The entire contents of Taiwan Patent Application No. 108102441, filed on Jan. 22 2019, from which this application claims priority, are expressly incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to a balance mechanism and a mobile medical device, such as a mobile medical trolley or cart, having the balance mechanism.
Apparatus or devices commonly used in daily life, especially medical devices, must be designed with their weight configuration in mind to prevent changes in weight balance during use or operation of the apparatus or device, which may result in danger to the user.
For example, Taiwan Patent Publication No. M433066, discloses a “connector capable of bridging chair leg to form device-supporting frame.” The connector is suitable for connecting an office computer chair, and mainly includes a connecting base, a telescopic sliding set, a supporting mechanism, and a torque-balancing set. The connection base connects to a center leg of the computer chair. One end of the telescopic slide set connects to the left side of the connecting base, and the other end of the telescopic slide set connects to the supporting mechanism. The telescopic slide set is used to adjust the distance between the supporting mechanism and the center leg. The supporting mechanism is wheeled for in contact with the ground. The upper portion of the supporting mechanism can be connected to a notebook holder for holding a notebook computer. The torque-balancing set attaches to the right side of the connecting base and includes a weighting bar and a weighting block to balance the weight of the entire connector.
Taiwan Patent Publication No. TW201813487A discloses a supporting stand that comprises a body and a bracket. The base includes a sliding rail structure, which includes a first rail and a second rail. The bracket is slidably disposed on the sliding rail structure and adapted to slide along the first rail and the second rail. When the bracket slides along the first rail, the bracket moves upward or downward relative to the base, and when the bracket slides along the second rail, a tilting angle between the bracket and the base is changed.
Chinese Patent Application No. CN104220003A discloses an “X-ray imaging apparatus” used for X-rays detection of head and teeth. As described in the specification, the conventional X-ray imaging apparatus has a head image-capturing portion at the end of a supporting arm extending on one side of a lifter, and a panoramic image portion is mounted in front thereof. When overlooking the existing X-ray imaging apparatus, the head image-capturing portion and the panoramic image portion are both disposed at one side with the base as the center, causing a change of the barycenter of the apparatus.
In order to solve the above problems, the patent provides an X-ray imaging apparatus including an X-ray generator that generates X-rays, an X-ray detector that detects X-rays emitted from the X-ray generator, and a shutter that passes through a portion of X-rays and blocks the remaining X-rays. The X-ray imaging apparatus is characterized by further comprising a supporting mechanism that not only supports the X-ray generator and the X-ray detector but also changes the heights of the X-ray generator and the X-ray detector. The X-ray generator and the X-ray detector are disposed on the left and right sides relative to the center of the supporting mechanism for weight balance.
US Patent Publication No. US 2008/0090199 discloses a dental optical diagnostic apparatus having a main body. The inside of the main body contains various light sources and optical systems thereof, a detector and a demodulator of signal light, an optical image visualizing circuit, an image display circuit and an image processing section including a signal light scanning region specifying circuit and an operation section. The optical diagnostic apparatus also comprises a pole standing up from the operation section, a display section fitted to the pole at the height of the viewer's eyes and a multi joint arm extending transversally from the front end of the pole. The multi joint arm has a pivot at the front end thereof, to which a dental diagnostic probe is fitted. The probe by turn has a pivot at the base end and an observation window at the front end and contains in the inside the optical system of the OCT apparatus for picking up a surface image and acquiring an optical tomography. The observation window at the front end of the diagnostic probe does not shake and can be brought into contact with the dental part of the subject at a predetermined site by attitude control, using the multi joint arm and the pivot of the probe. This patent does not address the safe design of preventing dumping due to changes in the center of gravity of the apparatus during the movement.
In recent years, mobile apparatus, especially mobile medical apparatus, have continued evolve in weight configuration design because of the safety requirements during use or operation and the need to comply with national regulations.
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a balance mechanism and a mobile medical device that can overcome the problem of dumping caused by changing the center of gravity due to instantaneous pulling force or uneven road during the transportation.
According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a balancing mechanism is provided to include a working device, a connecting arm assembly, a torque-balancing group, a weighting member, and a connecting member. The connecting arm assembly has a variable length and is connected to the working device. The torque-balancing assembly and the connecting arm group are pivotally connected to a pivot. The weighting member is coupled to the torque-balancing assembly. The connecting member connects the connecting arm assembly and the torque-balancing assembly. Thereby, as the distance between the working device and the pivot varies, the distance between the weighting member and the pivot caries as well, so that a dynamic balance of the balance mechanism can be achieved.
According to another embodiment of the disclosure, a mobile medical device is provided to include a supporting mechanism, a working device, a connecting arm assembly, a torque-balancing assembly, a weighting member, and a connecting member. The connecting arm assembly has a variable length and is coupled to the working device and the supporting mechanism. The torque-balancing assembly and the connecting arm assembly are pivotally connected to a pivot. The weighting member is coupled to the torque-balancing assembly. The connecting member connects the connecting arm assembly and the torque-balancing assembly. The weight of the working device and the distance between the working device and the pivot generate a first torque. The weight of the weighting member and the distance between the weighting member and the pivot generate a second torque. The second torque changes with the first torque.
Embodiments of the disclosure are now described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, instances of which are to be interpreted to be to scale in some implementations while in other implementations, for each instance, not. In certain aspects, use of like or the same reference designators in the drawings and description refers to the same, similar or analogous components and/or elements, while according to other implementations the same use should not. According to certain implementations, use of directional terms, such as, top, bottom, left, right, up, down, over, above, below, beneath, rear, front, clockwise, and counterclockwise, are to be construed literally, while in other implementations the same use should not. While the disclosure will be described in conjunction with these specific embodiments, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the disclosure to these embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims. In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. The present disclosure may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well-known process operations and components are not described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present disclosure. While drawings are illustrated in detail, it is appreciated that the quantity of the disclosed components may be greater or less than that disclosed, except where expressly restricting the amount of the components.
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It should be noted that in other embodiments of the present disclosure the link set 122 may have other configurations, which may also have the pivotal terminal 1223, slidable terminal 1226, and the fulcrum 1224, wherein the pivotal terminal 1223 and the connecting arm assembly 11 are pivotally connected to the pivot 15, the slidable terminal 1226 is movably coupled to the cantilever 121, and the fulcrum 1224 is connected to one end of the connecting member 14.
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The features and advantages of the present disclosure will now be described with the balance mechanism 2 of the embodiment shown in
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In some embodiments of the disclosure, the balance mechanism 1 (or balance mechanism 2) is designed such that the second torque is always greater than or equal to the first torque for any operation state. Wherein, the second torque is at most 1.3 times the first torque to ensure that the balance mechanism 1 (or the balance mechanism 2) has a sufficient safety factor. In some embodiments, the weight of the weighting member 13 can be up to 1.3 times the weight of the working device 10.
The balance mechanism provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to many devices or apparatus. In some embodiments, the balance mechanism is applied to a mobile medical device or apparatus, such as a mobile medical trolley, or a medical cart. In these applications, the working device 10 may be a medical probe, a detecting head or a camera device such as, but not limited to, a dental x-ray camera or a medical skin cancer detector.
The medical trolley and medical cart provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can pass the relevant safety test, including the test specified in section 9.4.2.2 of IEC60601-1. The test method is as follows: the medical device is placed on a horizontal surface, and except for the patient-supporting surface any working surface of the medical device is applied with a maximum torque of 800 N, which is always downward. This working surface shall provide an apparent foothold or a surface that can sit with a minimum area of 20 cm×20 cm and a height of no more than 1 m from the ground. If the medical device overbalances, the test fails.
The medical trolley and medical cart provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can pass the safety test specified in section 9.4.2.3 of IEC60601-1. The test method is as follows: mobile medical devices weighing more than 45 kg should be able to cross a threshold of 10 mm height without causing unacceptable risks. The medical device is configured for handling and is equipped with a secure workload at the location specified in the document. The medical device moves forward 10 times faster than normal use, spanning a solid vertical obstacle that is rectangular in cross-section, 10 mm high, 80 mm wide and fastened to the ground. Whether it's a hand-held or engine-driven mobile medical device, all wheels and casters must hit the obstacle at a speed of 0.4 m/s to 0.1 m/s, which is the maximum speed at which the device can maintain balance. It is unacceptable that medical device cannot cross this obstacle. Overbalance or any other unacceptable risk is failure.
The medical trolley and medical cart provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can pass the safety test specified in section 9.4.2.1 of IEC60601-1. The test method is as follows: the medical device or its components cannot overbalance on a plane with a 10° inclined angle relative to the horizontal plane under any normal use of the handling state. Before testing, prepare the medical device in accordance with the requirements of the document. The medical device or its components are placed on a plane at a 10° angle relative to the horizontal. If the medical device or its components overbalance, the test fails.
The medical trolley and medical cart provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can pass the safety test specified in section 9.4.2.2 of IEC60601-1. The test method is as follows: except for the handling state, when placed in any normal use position, the medical device or its components cannot overbalance on a 5° inclined plane relative to the horizontal.
According to the balance mechanism and the mobile medical device provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, a dynamic balance can be achieved, and the center of gravity of the device can be prevented from being significantly changed caused by an instantaneous pulling force or tilted or uneven road during the transportation, and thereby the problem of easy to dump of the prior art can be improved.
Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, which is intended to be limited solely by the appended claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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108102441 | Jan 2019 | TW | national |