Care Bed Side Rail Structure for Safe Exit and Easy Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hospital and care beds with rigid side rails are cumbersome to handle and require significant structural effort, making them costly and unsuitable for the care sector, especially when users with dementia need assistance with raising side rails for safety, which can be seen as a deprivation of liberty.
Innovation Solution
A hospital or care bed design featuring a center post with embedded guide slots and a locking mechanism, allowing for easy adjustment and secure positioning of longitudinal rails, enabling safe exit and entry without hindrance, and reducing the need for judicial approval.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rigid side rails are used to secure against falling out, then safety is improved, but handling becomes cumbersome and structural effort increases
Solution Approach 1:
The side rails are designed to be dynamically adjustable between a raised secure position and a lowered open position. The longitudinal bars can be moved along guide slots in the headboard and footboard, allowing the side rails to transition from a protective barrier to an open configuration that facilitates easy entry and exit for users with dementia.
Solution Approach 2:
The side rails are segmented into multiple longitudinal bars that can be independently positioned along guide slots. This segmentation allows the side rails to be adjusted in discrete positions, providing both secure containment when raised and easy access when lowered, without requiring complete removal or complex mechanical structures.
2Reliability
If side rails are raised to secure users with dementia, then safety is improved, but user freedom deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The side rails are designed to be dynamically adjustable between a raised secure position and a lowered open position. The longitudinal bars can be moved along guide slots in the headboard and footboard, allowing the side rails to transition from a protective barrier to an open configuration that facilitates easy entry and exit for users with dementia.
Solution Approach 2:
The position parameter of the side rails is changed between raised and lowered states. By adjusting the vertical position of the longitudinal bars along the guide slots, the system transitions between providing full containment for safety and providing open access for user freedom, adapting to different care needs throughout the day.
3Reliability
If two side rails with rigid frames are used, then safety is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The side rails are designed to be dynamically adjustable between a raised secure position and a lowered open position. The longitudinal bars can be moved along guide slots in the headboard and footboard, allowing the side rails to transition from a protective barrier to an open configuration that facilitates easy entry and exit for users with dementia.
Solution Approach 2:
The longitudinal bars serve multiple functions: they provide structural support for the side rails, act as safety barriers when raised, and can be positioned at different heights to accommodate various user needs. The same simple components (longitudinal bars and guide slots) enable both safety containment and easy access functions without requiring complex mechanical structures.
Data Source
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AI summary
The bed has a head (1) and a foot board (2) and can be moved on castors. Two boards (7) can be inserted horizontally between the head (1), the foot board (2) respectively and a post (8) vertically positioned in the center of the lateral frame part. The boards (7) can be vertically moved in grooves (10) provided at the head and the foot boards (1, 2) as well as at the central post (8). The railing (4) can be used in a completely extended condition or in the head or foot area only. The boards (7) not in use and the central post (8) can be folded for storage.