Support device

Abstract

 The support device (32) comprises an elongate strap (42) having an attachment region (44) which is attachable to a bed frame (12) and a foot receiving region (60) for receiving a foot of an individual in a bed. The device (32) is arranged so that, in use, force exerted by a user's foot on the foot receiving region (60) is transmitted through the elongate strap (42) to the bed frame (12).

Description

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to a support device, and particularly to a support device for supporting an individual in an upright position in bed. Embodiments of the present arrangement also relate to a support arrangement including such a support device.

[0002] There can be many occasions when individuals may wish to sit in an upright position in bed. For example, individuals may wish to sit in an upright position to consume food or drink, to watch television or to read. In this upright position, the back of the individual is usually supported by the bed frame, and pillows or other cushioning members are often placed between the bed frame and the back of the individual to increase comfort.

[0003] In some cases, it can be difficult or impossible for individuals to move themselves from a lying position to the upright position. This can be particularly problematic where the individual is a hospital patient as the individual will require the assistance of a nurse or carer to lift them to the upright position. Such lifting carries with it the risk of potential back injury for the nurse or carer and can also be inconvenient for the individual who may have to await assistance for a long period of time.

[0004] There may also be circumstances when it is difficult for a person in the upright position to maintain themselves in the upright position. For example, hospital beds are often fitted with plastics mattress protectors and the nature of the plastics material can sometimes cause a patient to slip down the bed.

[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a support device comprising an elongate strap having an attachment region attachable to a bed frame and a foot receiving region for receiving a foot of an individual in the bed, wherein the support device is arranged so that, in use, force exerted by a user's foot on the foot receiving portion is transmitted through the elongate strap to the bed frame.

[0006] The elongate strap may be arranged to extend in use alongside an individual in the bed. The attachment region may be attachable to a bed frame in an upper region of a bed and may extend in use alongside an individual in the bed such that the foot receiving region is located towards a lower region of the bed.

[0007] The elongate strap may be adjustable to permit adjustment of the distance between the foot receiving region and the attachment region. The elongate strap may comprise a first strap member whose length may be fixed and may comprise a second strap member which may be adjustable to permit said adjustment of the distance between the foot receiving region and the attachment region.

[0008] The foot receiving region may comprise a loop into which the foot of an individual may be inserted in use. The loop may be defined by the elongate strap, and possibly by the second strap member. The elongate strap may define one or more pockets into which a foot support member may be inserted.

[0009] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a support arrangement comprising a retaining member attachable to a bed frame and at least one support device as defined above, wherein the attachment region of the at least one support device is attached to the retaining member.

[0010] The retaining member may be attachable to a bed frame in an upper region of a bed.

[0011] The retaining member may be elongate and may extend transversely in use across a bed when attached to a bed frame.

[0012] The support arrangement may include releasable securing means to releasably secure the retaining member in use on a bed frame.

[0013] The retaining member may include releasable attachment means to releasably attach the elongate strap of the at least one support device thereto.

[0014] The support arrangement may include two of said support devices and the attachment region of both of said support devices may be attached to the retaining member. The support devices may be attached to the retaining member at transversely spaced positions so that, in use, the elongate strap of each support device extends substantially alongside the legs of an individual in the bed to enable the feet of the individual to be received by a respective foot receiving region of each elongate strap.

[0015] An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a support arrangement according to the present invention attached to a bed ready for use;

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic perspective view of the support arrangement of Fig. 1 including two support devices;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged diagrammatic perspective view of part of the support arrangement; and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged diagrammatic perspective view of another part of the support arrangement.

[0016] Fig. 1 illustrates a typical bed 10 used by individuals for sleeping and resting. The bed 10 includes a bed frame 12 comprising a horizontal frame member 14 for supporting a mattress 16 and upper and lower vertical frame members (only the upper vertical frame member 18 is illustrated) for supporting the horizontal frame member 14. The upper vertical frame member 18 is located in an upper region 22 of the bed 10 and the lower vertical frame member is located in a lower region 24 of the bed 10.

[0017] In the illustrated embodiment which shows a typical bed 10 for use in hospitals, a back support member 26 is provided and this may be adjusted so that an individual using the bed 10 may rest their back against it when in the upright position. Typically, a pillow or other cushioning member is placed between the back support member 26 and the back of an individual to increase comfort. It should of course be appreciated that the back support member 26 may not be present as would typically be the case with domestic beds for use in the home.

[0018] Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown a support arrangement 28 comprising a retaining member 30 and two support devices 32 attached to the retaining member 30. The support devices 32 are identical in their construction and operation.

[0019] As best seen in Fig. 1, the retaining member 30 is attachable in use to the bed frame 12 in the upper region 22 of the bed, and specifically to the upper vertical frame member 18. The retaining member 30 is elongate and extends transversely across the bed 10 when attached to the upper vertical frame member 18.

[0020] The support arrangement 28 includes releasable securing means 34 at each end for releasably securing the retaining member 30 on the upper vertical frame member 18. Referring in particular to Fig. 3, in the illustrated embodiment the releasable securing means 34 comprises a U-shaped clamping member 36 which is locatable around part of the upper vertical frame member 18 and which includes threaded members which pass through apertures in the retaining member 30. Threaded wing nuts 40, or in alternative embodiments threaded knobs, are threadably located on the threaded members and can be tightened by rotation to clamp part of the upper vertical frame member 18 between the clamping member 36 and the retaining member 30, thereby releasably securing the retaining member 30 in position at an appropriate location on the upper vertical frame member 18, typically so that it is substantially co-planar with an upper surface of the mattress 16.

[0021] Referring again to Figs. 1 and 2, each support device 32 comprises an elongate strap 42 of high tensile material which is capable of transmitting large loads without deformation. The elongate strap 42 may comprise a web of polypropylene material and may be of the type typically used in the manufacture of car seat belts. The use of a web of material is advantageous as the elongate strap 42 lies flat in the bed 10 so that an individual in the bed 10 can lie on the strap 42 without experiencing discomfort.

[0022] The elongate strap 42 includes an attachment region 44 for attaching the strap 42 to the retaining member 30, and the retaining member 30 includes releasable attachment means 46 for releasably attaching the elongate strap 42 thereto via its attachment region 44. Referring to Fig. 4, the releasable attachment means 46 comprises a pin 48 and bracket members 50 including apertures secured to the retaining member 30. The pin 50 is passed through the apertures and through a passage 54 defined by the attachment region 44 of the elongate strap 42 to thereby attach the elongate strap 42 to the retaining member 30.

[0023] In order to prevent accidental removal of the pin 50 and consequent accidental release of the elongate strap 42 from the retaining member 30, the releasable attachment means 46 further includes a deformable cotter pin 56 which is locatable in an aperture 58 located towards a distal end of the pin 50.

[0024] The elongate strap 42 further includes a foot receiving region 60 for receiving the foot of an individual in the bed 10, and the elongate strap 42 may be adjustable to permit the distance between the foot receiving region 60 and the attachment region 44 to be varied. This is important so that the support device 32 can accommodate individuals having different leg length measurements.

[0025] The foot receiving region 60 comprises a loop 62 into which the foot of an individual may be inserted, in use. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 2, the elongate strap 42 comprises a first strap member 64 of fixed length and a second strap member 66 which is adjustable to permit the distance between the foot receiving region 60 and the attachment region 44 to be varied. In more detail and referring in particular to Fig. 2, one end 70 of the second strap member 66 is secured to a fixing member 68 provided at an end of the first strap member 64 and the other end 72 of the second strap member 66 is passed through the fixing member 68 to define the loop 62. By moving the end 72 of the second strap member 66 backwards or forwards through the fixing member 68, which is of a type well known to persons skilled in the art, the effective size of the loop 62 can be altered and hence distance between the fixing member 68 and the foot receiving region 60, and thus between the foot receiving region 60 and the attachment region 44, can be altered.

[0026] In embodiments of the invention, the elongate strap 42, and in particular the second strap member 66, includes one or more pockets 80 into which a foot support member 74 in the form of a plate 76 can be inserted. This provides a firm surface for engagement by the foot of an individual in the bed 10 when received by the foot receiving region 60.

[0027] As best seen in Fig. 1, the support devices 32 are transversely spaced on the retaining member 30 and are arranged so that, in use, the elongate strap 42 of each support device 32 extends substantially alongside an individual in the bed 10 and so that the foot receiving region 60 of each support device 32 is positioned towards the lower region 24 of the bed 10, in the vicinity of the feet of a person in the bed 10. In particular, the length of each elongate strap 42 may be adjusted to suit the length of the legs of the individual using the bed 10 so that when the individual is lying flat in the bed 10, the foot receiving region 60 of each support device 32 is at a slightly higher position in the bed 10, towards the upper region 22 of the bed 10, than the feet of the individual. In this way, if the individual wishes to move from the lying position to a sitting position with their back resting against the back support member 26 or the upper vertical frame member 18 if there is no back support member 26, they may bend one or both of their legs at the knee to enable them to locate one or both of their feet in the foot receiving portion 60 of each support device 32, and exert a force on the foot receiving portion 60 of each support device 32. Any exerted force is transmitted through the elongate strap 42 to the bed frame 12, and specifically through the retaining member 30 to the upper vertical frame member 18, thus enabling the individual to move themselves from the lying position to the upright position, and to maintain themselves in the upright position as desired.

[0028] Although embodiments of the invention have been described in the preceding paragraphs with reference to various examples, it should be appreciated the various modifications to the examples given may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the support arrangement 28 may include only one support device 32. A support device 32 according to the invention may be used without the retaining member 30, the support device 32 being attachable directly to a bed frame 12 via its attachment region 44. The transverse position of the or each support device 32 on the retaining member 30 or on the bed frame 12 may be varied so that the foot receiving region 60 of the or each device 32 is most appropriately positioned for receiving the foot of an individual in the bed 10. For the avoidance of doubt, the support device 32 according to the invention may be used with any type of bed 10 comprising a frame and is not limited for use with hospital type beds as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance, it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings, whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.

Claims

1. A support device (32) characterised in that the device comprises an elongate strap (42) having an attachment region (44) attachable to a bed frame (12) and a foot receiving region (60) for receiving a foot of an individual in the bed (10), wherein the support device is arranged so that, in use, force exerted by a user's foot on the foot receiving region is transmitted through the elongate strap to the bed frame.

2. A support device according to claim 1, wherein the attachment region is attachable to a bed frame in an upper region (22) of a bed and the elongate strap arranged to extend in use alongside an individual in the bed such that the foot receiving region is located towards a lower region of the bed.

3. A support device according to claims 1 or 2, wherein the elongate strap is adjustable to permit adjustment of the distance between the foot receiving region and the attachment region.

4. A support device according to claim 3, wherein the elongate strap comprises a first strap member (64) whose length is fixed and a second strap member (66) which is adjustable to permit said adjustment of the distance between the foot receiving region and the attachment region.

5. A support device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the foot receiving region comprises a loop (62) into which the foot of an individual may be inserted in use.

6. A support device according to claim 5, wherein the loop is defined by the elongate strap.

7. A support device according to claim 6, wherein the loop is defined by the second strap member.

8. A support device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the elongate strap defines one or more pockets (80) into which a foot support member (74) may be inserted.

9. A support arrangement (28), characterised in that the arrangement comprises a retaining member (30) attachable to a bed frame (12) and at least one support device (32) as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the attachment region (44) of the at least one support device is attached to the retaining member.

10. A support arrangement according to claim 9, wherein the retaining member is attachable to a bed frame in an upper region (22) of a bed (10).

11. A support arrangement according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the retaining member is elongate and extends transversely in use across a bed when attached to a bed frame.

12. A support arrangement according to any of claims 9 to 11, wherein the support arrangement includes releasable securing means (34) to releasably attach the retaining member in use to a bed frame.

13. A support arrangement according to any of claims 9 to 12, wherein the retaining member includes releasable attachment means (46) to releasably attach the elongate strap (42) of the at least one support device thereto.

14. A support arrangement according to any of claims 9 to 13, wherein the support arrangement includes two of said support devices and the attachment region of both of said support devices is attached to the retaining member.

15. A support arrangement according to claim 14, wherein the support devices are attached to the retaining member at transversely spaced positions so that, in use, the elongate strap of each support device extends substantially alongside the legs of an individual in the bed to enable the feet of the individual to be received by a respective foot receiving region of each elongate strap.

Drawing