Low air loss bed
US4949413A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 3, 1987 |
| Grant date | Aug 21, 1990 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 3, 2007 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T137/87877
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An improved patient support structure comprising an articulatable frame, a plurality of elongated inflatable sacks, some of the sacks having one or two comfort slots therein, a low pressure compressed air blower and a plurality of pipes and manifolds for carrying gas from the blower to the sacks. The sacks are connected to the gas supply pipes and manifolds so as to be easily detachable therefrom. Each manifold has a variable muffler to control gas exhaust. An automatic switching circuit determines whether to power the brushless DC electric motor from a rectified AC power source or DC power supplied by batteries carried unobtrusively by the support structure. A multi-outlet, variable flow, gas valve connects to the blower to the pipes and comprises a housing defining at least two cylinder chambers and a discrete outlet for each cylinder chamber. A primary silencer is connected to each discrete outlet. The sacks rest atop a neoprene membrane which covers a planar upper surface of the frame. A zone valve control circuit has a motor driven integrated circuit and a further integrated circuit which chooses between a plurality of preset step-wise thumbwheel switches based upon a signal f…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.