Modular Extendable Staircase for Hospital Space Constraints
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Solution Overview
Problem
Patients in hospitals face challenges in practicing stair climbing due to busy hospital environments and the lack of personalized, space-efficient training solutions that integrate body weight support systems.
Innovation Solution
A modularly extendable staircase with slidable guidance units and pivotable support struts that allow individual treads to be extended or retracted, enabling customizable configurations for patient training needs, and incorporating automatic or manual extension mechanisms.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a dedicated training staircase is provided in hospitals, then patient training needs are met with body weight support systems, but the staircase requires a lot of precious space even when not in use
Solution Approach 1:
The staircase employs movable treads that can be extended or retracted along guide rails, transforming from a static structure to a dynamic one. When treads are retracted, the staircase occupies minimal space; when extended, it provides the necessary training surface for patients. This dynamic configuration allows the same structure to adapt between storage and operational states.
Solution Approach 2:
The movable treads are designed to nest within the staircase structure when retracted, similar to nested dolls. Each tread can be pulled out from the main structure when needed for training, and then pushed back into the nested position for compact storage, maximizing space efficiency while maintaining functionality.
2Area of stationary object
If existing hospital stairways are used for patient training, then space is saved, but patients cannot profit from body weight support systems and the environment creates stress
Solution Approach 1:
The staircase is segmented into multiple independent movable treads, each capable of being extended or retracted individually or in groups. This segmentation allows the staircase to be configured in various states - fully retracted for space saving, partially extended for different training intensities, or fully extended for complete training capability. The body weight support system is integrated specifically into this dedicated structure, providing functionality that general hospital stairways cannot offer.
3Adaptability or versatility
If all treads of a staircase are extended for training, then complete training capability is provided, but the staircase becomes bulky and difficult to store
Solution Approach 1:
The staircase employs movable treads that can be extended or retracted along guide rails, transforming from a static structure to a dynamic one. When treads are retracted, the staircase occupies minimal space; when extended, it provides the necessary training surface for patients. This dynamic configuration allows the same structure to adapt between storage and operational states.
Solution Approach 2:
The training functionality is extracted from the main staircase structure through movable treads that can be pulled out from the retracted position. This extraction allows the training surface to be separated from the storage structure, providing complete training capability when needed while maintaining compact storage when the treads are pushed back into the main structure.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2b
Figure 3(a)~3(d)
AI summary
The present invention relates to a modularly extendable staircase (100) comprising a plurality of extendable treads (20), each tread (20) comprising a tread surface (27), characterized in that each tread (20) is configured to be moved from a retracted state (11) to an extended state (12) such that when each tread (20) is arranged in its retracted state (11), the tread surfaces (27) extend in a common extension plane (28), and wherein when the respective tread (20) is arranged in an extended state (12) the tread surface (27) of the respective tread (20) extends parallel to and above a tread surface (27) of a neighboring tread (20).