SET OF DRAWERS FOR A HOSPITAL TROLLEY

Abstract

 The invention relates to a set of drawers for a hospital trolley, comprising a structural casing (2) with a housing in which there are inserted drawers (3) that can be pulled out through a front opening, where, transversely in front of the front opening, there is arranged a pivoting plate (4) mounted on the structural casing (2) by means of points of rotation (5), where said pivoting plate is able to pivot between a folded-down position in front of the opening and a lifted-up position in which said opening is freed. Said pivoting plate (4) is provided on the upper edge with rearward-oriented perpendicular tabs (8), whereas the structural casing (2) has grooves (9) in the upper part, corresponding to said tabs (8), in which the tabs (8) are inserted, passing through to the inside of the housing of the drawers (3) when the pivoting plate (4) rotates to the upper position.

Description

Field of the Art

[0001] The present invention relates to trolleys that are used in hospitals or the like for carrying medicines to be given to patients or utensils for applying treatments in situ in a manner in which they are sorted, proposing a set of drawers for said hospital trolleys in which structural features making it functionally advantageous for that application have been implemented.

State of the Art

[0002] A common activity carried out in hospitals, clinics, nursing homes, etc., is to carry, from time to time, medicines to patients who are in their own rooms or in other rooms, and to heal or treat said patients under those same conditions, for which the medicines and utensils required are carried in trolleys provided with housings in which the medicines and utensils are arranged sorted in an orderly manner, which thereby facilitates performing the mentioned activities in a quick and efficient manner.

[0003] For that purpose, there are trolleys organized in different ways, with trays, drawers, etc., for determining the housings for sorting medicines and/or utensils, where distributing in said trolleys sets formed by independent structures that can be readily placed in their location in the trolley of application and removed therefrom is known, a series of pull-out drawers being incorporated in each set, which pull-out drawers form the housings for sorting medicines and utensils, such that each set can be independently prepared with the required medicines and utensils, being incorporated thereafter in the trolley of use.

[0004] In a known embodiment, trolleys of that type incorporate pivoting plates on the actual structure of the trolley, in the front part of the regions for inserting the sets, and in relation to said pivoting plates a practicable vertical rod for blocking the plates in a closed position in which the front of the respective regions for inserting the sets is at least partially closed, said practicable vertical rod for blocking the pivoting plates being provided with a key lock.

[0005] This thereby allows for, on one hand, retention of the drawers of the sets to prevent them from being able to come out unintentionally due to the movements of the trolley when it is moved, and it allows for safety, on the other hand, to prevent the drawers of the sets from being able to be opened by unauthorized people when the trolley carrying the sets is parked in any waiting area.

[0006] In that known embodiment, the arrangement of the pivoting plates in the structure of the trolleys makes it more expensive to build the trolleys and makes the assembly for incorporating the sets of drawers therein more complicated, in addition to the fact that when the sets are pulled out of the trolley, the drawers thereof are not retained, where they can come out of the set accidentally during handling thereof, with the subsequent risks for the users and the medicines and utensils housed in the drawers.

Object of the Invention

[0007] The invention proposes a set of drawers for hospital trolleys, developed with features making it advantageous in relation to the drawbacks indicated above and other particularities, in comparison with the embodiments of sets that are incorporated in known trolleys of this type.

[0008] This set object of the invention comprises a structural casing inside which there are housed drawers that can be pulled out through the front part, said structural casing incorporating transversely in front of the location of the drawers a plate pivotably mounted between a closed position in which the front of the housing of the drawers is at least partially closed and a lifted-up position in which said front of the housing of the drawers is left open.

[0009] Therefore, in the closed arrangement of the set, the pivoting plate retains the drawers in the inserted position in which the drawers are housed inside the structural casing, even when the set is handled individually, thereby facilitating safer handling of the set, since the retention of the drawers prevents them from coming out accidentally; said safer handling likewise being maintained when the set is incorporated in a transport trolley. The set is therefore autonomous for keeping its drawers safely closed, without depending to that end on incorporation in a trolley of application, which also facilitates modularization when incorporating the sets in the trolleys of application.

[0010] The pivoting plate of the set has knobs at the ends, serving as handles for pivoting said pivoting plate when a drawer is to be opened by pulling it out through the front part; the knob of one end also serving as a stop for blocking the pivoting plate by means of a practicable vertical safety rod incorporated in the trolley of application.

[0011] Additionally, the pivoting plate has on the upper edge rearward-oriented perpendicular tabs, and the structural casing of the set has grooves in the upper part corresponding to said tabs, such that when the pivoting plate is lifted up to the open position in which the front of the housing of the drawers is opened, said tabs of the upper edge thereof are inserted through the grooves of the structural casing of the set, going into the housing of the drawers. The pivoting plate itself thereby establishes with its tabs a stop which prevents the drawers from coming out completely when they are pulled out to the front for opening same, preventing the drawers from being able to fall due to carelessness, which facilitates handling for opening the drawers of the set and makes it safer.

[0012] As a result, the set of drawers object of the invention has features that make it functionally advantageous, being novel and preferred with respect to conventional sets having the same application.

Description of the Drawings

[0013] 

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of a set of drawers according to the invention.

Figure 2 shows a sectioned side view of the set in the closed position.

Figure 3 shows a sectioned side view of the set, with the drawer corresponding to the section pulled out to the front in an open position.

Figure 4 shows an embodiment of a hospital trolley provided with a distribution of sets of drawers according to the invention, the trolley assembly being closed in a safety position by means of a practicable vertical rod.

Figure 5 shows a perspective view of the trolley of the preceding figure, with the practicable vertical safety rod in an open position, a set being opened with a drawer of said set pulled out to the front.

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0014] The object of the invention relates to a set of drawers of the type used in hospitals or the like for housing medicines and/or utensils for healing or treatment purposes in a manner in which they are sorted, so that they can be carried in a trolley (1) to where patients to be treated are located.

[0015] The set according to the invention comprises a structural casing (2), which determines a box body, inside which there are housed drawers (3) inserted by means of sliding them through the open front part of the mentioned structural casing (2), such that for opening same, said drawers (3) can be pulled out through that front opening of the box body defined by the structural casing (2).

[0016] In relation to the front opening, there is arranged transversely in front of the housing of the drawers (3) inside the structural casing (2), a pivoting plate (4) mounted on the structural casing (2) by means of points of rotation (5), where said pivoting plate is able to pivot between a folded-down position in which it at least partially closes the front opening of the housing of the drawers (3) in the structural casing (2), and a lifted-up position in which said front opening of the housing of the drawers (3) is freed.

[0017] Therefore, when the pivoting plate (4) is in the folded-down position in front of the front opening of the structural casing (2), it retains the drawers (3) in the position in which they are housed inside the structural casing (2), preventing them from being able to come out to the front, whereby the set can be handled safely, since the risk of the drawers being able to come out to the front accidentally due to the movements of the set is prevented.

[0018] However, the front opening of the structural casing (2) is freed by lifting up the pivoting plate (4) such that it pivots to the upper position, where the drawers (3) can be pulled out and thus opened for introducing the intended objects therein or removing them therefrom.

[0019] To facilitate the operation of rotating the pivoting plate (4) between the folded-down and lifted-up operative positions, said pivoting plate (4) is provided at the ends with knobs (6) serving as handles for handling the plate.

[0020] In the assembly of application of the set in a transport trolley (1) of the type used in hospitals or the like, one of the knobs (6) of the pivoting plate (4) of the set furthermore serves, as seen Figure 4, as a stop to block said pivoting plate (4) in the folded-down position by means of a practicable vertical safety rod (7) provided with a key lock incorporated in the structural assembly of the mentioned trolleys (1) ; where the closure of said practicable vertical safety rod (7) must be released and said rod must be rotated to a position in which it does not interfere with the pivoting plate (4) of the sets, so as to be able to lift up the pivoting plate (4) of any set and therefore free up the opening for pulling the drawers (3) out of the set, as seen in Figure 5.

[0021] Therefore, the fitting out of the sets with drawers (3) in the trolleys (1) of application in turn has a safety feature which prevents the drawers (3) of the sets from being able to come out of the sets accidentally due to the movements of the corresponding trolley (1) when it is moved, since the practicable vertical safety rod (7) retains the pivoting plates (4) of the sets in the folded-down position preventing the drawers (3) from coming out.

[0022] Furthermore, the pivoting plate (4) which is incorporated in the actual set according to the invention has on the upper edge tabs (8) oriented perpendicularly rearward, whereas the structural casing (2) has in the upper part grooves (9) corresponding to said tabs (8) of the pivoting plate (4), such that when the pivoting plate (4) is in the folded-down position for retaining the drawers (3), the tabs (8) are located outside the grooves (9), as seen Figure 2; but when the pivoting plate (4) is rotated to the upper position in which it frees up the outlet for pulling out the drawers (3), the tabs (8) are introduced through the grooves (9) passing through to the inside of the housing of the drawers (3), such that they determine a stop which prevents the drawers (3) from being able to completely come out of the structural casing (2) when they are pulled out through the opening, as seen Figure 3, thereby preventing the drawers (3) from being able to fall when being opened.

[0023] With the mentioned features, the set object of the invention can have variable dimensions depending on the trolley (1) of application for which the invention is intended, where each set can incorporate a variable number of drawers (3) and the pivoting plate (4) can have in relation to each drawer (3) a variable number of tabs (8) corresponding with respective grooves (9) of the structural casing (2), without any of these variables altering the concept of the invention.

Claims

1. A set of drawers for a hospital trolley, comprising a structural casing (2) determining a housing in which there are inserted drawers (3) which can be pulled out through a front opening of the housing, characterized in that transversely in front of the front opening of the housing of the drawers (3) there is arranged a pivoting plate (4) mounted on the structural casing (2) by means of points of rotation (5), where said pivoting plate is able to pivot between a folded-down position in front of the outlet opening of the drawers (3) and a lifted-up position in which said opening is freed, said pivoting plate (4) being provided on the upper edge with rearward-oriented perpendicular tabs (8), whereas the structural casing (2) has grooves (9) in the upper part, corresponding to said tabs (8), in which the tabs (8) are inserted, passing through to the inside of the housing of the drawers (3) when the pivoting plate (4) rotates to the upper position.

2. The set of drawers for a hospital trolley according to claim 1, characterized in that the pivoting plate (4) has knobs (6) at the ends.

Drawing