Patent ID: 7287288

Claim:
A patient lifting device comprising: two side limbs each connected at an upper end to a suspension mounting for suspension of the device from a lifting hook of a hoist and each provided at a lower end with a support bar which mounts patient support elements; the patient support elements being (i) a pair of side pads for engaging beneath the armpits of a patient and against opposite sides of the patient's ribcage, and (ii) a patient upper leg or posterior support means; wherein the two support bars are connected together by a link bar assembly from which the patient upper leg or posterior support means depends; and wherein each support bar is pivotally mounted on its side limb about a pivot axis, defining a balance axis about which the moments imparted by the weight of the patient's upper body through the side pads and by the weight of the patient's lower body through the upper leg or posterior support means can react against one another in an equal and opposite fashion.