US-20260124087-A1 - COLLAPSIBLE SIDERAIL FOR A PATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUS

US20260124087A1US 20260124087 A1US20260124087 A1US 20260124087A1US-20260124087-A1

Abstract

A siderail includes upper and lower siderail bodies, and a linkage assembly operatively connected thereto for guiding movement of the siderail between a deployed position and a stowed position. In the deployed position, the upper siderail body is disposed above the lower siderail body so that the siderail has a deployed height. In the stowed position, the lower siderail body is disposed at least partly laterally inwardly of the upper siderail body so that the siderail has a smaller stowed height. The linkage assembly includes: a first link pivotably connected to a frame connector; a second link pivotably connected to the first link; a third link pivotably connected to the second link and pivotably connected to the upper siderail body; and a fourth link pivotably connected to the frame connector and to the upper siderail body. The second and fourth links are ternary links that are connected to each other.

Inventors

Christian Gauvin
Stephan DEMERS
Jimmy Laflamme Laroche
William Tremblay

Assignees

UMANO MEDICAL INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251023

Claims (20)

1 . A siderail for a patient support apparatus, comprising: an upper siderail body; a lower siderail body; a linkage assembly operatively connected to the upper and lower siderail bodies and configured to guide movement of the siderail between a deployed position and a stowed position, in the deployed position, the upper siderail body being disposed above the lower siderail body so that the siderail has a deployed height defined between an upper end of the upper siderail body and a lower end of the lower siderail body, in the stowed position, the lower siderail body being disposed at least partly laterally inwardly of the upper siderail body so that the siderail has a stowed height defined between the upper end of the upper siderail body and a lower end of the upper siderail body, the deployed height being greater than the stowed height, the linkage assembly comprising: a first link pivotably connected to a frame connector at a first frame joint; a second link pivotably connected to the first link at a first connecting joint; a third link pivotably connected to the second link at a second connecting joint disposed vertically higher than the first connecting joint and pivotably connected to the upper siderail body at a first body joint; and a fourth link pivotably connected to the frame connector at a second frame joint, the fourth link being pivotably connected to the upper siderail body at a second body joint, the second link and the fourth link being ternary links that are connected to each other at an intermediate joint, the intermediate joint being disposed, along the second link, between the first connecting joint and the second connecting joint, the intermediate joint being disposed, along the fourth link, between the second frame joint and the second body joint.
2 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the first body joint is disposed vertically higher than the second body joint.
3 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the second body joint is disposed generally along the lower end of the upper siderail body.
4 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein, in the stowed position, the first body joint is disposed vertically lower than the second connecting joint.
5 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein, in the stowed position, the first, second and third links overlap each other in a vertical direction.
6 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the first frame joint is disposed vertically lower than the second frame joint.
7 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein, in the stowed position, the second link extends generally parallel to the upper siderail body and is disposed laterally inwardly of the upper siderail body.
8 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the lower siderail body is pivotably connected to the upper siderail body.
9 . The siderail of claim 8 , wherein the second body joint is coaxial with a pivot defined between the lower siderail body and the upper siderail body.
10 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein: the fourth link includes a first arm and a second arm spaced from the first arm in a longitudinal direction of the siderail; and the second link is disposed longitudinally between the first and second arms.
11 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein: the lower siderail body includes a first lower siderail member and a second lower siderail member spaced from the first lower siderail member in a longitudinal direction of the siderail; and each of the first and second lower siderail members is connected to the second link so that movement of the first and second lower siderail members is guided by the second link.
12 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the lower siderail body is fixed to the second link to move together therewith between the deployed and stowed positions.
13 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein: the upper siderail body has a lateral outer surface configured to face away from the patient support apparatus; a maximum lateral distance between the lateral outer surface of the upper siderail body and a pivot axis of the second frame joint is attained at a given intermediate position of the siderail between the deployed and stowed positions; and the maximum lateral distance is less than 10 inches.
14 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein: the upper siderail body has a lateral outer surface configured to face away from the patient support apparatus; a maximum lateral distance between the lateral outer surface of the upper siderail body and a pivot axis of the second frame joint is attained at a given intermediate position of the siderail between the deployed and stowed positions; and a displacement of the lateral outer surface in a lateral direction between the deployed position and the given intermediate position is less than 5 inches.
15 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the siderail includes a damper for damping a descent of the siderail from the deployed position to the stowed position, at least a majority of the damper remaining concealed throughout a motion of the siderail between the deployed and stowed positions.
16 . The siderail of claim 15 , wherein: the damper is connected between the first link and the second link; and the second link comprises an internal cavity, at least a majority of the damper being disposed within the internal cavity.
17 . The siderail of claim 1 , wherein the linkage assembly forms a six-bar linkage.
18 . A patient support apparatus comprising: a base; an upper frame operatively connected to the base; a deck for supporting a patient; and the siderail of claim 1 disposed along a periphery of the deck.
19 . The patient support apparatus of claim 18 , wherein: the deck includes an upper body deck section that can be selectively raised and lowered relative to the upper frame to adjust an angle of the upper body of the patient relative to a lower body of the patient; and the siderail is mounted to the upper body deck section so as to move together therewith.
20 . The patient support apparatus of claim 18 , wherein, in the stowed position, a vertical distance between the upper end of the upper siderail body and a top face of the deck when the deck is in a flat horizontal position is less than 3 inches.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE The present patent application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 63/715,085 , filed Nov. 1, 2024, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein. TECHNICAL FIELD The invention generally relates to a siderail for patient support apparatus. More particularly, it concerns a collapsible siderail. BACKGROUND Hospital beds are typically provided with siderails on their lateral sides to prevent a patient from falling off the bed. Notably, siderails can be raised to a deployed position to block the patient's egress from bed and lowered to a stowed position to allow access into and out of the bed. However, in the stowed position, the siderail may block access to certain controls found at a base of the bed (e.g., controls operated by a user's foot) and may, in some beds, reduce a clearance between the bed and the floor. In order to address this issue, some beds are provided with siderails that are foldable so that when the siderail is moved to the stowed position, the siderail is folded so that the height of the siderail is reduced in the stowed position. Nonetheless, in some cases, the height of the siderail may still be excessive in the stowed position and the siderail might extend too far outward from the bed as it moves from the deployed position to the stowed position, thus requiring more free space to each side of the bed in order to collapse the siderail. There is therefore a need for a siderail that addresses at least in part some of these drawbacks. SUMMARY In accordance with one aspect, there is provided a siderail for a patient support apparatus, comprising: an upper siderail body; a lower siderail body; a linkage assembly operatively connected to the upper and lower siderail bodies and configured to guide movement of the siderail between a deployed position and a stowed position, in the deployed position, the upper siderail body being disposed above the lower siderail body so that the siderail has a deployed height defined between an upper end of the upper siderail body and a lower end of the lower siderail body, in the stowed position, the lower siderail body being disposed at least partly laterally inwardly of the upper siderail body so that the siderail has a stowed height defined between the upper end of the upper siderail body and a lower end of the upper siderail body, the deployed height being greater than the stowed height, the linkage assembly comprising: a first link pivotably connected to a frame connector at a first frame joint; a second link pivotably connected to the first link at a first connecting joint; a third link pivotably connected to the second link at a second connecting joint disposed vertically higher than the first connecting joint and pivotably connected to the upper siderail body at a first body joint; and a fourth link pivotably connected to the frame connector at a second frame joint, the fourth link being pivotably connected to the upper siderail body at a second body joint, the second link and the fourth link being ternary links that are connected to each other at an intermediate joint, the intermediate joint being disposed, along the second link, between the first connecting joint and the second connecting joint, the intermediate joint being disposed, along the fourth link, between the second frame joint and the second body joint. In some embodiments, the first body joint is disposed vertically higher than the second body joint. In some embodiments, the second body joint is disposed generally along the lower end of the upper siderail body. In some embodiments, in the stowed position, the first body joint is disposed vertically lower than the second connecting joint. In some embodiments, in the stowed position, the first, second and third links overlap each other in a vertical direction. In some embodiments, the first frame joint is disposed vertically lower than the second frame joint. In some embodiments, in the stowed position, the second link extends generally parallel to the upper siderail body and is disposed laterally inwardly of the upper siderail body. In some embodiments, the lower siderail body is pivotably connected to the upper siderail body. In some embodiments, the second body joint is coaxial with a pivot defined between the lower siderail body and the upper siderail body. In some embodiments, the fourth link includes a first arm and a second arm spaced from the first arm in a longitudinal direction of the siderail; and the second link is disposed longitudinally between the first and second arms. In some embodiments, the lower siderail body includes a first lower siderail member and a second lower siderail member spaced from the first lower siderail member in a longitudinal direction of the siderail; and each of the first and second lower siderail members is connected to the second link so that movement of the first and second lower siderail members is guided by the second link. In some embodiments, the lower siderail