EXPANDABLE OVERBED TABLE
An overbed table with a primary table top may be expanded through the deployment of a secondary table top. Advantageously, by appropriately arranging the position of the manner by which the secondary table top is mounted to the overbed table, the top surface of the secondary table top can occupy the same plane as the top surface of the primary table top. Additionally, the overbed table may incorporate further features including equipment rails, power receptacles, networking receptacles and a computing device.
The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/047,977, filed Apr. 25, 2008, the contents of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present application relates generally to healthcare patient room furniture and, more specifically, to an overbed table.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONOverbed tables are generally used in hospitals and nursing homes to provide a patient with a surface to utilize while lying in bed or seated in a chair. Overbed tables are often mounted on casters or rollers, which allow the table to be easily moved around. The overbed table typically has an over-hanging table top and a low-profile base. The low profile allows the base to slide under a bed allowing the over-hanging table top to be positioned close to the user. The over-hanging table top can typically be raised and lowered to a height that is comfortable and convenient to the user.
SUMMARYAn overbed table with a primary table top may be expanded through the deployment of a secondary table top. Advantageously, by appropriately arranging the position of the manner by which the secondary table top is mounted to the overbed table, the top surface of the secondary table top can occupy the same plane as the top surface of the primary table top.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support with a first end attached to the base, a primary table top attached to the vertical support at a second end of the vertical support and a secondary table top having a first position in which a top surface of the secondary table top is coplanar with a top surface of the primary table top.
In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support and a primary table top. The vertical support includes an inner beam with a first end attached to the base and an outer beam with a first end surrounding the inner beam, the outer beam including equipment rails allowing for attachment of equipment. The primary table top is attached to the outer beam at a second end of the outer beam.
In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to the base, a primary table top attached to the vertical support at a second vertical support end of the vertical support, a power cord terminating at a first power cord end at a male electrical connector and terminating at a second power cord end at a power receptacle.
In accordance with a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to the base, a primary table top attached to the vertical support at a second vertical support end of the vertical support, a power cord terminating at a first power cord end at a male electrical connector and terminating at a second power cord end at a division circuit adapted to provide power connections to a Universal Serial Bus (USB) receptacle.
In accordance with a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to the base, a primary table top attached to the vertical support at a second vertical support end of the vertical support, a data cable terminating at a first data cable end at a male data connector and terminating at a second data cable end at a data receptacle.
In accordance with a sixth aspect of the present invention there is provided an overbed table. The overbed table includes a base, a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to the base, a primary table top attached to the vertical support at a second vertical support end of the vertical support, the primary table top defining an aperture, a video display monitor mounted in the aperture and a computing device attached to the overbed table. The computing device includes a central processor, a video processor in communication with the central processor, the video processor adapted to provide output to the video display monitor and an input component in communication with the central processor.
Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.
Reference will now be made to the drawings, which show by way of example, embodiments of the invention, and in which:
Conventional overbed tables with expandable tabletops use sliding surfaces in which one surface will slide out from beneath another. An example of a conventional overbed table with expandable tabletop is the PatientMate® Jr. overbed table marketed by Hill-Rom of Batesville, Ind. This type of overbed table results in two surfaces on different planes. The dual plane tabletop requires lifting when moving objects from one surface to another; such a task could be difficult with a patient with reduced mobility or strength. The sliding design also allows for dirt to collect between the two tabletops, and greased rails required in the design make infection control and cleaning difficult. While the overbed table in U.S. Pat. No. 5,473,997 issued Dec. 12, 1995 to Solomon et al. (hereinafter “Solomon”) uses a single pivotal support, rather than hinges, for the secondary surface, the result is still two table surfaces on different planes, as well as a hidden surface near the pivot point. Unfortunately, the hidden surface is difficult to clean and may allow dirt to collect. When the secondary surface of the design in Solomon is pivoted out from beneath the primary surface and engaged, the result is an awkwardly shaped surface that does not provide full support to such objects as food trays, as shown in
Healthcare facilities often use extruded aluminum equipment rails attached to walls to allow for the attachment of accessories such as healthcare equipment, storage baskets and shelving, thereby allowing for superior equipment management. The accessories may be attached to the equipment rails with use of adapters. Accessories can be attached to the equipment rails or removed from the equipment rails, thereby making the equipment rail system fully customizable to meet the requirements of a user.
In an overbed table with a secondary table top that, when engaged, has a top surface in the same plane as a top surface of a primary table top may have many advantages. The primary table top may be supported at one end by a vertical beam and supported along its length toward the other end by a cantilever support. The secondary table top may be attached, by hinges, to an edge of the primary table top closest to the vertical beam. Locking support hinges may be attached beneath the secondary table top and secured to the vertical beam, giving load support when the secondary table top is to be employed.
Both the primary table top and the secondary table top are may be fully exposed to allow for easy cleaning. Consequently, aspects of the overbed table designs disclosed herein may be considered to provide improved protection against infection when compared to previous multiple table top overbed table designs. Because the top surface of the primary table top and the top surface of the secondary table top are co-planar, the patient can slide, rather than lift, objects from the primary table top to the secondary table top to, for example, make room for a food tray on the primary table top. The secondary table top may also be seen to provide a surface that can be reserved for healthcare staff, to be used as a writing surface for charting or to place such objects as medication and clipboards.
Referring to
One end of the long base support 21 supports a bottom end of an upstanding adjustable vertical support 24. The adjustable vertical support 24 includes an inner beam 25, an outer beam 26 and a plurality of Teflon® sliders 30 (
The length of the vertical support 24 may be increased through the application of an upwards force. This upwards force does not require a handle to be engaged since, as a safety precaution, hospitals require an overbed table to rise automatically responsive to upwards force caused by contact from a patient bed whose height above floor level is being increased. If a lever was required, then there would be a risk of sandwiching a patient between the overbed table and the bed.
In contrast, the length of the vertical support 24 may be decreased only upon the release of an internal locking mechanism (not shown) in conjunction with application of a downwards force. For the example overbed table of
A cantilever support 28 (see
The outer beam 26 may be, for example, made from extruded aluminum with a cross-section as shown in
Some existing overbed tables, for example, the Tru-Fit™ overbed table marketed by Stryker Corp. of Kalamazoo, Mich., offer storage compartments and shelving as manufacturer-specific attachments for the specific overbed tables. Such manufacturer-specific attachments attach to respective overbed tables in manners distinct from the manner in which accessories attach to generic hospital wall-based equipment rail systems. Accordingly, manufacturer-specific storage compartments and shelving generally do not allow the user to easily customize the overbed table and, if the storage compartments on the overbed table are removed there is no other use for the storage compartments. Furthermore, not having the compartments easily removable from the overbed table makes it difficult to have the storage compartments clean and sterilized for infection control purposes.
Clearly, the provision of either the vertical equipment rails 32 or the horizontal equipment rails 38 arranged according to a hospital equipment rail standard offers advantages over manufacturer-specific attachment systems.
Illustrated in
While the secondary table top 41 of the overbed table 40 of
Furthermore, while the advantages of the top surface of the secondary table top 41 being coplanar with the top surface of the primary table top 29 have been disclosed, the secondary table top 41 may be provided with a vertical adjustment independent of the primary table top 29, thereby allowing the secondary table top 41 to be adjusted to a vertical height above the wheeled base 19 that is distinct from the vertical height of the primary table top 29. For example, a hinge (not shown) may connect the secondary table top 41 to the outer beam 26 of the vertical support beam 26. Furthermore, the outer beam 26 of the vertical support beam may include a plurality of locations at which the hinge may be positioned.
Conventional overbed tables do not provide receptacles of any type. A patient in a bed who wishes to use a laptop computer or another electronic device will often find that the closest wall socket is out of easy reach. Furthermore, the wall sockets often have important equipment already connected (such as monitors, lights and nurse call systems). Healthcare facilities typically do not wish for patients to connect their personal equipment to in-room wall sockets, since such wall sockets are often installed for use in case an emergency arises that requires electrical power.
Currently, most healthcare facilities do not offer much more than a television in a patient room. Computers with access to the internet are being used more frequently as a form of entertainment and as a communication tool. New hospitals are being constructed with wireless data networking in the patient rooms, thereby allowing for patients and family to “stay connected” while the patient recovers.
The cord retractor 52 may include an axle (not shown), to which the retractable power cord is attached, and a biasing component (not shown) adapted to bias the axle to coil the retractable power cord around the axle for storage.
An end of the retractable power cord that is not connected to the internal power line ends in a male electrical connector 53. The retractable power cord can be pulled from within the cord retractor 52 and plugged into a female electrical connector, i.e., an electrical wall socket. The male electrical connector 53 may be unplugged from the wall socket and the retractable power cord retracted back into the cord retractor 52 when power is not needed. As will be known by a person of ordinary skill in the art, electrical plugs and their sockets differ by country in shape, size and type of connectors.
Internal to the cantilevered support 28, a division circuit (not shown) may receive power from the internal power line and provide power to the power receptacle 50 and the USB receptacle 49.
In a fashion similar to the internal power line, an internal data cable may run from the Ethernet port 48 down inside the inner beam 25 of the vertical support 24 to the cord retractor 52. At the cord retractor 52, the internal data cable may connect to a retractable data cable (not shown). The retractable cable may be pulled from the cord retractor 52 and plugged into a wall data receptacle, thereby allowing the Ethernet port 48 to be used for network access.
A laptop computer system could be used on an overbed table, but such a system would not be protected from liquids or other such debris, would carry a risk of theft, and would take up a large portion of an overbed table surface, even when not in use.
To address some of the drawbacks of using a laptop computer system on an overbed table, it is proposed to incorporate a computing device in an overbed table.
The computing device may receive electrical power via an internal power line (not shown) that feeds through the vertical support to the cord retractor 52 where the internal power line connects to a retractable power cord (not shown). An end of the retractable power cord that is not connected to the internal power line ends in the male electrical connector 53. The retractable power cord can be pulled from within the cord retractor 52 and plugged into a female electrical connector, i.e., an electrical wall socket. The computing device may also include a rechargeable battery to facilitate operation of the computing device when a wall socket is out of reach of the retractable power cord or is otherwise unavailable.
Other typical computing device components are not shown, but may include a processor, a read only memory, a random access memory, a power supply, etc., all of which may be contained within a housing. The housing may be, for example, attached to the underside of the primary table top 51. The housing may be, for example, attached to the vertical support 66. The power supply of the computing device may receive power via an internal power line connected, at the cord retractor 52, to a retractable power cord that may be plugged into a wall socket, as discussed hereinbefore.
To facilitate viewing by the patient, the primary table top 51 may be attached to the vertical support 66 in a manner that allows the patient to tilt the plane of the primary table away from a horizontal orientation.
An embodiment of an overbed table 90 that incorporates a computing device is illustrated in
In comparison to the overbed table 80 of
In a further alternative embodiment, the primary table top 54 may include a shelf (not shown) mounted to its underside, for providing a storage area for the keyboard 57. A switch (not shown) built into the shelf may facilitate detection of a side of the primary table top 54 at which the keyboard 57 is being extracted from the shelf. Responsively, an indication of the side of the primary table top 54 at which the keyboard 57 is being extracted may be communicated to the video processor so that the video processor may appropriately adjust the orientation of an image displayed on the monitor 56.
For both the overbed table 80 of
In review, conveniently, an overbed table with a vertical equipment rail system integrated along its main support beam allows for accessories, such as storage compartments, intravenous (IV) hooks and cord wraps, to be attached. The result is an overbed table that is customizable to suit the needs of patients and healthcare staff. An accessory with the appropriate adapter may be compatible with, and transferable to, other equipment rail systems within a given healthcare facility.
Furthermore, a patient may use features built-in to the overbed table, such as power receptacles, data ports and Universal Serial Bus (USB) receptacles, to power, charge or network-connect personal productivity or entertainment equipment (laptop computer, digital media player, cell phone, etc.). The power receptacles and USB receptacles may receive power via an internal power cord with a connection to a retractable power cord, which the healthcare staff can safely plug into an appropriate wall socket.
Additionally, a computer may be built-into the overbed tabletop. Such a computer may have a flat screen monitor built-in to the overbed tabletop and a touch screen keyboard similar to those found on tablet computers or cell phones.
The above-described embodiments of the present application are intended to be examples only. Alterations, modifications and variations may be effected to the particular embodiments by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the application, which is defined by the claims appended hereto.
Claims
1. An overbed table comprising:
- a base;
- a vertical support with a first end attached to said base;
- a primary table top attached to said vertical support at a second end of said vertical support; and
- a secondary table top having a first position in which a top surface of said secondary table top is coplanar with a top surface of said primary table top.
2. The overbed table of claim 1 wherein said secondary table top has a second position in which said top surface of said secondary table top is perpendicular to said top surface of said primary table top.
3. The overbed table of claim 2 further comprising a hinge connecting said secondary table top to said primary table top.
4. The overbed table of claim 1 further comprising a support brace connecting an underside of said secondary table top to said vertical support adapted to releasably maintain said secondary table top in said first position.
5. The overbed table of claim 1 further comprising a support beam slidably extendable out from a first support position entirely under said primary table top to a second support position partially under said primary table top and partially under said secondary table top.
6. The overbed table of claim 1 further comprising a hinge connecting said secondary table top to said vertical support beam.
7. The overbed table of claim 6 wherein said vertical support beam includes a plurality of locations at which said hinge may be positioned.
8. An overbed table comprising:
- a base;
- a vertical support including: an inner beam with a first end attached to said base; and an outer beam with a first end surrounding said inner beam, said outer beam including equipment rails allowing for attachment of equipment; and
- a primary table top attached to said outer beam at a second end of said outer beam.
9. The overbed table of claim 8 wherein said equipment rails extend along a length of said outer beam.
10. The overbed table of claim 8 wherein said equipment rails extend generally perpendicular to a length of said outer beam.
11. The overbed table of claim 8 wherein said equipment rails comprise extruded aluminum secured to said outer beam.
12. The overbed table of claim 8 wherein said outer beam comprises an aluminum extrusion arranged to integrally include said equipment rails.
13. An overbed table comprising
- a base;
- a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to said base;
- a primary table top attached to said vertical support at a second vertical support end of said vertical support;
- a power cord terminating at a first power cord end at a male electrical connector and terminating at a second power cord end at a power receptacle.
14. The overbed table of claim 13 further comprising a cantilever support attaching said primary table top to said vertical support.
15. The overbed table of claim 14 wherein said cantilever support defines an aperture in which is mounted said power receptacle.
16. The overbed table of claim 14 wherein said primary table top defines an aperture in which is mounted said power receptacle.
17. The overbed table of claim 13 further comprising:
- a cord retractor attached to said overbed table;
- said power cord comprising: a retractable power cord portion terminating at a first retractable power cord portion end at said male electrical connector and terminating at a second retractable power cord portion end in said cord retractor; and an internal power cord portion terminating at a first internal power cord portion end at a connection to said retractable power cord and terminating at a second internal power cord portion end at said power receptacle.
18. The overbed table of claim 17 wherein said cord retractor comprises:
- an axle to which said retractable power cord portion is attached;
- a biasing component adapted to bias said axle to coil said retractable power cord portion around said axle.
19. An overbed table comprising:
- a base;
- a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to said base;
- a primary table top attached to said vertical support at a second vertical support end of said vertical support;
- a power cord terminating at a first power cord end at a male electrical connector and terminating at a second power cord end at a division circuit adapted to provide power connections to a Universal Serial Bus (USB) receptacle.
20. The overbed table of claim 19 further comprising a cantilever support attaching said primary table top to said vertical support.
21. The overbed table of claim 20 wherein said cantilever support defines an aperture in which is mounted said USB receptacle.
22. The overbed table of claim 20 wherein said primary table top defines an aperture in which is mounted said USB receptacle.
23. The overbed table of claim 19 further comprising:
- a cord retractor attached to said overbed table;
- said power cord comprising: a retractable power cord portion terminating at a first retractable power cord portion end at said male electrical connector and terminating at a second retractable power cord portion end in said cord retractor; and an internal power cord portion terminating at a first internal power cord portion end at a connection to said retractable power cord portion and terminating at a second internal power cord portion end at said division circuit.
24. An overbed table comprising:
- a base;
- a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to said base;
- a primary table top attached to said vertical support at a second vertical support end of said vertical support;
- a data cable terminating at a first data cable end at a male data connector and terminating at a second data cable end at a data receptacle.
25. The overbed table of claim 24 wherein said data receptacle is an RJ45 Ethernet port.
26. The overbed table of claim 24 further comprising:
- a cord retractor attached to said overbed table;
- said data cable comprising: a retractable data cable portion terminating at a first retractable data cable portion end at said male data connector and terminating at a second retractable data cable portion end in said cord retractor; and an internal data cable portion terminating at a first internal data cable portion end at a connection to said retractable data cable portion and terminating at a second internal data cable portion end at said data receptacle.
27. An overbed table comprising:
- a base;
- a vertical support with a first vertical support end attached to said base;
- a primary table top attached to said vertical support at a second vertical support end of said vertical support, said primary table top defining an aperture;
- a video display monitor mounted in said aperture; and
- a computing device attached to said overbed table, said computing device including: a central processor; a video processor in communication with said central processor, said video processor adapted to provide output to said video display monitor; and an input component in communication with said central processor.
28. The overbed table of claim 27 wherein said primary table top is attached to said vertical support in a manner that allows said primary table top to be tilted away from horizontal.
29. The overbed table of claim 28 further comprising an accelerometer mounted to said primary table top, said accelerometer in communication with said video processor to facilitate automatic orientation, by said video processor, of an image displayed by said video display monitor, said automatic orientation dependent upon a direction of tilt of said primary table top.
30. The overbed table of claim 27 further comprising a secondary table top.
31. The overbed table of claim 27 further comprising a retractable power cord adapted to provide electrical power to said computing device.
32. The overbed table of claim 27 further comprising a rechargeable battery adapted to provide electrical power to said computing device.
33. The overbed table of claim 27 wherein said input component is incorporated into said video display monitor so that said video display monitor is adapted to provide input to said central processor responsive to a touch on said video display monitor.
34. The overbed table of claim 27 further comprising a translucent top surface mounted on a top surface of said primary table top.
35. The overbed table of claim 27 wherein said input component comprises a keyboard.
36. The overbed table of claim 35 further comprising:
- a shelf positioned under said primary table top, said shelf sized to accommodate said keyboard;
- a sensor adapted to sense a direction in which said keyboard is extracted from said shelf, said sensor in communication with said video processor to facilitate automatic orientation, by said video processor, of an image displayed by said video display monitor, said automatic orientation dependent upon said direction.
37. The overbed table of claim 27 further comprising a button located on said primary table top, said button in communication with said video processor to facilitate orientation, by said video processor, of an image displayed by said video display monitor, said orientation toggled responsive to receipt of an indication of a press on said button.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 24, 2009
Publication Date: Oct 29, 2009
Applicant: AMICO CLINICAL SOLUTIONS CORP. (Richmond Hill)
Inventors: Erica Berlin (Toronto), Sarah Corey (Uxbridge)
Application Number: 12/429,936
International Classification: A47B 23/06 (20060101); A47B 1/04 (20060101); A47B 9/20 (20060101); A47B 23/00 (20060101); A47B 23/04 (20060101);