Hospital Bed Siderail Latching for Safe Intermediate Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Movable siderails in hospital beds can increase the likelihood of patient entrapment and pinching due to changeable gaps, and existing mechanisms require significant effort to adjust between positions for patient ingress and egress, often inhibiting caregiver access.
Innovation Solution
A siderail system with a latching mechanism that allows for one-handed operation between raised, lowered, and intermediate positions, incorporating a cam disk and latch mechanism to bypass the intermediate locked position when moving from lowered to raised, and utilizing biasing elements to reduce the force required for movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If movable siderails are used to protect patients from bed egress, then patient safety is improved, but the likelihood of patient entrapment and pinching increases due to changeable gaps
Solution Approach 1:
The latching mechanism is designed to automatically establish safe gap configurations when siderails are moved to intermediate positions. The bypass arm and cam disk are pre-configured to engage the latch at predetermined points, ensuring that safe spacing is maintained without requiring manual intervention or complex control systems.
2Ease of operation
If siderails are made movable to facilitate patient ingress and egress, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases due to locking mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The latching mechanism operates automatically based on the siderail's position. The bypass arm and cam disk work together to engage or disengage the latch without requiring manual activation. When the siderail is moved to an intermediate position, the cam disk rotates and automatically triggers the latch to engage, maintaining the safe configuration without additional user action.
3Reliability
If existing latching mechanisms are used to lock siderails in intermediate positions, then patient safety is improved, but ease of operation worsens due to required two-position movement
Solution Approach 1:
The bypass arm is pre-positioned to engage the latch at the correct moment during siderail movement. As the siderail moves toward an intermediate position, the bypass arm follows the cam disk profile and automatically triggers latch engagement before the siderail completes its movement, eliminating the need for separate locking actions.
4Reliability
If gap spacing is reduced to prevent entrapment, then patient safety is improved, but ease of operation worsens due to patient blocking siderail motion
Solution Approach 1:
The latching mechanism is designed to accommodate dynamic patient positioning. When a patient is sitting at the edge of the bed, the bypass arm can disengage the latch, allowing the siderail to be moved to a raised position despite patient presence. Once the patient moves away, the siderail can be returned to intermediate position where the latch automatically re-engages, maintaining safety without permanent gap restrictions.
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 siderail system minimizes the risk of patient entrapment, facilitates easy and efficient adjustment between positions, and reduces the physical effort needed for operation, enhancing caregiver access and patient safety.
Implementation Method 1
The latching mechanism includes a cam disk, a latch, and a bypass arm
Implementation Method 2
The siderail may also incorporate one or more assist devices that reduce the force needed to move the siderail body over one or more ranges of motion
Data Source
AI summary
A patient support incorporates a lying surface and at least one siderail on at least one side of the support. The siderails are operable between a raised position, an intermediate position, and a lowered position. The siderails are biased along a first range of motion by a first biasing member, and are biased along a second range of motion by a second biasing member. In the intermediate position, the siderails may define a gap through which a patient can ingress or egress the bed. In the raised and intermediate positions, the siderails may define gaps between each other and/or between the siderails and a headboard and footboard, that are sufficiently small to prevent accidental egress, and sufficiently large to prevent pinching and entrapment.