Bed Step Stool With Wheel Assembly and Guardrails for Safe Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Seniors and individuals with limited mobility face challenges in safely entering and exiting beds and bathtubs due to the immobility of bed rails and the treacherous nature of bathtub environments, which can lead to falls and inconvenience.
Innovation Solution
A bed step stool with perpendicular guardrails and a wheel assembly that allows for stable entry and exit from the side of the bed, and a bathtub step stool with adjustable attachments for secure positioning next to the tub, providing a stable platform and rail system for safe access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If bed rails are attached to the bed between mattress and box spring, then they provide fall protection, but they become immobile and non-portable
Solution Approach 1:
The bed rail system transitions from a static attached structure to a dynamic movable one. The frame with wheels allows the guardrail to be easily relocated along the bed or removed entirely, providing both fall protection when needed and mobility when the user needs to reposition or clean.
Solution Approach 2:
The bed rail system is divided into separate modular components including the frame, guardrail sections, and attachment mechanisms. This segmentation allows the guardrail to be detached and repositioned independently, maintaining safety functionality while enabling mobility and adaptability to different bed configurations.
2Ease of operation
If traditional step stools are used for bathtub entry, then they provide step assistance, but they offer no lateral support and have obstructed pathways
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the step stool function with lateral guardrail support into a single integrated structure. The perpendicular guardrails extend from the step assembly, providing both step elevation and side-to-side protection, eliminating the need for separate support devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The guardrails extend in a perpendicular dimension relative to the step assembly, creating a three-dimensional protective structure. This adds lateral support in the horizontal plane while maintaining the vertical step function, creating unobstructed pathways on both sides of the bathtub.
3Reliability
If bathtub walls are high for water containment, then they prevent water spillage, but they create treacherous entry and exit conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The step assembly with integrated guardrails serves as an intermediary structure between the bathroom floor and the high bathtub wall. It provides a gradual transition with perpendicular side supports that stabilize the user during the transfer, making the high wall entry/exit safe and manageable.
Data Source
AI summary
A bed step stool for assisting a user into and out of bed comprising a first support; a second support; a wheel assembly coupled to a side of the bed step stool; a step assembly supported between the first support and the second support and enabling the user to step thereon for assisting the user into and out of the bed; wherein the bed step stool includes a first orientation where the bed step stool is stabilized on the surface and the wheel assembly coupled to the side of the bed step stool is out of the way, and a second orientation where the bed step stool is tilted towards the side and is supported by the wheel assembly coupled to the side of the bed step stool, allowing rolling movement of the bed step stool on the surface via the one or more wheels of the wheel assembly.