Modular Emergency Treatment Bed for Stacking and Decontamination
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing emergency response beds lack adaptability and interchangeability across different configurations, such as hospital, patient cot, cadaver storage, and autopsy settings, and are not easily decontaminable for reuse during incidents.
Innovation Solution
A modular emergency response treatment bed system with a tubular outer support frame and adjustable legs, allowing for multiple configurations through snap-fit connections and removable components, including a cleanable support deck and adjustable features like side rails and a work surface, enabling quick reconfiguration and decontamination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate hardware components are acquired for different functions (hospital bed, patient cot, cadaver storage, autopsy configuration), then functional versatility is improved, but device complexity and acquisition cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal base unit with standardized components that can be configured for multiple functions including hospital bed, patient cot, cadaver storage, and autopsy configurations. The standardized frame, leg assemblies, and connecting mechanisms allow a single hardware design to serve multiple purposes, eliminating the need for separate equipment for each function.
Solution Approach 2:
The system divides the bed structure into modular segments including removable leg assemblies, detachable side rails, and separable support surfaces. This segmentation allows individual components to be reconfigured or removed to transform the bed between different functional configurations, enabling versatility without requiring completely separate hardware systems.
2Adaptability or versatility
If bed components are made detachable and reconfigurable for multiple configurations, then adaptability is improved, but structural stability may worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs dynamic connection mechanisms that allow the bed structure to transition between fixed and movable states. The leg assemblies can be detached and reattached at different positions, and side rails can be adjusted or removed, enabling the structure to adapt to different configurations while maintaining stability through secure connection points and standardized mounting mechanisms.
3Productivity
If the bed is designed for quick decontamination and reuse during ongoing incidents, then productivity is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the contamination-prone components (support surface, bedding, removable panels) as detachable elements that can be quickly removed for decontamination or replacement. The underlying frame and structural components remain intact and can be rapidly reconfigured, allowing the bed to be quickly prepared for reuse without requiring complete disassembly or complex manufacturing processes.
Data Source
AI summary
An emergency response treatment bed system. The emergency response beds may include a frame having a pair of opposing tubular stainless steel side supports and a pair of opposing tubular stainless steel end supports. The side supports and end supports are affixed each to the other by corner fixtures. A plurality of collapsible support legs are affixed to the frame. The support legs have an upper end and a lower end, and are adapted to support the frame above a selected substrate. A support deck is coupled to the frame. The support deck is adapted to support a patient body, and is provided with a liquid impervious, molded thermoplastic contaminant resistant cleanable surface. The support deck also has, above at least some of the support legs, a cutout portion defined by edgewalls, to provide access through the support deck to the support legs, so that multiple beds may be stacked one above the other, using support inserts between vertically adjacent support legs.