Beds – Invalid bed or surgical support – Tiltable along a longitudinal axis
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-21
2001-05-15
Trettel, Michael F. (Department: 3628)
Beds
Invalid bed or surgical support
Tiltable along a longitudinal axis
C005S609000, C005S615000, C005S715000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06230342
ABSTRACT:
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for moving a person in a rocking movement on a couch in relation to a base by pressure medium driven actuating means.
The present invention accordingly relates to a method for moving a person in a rocking movement on a couch relative to a base by means of pressure medium driven actuating means incorporated in the couch, including supporting the person on the couch and converting the couch by means of the pressure medium driven actuating means from a substantially planar or slightly bent starting position to a C-shaped holding position, including allowing the person to be enveloped in a holding grip over an arc angle of about 180° in the C-shaped holding position of the couch, followed by rocking the person about its longitudinal axis from side to side over the base.
The present invention further relates to an apparatus for moving a person in a rocking movement on a couch relative to a base, including said couch and said base and a pressure medium driven actuating means, said means being incorporated in the couch, said couch being convertible from a substantially planar or slightly bent starting position to a C-shaped holding position, by means of said actuating means, which means allows the couch to envelope the person in a holding grip over an arc angle of about 180° in the C-shaped holding position of the couch and allows the person to be rocked about his longitudinal axis from side to side relative to the base.
The method and apparatus according to the invention are designed in particular for moving a person/patient in a rocking movement on a base. The term “rocking” movement is understood to mean both a continuous sideways movement between two maximum outer positions and a stepwise movement between two or more successive positions.
The actuating means are adapted first for gripping around a person in order to hold him in a controlled holding grip, and thereafter subjecting the person to a suitable sideways rocking movement with the person maintained in said controlled holding grip.
The rocking movement may be employed for various purposes in connection with the physical activation of the person/patient lying in a position of rest. For example, the arrangement may be used for patients with diminished physical or diminished mental activity. In addition, the arrangement may be used on patients, who in a lying position, are prone to the occurrence of bed sores or other irritations in connection with their limited ability to move. When a patient is moved in a nursing situation, it is especially important to turn the patient an arbitrary angle of rotation about his longitudinal axis. An angle of rotation of interest may be 0-90° or more. The movement may take place in a relatively slow, rhythmic movement or in a more staggered or time-intermittent rocking movement. An aim is to be able to move the person in a controlled, reliable manner, but at the same time in a particularly adapted, comfortable and not intimidating manner.
A method and apparatus of the aforementioned type is shown and described in WO 95/10997. A blanket-like arrangement designed with a number of chambers mutually joined together and running parallel in the longitudinal direction of the blanket is illustrated therein. The chambers are arranged in two facing chamber groups, e.g. with one chamber group on each side of a common middle section. The chamber groups can be bent and straightened in groups or separately between planar and slightly bent contours and an almost J-shaped contour. Alternatively, the chamber groups may be bent collectively toward and away from each other, i.e., from substantially planar or slightly curved contour to a very curved, almost U-shaped contour.
In this embodiment the user is subjected to a rocking movement by activating one half of the apparatus at a time. More specifically, the patient may be swung from lying on his back to lying on his side by activating one half of the bed couch, and returned to his back by bringing the half of the couch back to its starting position. Equivalent rocking onto the other side may be carried out using the other half of the couch arrangement, thus giving the sideways rocking movement.
Alternatively, the bed couch may be brought into a U-shaped contour around the bedridden to hold him securely on his back. In this case, the controlled rocking movement of the bedridden will not take place.
In an alternative embodiment of this reference the bedridden may be subjected to a rocking movement in a U-shaped bed couch via an extra pivot axis arranged at a level above the bottom of the bed. In practice, the level of the pivot axis above the bottom of the bed will limit the possibility for pivoting the bed couch relative to the bed bottom. The level at which the pivot axis is placed is consequently determinative of the rocking possibilities for the U-shaped bed couch.
Normally, the rocking movement can only occur at a moderate pivot, or tilting, angle of up to 20° between the maximum positions. Even with the pivot axis arranged at a considerable height above the bottom of the bed, only a rather limited tilting angle is possible for the bed couch. The rocking movement is effected by means of extra air cushions, which are all arranged on opposite sides of the pivot axis between the bottom of the bed and the bed couch, by alternately filling and emptying the air cushions one after the other.
There may in many cases be a need for larger pivot angle for reasons of treatment or movement, with a controlled holding grip around the person, especially for the maximum tilted positions. There is generally a need to hold a person at a low level above the base to be able to move the person easily and securely in contexts other than during the tilting movement itself.
In certain contexts the such a pivot axis represents design complications in connection with the base, such that it may be difficult to perform the rocking movement in a rational way on different bases and especially in sickbeds with sectionally swingable bed couches, for example on sickbeds with socalled “heart boards”.
An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus which is easy to use with nearly any base, and which allows for arbitrarily large rocking movements. For example, it is an object of the present invention to perform one single swing movement between the maximum positions at swing arches of 90-180° if necessary.
The method of the present invention is characterized in that pressure medium driven actuating mean changes the couch from a substantially planar or slightly curved starting position, with the person/patient resting on the couch, to a holding position curved around the person/patient's longitudinal axis, with the person kept in a holding grip through a swing arc of up to 180°, whereupon the person in the holding grip of the couch is rocked in relation to the base in a sideways rocking movement.
Correspondingly, the apparatus according to the invention in that the couch can be converted from a predominantly planar or slightly curved starting position, with the person lying on the couch, to a position in which there exists a holding grip around the person's longitudinal axis, by a pressure medium driven actuating means, with the person enveloped in an engagement grip having an arc of 180°, and in that the couch in this holding position may be moved by pressure-medium driven actuating means in a sideways rocking movement in relation to the base.
According to the invention the patient/person may be subjected to a sideways rocking movement in relation to the base with a relatively low center of gravity for the person relative to the base and without the use of a space demanding pivot axis. By replacing the known pivot or tilting movement with a rocking movement an especially beneficial solution is achieved, which can easily be adapted to existing bases without significant construction complications. In other words, the solution may be applied on conventional bases in conventional beds as well as on specially designed
Fulbright & Jaworski LLP
Trettel Michael F.
LandOfFree
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