Powered Emergency Cot Leg Control for Balanced Vehicle Loading
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing emergency cots for bariatric patients require manual support during loading into ambulances, lacking automated systems for balanced and efficient weight management and easy loading across various rescue vehicles.
Innovation Solution
An automated multipurpose roll-in emergency cot with a support frame, sliding legs, and actuators controlled by processors and sensors, allowing for automatic adjustment and balance to facilitate easier loading and unloading into ambulances, vans, aircraft, and helicopters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual actuation is used for emergency cots, then device complexity is reduced, but operator effort and safety risks increase during loading
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical actuation with an automated powered actuation system. The powered cot includes a motorized actuator that automatically raises and lowers the cot during loading operations, eliminating the need for operators to manually support and maneuver the heavy cot. This substitution of mechanical manual operation with automated power-driven operation directly reduces operator effort while managing the increased device complexity through integrated control systems.
2Ease of operation
If powered actuators are added to automate cot lifting, then operator effort is reduced, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The powered cot system incorporates self-service capabilities through automated sensors and control systems that detect when loading is required and automatically activate the lifting mechanism. The system monitors its own state through sensors that detect position, weight, and operational status, enabling the cot to service itself during loading operations without requiring complex external control systems or multiple operators.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the cot is designed for easy loading into various vehicles, then adaptability is improved, but weight management becomes more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs dynamically adjustable legs that can change their extension and positioning to adapt to different vehicle types and loading scenarios. The powered actuation system dynamically adjusts the cot's height and angle during the loading process, enabling the same cot design to accommodate ambulances, helicopters, and other vehicles with varying entry heights and constraints, while the automated weight management system compensates for the added mechanism weight.
Data Source
AI summary
A cot can include a support frame that extends between a front end and a back end. A front leg and a back leg can be slidingly coupled to the support frame. A front actuator can be coupled to the front leg and slide the front leg to retract and extend the front leg. A back actuator can be coupled to the back leg and slide the back leg to retract and extend the front leg. One or more processors can execute machine readable instructions to receive signals from one or more sensors indicative of the front end of the cot and the front leg. The one or more processors can actuate the back actuator to extend the back leg to raise the back end of the cot, when the front end of the cot is supported by a surface and the front leg is retracted a predetermined amount.