Abstract:
A patient lifter has a patient support platform that made be lowered until it touches the floor. Once in this position, it is a simple matter for a single person to place a patient who is prone on the floor onto the patient platform. Once on the platform, the patient support platform can be raised to a height sufficient to transfer the patient onto a bed or chair. The invention has many different devices for raising and lowering the patient support platform which may be chosen. The device is provided with wheels so that it may be easily transported to the site of the patient and be used to move the patient from place to place.

Description:
[0001]    This application claims benefit of provisional application 60/204,549, filed May 16, 2000. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    On occasion, immobile patients fall from a bed or chair onto the floor. It is often difficult to get the patient to their original position when they are in a prone position on the floor. It often takes several people in order to safely lift a patient from the floor and successfully back to their original position. Most prior art devices are used to transfer a patient from an original position on a bed or chair and do not extend their support surface to the floor. Without a support surface that extends to the floor, a patient on the floor needs to be manually lifted to a support surface in order to move the patient.  
           [0003]    It is an object of the invention to provide a patient lifter that has a support surface that can extend downwardly to floor level.  
           [0004]    It is another object of the invention to provide a patient lifter that can safely and easily lift a patient from a prone position on the floor.  
           [0005]    It is yet another object of the invention to provide a patient lifter that is possible for a single person to use.  
           [0006]    It is yet another object of the invention to provide a patient lift system that is easy and inexpensive to operate.  
           [0007]    These and other objects of the invention will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after reviewing the disclosure of the invention.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0008]    A patient lifter has a patient support platform that made be lowered until it touches the floor. Once in this position, it is a simple matter for a single person to place a patient who is prone on the floor onto the patient platform. Once on the platform, the patient support platform can be raised to a height sufficient to transfer the patient onto a bed or chair. The invention has many different devices for raising and lowering the patient support platform which may be chosen. The device is provided with wheels so that it may be easily transported to the site of the patient and be used to move the patient from place to place. The device can also be used to transfer a patient between beds. In this way, any difference in height between the beds does not pose a problem.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a front view of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a side view of the device in the upright position;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 is a side view of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 is a front view of a second embodiment of the invention in the lowered position, with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 6 is a side view of the second embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 7 is a side view of the second embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 8 is a front view of a third embodiment of the invention in a deployed position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 9 is a side view of the third embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 10 is a side view of the third embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 11 is a front view of a fourth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 12 is a side view of the fourth embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 13 is a side view of the fourth embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 14 is a front view of a fifth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 15 is a side view of the fifth embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 16 is a side view of the fifth embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 17 is a front view of a sixth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 18 is a side view of the sixth embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 19 is a side view of the sixth embodiment of the device in a deployed position;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 20 is a front view of a seventh embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 21 is a top view of the seventh embodiment of the invention with the collapsed position of the base shown in phantom;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 22 is a front view of an eighth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 23 is a top view of the eighth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position, with the upright position shown in phantom;  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 24 is a front view of a ninth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 25 is a side view of the ninth embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 26 is a side view of the ninth embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 27 is a front view of a tenth embodiment of the invention in the lowered position with the raised position shown in phantom;  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 28 is a side view of the tenth embodiment of the device in the upright position;  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 29 is a side view of the tenth embodiment of the device in the lowered position;  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 30 is a front perspective view of an eleventh embodiment of the invention;  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 31 is a front view of the patient support platform of the eleventh embodiment;  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 32 is a top view of the eleventh embodiment of the device in the lowered position.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 33 is a front view of an twelfth embodiment of the invention;  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 34 is an exploded view of the patient support platform of the twelfth embodiment; and  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 35 is a front view of the twelfth embodiment of the device in the lowered position.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0044]    The invention will now be described, beginning with reference to FIG. 1. As seen in this figure, the patient lifter has two horizontally extending tubular members  22 ,  24 . The tubular members are provided with wheels  25  to form the base. The wheels not only allow the movement of the patient lifter from location to location, but also aid in the operation in the device, as will be described later. Extending upwardly from each of the tubular members is a vertical support  31 ,  32 . The vertical supports attach to, and support, a patient support platform  41  in a cantilevered fashion.  
         [0045]    The tubular members extend from the vertical supports in the same direction as the patient support platform. In this way, the members prevent the patient lifter from tipping over, even when a patent is placed on the platform  41 . The vertical supports are connected at joints  43 ,  45  to the patient support platform to allow relative pivoting movement between the elements that is necessary for the patient lifter to operate.  
         [0046]    Each vertical support has an extension  37 ,  38 . The extensions extend upwardly from the vertical support at an angle so as to diverge from one another. Connected between the vertical supports is an actuating piston  53 . The actuating piston  53  has a main body and two ends connected to the extensions  37 ,  38 . This connection also allows relative pivoting motion between the piston and extensions, as will be described hereinafter.  
         [0047]    The patient support platform  41  is rectangular in shape, as in conventional for any surface designed to support a person in a reclined position. One of the long sides of the platform is attached to the vertical supports and extends from the vertical supports in a cantilever fashion. The opposite long side of the platform remains open for the easy transfer of a patient onto the platform. When the patient support platform is lowered to be in contact with the ground, a patient is transferred from the floor to the platform by moving the patient onto the platform along the open long side. The open long side of the platform can have a removable railing to prevent a patient from falling from the patient platform after it has been raised from the floor.  
         [0048]    The method of operation of the patient lifter is seen in FIGS.  2 - 4 . In FIG. 2, the patient lifter in its lowered position with the upright position shown in phantom. To operate the system, the piston  53  is actuated so that the ends of the piston are drawn inwardly, thereby reducing the distance between the extensions  37 ,  38 . As this distance decreases, the vertical supports  31 ,  32 , pivot about joints  43 ,  45  between the vertical supports and patient support platform  41 . As the distance between the extensions  37 ,  38  decreases, the distance between the vertical supports below the pivoting connection increases. The result is that the distance between tubular members  22 ,  24  of the base increases. As this distance increases, the wheels  25  allow the smooth, easy translations of these elements away from one another. As this occurs, the patient support platform  41  is lowered in elevation until it reaches the floor. Once in this position, it is a simple matter to transfer a patient from the floor onto the patient support platform  41 . When it is desired to raise the patient lifter back to its original position, the piston  53  is again actuated and the ends push outwardly to increase the distance between the extensions  37 ,  38 . As this occurs, the tubular members  22 ,  24  are drawn to one another as the vertical supports  31 ,  32  again pivot about its connection  43 ,  45  to the patient support platform  41 .  
         [0049]    [0049]FIG. 3 shows a side view of the patient lifter in its upright position. In this view, it can seen that the patient support platform  41  is spaced above the ground and the wheels  25  are completely underneath the tubular member  24 . The vertical support  32  extends vertically upwardly from the tubular base member  24 . In FIG. 4, the lowered position of the patient lifter is seen in a side view. As can be readily seen, the patient support platform  41  is now lowered to the floor and the wheel  25  is located to the side of the tubular member  24 . The vertical member  32 , forming an angle with the floor, has a reduced vertical extent.  
         [0050]    A second embodiment of the patient lifter is shown in FIG. 5. In this embodiment, an actuating piston  153  extends between the tubular base members  22 ,  24 . In this instance, the effective length of the piston  153  is increased in order to increase the distance between the tubular members  22 ,  24  and lower the patient support surface  41 . The vertical supports  31 ,  32  are pivotally connected to the patient support system, but do not have any extension.  
         [0051]    The side view of the patient support lifter is seen in FIG. 6. In this figure, the patient lifter is in the upright position with the patient support surface  41  spaced well above the floor. After actuation of the piston  153 , and the lowering of the patient support system  41 , the patient lifter has the configuration shown in FIG. 7. As can be seen, the patient support platform  41  is touching the ground and the wheels  25  are now situated to the side of the tubular base members  24  from their original position underneath the tubular base members  24 . Any conventional means can be used.  
         [0052]    Turning now to FIG. 8, a third embodiment of the patient lifter is seen having the tubular base members  22 ,  24  supported on wheels  25 . Again, a pair of vertical supports  31 ,  32  are connected to the patient support platform  41 . A central post  253  having a slot  255  is located between the vertical supports  31 ,  32 . The patient support platform  41  is connected by a bracket  256  to a central post  253 . The bracket  256  is raised and lowered along the slot. The central post  253  is supported by a wheel  257  to enable the movement of the patient lifter from location to location. As the bracket reaches the bottom-most position of the slot  255 , spaced above the floor by the presence of the wheel  257 , the patient support platform  41  is in contact with the floor. The bracket  256  allows the patient support platform  41  to be in contact with the ground and below the end of the slot  255  by bridging this distance. Any conventional means, such as a motor, can be used for the raising and lowering of the bracket  256  within the slot  255  in order to effectuate the raising and lowering of the patient support platform  41 .  
         [0053]    [0053]FIG. 11 shows a variation of the central post in a fourth embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the central tower  357  has a base supporting three wheels  357 . In this embodiment, the bracket  356  is positioned above the patient support platform  41 . The vertical supports  331 ,  332  are pivotally connected to the bracket  356 . Suspension supports  359  extend downwardly from the bracket  356  and connect to the patient support platform  41 . With the lowering of the bracket  356 , the vertical supports  331 ,  332  move outwardly and the patient support platform  41  is lowered to the floor. The bracket  356 , in its lower-most position, is still some distance from the floor, necessitating the use of the suspension support  359  to insure that the patient support platform  41  rests on the floor.  
         [0054]    A cable  361  runs between and is connected to the vertical supports  331 ,  332 . The cables are connected to a winding mechanism  365 . Operation of the winding mechanism causes the cable to be taken up into the winding mechanism and the effective length of the cable is reduced. This action causes the distance between the vertical supports to decrease and raises the patient support platform  341  upwards. Letting the cable out from the winding mechanism lowers the patient support mechanism to the floor. In this way, the cable performs the function that a piston had in the earlier embodiments, but is able to traverse a longer distance without the inherent problems such a long piston would encounter.  
         [0055]    The side view of this embodiment is shown in FIG. 12 in its upright position. In this view, the suspension of the patient support platform  41  from the bracket  356  by the suspension support  359  is clearly seen. The lowered position is seen in FIG. 13 and it can be seen that the distance between the lower-most position of the bracket  356  and the patient support platform  41  is bridged by the suspension support  359 . As in all embodiments, the wheels  25  change from a position underneath the tubular base member  324  to a position located to the side of the tubular base member  324 .  
         [0056]    Turning now to FIG. 14, a fifth embodiment of the patient lifter is depicted. In this embodiment, the patient lifter has tubular bases  422 ,  424  supported on wheels  25 . A pair of vertical supports  431 ,  432  extend upwardly to a patient support platform  41 . The patient support platform is raised and lowered by a gear train  453 . There are four gears with two end gears and two middle gears. Each end gear is rigidly connected to one of the vertical supports  431 ,  432 . The rigid connection insures that, as the gear rotates, the vertical support rotates with it. As the left-most gear turns clockwise, the vertical support  431  rotates clockwise. The next gear therefore moves counter-clockwise and the third gear moves clockwise. This causes the other end gear, rigidly attached to support  432  to move counter-clockwise. The vertical support  432  therefore rotates counter-clockwise, a direction opposite than the vertical support  431 . With the rotation of the vertical supports, the patient support platform is lowered until it reaches the floor. Any conventional means can be used to rotate the gears and lock them in place to prevent rotation and secure the patent support platform  41  at any elevation.  
         [0057]    [0057]FIGS. 15 and 16 show the patient lifter in the upright and lowered position, respectively. The various parts, as they appear in these two positions, are shown. As can be seen in FIG. 16, when in the lowered position, very little of the structure extends above the top surface of the patient support platform  41 .  
         [0058]    A sixth embodiment of the patient lifter is shown in FIG. 17. The patient lifter has a base with tubular base members  522 ,  524  supported on wheels  25  and connected to a telescopic cross member formed by middle section  525  and telescoping side members  526 ,  527 . A single central support tower  563  extends from the central telescopic member  525 . Telescoping tube  564  slides along the central vertical tower  563  and a pair of left support braces  571 ,  573  and right support braces  572 ,  574  extend from the telescoping tube  564 . The upper left support brace  573  has one end attached to the top of the telescoping tube and extends outwardly and attaches to en end of the lower left support brace  571  having its opposite end pivotally connected to the central support tower  563 . Likewise, the upper right support brace  574  has one end attached to the top of the vertical telescoping tube  564  and has its other end connected to an end of the lower right support brace  572 . The lower right support brace has its remaining end attached to the central support tower  563 . Connected to, and extending between, the juncture of the left support braces and right support braces, is an actuating piston  553 . In a fully contracted position of the piston, the junctions of the left and right support braces are brought closer together and the telescoping tube  564  is in an upper position on the central vertical tower. As the actuating piston  553  increases in effective length, the junction between the left support braces and right support braces increases and the telescoping tube  564  assumes a lower position on the central vertical tower  563 . Attached to the telescoping tube is the patient support platform  41 . To complete the patient lifter, a pair of side supports  531 ,  532  extend from the left and right tubular base members  523 ,  524  to the top of the telescoping tube  564 . Lowering of the patient support platform causes the tubular base members  522 ,  524  to move away from each other.  
         [0059]    The patient lifter  510  in its upright position is shown in FIG. 18 and in its lower position in FIG. 19. As can be seen, the telescoping tube  564  travels along the vertical post  563  in order to raise and lower the patient support platform  41 . The action of the piston  553  changes the geometry between the support braces in order to raise and lower the telescoping tube  564  along the central tower  563 .  
         [0060]    [0060]FIG. 20 shows a side view of an alternative base utilizing a single vertical central tower. The fully-extended position of the base is shown with the compacted position shown in phantom. In the compacted position, the patient support platform is in its raised position. The details of the base are more clearly seen with reference to FIG. 21, depicting a top view of the patient lifter. In this view, it can be seen that the base consists of a central section  625  and two L-shaped sections  622 ,  624 , pivotally connected to each end of the central section. The central section supports a central vertical tower  653 . As the patient support platform  41  is lowered, the L-shaped sections  622 ,  624  are pivoted so that the section initially perpendicular to the central section  625  becomes co-linear with the central section. This configuration allows sufficient clearance for the patient support platform to reach the floor without interfering with the base.  
         [0061]    [0061]FIG. 22 shows a front view of a base having a vertical tower as would be used with the embodiment shown in FIG. 17. The mechanism for raising and lowering the patient support platform  41  is not shown. As can be seen, though, the patient support platform  41  is supported by, and travels along, a central vertical tower  753 . The operation of the base is best seen with reference to FIG. 23, showing a top view of the patient lifter  710 . The base has a central telescoping section having a central tube  723  with telescoping sections  725 ,  726  which move in and out of the central section  723  to increase the width of the base. Attached to the left telescoping section  725  is the L-shaped left base member  722 . Similarly, attached to the right telescoping section  726  is the L-shaped base member  724 .  
         [0062]    The telescoping sections  725 ,  726  can be extended outwardly from the central section  723  in order to increase the effective width of the base.  
         [0063]    A ninth embodiment is shown in FIG. 24 having a base formed by a left member  822  and a right member  824  connected by a central member. The central member is formed by two sections  825 ,  827  connected to one another by a piston  853 . A pair of crossed vertical members  831 ,  833  extend upwardly from the left and right base members  822 ,  824 , respectively. The patient support platform  41  is supported by the crossing support members  831 ,  833 . With actuation of the piston  853 , the base members  822 ,  825  move apart from one another and the vertical height of the support members  831 ,  833  is decreased, lowering the elevation of the patient support platform  41 .  
         [0064]    Turning now to FIG. 25, the side view of the patient lifter  810  can be seen. Clearly seen is the manner in which the patient support platform  41  is suspended on the support members  831 ,  833 . A bracket  851  extends upwardly from the patient support platform  41  and has a flange overlying and secured to the rounded top of the vertical members  831 ,  833 . The vertical members  831 ,  833  move back and forth within the flange  851  as its vertical extent is increased and decreased by action of the piston  853 . The fully lowered position of the patient lifter  810  is shown in FIG. 26.  
         [0065]    A tenth embodiment is shown in FIG. 27. The patient lifter has tubular base members  922 ,  924  supported on wheels  25 . A vertical tower  963  is attached to the side proximate the vertical base member  922 . The vertical support tower  963  is formed by telescoping sections comprising inner tube  961  and outer tube  962 . A pull handle  927  is pivotally attached near the bottom of the vertical support tower  963 . The handle can be used when transporting the patient lifter from location to location.  
         [0066]    A bracket  951  extends from the bottom of outer tube  962 . The patient support platform  941  is suspended outwardly from the bracket  951 . In order to raise and lower the patient support platform, a pair of scissor members  931 ,  932  are engaged in the bracket  951 . The left ends of both the scissor members  931 ,  932  are fixed to the patient lifter, whereas the right side is free to move. The right side of scissor member  932  is pivotally attached to the right tubular base member  924 . As the patient support platform  941  is lowered, the scissor member  932  causes the tubular base member  924  to move to the right. This is accomplished by a telescoping member forming the central base member  925  connected between the left and right tubular base members  922 ,  924 . The right end of the scissor member  931  has a roller end that is engaged in, and slides within, bracket  951 .  
         [0067]    The upright position of the patient lifter  910  is shown in FIG. 28 and the lowered position is shown in FIG. 29.  
         [0068]    [0068]FIG. 30 is a front view of an eleventh embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the patient support platform is supported by two vertical towers  1031 ,  1032 , each connected to a horizontally extending base member  1022 ,  1024 . A central member  1025  connects the two vertical towers to one another at the juncture with the base members. The base members are connected to the central member by a hinge pin so that they can move from a position perpendicular to the central member to a position parallel with the central member. The patient support platform has an L-shaped plate  1041  extending between the vertical towers that provides support when the base members are co-linear with the central member. This plate is L-shaped, having a first section extending downwardly from the patient support platform and a second plate extending outwardly. The patient support platform can be moved along the central towers by any conventional means, such as cables.  
         [0069]    [0069]FIG. 31 shows the front view of the patient lifter.  
         [0070]    The L-shaped base plate supplies support when the base members are rotated to be co-linear with the central member. FIG. 32 shows the device in a lowered position with the base members co-linear with the central base member and the L-shaped plate providing support to the patient lifter.  
         [0071]    [0071]FIG. 33 is a twelfth embodiment of the patient lifter which resembles the embodiments shown in FIG. 17- 19 . The only difference between the two embodiments is the lifting mechanism and therefore that is the only feature that will be described. In this embodiment, a lifting mechanism consists of a cable  561  extending from the top of the post  563  and about pulleys  565  and attaching to the juncture of the post  563  and cross-member  545 . A winding mechanism  569  reduces the effective length of the cable and draws in the pulleys  565  towards one another. With this action, the pulleys are raised upwardly as that is necessary in order for the pulleys to become closer together. With this action, the junctions between the members  571 - 573  and  572 - 574  are also brought closer together and the bracket  564  is raised along with post  563 .  
         [0072]    While the invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, modifications or variations would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art. The invention encompasses such variations and modifications. For instance, the hydraulic pistons used in the invention can be replaced by an electric-driven screw mechanism.