Waterproof cover for housing in hospital bed containing speaker or electronic components

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6658132
  • Patent Number
    6,658,132
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, March 9, 1999
    25 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, December 2, 2003
    21 years ago
Abstract
A waterproof cover is coupled to a surface of a housing coupled to a bed. The cover is configured to seal an opening formed in the housing against water penetration. The cover is also configured so that the sound waves are audible through the cover.
Description




BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




This invention relates to covers for housings in hospital beds and more particularly to waterproof covers for housings in hospital beds containing speakers or other electronic components.




Many hospital beds include speakers and microphones to allow two-way communication between patient and caregiver. This two-way communication system allows the caregiver to communicate with the patient. The speaker is also used for television and radio sound, or other desired purpose. These speakers are often disposed in a housing which includes circuitry and switches for adjusting the hospital bed. These housings are often incorporated in siderails attached to the bed.




To maintain a substantially sterile caregiving environment, hospital beds are regularly cleaned with various cleaning solutions. In many countries, hospital beds are actually run through hospital bed washing devices similar to automatic car washes. Cleaning solutions have deleterious effects on speaker diaphragms and electronic connections to speakers as well as circuitry for adjusting the bed. Healthcare facilities will appreciate a waterproof speaker cover which would allow cleaning of hospital beds without concern for damaging speakers and other electronic components contained in the bed. The cover also keeps dirt, dust, and other particulates from entering the housing.




An apparatus for use on a hospital bed includes a housing having a surface with an opening therethrough communicating with its interior region, a speaker located in the interior region adjacent to the opening, and a waterproof cover attached to the surface of the housing, the cover being configured to seal the opening against water penetration through the opening and into the interior region of the housing. The waterproof cover is attached to the surface of the housing with an adhesive. The housing may include multiple openings with the waterproof cover sealing all of the openings against water penetration. The waterproof cover may be made from a polyester material and have a thickness of about 0.002 to about 0.007 inches. The waterproof cover may also include speaker location indicia located adjacent the openings in the surface of the housing. The housing surface may be formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover.




The housing can include a switch access opening and a switch for controlling a system located in the interior region of the housing with the switches actuator surface positioned in the switch access opening and the waterproof cover being attached to surface of the housing to seal the switch access opening against water penetration. The switch may be an which is partially transmitted through a translucent area in the waterproof cover adjacent the switch. The system controlled by the switch can be a nurse call system, a bed articulation control, a bed hi/lo control, a room lighting control, music control, or a television control.




Typically a housing according to the present invention is coupled to a siderail of the hospital bed. Housings are often formed from a first shell portion and a second shell portion configured to be coupled to the first shell portion to define the housing formed from a molded plastic material. The housing includes a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface each formed to include an opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough and a first and a second waterproof cover attached to the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surfaces, respectively, to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.




An apparatus for use on a hospital bed in accordance with the present invention includes a housing having an interior region, a first and a second opening in communication with the interior region, a switch actuatable through the first opening located in the interior adjacent to the first opening, a speaker in the interior of the housing adjacent to the second opening, and a waterproof cover attached to the exterior surface of the housing over the first and second openings to seal the first and second openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing. A controller actuated by the switch may be contained in the housing for performing a specified function. The waterproof cover may contain indicia located adjacent to the first opening indicating the specified function actuated by the switch. The waterproof cover is typically attached to the exterior surface of the housing with an adhesive and has a thickness of about 0.002 to about 0.007 inches. The waterproof cover may also include speaker location indicia located adjacent the second opening in the housing. The housing exterior surface is typically formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover. The housing is adapted for coupling to a siderail of the hospital bed. Housing may be formed from a first shell portion and a second shell portion coupled together to form the housing. The housing may include a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface each formed to include an opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough and first and second waterproof covers attached to both side surfaces to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.




Features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of an illustrated embodiment exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is a perspective view of the caregiver-facing side of a hospital bed siderail containing a speaker and electronic circuitry enclosed within a housing and a waterproof cover extending across caregiver-operable pressure sensitive switches to prevent dirt and fluids from entering the housing, the waterproof cover including indicia indicating the location of the switches thereunder;





FIG. 2

is a plan view of the patient-facing side of the bed siderail of

FIG. 1

showing a waterproof cover extending across patient-operable pressure sensitive switches to prevent dirt and fluids from entering the housing, the waterproof cover including indicia indicating the location of the switches thereunder and decorative lines simulating a speaker grill to indicate the location of the speaker in the housing;





FIG. 3

is an exploded perspective view of the housing of the bed siderail of

FIG. 1

showing the speaker contained in the housing, circuit boards having a plurality of push-button switches, two housing shells with openings therethrough to provide access to the switches and form a speaker grill, and the waterproof covers for covering grill openings and switch access openings to prevent dirt and fluid from entering the housing;





FIG. 4

is a cross-sectional view taken along line


4





4


of

FIG. 2

showing the speaker enclosed in the housing, the openings forming the speaker grill through the shells of the housing, and the waterproof covers disposed over the speaker grill openings to prevent dirt and fluid from entering an interior region of the housing;





FIG. 5

is a cross-sectional view taken along line


5





5


of

FIG. 2

showing the circuit boards containing oppositely facing pressure sensitive switches enclosed in the housing, the switch access openings in the housing within which the switch actuating surfaces are located, and the waterproof cover disposed over the switch access openings to prevent dirt and fluid from entering the housing;





FIG. 6

is a cross-sectional view taken along line


6





6


of

FIG. 2

;





FIG. 7

is a plan view of a patient-facing waterproof cover similar to the cover shown in

FIG. 1

showing switch location indicators and simulated speaker grill lines;





FIG. 8

is a plan view of a caregiver-facing waterproof cover similar to the cover shown in

FIG. 2

;





FIG. 9

is as cross sectional view taken along line


9





9


of

FIG. 7

showing a raised embossed area surrounding the switch location indicators; and,





FIGS. 10-15

show patterns for alternative speaker grill configurations and adhesive application patterns for the portion of waterproof speaker cover that extends over the speaker openings.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Patients in healthcare facilities typically spend much of their time in hospital beds which must be adjusted to provide comfort and facilitate proper treatment of the patient. Patients within hospital beds need to be able to contact the caregivers when they are in need of aid and would prefer to be in two-way communication with the caregivers during their time of need. Therefore, hospital beds include controls for actuating the mechanisms that adjust the bed and microphones and speakers for providing communication between the patient and the caregivers. Nurse call systems for communicating with the caregivers are known.




The controls and speakers are mounted in housings on the bed. These housing have openings formed therein to provide communication between switches operable by the patient and electrical circuitry actuated by those switches and to provide a speaker grill to provide a path for sound waves generated by the speaker. Each opening in the housing provides a possible path for dirt, cleaning fluid, and other fluids or contaminants to enter the housing and damage the speaker and the electrical components contained in the housing. The housing containing the speaker and electronic circuitry are often incorporated into bed siderails, but may also be incorporated into head or foot end rails or elsewhere on the bed.




The illustrated embodiment of the present invention provides a protective cover over the openings in the housing to reduce the likelihood that dirt, fluid, or other contaminants will enter an interior region of the housing and damage the speaker or electronic circuitry located within the interior region. Referring now to

FIGS. 1-2

, a bed siderail


10


is provided for attachment to a hospital bed (not shown). Siderail


10


includes a housing


12


and a pair of waterproof covers


14


attached to the housing


12


. While the drawings illustrate only one siderail


10


, it is to be understood that most hospital beds have two or more siderails


10


located on opposite sides of the bed. As shown in

FIG. 3

, waterproof cover


14


includes indicia


16


thereon indicating the function of underlying switches


18


and components, including a speaker


20


, contained in the housing


12


as will be described hereinafter. It is understood that while the drawings refer to switches


18


and speakers


20


enclosed in a housing


12


connected to a siderail


10


of a hospital bed, the invention disclosed herein is not limited to use with bed siderails


10


but may also be used in head rails and foot rails of hospital beds, or in other housing on the bed.




The indicia


16


on the waterproof cover


14


includes switch location indicia


17


which indicates the location of switches


18


underlying waterproof cover


14


that actuate various control systems. Switch location indicia


17


on the illustrated covers


14


symbolically indicate that the covers


14


are for use with beds which include a nurse call button, bed articulation control systems, bed hi/lo control, controls for room lighting, controls for music, controls for a television located in the patient's room, controls for the volume of the speaker


20


, or other buttons that control any other function of the bed or the surrounding environment.




The bed siderail


10


includes a patient-facing side


22


and an oppositely directed caregiver-facing side


24


. Certain functions controlled by the switches


18


are operable by either the patient or the caregiver. In the illustrated embodiment, switches


18


for controlling bed positioning and the nurse call system are operable from either the patient-facing side


22


or the caregiver-facing side


24


of housing


12


. The graphical information on the waterproof cover and the switch location indicia


17


indicate that deck articulation and nurse call functions are operable from either patient-facing side


22


or caregiver-facing side


24


, as shown, for example, in

FIGS. 1 and 2

. Caregiver-facing side


24


also includes a hi/lo control for the bed which is not operable from patient-facing side


22


, while patient-facing side


22


includes room lighting, music, television station, and volume controls which are not operable from caregiver facing side


24


. Therefore, as shown, for example, in

FIGS. 4 and 6

, circuit boards


26


including switches


18


are disposed in the housing


12


so that switches


18


controlling certain functions are accessible from both the patient-facing


22


and caregiver-facing


24


side of the bed siderail


10


and other switches are only accessible from one or the other sides of bed siderail


10


.




Housing


12


includes a patient-facing shell


28


having an external surface


30


and an internal surface


32


and a symmetrically formed caregiver-facing shell


34


having an external surface


36


and an internal surface


38


. The illustrated patient-facing shell


28


and caregiver-facing shell


34


are molded from polypropylene but may be manufactured using other appropriate techniques and materials so long as the shells may be joined to form a water resistant seam


31


at the point of connection of the shells


28


,


34


.




Each external surface


30


,


36


of patient-facing shell


28


and caregiver-facing shell


34


is formed to include a recessed area


60


having a side wall


62


and a bottom wall


64


. Patient-facing shell


28


and caregiver-facing shell


34


are formed to include switch access openings


40


providing communication with an interior region


42


of the housing


12


through external surfaces


30


,


36


. Switch access openings


40


pass through bottom wall


64


of recessed area


60


. Each switch access opening


40


is sized to receive an actuator surface


46


of a switch


18


. Circuit boards


26


are attached by fasteners


51


to patient facing shell


28


and caregiver-facing shell


34


so that switches


18


are disposed in the switch access openings


40


with the actuator surfaces


46


of switches


18


being substantially flush with bottom wall


64


of recessed area


60


of external surfaces


30


,


36


of shells


28


,


34


, respectively, as shown, for example, in FIG.


5


.




Patient-facing shell


28


and caregiver-facing shell


34


are also formed to include speaker grill openings


48


extending through the bottom wall


64


of the recessed area


60


to facilitate passage of sound waves generated by speaker


20


from the interior region


42


of the housing


12


through shells


28


,


34


. Speaker


20


is disposed within the interior region


42


of housing


12


adjacent speaker grill openings


48


and is attached to the internal surface


32


of patient-facing shell


28


by fasteners


52


as shown, for example in FIG.


4


. Sound waves generated by speaker


20


pass through speaker grill openings


48


and vibrate as well as pass through the waterproof cover


14


, thereby allowing the sound waves to be audible to the patient. It is understood that the grill openings


48


may have any desired shape. See, for example,

FIGS. 10-15

, which show alternative grill opening


48


configurations.




In the illustrated embodiment, waterproof cover


14


is located over each switch access opening


40


and speaker grill opening


48


in housing


12


. Waterproof cover


14


has substantially the same configuration as recessed area


60


and is received in recessed area


60


so that the exterior surface


54


of waterproof cover does not extend beyond external wall


30


,


36


of patient-facing housing


28


and caregiver-facing housing


34


.




Certain switches


18


, such as those actuating the nurse call system and the bed adjustment systems, incorporated into the illustrated embodiment are illuminated push button switches, such as Rafi SPST PCB mounted keyswitches Part Nos. 3.14100.988, 3.14200.011-3.14200.013. The remaining switches


18


may also be illuminated switches, or may be non-illuminated switches such as Rafi SPST PCB mounted keyswitches Part Nos. 3.14100.001 or 3.14100.006. Switches


18


are activated by pushing on the appropriate location of the waterproof cover


14


overlying the switch access openings


40


and the switch actuator surface


46


. Since the switches


18


are covered by the waterproof cover


14


, waterproof cover


14


includes switch location indicia


17


indicating the location of the switches


18


thereunder and the functions of the bed which those switches operate. The lights in illuminated switches


18


provide backlighting for the switch location indicia


17


by shining through waterproof cover


14


aiding the patient in locating the switches


18


in darkness. In order to provide illumination of the switches


18


, the illustrated waterproof cover


14


is translucent in the area of the switch location indicia


17


. It is understood that covers


14


may also be used over switches without back lighting.




In the illustrated embodiment, waterproof cover


14


includes raised areas


58


embossed in waterproof cover


14


to form a ring surrounding switch location indicia


17


, as shown, for example, in

FIGS. 5 and 9

. As shown in

FIG. 5

, the raised rings


58


surrounding the switch location indicia are sized to be smaller than the surface area of the underlying switch actuator surface


46


so that if a user pushes on the waterproof cover within the interior of the ring


58


, the switch


18


is actuated.




Waterproof cover


14


also includes parallel lines


19


shown in

FIGS. 2 and 7

which give the impression of a speaker grill to indicate to the patient the location of the underlying speaker


20


. These speaker lines


19


, of course, do not penetrate through the waterproof cover


14


and are merely surface ornamentation. Therefore, the waterproof cover


14


inhibits moisture and dirt entry into the housing


12


.




In the illustrated embodiment, housing


12


is formed from plastic shells


28


,


34


which may be screwed, snapped, glued, welded or otherwise appropriately joined together to form a water resistant connection


31


between the shells


28


,


34


. The illustrated waterproof cover


14


is made from polyester or the like. Waterproof cover


14


is attached to housing


12


with an appropriate adhesive, such as 3M adhesive 9672LE, so that switch location indicia


17


overlays the actuator surfaces


46


of switches


18


and grill lines


19


overlay speaker


20


and speaker grill openings


48


. Waterproof cover


14


includes an exterior surface


54


and an attachment surface


56


as best shown in FIG.


9


. Adhesive is applied to attachment surface


56


in all locations except those locations which are adjacent to the speaker grill openings


48


and the switch access openings


40


.




Exterior surface


54


and attachment surface


56


are displaced from one another and together define a thickness 50 of the waterproof cover


14


. In the illustrated embodiment waterproof cover


14


has a thickness 50 of about 5 mils (0.005″). It has been found that waterproof covers


14


having thicknesses 50 between about 3 and about 5 mils prevent moisture entry into the interior region


42


of the housing


12


, are sufficiently durable to withstand multiple washings, are sufficiently translucent to allow illuminated switches


18


to back light the switch location indicia


17


, and do not excessively distort or muffle the sounds generated by the speaker


20


. It is to be understood that depending on the properties of the materials used to form waterproof cover, other thicknesses 50 of material may be used as long as such material allows sound waves to pass or be transmitted through waterproof cover


14


.




While in the illustrated embodiment speaker


20


and switches


18


are contained in a single housing


12


attached to a bed rail


10


which is attached to a hospital bed, it should be understood that speaker and switches need not be enclosed in the same housing.




Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to a certain illustrated embodiment, variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit of the invention as described and defined in the following claims.



Claims
  • 1. An apparatus for use on a hospital bed, the apparatus comprising:a housing configured to be coupled to a portion of the hospital bed, the housing having a surface defining an interior region, the surface being formed to include an opening in communication with the interior region; a speaker located in the interior region of the housing adjacent to the opening, the speaker being configured to generate sound waves; and a waterproof cover permanently attached to the surface of the housing, the cover being configured to seal the opening against water penetration through the opening and into the interior region of the housing, the cover being configured so that the sound waves are audible through the cover.
  • 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the waterproof cover is attached to the surface of the housing with an adhesive.
  • 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the housing is formed to include a plurality of openings, the speaker is located adjacent to the plurality of openings, and the waterproof cover seals all of the plurality of openings against water penetration.
  • 4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the waterproof cover is made from a polyester material.
  • 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the waterproof cover includes a speaker location indicia located adjacent the opening in the surface of the housing.
  • 7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a system controlled by a switch having an actuating surface, the housing being formed to include a switch access opening, the switch being located in the interior region of the housing with the actuator surface positioned in the switch access opening, and the waterproof cover being attached to surface of the housing to seal the switch access opening against water penetration.
  • 9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the switch is an illuminated switch generating light and waterproof cover is translucent in the vicinity of the switch so that light generated by the switch is partially transmitted though the waterproof cover.
  • 10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the system controlled by the switch is one of a nurse call system, a bed articulation control, a bed hi/lo control, a room lighting control, music control, and a television control.
  • 11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing surface is formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover.
  • 12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing coupled to a siderail of the hospital bed.
  • 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the housing includes a first shell portion and a second shell portion configured to be coupled to the first shell portion to define the housing.
  • 14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the first and second shell portions are formed from a molded plastic material.
  • 15. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the housing includes a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface, the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface each being formed to include and opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough, the apparatus including first and second waterproof covers attached to the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface, respectively, to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.
  • 16. An apparatus for use on a hospital bed, the apparatus comprising:a housing configured to be coupled to a portion of the hospital bed, the housing having an interior region and a surface formed to include an opening in communication with the interior region, the opening being defined by an outer perimeter edge; a speaker located in the interior region of the housing adjacent the opening, the speaker being configured to generate sound waves; and a generally planar waterproof cover coupled to the surface of the housing to seal the entire outer perimeter edge of the opening to prevent water penetration through the opening and into the interior region of the housing, the cover being configured so that the sound waves are audible through the cover.
  • 17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the waterproof cover is attached to the surface of the housing with an adhesive.
  • 18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the housing is formed to include a plurality of openings, the speaker is located adjacent to the plurality of openings, and the waterproof cover seals all of the plurality of openings against water penetration.
  • 19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the waterproof cover is made from a polyester material.
  • 20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 21. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the waterproof cover includes a speaker location indicia located adjacent the opening in the surface of the housing.
  • 22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 23. The apparatus of claim 16, further comprising a system controlled by a switch having an actuating surface, the housing being formed to include a switch access opening, the switch being located in the interior region of the housing with the actuator surface positioned in the switch access opening, and the waterproof cover being attached to the surface of the housing to seal the switch access opening against water penetration.
  • 24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the switch is an illuminated switch generating light and the waterproof cover is translucent in the vicinity of the switch so that light generated by the switch is partially transmitted through the waterproof cover.
  • 25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the system controlled by the switch is one of a nurse call system, a bed articulation control, a bed hi/lo control, a room lighting control, music control, and a television control.
  • 26. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the housing surface is formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover.
  • 27. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the housing is coupled to a siderail of the hospital bed.
  • 28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the housing includes a first shell portion and a second portion configured to be coupled to the first shell portion to define the housing.
  • 29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the first and second shell portions are formed from a molded plastic material.
  • 30. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the housing includes a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface, the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-side surface each being formed to include an opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough, the apparatus including first and second waterproof covers attached to the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface, respectively, to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.
  • 31. An apparatus for use in a hospital bed, the apparatus comprising:a housing configured to be coupled to a portion of the hospital bed, the housing including an exterior surface having a recess therein and an interior surface, the exterior surface and the interior surface defining an opening therebetween located within the recess; a speaker located inside the housing adjacent to the opening, the speaker being configured to generate sound waves; and a waterproof cover located in the recess and coupled to the exterior surface to seal the opening against water penetration, the cover being configured so that the sound waves are audible through the cover.
  • 32. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the waterproof cover is attached to the surface of the housing with an adhesive.
  • 33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the housing is formed to include a plurality of openings, the speaker is located adjacent to the plurality of openings, and the waterproof cover seals all of the plurality of openings against water penetration.
  • 34. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the waterproof cover is made from a polyester material.
  • 35. The apparatus of claim 34, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to 0.005 inches.
  • 36. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the waterproof cover includes a speaker location indicia located adjacent the opening in the surface of the housing.
  • 37. The apparatus of claim 36, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 38. The apparatus of claim 31, further comprising a system controlled by a switch having an actuating surface, the housing being formed to include a switch access opening, the switch being located in the interior region of the housing with the actuator surface positioned in the switch access opening, and the waterproof cover being attached to surface of the housing to seal the switch access opening against water penetration.
  • 39. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the switch is an illuminated switch generating light and waterproof cover is translucent in the vicinity of the switch so that light generated by the switch is partially transmitted through the waterproof cover.
  • 40. The apparatus of claim 38, wherein the system controlled by the switch is one of a nurse call system, a bed articulation control, a bed hi/lo control, a room lighting control, a music control, and a television control.
  • 41. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the housing surface is formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover.
  • 42. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the housing is coupled to a siderail of the hospital bed.
  • 43. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the housing includes a first shell portion and a second shell portion configured to be coupled to the first shell portion to define the housing.
  • 44. The apparatus of claim 43, wherein the first and second shell portions are formed from a molded plastic material.
  • 45. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein the housing includes a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface, patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface each being formed to include an opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough, the apparatus including first and second waterproof covers attached to the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface, respectively, to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.
  • 46. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the cover is substantially planar, the cover being substantially coplanar with the exterior surface when the cover is located in the recess.
  • 47. The apparatus of claim 46, wherein a thickness of the cover is substantially equal to a depth of the recess.
  • 48. The apparatus of claim 31, wherein the opening is defined by an outer perimeter edge and the cover is sealed to the surface around the entire outer perimeter edge of the opening.
  • 49. An apparatus for use on a hospital bed, the apparatus comprising:a siderail coupled to the hospital bed, the siderail having a surface defining an interior region, the surface being formed to include an opening in communication with the interior region; a speaker located in the interior region of the siderail adjacent to the opening, the speaker being configured to generate sound waves; and a waterproof cover permanently attached to the surface of the siderail, the cover being configured to seal the opening against water penetration through the opening and into the interior region of the siderail, the cover being configured so that the sound waves are audible through the cover.
  • 50. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the waterproof cover is attached to the surface of the siderail with an adhesive.
  • 51. The apparatus of claim 50, wherein the siderail is formed to include a plurality of openings, the speaker is located adjacent to the plurality of openings, and the waterproof cover seals all of the plurality of openings against water penetration.
  • 52. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the waterproof cover is made from a polyester material.
  • 53. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the waterproof cover has a thickness of about 0.003 to about 0.005 inches.
  • 54. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the waterproof cover includes a speaker location indicia located adjacent the opening in the surface of the siderail.
  • 55. The apparatus of claim 49, further comprising a system controlled by a switch having an actuating surface, the siderail being formed to include a switch access opening, the switch being located in the interior region of the siderail with the actuator surface positioned in the switch access opening, and the waterproof cover being attached to surface of the siderail to seal the switch access opening against water penetration.
  • 56. The apparatus of claim 55, wherein the switch is an illuminated switch generating light and waterproof cover is translucent in the vicinity of the switch so that light generated by the switch is partially transmitted though the waterproof cover.
  • 57. The apparatus of claim 55, wherein the system controlled by the switch is one of a nurse call system, a bed articulation control, a bed hi/lo control, a room lighting control, music control, and a television control.
  • 58. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the siderail surface is formed to include a lip surrounding an outer perimeter edge of the cover.
  • 59. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the siderail includes a first shell portion and a second shell portion configured to be coupled to the first shell portion to define the siderail.
  • 60. The apparatus of claim 49, wherein the siderail includes a patient-facing side surface and a caregiver-facing side surface, the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface each being formed to include an opening to facilitate passage of sound waves from the speaker therethrough, the apparatus including first and second waterproof covers attached to the patient-facing side surface and the caregiver-facing side surface, respectively, to seal the openings against water penetration into the interior region of the housing.
Parent Case Info

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/111,838 filed Dec. 11, 1998.

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