STRETCHER

Abstract

 A stretcher comprising a frame for supporting a patient mounted on a main wheeled cart for the concomitant translation of the frame and the cart, the frame being constrained to the cart by a lifting device that can be positioned in at least two operative positions, in the first of which the frame is lowered near the cart and, in the second of which, the frame is lifted and spaced apart from the cart, as well as an auxiliary cart articulated to the frame and movable between two operative positions in the first of which the auxiliary cart is folded near the frame and in the second of which it is extending from the frame and spaced apart therefrom in order to support it independently from the position taken by the lifting device, wherein said auxiliary cart includes at least one strut and at least one rafter, both of which being articulated to the auxiliary frame in mutually spaced apart positions, the rafter being articulated to the strut with its end opposite the frame and the strut being extendible.

Description

FIELD OF APPLICATION OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates to a stretcher of the type including the characteristics mentioned in the preamble of the main claim. These stretchers are particularly designed for vehicular transport, for example on ambulances and the like.

BACKGROUND

[0002] The technical problem generally encountered in all stretchers intended for this use is that of facilitating the lifting and the lowering of the frame during the loading and unloading steps from the transport vehicle. In fact, in these steps the frame must be lifted and lowered respectively from and towards the cart to allow access of the stretcher to the loading platform of the vehicle.

[0003] The stretchers currently in use are often provided with hydraulic or hydro-pneumatic devices so that the physical fatigue of the operators is relieved by actuating the lifting device of the frame from the cart. Furthermore, to temporarily support the frame while the cart is folded (or unfolded) during the loading/unloading steps from the vehicle platform, use is made of the so-called fifth wheel, i.e. an auxiliary cart that replaces the main cart when the latter is moved between the two operative positions.

[0004] However, the "fifth wheel" solutions adopted up to now are only partially satisfactory since the movement thereof is in any case laborious and tiring, as well as relatively dangerous for both the operator and the patient. An example of a stretcher provided with a fifth wheel that can be telescopically adjusted is described in US2005229312.The frame that carries the fifth wheel in this case is articulated to one end of the patient-carrying frame of the stretcher and can be oscillated between an inoperative position, retracted under the patient-carrying frame of the stretcher, and an operative position perpendicular thereto. The locking of the fifth wheel in the operative position is exclusively delegated to the angular locking of the joint in question, which implies the risk of accidental closing of the fifth wheel if this locking is not completely inserted or defective. Furthermore, the positioning of the fifth wheel is very backward towards one end of the stretcher which can cause a dangerous unbalance of the stretcher in the most critical conditions of use of the fifth wheel.

EXPOSURE AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The problem underlying the present invention is that of devising a stretcher that is structurally and functionally improved and conceived to at least partially obviate one or more of the drawbacks complained of with reference to the cited prior art.

[0006] This problem is solved by the invention by means of a stretcher made in accordance with the main claim.

[0007] The stretcher comprises a frame for supporting a patient mounted on a main wheeled cart for the concomitant translation of the frame and the cart.

[0008] Said frame is constrained to the cart by a lifting device that can be positioned in at least two operative positions, in the first of which the frame is lowered near the cart and, in the second of which, the frame is lifted and spaced apart from the cart.

[0009] The stretcher further comprises an auxiliary cart articulated to the frame and movable between two operative positions in the first of which the auxiliary cart is folded near the frame and in the second of which it is extending from the frame and spaced apart therefrom in order to support it independently from the position taken by the lifting device; said auxiliary cart includes at least one strut and at least one rafter, both of which are articulated to the auxiliary frame in mutually spaced positions, the rafter being articulated to the strut with its end opposite the frame and the strut being extendible.

[0010] By using an auxiliary cart that includes at least one strut and at least one rafter both articulated to the auxiliary frame in mutually spaced apart positions, the locking of the auxiliary cart in the operative position is guaranteed in any condition and is very stable. With a rafter articulated to the strut with its end opposite the frame and with the extendible strut, an easy adjustment of the stretcher is achieved in the delicate step of transition from full support on the main cart to the transfer onto the platform of the transport vehicle through the use of the fifth wheel.

[0011] Preferably the (telescopic) extension of the strut is such that, when the auxiliary cart and the lifting device are in the second operative position, the strut may be extended between a retracted position and an extended position in which the auxiliary cart flanks and/or replaces the main cart in supporting the supporting frame. The strut is advantageously of the telescopic type, with at least one extendible shaft cylinder and is provided with at least one wheel, for example two wheels, preferably pivoting wheels.

[0012] Said objects and advantages are all achieved by the improved stretcher object of the present invention, which is characterized by what is provided for in the following claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] This and other features will be more apparent from the following description of some of the embodiments, illustrated purely by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1: illustrates a side view of a stretcher according to a first operative position taken when it is housed in the transport vehicle;

Figure 2: illustrates a side view of a stretcher according to a second operative position in which the frame is lowered near the cart;

- Figure 3: side view shows a stretcher according to the position taken when approaching the platform of the motorised ambulance;

- Figure 4: illustrates a side view of a stretcher according to the position taken when it is being loaded/unloaded onto the platform of the motorised ambulance, with the pair of auxiliary wheels resting on the ground;

- Figure 5: illustrates a side view of a stretcher according to the further position taken when it is being loaded/unloaded onto the platform of the motorised ambulance, with the pair of auxiliary wheels resting on the ground;

- Figure 6: illustrates an axonometric view of a stretcher according to the position taken when it is being loaded/unloaded onto the platform of the motorised ambulance, with the pair of auxiliary wheels resting on the ground.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] In the figures, 1 generally indicates an improved stretcher in accordance with the present invention. The stretcher 1 comprises a frame 2 for supporting a patient to be transported provided with a patient platform 3 articulated at an articulation axis 4 so as to allow the frame 2 to take on a lying, sitting, or variously reclined position.

[0015] To the frame 2 in a per se known manner, there is articulated a front arch 5 carrying a pair of first support wheels 6 and constrained so as to be able to take different angular positions with respect to the frame 2 by means of disc hinges 7 or other device which allows the rotation and the locking of the arch 5 in different angular positions with respect to the frame 2.

[0016] The frame 2 is mounted on a main cart 8 provided with two pairs of wheels 9, 10, pivoting and brakable for the concomitant translation of the frame 2 and the cart. The cart 8 is made of tubular metal to which the wheels 9 and 10 are constrained by means of collars 9a and 10a, respectively. A further pair of tilting wheels 11 is fixed to the cart 8 in an intermediate position between the pairs 9 and 10 for the function better explained below. Preferably, the pair of tilting wheels 11 is in a position such as to ensure that the centre of gravity of the stretcher 1 with the patient lying on the patient platform 3 is comprised between the support on the platform 33 of the pair of tilting wheels 11 and the support on the platform 33 of the pair of wheels 10.

[0017] The frame 2 is constrained to the cart 8 by a lifting device 12 of the pantograph type with two pairs of arms 13, 14 crossed and pivoted in the axis of intersection by means of a respective hinge 15.The arms 13, 14 are in turn hinged to the frame 2 and to the cart by means of hinges 18, 19, 20 and 21 wherein the hinges 19, 20 and 21 that constrain the arm 14 to the frame 2 and cart and the arm 13 to the cart are fixed while the hinge 18 is movable on the frame 2, parallel to itself, by means of an actuator 22 in order to move and position the frame 2 with respect to the cart in at least two operative positions, in the first of which (fig. 1) the frame 2 is lowered near the cart and in the second of which (fig. 2) the frame 2 is lifted and spaced apart from the cart. It is preferably provided that at least one of the arms, in this case the arm 13, is adjustable in length, for example by means of a telescopic extensibility 23.This allows the frame 2 to take different positions with respect to the cart, for example the one represented in fig. 3.

[0018] An auxiliary cart 24 is articulated to the frame 2 and is movable between two operative positions (figs. 2 and 3 respectively) in the first of which the auxiliary cart 24 is folded near the frame 2 and in the second of which it is extending from the frame 2 and spaced apart therefrom in order to support it independently from the position taken by the lifting device 12.The auxiliary cart 24 comprises at least one strut 25, preferably a pair of them, articulated by means of a bracket 26 to the frame 2 in an intermediate position thereof between its opposite ends and preferably in an approximately central position, such as to ensure that the centre of gravity of the stretcher 1 with the patient lying on the patient platform 3 is comprised between the support on the ground of the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 and the support on the platform 33 of the pair of wheels 10.The auxiliary cart 24 further comprises at least one rafter 27, also articulated to the frame 2, with one end thereof 28 and articulated to the strut 25 at a hinge 29.The strut 25 is extendible either by telescopic extension of one part thereof 30 fixed to the frame 2 with an extraction 31 or in another equivalent way, for example a cylinder-piston and screw and nut screw extraction. The actuation is obtained by means of a jack 34, for example consisting of a gas spring. A pair of auxiliary wheels 32 is carried at the end of the strut 25 opposite the frame 2.Preferably, the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 is pivoting. Preferably, the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 can be individually braked. Preferably, the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 can be immobilized with the rotation axes in vertical position when the auxiliary cart 24 is in the folded down position as in fig. 2. The telescopic extension of the strut 25 is such that, when the auxiliary cart 24 and the lifting device 12 are in the second operative position, the strut 25 may be extended between a retracted position, in which the auxiliary wheels 32 are lifted off the ground, and an extended position in which the auxiliary cart 24 flanks and/or replaces the main cart in supporting the supporting frame 2 with the auxiliary wheels 32 that surpass the wheels 9 and 10.

[0019] The operation of stretcher 1 is as follows.

[0020] Starting from the position of figure 1 that the stretcher takes on when it is housed in the transport vehicle, for example resting on the platform 33 of an ambulance, it is extracted from the vehicle and placed in the position of figure 2, possibly (but not necessarily) using the support provided by the auxiliary cart 24, the actuation of which is explained below.

[0021] Once the patient has been loaded and the position of the patient platform 3 on which the patient is lying has been adjusted, the stretcher, which has taken the second operative position of Figure 2, is brought closer to the platform 33 of the motorised ambulance as in Fig. 3. Subsequently, the actuation of the auxiliary cart 24 is commanded by adjusting the inclination of the strut 25 by adjusting the length of the rafter 27 which is achieved with an adjustable telescopic positioning of the elements composing it. The strut 25 is then extended until the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 comes to rest on the ground allowing the frame 2 to be supported independently from the operative position taken by the main cart 8 which at this point can be lifted by folding the arms 13, 14 of the pantograph 12.

[0022] The stretcher is then pushed along the platform 33 until the tilting wheels 11 also come into contact therewith, contributing to support the stretcher in the vehicle. Preferably, the centre of mass of the stretcher 1 with the patient lying on the patient platform 3 is comprised between the support on the platform 33 of the pair of tilting wheels 11 and the support on the platform 33 of the pair of wheels 10.At this point the auxiliary cart 24 can be retracted and lifted in the position of figure 1 to allow the full insertion of the stretcher 1 on the platform 33 of the vehicle. During the operation of unloading the stretcher 1 from the platform 33 with the patient lying on the patient platform 3, the stretcher 1 is first supported on the pair of wheels 10 and on the pair of tilting wheels 11.In particular, the pair of tilting wheels 11 has the function of supporting the main cart 8 with balance, avoiding the imbalance thereof, for the entire period of time required by the operation of actuation of the auxiliary cart 24, including the time for adjusting the length of the rafter 27 and extension of the strut 25 until the pair of auxiliary wheels 32 comes to rest on the ground allowing the frame 2 to be supported in a redundant way (fig. 4).Subsequently, the stretcher 1 is further slid with respect to the platform 33 until the only support points of the stretcher 1 on the platform 33 are the pair of first support wheels 6.

[0023] At this point, the actuation of the main cart 8 is commanded by unfolding the arms 13, 14 of the pantograph 12 until the pairs of wheels 9 and 10 come to rest on the ground allowing the frame 2 to be supported independently from the position taken by the auxiliary cart 24.Subsequently, the folding down of the auxiliary cart 24 is commanded as in fig. 2.

[0024] The adjustment of the position of the main cart 8 and of the auxiliary cart 24 with respect to the frame 2 takes place by means of actuators, which allow to obtain a thrust proportional to the weight of the patient to be lifted or moved. Such actuators can be for example mechanical (actuated by hand), electromechanical, hydraulic or pneumatic.

[0025] In order to move and position the frame 2 with respect to the cart 8, the actuator 22 is actuated by means of a hydraulic device 35, constrained to the frame 2.The hydraulic device includes a piston, which consists of two mechanical parts: the cylinder 37, consisting of a hollow cylindrical body ground in its inside; and the shaft 36, consisting of a solid round bar, ground on the outside. The piston is governed by a fluid (for example hydraulic oil) through a pump. Preferably, the pump is actuated by an electric motor. Preferably, the electric motor is powered by a battery. The actuation of the electric motor is preferably controlled by means of an electric switch. The electric switch is for example wired to the motor. In another configuration, the electric motor and the switch are wirelessly connected to each other. In another configuration, the pump is actuated manually, for example by foot .In another configuration, the actuator 22 is actuated by hand through a screw/nut or a gear wheel and linear axis mechanism.

[0026] In order to adjust the position of the auxiliary cart 24 with respect to the frame 2 by adjusting the extension of the strut 25, the jack 34 is actuated for example by means of the hydraulic device 35.

[0027] In another configuration, the jack 34 is actuated through a gas spring. The gas spring consists of a metal cylinder containing gas (for example air or nitrogen) under pressure and of a shaft sliding in the cylinder through a sealing ring. The gas, by compressing itself as a result of the entry of the shaft, returns a thrust, acting like a spring. In another configuration, the jack 34 is actuated by hand through a screw/nut or a gear wheel and linear axis mechanism.

[0028] In order to adjust the position of the auxiliary cart 24 with respect to the frame 2 by adjusting the inclination of the strut 25 with respect to the frame 2, the extension of the rafter 27 is accomplished for example through the hydraulic device 35.In another configuration, the extension of the rafter 27 is accomplished through a gas spring. In another configuration, the extension of the rafter 27 is accomplished by hand through a screw/nut or a gear wheel and linear axis mechanism. Preferably, the control system of the actuators provided with an electric motor comprises a program for controlling the actuators during the operation of loading the stretcher 1 onto the platform 33.

[0029] Preferably, the control system of the actuators comprises a program for controlling the actuators during the operation of unloading the stretcher 1 from the platform 33.

[0030] It is understood however that what is described above has a value of non-limiting example, therefore, possible variants of detail that may be necessary for technical and/or functional reasons, are considered from now falling within the same protective scope defined by the claims indicated below.

Claims

1. A stretcher comprising a frame 2 for supporting a patient mounted on a main wheeled cart 9, 10 for the concomitant translation of the frame 2 and the cart, the frame 2 being constrained to the cart by a lifting device 12 that can be positioned in at least two operative positions, in the first of which the frame 2 is lowered near the cart and, in the second of which, the frame 2 is lifted and spaced apart from the cart, as well as an auxiliary cart 24 articulated to the frame 2 and movable between two operative positions in the first of which the auxiliary cart 24 is folded near the frame 2 and in the second of which it is extending from the frame 2 and spaced apart therefrom in order to support it independently from the position taken by the lifting device 12, characterized in that said auxiliary cart 24 includes at least one strut 25 and at least one rafter 27, both of which being articulated to the auxiliary frame 2 in mutually spaced apart positions, the rafter 27 being articulated to the strut 25 with its end opposite the frame 2 and the strut 25 being extendible.

2. The stretcher according to claim 1, wherein the extension of the strut 25 is such that, when the auxiliary cart 24 and the lifting device 12 are in the second operative position, the strut 25 may be extended between a retracted position and an extended position in which the auxiliary cart 24 flanks and/or replaces the main cart in supporting the supporting frame 2.

3. The stretcher according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the strut 25 is telescopic.

4. The stretcher according to claim 3, wherein the strut 25 comprises at least one extendible shaft cylinder.

5. The stretcher according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the auxiliary cart 24 is provided with at least one wheel.

6. The stretcher according to claim 5, wherein said at least one wheel is pivoting.

7. The stretcher according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein said rafter 27 is telescopically extensible.

8. The stretcher according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein said lifting device 12 is of the pantograph type.

9. The stretcher according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein said strut 25 is articulated to an intermediate and preferably central position of the frame 2 for supporting the patient.

10. The stretcher according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein said rafter 27 is constrained to an end 28 of the frame 2 for supporting the patient.

Drawing