Patent ID: 7712165

Claim:
A bed with a retractable side barrier, the bed comprising a bed frame, a side barrier element extending along one side of said frame, and two parallel arms pivotably coupled to said frame and to said barrier element, wherein each arm is attached to said bed frame by a telescopic mechanism comprising an inner element and an outer element, one of the elements being fastened to the frame and the other to said arm, and wherein these two elements are constrained relative to each other by a shape connection that is configured to force the transverse position of said barrier element relative to the bed frame to vary continuously while the barrier element is being raised and lowered, wherein the shape connection comprises one of a helical groove and a helical cam that is provided on one of the inner and outer elements and that extends between a top of one of the inner and outer elements that has the helical groove or cam and a bottom of one of the inner and outer elements that has the helical groove or cam so that relative rotation between the inner and outer elements through about 180 degrees is permitted.