EMI Shielded Enclosure With Sliding Panel For Medical Electronics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hospitals face challenges in safely integrating consumer-grade electronics into patient rooms due to space constraints and the need for medical-grade certification, which is costly and often results in outdated hardware.
Innovation Solution
A wall-mountable enclosure with EMI shielding properties that houses consumer-grade electronics, ensuring compliance with medical-grade safety standards and providing accessible repair without permanent installation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If consumer-grade electronics are used in patient rooms, then cost is reduced and computing performance is improved, but safety certification requirements cannot be met and electromagnetic interference risks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the electronics into two segments: the consumer-grade electronic device (which provides computing performance) and the medical-grade enclosure (which provides safety certification and EMI shielding). This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the device for performance and the enclosure for safety - resolving the contradiction between cost and reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The medical-grade enclosure acts as an intermediary between the consumer-grade electronics and the patient care environment. It provides EMI shielding and safety certification, mediating the interaction between non-medical-grade equipment and the regulated healthcare setting, thus enabling use of cheaper consumer electronics while maintaining safety standards.
2Productivity
If consumer-grade electronics are used in patient rooms, then computing performance is improved, but electromagnetic interference to patients and medical equipment increases
Solution Approach 1:
The enclosure converts the potentially harmful electromagnetic emissions from consumer-grade electronics into a controlled situation by providing EMI shielding. The shielding materials absorb or redirect electromagnetic waves, transforming the harmful effect into a contained phenomenon that protects patients and medical equipment while allowing the electronics to operate at full performance.
3Area of stationary object
If wall mounting is used to conserve space, then floor space is saved, but accessibility for repair and maintenance becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The enclosure incorporates a sliding mechanism that transforms the static wall-mounted structure into a dynamic system. The front panel can slide horizontally along tracks, allowing the enclosure to transition between a compact wall-mounted state (conserving floor space) and an accessible state (with the panel removed or fully retracted, enabling easy repair and maintenance).
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 enclosure shields patients and medical equipment from electromagnetic interference and other hazards, qualifying consumer-grade electronics as medical-grade while allowing for easy access and maintenance, thus addressing safety and cost concerns.
Implementation Method 1
The plurality of first sides are formed of a material having electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus includes a structure having a plurality of first sides and a second side detachably joined to the plurality of first sides. The plurality of first sides define a volume, wherein the second side has a closed position in which the second side is joined to the plurality of first sides and an open position in which the side is detached from the plurality of sides, the plurality of first sides comprising a first material having electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties, the second side comprising a second material having EMI shielding properties. The apparatus also includes a movable chassis adapted to move between a first chassis position in which the chassis is entirely within the volume and a second chassis position in which at least a portion of the chassis is outside the volume, the chassis being adapted to hold an electronic device.