IE912962A1

IE912962A1 - Hospital bed

Info

Publication number: IE912962A1
Application number: IE296291A
Authority: IE
Original assignee: Ahlstroem Oy
Priority date: 1990-08-22
Filing date: 1991-08-21
Publication date: 1992-02-26
Also published as: FI84976C; AU7968991A; FI84976B; WO1992003116A1; FI904147A7; FI904147A0

Abstract

The invention relates to an improved hospital bed comprising a body provided with ends; a liftable and lowerable patient-supporting portion (4); lifting means for the patient-supporting portion; and a lifting frame (5) disposed on the patient-supporting portion and serving as a transfer platform for the patient. The ends of the lifting frame are provided with bearing means (7) which can be transferred onto the ends of the bed. The bearing means (7) allow transferring the lifting frame from one bed to another along the ends of the bed when two beds are placed side by side.

Description

The present invention relates to an improved hospital bed having a structure which facilitates and simplifies the nursing and transfer of a patient.

PRIOR ART In known hospital beds, a support frame extending above the bed is connected to the bed and means for transferring a patient are fixed to the frame. WO 90/10427 discloses an apparatus comprising a support frame connected to a bed, a transfer couch for a patient, and means for transferring the patient on the transfer couch supported by the support frame. The transfer means comprise a hauling device which allows vertical adjustment of the support frame and the patient-supporting portion of the bed in relation to each other. The support frame is turnable from its initial position, which is in alignment with the longitudinal axis of the bed, to a desired angle by the side of the bed in order to transfer the patient onto a transport couch. The transfer couch is attached to the support frame with straps.

WO 91/05532 discloses a hospital bed in which two U-shaped bearer rods disposed side by side at one end of the bed and pivotable about their vertical axis. The upper and the lower arms of the rods are interconnected by transverse supports. The upper transverse support is provided with a bearer beam and the lower transverse support with wheels. The transfer underlay frame and the patient thereon can be transferred sideways with support of the straps connected to the support frame, without deviating from the alingment of the bed. The wheels provided in the bearer rods move simultaneously in the same direction which ensures that the bed is properly supported during the transfer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the invention is to provide a bed in which nursing and transfer of a patient is simplified in such a way that no lifting beams connected to the bed are needed for the transfer of the patient.

A hospital bed according to the invention comprises a body provided with ends, a liftable and a lowerable patientsupporting portion, a lifting means for the patient10 supporting portion, and a lifting frame on the patient supporting portion serving as a transfer platform. A characteristic feature of the bed of the invention is that the ends of the lifting frame are provided with bearing means which can be transferred onto the ends of the bed.

The ends of the bed have been connected to the lower body of the bed in such a way that they do not move with the patient-supporting portion. The lifting frame remains up in support of the bearing means while the patient-supporting portions is lowered down.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is described in more detail below, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:Fig. 1 is a side view of a hospital bed according to the invention in its basic position; Figs. 2 and 3 illustrate the bed of Fig. 1 in other positions used; and Figs. 4a - 4c illustrate various bearing means arrangements .

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A bed 1 is illustrated in the figures and comprises a body 2 with stationary upwardly extending ends 3, a patientsupporting portion 4 which can be lifted and lowered with a displacing or lifting means 6. A lifting frame 5, the ends of which are provided with bearing means 7, serves as a transfer platform for a patient and is disposed on the patient-supporting portion.

In Fig. 1, the patient-supporting portion 4 is shown in the lowered, normal supporting position.

In Fig. 2, the patient-supporting portion 4 has been raised by the lifting means 6 but the stationary ends 3 of the bed do not rise with the patient-supporting portion 4. The bearing means 7 have been extended of the ends of the lifting frame 5 so as to engage on the ends 3 of the bed.

When the patient-supporting portion 4 is lowered the lifting frame 5 remains raised supported by the ends 3 of the bed (Fig. 3). This facilitates taking care of the basic hygiene of the patient.

The bearing means allow easy transfer of the lifting frame and the patient thereon from one bed to another when two beds are placed side by side. The ends of the beds serve as transfer paths in a fashion similar to tracks, rails or corresponding means. The bearing means arrangement can be realized in many different slide or rolling surface embodiments, for example rails, rollers, wheels or corresponding means.

Figs. 4a, 4b, and 4c illustrate examples of a few bearing means systems. In the embodiment of Fig. 4a, the upper surface of the bed end 3 serves as a transfer surface along which rollers 7 in the end of the lifting frame 5 roll. In Fig. 4b, stationary rollers 8 are provided in the ends of the bed and a retractable and extendable bearing means 9 in the lifting frame. In Fig. 4c, a pivotable set of rollers 11 is provided housable in a channel in the end of the bed and downwardly pivotable to enable the rollers to support the lifting frame via a rail 12. The rollers described above can, of course, be replaced by other kinds of slide surfaces.

In one embodiment of the invention, a bed comprises a body portion, the ends of which serve as rails, but no patientsupporting portion or lifting means for the patient5 supporting portion, and the bed can be used as a kind of transfer carriage for a patient. In this embodiment the body portion is preferably provided with wheels.

With rail beds according to the present invention, a uniform 10 bed system can be provided in hospitals or the like places which facilitates and simplifies the nursing and transfer of patients.

Claims

1. A hospital bed (1) comprising a body (2) provided with 5 ends (3); a raisable and lowerable patient-supporting portion (4); lifting means (6) for raising and lowering the patient-supporting portion; and a lifting frame (5) disposed on the patient-supporting portion and serving as a transfer platform for the patient; characterized in 10 that the ends of the lifting frame (5) are provided with bearing means (7) engageable with the track means or like displacement means on the ends of the bed.

2. A hospital bed according to claim 1, characterized in 15 that the ends (3) of the bed are connected to the lower body of the bed in such a way that do not rise with the patientsupporting portion.

3. A hospital bed according to claim 1, characterized in 20 that the bearing means (7) are displaceable from one bed to another bed according to the invention along the ends of the bed serving as transfer paths.

4. A hospital bed (1) which can be used as a transfer 25 carriage for a patient, comprising a body (2) provided with ends (3) and wheels (13); and a lifting frame (5) serving as a transfer platform for the patient; characterized in that the ends of the lifting frame (5) are provided with bearing means (7) engageable with the 30 track means or like displacement means on the ends of the bed.

5. A hospital bed according to claim 4, characterized in that the bearing means (7) are displaceable from one bed 35 to another bed according to the invention along the ends of the bed serving as transfer paths.

6. A hospital bed substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.