Medical Bed Fall Prevention via Detent and Dual Nut Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Medical image scanning systems face challenges in ensuring the safety of patients, particularly vulnerable individuals, by preventing shocks and falls during the lifting and lowering movements of the scanning bed, as existing mechanisms lack effective safety measures.
Innovation Solution
A medical image scanning system with a bed that incorporates a fall prevention unit featuring a load support nut and a fall prevention nut, along with a detent mechanism, which adjusts the height of the top plate using a drive screw shaft, and includes a control unit to manage the scanning process, ensuring safe operation by preventing sudden drops.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a lifting and lowering mechanism using a drive screw shaft and load support nut is employed, then the bed height can be adjusted for scanning operations, but the mechanism may fail due to wear or disconnection causing sudden drops
Solution Approach 1:
The fall prevention nut is pre-positioned below the load support nut along the drive screw shaft. Before any potential failure occurs, the fall prevention mechanism is already in place and ready to engage. When the load support nut disconnects or wears out, the fall prevention nut immediately catches the load, preventing sudden drops without requiring any additional action or detection system.
Solution Approach 2:
The detent mechanism engages with the fall prevention nut to provide a mechanical stop that prevents the nut from rotating downward. This creates a safety buffer that absorbs the load if the primary lifting mechanism fails, cushioning the potential harmful effect before it can occur.
2Reliability
If a detent mechanism is added to prevent sudden drops, then patient safety is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fall prevention nut acts as an intermediary safety component between the drive screw shaft and the load. It is a simple threaded component that engages with the existing drive screw shaft, providing fall prevention without requiring complex sensors, motors, or control systems. The detent mechanism is a simple mechanical stop that adds minimal complexity while providing reliable protection.
3Reliability
If the fall prevention nut is positioned to catch loads, then sudden drops are prevented, but the detent mechanism may interfere with normal operation
Solution Approach 1:
The detent mechanism is designed to be dynamic rather than static. The detent can disengage from the fall prevention nut when upward force is applied during normal bed adjustment, allowing smooth operation. The detent only engages when the load support nut disconnects or wears out and begins to drop, automatically switching from a non-intrusive state to an active protection state.
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 significantly enhances patient safety by preventing accidental falls and allowing for early detection of mechanical failures, thereby ensuring the reliability and safety of the scanning process.
Implementation Method 1
a drive screw shaft, a fall prevention unit including a load support nut that is threadedly engaged with the drive screw shaft
Implementation Method 2
a load support nut that is threadedly engaged with the drive screw shaft and to which the load of the top plate is applied, and a fall prevention nut that is arranged below the load support nut and is threadedly engaged with the drive screw shaft
Data Source
AI summary
A medical image scanning system includes a top plate on which an object is placed, a drive screw shaft, and a fall prevention unit. The fall prevention unit includes a load support nut that is threadedly engaged with the drive screw shaft and to which the load of the top plate is applied; a fall prevention nut that is arranged below the load support nut and is threadedly engaged with the drive screw shaft; a rotation prevention mechanism that prevents the rotation of the load support nut; and a detent mechanism that performs the turning stop of the fall prevention nut and releases the turning stop of the fall prevention nut when the threaded engagement between the drive screw shaft and the load support nut is disconnected.