electric bed

Abstract

This invention relates to an electric bed, comprising a base, a lumbar support plate, a support frame, an actuator, and a connecting rod. The base has an elongated groove and a bracket located in front of the groove. The lumbar support plate is pivotally mounted to the base at its rear side. The support frame is located below the lumbar support plate and has a rear end pivotally mounted to the base and a front end. The actuator has a fixed end pivotally mounted to the bracket and a driving end located behind the fixed end. The connecting rod has an upper end pivotally mounted to the support frame and a lower end pivotally connected to the driving end of the actuator via a pin. The pin passes through the elongated groove and can move along the groove. When the actuator shortens, the driving end can drive the lower end of the connecting rod to move forward, causing the connecting rod to drive the support frame and the lumbar support plate to swing upward. When the actuator extends, the driving end can drive the lower end of the connecting rod to move backward, causing the support frame to swing downward, and the lumbar support plate to swing downward by its own weight. In this way, the electric bed can be folded to reduce the volume of materials to be transported or stored, and also avoids accidents such as pinching injuries to the lumbar support plate.

Description

Electric bed The present invention relates to an electric bed, in particular to an electric bed with a waist support function. Most electric beds currently available with adjustable lumbar support angles utilize an actuator to drive the lumbar support plate's rotation. However, this actuator is located near the center of the bed's head and foot. Therefore, if the bed frame needs to be designed to fold in half to reduce shipping or storage volume, it will inevitably interfere with the actuator. Furthermore, while the actuator works fine when driving the lumbar support plate upward, it can cause accidents such as pinching people, pets, or children when the actuator drives the lumbar support plate downward. Therefore, these issues have become the focus of research and development for improvements in the industry. One object of the present invention is to provide an electric bed with a lumbar support angle adjustment function and can be folded to reduce the volume of transportation or storage; another object of the present invention is to provide an electric bed that can prevent the lumbar support board from pinching people or other creatures. In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the electric bed of the present invention includes a base, a lumbar support plate, a support frame, an actuator and a connecting rod, wherein the base has a long slot extending along a front-to-back direction, and a bracket is located in front of the long slot, the lumbar support plate is pivoted to the base with its rear side, the support frame is located below the lumbar support plate, the support frame has a rear end pivoted to the base, and a front end relative to the rear end, the actuator has a fixed end pivoted to the bracket, and a driving end is located behind the fixed end. The connecting rod has an upper end pivotally mounted on the support frame, and a lower end pivotally connected to the actuator's drive end via a pin. The pin extends through the slot and is movable along the slot. When the actuator shortens, the drive end drives the lower end of the connecting rod forward, causing the connecting rod to rotate the support frame upward, which in turn pushes the lumbar support plate upward. When the actuator lengthens, the drive end drives the lower end of the connecting rod backward, causing the support frame to rotate downward, allowing the lumbar support plate to rotate downward under its own weight. Thus, the electric bed of the present invention has an adjustable lumbar support angle and can be folded to reduce the volume of materials for transport or storage, while also preventing the lumbar support plate from pinching people or other living things. The following describes in detail the technical content and features of the present invention using a preferred embodiment with accompanying drawings. As shown in Figures 1 to 4, an electric bed 1 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The electric bed 1 includes a base 10, a lumbar support plate 20, a back support plate 30, a hip support plate 32, a thigh support plate 34, a calf support plate 36, a top support frame 40, an actuator 50, and two connecting rods 60. For ease of description, in this document, the front refers to the direction of the head of the bed (i.e., the left side in Figure 2), and the rear refers to the direction of the foot of the bed (i.e., the right side in Figure 2). However, this should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent. The base 10 has a front frame 11 and a rear frame 12 pivotally mounted on the front frame 11 so that the rear frame 12 can rotate and fold relative to the front frame 11. As shown in FIG7 , the base 10 is used to be placed on the ground or on a bed board, and can also be equipped with legs to be raised. The front frame 11 of the base 10 has a receiving groove 13 extending along a front-to-back direction A, and a bracket 18 is located in front of the receiving groove 13. The cross-section of the receiving groove 13 is U-shaped and has a bottom wall 14, two upright walls 15 extending upward from two sides of the bottom wall 14, and two long grooves 16 respectively opened on the two upright walls 15 and extending along the front-to-back direction A, so that the bracket 18 is also located in front of the two long grooves 16. The lumbar support plate 20 is used to support the user's waist. The lumbar support plate 20 is pivotally mounted on the front frame 11 of the base 10 at a rear side 22 via two hinges 24 , so that the lumbar support plate 20 can be rotated upward relative to the base 10 from a horizontal state. The back support plate 30 is provided in front of the waist support plate 20 to support the user's back; the hip support plate 32 is provided behind the waist support plate 20 to support the user's hips; the thigh support plate 34 is provided behind the hip support plate 32 to support the user's thighs; the calf support plate 36 is provided behind the thigh support plate 34 to support the user's calves. The support frame 40 is located below the lumbar support plate 20. The support frame 40 has a rear end 42 pivotally mounted on the front frame 11 of the base 10, a front end 44 opposite to the rear end 42, and two rollers 46 disposed on the front end 44 (only one of the rollers 46 is shown in Figures 3 and 4). The front end 44 is located in front of the rear end 42, and the two rollers 46 are in contact with the bottom surface of the lumbar support plate 20. The actuator 50 has a fixed end 52 pivotally mounted on the bracket 18, and a driving end 54 located behind the fixed end 52 and accommodated in the accommodating groove 13. The actuator 50 can be extended to increase the distance between the driving end 54 and the fixed end 52, and the actuator 50 can be shortened to reduce the distance between the driving end 54 and the fixed end 52. The actuator 50 can be an electric push rod, a pneumatic cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder or other similar devices. The two connecting rods 60 respectively have an upper end 62 pivotally mounted on the front end 44 of the support frame 40, and a lower end 64 pivotally connected to the driving end 54 of the actuator 50 by a pin 66. The pin 66 passes through the two long slots 16 and can move back and forth along the two long slots 16. In order to increase the smoothness of the movement, the pin 66 can be sleeved with a wheel 68, which is located in the accommodating groove 13. The bottom wall 14 of the accommodating groove 13 is used to support the wheel 68 so that the wheel 68 can roll back and forth in the accommodating groove 13, as shown in Figure 5. However, the wheel 68 can also be omitted. Regardless of whether the actuator 50 is extended or shortened, the upper end 62 of the connecting rod 60 remains in front of the lower end 64. When the actuator 50 is shortened, the driving end 54 can drive the lower end 64 of the connecting rod 60 to move forward, so that the connecting rod 60 drives the supporting frame 40 to rotate upward, and the supporting frame 40 uses the roller 46 to push the lumbar support plate 20 to rotate upward, as shown in Figures 1 to 5; conversely, when the actuator 50 is extended, the driving end 54 can drive the lower end 64 of the connecting rod 60 to move backward, so that the supporting frame 40 can rotate downward, and the lumbar support plate 20 can rotate downward by its own weight, as shown in Figure 6. Because the lumbar support plate 20 rotates downward under its own weight rather than being driven by the actuator 50, if the lumbar support plate 20 were to become obstructed by the downward rotation and could potentially pinch a person, pet, or other living thing, such as an object, the lumbar support plate 20 would not continue to rotate downward due to the continued extension of the actuator 50. This prevents the lumbar support plate 20 from pinching a person or other living thing. Furthermore, because the actuator 50 is located within the front frame 11, the rear frame 12 can be folded relative to the front frame 11, as shown in FIG7 . This significantly reduces the volume of materials required for transport or storage, thereby achieving the objectives of the present invention. Based on the design spirit of the present invention, the structure of the electric bed 1 may have other changes, such as: All such easily conceivable structural changes should be covered by the scope of the patent application of the present invention. 1: Electric bed 10: Base 11: Front frame 12: Rear frame 13: Accommodation slot 14: Bottom wall 15: Upright wall 16: Long slot 18: Bracket A: Front and rear direction 20: Lumbar support plate 22: Rear side 24: Hinge 30: Back support plate 32: Hip support plate 34: Thigh support plate 36: Calf support plate 40: Top frame 42: Rear end 44: Front end 46: Roller 50: Actuator 52: Fixed end 54: Driving end 60: Connecting rod 62: Upper end 64: Lower end 66: Pin 68: Wheel Figure 1 is a three-dimensional view of an electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of an electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figures 3 and 4 are partial three-dimensional views of an electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of an electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the operation of the electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 7 is a diagram of the folded state of the electric bed according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 1: Electric bed 10: Base 11: Front rack 12: Rear rack 13: Storage tank 16: Long groove 18: Bracket A: Front and rear direction 20: Lumbar support board 22: Back 30: Back support board 32: Hip support plate 34: Thigh support plate 36: Calf support plate 40: Top rack 50: Actuator 60: Connecting rod 66: Pin

Claims

1. An electric bed comprises: a base having an elongated slot extending in a front-to-rear direction, and a bracket located in front of the elongated slot; a lumbar support plate pivotally mounted on the base at a rear side; a supporting frame located below the lumbar support plate, the supporting frame having a rear end pivotally mounted on the base and a front end opposite to the rear end, the supporting frame further having a roller mounted on the front end, the roller abutting against the lumbar support plate; an actuator having a fixed end pivotally mounted on the bracket and a driving end located behind the fixed end; and a connecting rod having an upper end pivotally mounted on the supporting frame and a lower end pivotally connected to the driving end of the actuator by a pin, the pin passing through the elongated slot and movable along the elongated slot; When the actuator is shortened, the driving end can drive the lower end of the connecting rod to move forward, so that the connecting rod drives the support frame to rotate upward, and the support frame pushes the lumbar support plate to rotate upward; when the actuator is extended, the driving end can drive the lower end of the connecting rod to move backward, so that the support frame can rotate downward, and the lumbar support plate can rotate downward by its own weight.

2. The electric bed as described in claim 1, wherein the base has a receiving groove extending along the front-to-back direction for accommodating the driving end of the actuator.

3. The electric bed as described in claim 2, wherein the accommodating tank has a vertical wall, and the long groove is opened in the vertical wall.

4. In the electric bed as described in claim 2, the pin is further provided with a wheel member located in the accommodating groove, and the accommodating groove has a bottom wall for supporting the wheel member.

5. The electric bed as described in claim 1, wherein the base has a front frame and a rear frame pivotally mounted on the front frame, and the long slot and the bracket are both mounted on the front frame.

6. The electric bed as described in claim 1, wherein the lumbar support plate is mounted on the base via at least one hinge.

7. The electric bed as described in claim 1, wherein the upper end of the connecting rod is maintained in front of the lower end.

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