Patent Publication Number: US-3878844-A

Title: Body restrainer

Description:
Umted States Patent 11 1 1111 3,878,844  
 Tobias 1 Apr. 22, 1975 BODY RESTRAINER Primary Examiner-Richard A. Gaudet Assistant Examiner-Hen J. Recla l nven or clgg R53 cz z&#39;lrlo &#39;z j 28209 Anon/e Agent. or FirmHerbert M. Adrlan, Jr.  
  221 Filed: DEC. 12, 1973 [571 ABSTRACT [2 I] pp N0: 424,055 A bodyrestrtuner 15 descr bed part1cularly sultable for restrmnmg disorderly patients who enter or are confined to institutions for medical care. In particular the [52] U.S. Cl. 128/134 body restrainer comprises a set of crossed belts which {5|} Int. Cl. .1 A61! 5/37 have quick engagement buckles which lock onto an- [58] Field of Search l28/l32, 133, 134 choring means attachable to a bedstead or stretcher. Additionally, the restraining belts have fastened [56] References Cited thereto retractable loops for the insertion of the arm UNITED STATES PATENTS or wrist of the patient. which loops can be quickly 2.758.595 8/1956 Lovett H l28/l34 draw e the arm or i h quick 3.046.982 7/1962 Davis l28/l34 and qulck release mechamsm ulllzed PermIt 3,093.479 7/1963 Story l28/l34 rapid Subduing of a disorderly Patient with a minimum 3.204.256 9/1965 Stollenwchl 128/134 of personnel In th same manner; the patient can be 3.535.7l8 lO/l970 Murcott .1 l28/l34 quickly released from the body restrainer when desired.  
 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures BODY RESTRAINER INTRODUCTION This invention is directed to a body restrainer and more particularly to a body restrainer particularly useful in institutions and hospital emergency rooms for the restraining of disorderly patients.  
 BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE In recent years the need to restrain disorderly patients has become a daily occurrence in most municipal hospitals. Numerous patients are brought into the emergency rooms of hospitals for immediate treatment due to drug overdoses. bad trips. criminal arrests of wounded suspects. and the like persons who unwillingly are committed to emergency care. In most instances. these patients do not have the mental presence to control their actions. In order for the patient to be treated. the patient must be subdued as quickly as possible with the minimum of personnel. Previous methods of subduing such patients often required as many as live staff members 15 to 20 minutes to restrain such a person.  
  It is an object of the present invention to provide a means for quickly subduing a disorderly patient with a minimum of time and personnel.  
  It is a further object of this invention to provide a means for quickly releasing the patient when it is desirable to do so.  
  These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the description of the invention which follows.  
 THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention. a body restrainer is provided comprising a pair of crossed. flexible belts fastened together near the midpoint of their lengths. said belts having quick engagement-quick release buckles attached to each end thereof. said buckles having means for engaging and locking with anchoring means. said belts additionally having arm restraining loops fastened along the length thereof for the insertion of an arm or wrist. said loops being readily tightened by drawing the loop closed through quick engagementquick release buckle means.  
  An additional feature of the present invention further includes a crossover belt for engagement between the lower anchoring means. thereby crossing the patients legs.  
  The present invention provides a means for quickly subduing a disorderly patient without injury to the patient with a minimum expenditure of time and personnel. Utilizing the present means. the most disorderly patient can be subdued in thirty to ninety seconds. thereby freeing considerable time and energy of staff members.  
 DETAILS OF THE INVENTION The invention will be more fully understood by refer ence to the drawings wherein:  
  FIG. I is a prospective view of the body restrainer of the present invention in position on a patient;  
  FIG. 2 is a side view ofa quick engagement-quick release buckle used in the present invention;  
  FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line 33 of FIG. 2 showing more particularly the construction of the quick engagement-quick release buckle; and.  
  FIG. 4 is an enlarged exposure of the wrist engagement loop taken along line 44 of FIG. 1.  
  Referring more particularly to the drawings. the body restrainer of the present invention comprises two belts 5 I fastened together at approximately the midpoint 12 thereof in crossed fashion. Each end of the belts has quick engagement-quick release buckles 14 which en gage anchor means I6. Anchor means 16 can conveniently be a loop and buckle engagement tab I8 which can be secured to the frame of the bedstead. litter.  
 stretcher or operating table. Buckle 14 has length adjustment means 20 through which the loose end l of belt can be drawn to reduce the length of the restrainer belts.  
  Along the length of belt l0. preferably on the lower side of midpoint l2. wrist engagement loops 22 are provided for the insertion of a wrist or arm of the person being restrained. Loop 22 is adjustable in length by drawing end tabs 23 through length adjustment means of buckle 14. FIG. 1 illustrates two locations for wrist loop 22 on belt 10. Alternatively. any position along belt 10 can be utilized for loop 22 provided it is conveniently located for the insertion of the wrists or arms of the patient. Crossover belt 24 is optionally added to further restrain leg movement if desired. Belt 24 attaches between lower anchor means and buckle means on both sides of the bedstead.  
  The body restrainer of the present invention in position on the patient crosses the patient in the lower chest abdominal region with two ends thereof crossing the right and left shoulders and being anchored to the upper end of the bed frame. The lower end ofthe body restrainer belts cross the patients hip and thigh area and are anchored to the lower end of the bed frame. In  
  such a position. with arm and/or wrist engaged in the loop wrist 22. the movements of even violent patients are substantially restricted. The crossing of the lower hip and thigh region restricts the patients leg movc ment although some movement in this region can still occur. Consequently. crossover belt 24 can be utilized in extreme situations.  
  As an alternate method of harnessing the patient. the lower belt means can be wrapped between the legs and under the thigh of the patient to anchoring means 16.  
 as represented in FIG. I by the abbreviated lines.  
  Belting 10 can conveniently be constructed of fiber or leather belting material. It is preferred to have a belt width of at least about I inch. more preferably in a width at about 2 inches. The wider width of the belt I&#39;C- duccs the patients discomfort and injury. Such belts are more conveniently composed of fiber material. such as standard seat belt webbing material. lawn chair webbing. standard waist belt material. or the like. Such materials can be composed of natural or synthetic fibers such as cotton. polyester. nylon. polypropylene and the like.  
  While seat belt material is most conventionally utilized. it will be readily apparent that such webbing has strength characteristics far in excess of that required. However. the wear abrasion resistance of seat belt materials make them highly desirable even though webbing of lesser strength could be used. It is desirable to have webbing of a test strength of at least 500 pounds tensile strength. Seat belt webbing normally has a tensile strength in the range of 5.000 pounds or more. consequently providing a substantial excess of strength.  
  The quick engagement-quick release belt buckles can be of a number of designs. but preferably those having belt shortening means operable by drawing the belt cnd through the buckle. such as is done in airplane seat belt buckles and many varieties of automobile seat belt buckles. Of course. it will be recognized that similar buckles which function in similar manner can be used with correspondingly good results.  
  While there have been described more particularly the preferred embodiments of the present invention. it will be readily recognized by those skilled in the art that various changes can be made within the spirit of the invcntion to produce correspondingly good results. As such. it is intended to cover the invention broadly. being limited only by the following claims.  
 What is claimed is:  
  l. A body restraincr comprising a pair of crossed flexible belts fastened together near the midpoint of their lengths. said belts having quick engagement-quick release buckles attached to each end thereof. anchoring means for engagement with said buckles. said buckles having means for engaging and locking with said anchoring means. said belts additionally having arm restraining loops fastened along the length thereof for the (ill  4 insertion of an arm or wrist. said loops being readily tightened by drawing the loop closed through quick engagement-quick release buckle means.  
  2. The body restraincr of claim 1 wherein the belts when in use are positioned across the body of the person to be restrained with two of said belt ends crossing the shoulders and engaging said anchoring means fastened to the bedstead. two ofsaid belt ends crossing the hips and anchoring on the lower portion of said bedstead and the arms of said person being inserted into said loops on said belts.  
  3. The body restraincr of claim I wherein an additional belt is provided between said lower anchoring means to thereby cross the legs of a person being restrained when in the engaged position.  
  4. The body restraincr of claim 1 wherein the belts are comprised of fiber webbing.  
  5. The body restraincr of claim 4 wherein the fibers are synthetic fibers.  
  6. The body restraincr of claim 1 wherein the quick engagement buckles are conventional seat belt buckles with length adjustment means.