IMPROVED APPARATUS TO BE APPLIED TO BEDSTEADS FOR RAISING AND SUPPORTING THE OCCUPANT
Year: 1877

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to James Reynolds, of the City and County of Worcester,
16
for the Invention of IMPROVED APPARATUS TO BE APPLIED TO BEDSTEADS
FOR RAISING AND SUPPORTING THE OCCUPANT."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Reynolds at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 9th November 1877.
JAMES REYNOLDS, of the City and County of Worcester. "IMPROVED APPARATUS
TO BE APPLIED TO BEDSTEADS FOR RAISING AND SUPPORTING THE OCCUPANT."
My Invention relates to improvements in apparatus applied to bedsteads for the
use of invalids and others, whereby the head, body, and knees of the occupant may
be raised to any angle, and the feet supported at various inclinations.
The apparatus is of the most simple construction, the movements being effected
by lever action without disturbing the occupant or interfering with the bedding or
bedclothes, and the working is so smooth as not in any way to jar or inconvenience
the patient by noise.
The apparatus, which may be applied to any bedstead without necessitating
alterations, comprises a bed bottom composed of four open frames, of which the head
and foot portions are supported by two pairs of saddle pieces fitting on the side
frames of the bedstead. These saddle pieces support two cross shafts, to which the
head and foot portions of the bed bottom are fixed, and on which they rise and fall
as pivots. The head and foot portions of the bed bottom each rest on a roller sup-
ported in bearings in a pair of lever arms fixed on a second cross shaft also mounted
in the saddle pieces, the said shaft being turned by handspikes or levers in order
to raise the frames and support them at any desired angle, suitable stops being
provided on the shafts to prevent the movement exceeding certain limits.
The middle frames are jointed or hinged together for supporting and raising the
knees, and are raised, where hinged, by connecting rods attached to their' opposite
sides, and connected together, the pairs of frames and rods forming the four sides of
a parallelogram.

page_text: The joint of the rods is connected adjustably to and acted on by extensions of
the lever arms which carry the roller that supports the head portion of the bed
botton, so that as the rods are drawn down the hinged frames are raised to any
desired extent, these frames being supported at their opposite sides by friction rollers
running on rails or ways on the saddle pieces to ensure a quiet and easy motion, free
from jerks or shocks.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Reynolds in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 9th May
1878.
JAMES REYNOLDS, of the City and County of Worcester. "IMPROVED APPARATUS
TO BE APPLIED TO BEDSTEADS FOR RAISING AND SUPPORTING THE OCCUPANT."
My Invention relates to improvements in apparatus applied to bedsteads for the
use of invalids and others, whereby the head, body, and knees of the occupant may
be raised to any angle, and the feet supported at various inclinations.
The apparatus is of exceedingly simple construction, the movements being effected
by lever action without disturbing the occupant or interfering with the bedding or
bedclothes, and the working is so smoothi as not to inconvenience the patient by
noise or jarring.
The apparatus, which may be applied to any bedstead without necessitating
alterations, comprises a bed botton composed of four open frames, of which the
head and foot portions are supported by two pairs of saddle pieces fitting on the
side frames of the bedstead. These saddle pieces are moveable along the side bars,
and secured in place by wedges, which are driven in between the under surface of
the side bars and the saddle pieces. They support two cross shafts to which
the head and foot portions of the bed bottom are fixed, and on which they rise and
fall as pivots. The head and foot portions of the bed bottom each rest on a roller
supported in bearings in a pair of lever arms fixed on a second cross.shaft, also
mounted in the saddle pieces, the said shaft being turned by handspikes or levers
in order to raise the frames and support them at any desired angle, suitable stops
being provided on the shafts to prevent the movement exceeding certain limits.
The middle frames are jointed or hinged together for supporting and raising the
knees, and are raised, where hinged, by connecting rods attached to their opposite
sides, and connected together, the pairs of frames and rods forming the four sides of
a parallelogram.
The joint of the rods is connected adjustably to and acted on by extensions of the
lever arms which carry the roller that supports the head portion of the bed bottom,
so that as the rods are drawn down the hinged frames are raised to any desired
extent, these frames being supported at their opposite sides by friction rollers running
on rails or ways on the saddle pieces to ensure a quiet and easy motion, free from
jerks or shocks.
The knee section may be operated independently by means of a lever, as hereafter
more fully described.

page_text: Figure 1 is a plan of the apparatus applied to a bedstead; Figure 2 is an end
elevation; Figure 3 is a side elevation; and Figure 4, a longitudinal section of the
same.
Figure 5 is a cross section, showing mechanism for elevating one side of the bed
for convenience in turning a patient over, or to aid the patient in getting out of
bed.
Figure 6 shows a perspective view of the inner side of one of the saddles on the
side bar of the bedstead frame; and Figure 7, a view of the adjustable link which
connects the lever arms, supporting the head section with the apparatus for elevating
the knees.
Figure 8 is a plan of the hand lever for elevating the knees without elevating the
head section.
A, B, B', and C are frames respectively forming what I term the head, knee, and
foot sections of the bed bottom. The head and foot sections A and C work on
pivots a, a, and c, c; resting in bearings d on the cast iron saddle pieces D, fitting on
the side bars E of the bedstead, and adjustable in any position along the same. The
saddles are secured in place by a wedge driven in between the bottom of the frame
and the saddle plate q (see Figure 6), which is carried in slots in the side pieces of
the saddle. The knee sections B, B', are 'hinged together at b, and rest on grooved
friction rollers b¹ running on A edged rails 62, supported by lugs b³ on saddles D.
:―
The several sections A, B, B, and C are supported and operated as follows:-
F, F, are a pair of levers on a cross shaft f, supported in hook-shaped bearings fl on
saddles D. The lovers F, F, carry between their upper ends a roller F¹, its journals
resting on slots in levers F, on which roller section A rests, as shown. The levers F
are operated to raise and lower section A by a handspike or lever f2 fitted in a
hole in a disc f³, resembling a capstan head fixed on one end of shaft f, this
lever being engaged in a rack G to retain it in any position in which it may
be placed. The section C is supported and raised by a similar pair of levers H
carrying a roller H¹, and mounted on a shaft h, resting in similar hooks or bearings
on the saddle piece D, the said shaft being operated by a handspike or lever h² in
a disc h³ on the end of shaft h, the lever h² being retained in the same rack G. This
rack G is attached to a saddle g fitted on side bar E in any suitable position. d'
are projections on D to limit the motion of sections A and C in either direction,
the shafts and h being provided with stops d³, which come against the projections
d for this purpose. The sections B, B', are thrown up at their hinge b by the
tension of pairs of rods jointed to the sections at their opposite edges near the
friction rollers b', and to a cross rod 65, so that by pulling said cross rod downwards
the opposite edges, where friction rollers are situate, are drawn towards one
another, and the hinge b is thrown upward. The rod 65 is by adjustable links I
connected to cross rod FS passing through downward extensions F2 of levers F, so
that the knee sections B, B', may be thrown up whenever levers F are oscillated to
throw up the head section A. The link I is an iron strap, with notches i to receive
a pin, on which cross bar F³ rests, as shewn in Figure 7. The knee sections B, B¹,
may also be operated independently by means of a frame or lever K, (shown
separately in Figure 8,) which is hooked at k to engage with rod 65, and when pulled
upwards by handle it strikes shaft h, on which it works as a fulcrum. ² are
hooks to hold lever K, and consequently sections B, B¹, in the raised position.
The apparatus for raising or tilting the bed sideways consists of a long shaft L,
supported on hangers or saddle pieces L' on the end frames of the bedstead, rock
levers M fixed on shaft L, and attached by chain or otherwise to bars N, vertical
slides O attached to bars N, and working through guides or sockets on saddle pieces
P fixed to side bars E, and grooved at top to receive longitudinal bars o, which pass
under the sections A, B, B, C, and raise them at one side or the other, as shown in
Figure 5, when shaft L is rocked by means of a hand lever inserted in a hole in the

page_text: disc L² on one end of said shaft. T, saddle piece to hold support for elbow rest and
tray; U, rod passing through socket on T; V, cross piece; W, arm rest.
Having described the nature of the said Invention and the manner of carrying
the same into effect, I would have it understood that what I claim as my Invention
to be protected by the herein-before in part recited Letters Patent is,―
First. An invalid bedstead composed of separate sections, each operated by levers
and shafts supported in removeable saddle pieces fitted upon a bedstead frame, so as
to be readily applied to any ordinary bedstead, substantially as herein shown and
described.
Second. In an invalid bedstead the combination with hinged or pivotted head and
foot sections of pairs of levers carrying rollers, and mounted on saddle pieces on bed-
stead frame, the levers being operated for raising and supporting the said sections
at any desired inclination, substantially as shown and described..
Third. In an invalid bedstead the two knee sections hinged together, running on
rollers, and raised and supported by the downward tension of pairs of rods, sub-
stantially as shown and described, whether in conjunction with the levers operating
the head section or independently, as specified.
Fourth. The improved invalid bedstead constructed, arranged, and operating sub-
stantially as herein shewn and described.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Reynolds, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Sixth day of May, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and seventy-eight.
JAMES REYNOLDS. (L.S.)