Patent Application
20110083272
This invention relates generally to patient handling devices, such as, but not limited to, beds, stretchers, cots, and other ambulatory supports that are commonly found in hospital or care-giving institutions, and more particularly to improved patient handling devices. Patient handling devices typically include a deck portion upon which a patient may sit or lie. The deck portion often is divided into different sections, some of which are pivotable about horizontal pivot axes, thereby allowing, for example, the patient to switch from lying completely flat to a position in which he or she is sitting up. The deck portion is attached to, or supported by, a frame which is, in turn, supported on a base. The base typically includes wheels that allow the device to be wheeled to different locations. One or more lifting mechanisms may be mounted between the base and the frame to allow the frame to be raised and lowered with respect to the base. A variety of different controls, such as buttons, handles, cranks, pedals, and other devices may be used to control and operate the various movements of the components of the patient handling device.
The present invention provides, in at least some embodiments, a patient handling device that includes one or more improved controls for manipulating one or more of the movable components on the patient handling device. Such controls may include a control for manually pivoting a head portion of the deck, a control for electrically pivoting a head portion of the deck, controls for lifting or lowering the deck vertically with respect to the base, controls for pivoting a knee gatch upward or downward, and other controls. Such controls overcome or alleviate one or more disadvantages of prior controls.
According to one embodiment, a patient handling device is provided that includes a base, a frame, a deck, an electric actuator, first and second siderails, and first and second control panels. The base includes a plurality of wheels that allow the patient handling device to be moved to different locations. The frame is supported by the base. The deck supports a patient and includes an upper section positioned to support a patient's torso and a seat section positioned adjacent to the upper section which is pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis between a horizontal and a raised orientation. The electric actuator pivots the upper section about the horizontal pivot axis. The first siderail is positioned along a first side of the deck, and the second siderail is positioned along a second side of the deck. The first control panel is supported on the first siderail at a location spaced a first distance from a head end of the device, and the second control panel is supported on the second siderail at a location spaced a second distance from the head end of the device, wherein the first distance is different from the second distance.
According to another embodiment, a patient handling device is provided that includes a base, a frame, a deck, an electric actuator, first and second handles, and a cable. The frame is supported on the base and the frame supports the deck. The deck supports a patient and includes an upper section that is pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis between a horizontal and a raised orientation. The electric actuator pivots the upper section about the horizontal pivot axis and is switchable between a first state in which rotation of the upper section about the pivot axis is permitted to occur electrically and a second state in which rotation of the upper section about the pivot axis is permitted to occur manually. The first and second handles are positioned adjacent first and second corners of the upper section of the deck. The cable is operatively coupled to both the first and second handles and the electric actuator in such a way so that squeezing of either or both of the first and second handles causes the electric actuator to switch from the first state to the second state, and squeezing the first handle does not increase the amount of force necessary to squeeze the second handle.
According to still another embodiment, a patient handling device is provided that includes a base, a frame, a plurality of lifts, a deck, and a pedal. The base supports the frame. The plurality of lifts are positioned between the frame and the base and raise and lower the frame relative to the base. The deck supports a patient and includes an upper section pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis between a horizontal and a raised orientation. The pedal is coupled to the base and movable between a raised position and a lowered position. The pedal activates an electric switch after the pedal has been moved downward from the raised position but prior to the pedal reaching the lowered position. The electric switch activates the plurality of lifts to raise the deck.
According to still another aspect, a patient handling device is provided that includes a base, a frame, a deck, an electric actuator, a biasing member and a control. The base supports the frame and the frame supports the deck. The deck supports a patient and includes an upper section pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis between a horizontal and a raised orientation. The electric actuator pivots the upper section about the horizontal pivot axis and is switchable between a first state in which rotation of the upper section about the pivot axis is permitted to occur electrically, and a second state in which rotation of the upper section about the pivot axis is permitted to occur manually. The control switches the electric actuator between the first and second states. The biasing member urges the upper section toward the raised position and, when the electric actuator is in the second state, the biasing member prevents the upper section from free-falling toward the horizontal position.
According to still other aspects, the biasing member may be a gas strut. The patient handling device may specifically be a stretcher. The first and second control panels may include controls for automatically pivoting the upper section of the deck about the horizontal pivot axis. The first and second controls may be positioned along the first and second siderails in staggered locations to thereby position one of the control panels for use when the upper section of the deck is raised, and position the other one of the control panels for use when the upper section is lowered. The cable may be a Bowden cable. The handles may be independently coupled to the cable such that squeezing one of the handles does not automatically cause the other handle to be squeezed. The interconnection of the handles to the cable may also be constructed such that the amount of force necessary to squeeze one of the handles after the other one has already been squeezed is less than the amount of force necessary to squeeze one of the handles when the other one has not already been squeezed. The various states of the electric actuator may be defined by a clutch inside the actuator being activated or not activated.
A patient handling device 20 according to one embodiment is depicted in
Base 22 includes a plurality of wheels 34 (
Deck 28, in the illustrated embodiment, is divided into four sections: an upper or head section 42 (also referred to as a Fowler section), a seat section 44, a thigh section 46, and a foot section 48. In some embodiments, deck 28 may be divided into fewer or greater numbers of sections. In the illustrated embodiment, upper deck section 42 is pivotable about a horizontal pivot axis 50 between a lowered orientation (such as illustrated in
A pair of siderails 52 are positioned on either side of deck 28 and help prevent a patient from rolling, or otherwise falling, off of deck 28. Siderails 52 are moveable between a raised orientation and a lowered orientation. In the embodiment illustrated in
Control panels 58 and 60 may include additional or alternative controls 62 for controlling other aspects of patient handling device 20. Such other controls may include controls for moving lifts 24 up and down (either simultaneously or independently), controls for automatically pivoting one or more of the other deck sections 44, 46, and/or 48 about various horizontal pivot axes, and any other controls for which it is desirable for a patient positioned on deck 28 to have ready access to. The pivoting movement of the other deck sections 44, 46, and/or 48 may include the pivoting of a knee gatch. That is, thigh section 46 may be pivoted about a pivot axis 47 such that a foot end 49 of thigh section 46 is lifted or lowered vertically (
As can be seen more clearly in
In the embodiment illustrated in
The pivoting of head section 42 about pivot axis 50 may be carried out on patient device 20 either manually or electrically. The manner in which the electrical pivoting of head section 42 is carried out is illustrated in greater detail in
Electrical actuator 68 may receive its power from one or more batteries positioned on patient handling device 20, or it may receive its power from a wall outlet into which an electrical cord on patient handling device 20 may be plugged, or both. The provision of both an electrical cord and batteries on patient handling device 20 allows it to maintain power while being transported to different locations, including locations where no external source of power may be available, while also allowing device 20 to utilize external power (and thereby conserve battery power) when it is stationary and within the vicinity of such a source of external power (such as a wall outlet).
Electrical actuator 68 may be a conventional linear actuator that converts the rotary motion of motor 70 into linear displacement of actuator rod 72. Electrical actuator 68 is configured to be switchable between at least two different states. In a first state, electrical actuator 68 effectively prevents any pivoting motion of head section 42 unless motor 70 is running. In a second state, electrical actuator 68 allows free pivoting of head section 42 about pivot axis 50. In the embodiment illustrated, electrical actuator 68 switches between the first and second states by way of an internal clutch (not shown), or clutch-type mechanism. Such clutches and clutch-type mechanisms are known in the art and their internal design need not be described further. In the first state, the clutch is engaged and the rotary motion of motor 70, if running, is transferred by the clutch to actuator rod 72, thereby causing actuator rod 72 to move linearly. If the motor is not running while actuator 68 is in the first state, the engaged clutch substantially prevents actuator rod 72 from moving linearly. The engaged clutch therefore prevents head section 42 from falling downward to its lowered orientation and maintains head section 42 in its current orientation. When the clutch is disengaged and actuator 68 is in the second state, actuator 68 provides no significant resistance to the pivoting movement of head section 42 about axis 50. When in the second state, therefore, actuator 68 allows for the manual pivoting of head section 42, as will be described more below.
As can be seen more clearly in any of
In addition to first and second handles 86 and 88, handle assembly 84 includes a first lever 90, a second lever 92, a cable connector 94, a pair of return springs 96, and various bushings to allow the handles 86 and 88 and levers 90 and 92 to rotate (
Each lever 90 and 92 includes an aperture defined at one end through which a bushing may be inserted to allow levers 90 and 92 to rotate about pivot axes 106 and 108, respectively (
In a similar manner, the squeezing of second handle 88 will cause handle 88 to pivot about second pivot axis 102. This pivoting will force lip 112 of second handle 88 against flange 110 of second lever 92, thereby causing second lever 92 to pivot about second pivot axis 108. Because second lever 92 is also connected to cable connector 94, the pivoting motion of second lever 92 will also pull the internal cable within cable 82 toward head end 30 of patient handling device 20. This pulling of the internal cable will disengage the internal clutch inside electric actuator 68, thereby allowing manual rotation of head section 42 about pivot axis 50.
As can be seen in
By requiring substantially the same, or less, force to squeeze one of the handles after the other handle is squeezed, at least one disadvantage of some prior art stretcher handles is overcome. In some prior art stretchers, the initial squeezing of a handle will substantially increase the amount of force required to squeeze the other handle. An example of such a prior art patient handling device is found in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 7,124,456 entitled Articulated Support Surface for a Stretcher or Gurney. In such prior art patient handling devices, the caregiver is penalized with having to exert multiple pounds of additional force when squeezing a handle after the other handle has already been squeezed. The penalty may be as much as twice the force that would otherwise be needed if only a single handle were squeezed, or more.
The construction of handle assembly 84 in the patient handling device 20 disclosed herein overcomes this disadvantage. If two caregivers are present, one on each side of patient handling device 20, the second caregiver to squeeze a handle 86 or 88 is not penalized with having to exert a greater force than the first caregiver. Similarly, if a single caregiver positions himself or herself behind patient handling device 20 and squeezes both handles 86 and 88 together in order to manually adjust head section 42, the single caregiver is not penalized with having to exert additional force if he or she does not squeeze both handles 86 and 88 together precisely simultaneously. Handle assembly 84 therefore either reduces, or renders substantially equal, the forces necessary to squeeze handles 86 or 88 after the other one has been squeezed.
It should be noted that handles 86 and 88 are independent. That is, the squeezing of handle 86 does not cause handle 88 to move, nor does the squeezing of handle 88 cause handle 86 to move. This independence helps alleviate the possibility of pinching that sometimes exists with handles that are not independent. For example, if a first caregiver is grasping a perimeter bar 114 of head section 42 adjacent first handle 86 in order to assist in the manual pivoting of head section 42 and the second caregiver proceeds to squeeze the second handle 88, the first caregiver's fingers could get pinched between first handle 86 and perimeter bar 114. By designing handles 86 and 88 independently, a caregiver's handle squeezing on one side of device 20 will not affect the handle movement on the other side of device 20.
As can be seen in
When a person squeezes one or both of handles 86 and 88, thereby disengaging the clutch of actuator 68, the biasing force of gas strut 116 will no longer be overcome by the internal resistance of the engaged clutch. Instead, in the absence of a patient or other person pushing head section 42 toward its lowered orientation, head section 42 will pivot upward in response to the biasing force of gas strut 116. The amount of biasing force exerted by gas strut 116 may vary, but is generally chosen so as to prevent head section 42 from free-falling downward and potentially slamming into the flat orientation when a patient is positioned on deck 28 and one or both of the handles 86, 88 is squeezed. That is, gas strut 116 exerts a biasing force that will resist the downward force of a patient's weight on head section 42 in a manner that causes head section 42 to descend smoothly. Thus, the weight of a typical patient will be sufficient to overcome the biasing force of strut 116, but not by such a large factor so as to cause head section 42 to pivot downwardly at an excessive speed or to require a caregiver to exert large forces when manually lifting head section 42. Indeed, should a caregiver choose to pivot head section 42 manually, rather than through the use of electric actuator 68, the biasing force of strut 116 will assist the caregiver in doing so because the strut 116 will reduce the amount of lifting force that a caregiver would otherwise have to manually apply to head section 42 to raise it up when a patient is positioned on deck 28.
Handles 86 and 88 gives patient handling device 20 a backup method for changing the orientation of head section 42 in cases where electrical power is no longer available to actuator 68 (such as with drained batteries), or when electrical actuator 68 otherwise may be inoperative. Handles 86 and 88 also give patient handling device 20 a method for quickly moving the patient's torso to a flat orientation should emergency cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) become necessary. Rather than waiting for actuator 68 to pivot head section 42 down to a flat orientation, a caregiver can squeeze either of handles 86 or 88 and manually swing head section 42 down to a flat orientation at a greater rate of speed, thereby allowing the commencement of CPR to take place sooner.
As was noted previously, patient handling device 20 includes a pair of lifts 24 that are adapted to raise and lower frame 26 with respect to base 22. Lifts 24 are activated by way of lift pedal 38 coupled to base 22 (FIGS. 1 and 8-10). While only one such lift pedal 38 is depicted in FIGS. 1 and 8-10, a second lift pedal may be positioned on an opposite side of patient handling device so that a caregiver can access lift pedal 38 from either side of device 20. Indeed, in some embodiments, a lift pedal 38 may also be placed at a head end and/or a foot end of base 22 to allow lifting to be accomplished from either end of device 20, as well as from either side. Regardless of the number of lift pedals 38, their operation will now be described below with reference to
In the illustrated embodiment, lift pedals 38 may be used for either manual or automated lifting of frame 26, or both. More specifically, lifts 24 operate by way of a hydraulic system that may be manually pumped with lift pedal 38, or electrically pumped by way of an electric pump that is switched on by lift pedal 38. The manner in which lift pedal 38 manually and/or electrically activates lifts 24 can best be understood with reference to
Arm 138 is connected at its end opposite pivot joint 134 to a pump connecting rod 142. The translating motion of arm 138 due to the pivoting of pivot joint 134 is transferred by arm 138 to pump connecting rod 142. Pump connecting rod 142 will thus move in direction 140 when lift pedal 38 is depressed. Pump connecting rod 142 includes a vertical portion 144 and a horizontal portion that is obscured from view in
Switch 150 is configured such that only a small amount of downward movement of lift pedal 38 from the raised orientation shown in
As was mentioned above, the pressing downward of lift pedal 38 also causes a manual pumping of hydraulic fluid into lifts 24, thereby effecting an upward movement of frame 26 every time pedal 38 is depressed. The manner in which the reciprocating movement of pump connecting rod 142 and/or arm 138 can be transmitted to the hydraulic lifts 24 can take on a wide variety of different forms, as would be known to one of ordinary skill in the art. One such manner is disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 6,820,294 entitled Linkage for Lift/Lowering For a Patient Supporting Platform, the complete disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Other manners may also be used.
The manual pumping of hydraulic fluid effectuated by the downward movement of lift pedal 38 enables frame 26 to be raised even in the absence of electrical power. Frame 26 may therefore be raised even if a power outage occurs and/or one or more batteries on board patient handling device 20 become drained or otherwise inoperative.
The stopping of electrical pump 154 occurs when lift pedal 38 is returned back to its raised position (
The prior art hydraulic circuit 200 is not suitable for use with a switch that is activated near the top of the corresponding pedal's stroke. This is because, upon activation of motor 254, the pumped fluid will, in addition to being pumped into jack 224, be pumped into manual pump 260. This has the tendency to push the user's foot, positioned on the corresponding pedal (such as pedal 38) upward. If the switch is activated near the top of the pedal's stroke, this pushing of the user's foot very well may push the user's foot sufficiently far upward that the corresponding switch becomes deactivated. Upon deactivation of the switch, motor 254 is also deactivated, thereby leading to a pressure drop in manual pump 260. This drop in pressure inside manual pump 260 will allow the user's foot (which is still likely pushing down on manual pump) to move downward sufficiently far to re-activate the corresponding switch, thereby leading to the same sequence of events just described, which will result in an undesirable oscillatory motion of the pedal, manual pump 260, and jack 224. This undesirable condition is avoided by the new hydraulic circuit of
It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the various features of patient handling device 20 described herein may be combined together and separated apart in different manners from what has been shown and described herein. For example, the design of handle assembly 84, the design of pump pedal 38, the use of gas strut 116, and the staggering of control panels 58 and 60 may all be incorporated into a single patient device 20, such as has been described herein, or individual ones of these features, or selected subcombinations of these features, may be incorporated into a patient handling device. Thus, as but one example, a patient handling device having staggered control panels may be incorporated into a patient handling device that does not include the handles assembly 84 described herein, nor the lifting pedals 38. Multiple other combinations and subcombinations are also possible.
It will further be understood that the embodiments shown in the drawings and described above are merely for illustrative purposes, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims which follow as interpreted under the principles of patent law including the doctrine of equivalents.
