Weather Shield For Use With A Mobility Device

Abstract

The weather shield provides a collapsible canopy for use with mobility enhancing devices such as walkers and wheelchairs. The weather shield includes a plurality of support rods movable between collapsed and extended configurations. Transparent side, front, and rear panels extend downwardly from a canopy top. The weather shield is removably attachable to mobility devices with respective mounting members.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This non-provisional patent application claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 61/350,661 filed on Jun. 2, 2010, titled Weather Shield For Use With A Mobility Device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to shielding devices and, more particularly, to a weather shield for use with mobility enhancing devices for shielding the user from weather elements such as wind, rain, and sunshine.

Elderly or disabled persons often use mobility assisting devices such as walkers and wheelchairs to accommodate their lack of strength or balance. Such persons are particularly disadvantaged from being able to avoid wind, rain, snow, bright sunlight or other weather elements in that holding an umbrella or simply moving faster to shelter may not be feasible while operating the mobility device. Without having a means for adapting traditional weather shielding devices to operate with a mobility device, elderly or disabled persons would be unable to be as mobile as other people.

Various devices have been proposed in the prior art for adapting a wheelchair to shield a user from wind and rain. Although assumably effective for their intended purposes, the existing devices and patents are not adequately adaptable for quick attachment, release, and operation with both walkers, wheelchairs, or other portable chairs having arms.

Therefore, it would be desirable to have a weather shield having a canopy that is easily mountable to a wheelchair, walker, or other mobility enhancing device. Further, it would be desirable to have a weather shield that is selectively collapsible for changing weather conditions or for storage. In addition, it would be desirable to have a weather shield that is easy to use by an elderly, arthritic, or disabled person.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The weather shield provides a collapsible canopy for use with mobility enhancing devices such as walkers and wheelchairs. The weather shield includes a plurality of support rods movable between collapsed and extended configurations. Transparent side, front, and rear panels extend downwardly from a canopy top. The weather shield is removably attachable to mobility devices with respective mounting members. In addition, the weather shield is attachable to other chairs having arms, such lawn chairs, beach chairs, and the like.

Therefore, a general object of this invention is to provide a weather shield for use with a mobility enhancing device such as a walker or wheelchair that shields a user from weather elements such as sun and rain.

Another object of this invention is to provide a weather shield, as aforesaid, that is easy to mount and remove to a mobility device.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a weather shield, as aforesaid, having a canopy that is expandable and collapsible.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a weather shield, as aforesaid, that is cost effective to manufacture.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein is set forth by way of illustration and example, embodiments of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a weather shield according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention in use with a walker;

FIG. 2 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from a portion of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the weather shield as in FIG. 1 in use with a shielded walker;

FIG. 4 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from a portion of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the weather shield as in FIG. 1 in use with a wheelchair; and

FIG. 6 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from a portion of FIG. 5.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A weather shield for use with a mobility device will now be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings. The weather shield 10 includes a canopy 12, a front shielding portion 30, a rear shielding portion 40, and a mounting member.

The weather shield 10 includes a plurality of support rods 14 that are each strong and durable yet light. Preferably, the support rods are constructed of carbon fiber although other suitable materials may be used. Respective first ends of each rod are operatively coupled to a base member 16, it being understood that there is a left base member with corresponding support rods and a right base member with corresponding support rods 14 (FIG. 1). Preferably, the quantity of left support rods is the same as the quantity of right side support rods. The first end of each support rod 14 is pivotally coupled to a respective base member 16 and selectively movable between forward and rearward configurations. In other words, each support rod 14 is configured to allow a relatively small amount of frontward and backward movement of the support rods (FIG. 2) so that the canopy 12 may be selectively collapsible and extendable in use as will be described in further detail later.

The canopy 12 includes a canopy top 18 fixedly attached to respective second ends of the plurality of support rods 14, the canopy top 18 extending between the left and right sets of support rods 14. The canopy top 18 is constructed of a weatherproof fabric material that is flexible enough so as to enable the canopy 12 to collapse when the support rods 14 are urged forwardly or rearwardly toward one another. The canopy top 18 may be substantially opaque so as to inhibit transmission of solar energy therethrough and, thus, protect a user from harsh sunlight. The canopy top 18 is preferably constructed of a flexible material that will itself collapse when the plurality of rods 14 are moved to respective collapsed configurations.

Further, the weather shield 10 includes a front shielding portion 30 configured as a panel attached to a front edge of the canopy top 18 and extending generally downwardly therefrom. It is understood that the front shielding portion 30 has a vertical length that is less than a length of the support rods 14. In other words, the front shielding portion 30 will not extend beyond the top of a walker 7 when attached thereto, as particularly shown in FIG. 1. Preferably, the front portion 30 is constructed of a transparent weatherproof material so that a user may see through it while still being shielded from weather elements.

The front shielding portion 30 of the canopy 12 may include side panels 20 that cover the support rods 14 so as to shield a user from weather elements. Each side panel 20 may be connected to opposed side edges of the canopy top 18 and extend downwardly therefrom. The side panels 20 are preferably constructed of a transparent material so as not to inhibit a user from seeing therethrough. The side panels 20 are also preferably constructed of a moisture resistant material to deflect weather elements such as rain or snow. As described relative to the front shielding portion 30, the side panels 20 may include a length that does not extend low enough to touch the mobility device.

The weather shield 10 may also include a rear shielding portion 40 configured as a panel attached to a rear edge of the canopy top 18 and extending generally downwardly therefrom. The rear portion 40 of the canopy 12 may also be attached to rear edges of respective side panels 20. Preferably, the rear shielding portion 40 includes a length that is longer than the length of the front shielding portion 30. When in use with a walker 7 (as shown in FIG. 1), the rear portion 40 would be able to cover the complete length of a standing person. Preferably, the rear shielding portion 40 is constructed of a transparent moisture resistant material so that a user may see through it while still being shielded from weather elements.

The weather shield 10 includes a mounting member 42 adjacent respective left and right side support rod base members 16. The mounting member 42 may include multiple variations so as to selectively mount the weather shield 10 to respective frame structures of walkers and wheelchairs, including electric wheelchairs. For instance, the mounting member 42 shown particularly in FIG. 2 is most suitable for mounting to a traditional walker 7 having no wheels or two front wheels (FIG. 1). The mounting member 42 shown in FIG. 2 includes a clamp having front and back members that can sandwich a walker support member and be tightened thereabout with two oversized knobs. Mounting the weather shield to a mobile walker 8 as shown in FIG. 3 requires auxiliary mounting means. More particularly, an auxiliary clamp 44 is used to removably couple an auxiliary mounting member 46 to the mobile walker 8 (FIG. 4). Then, the mounting member 42 described above may be used to couple the weather shield 10. Similarly, auxiliary mounting members 48 having a slightly different configuration may be attached to respective handles of a wheelchair with associated clamps 50. Then, the mounting member 42 described previously may be used to couple the weather shield 10 to a wheelchair. It should be observed that when used with a wheelchair, the weather shield 10 is mounted with the rear portion 40 of the canopy 12 oriented to the front of the wheelchair.

It is understood that embodiments of the weather shield 10 may be provided that are particularly configured and suited for attachment to and use with other portable sitting devices, such as lawn chairs, beach chairs, and the like.

In use, the weather shield 10 may be mounted to a mobility device such as a wheelchair, walker, electric wheelchair, or the like and configured to shield a user from weather conditions such as sunlight, rain, snow, and the like. The weather shield 10 may be mounted to an appropriate frame structure of the mobility device with one or more mounting members 42 as described above. The plurality of support rods 14 may be moved between forward and rearward configurations to expand or collapse the top canopy 18 as desired. The front 30 and rear 40 shielding portions shield a user from weather conditions while still enabling vision therethrough.

Accordingly, the weather shield 10 provides a protective barrier between weather elements and a person using a mobility enhancement device such as a walker or wheelchair. Further, the weather shield may be easily adapted for use with most types of mobility devices.

Claims

1. A weather shield for use with a mobility device having spaced apart frame structures, said weather shield comprising:

a left base member operatively coupled to the mobility device;

a right base member operatively coupled to the mobility device;

a plurality of support rods coupled to said left and right base members, each support rod having a first end pivotally connected to said left or right base member, respectively, such that said support rod is selectively movable between forward and rearward configurations;

wherein each support rod includes a second end opposed from said support rod first end so as to define a plurality of left side support rod second ends and a plurality of right side support rod second ends;

a canopy top attached to said second ends of said plurality of support rods, respectively, and spanning substantially between said left side support rod second ends and said right said support rod second ends;

a front shielding portion attached to a front edge of said canopy top and extending downwardly therefrom, said front shielding portion having a generally transparent construction;

wherein: said canopy top includes a generally opaque construction configured to inhibit transmission of solar energy therethrough; and said canopy top and said front shielding portion are constructed of a moisture resistant material.

2. The weather shield as in claim 1, wherein:

said front shielding portion includes a pair of opposed side panels;

each side panel is attached to opposed side edges of said canopy top and extending downwardly therefrom; and

said side panels are constructed of a generally transparent and moisture resistant material.

3. The weather shield as in claim 1, further comprising a pair of mounting members removably coupled to the spaced apart frame structures of the mobility device, said left and right base members being attached to respective mounting members such that said canopy top is removed from the mobility device when said pair of mounting members are removed from the mobility device frame structures.

4. The weather shield as in claim 1, wherein a quantity of said plurality of support rods coupled to said left base member is equal to a quantity of said plurality of support rods coupled to said right base member.

5. The weather shield as in claim 1, wherein said front shielding portion includes a downwardly extending length that is less than a length of said plurality of support rods such that said front shielding portion does not contact the mobility device.

6. The weather shield as in claim 5, further comprising a rear shielding portion attached to a rear edge of said canopy top and extending downwardly therefrom, said front shielding portion having a generally transparent construction.

7. The weather shield as in claim 6, wherein said rear shielding portion includes a downwardly extending length that is greater than said length of said plurality of support rods, such that said rear shielding portion shields a rear portion of the mobility device.

8. The weather shield as in claim 7, wherein said rear shielding portion is constructed of a moisture resistant material.

9. The weather shield as in claim 1, wherein:

said plurality of support rods are selectively movable to one of said forward or rearward configurations at the same time such that said plurality of support rods are at a collapsed configuration for storage; and

said canopy top is constructed of a flexible material that collapses when said plurality of support rods are at said collapsed configuration.

10. The weather shield as in claim 3, wherein each of said pair of mounting members includes a clamp having front and back members configured to adjustably sandwich a respective mobility device support structure therebetween.

11. The weather shield as in claim 10, wherein said each of said pair of mounting members includes an auxiliary clamp separated from said clamp and configured to displace said plurality of support rods above the mobility device.