Adjustable Anti-Slide Bed Support with Scissor Jack Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hospital and residential beds lack an effective mechanism to accommodate individuals shorter than six feet tall, leading to sliding issues and injuries due to the fixed position of the footboard, which is often hard and unsuitable, causing medical complications and increased healthcare costs.
Innovation Solution
A portable, adjustable anti-slide body support device with a scissor jack mechanism that can be attached to the bed footboard, allowing for continuous adjustment of the footboard's position to accommodate individuals of varying heights, featuring a padded surface to prevent sliding and pressure ulcers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the footboard is positioned at a fixed location to provide anti-slide support, then taller individuals receive proper support, but shorter individuals slide down the bed and cannot be properly accommodated
Solution Approach 1:
The footboard is transformed from a fixed structure to a movable one through the scissor jack mechanism. The scissor jack allows the footboard to be dynamically adjusted to different positions along the bed frame, enabling accommodation of individuals of varying heights while maintaining structural support functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The bed structure is segmented into fixed components (bed frame, mattress) and a movable component (footboard). The scissor jack mechanism acts as an independent segment that can be adjusted without affecting the overall bed structure, allowing height adaptation while keeping the rest of the bed simple and stable.
2Strength
If a hard footboard material is used to provide structural support, then the footboard maintains its shape and support capability, but pressure ulcers and injuries occur due to prolonged interface pressure on the individual's body
Solution Approach 1:
A padded cover is placed over the hard footboard structure before the individual contacts it. This cushioning layer is positioned in advance to prevent direct contact between the individual's body and the hard surface, thereby preventing pressure ulcers and injuries while maintaining the structural integrity of the footboard.
Solution Approach 2:
The padded cover serves as an intermediary layer between the hard footboard structure and the individual's body. It mediates the interaction by providing a soft, pressure-distributing surface that eliminates the harmful effects of the hard material while allowing the footboard to maintain its support function.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the footboard is extended away from the end of the mattress to accommodate taller individuals, then proper anti-slide support is provided for tall individuals, but the device cannot accommodate shorter individuals and creates excess bed space
Solution Approach 1:
The footboard position is made dynamic and adjustable through the scissor jack mechanism. Rather than being fixed or requiring manual repositioning, the scissor jack enables smooth, continuous adjustment of the footboard to the optimal position for each individual's height, improving ease of operation and adaptability simultaneously.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device provides effective anti-slide support, reduces the risk of injuries and medical complications, and is easy to sanitize and transport, improving patient safety and reducing healthcare costs by accommodating individuals of different heights and providing a comfortable, padded surface.
Implementation Method 1
a scissor jack disposed between, secured to and connecting the front wall and the back wall, such that the scissor jack is capable of expanding and contracting horizontally to move the front wall away from and toward the back wall
Implementation Method 2
a horizontal screw extending transversely of the bed above the mattress through the joints of both pairs of arms and threadedly engaging one or both of the joints such that turning of the screw in one rotational direction causes the pairs of arms to expand, moving the front wall away from the back wall
Data Source
AI summary
A body support for use with a bed having a top end, a bottom end and a mattress, including a back vertical wall removably mountable at the bottom end of the bed in a fixed position in which the wall extends across the bed and above the mattress, a front vertical wall extending parallel to the back wall above the mattress, and a scissor jack disposed between, secured to and connecting the front wall and the back wall so as to be capable of expanding and contracting horizontally to move the front wall away from and toward the back wall above the mattress in maintained parallel relation to the back wall, whereby the front wall serves as a foot support for an individual lying on the bed and is positionally adjustable in accordance with the individual's height. A pad may be removably mounted on the front wall.