Powered cot

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9233033-B2
Application number	US-201113520627-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 13, 2011
Priority date	Jan 13, 2010
Publication date	Jan 12, 2016
Grant date	Jan 12, 2016

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a roll-in cot may include a support frame, a pair of front legs, a pair of back legs, and a cot actuation system. The pair of front legs may be slidingly coupled to the support frame. Each front leg includes at least one front wheel. The pair of back legs may be slidingly coupled to the support frame. Each back leg includes at least one back wheel. The cot actuation system includes a front actuator that moves the front legs and a back actuator that moves the back legs. The front actuator and the back actuator raises or lowers the support frame in tandem. The front actuator raises or lowers the front end of the support frame independently of the back actuator. The back actuator raises or lowers the back end of the support frame independently of the front actuator.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A cot comprising:
a support frame comprising a front end, and a back end;
a pair of front legs pivotally coupled to the support frame, wherein each front leg comprises at least one front wheel;
a pair of back legs pivotally coupled to the support frame, wherein each back leg comprises at least one back wheel;
a cot actuation system comprising a front actuator that moves the front legs and a back actuator that moves the back legs
a front actuator sensor that detects whether the front legs are in contact with a surface beneath the support frame or the front legs are out of contact with the surface beneath the support frame;
a back actuator sensor that detects whether the back legs are in contact with the surface beneath the support frame or the back legs are out of contact with the surface beneath the support frame, wherein
the front actuator and the back actuator are configured to raise or lower the support frame in tandem;
the front actuator is configured to raise or lower the front end of the support frame independently of the back actuator; and
the back actuator is configured to raise or lower the back end of the support frame independently of the front actuator.

2. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front actuator sensor and the back actuator sensor measure weight supported by the cot.

3. The cot of claim 1 wherein the cot actuation system comprises a manual release component that allows the front actuator and/or the back actuator to be manually raised or lowered.

4. The cot of claim 3 wherein the manual release component comprises a tension member accessible from the back end of the cot.

5. The cot of claim 1 wherein the support frame comprises a pair of parallel lateral side members extending between the front end and the back end.

6. The cot of claim 5 wherein the pair of parallel lateral side members comprises an undercut portion that is engageable with an accessory clamp.

7. The cot of claim 5 wherein the pair of parallel lateral side members comprise tracks.

8. The cot of claim 7 wherein each front leg comprises a front carriage member slidingly engaged with the tracks, and each back leg comprises a back carriage member slidingly engaged with the tracks.

9. The cot of claim 8 further comprising:
a front carriage tension member coupled to the front carriage member and slidingly engaged with a front pulley, wherein the front carriage tension member synchronizes movement of each front leg; and
a back carriage tension member coupled to the back carriage member and slidingly engaged with a back pulley, wherein the back carriage tension member synchronizes movement of each back leg.

10. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front legs comprise a pair of front hinge members, each front hinge member being pivotingly coupled to the support frame at one end and pivotingly coupled to one of the front legs at an opposite end.

11. The cot of claim 10 wherein the back legs comprise a pair of back hinge members, each of the back hinge members being pivotingly coupled to the support frame at the opposite end and pivotingly coupled to one of the back legs at the one end.

12. The cot of claim 11 further comprising:
a front timing belt engaged with one of the front hinge members and a front wheel linkage, wherein the raising or lowering of the front end of the support frame by the front legs causes the front timing belt to rotate the front wheel linkage; and
a back timing belt engaged with one of the back hinge members and a back wheel linkage, wherein the raising or lowering of the back end of the support frame by the back legs causes the back timing belt to rotate the back wheel linkage.

13. The cot of claim 11 wherein the front legs comprise a front cross beam extending between and moveable with the front legs, and the back legs comprise a back cross beam extending between and moveable with the back legs.

14. The cot of claim 13 wherein the front actuator is coupled to the front cross beam.

15. The cot of claim 1 further comprising operator controls that control movement of the front legs, the back legs, and the support frame.

16. The cot of claim 15 wherein the operator controls comprise a visual display component that provides an indication whether the front actuator and the back actuator are activated or deactivated.

17. The cot of claim 15 wherein the operator controls comprise one or more buttons that allow the front legs, the back legs, or both to move.

18. The cot of claim 15 wherein the operator controls comprise a control box comprising a synchronized mode component which, upon triggering, enables the front legs and the back legs to be retracted and/or extended simultaneously.

19. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front legs and the back legs cross each other, when viewing the cot from a side.

20. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front end comprises a pair of front load wheels that assist in loading the cot onto a loading surface.

21. The cot of claim 20 further comprising a proximity sensor that detects a distance between the load wheels and the loading surface.

22. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front end comprises a hook engagement bar that engages with a loading surface hook on a loading surface, and an engagement of the hook engagement bar and the loading surface hook prevents the cot from sliding backwards from the loading surface.

23. The cot of claim 1 further comprising an intermediate load wheel.

24. The cot of claim 23 further comprising a proximity sensor that detects a distance between the intermediate load wheel and a loading surface.

25. The cot of claim 1 further comprising a light strip that illuminates the cot in poor lighting or poor visibility environments.

26. The cot of claim 25 wherein the light strip comprises LED's, light bulbs, phosphorescent materials, or combinations thereof.

27. The cot of claim 1 further comprising a locking mechanism coupled to the at least one front wheel and/or the at least one back wheel, wherein the locking mechanism transitions the at least one front wheel and/or the at least one back wheel between a swiveling state and a locked state.

28. The cot of claim 1 wherein the support frame is removably coupled to a lift-off stretcher or an incubator.

29. The cot of claim 1 wherein the support frame is coupled to a support surface.

30. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front end and/or the back end is telescoping.

31. The cot of claim 1 wherein the front actuator or the back actuator is a dual piggy back hydraulic actuator.

32. The cot of claim 1 wherein the cot comprises a carbon fiber and resin structure.

33. The cot of claim 1 further comprising telescoping lift handles pivotingly coupled to the support frame, wherein the telescoping lift handles are rotatable between a vertical handle orientation and a side handle orientation.

34. The cot of claim 1 further comprising a communication member operable to transmit and receive a communication signal that complies with a Controller Area Network protocol, a Bluetooth protocol, a ZigBee protocol, or combinations thereof.

35. The cot of claim 13 , further comprising an intermediate load wheel attached to each of the front legs, wherein the intermediate load wheel is adj

Assignees

• Valentino Nicholas V
• Palastro Matthew
• Shen Zhen Y
• Wells Timothy R
• Schroeder Timothy Paul
• Markham Joshua James
• Potak Robert L
• Ferno Washington

Inventors

• Valentino Nicholas V
• Palastro Matthew
• Shen Zhen Y
• Wells Timothy R
• Schroeder Timothy Paul
• Markham Joshua James
• Potak Robert L

Classifications

• A61G2203/40

  for distance · CPC title

• A61G7/012

  raising or lowering of the whole mattress frame (A61G7/005, A61G7/008 take precedence) · CPC title

• A61G2203/44

  for weight · CPC title

• A61G3/0218

  Loading or unloading stretchers (transfer using ramps, lifts or the like A61G3/06 - A61G3/066; accommodating or securing wheelchairs or stretchers A61G3/08 - A61G3/0891) · CPC title

• A61G3/0891

  by preventing longitudinal movement · CPC title