Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US4987623?dq=%22Meaning-based+information+organization+and+retrieval%22
Timestamp: 2014-07-25 16:53:02
Document Index: 786162080

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 141', 'art 142', 'art 141', 'art 141', 'art 141', 'art 141', 'art 141', 'art 141']

Patent US4987623 - Hospital stretcher having patient transfer device and side rails with handle ... - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign in<nobr>Advanced Patent Search</nobr>PatentsA hospital stretcher includes an upwardly facing patient support surface and side rails on each side of the surface movable between raised and collapsed positions. Each side rail has at one end a spindle with a handle portion which, in the raised position, extends downwardly and away from the side rail....http://www.google.com/patents/US4987623?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US4987623 - Hospital stretcher having patient transfer device and side rails with handle portionsAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS4987623 APublication typeGrantApplication numberUS 07/470,855Publication dateJan 29, 1991Filing dateJan 26, 1990Priority dateJan 26, 1990Fee statusPaidPublication number07470855, 470855, US 4987623 A, US 4987623A, US-A-4987623, US4987623 A, US4987623AInventorsMartin W. Stryker, Thomas W. FennellOriginal AssigneeStryker CorporationExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (9), Non-Patent Citations (12), Referenced by (50), Classifications (15), Legal Events (6) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetHospital stretcher having patient transfer device and side rails with handle portionsUS 4987623 AAbstract A hospital stretcher includes an upwardly facing patient support surface and side rails on each side of the surface movable between raised and collapsed positions. Each side rail has at one end a spindle with a handle portion which, in the raised position, extends downwardly and away from the side rail. In the collapsed position, the top of each side rail is disposed below the support surface on the stretcher. The stretcher has on each side thereof a patient transfer mechanism, each transfer mechanism including a support board which can, from a retracted position disposed lower than the patient support surface, move upwardly between the support surface and one side rail in a vertical orientation and then pivot 90� to a horizontal orientation in which a surface thereon is level with the patient support surface and in which an underside of one edge portion of the support board rests on top of the collapsed side rail.
The embodiments in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows: 1. An apparatus comprising: a vehicle having an upwardly facing surface; a support member having thereon a support surface; and support means supporting said support member on said vehicle for movement between a retracted position in which said support member is disposed below said surface on said vehicle and an operational position in which said support member is disposed in the region of an edge portion of said surface on said vehicle and is oriented so that said support surface thereon is facing upwardly and is at approximately the same vertical level as said surface on said vehicle, said support surface including a portion which is disposed horizontally outwardly beyond said edge portion of said surface on said vehicle, wherein as said support member moves from said retracted position to said operational position said support means causes said support member to move upwardly adjacent said edge portion of said surface on said vehicle with said support member oriented so that said support surface thereon extends approximately vertically; and wherein said vehicle has a side rail spaced outwardly from said edge portion of said surface on said vehicle and movable between a lowered position in which a top of said side rail is disposed below said surface on said vehicle and a raised position in which said top of said side rail is higher than said surface on said vehicle, said upward movement of said support member with said support surface thereon approximately vertical taking place between said side rail and said edge portion of said surface on said vehicle.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a mobile stretcher for use in a hospital and, more particularly, to such a stretcher having an integral patient transfer device and having side rails which facilitate manual maneuverability of the stretcher.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION During use of a mobile stretcher in a hospital, it is frequently necessary to transfer a patient from the stretcher to another stretcher (or a bed or X-ray table), or vice versa. In some cases, this is done by simply positioning the two stretchers side by side and then having several persons physically lift and slide the patient from one stretcher to the other. This is dangerous to the patient, because the patient may be dropped on the floor between the stretchers. Further, it is dangerous to hospital personnel, because it is a common source of serious back injuries.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The objects and purposes of the invention, including those set forth above, are met according to a first form of the present invention by providing an apparatus which includes a vehicle having an upwardly facing surface, a support member having thereon a support surface, and a support arrangement supporting the support member on the vehicle for movement between a retracted position in which the support member is disposed lower than the surface on the vehicle and an operational position in which the support member is disposed in the region of an edge portion of the surface on the vehicle and is oriented so that the support surface thereon is facing upwardly and is at approximately the same vertical level as the surface on the vehicle. The support surface includes a portion which in the operational position is disclosed horizontally outwardly beyond the edge portion of the surface on the vehicle, and as the support member moves from its retracted position to its operational position it moves upwardly adjacent the edge portion of the surface on the vehicle with its support surface oriented to extend approximately vertically.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Two preferred embodiments of the present invention are disclosed in detail hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to FIG. 1, a vehicle 10 which embodies the present invention is a hospital stretcher movably supported by wheels 11. The vehicle 10 includes a conventional base 12 supported on four caster assemblies 13 which each include a respective one of the wheels 11. The base 12 supports a metal frame 16, which in turn supports a conventional mattress having an upwardly facing support surface 18 on which a patient can be placed. The base 12 preferably includes a conventional mechanism which is not illustrated in detail and which permits the frame 16 and mattress 17 thereon to be selectively raised and lowered to different vertical heights. The frame 16 preferably includes a mattress support portion 19, on which the mattress 17 is directly supported, the mattress support portion 19 in turn being supported on two spaced and parallel metal spines 21 and 22 which extend lengthwise of the vehicle 10 substantially the full length thereof.
The five spindles 54-58 are all rectilinear, whereas the spindle 53 is bent. In particular, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the spindle 53 includes a central portion 73 and includes two end portions 72 and 74 which are each bent to extend at an angle with respect to the central portion 73, the end portion 72 serving as a manually graspable handle portion to facilitate maneuvering of the vehicle 10, as described later. The portion 72 forms an angle of 25� with respect to the central portion 72 (and thus an angle of 65� with respect to the horizontal top rail 61 when the side rail 24 is raised), and the portion 74 forms an angle of 40� with respect to the central portion 73.
Referring to FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, the support board mechanism 103 further includes a support board 136 which is coupled by two pivot assemblies 137 and 138 to the ends of the respective board support arms 112 and 113. The support board 136, as shown in FIG. 11, includes a main board part 141 and a reinforcing board part 142, which are each preferably made of ABS (acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene). The main board part 141 has an elongate, approximately rectangular shape, as shown in FIG. 3. The main board part 141 is approximately flat except that, as shown in FIG. 11, one side edge portion 146 has a small amount of curl, and the opposite side edge portion 147 is bent to extend at an acute angle α with respect to the flat central portion of the board, the angle α being approximately 10�. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 7, the main board part 141 has near each of two corners a finger groove 148, and on the opposite side of the main board part, in alignment with the finger grooves 148, are respective finger ridges 149. As shown in FIG. 4, two corners of the main board part 141 near the finger grooves 148 are angled at 151 and 152. In the region of each of the pivot assemblies 137 and 138, the main board part 141 has a rectangular recess extending into the edge portion 146, one of these recesses being shown at 153 in FIG. 12.
OPERATION Referring to FIG. 1, when the support board mechanisms 103 and 104 are each in the retracted positions shown in FIG. 1, the side rails 23 and 24 can be placed in their raised positions, each being held in the raised position by the latch mechanism in the respective spindle support 45. In this position, the handle portion 72 of the end spindle 53 of each side rail can be manually grasped by a respective hand of a person, and used to manually maneuver the wheeled vehicle 10. Each handle portion 72 is at a vertical height and at an angle which make it comfortable for a person standing next to the end of the bed to grasp each handle portion 72. The spindles 53 are close enough to the end of the bed so that the person does not have to lean over the bed, which reduces the risk of a back injury and the extent to which the person and any patient on the bed may tend to breathe on the other and thereby spread a contagious disease.
Once the board 136 has been raised to the position shown in FIG. 4, it is pivoted 90� about the cylindrical pins 166 from the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 8 to the position shown in broken lines in FIG. 8 and in solid lines in FIG. 5. It will be noted from FIG. 5 that the shallow groove 159 in the underside of the board 136 receives the top rail 61 of the collapsed side rail 24, so that the side rail 24 provides solid support for the left end of the support board 136. As previously mentioned with reference to FIG. 2, the central portion 73 of the bent end spindle 53 is at the same height as the top rail 61 in the collapsed position of the side rail 24, and thus also engages the shallow groove in the underside of the support board 36 and helps to provide support for the board 136. Further, the projections 76 on the spindle supports 47-50 in FIG. 2 each support a respective spindle at a location adjacent its pivotal connection to the top rail 61, so that the top rail 61 is itself solidly supported and will not tend to have any vertical play when downward forces are exerted onto it from the support board 136. The semicircular recesses in the projection 26 each receive a respective one of the spindles, and prevent transverse movement of the top rail 61 which in turn, through cooperation with groove 159, prevents transverse movement of support board 136.
After the patient has been transferred, the board 136 is manually pivoted 90� back to the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, in which, as shown in FIG. 8, the top surface 177 on each stop 174 engages the inner end of the associated rectangular recess 153 in the main board part 141, thereby preventing pivotal movement of the board 136 past the position shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, and thereby preventing the board 136 from falling onto and possibly injuring the patient. The board may then be manually lowered to the original position shown in FIGS. 1-3, or may simply be released and allowed to drop to its original position as a result of the force of gravity, the counterbalancing effected by the spring 132 ensuring that the downward movement of the board is relatively gentle. In this original position, as best seen in FIGS. 3 and 9, the end portions 119 of the support arms 112 and 113 engage the stops 41 and 42 on the stirrups 38 and 39, to prevent further downward movement of the board 136. However, it should be noted that the end portions 119 of the support arms 112 and 113 are each parallel to and disposed against a lower edge of the board 136 in this lowered position. Consequently, and as mentioned earlier, the stirrups 38 and 39 could in fact be omitted, in which case the engagement of the edge of the board 136 with the end portions 119 of the arms 112 and 113 would serve to prevent downward movement of the board 136 beyond the position shown in FIGS. 3 and 9.
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(F/K/A BANK OF AMERICA NATIONAL TRUST AND SAVINGS ASSOCIATION);REEL/FRAME:012539/0557Owner name: PHYSIOTHERAPY ASSOCIATES, INC., MICHIGANOwner name: SMD CORPORATION, MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER CORPORATION, MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER FAR EAST, INC., MICHIGANFree format text: RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. (F/K/A BANK OF AMERICA NATIONAL TRUST AND SAVINGS ASSOCIATION);REEL/FRAME:012539/0557Effective date: 20020124Owner name: STRYKER FOREIGN HOLDCO, INC., MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER INTERNATIONAL, INC., MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER PUERTO RICO INC., MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER SALES CORPORATION, MICHIGANOwner name: STRYKER TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION, MICHIGANFree format text: RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. 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(F/K/A BANK OF AMERICA NATIONAL TRUST AND SAVINGS ASSOCIATION) /AR;REEL/FRAME:012539/0557Owner name: STRYKER FAR EAST, INC. 2725 FAIRFIELD ROAD KALAMAZOwner name: STRYKER FOREIGN HOLDCO, INC. 2725 FAIRFIELD ROAD KOwner name: STRYKER INTERNATIONAL, INC. 2725 FAIRFIELD ROAD KAOwner name: STRYKER PUERTO RICO INC. 2725 FAIRFIELD ROAD KALAMOwner name: STRYKER SALES CORPORATION 2725 FAIRFIELD ROAD KALAOwner name: STRYKER TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION 2725 FAIRFIELD ROMar 22, 1999ASAssignmentOwner name: BANK OF AMERICA NATIONAL TRUST AND SAVINGS ASSOCIAFree format text: SECURITY AGREEMENT;ASSIGNORS:STRYKER CORPORATION;STRYKER FAR EAST, INC.;REEL/FRAME:014137/0212Effective date: 19981204Free format text: SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:STRYKER CORPORATION;STRYKER FAR EAST, INC.;STRYKER INTERNATIONAL INC.;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:009817/0001Jun 24, 1998FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 8Jun 27, 1994FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4Jan 26, 1990ASAssignmentOwner name: STRYKER CORPORATION, A CORP. OF MI, MICHIGANFree format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST.;ASSIGNORS:STRYKER, MARTIN W.;FENNELL, THOMAS W.;REEL/FRAME:005222/0283Effective date: 19900110RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services©2012 Google