Claims
- 1. A patient transfer apparatus for moving a patient from a first support to a second support, the apparatus having a front side, a rear side, a head end and a foot end, the apparatus being configured to be placed on the second support between the head and foot ends thereof to be positioned alongside the patient on the first support, the apparatus comprising:an upper conveyor assembly, a lower conveyor assembly, an adjustment mechanism for raising and lowering the upper conveyor assembly relative to the lower conveyor assembly, wherein the adjustment mechanism includes a lift handle movable to a first position to raise the upper conveyor assembly relative to the lower conveyor assembly and movable to a second position to lower the upper conveyor assembly relative to the lower conveyor assembly, each conveyor assembly comprising laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally extending side members and an endless conveyor web trained about the side members, wherein the upper conveyor web engages the lower conveyor web to couple the motion of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web when the upper conveyor assembly is lowered, wherein the upper conveyor web disengages from the lower conveyor web for transport of a patient positioned on the upper conveyor web when the upper conveyor assembly is raised, and wherein the adjustment mechanism is configured to raise and lower the upper conveyor assembly relative to the lower conveyor assembly while the upper and lower conveyor webs are stationary, and a driver operatively coupled to drive the lower conveyor web, wherein, when the upper conveyor assembly is lowered, the driver is operable to drive the upper and lower conveyor webs to cause the apparatus to move under a patient lying on the first supports and wherein, when the upper conveyor assembly is raised, movement of the lower conveyor web causes the patient atop the upper conveyor web to move to the second support by an action between the lower conveyor web and the two supports.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each conveyor assembly comprises a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart, laterally-extending end rails adjacent to the head and foot ends of the apparatus respectively, a pair of laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally-extending front and rear rollers extending between the end rails, and an endless conveyor web trained about the front and rear rollers.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the adjustment mechanism comprises a pair of links adjacent to the front side of the apparatus and a pair of handle brackets adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus, wherein the links have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the front side of the apparatus, and wherein the handle brackets have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 3, comprising a lift handle coupled to the handle brackets for moving the upper conveyor assembly between a lowered engaged position where the upper conveyor web engages the lower conveyor web to couple the motion of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web and a raised disengaged position where the upper conveyor web is spaced apart from the lower conveyor web.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the rear roller of the lower conveyor assembly is configured to be coupled to the driver for driving the lower conveyor web, and wherein the driver comprises a roller clutch-type actuator.
- 6. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each conveyor assembly comprises bearings coupled to the end rails for rotatably supporting the longitudinally-extending front and rear rollers.
- 7. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each conveyor assembly comprises a support structure coupled to the end rails and extending between the longitudinally-extending front and rear rollers.
- 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the support structure comprises a generally rectangular panel and a pair of longitudinally-extending members secured to the opposite sides of the panel.
- 9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the support structure comprises a generally rectangular panel and a pair of laterally-extending members secured to the opposite ends of the panel.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 2, comprising a front idler roller assembly coupled to the lower end rails adjacent to the front side of the apparatus to facilitate movement of the patient onto the upper conveyor assembly by the upper conveyor web as the apparatus is moved from the second support to the first support by the lower conveyor web.
- 11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the adjustment mechanism comprises a pair of links adjacent to the front side of the apparatus and a pair of handle brackets adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus, wherein the links have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower conveyor assemblies adjacent to the front side of the apparatus, and wherein the handle brackets have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower conveyor assemblies adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus.
- 12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the upper conveyor assembly comprises a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart, laterally-extending end rails adjacent to the head and foot ends of the apparatus respectively, a pair of laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally-extending front and rear rollers extending between the end rails, a support structure coupled to the end rails and extending between the longitudinally-extending front and rear rollers, and the upper endless conveyor web being trained about the front and rear rollers.
- 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the support structure comprises a generally rectangular panel and a pair of longitudinally-extending members secured to the opposite sides of the panel.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the support structure comprises a generally rectangular panel and a pair of laterally-extending members secured to the opposite ends of the panel.
- 15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the lower conveyor assembly comprises a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart, laterally-extending end rails adjacent to the head and foot ends of the apparatus respectively, a plurality of laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally-extending rollers extending between the end rails, at least one longitudinally-extending spacer rod extending between the end rails, and the lower endless conveyor web being trained about the plurality of rollers.
- 16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the plurality of rollers of the lower conveyor assembly comprise a front roller, a second front roller, a second last roller and a last roller extending between the end rails, a longitudinally-extending front spacer rod positioned between the front roller and the second front roller and extending between the end rails, and a longitudinally-extending rear spacer rod positioned between the last roller and the second last roller and extending between the end rails.
- 17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the adjustment mechanism comprises a pair of links adjacent to the front side of the apparatus and a pair of handle brackets adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus, wherein the links have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the front side of the apparatus, and wherein the handle brackets have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus.
- 18. The apparatus of claim 17, comprising a lift handle coupled to the handle brackets to move the upper conveyor assembly between a lowered engaged position where the upper conveyor web engages the lower conveyor web to couple the motion of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web and a raised disengaged position where the upper conveyor web is spaced apart from the lower conveyor web.
- 19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the lower conveyor assembly comprises a front roller, a rear roller and a set of intermediate rollers extending between the end rails, wherein the rear roller of the lower conveyor assembly is configured to be coupled to the driver for driving the lower conveyor web, and wherein the driver comprises a roller clutch-type actuator.
- 20. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein each conveyor assembly comprises a pair of longitudinally spaced-apart, laterally-extending end rails adjacent to the head and foot ends of the apparatus respectively, a plurality of laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally-extending rollers extending between the end rails, at least one longitudinally-extending spacer rod extending between the end rails, and the endless conveyor web of each assembly being trained about the plurality of rollers.
- 21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the plurality of rollers of each conveyor assembly comprise a front roller, a second front roller, a second last roller and a last roller extending between the end rails, and wherein each second front and second last rollers includes a longitudinally-extending spacer rod enclosed therein and extending between the end rails.
- 22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the adjustment mechanism comprises a pair of links adjacent to the front side of the apparatus and a pair of handle brackets adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus, wherein the links have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the front side of the apparatus, and wherein the handle brackets have their respective ends pivotally coupled to the upper and lower end rails adjacent to the rear side of the apparatus.
- 23. The apparatus of claim 22, comprising a lift handle coupled to the handle brackets to move the upper conveyor assembly between a lowered engaged position where the upper conveyor web engages the lower conveyor web to couple the motion of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web and a raised disengaged position where the upper conveyor web is spaced apart from the lower conveyor web.
- 24. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the lower conveyor assembly comprises a front roller, a rear roller and a set of intermediate rollers extending between the end rails, wherein the rear roller of the lower conveyor assembly is configured to be coupled to the driver for driving the lower conveyor web, and wherein the driver comprises a roller clutch-type actuator.
- 25. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the lower conveyor assembly comprises a front roller, a second front roller, a second last roller and a last roller extending between the end rails, wherein the last roller is configured to be coupled to the driver for driving the lower conveyor web, and wherein the lower conveyor web is looped around the second last roller to increase the wrap of the lower conveyor web around the last roller.
- 26. An apparatus for transferring a patient from a first support to a second support configured to be positioned alongside the first support, the apparatus comprising:upper and lower structures to be placed on the second support to extend alongside the patient on the first support, the upper structure comprising laterally spaced-apart, elongated upper side members and an endless conveyor web trained about the side members to provide an upper flight and a lower flight, the conveyor web being movable about the upper side members to provide a movable support for patient, the lower structure comprising laterally spaced-apart, elongated lower side members and an endless drive web trained about the lower side members to provide an upper flight and a lower flight, the drive web being movable about the lower side members to move the apparatus relative to the second support, an adjustment mechanism for raising and lowering the upper structure relative to the lower structure, the adjustment mechanism including a lift handle movable to a first position to raise the upper structure relative to the lower structure and movable to a second position to lower the upper structure relative to the lower structure, the upper conveyor web engaging the lower drive web to couple the motion of the lower drive web to the upper conveyor web when the upper structure is lowered, the upper conveyor web disengaging from the lower drive web for transport of a patient positioned on the upper conveyor web when the upper structure is raised, the adjustment mechanism being configured to raise and lower the upper structure relative to the lower structure while the upper and lower webs are stationary, and the upper conveyor web and the lower drive web being configured to be operatively connected such that movement of the lower drive web about the lower side members to move the apparatus from the second support to the first support moves the upper conveyor web about the upper side members to move the patient from the first support to the upper conveyor web.
- 27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the drive web and the conveyor web are configured to be operatively disconnected such that movement of the drive web about the lower side members to move the apparatus from the first support to the second support moves the patient on the conveyor web from the first support to the second support.
- 28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the drive web and the conveyor web are configured to be operatively connected such that movement of the drive web about the lower side members to move the apparatus out from under the patient moves the patient from the conveyor web to the second support.
- 29. A patient transfer apparatus comprising:an upper conveyor, a lower conveyor, each conveyor comprising laterally spaced-apart, longitudinally extending side members and a web trained about the side members for movement, an adjustment mechanism for raising and lowering the upper conveyor relative to the lower conveyor, the adjustment mechanism including a lift handle movable to a first position to raise the upper conveyor relative to the lower conveyor and movable to a second position to lower the upper conveyor relative to the lower conveyor, the upper conveyor web engaging the lower conveyor web to couple the motion of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web when the upper conveyor is lowered, the upper conveyor web disengaging from the lower conveyor web for transport of a patient positioned on the upper conveyor web when the upper conveyor is raised, the adjustment mechanism being configured to raise and lower the upper conveyor relative to the lower conveyor while the upper and lower conveyors are stationary, the conveyors being configured to be operatively connected to couple movement of the lower conveyor web to the upper conveyor web such that, when the lower conveyor web is driven to move under the patient, the upper conveyor web is driven to move the patient onto the upper conveyor web, the conveyors being configured to be operatively disconnected such that movement of the lower conveyor web about the side members of the lower conveyor moves the patient positioned on the upper conveyor web from one support to another support without moving the upper conveyor web about the side members of the upper conveyor.
Parent Case Info
This application claims the benefit of a U.S. Provisional patent application, Ser. No. 60/193,891, filed on Mar. 31, 2000, and entitled “PATIENT TRANSFER APPARATUS”, and a U.S. Provisional patent Application, Serial No. 60/222,244, filed on Aug. 1, 2000, and also entitled “PATIENT TRANSFER APPARATUS”, both of which being incorporated herein by reference.
US Referenced Citations (41)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
0843991 |
May 1998 |
EP |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
Hill-Rohm Product Catalogue—ON3 Lateral Transfer, 4 pages, downloaded from www.hill-rom.com/usa/products/prodlist2.asp, © 2000. |
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60/222244 |
Aug 2000 |
US |
|
60/193891 |
Mar 2000 |
US |