An automatic care-taking system in use for bed-ridden patients

Abstract: A washing system for bed-ridden patients comprising: a bathing tub (200) into which warm water can be supplied; a rest plate mounted, in a first configuration above said bathing tub, so as to receive said patients when said patients is transferred to said system, said rest plate comprising at least first, second and third rest plate pieces (201, 202, 203) which correspond respectively to the torso, mid section and legs of said patient; said first rest plate pieces (201) being pivotably connected to said second rest plate piece (202), and said second rest plate piece being pivotably connected to said third rest plate piece (203); said rest plate pieces being adapted to move and rotate between at least said first configuration and a second configuration wherein said rest plate pieces form a chair shape within the bathing tub so that said patient may be bathed while seated.

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention This invention relates to an automatic care-taking system improved so that even bed-ridden aged patients can look after himself in daily life such as bathing and treating his own bowel movement without the help of an attendant. Description of the Prior Art For a bed-ridden patient who is physically unable to move by himself, one of the problems which he suffers from is bedsore (a decubitus ulcer) since he can not change his position in bed with his back always lying on an invariable area. Further, it usually takes no small help of an attendant to have the patient bathe or finish his bowel movement. With the attendant provided at all time, the patient psychologically feel as if he is a burden of his family particularly when the attendant is one of his family with the patient himself confined to bed for a long period of time. This is very costly first of all, and may eventually force all the family members to lead a gloomy and unpleasant life. As an example of a caring act, the attendant has to hug the patient to carry a toilet bowl on which the patient is to be sat, otherwise the toilet bowl has to be carried to a bed in which the patient is confined at the time of bowel movement. At the time of bathing, the patient is carried to a bathing tub with the use of a stretcher or a lift. In the case of the lift in particular, the lift has a net to accommodate the patient, the patient may feel uneasy while he is being carried. This is one of the reasons why the patient becomes reluctant to bathe, thus beginning to shed a foul odor from his body. It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a washing system for bed-ridden patients which enables the patient to take a bath as well as to finish bowel movement by himself substantially without the help of an attendant. This enables a reduction of the burden of the attendant to a significant degree. The patient can take a bath at his will at any moment to always keep himself clean, protecting himself against bed-ridden related diseases. US-A-3,692,028 discloses a washing system for bed-ridden patients to lower them into a bathing tub of water, in which the patient rests on a rest plate having a first configuration above the tub so as to receive the patient being transferred to the washing system, and a second, chair-shaped, configuration within the bathing tub and defined by first, second and third rest plate pieces together defining the rest plate. According to this invention, there is provided a washing system as defined by claim 1. Claim 1 is delimited over US-A-3,692,028. These and other aspects of this invention are more fully described in the following specification and drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a plan view of a bed for use with the washing system of this invention; Fig. 2 is a plan view mainly showing the rest plate pieces of a washing system according to the present invention; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of a bathing tub in neighbouring relationship with the rest plate pieces; Figs. 4 to 7 are longitudinal cross sectional views showing how a closure means works; Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view of a toilet bowl depicted with a bathing tub; Figs. 9 and 10 are longitudinal cross sectional views showing how the rest plate pieces work; Fig. 11 is a plan view showing a control panel; and Figs. 12 to 14 are longitudinal cross sectional views showing modified forms of a latch means. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Fig. 1 shows a plan view of a bed system described and illustrated in EP-A2-0491679 and able to be used with the washing system of this invention. At the right side of the bed body is a bathing tub 200 placed with a slight gap (Gp) from the bed. On an open upper end of the tub 200 are rest plate pieces on which the patient U is to lie on his back. The rest plate pieces comprise first, second and third rest place pieces 201, 202, 203 each connected in series by means of hinges (a), (b) in a manner to correspond in turn to the upper half body (torso), hip portion and legs of the patient U as seen in Figs. 2 and 3. The first rest plate piece 201 comprises two rollers 201a, 201b and a belt 201c extending between the rollers 201a and 201b. The second rest plate piece 202 comprises a row of rollers 204 and a belt extending around the rollers 204 and having an opening 205 corresponding to an upper open end of a toilet bowl to be described hereinafter. The third rest plate piece 203 comprises two rows of rollers 203a, 203b positioned at the right and left side of the legs of the patient to cross in a central portion so as to separate the legs when the legs slide on the rollers 203a and 203b. Further, the third rest plate piece 203 has a step plate 203S connected thereto by means of a hinge 203Hg. A link 303X is connected between the second rest plate piece 202 and the step plate 203S, and this link 303X acts to make the step plate 203S pivot about the hinge 203Hg in the direction of arrow (Sa) of Fig. 3 so that the patient U can rest his feet on the step plate 203S. A closure means is provided to open and close alternately the opening 205 as seen in Figs. 4 to 7. A bracket 400 is provided on the second rest plate piece 202 so as to straddle the opening 205. The bracket 400 has a straight rail 401 which terminates at a semi-circular rail portion. The rail 401 has a guide roller 408 able to move along its lengthwise direction. Along the rail 401, a semi-circular guide rail 401a is, so that the guide roller 408 moves along an outer side of the rail 401 with the roller 402 engaging against the rail 401a when the closure means displaces from solid-lined position to phantom-lined position as described hereinafter. During the process in which the closure means moves from the phantom-lined position to the solid-lined position, the guide roller 408 moves downward along the outer side of the rail 401 with the roller 402 engaging against the inner side of the rail 401a. This makes it possible for the closure means to change smoothly from horizontal movement to vertical movement and vice versa. The roller 402 is pivoted to a shaft 403, for free wheeling, which is secured to a vertical link 405 to which a toothed wheel 404 is fixedly secured. The link 405 is pivoted at its upper end to the shaft 403, and adapted to move together by upper and lower connector links 405a and 405b. The link 405 is secured at its lower end to a horizontal link 406 through a pin 407. At one side of the vertical link 405, the guide roller 408 is supported around a shaft 408a. At the other side of the vertical link 405, is a guide shaft 409 projecting horizontally to support rotationally a lift gear 410 which comes to be in mesh with the toothed wheel 404. A ratchet wheel 411 is supported by the guide shaft 409. The lift gear 410 has a pawl 412 which is always urged to mesh with the ratchet wheel 411 by a spring (Sp) so as to act as a one-way clutch between the lift gear 410 and the ratchet wheel 411. A rectangular plate 413 and cancel plate 411 are provided at the guide shaft 409 to rotate in unison with the ratchet wheel 411. A leaf spring 415 has a ratchet wheel 411. The leaf spring 415 has upper and lower wings which sandwich the cancel plate 414 to regulate the rotational movement of the cancel plate 414. Now, the horizontal link 406 has its tail end connected to a vertical link 416 by means of a pin 417. The vertical link 416 connects at its upper end to a roller 418 located at the rail 401, and having a horizontal crank 419. The crank 419 has a tubular portion 420, the inner side of which has a female thread. A bar 421 has a male thread at its outer surface which is connected to the tubular portion 420, and adapted to be driven by an electric motor 423 through a reducer 422. With an enegization of the motor 423 the bar 421 rotates to move the tubular portion 420 in the direction of arrow (β) in Fig. 4. The horizontal link 406, which acts as a carrier, has a square plate 425 secured by bolts, four corners of which have a stud 426 with a permanent magnet on its top end. The closure means has a lid 424 in addition to the carrier. The lid 424 comprises a frame 424a, rollers 424b and a belt 424c extending around the rollers 424b. The lid 424 has a permanent magnet 428 at its four corners to correspond to a magnet 427. The lid 424 is usually held to close the opening 205 by means of a latch means 429 which has a latch bar 430 on the second rest plate piece 202 as seen in Figs. 6 and 7. The latch bar 430 is adapted to move in the direction and counter direction of arrow (γ), and always urged by a coil spring 432 in the direction of arrow (η), so that the latch bar 430 engages its one end with a bar 431 through a roller 431a. The bar 431 is lockably mounted on the frame 424a by means of a pin 462 to oscillate within the predeterminated angle, and usually urged by a spring in the direction of arrow (η) to engage the latch bar 430. Two links 433 and 434 are connected by a pin 435 to form a V-shaped configuration. The link 433 is connected at its upper end to the second rest plate piece 202 by means of a pin 436, while the link 434 is connected at its upper end to the latch bar 430 through a pin 437. The latch bar 430 usually engages at its one end with a lower end of the bar 431 through the roller 431a to hold the lid 424 in place. As described hereinafter, the two links 433 and 434 expand to flatten when the cancel plate 414 moves upward to engage with the pin 435 so as to push it upward. With this upward movement, the latch bar 430 moves against the force of the spring 432 in the direction opposite to arrow (γ) to disengage the bar 431 from the roller 431a for retracting from the opening 205. Then, the lid 424 is released from latched position. When the cancel plate 414 moves downward to separate from the pin 435, the links 434 and 433 are biassed together by the spring 432 to form the original V-shaped configuration, thus moving the latch bar 430 in the direction of arrow (γ). Numeral 438 designates a pin roller rotationally mounted on a plate 439 to allow for smooth movement of the latch bar 430. Upon revealing the opening 205, the motor 423 is energised to rotate the bar 421 in one direction. From the fact that the bar 421 has its male thread fitting into the female thread of the tubular portion 420, the portion 420 moves together with the vertical and horizontal links 416, 406 and the carrier from the solid position of Fig. 4 to the phantom position with the assistance of the rollers 418, 402 and the rail 401. With this movement of the carrier, the magnets 427 and 428 face each other in the vertical relationship, then the lift gear 410 moves around the toothed wheel 404 in the direction of arrow (α) by an angle of approximately 90 degrees as seen in Fig. 5. In consequence, the carrier moves upward from the solid-lined position to the phantomlined position, so that the magnet 427 is attracted to the magnet 428. In this instance, the cancel plate 414 adopts the phantom line position of Fig. 5 to push up the pin 435 as seen in Fig. 6. The expanded links 433 and 434 cause the latch bar 430 to move in the direction opposite to arrow (γ) to release the latch bar 430 from the bar 431. With the release of the latch bar 430, the bar 421 rotates in another direction to move the tubular portion 420 together with the links 416 and 406 in the direction opposite to arrow (β). With this movement, the lift gear 410 moves around the toothed wheel 404 in the direction opposite to arrow (α) so as to return to the original solid-lined position, with rotation of the plates 414 and 413 prevented by the action of the pawl 412. Each time when the lift gear 410 moves to the solid-lined position, the plate 413 intermittently rotates by an angle of 90 degrees together with the cancel plate 414. With the downward movement of the carrier, the square plate 425 descends with the lid 424 in unison to the solid-lined position so as to reveal the opening 205 since the magnets 427 and 428 attract each other. In this instance, the cancel plate 414 moves downward biassed by the coil spring 432 to release the pin 435 so as to return the latch bar 430 to the original position. The closure means having the carrier and the lid 424, moves back to the original solid-lined position, at the same time deenergising the motor 423. Upon closing the opening 205, the energised motor 423 moves the closure means from the solid-lined position of Fig. 4 to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 5 to locate it at the space of the opening 205. With the entry of the closure means into the opening 205, the bar 431 temporarily oscillates in the direction opposite to arrow (δ) so as to allow the engagement of the roller 431a for holding the lid 424 in place. Then, the carrier alone descends downward to the original solid-lined position with the lid 424 left at the opening 205 due to the fact that the magnetic attraction between the magnets 427 and 428 is forcibly overcome. In so doing, the carrier moves in the direction opposite to arrow (β) with the lid 424 left at the opening 205 so as to return the original solid-lined position, and then the motor 423 is deenergised. The construction is such that the carrier slides along the rest plate piece to make the whole structure relatively simple, whereas a lid moves detachably in the direction perpendicular to a rest plate piece. It is appreciated that a microswitch may be provided to actuate the motor in association with the movement of the carrier. In stead of the microswitch, other switches such as a limit switch and a proximity switch may be used. Now, refer again to Fig. 3, in which an arm 219a is connected at one end to the first rest plate piece 201, and at other end to a rod 220a of a hydraulic cylinder 220 by means of a pivot pin 221. A bracket 222 is fixed at an upper end to the first rest plate piece 201, and projects at a lower end into the bathing tub 200. A link 223 is connected at one end to the lower end by means of a pivot pin 224, and at other end to the second rest plate piece 202 by way of a link 225 and a pin 226. At an inner bottom of the tub 200, is a toilet bowl 227 placed to position below the first rest plate piece 201. As seen in Fig. 9, the bowl 227 has an oval-shaped lid plate 228 hinged to an upper open end of the bowl 227. The lid plate 228 is adapted to form a liquid-tight seal when the plate 228 moves down about a hinge pin 230 to close an upper opening by means of a rubber gasket (not shown). Between the pin 230 and an upper side of the lid plate 228, is a bifurcated hand 229 integral therewith The pin 230 is connected to a semi-circular link 234 through a link 232, a pin 231 and a link 233. The semi-circular link 234 straddles one upper end side of the tub 200, and an outer end of the link 234 forms a triangular shape, one corner of which is hinged to an entry end of the tub 200 by means of a pin 236. A hydraulic cylinder 237 is connected at its lower end to the outer side of the tub 200 means of a pin 238, and has a projectable rod 237a, upper end of which is hinged to the semi-circular link 234 through a pin 239. As seen in Fig. 10, a warm-air generator 250 is provided at the back of the first rest plate piece 201 through a pair of links 251. Each of the paired links is hinged at both ends, so that the generator 250 displaces from the solid-lined position to the phantom-lined position under the influence of gravity when the rest plate piece 201 changes from solid-lined horizontal position to phantom-lined vertical position. With the downward displacement of the warm-air generator 250, slack is provided in a feed-pipe 252 to absorb tension as the rest plate pieces 201 and 202 each rotate around the hinge (a). When the rest plate pieces move to form a chair-shaped configuration as a whole within the tub 200, a leading end of the pipe 252 positions so as to face from below the posterior of the patient U through the opening 205 as seen in Fig. 10. An injection pipe 253, which provides a rising flow of warm water after bowel movement, is disposed to move in the lengthwise direction. The pipe 253 has at one end a hinged portion 253a which projects outside the tub 200. The other end of the pipe 253 terminates at the inner side of the toilet bowl 227. A vertical lever 254 is provided to rotate about its central portion in a vertical plane. The vertical lever 254 has a fork portion at its lower end which clutches the hinged portion 253a of the pipe 253. The upper end of the vertical lever 254 is hinged to a horizontal lever 257 by means of a pin 256. The horizontal lever 257 is adapted to move in dual directions of double headed arrow (F) and (G) as seen in Fig. 10. With the movement of the horizontal lever 257 in the direction of arrow (F), the vertical lever 254 rotates about a pin 255 in the direction of arrow (H) to move the injection pipe 253 in the direction of arrow (J). The lever 253 moved in the direction of arrow (G), causes the vertical lever 254 to rotate about the pin 255 in the direction opposite to arrow (H) to occupy the phantom-lined position, and to move the injection pipe 253 by way of the hinged portion 253a in the direction opposite to arrow (J). In this way, the injection pipe 253 is adjusted in its horizontal position, thus enabling the location of an outlet 253b of the pipe 253 to change. At the inner bottom of the tub 200, is a inverted-cone-shaped drain opening 258 provided into which a plug 259 is fit as seen in Fig. 3. The plug 259 has a central stud 260 to which one finger of a bifurcated lever 261 is secured by means of a pin 262. The lever 261 is lockable around the pin 262, and engaged another finger with the upper surface of an arcuate leaf spring 264. After soaking into warm water in the tub 200, the lever 261 is rotated around the pin 262 in the direction of arrow (K) so as to move the plug 259 upward to reveal the drain opening 258, thus enabling release of the warm water. The lever 261, when rotated in the direction opposite to arrow (K), causes the plug 259 to fit into the drain opening 258 for closure. The rotational operation may be performed by a foot of the patient U. Numeral 265 of Fig. 8 designates a flushing water storage tank, which has a pipe 266 communicated with the toilet bowl 227. On both longitudinal sides of the rest plate pieces, are flat aprons 267, 200a mounted by means of a hinge 268a to be pivoted between horizontal and vertical positions. The apron 267, if located in the vertical position, provides an attendant with easy access to the patient U. The aprons 267 and 200a each comprise rollers and a belt extending between the rollers 204. Due to the fact that in use of the bed system the mattress 66 is tensioned by way of bands 83, in addition to the movement of the belt 76, the patient U is moved in the direction of arrow (m) with the coverlet to pass the gap (Gp), and carried to the rest plate piece through the first rest plate piece 201 to position as seen in Fig. 2. On the other hand, the mattress 66 moves its leading end down through the gap (Gp) by traction of the bands 83 to which the roller 80 is connected. With the movement of the belt 303 in the direction of arrow (z), the leading end of the mattress 66 rides on the belt 303 through a guide roller (Ra) to be accommodated under the bed body. Then, the rollers 75, 301 and 302 stop each rotational movement, and the patient U is in the state of lying on his back at the rest plate pieces 201, 202 and 203 with the coverlet placed thereon. In so doing, the opening 205 is revealed as desired for the bowel movement. The motor 423 is energized to rotate the bar 421 so as to move the carrier of the closure means with the links 416 and 406 from the solid-lined position of Fig. 4 to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 5. Then, the lift gear 410 moves around the toothed wheel 404 in the direction of arrow so that the carrier moves upward to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 5 to make the magnets 427 and 428 stick each other. With this movement, the cancel plate 414 displaces to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 5 to move the pin 435 upward. The pair of links 433 and 434 straightens to move the latch bar 430 in the direction opposite to arrow (γ) so as to disengage from the oscillable bar 431. In this situation, the bar 421 is rotated in the reverse direction to move the carrier down in the direction opposite to arrow (β) to occupy the original solid-lined position due to the fact that the lift gear 410 moves down around the toothed wheel 404 with its rotation permitted by the pawl 412. With the downward movement of the carrier, the lid 424 moves downward from the opening 205 because the lid 424 sticks the square plate 425 by way of the magnets 427 and 428. In this situation, the hydraulic cylinder 237 is actuated to protract its rod 237a in the direction of arrow (M) of Fig. 9 to move the semi-circular link 234 about the pin 236 in the direction of arrow (N). This causes the link 233 to move in the direction of arrow (O), and pivoting of the link 232 about the pin 230 in the direction of arrow (P). The oval-shaped lid plate 228 moves upward about the hinge pin to reveal the upper opening of the toilet bowl 227 as seen in the solid-lined position. Then, the hydraulic cylinder 220 of Fig. 3 is actuated to move the rod 220a in the direction opposite to arrow (R) so that the arm 219a undergoes counterclockwise rotation to move the first rest plate piece 201 in the direction arrow (S) towards the solid-lined vertical position. In synchronism with this action, the link 223 pivots about the pin 224 in the direction of arrow (T), at the same time, pivoting the link 225 about the pin 226 in the direction of arrow (V) to move the second rest plate piece 202 downward, which pivots about the hinge (a) in the direction of arrow (W) to position directly above the toilet bowl 227 so as to make the opening 205 communicate with the upper opening of the bowl 227 as seen in Fig. 9. Further, a link 268 moves in the direction of arrow (Y) to pivot the third rest plate piece 203 about the hinge (b) in the direction of arrow (Z) to occupy a generally vertical position, thus forming a chair-shaped configuration with the first and second rest plate pieces 201, 202 as a whole. With the movement of the rest plate pieces into the chair-shaped configuration, the patient U is lowered into the interior of the tub 200 with bottom portion of the patient situated at the opening 205. After the end of the bowel movement, the injection pipe 253 injects the warm water flow to the patient's posterior through the opening 205 for rinsing. Then, the generator 250 is energized to supply the warm air to the posterior of the patient so as to dry it. In so doing, the hydraulic cylinder 220 is actuated to protract the rod 220a to pivot the arm 219a in the direction opposite to arrow (S), thus pivoting the first rest plate piece 201 about a pin 218a in the direction opposite to arrow (S) to return to the original position. With this movement, the link 223 pivots about the pin 224 in the direction opposite to arrow (T), while the link 225 pivots about the pin 226 in the direction opposite to arrow (V) so as to pivot the second rest plate piece 202 about the hinge (a) in the direction opposite to arrow (W), returning to be flush with the first rest plate piece 202. In concert with this movement, the link 268 pivots in the direction opposite to arrow (Y) to rotate the third rest plate piece 203 about the hinge (b) in the direction opposite to arrow (Z) to be generally flush with the first and second rest plate pieces 201 and 202, returning the patient U to the original position of lying on his back. After this action, the hydraulic cylinder 237 is actuated to move the rod 237a in the direction opposite to arrow (M) so as to pivot the semi-circular link 234 about the pin 236 in the direction opposite to arrow (N), thus moving the link 233 in the direction opposite to arrow (O), further pivoting the link 232 in the direction opposite to arrow (P) to move the lid plate 228 downward about the pin 230 in the direction opposite to arrow (Q) for liquid-tight closing of the upper opening of the toilet bowl 227. Upon closing the opening 205, the electric motor 423 moves the closure means from the solid-lined position of Fig. 4 to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 5 to locate it at the space of the opening 205. With the entry of the closure means into the opening 205, the bar 431 temporarily oscillates in the direction opposite to arrow (γ) so as to allow (δ) the engagement of the roller 431a for holding the lid 424 in place. Then, the carrier alone descends to the original solid-lined position with the lid 424 left at the opening 205 due to the fact that the magnetic attraction between the magnets 427 and 428 is forcibly overcome. In so doing, the carrier moves in the direction opposite to arrow (γ) with the lid 424 left at the opening 205 so as to return the original solid-lined position, and then the motor 423 is deenergised. Upon desiring to soak in the bathing tub 200, the tub 200 is provided with warm water by a gate 269 at an appropriate level with the upper opening of the bowl 227 sealed in a liquid-tight manner by the lid plate 228 as seen in Fig. 9. Then, the rest plate pieces changes into the chair-shaped configuration in the same manner as mentioned for the bowel movement. With this chair-shaped formation of the rest plate pieces, the patient U is carried downward, and comes to be seated on the rest plate pieces to soak in the warm water with his clothes and the coverlet previously removed. In this instance, the patient U may use a shower 270 of Fig. 10 if the patient U can move his arm by himself. After soaking in the warm water, the patient U may perform a foot operation to rotate the lever 261 in the direction of arrow (K) so as to remove the plug 259, allowing the warm water to flow out through the drain opening 258 as seen in Fig. 3. Then, the hydraulic cylinder 220 is actuated to return the rest plate pieces from the chair-shaped position to the original position in the same manner as mentioned at the bowel movement. The patient U lying on his back at the rest plate pieces, is clothed and covered with the coverlet, and then the rollers 201a and 201b rotate to move the belt 201c to begin carry back the patient U. At the same time, the rollers 75 and 301 are rotated to move the belt 76 and 303 in the directions opposite to arrows (m, n) so as to move the roller 80 along the rail 78 in the direction opposite to arrow (m). Then, the rollers 301 and 302 are rotated in the direction opposite to the case in which the patient U was transferred to the rest plate pieces. This causes the belt 303 to move in the direction opposite to arrow (z), so that the mattress 66 on the belt 303 is pulled by the bands 83 to return to the original position. In this process, the patient U is moved by the belt 201c in the direction opposite to arrow (o) to rest his head on the headrest 68 at the gap (Gp). Further movement of the patient U in the direction opposite to arrow (o), the patient U comes to lie on the mattress 66 from his back portion, hip portion and legs in turn so as to be transferred back to the bed body as seen at phantom-lined position in Fig. 1. At this time, the rollers 201a, 201b, 75, 301 and 302 stop their movement for the cessation of the belts 201c, 76 and 303. Now, referring to Figs. 12 to 14 is, modified form of a latch means is described hereinafter. The vertical link 405 is connected by upper and lower links 405a and 405b to move the enclosure means in unison. Instead of the spur gear and lift gear of the preceding embodiment, the link 405 has a wind-mill like wheel 450 rotatably supported by a shaft 451. The wheel 450 comprises two opposed discs 450a, 450b, and four pins 452 extending between the two discs 450a and 450b at regular intervals. A rectangular plate 452a is secured to the shaft 451 to move in union with the wheel 450. A magnetic tongue 453 is pivoted at one end to make the other end be attracted towards the plate 452a, and always urged to stick to the plate 452a by a spring 454. This allows the tongue 453 to move from one side to other side in contact with the plate 452a to intermittently rotate the wheel 450 by an angle of 90 degrees. The wheel 450 has paired magnet plates 456 and 457 at the disc 450b at an angular interval of 180 degrees. The paired magnet plates 456, 457 each have opposed polarities at the outer side. The outer side of the magnet plate 456 represents S pole, and the outer side of the magnet plate 457 represents N pole by way of example. In the meanwhile, the latch bar 430 has a latch plate 457a which secures paired magnets 458x and 458y in register with the magnet plates 456 and 457. The magnets 458x and 458y are arranged such that the magnets 458x, 458y and the magnet plates 456, 457 each attract and repel alternately when the wheel 450 rotates by an angle of 90 degrees to move from the solid-lined position to phantom-lined position of Figs. 12 and 13. A hypotenuse lug 470 is secured to an outer side of the frame 424a of the lid 424 to correspond to the latch bar 430, with the oblique side acting as a butt portion 470a and the lower side serving as a lock portion 470b. In a state in which the opening 205 is closed by the lid 424 as seen in Fig, 12, the latch bar 470 is protracted into the opening 205 to engage with the lock portion 470b so as to hold the lid 424 in closed position. Two baffle bars 459 and 460, in an elongated hypotenuse shape, are pivoted to the rail 401 by pins 461 and 462 at the predetermined interval to depend downward under the influence of gravity as seen in Fig. 14. The bars 459 and 460 are allowed to pivot about the pins 461 and 462 in the direction of arrow (ε) but prevented from pivotting in the direction opposite to arrow (ε). Upon revealing the opening 205, the link 405 pivots about the shaft 403 to rotate the wheel 450 by 90 degrees to oppose the magnet plates 456 and 457 to the magnets 458x and 458y with a slight space interval while the carrier moves from the solid-lined position to the phantom-lined position in the same manner as the preceding embodiment. The magnet plates 456, 457 and the magnets 458x, 458y are each attracted towards each other, thus moving the latch bar 430 through the plate 457a in the direction opposite to arrow (δ) to disengage the latch bar 430 from the lock portion 470b for unlocking the lid 424. During the process in which the carrier returns to the original solid lined position with the lid 424 stuck on the square plate 425 the pin 452 encounters the bars 459 and 460 to collide with them, and rotates the wheel 450 by 90 degrees each time when the bars 459 and 460 collide to rotate the wheel 450 by a full 180 degrees. The wheel 450 is rotated by 180 degrees when the carrier returns to the initial position, so that the relationship between the magnet plates 456 and 457 is reversed when the carrier moves to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 12 in an aim to close the opening 205. In the process in which the carrier moves to the phantom-lined position of Fig. 12 for closing the opening 205 the butt portion 470a of the hypotenuse lug 470 slides along the end of the latch bar 430 to temporarily push it in the direction opposite to arrow (δ), so that the lock portion 470b admits the latch bar 430 for engagement. This is because the latch bar 430 is always urged in the direction of arrow (δ) by the coil spring 432 in addition to the magnets 456, 458x and the magnets 457, 458y, each set of which has the same polarity to repel each other. The repulsion of these magnets assists urging the latch bar 430 through the plate 457a in the direction of arrow (δ). The use of the permanent magnets as opposed to electromagnets makes it possible to protect the patient against an electric shock however often the magnets is wet with water. It should be appreciated that the magnets are coated with a thin plastic layer, The movement of the closure means may be by means of a rack and pinion, or by the use of lazy tongs which expands and contracts alternately in the lengthwise direction. Instead of the motor 423, a pneumatic or hydraulic When the rest plate pieces come to their chair-shaped configuration with no warm water supplied to the tub 200, the patient U can be seated on the rest plate pieces to be examined, have his hair trimmed, otherwise enjoy some kinds of activities such as reading, painting a picture or televiewing. After soaking in the warm water, the warm air from the generator 250 may be used to dry the patient's wet body. Alternatively, it is a matter of course that a discrete blower may be used for the same purpose. At this time, the warm air from the blower may be supplied from a multitude of perforation holes provided over the entire area of the rest plate pieces. A control panel (Pa) of Fig. 11 may be used by the patient U to control the rest plate pieces, the lid 424, the lid plate 228, the injection pipe 253 and the generator 250. The rest plate pieces may be comprised of four rest plate pieces instead of three pieces 201, 202 and 203. Optical sensors may be employed to determine the timing of actuation of the belts when the patient U is transferred to the rest plate pieces and carried back to the bed body. The bed body and the tub 200 may be individually used depending on the demand of installation space. In this instance, the bed plate pieces are comprised of air-permeable materials such as porous plate, sponge and a multitude of coil springs. The bed plate pieces may be adjusted in the direction perpendicular to the plane of Figure 3, so that the patient U is positively transferred to the rest plate pieces even when the patient was out of normal place while sleeping. The system according to the invention, may be used by physically able-bodied persons, of course, as well as the disabled. Further, the rest plate pieces are actuated to change into chair-shaped configuration by means of a ring and rod. The system according to the invention, may be installed at not only homes and hospitals but other utilities as desired. It is also appreciated that the magnet 428 may be formed to have a tapered recess on the one hand, the other magnet 427 may have a cone-shaped lug which is adapted to fit into the recess for the purpose of positioning in place. It stands as a matter of course that both the magnets 427, 428 may be formed to have flat portions which act as attracting faces when appropriate Further, it is noted that the rollers 203a, 203b at the third rest plate piece 203 in Fig. 2, may be arranged in parallel relationship as other rollers 204 of the second rest plate piece 202. In this case, a belt may extend around each of a row of the rollers 203a and 203b.

Claims: A washing system for bed-ridden patients, which is guided into a bathing tub (200) by means of a collapsible rest plate, wherein the rest plate is mounted, in a first configuration above said bathing tub, so as to receive said patient when said patient is transferred to said washing system, said rest plate comprising at least first, second and third rest plate pieces (201, 202, 203) which correspond respectively to the torso, mid section and legs of said patient; wherein said first rest plate piece (201) is pivotably connected to said second rest plate piece (202), and said second rest plate piece (202) is pivotably connected to said third rest plate piece (203); wherein said rest plate pieces are adapted to move and to rotate between at least said first configuration and a second configuration wherein said rest plate pieces form a chair-shaped configuration within the bathing tub so that said patient may be bathed while seated; characterised in that said first rest plate piece (201) is pivotably mounted by a pin (218a) mounted on said bathing tub (200) and is connected to said second rest plate piece by means of a bracket (222) and links (223,225); in that said second rest plate piece is pivotably connected to said third rest plate piece by means of further links (268,303x); in that said rest plate pieces form said chair-shaped configuration in cooperation with said links (223,225,268, 303x); and in that there are drive means (220) having a rod (220a) whose front end is pivotably connected to said first rest plate piece (201) so as to move the first rest plate piece (201) pivotably by retracting said rod (220a) in order to locate the rest plate in said chair-shaped configuration. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 1, wherein said first rest plate piece comprises at least two rollers (201a, 201b) and a first belt (201c) extending around said rollers (201a, 201b), said second rest plate piece comprises a row of rollers (204) and a second belt around said row of rollers (204) and said third rest plate piece comprises at least one row of rollers, said at least two rollers and said first belt being adapted to positively admit or return said patient when said patient is transferred to or from said rest plate. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 1, wherein a toilet bowl (227) is provided inside said bathing tub (200) and said second rest plate has an opening (205) corresponding to an opening of said toilet bowl (227) so that said openings correspond when said rest plate pieces are in said second configuration. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 3, in which a toilet closure means is provided, said closure means comprising: a carrier slidably provided to move between said first rest plate piece (201) and said second rest plate piece (202), the carrier normally being positioned at said first plate piece (201); a lid means (424) detachably placed at said opening of said second rest plate piece (202) for closure; said carrier moving to take said lid means (424) from said opening (205) and back to said second rest plate piece (202) with said lid means (424) attached, prior to said rest plate pieces moving downward to form said chair-shaped configuration; said carrier further moving to said second rest plate piece (202) to place said lid means (424) at said opening (205) by detaching said lid means (424) from said carrier, and return to said first rest plate piece (201) when said rest plate pieces move back from a position of said chair-shaped configuration to an original position in which said rest plate pieces locate on the upper open end of said bathing tub. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 4, in which said lid means (424) is held at said opening (205) by a latch means (429) and said carrier takes said lid means (424) by magnetic attraction with said latch means (429) released when said carrier moves to said second rest plate piece (202) to reveal said opening (205), and said carrier moves to forcibly overcome said magnetic attraction with said lid means (424) held at said opening (205) by said latch means (429) for closure. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 4, in which said latch means (429) is adapted to be urged toward a space of said opening (205) by a spring means (432), and to move to retract from said opening (205) against the spring means (432) when said lid means (424) is positioned at said opening (205). A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 6, in which said latch means (429) has a pair of first magnets of mutually opposite polarity; said carrier of said closure means having a wheel mounting thereon a pair of second magnets of mutually opposite polarity; said second magnets encountering said first magnets to repel said first magnets to retract said latch means by magnetic repulsion when taking off said lid means; said wheel rotating by an angle of 180 degrees to reverse the polarity relationship of said second magnets when said carrier moves back from said opening with said lid means; said second magnets encountering said first magnets to attract said first magnets to project said latch means toward said opening with the urging of said spring means (432) when putting on said lid means at the opening. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 7, including a stud for rotating said wheel through an angle of 180 degrees to reverse the polarity relationship of said second magnets is a stud pivotably provided in one direction, the stud being usually pulled by gravity to be perpendicular when said wheel collides with the stud to pass it unrotated at the time of moving to the opening for taking off said lid means (424). A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 8, in which said stud is mounted on said rest plate pieces. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claims 3 to 9, in which said toilet bowl has a blower and a water injector to rinse and dry respectively said person's posterior. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 10, in which both outlets of said blower and said water injector are adjustable in accordance with said person's posterior. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claims 3 to 11, in which said toilet bowl has a lid to seal the opening area of said toilet bowl in liquid-tight manner so as to prevent said warm water from entering into said toilet bowl when said warm water is supplied to said bathing tub. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 12, in which said lid is hinged to said toilet bowl so as to reveal said opening area when said lid is turned upward for opening at the time of bowel movement. A washing system for bed-ridden patients according to claim 1, wherein the patient can be seated on the rest plate pieces to be examined, for trimming of his hair, and for otherwise enjoying some kinds of activities such as reading, painting a picture or televiewing, when the rest plate pieces come to said chair-shaped configuration with no warm water supplied to the bathing tub (200).

Inventors: YAMAMOTO TUNEO, YAMAMOTO, TUNEO
Applicants: YAMAMOTO TUNEO, YAMAMOTO, TUNEO
Application year: 1988
Main classification: A61G7
IPC codes: A61G7, A47K3