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(11) | EP 0 752 241 A2 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Frame for clinical beds |
| (57) Being of the kind structured with a framework (1) defining a sector determining a
fixed plane (3) for the couch proper, specifically a second plane, which is surrounded
by a first plane (4), being the headrest, and a facing plane (5), both pivoting relative
to the framework, and a fourth plane (6) being the footrest, and hingedly connected
to the third plane (5), the couch being therefore able to take up a broken and variable
profile. The invention is focussed on the mechanism for pivotally driving the first
(4) and third (5) sectors, the mechanism controlling the position of the fourth sector
(6) and a mechanism allowing the telescopic framework rails (1) to be selectively
locked, in order to adjust the length of the top to different bed sizes. |
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a couch for clinical beds of the kind comprising a framework that is suitably associated to the rest of the bed structure, the framework being partially a part of the top, making up a horizontal fixed plane thereof, which top is complemented with three other mobile planes that allow a couch with a broken and variable profile to be established, suited to the bodily positioning requirements of each patient from time to time.
[0002] Three features of the couch disclosed herein have been improved, namely the framework of the top which is extensible, thereby allowing it to be suited to any bed, the means for pivoting the two frames or planes hingedly connected to the fixed plane, and means for an adjustable and fixable inclination of the fourth plane.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] It is well-known that certain kinds of hospital beds are able to have their top or operative platform take up multiple positions, specifically based upon a top structured by means of four hinged planes, in particular a second plane that is held fixed at the general level of the top to which the first and third planes are hingedly connected, the first plane being for the user's back and the third plane for the thighs, the fourth plane being in turn hingedly connected to the third plane, variously designed mechanisms being provided that allow the angles at which the first and third planes are inclined relative to the second plane to be adjusted and stabilised, whilst the fourth plane at times holds its free end permanently at the general level of the top, with the assistance of rollers sliding along guides in the frame of such top, and may at other times rise to a greater or lesser extent with the assistance of a pair of side rods, hingedly connected to said fourth plane, whose lower end may be selectively locked in various positions established along a sort of rack, and therefore the greater the degree of inclination of such rod, the greater the degree of inclination of said fourth plane, and vice versa.
[0004] It is however obvious that the latter solution only allows the fourth plane of the top, when the third plane is raised, to move from a position of maximum inclination toward an almost horizontal and substantially overlying position, but it is at no time possible for the fourth plane to be located partly below the general plane of the top, which would substantially improve the "Fowler" position, this being the usual term to describe the broken profile of the top with which the user, despite being lying down, adopts a bodily profile similar to the seated position.
[0005] Hospital beds are also known where the framework of the top is additionally adjustable in length, in order to suit it to various bed sizes, the most usual solution being the inclusion in said framework of telescopic rails which allow the end crosspieces to be spaced out at will. The problem arises when said telescopic rails have to be locked in order for the framework of the top to afford a suitable structural rigidity.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The couch for clinical beds which this invention provides fully solves the problems previously described in each and every respect aforesaid.
[0007] More specifically, in order to do so, in accordance with one of the characteristics of the invention, two structurally and functionally identical mechanisms are established on either side of the fixed plane of the top, i.e. the second plane, designed to drive the respective pivoting planes, i.e. the first and third planes, of the top, each being structured with a cross shaft mounted between the two rails of the framework, having respective rods hingedly connected to its ends that are in turn hingedly connected at their other end to a second cross shaft having a radial side plate, through which the mechanism is driven by a motor, a hydraulic pump or any other suitable drive element, a rodlet being rigidly connected, in a similar radial arrangement and at each end of said second cross shaft, basically facing the relevant rod mentioned above, the free end of which rodlet is solidly connected to the relevant end of the frame of the top belonging to the likewise relevant plane, be it the first or the third plane, being moreover particular in that another radial arm projects from such frame located level with the inner face of the relevant rail of the framework of the top and extending into a side pivot playing in a guide or slot operatively provided in such framework.
[0008] This slot is open at one end to allow the mechanism to be mounted and dismounted, and is closed upon its being mounted with the assistance of a stopping element, such as, for instance, a simple screw with its head duly sized to such end.
[0009] In accordance with another characteristic of the invention, the couch disclosed herein includes a mechanism which allows, from any position of inclination of the third plane of the top, the fourth plane to be also capable of varying its degree of inclination, with the possibility of its free end being lowered substantially below the general plane of the top.
[0010] More specifically, to do so the mechanism disclosed herein comprises, on either side of the bed, two different rods, one being longer and hingedly connected at one end to the frame of the top, at a fixed point, whereas its other end is connected to the relevant end of the second rod, the hinge pin between both rods extending into a bolt playing in a guide or slot operatively established in the fourth plane of the top, said second and shorter rod being in turn linked at its other end to a rack that is also suitably fixed to the top frame, behind the point at which the first rod is hingedly connected, and in order that when the lower front end of said second rod is received within the front end housing of the rack, both rods take up horizontal overlapping positions from which, as the shorter rod gradually runs along the various rack housings, both rods and the actual frame of the top make up a deformable triangle gradually raising the bolt or supporting point of the fourth plane of the top above this structure, and consequently varying the position of such fourth plane, from any previous preselected position of the third plane of the top.
[0011] To complement the structure described, the fourth plane of the top has been devised to have a pair of side grips that make it easier to handle for positional changes, and also a pair of releasing knobs established at a lower level, each on either side of the bed, to expedite the positional change of the shorter rods in the respective rack housings. Whereas the side grips are fixed directly onto the frame of the fourth plane of the top, the lower releasing knobs are linked to each other by means of a cross arm that interlocks them.
[0012] In accordance with another characteristic of the invention, the rails of the framework of the top finally not only have a telescopic structure allowing it to be extended/shortened, but include in their narrower inner sector a spigot that retracts against a spring bias, and in their outer sector a row of holes in which said retractable spigot may be selectively inserted, acting as a lock catch. More specifically, said retractable spigot is hollow and is traversed by an axially displaceable billet or stem where an inclined plane is defined that upon impinging on the spigot, causes it to retract, the billet or stem extending towards the rear end of the footrest, where it is manually driven with the assistance of a pivoting lever duly established on the relevant crosspiece.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] In order to provide a fuller description and contribute to the complete understanding of the features of this invention, a set of drawings is attached to the specification which, while purely illustrative and not fully comprehensive, shows the following:
[0014] Figure 1.- Is a general perspective schematic representation of an improved couch for clinical beds made in accordance with the object of the present invention.
[0015] Figure 2.- Is a partial enlarged and plan close view of the pivoting mechanism of any of the mobile planes of the top surrounding the fixed plane.
[0017] Figure 4.- Is a side elevation view of the mechanism for inclining the fourth plane of the top.
[0018] Figure 5.- Is a plan view of the same close view of the previous figure, showing one of the sides of the couch.
[0019] Figure 6.- Is a close view similar to that of figure 4, which more fully includes the entire rear area of the frame of the top and all its third plane, said figure illustrating some of the possible positions of the fourth plane of the top, from different inclination levels of its third plane.
[0020] Figure 7.- Is a partial perspective close view of the framework, specifically of its end serving as a footrest, where the means for its longitudinal adjustment are established.
[0021] Figure 8.- Is finally a sectional close view of the lock catch between the two telescopic elements used for the framework of the couch.
PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
[0022] With reference to the figures and in particular figure 1, it may be observed that the invention applies to couches for clinical beds including a framework based upon a pair of rails (1) with their ends connected by a pair of crosspieces (2), a fixed plane (3) being established in said framework included in the couch as such as a second or fixed plane thereof, the couch being complemented with a frame (4) constituting the first pivoting plane or headrest, with a second frame (5) constituting the third plane, and with a third frame (6) in turn constituting the fourth plane, hingedly connected to the third plane, and because such planes (4), (5) and (6) are mobile, various broken profiles can therefore be established for the couch.
[0023] Now then, from this basic conventional construction, and in accordance with one of the characteristics of the invention, as shown in particular in figures 2 and 3, two mechanisms are established in order for the first (4) and third (5) planes to pivot, each comprising a cross shaft (7) established between the framework rails (1), lying substantially clear of the hinge pin (8) of the relevant frame (4-5), which shaft (7) has a rod (9) hingedly mounted on its ends whose other end in turn has a second cross shaft (10) hingedly connected, fitted with a radial side plate (11) provided, for instance, with a hole (12), which is to be driven by the motor, hydraulic pump or any driving element at issue, which is conventional per se, in accordance with the arrow (F) of figure 3.
[0024] End rodlets (13) are solidly connected to this second cross shaft (12) and are in turn solidly connected to the frame (4) or (5), as may be particularly observed in figure 2, the frame (4-5) having a short radial arm (14) extending at its free end into a pivot (15) which in turn plays within a longitudinal slot (16) operatively established in a guide (17) duly fixed to the framework (1), which slot, as may be particularly observed in figure 3, is open at one end (16') to expedite mounting of the device, the opening being closed with the assistance of a stopper (18) which, as explained before, may be a simple screw with its head duly sized to serve its purpose.
[0025] In accordance with this construction, when pressure is exerted according to force (F) upon the side plate (11), the cross shaft (2) is upwardly moved, forcing the rodlets (13) to pivot and so does the frame (4-5), since the latter is solidly joined to such rodlets, the link between such frame (4-5) and the framework (1) being maintained at all times through the arm (14), and in particular the pivot (15), which on travelling along the slot (16) in the guide (17), allows the rodlets (13) to pivot freely relative to the rods (9).
[0026] As for the mechanism for tilting the fourth plane (6) of the couch, each side of said fourth plane (6) has a guide (19) of suitable length for a pivot (20) to play as the extension of the shaft hingedly joining two rods, a considerably long rod (21) that is hingedly connected at its other end to a particular point of the frame (1) of the top, and a considerably shorter rod (23) serving as a catch, its lower free end playing in a rack (24) that is also duly solidly joined to the frame (1) of the top, behind the point (22) at which the longer rod (21) is hingedly joined.
[0027] As aforesaid, a deformable triangle is therefore defined between the longer rod (21), the rod-catch (23) and the fixed frame (1) of the top, through a rack (24), which allows the height of the pivot (20) supporting the fourth plane (6) of the couch to be varied, and said fourth plane (6) of the couch can thereby take up multiple tilting levels from any pre-established angular position of the third plane (5), as may particularly be observed in figure 6.
[0028] More specifically, when arranged at the front end of the rack (24) the rod-catch (23) takes up a substantially horizontal position, which is also approached by the longer rod (21), as shown in figure 4, in which position, since the side points (20) supporting the fourth plane (6) of the bed are arranged level with the frame (1) of the top, when the third plane (5) of the top pivots upwardly, the free end of the fourth plane (6) travels substantially downwards relative to the general plane of the frame (1) of the top, likewise shown in figure 6, improving the "Fowler" position of the bed.
[0029] The structure described is complemented with a pair of side supports (25) for the pivots (20), duly solidly connected to the frame (1) of the top and therefore when the rods (21) and (22) are in their fully folded position the weight of the fourth plane (6) of the top is transmitted directly to the frame (1) through such abutments (25).
[0030] Additionally, and in order to expedite handling, the fourth plane (6) of the top has a pair of side grips (26) enabling the same to be easily handled from either side of the bed, and the racks (24) themselves are provided with respective releasing knobs (27) related to each other by means of a cross arm, in order that on actuating either of the two knobs (27), both rods or catches (23) will be simultaneously released.
[0031] It need only finally be noted that, clearly, the dimensions of the rod (21) and the rod catch (23) and the length of the rack (24) will yield different values for both the tilting of the fourth plane (6) of the top and the extent of downward projection of its free end.
[0032] Finally, and as regards the extensibility mechanism of the top, as may be particularly observed in figure 7, the rails (1) are telescopic, the same being provided with an external or enveloping sector, designated with the reference numeral (1), and an internal sector (1') playing inside the first sector with the assistance of slide rollers (28) expediting relative displacement between said sectors (1-1'), being however especially particular in that in order for the frame (1) to be locked or stiffened in any selected dimension therefor, its enveloping sector (1) has a row of holes (29) for the selective insertion of a spigot (30) that is retractably mounted crosswise within the inner sector (1'), as may be particularly observed in the sectional close view of figure 8, specifically within a transverse housing (31), being retractable against the bias of a spring (32), the housing being traversed crosswise through windows (33) by a billet or stem (34) having an inclined plane (35) acting on the spigot (30), which it also traverses, and therefore when the billet or stem (34) moves axially, its inclined plane (35) makes the spigot (30) retract.
[0033] This step to release the catch consisting of the retractable spigot (30) and the holes (29) is carried out from the foot of the bed, specifically using a pivoting lever (36) housed in the actual tubular crosspiece (2) of the frame (1) and extending into an externally accessible handle (37), which lever is hingedly connected to said crosspiece (3) at its midpoint (38) and its free end (39) being in turn hingedly connected to the billet or stem (34), and therefore a manual pressure on the handle (37) causes the billet or stem (34) to move towards the catch and hence release the same, whereas if such action is discontinued, the locked position is elastically and automatically retrieved.
1. An improved couch for clinical beds, being of the kind in which four planes are established
upon a framework (1-2), a first hinged plane (4) being the headrest, a second fixed
plane (3), a third similarly hinged plane (5) and a fourth plane (6) hingedly connected
to the third plane (5), altogether defining a broken and variable profile for the
couch, characterised in that the means actuating the first and third pivoting planes
comprise a shaft (7) established crosswise between the framework rails (1), rods (9)
being hingedly joined to the ends of said shaft which are in turn hingedly joined
at their other end to a second cross shaft (10), linking them, to which a radial side
plate (11) is solidly connected to be driven by the motor, hydraulic pump or any drive
element at issue, being particular in that respective rodlets (13) are solidly connected
to the ends of said second cross shaft (10) which are in turn rigidly connected to
the frame (4-5) of the first or third sector, and being particular in that short radial
arms (14) project from said frame (4-5) extending into respective side pivots (15)
playing within longitudinal slots (16) established in guides (17) duly solidly joined
to the framework rails (1), and therefore the drive of the actuating element causes
the second cross shaft (2) to pivot upwardly, causing through the rodlets (13) a parallel
pivoting or change in inclination of the couch plane (4-5) in question.
2. An improved couch for clinical beds, as in claim 1, characterised in that the slot
(16) in the guides (17) where the pivots (15) play, is open at one end (16'), enabling
the mechanism to be mounted and dismounted, where a dismountable stopping element
(18) is arranged, namely for instance a screw with its head duly sized to serve its
stopping purpose.
3. An improved couch for clinical beds, as in claim 1, characterised in that the positional
adjustment means of the fourth plane (6) of the couch include, on each side of the
framework (6) of such sector, a guide (19) for a bolt (20) being the side extension
of the shaft providing the hinged connection between two rods (21) and (23), a longer
rod (21) that is in turn hingedly connected to the fixed frame of the top, and a shorter
rod (23) serving as a catch and related at its free end to a rack (24) duly fixed
to the frame (1) of the top, behind the point at which the longer rod (21) is hingedly
connected, the above in order for the two rods aforesaid, together with the fixed
frame (1) of the top and through said rack (24), to make up a deformable triangle,
the top corner (20) serving as a point providing a sliding support of varying height
for the fourth plane (6) of the couch, able to reach the general plane of the frame
(1) of the latter, at a lower limiting position in which the side bolts (20) hinging
the rods lie directly on the fixed frame (1) of the top through respective supports,
and at which, in any degree of inclination of the third plane (5) of the top, the
free end of its fourth plane (6) travels downwards relative to the fixed frame (19)
of the top.
4. An improved couch for clinical beds, as in claim 3, characterised in that respective
side grips (26) are solidly connected to the sides of the fourth plane (6) of the
top which expedite the handling thereof, whereas each of the racks (24) is assisted
by a releasing knob (27) which expedites uncoupling of the catches constituted by
the shorter rods (23), both releasing knobs (27) being provided to be related to one
another by means of a cross arm, thereby for both racks (24) to be simultaneously
actuated upon either knob being driven.
5. An improved couch for clinical beds, as in claim 1, characterised in that from a telescopic
construction of the framework rails (1), the enveloping sector (1) of one such rail
has a row of holes (29) whereas the respective inner sector (1') includes a retractable
catch-like spigot (30) to lock the inner sector relative to the outer sector of the
rails (1), in any of said holes (29), the spigot (30) being retractable against a
spring (32) and within a transverse housing (31) inside the rail (1') proper, both
the housing (31) and the retractable spigot (30) proper having a transverse hole (33)
which may be crossed by a billet or stem (34) having an inclined plane (35) acting
as a retracting means for the spigot (30) when the billet or stem (34) moves longitudinally,
driven from the footrest by a lever (36) housed in the framework crosspiece (2), mounted
to pivot about an intermediate axis (38) and extending into a manually driven handle
(37) which projects slightly outwardly.