Hydraulic Ambulance Cot With Tip Angle Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) face injuries due to overexertion from lifting heavier patients, particularly those who are overweight or obese, as the prevalence of obesity increases, necessitating a solution for safely and efficiently transporting patients with varying weights.
Innovation Solution
A hydraulically powered ambulance cot with a tip angle monitoring, recording, and alert system, featuring a hydraulic system, telescoping leg assembly with roller bearings, and a control panel for safe operation and weight management, allowing for unassisted lifting and lowering of patients up to 600 pounds.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual lifting methods are used for patient transport, then EMTs can transport patients without complex equipment, but EMTs suffer from musculoskeletal injuries due to overexertion from lifting heavier patients
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical lifting with a hydraulic lifting system. The hydraulic cylinder and piston mechanism automatically lift the patient cot, eliminating the need for EMTs to manually lift heavy patients. This substitution of mechanical systems resolves the contradiction by providing easy operation without physical strain on operators.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a hydraulic system with a hydraulic cylinder, hydraulic fluid, and piston to power the cot lifting mechanism. The hydraulic system provides controlled, powerful lift capability that can handle varying patient weights safely, thereby eliminating musculoskeletal injury risks while maintaining ease of operation through simple control interface.
2Reliability
If a hydraulic lifting system is implemented to reduce physical strain on EMTs, then patient transport becomes safer and easier, but the device complexity increases due to additional hydraulic components
Solution Approach 1:
The hydraulic system is integrated with multiple functions: lifting the cot, controlling cot angle, and supporting varying patient weights. By combining these functions into a single hydraulic system, the patent reduces overall device complexity while maintaining high safety standards. The system serves multiple purposes rather than requiring separate mechanisms for each function.
Solution Approach 2:
The hydraulic system allows dynamic adjustment of lifting parameters such as lift height, lifting speed, and cot angle through control of hydraulic fluid flow and pressure. This parameter flexibility enables the system to adapt to different patient weights and transport requirements without requiring multiple specialized mechanisms, thereby managing complexity while ensuring safety.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the cot is designed to accommodate varying patient weights including obese patients, then the system becomes more versatile, but the structural strength requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The cot system incorporates dynamic elements including telescoping legs with roller bearings and a hydraulic lifting mechanism that adapts to varying patient weights. The system adjusts its structural configuration and support forces based on the actual load, providing versatility for different weight ranges without requiring excessive static strength in all components. The hydraulic system dynamically adjusts lifting force to match patient weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The cot structure utilizes composite construction with materials selected for optimal strength-to-weight ratio. The frame combines materials that provide sufficient structural strength to support heavy patients while maintaining reasonable system weight. This composite approach allows the system to accommodate varying patient weights without requiring uniformly heavy construction throughout.
4Ease of operation
If roller bearings are added to the telescoping leg assembly to reduce friction, then the ease of operation improves, but the device complexity increases due to additional mechanical components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the friction-reduction function from the basic telescoping leg structure by incorporating roller bearings. Instead of relying on simple sliding contact, the roller bearings are integrated into the telescoping leg assembly to provide smooth movement. This extraction of the friction-reduction function improves ease of operation while keeping the overall system manageable through targeted component addition rather than comprehensive redesign.
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 system reduces the risk of musculoskeletal injuries by enabling safe and efficient patient transport, providing real-time weight and angle monitoring, and alerting users to unsafe conditions, thus enhancing operational safety and reducing the physical strain on EMTs.
Implementation Method 1
a hydraulic system, wherein the hydraulic system comprises a cylinder powered by a hydraulic unit
Implementation Method 2
the roller bearings reduce frictional force associated with increase in length of the telescoping legs that occurs with raising of the patient litter and the frictional force associated with the decrease in length of the telescoping legs that occurs with lowering of the patient litter
Implementation Method 3
a pressure transducer, wherein the pressure transducer is located within the hydraulic system, detects hydraulic system pressure and converts the pressure to voltage information
Implementation Method 4
an ultrasonic sensor, wherein the ultrasonic sensor is mounted on the slider housing, wherein the ultrasonic sensor measures the distance between the sensor and a slider block attached to the cross tube attached to the main rails of said telescoping legs residing in the slider housing, wherein the distance correlates to the distance between the ground and the wheels of the telescoping load rail assembly
Implementation Method 5
an accelerometer, wherein the accelerometer is configured to measure in degrees the angle of movement from side to side of the circuit board with respect to a horizontal plane that is perpendicular to the earth's gravitational force
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to ambulance cots, cot systems and methods of using the same. In particular, the present invention provides an ambulance cot comprising a hydraulic system and a tip angle monitoring, recording and alert system, and methods of using the same (e.g., to transport subjects and/or to detect and/or record operational data related to cot usage).