Caregiving bed
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Caregiving beds with integrated bathing and excretion functions require complex maintenance, are costly, and pose risks of bacterial propagation due to water submersion, complicating care for bedridden individuals and increasing caregiver burden.
Innovation Solution
A caregiving bed with a simple structure featuring a bed main body, support platforms, and elevator devices that allow for easy raising and lowering, along with a detachable mat and water tank system, enabling flexible care modes and easy cleaning, while reducing manufacturing costs and operational complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the bed is designed with integrated bathing and excretion functions, then the versatility of the bed is improved, but the device complexity increases and maintenance becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The bed is divided into separate functional modules: a detachable mat for excretion disposal and a water tank for bathing. These modules can be independently removed, cleaned, or replaced, simplifying maintenance while maintaining versatility. The mat can be detached to access the water tank, and both can be separately maintained without disassembling the entire bed structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The bed incorporates adjustable components including a reclining mechanism that can change the bed angle, and a detachable mat system that can be positioned or removed as needed. This dynamic configuration allows the same bed structure to adapt to different care needs (bathing, excretion disposal, resting) without requiring multiple separate devices.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the bed is waterproofed to enable bathing, then the adaptability for bathing is improved, but the ease of repair deteriorates due to difficulty in cleaning and maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The waterproofing is segmented into removable components rather than a permanent integrated structure. The mat can be detached and washed separately, and the water tank can be emptied and cleaned independently. This segmentation maintains the waterproof bathing capability while dramatically improving cleanability compared to a permanently sealed waterproof bed.
Solution Approach 2:
The water-containing component (water tank) is extracted as a separate removable element from the bed structure. This allows the tank to be completely emptied, removed, and cleaned externally, solving the maintenance difficulty inherent in integrated waterproof bathing systems where water contacts internal structures that are hard to access for cleaning.
3Ease of manufacture
If the bed structure is simplified to reduce maintenance, then the ease of manufacture is improved, but the adaptability for various care functions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The basic bed structure serves multiple functions through simple add-on components. The same frame and mattress can be used for resting, while a detachable mat enables excretion disposal, and a water tank enables bathing. This universal base structure with optional attachments provides care function adaptability without complicating the core manufactured structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Complex care functions are segmented into separate detachable attachments rather than being built into the core structure. The mat and water tank are independent modules that can be added or removed as needed, allowing a simple base bed structure to gain versatility through modular additions rather than integrated complexity.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the bed uses a complex structure for bathing and excretion, then the versatility is improved, but the cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The care functions are segmented into simple, separately manufactured components (mat, water tank, frame) that can be produced independently using basic materials and processes. This avoids the need for complex integrated structures, reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining versatility through modular assembly of inexpensive individual parts.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a caregiving bed having a variety of usage aspects. A caregiving bed includes a bed main body, and one support platform and another support platform. The bed main body includes a rectangular pad part. Each of the support platforms is provided with an elevator device connected to the pad part to raise and lower the bed main body. Each of the support platforms is provided with a pair of support columns extending upward. A beam member is provided between the support columns of the one support platform and between the support columns of the other support platform. The distance between the pad part and the attachment part decreases when the bed main body is raised by the elevator devices, whereas the distance between the pad part and the attachment part increases when the bed main body is lowered.