driving pulley 13, in so doing pulling the flexible element 16 which actuates the rotation of the transfer pulley 15 with the additional shaft 14 and, therefore, by way of the transmission means 18, the rotation in the direction of closing of the footboard 8 of the second shaft 11.

The additional shaft 14 is supported rotationally inside the frame 5, with horizontal arrangement and at the same height as the second shaft 11.

The flexible elements 16 and 17 are constituted by respective portions of metal cable the corresponding ends of which are rendered integral with the pulleys 13 and 15. The possibility is not ruled out, however, that there can be a single flexible element 38 (Figures 7 and 8) that is wound in the manner of a ring around the pulleys 13 and 15 and is coupled so that it can rotate with them, i.e. it has a point or a portion that is rendered integral with the peripheral region of each one of those pulleys. Alternatively, there could be a single open U-shaped flexible element wrapped around both of the pulleys 13 and 15 so as to define mutually opposite portions, which has its mutually opposite ends integral in rotation with one of the pulleys and an intermediate point or portion made integral in rotation with the other pulley.

Inside the frame 5 are cable-guide elements 19 and cable-run elements 20 to guide the flexible elements 16 and 17 and keep them under tension.

Conveniently the transmission means 18 have a transmission ratio greater than 1, such that the rotation angle traced by the seat 7 between the closed configuration and the open configuration is smaller than the angle traced by the footboard 8. By way of example it should be noted that in the versions shown, the rotation angle between the closed and open configurations of the footboard 8 is 90°, while that of the seat 7 is 75°.

In more detail, the transmission means 18 comprise a driving pinion

21 that rotates integrally with the additional shaft 14 and a transfer pinion

22 that is integral with the second shaft 11, on which a toothed flexible element 23 closed in a loop, such as a toothed belt, is wound.

Advantageously a torsion spring 25 is provided, which is wound onto the second shaft 11 and has one end connected to the frame 5 and the end arranged opposite connected to the footboard 8, in order to contrast the weight of the footboard during closing in order to reduce the effort required of the user on the seat 7 in order to actuate the closing movement, since during opening it is the weight of the seat and of the footboard that favors its movement. It should be noted that the actuation means 9 can have different structures and shape structures which are known to the person skilled in the art, they being substantially independent of the elements responsible for moving the seat 7 and the footboard 8.

In the embodiment shown, purely by way of example, the actuation means 9 comprise electric motor means 25 associated by virtue of the interposition of a screw gear reducer 26 with a first gearwheel 27 keyed on a primary shaft 28 that is integral in rotation with a first pinion 29 meshed with a toothing associated with the upper guide 3, a second gearwheel 30 associated with a secondary shaft 31 by virtue of the interposition of sliding friction means 32, a second pinion 33 that is integral in rotation with the secondary shaft 31 and meshed with a corresponding toothing defined on the lower guide 4, and an idle gearwheel 34 interposed between the gearwheels 27 and 30.

The toothings on the guides 3 and 4 are defined by a series of holes provided underneath those guides, in which the teeth of the pinions 29 and 33 mesh.

Furthermore, there is an upper roller trolley 35 and a lower roller trolley 36, which rest on the guides 3 and 4 respectively.

Finally, there is a conventional parachute device 37 which is not described in detail as it is conventional, which acts on the secondary shaft 31.

In practice it has been found that the invention as described achieves the intended aim and objects and, in particular, attention is drawn to the fact that the stairlift with facilitated seat/footboard movement permits a simultaneous movement of the seat and of the footboard with a single gesture by the user both during opening, and during closing.

Furthermore, the user is not required to exert excessive effort or uncomfortable movements in order to actuate such movement.

The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims.

Moreover, all the details may be substituted by other, technically equivalent elements.

In practice the materials employed, as well as the contingent dimensions and shapes, may be any according to requirements without for this reason departing from the scope of protection claimed herein.

The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. 102016000054148 (UA2016A003821) from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.

Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly, such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.