Actuator system for furniture in the nature of adjustable treatment tables, hospital and care beds

Abstract

 Actuator system for adjustable articles of furniture in the nature of treatment tables, hospital or care beds, and comprising at least one electromechanical actuator (5,7) for adjusting the article of furniture, an electric control to which the actuator is connected, a power supply connected to the control and the actuator, at least one foot-operated control (11) for activating the control, at least one control panel (10) connected to the control for activating the actuator. The control panel (10) comprises an operation key (19), which must be activated in order for the foot-operated control (11) to become operational. This reduces the risk for unintentional activation of the foot-operated control (11).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to an adjustable treatment table, hospital or care bed of the type defined in the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] EP 498 111 B2 J. Nesbit Evans & Co. Ltd. discloses a hospital bed in which the supporting surface for the mattress can be adjusted with two electrical actuators, and in which the frame in which the mattress support surface is embedded, may be raised and lowered as well as tilted over a transverse axis (Trendelenburg positions) by two additional actuators. The actuators are connected to a control box comprising a mains-based power supply and a rechargeable battery package, just as the control box comprises a control. A hand control dedicated to the patient as well as a hand control for the staff is connected to the control, alternatively or additionally, a control box (ACP) may be arranged at the foot end of the bed. Furthermore, the bed may be equipped with a foot-operated control at each side, typically having two or three operating pedals. An example of a bed having a foot-operated control is shown in WO 01/47340 Hill-Rom Services, Inc.

[0003] Unfortunately, there have been a number of accidents where a patient for inscrutable reasons has fallen down on the foot-operated control, whereby one or more functions have been activated. At worst, the patient has got his head caught in the bed structure, and there have been instances having had a fatal result.

[0004] WO 2006/056203 A2 Linak A/S discloses a solution in which the pedals of the foot-operated control must be operated in a certain order to adjust the bed. First the pedal is operated briefly, released and then operated again and pressed until the function has been performed. The solution is as far as it goes fine, but it has in practice proven to be very difficult for the staff, to operate the pedals in a certain order.

[0005] The purpose of the invention is to provide another solution to the outlined problem that the article of furniture is put in motion as a result of an unintentional activation of the foot-operated control.

[0006] This is achieved according to the invention by constructing the actuator system, as stated in claim 1. As the control panel comprises an operation key, which must be activated in order for the foot-operated control to become operational, it is ensured that the foot-operated control does not unintentionally activate the actuator system.

[0007] It is further expedient that the function keys of the control panel are also switched off and does not become operational until the operation key is activated.

[0008] That the foot-operated control and preferably also the functions of the control panel do not become operational until the operation key is activated can be brought about in various ways, but in a particularly simple embodiment, the operation key switches off an electrical conductor, preferably a joint electrical conductor for the foot-operated control and the control panel.

[0009] Expediently, the control panel is a hand control, but can also be an ACP (Attendant Control Panel). An ACP is a control box especially intended for the staff and located under the bed at its foot end and which can be pulled out from a stowed position, when it is to be operated.

[0010] The control can be constructed so that the operation key on the control panel should be kept activated for activating the foot-operated control and preferably in addition the control panel, but it has the disadvantage that one does not have both hands free, but on the other hand it ensures that the bed will stop immediately when either the operation key or the foot-operated control is released.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment, the control is constructed so that the foot-operated control and the control panel will be active a predetermined period of time after the operation key on the control panel has been activated long enough for an adjustment to be performed under normal circumstances. Hereby, one has both hands free during the adjustment and at the same time it is ensured that the adjustment automatically will stop after a given period of time.

[0012] An embodiment of the invention will be described below with reference to the drawing, in which

Fig. 1,

shows a schematic view of a hospital bed, and

fig. 2,

shows a close-up of a hand control for the bed.

[0013] A hospital bed having a lower frame 1 furnished with drive wheels and an upper frame (not shown) has been outlined in the accompanying drawing. This upper frame is connected to the lower frame 1 by means of a telescopic lifting column 2,3 located at each end of the bed in its longitudinal central axis. An adjustable base carrying the mattress is embedded in the upper frame. This base has a back rest section 4, which can be rotated about a transverse axis to a raised position by means of a linear actuator 5 (for instance of the type LA31 from Linak A/S, Denmark). Furthermore, it has an articulated leg rest section 6, which can also be adjusted with a linear actuator 7. Between the two sections 4,6 there is a fixed middle section 8.

[0014] The lifting columns 2,3 and the two actuators 5,7 are wire-connected to a control box 9, comprising a power supply and a control. For operating the bed, a control panel in the nature of a hand control 10 and a foot-operated control 11 is wire-connected to the control box 9.

[0015] In Fig. 2 of the drawing is shown an enlarged view of the hand control 10, which at the top has a pair of function keys 12 for raising and lowering the leg rest section 6 and under it a pair of function keys 13 for raising and lowering the back rest section 4. The hand control 10 and the foot-operated control 11 are via a T-connector 14 connected to the control box 9, as the plug 15 is meant for the control box and the plug 16 for the foot-operated control. The foot-operated control 11 has two operating pedals 17,18 for operating the lifting columns 2,3 for raising and lowering of the upper frame, so that the patient can be brought to lie in a desired height. The foot-operated control 11 is normally inactive, so that even though the pedals are activated, the lifting columns are not enabled. The same applies to the hand control, i.e. its function keys are normally also inactive, so that even though one of these are inadvertently pressed, a function is not triggered, for instance unintended raising of the back rest section. In order for the function keys of the foot-operated control and the hand control to become active, it is necessary first to activate an operation key 19 on the hand control. The cable is connected so that the hand control and the foot-operated control has a joint conductor, which is switched off by the operation key or more precisely by the switch activated by the operation key. When activating the operation key 19 the conductor is closed and the function keys of the hand control and the foot-operated control thereby becomes active. For instance, when subsequently pressing one of the pedals 17,18 of the foot-operated control the lifting columns are started and when the foot pedal again is released the foot-operated control again becomes inactive and it is again necessary to activate the operation key 19 on the hand control 10 in order for the foot-operated control and the hand control to become active. The control unit is furnished with a timer unit which causes to foot-operated control 11 to remain active a predefined period of time after the operation key 19 on the hand control has been activated. The extent of the time delay is such that a normal adjustment by means of the lifting columns and the actuators within this period of time can be preformed.

[0016] It is understood that the above is only an embodiment for the invention and is not limiting for the development of the invention. Thus, a joint conductor for the hand control and the foot-operated control is not necessarily provided, just as the conductor can be switched off in a different way than with a switch, for instance via a transistor circuit or a thyristor.

Claims

1. Actuator system for adjustable articles of furniture in the nature of treatment tables, hospital or care beds, and comprising at least one electromechanical actuator (5,7) for adjusting the article of furniture, and an electric control to which the actuator is connected, and a power supply connected to the control and the actuator, and at least one foot-operated control (11) for activating the control, at least one control panel (10) connected to the control for activating the actuator, and also at least one control panel (10) having function keys (12,13) connected to the control for activating the actuator, characterized in that the control panel (10) comprises an operation key (19), which must be activated in order for the foot-operated control (11) to become operational.

2. Actuator system according to claim 1, characterized in that the function keys (12,13) of the control panel (10) also does not become operational until the operation key (19) is activated.

3. Actuator system according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the operation key (19) switches off a joint conductor for the foot-operated control and the control panel.

4. Actuator system according to claim 1, characterized in that the control panel is a hand control (10) .

5. Actuator system according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit is designed so that the operation key (19) on the control panel (10) must be kept activated for activation of the foot-operated control (11).

6. Actuator system according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit is constructed so that the foot-operated control (11) will be active a predetermined period of time after the operation key (19) on the control panel (10) has been activated long enough for the lifting columns (2,3) to perform an adjustment under normal circumstances.

Drawing