Improvements in Hospital Beds.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 24th Nov., 1899-Accepted, 6th Jan., 1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Hospital Beds.
I, HARRY LUTHER PIPER, of 507, Ontario Street, in the City of Toronto; in the
County of York and Province of Ontario, Canada, Inspector of Weights and
Measures, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by. the following statement:-
-
This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in hospital beds,
and relates more particularly to an attachment to the bed by means of which
the patient can be raised or lowered for sanitary or other purposes, without
disturbing his position or causing him any inconvenience or pain; and the
invention consists essentially of providing the bed with a rigid stretcher-frame
fitted around the mattress, having a bottom of canvas or other textile fabric
material fitted with a central opening, and a mechanism to raise and lower the
stretcher-frame and hold it in any elevated position as hereinafter more fully
set forth and more particularly pointed out in the claims.
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of the bed shewing the relative positions
of the various parts, the stretcher-frame in this view being in its lowered
position.
!
Figure 2 is a similar view showing the stretcher-frame in its elevated position.
Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view of the hospital bed.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the bed with the mattress and wire springs
removed, to illustrate the mechanism for raising and lowering the stretcher-
frame.
Like letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the specification and
drawings.
A, A, represent the sides, B the head, and C the foot of the bed.
1) represents a shaft journalled in the middle of the sides A, A. Mounted
upon the shaft D, contiguous to the inner face of one of the sides A, is a ratchet
wheel E, and pivoted to the inner face of the said side above the ratchet wheel E
is a ratchet dog F, which engages the teeth of the ratchet wheel E and prevents
its reverse rotation.
G represents a substantially rectangular stretcher-frame, consisting of two
ends g, g, and two sides g', rigidly united. The stretcher-frame G, when the
parts of the hospital bed are assembled, surrounds the mattress H. Connected to
each of the sides A A of the bed contiguous to the ends, are two brackets I, I'¹,
respectively, and sliding in the brackets I, I' are standards J J1 respectively.
Connected to the lower end of each of the standards J, J' is a pulley K, K¹
respectively, and connected to the inner face of each of the sides A, A, are two
pulleys L L respectively, located one on each side of the shaft I).
The ends of each side A are provided with eyes or loops M, M' respectively.
Attached to the loop M is a cord or chain 0 which passes around the pulleys L
and K and is wound on the shaft D, and attached to the eye or loop M¹ is a

page_text: cord or chain O¹, which passes around the pulleys K' and L¹ and is wound on
the shaft D.
Fastened to the sides g¹, g¹ and ends 9, 9, of the stretcher-frame is a stretcher-
bottom P of canvas or other textile fabric material, having a central opening Q.
The shaft D is provided with a crank R, by means of which it is rotated
during the raising or lowering movement of the stretcher.
The operation of the invention is as follows: By turning the crank in the
direction indicated by arrows the cords or chains O, O are wound on the shaft D
to raise the standards J, J' and stretcher into the elevated position shown in
Figure 2 of the drawings, the ratchet dog F preventing the reverse rotation of
the ratchet wheel E. The patient is preferably laid on the stretcher-bottom P,
in order that he can be raised or lowered with the stretcher without necessitating
any change in his position or the arrangement of the bed clothes. By providing
the stretcher-bottom P with the central opening Q a bed-pan or chamber-pot can
be placed beneath the opening, and the patient can relieve himself without the
assistance of an attendant. By disengaging the ratchet dog from the ratchet
wheel the stretcher and patient can be lowered into the position shown in
Figure 1 and can lie upon the mattress H.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:-
1
1. A hospital bed embracing in its construction a bed-frame, a stretcher
contained within the bed-frame consisting of a frame and a stretcher-bottom
having a central opening fastened to the frame, standards depending from the
stretcher-frame, a rotatable shaft, and cords or chains connected to the sides of
the bed-frame passing around the end's of the standards and wound on the shaft,
substantially as specified.
2. A hospital bed embracing in its construction a bed-frame, a shaft journalled
in the sides of the bed-frame, a ratchet wheel mounted on the shaft, a dog
pivoted to one of the sides of the bed-frame engaging the teeth of the ratchet
wheel, a stretcher consisting of a frame, a stretcher-bottom having a central
opening fastened to the frame, standards depending from the stretcher-frame
fitted at their lower ends with pulleys, eyes connected to the sides of the bed-frame,
cords connected to the eyes passing around the pulleys of the standards and
pulleys connected to the bed sides and wound on the shaft, and a crank to revolve
the shaft, substantially as specified.
3. The hospital bed hereinbefore described and illustrated in the accom-
panying drawings.