Poncho Warming Blanket Structure for Full Front-Back Coverage
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current convective warming blankets do not provide adequate warming to both the front and back of a patient, as they are designed to cover only the front or are not adaptable for comprehensive body coverage.
Innovation Solution
A combination underbody and overbody blanket configured as a poncho, with foldable portions and an inflatable structure, featuring air impermeable layers, air inlet ports, and a frangible seal, allowing for orthogonal folding to cover both the front and back of a patient, with apertures for convective heating.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a blanket is designed to cover only the front of a patient, then the structure is simpler, but the warming coverage is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The blanket is divided into three distinct portions: a front portion, a back portion, and a middle portion. These segments can be folded relative to each other to wrap around the patient's body, providing comprehensive coverage of both front and back surfaces while maintaining manageable structural complexity through modular design
Solution Approach 2:
The front and back portions are nested within the middle portion through folding arrangements, allowing the blanket to compact into a manageable size when not in use while expanding to provide full body coverage when deployed, effectively solving the contradiction between coverage area and structural complexity
2Stability of the object's composition
If a blanket is made rigid to maintain shape, then structural stability is improved, but flexibility for patient positioning is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The blanket incorporates dynamic folding mechanisms at the middle portion that allow it to transition between different configurations. When inflated, the blanket maintains a stable shape to provide consistent warming, but the foldable middle portion enables adjustment for various patient positions including lying, sitting, and standing, resolving the contradiction between structural stability and adaptability
3Adaptability or versatility
If a blanket covers the entire body, then warming coverage is improved, but access to patient is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The blanket's segmented design with distinct front, back, and middle portions allows selective opening of sections. The middle portion can be unfolded or opened to provide access to the patient's torso or head while the front and back portions remain inflated to continue providing warming coverage to the covered areas, thus maintaining warming effectiveness while enabling medical access
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 blanket effectively warms both the front and back of a patient by inflating with temperature-treated air, providing comprehensive coverage and flexibility for various patient positions, including lying, sitting, or standing, while allowing for easy access if needed.
Implementation Method 1
the blanket is made up of two sheets of air impermeable layers that are sealingly bonded
Implementation Method 2
temperature treated air for example heated air, may be input into the blanket for inflating the same
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A combination underbody and overbody blanket has first and second portions sandwiching a middle portion. The first portion may be shorter than the second portion. An opening is provided at the middle portion, or at a location that overlaps the middle and first portions. The opening has a dimension sufficiently large to enable the head of a patient to pass through. At least one air inlet is provided at the middle portion to allow air to be input into the blanket. The blanket is configured in the shape of a poncho, with the first portion covering the front torso of the patient and the second portion covering the back of the patient. A tearable seal is provided at the first portion that allows the first portion to be separated into two halves to expose the front upper torso of the patient and/or to facilitate the placement of the middle portion about the neck and onto the shoulders of the patient.