A patient transport apparatus is provided for use with a retainer of a transport vehicle. The patient transport apparatus comprises a support structure comprising a patient support surface to support a patient. An engagement member is coupled to the support structure and arranged to engage the retainer when unloading the patient transport apparatus from the transport vehicle. A dampener is operable in a standby state or a resistance state such that the dampener provides increased resistance to movement of the patient transport apparatus in the resistance state as compared to the standby state. The resistance state of the dampener is activated by manually moving the patient transport apparatus in a first direction and the standby state is activated by manually moving the patient transport apparatus in a second direction, opposite the first direction.

A wheel for a non-motorized vehicle (e.g., a shopping cart) can include a housing assembly and a tread assembly. The housing assembly can be configured to sealingly house electronics or other components. The tread assembly can removably mate with the housing assembly such that the electronics or other components remain closed and/or sealed within the housing assembly when the tread assembly is mated or unmated with the housing assembly.

An article movement system includes an article and at least one ball wheel. The article has first and second article surfaces meeting at a first article edge. The ball wheel is located along the first article edge and includes a ball, a bearing arrangement and a shell. The ball engages a surface underlying the article, the bearing arrangement supports the ball for omni-directional rotational movement, and the shell is located along the first article edge and contains the ball and the bearing arrangement. The shell defines a non-circular ball opening through which a portion of the ball extends to contact the underlying surface. The article, the bearing arrangement and the shell are configured such that the ball wheel is able to support the article for omni-directional rolling motion over the underlying surface with either of the first and article surfaces parallel thereto, and at any orientation therebetween.

It is described herein a table which may comprise a panel (100), a first extendable leg (200), a second extendable leg (300), a first foot (400), a second foot (500), and a control assembly (600). The first extendable leg may be connected at a first end to a bottom surface of the panel adjacent to a first edge of the panel. The second extendable leg may be connected at a first end to the bottom surface of the panel adjacent to a second edge of the panel opposite the first edge of the panel. The first extendable leg may be connected at a second end to a top surface of the first foot. The second extendable leg may be connected at a second end to a top surface of the second foot. The first foot may further comprise a pair of first casters connected to a bottom surface of the first foot. The second foot may further comprise a pair of second casters connected to a bottom surface of the second foot. At least one of the first extendable leg and the second extendable leg may further comprise a linear actuator electrically connected to a battery of the control assembly.

A caster assembly comprises a caster wheel having an outer surface. A wheel support is coupled to the wheel to support the wheel for rotation about a rotational axis and for swiveling about a swivel axis. A brake assembly comprises a brake having a cammed wheel engaging surface shaped to engage the outer surface of the wheel and a brake actuator to move the brake relative to the wheel from an unbraked position to a braked position in which the brake limits rotation of the wheel about the rotational axis. The cammed wheel engaging surface is arranged to articulate relative to the wheel support. The cammed wheel engaging surface articulates relative to the wheel support in response to the wheel rotating about the rotational axis after the brake is initially placed in the braked position such that the cammed wheel engaging surface more deeply engages the wheel with rotation of the wheel about the rotational axis.

A castor structure includes a wheel support unit, an operation unit, a locking member, a directional member, a directional brake member, a bent elastic bar, and two resting members. The operation unit includes a drive shank formed with an annular groove which has an upper tapered face and a lower tapered face. The locking member includes a plurality of locking teeth. The directional brake member includes a plurality of directional toothed grooves. The elastic bar extends through the directional member and the annular groove. Thus, the elastic bar is stretched outward by the annular groove of the drive shank when the drive shank is moved downward, to provide a micro-adjustment effect, such that the directional toothed grooves of the directional brake member align with and exactly engage the locking teeth of the locking member.

A wardrobe capable of being moved into and out of a hotel room, and into and out of a storage room, is disclosed. The wardrobe comprises a top, a bottom, two side walls, a back, and four wheels along the bottom, where the wardrobe would otherwise touch the floor. The wheels can optionally be lockable wheels. The wardrobe also includes a means for attachment to one or more walls in a room in which the wardrobe will be used. Suitable means for attachment include holes through which pins can be inserted, pins which fit into holes in a wall, Velcro or other hook and loop attachments, straps, ropes, magnets, clips, cotter pins, and the like. The wardrobe can optionally include one or more additional elements, including one or more doors, one or more drawers, shelves, closet rods, tie/belt racks, mirrors, cubby holes, a cover for the wheels, a safe, and crown, chair, and/or base molding.

A caster wheel assembly includes a vertical axis brake and barrier-traversing member. The caster shaft housing contains a stator surface adjacent the caster wheel assembly. The barrier-traversing member with barrier contact surface is biasedly fastened to the caster wheel assembly. A brake pad member is attached to the barrier-traversing member opposite the barrier contact surface and adjacent the stator surface. In operation, the moving caster wheel assembly first contacts an obstacle with the barrier contact surface of the barrier-traversing member. The encountered obstacle elevates the barrier-traversing member and attached brake pad member into contact with the stator surface of the caster shaft housing, thereby restraining rotation of the caster wheel assembly. Then, further forward movement of the rotation-restrained caster wheel assembly allows the barrier-traversing member to elevate the caster wheel, transfer load to the caster wheel, and thereby more easily traverse the obstacle.

The present disclosure relates to a caster, having a housing, having an axle pin which is arranged in a housing opening which is oriented substantially horizontally, and on which at least one wheel is mounted, having, at the top, a pin opening oriented substantially vertically, for receiving a pivot pin, and having a braking device which brakes the at least one wheel, wherein the housing opening for the axle pin allows limited vertical displaceability of the axle pin and the braking device comprises at least one resilient housing part which acts on the axle pin. In order to provide a mechanically reliable braking device, the braking device is additionally provided with at least one spring element which cooperates with the at least one resilient housing part and amplifies the effect of its braking force and/or increases the mechanical load-bearing capacity of the at least one resilient housing part.

A caster brake device includes a brake gear, receiving unit, driving unit, elastic element and operating unit connected to the driving unit. The brake gear is disposed at an axle or wheel of a mobile carrier. Stop slots are disposed at the brake gear circumferentially. The receiving unit has a penetrating recess corresponding in position to the stop slots. The driving unit is disposed in the receiving unit and includes a penetrating portion corresponding in position to the penetrating recess and a stop spindle penetrating the penetrating recess and the penetrating portion. Two ends of the stop spindle correspond in position to the stop slots and thus are movably confined to the penetrating recess to enter or exit the stop slots. The elastic element has two ends abutting against the receiving unit and driving unit, respectively, to enable the stop spindle to undergo reciprocating motion within the penetrating recess.