Patent ID: 8474073

Claim:
A patient support apparatus comprising a frame that is elongated having a head end and a foot end separated by a distance greater than a distance separating opposite sides of the frame, a patient support coupled to the frame, a plurality of casters coupled to the frame, a wheel coupled to the frame, a motor coupled to the wheel and operable to rotate the wheel to propel the patient support apparatus along a floor, and an electrical system comprising a controller to control operation of the motor, the controller being configured to signal operation of the motor to rotate the wheel to propel the patient support apparatus along the floor, the electrical system further comprising user inputs including a first set of user inputs adjacent at least one end of the frame and a second set of user inputs adjacent at least one same side of the frame, the first and second set of user inputs each being engageable to signal the controller to operate the motor, the second set of user inputs adjacent the at least one same side of the frame including spaced apart forward and reverse switches that are pressed to determine whether the patient support apparatus is propelled in a forward direction or a rearward direction, respectively, wherein the second set of user inputs is situated about midway between the head end and the foot end of the frame.