Lockable Swivel Running Wheel for Patient Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing running wheels for patient positioning devices are difficult to navigate over longer distances when all castors are swiveling freely, as they lack a simple and effective mechanism for locking and unlocking the swivel axis, making it hard to achieve arbitrary horizontal movement.
Innovation Solution
A running wheel design featuring a wheel with circumferential castors that can rotate around a central axis, allowing for both longitudinal and transverse movement without pivoting, combined with a drive mechanism and a braking system that enables autonomous or manual control and stable directional travel.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If all castors are swiveling freely, then the patient positioning device can be easily moved in all directions and oriented, but the device becomes difficult to navigate over longer distances and lacks stable directional control
Solution Approach 1:
The running wheel incorporates a dynamic swivel mechanism that can transition between locked and unlocked states. The swivel axis is lockable, allowing the wheel to switch between being fixed in orientation (for stable directional travel) and freely swiveling (for easy orientation and positioning). This dynamic state change resolves the contradiction between ease of movement and navigation control.
2Device complexity
If a lockable swivel axis or vertically movable guide wheel is implemented, then stable directional control is achieved, but the bearing arrangement becomes complex and operation becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the swivel wheel and guide wheel functions into a single integrated running wheel structure. The wheel body with circumferential castors serves both as a swiveling wheel for directional changes and as a guide wheel for stable linear travel when locked. This combination eliminates the need for separate mechanisms, reducing overall complexity while maintaining both functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The braking mechanism is designed to be automatically activatable through the rotation of the wheel body itself. As the wheel rotates around its first rotational axis, the braking mechanism can be triggered automatically to lock the swivel axis, eliminating the need for manual activation and simplifying operation.
3Strength
If multiple circumferential castors are provided next to one another, then the contact surface increases and load capacity increases, but the pressure on floor covering increases
Solution Approach 1:
The castors are arranged circumferentially around the wheel body, distributing the load across multiple points around the circumference rather than concentrating it in one location. This circumferential distribution increases the effective contact surface area with the floor, thereby increasing load capacity while reducing pressure intensity at any single point on the floor covering.
4Device complexity
If the circumferential castors are barrel-shaped with constant circumferential line, then uniform running behavior is achieved and halting is prevented, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The castors are designed with a specific barrel shape characterized by a constant circumferential line, where the radius from the rotational axis to the outer surface remains constant throughout the circumference. This geometric parameter configuration ensures that the castor maintains uniform contact with the floor surface during rotation, preventing halting and ensuring smooth, consistent running behavior.
Data Source
AI summary
A running wheel for a patient positioning device (30) is provided. The running wheel has a wheel (1) and a receiving device (4) for rotatably receiving the wheel (1) around a first rotational axis (5), which is arranged centrally with respect to a circumference of the wheel (1). The wheel (1) has a wheel body (3), and multiple circumferential castors (7), each having a second rotational axis (8) arranged in a direction tangential to a circumference of the wheel (1), wherein the circumferential castors (7) form a bearing surface of the wheel (1).