IV Pole Topper With Recessed Hooks to Prevent Transport Collisions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing medical transport chairs face challenges such as difficult maneuverability, lack of space for patient movement, and safety issues due to protruding IV hooks, which complicate patient transport and caregiver interaction.
Innovation Solution
A medical transport chair design featuring a frame with wheels, an IV pole, and a removable IV pole topper with circular hooks that do not extend outward, along with a secure attachment system for the IV pole, providing structural resistance in six degrees of freedom and improved safety features like color-coded toppers for information display.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional IV pole toppers with protruding hooks are used, then IV bags can be hung securely, but safety issues arise due to protruding IV hooks that may collide with patients or caregivers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional hook design by placing hooks on the interior surface of the topper rather than having them protrude outward. This allows IV bags to be hung securely while eliminating the safety hazard of protruding hooks that could collide with patients or caregivers.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different functional qualities to different surfaces of the topper: the exterior surface is smooth and rounded for safety, while the interior surface contains recessed hooks for secure IV bag attachment. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction between secure attachment and safety.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a fixed IV pole attachment system is used, then structural stability is improved, but maneuverability and ease of cleaning are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dynamic attachment system where the IV pole can be selectively fixed or moved. The topper includes features that allow the pole to be secured in position when stability is needed, while also allowing easy removal and repositioning when maneuverability or cleaning is required.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the IV pole system into separable components - the topper, pole, and mounting mechanisms - that can be independently positioned and attached. This segmentation allows the system to achieve both stability when assembled and ease of maneuverability when components need to be repositioned or cleaned.
3Quantity of substance
If multiple IV bags are hung on the IV pole, then patient care needs are met, but the center of gravity shifts causing maneuverability issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent addresses the center of gravity issue by providing multiple attachment points distributed in different spatial dimensions on the topper. This allows IV bags to be hung at various positions that can balance the load distribution, preventing excessive weight concentration that would compromise maneuverability while still accommodating multiple IV bags.
4Ease of manufacture
If a single-colored IV pole topper is used, then manufacturing is simple, but information management and visual cues for caregivers are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates color-coding or visual indicators on the topper to convey information to caregivers about patient status, care requirements, or other relevant data. This allows the topper to serve both its structural function and an information communication function without significantly complicating manufacturing.
Data Source
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AI summary
A wheeled medical device-such as a cot, stretcher, bed, wheeled chair, or other medical device-includes a pole on which is mounted a removable topper. The topper may include a plurality of IV hooks used to support an IV bag. The hooks may be defined in an endless ribbon that is circular, or that is another closed shape. No prongs, hooks, or other projections extend outwardly from the topper, thereby reducing the potential dangerousness of accidental impacts with the topper. Whether the topper includes hooks or not, it may also be used as an information communication medium, such as through the use of colors, shapes, or other structures that signify certain information. The information may identify characteristics of the patient associated with the medical device or characteristics of the medical device itself, or still other information.