Abstract:
An apparatus for cleaning medical transport boards comprises a closed chamber having first and second oppositely facing ends and having a first opening in the first end for receiving a board and a second opening at the second end for passing the board out of the chamber, a first partition in the chamber spaced from the first end for defining a disinfectant spray section, the spray section including a spray delivery system for spraying disinfectant on all exposed surfaces of the board as the board passes through the spray section, a second partition in the chamber spaced from the second end for defining a rinse water section, the rinse water section including a water delivery system for flowing water over all exposed surfaces of the board as the board passes through the rinse water section and a pair of power driven brushes located in the chamber between the first and second sections for scrubbing exposed surfaces of the board during passage of the board through the chamber.

Description:
SPECIFIC DATA RELATED TO INVENTION  
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of the U.S. provisional patent application filed on Nov. 7, 2000 and assigned serial No. 60/246,435. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates generally to medical transport boards, sometimes referred to as spine boards, and, more particularly, to apparatus for cleaning and disinfecting such boards.  
           [0003]    Medical transport boards are boards that are generally used by emergency medical personnel for transporting accident victims. These boards, which are sometimes referred to as spine boards, are typically made of plastic, fiberglass, or other synthetic material and are designed to be lightweight but strong, stiff boards that prevent movement of a person strapped to the board during transport of the person. Since these boards are commonly used to transport accident victims, the boards are frequently contaminated with blood or other body fluids and must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected after each use. Typical methods of cleaning such boards include spraying the boards with water, soap solutions, disinfectants and manually scrubbing the boards by hand to remove any material on the boards.  
           [0004]    One prior attempt to automate cleaning of medical transport boards is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,004 issued Dec. 5, 1995. The &#39;004 patent discloses a washing system for a medical transport board, referred to therein as a spine board, in which the board is placed into a housing and subjected to a high pressure spray from a plurality of nozzles positioned about the board wherein the spray is intended to remove any contaminants from the board. The disclosed spray system includes a pump for delivering 8.5 gallons per minute at a pressure of 95 psi in order to attempt to clean and disinfect spine boards. According to the &#39;004 patent, a spine board may remain in the unit for up to thirty minutes in order to be cleaned by the impinging spray.  
           [0005]    Applicants&#39; have evaluated the cleaning of spine boards or medical transport boards by use of spraying under the conditions specified in the &#39;004 patent and found that the disclosed method is generally inadequate to completely clean dried body fluids from a spine board. More particularly, dried body fluids such as blood tends to leave discolorations that may not be completely removed by spraying and, while such splotches may not be harmful, they are disconcerting to persons handling the medical transport board. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a method which more effectively removes discolorations on such boards caused by body fluids as well as other materials.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0006]    The present invention addresses the shortcomings of prior art attempts to automate the cleaning of medical transport boards by providing a cleaning system that uses a combination of high volume, low pressure soaking coupled with stiff brush action to scrub the surfaces of the board. In a preferred embodiment, the invention comprises an electrically operated apparatus including a housing having a closed chamber through which a board is directed in order to be cleaned. Within the chamber, there is a first section having multiple spray nozzles for spraying the board first with water for wetting and then spraying with a disinfectant solution for decontamination. As the board exits the first section, it is directed through a pair of rotating brushes which include relatively hard nylon bristles for scrubbing the top and bottom exposed surfaces of the board. Preferably, the brushes are designed to rotate in a common direction so that one of the brushes pushes the board backwards while the other of the brushes pulls the board forward to thereby create a null force on the board. After the board passes through the brushes, it enters into a second section in which are arranged a plurality of spray nozzles for spraying clear water on the board to rinse away any debris left after passing through the brushes. The board then exits the housing having been washed, brushed and rinsed.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]    For a better understanding of the present invention, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:  
         [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one form of medical transport board cleaning unit with a transport board partially extending from one end of the unit;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2 is a simplified cross-sectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 showing the medical transport board extending fully through the cleaning apparatus;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 3 is a right side exploded perspective view of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 4 is a left side exploded perspective view of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 5 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the brush area of one form of the invention; and  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view lengthwise of the apparatus of FIG. 5. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]    Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a front perspective view of one form of a medical board cleaning apparatus  10  according to the present invention. The apparatus  10  includes a housing  12  supported on legs  14 . The housing  12  has a front access opening  16  from which a portion of a medical transport board  18  is shown protruding. FIG. 1 also shows a flexible drain  20  extending from a bottom of the apparatus  10 . Located on a top surface of apparatus  10  is a filler cap  22  providing access to a disinfectant storage tank located inside the apparatus  10 . On the front end of the apparatus are control switches  24  which actuate the unit for cleaning. The view of apparatus  10  simply shows the basic chassis or framework of the present invention with the housing  12  forming a cabinet assembly supported on the legs of  14 . It will be appreciated that the housing  12  could be provided without the support legs  14  if it were desired to provide other support under the housing. The housing  12  may be formed of sheet metal or other suitable material such as plastic or fiberglass with appropriate inner structural components to support the sheet material.  
         [0015]    Turning now to FIG. 2, there is shown a simplified functional cross-sectional view of the cleaning apparatus  10  of FIG. 1. As can be seen, the housing  12  is divided into three internal sections  26 ,  28  and  30 . Section  26  is a first section through which the board  18  is introduced into the housing. As the board is pushed through the apparatus  10 , it next passes through the section  28  containing rotating brushes  32 . Thereafter the board passes into the final section  30  before exiting from an opposite end of the housing. The sections  26  and  30  are separated from the section  28  by partitions  34  and  36 . The partition  34  defines the extent of the section  26  while the partition  36  defines the extent of the section  30 . Within the section  26  there is located a first pair of order delivery lines  38  and a second pair of disinfectant delivery lines  40 . The delivery lines  38  provide a water flow to wet the surface of board  18  prior to soaking the surface with the disinfectant spray from the lines  40 . It will be seen that the lines  38  and  40  are arranged to provide for a spray source to concurrently spray both the upper and lower exposed surfaces of the board  18 .  
         [0016]    As a leading edge of the board  18  begins to exit the section  26 , it enters into the section  28  and is passed between the pair of opposed rotating brushes  32 . Preferably the brushes  32  are stiff nylon brushes and arranged to exert substantial pressure on the surfaces of the board  18 . As will be further explained, the brushes  32  are driven so as to both rotate in a same direction, i.e., either both rotating clockwise or both rotating counterclockwise. The effect of having the brushes  32  rotate in the same direction is to create a force by one brush attempting to pull the board through the housing  12  while at the same time providing an opposing and equal force attempting to push the board backwards out of the housing  12 . The effect of the two brushes thereby cancel each other and result on a null force on the board so that it can be easily moved by an operator exerting a small amount of force to push the board in either one direction or another. Further, the unit can be operated by a single person since the board can be pushed into the housing until an end of the board begins to protrude from an opposite end of the housing and will remain stationery while the operator walks around the housing to reach the other end where the board can then be pulled out of the housing.  
         [0017]    After passing through the brushes  32 , the board next enters into the section  30  which contains multiple water lines  42 . These water lines are connected to provide a rinsing spray to the board to remove the disinfectant and any debris left on the board after having been brushed. While it is contemplated that the invention could include a further chamber for blowing air over the board to effect drying of the board&#39;s surface, it has been determined that such action is not necessary and that air drying of the board is sufficient for most applications.  
         [0018]    Turning now to FIG. 3, there is shown a front exploded perspective view of the apparatus of FIG. 1. As can be seen, the apparatus includes an inner chamber within the housing  12 . The inner chamber is formed by internal sidewalls  44  and  46  which, together with partitions  34  and  36  form the three sections  26 ,  28  and  30  through which the board passes in being cleaned. The housing  12  includes an outer sidewall  48  which is shown removed to expose the control mechanism associated with the cleaning apparatus. The control mechanism includes an electric motor  50  connected for driving a pair of pulleys  52  and  54  which are connected to shafts of the rotatable brushes  32 . In the illustrative form, the pulleys  52  and  54  are connected to a second pulley (not shown) attached to the rotating rotor of the motor  50 . As will be appreciated, the V-belt  55  passes sequentially around the outer surfaces of the pulleys  52  and  54  thus causing those pulleys to be rotated in a common direction.  
         [0019]    Disinfectant fluid such as “Sterigent, available from Spartan Chemical Company”, is stored in a tank  56  mounted in the housing between the partition wall  46  and the outer cover  48 . Near the tank  56  is a pump  58  which is utilized to assure a constant volume of water flow into the fluid delivery system of the cleaning apparatus. A cutoff valve  60  is attached to the pump outlet to prevent back flow of fluid into the system and pressurization from an external water source when the pump is not operating. The pump may, for example, be a constant volume pump putting about 50 psi pressure at each spray nozzle of the system. As is shown in FIG. 3, the fluid delivery system in each of the sections  26  and  30  includes multiple pipes  38 ,  40 ,  42  with each of the pipes having multiple nozzles  62  spaced along their length.  
         [0020]    Water is connected through appropriate piping (not shown) to the pump  58  which controls the flow of water into the fluid delivery system.  
         [0021]    Turning to FIG. 4, which shows an opposite side exploded perspective view of the cleaning apparatus  10 , the plumbing for the water delivery system can be seen to comprise a first line passing under the cleaning chamber defined within the housing and exiting as line  64 . The line  64  then branches to feed water to the first pair of pipes  38  in the front section  26  via line  66  while feeding water via line  68  to the second pair of lines  40  in section  26 . Tubing  70  coming from the disinfectant storage tank  56  also passes under the closed chamber  51  and is coupled into the fluid line  68 . The coupling for tubing  70  is at a venturi  72  so that the disinfectant is drawn into and mixed with the water flowing in the line  68  before the resultant fluid is sprayed onto the board  18 . Water from line  64  is also directed via line  74  into the spray lines  42  in section  30  in order to provide rinse water to a board  18 . Note that the chamber  51  is defined as a separate contained chamber within the housing  12  so as to isolate the fluid from the sides of the chamber where the various connections and electrical components are connected. As shown in the exploded view of FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the chamber  51  includes its own cover  76  which is designed to seal the chamber and prevent the escape of any of the liquid over the top of the chamber. The housing is completed by top cover  78  and a left side cover  80 .  
         [0022]    Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown a cross-sectional view taken laterally through the brush section  28 . It can be seen that each of the brushes  32  ride on separate axles  82  and  84  which pass through and are supported by the side members  44  and  46  defining the chamber  51 . Appropriate seals are provided at the point where the axles pass through the walls  44  and  46  to prevent leakage of the fluid from within the chamber  51  into the other elements located outside the chamber within the housing. As can be seen from the cross-sectional view, the chamber  51  is essentially an inner lining which retains and controls the chemicals and water and directs them to a controlled drain  20  for appropriate disposal. The partition  34  and  36  serve to separate the chemical treating portion of the chamber  51  from the rinse water treating portion. Preferably, the chamber  51  is shaped with slanted floors so the chemicals and water is directed to the drain located at a bottom center point of the chamber. Watertight seals are used to assure that none of the chemical is lost from outside the chamber except through the drain  20 . It is generally desirable to make this arrangement since the chemicals have to be discarded in accordance with local health rules and there is always a concern with contamination of the disposed chemicals or water from cleaning of body fluids from the medical boards  18 .  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken lengthwise through the apparatus  10  and shows one form of canting of the internal sections of the chamber  51  so as to direct the various fluids toward a center drain  20 . FIG. 6 also shows a better view of how the nozzles  62  are arranged to spray fluid onto a board passing through the apparatus  10 .  
         [0024]    The brushes  32  are positioned in the chamber  51  in such a position as to completely contact all surfaces of the medical board being cleaned. While the preferred drive for the brushes  32  is a belt drive, it is also possible that the drive could be a chain drive or multiple motors could be utilized with a direct drive to the rotating brushes. Preferably, the power switch  24  is arranged and connected to energize both the pump  58  and the motor  50  at the same time so as to assure that both cleaning components of the system are operable. Appropriate circuit protection may be incorporated with the switch, the drive motor and the pump to inactivate the system in the event of an electrical problem.  
         [0025]    While the invention has been described in what is presently considered to be a preferred embodiment, various modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is intended, therefore, that the claims not be limited to the specific disclosed embodiment but be interpreted within the spirit of the invention.