Mobile Imaging Caster System with Retractable Base
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional medical imaging devices, such as CT and MR imaging devices, are typically immobile and difficult to make mobile due to their size, weight, and complexity, which limits their mobility within a hospital environment without compromising image quality or increasing size and weight.
Innovation Solution
A mobile imaging system with a base equipped with casters and drive mechanisms that allow the system to be raised off the ground for transport and lowered for scanning, featuring a drive wheel that extends and retracts to facilitate movement and image acquisition, and a cable management system to manage power and data connections within the compact base.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the imaging system is made mobile with casters and drive mechanisms, then the mobility and portability of the system is improved, but the device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The imaging system is divided into a stationary base unit and a mobile imaging component that can be detached and moved independently. The base houses heavy components like the x-ray tube and control systems, while the mobile portion contains lighter imaging detectors and positioning mechanisms, allowing the system to be moved without relocating the entire apparatus.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic positioning mechanisms including motorized casters with locking capabilities and adjustable support legs that can extend or retract. These dynamic elements allow the base to be easily moved when needed and then securely stabilized during imaging operations, providing both mobility and operational stability.
2Ease of operation
If the base is raised off the ground during transport, then the mobility and ease of movement is improved, but the stability and risk of injury may increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates preliminary stabilization actions through automatic locking mechanisms that engage casters and support legs before transport begins. Sensors detect when the system is ready for movement and pre-activate stabilization features, ensuring the base is properly secured before being raised or moved, thereby preventing instability during operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses intermediary stabilization elements such as outrigger support legs and caster locking mechanisms that act as mediators between the base and the ground. These intermediaries provide additional contact points and friction during transport, enhancing stability while allowing the base to be raised off the ground for easier movement.
3Ease of operation
If the casters are extended to raise the base off the ground, then the mobility is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The caster extension and retraction mechanism is designed to be self-actuating through spring-loaded or motorized systems that automatically extend casters when the base needs to be moved and retract them when stabilization is required. This self-service capability eliminates the need for manual intervention and reduces the complexity of control systems while maintaining ease of mobility.
Data Source
AI summary
A mobile imaging device includes a base having at least one caster, a first drive mechanism that moves the system in a transport mode and translates an imaging component relative to the base in a scan mode, and a second drive mechanism that extends caster relative to the base to raise the base off the ground in the transport mode, and retracts the caster relative to the base to lower the base to the ground in the scan mode. A caster system for a mobile apparatus includes a base containing a housing and a caster, attached to the base, the caster having a wheel defining a wheel axis and a swivel joint defining a swivel axis and a pivot point defining a pivot axis, wherein the caster pivots on the pivot axis as the caster is retracted into the housing and extended out of the housing.