EP0698361A2 - Bed sore preventing bed - Google Patents

Abstract

The support includes a number of closely adjacent cells which can be independently filled. The cells are pressure containers which can be deflected transverse to the support surface (1) and which can be deformed in their longitudinal directions by hydraulic or pneumatic pressure. The cells' longitudinal axes lie approximately perpendicular to the support surface and each cell is cyclically operated individually via at least one valve actuated by a control unit (10). Each cell can be bent at least in one normal plane perpendicular to the support surface.

Description

The invention relates to a support for a sitting or lying device, in particular for beds, wheelchairs, etc., to prevent bedsores of people with reduced mobility, with a large number of cells which can be filled independently of one another and arranged closely next to one another, the cells being deflectable as approximately transverse to the contact surface , are formed with hydraulic or pneumatic pressure deformable in their longitudinal direction deformable pressure vessels, the longitudinal axis of which is arranged approximately normal to the support surface and each cell can be controlled individually via at least one valve actuatable by a control unit per cell.

Especially with partially or completely paralyzed patients, but also with people tied to the bed due to another illness, there is a risk of bedsores (decubitus) after a long time. Pressure ulcer symptoms occur particularly when the body pressure is concentrated on a relatively small body surface, for example protruding parts of the body such as pelvic bones, coccyx, etc.

US Pat. No. 4,542,547 shows a support of the type mentioned at the outset with a plurality of large-area mat elements, of which each mat element can be deflected normally to the support plane. A selective and selective control of the body support pressure is not possible due to the size of the mat elements.

A similar edition is known from WO 88/09651 A1. A number of cell groups which can be pneumatically pressurized independently of one another are provided and can be deflected normally to the support surface, the cells of a cell group being connected to one another via an air distributor. Relocating the patient can be facilitated by pressurizing certain groups of cells. Due to the air distributors, only groups can be addressed, but not individual cells. A selective point-like pressure change is not possible here either.

From GB 2 149 655 A an edition is known which has a multiplicity of cells which can be inflated independently of one another. The cells are elongated, the length corresponds to a cell of the edition width. The contact surface can be influenced line by line by inflating or deflating a cell. It is therefore only possible to influence the body support pressure roughly.

From GB 2 212 058 A an edition is known which essentially consists of an inflatable air mattress having four different cells, two of the cells being arranged in a zigzag pattern over the lying surface and having air jets which massage the person lying down and, if necessary, accelerate the drying of the patient's skin and clothing. The cells themselves can be inflated alternately in different ways. Such conditions bring a certain relief, but also have the disadvantage mentioned that the body pressure can only be influenced very roughly. Computer-controlled relief of the patient is hardly possible.

This also applies to a edition known from WO 91/03971 A1. The diagonal weld seams running in a zigzag pattern divide the support into two checkerboard-like groups of square cells, each of which can be filled with a fluid on its own. FR 2 700 950 A1 also shows a similar edition with two groups of square cells that can be filled independently of one another in a checkerboard pattern. With these known conditions, line-shaped contact areas with the body of the person lying down are avoided. Although the square cells allow an approximately punctiform support, it is only possible to influence the contact pressure over a whole group of cells.

The object of the invention is to provide a support for a reclining device in which a fine point control of the body support pressure is possible to a large extent and an exact adaptation to the body shape is possible. Another object of the invention is to enable a point-like massage treatment.

According to the invention, this is achieved in that each cell is bendable on the support surface in at least one normal plane. This is made possible in a very simple manner in that each cell can be controlled and controlled independently of one another and at least two extending over the length of the cell Has chambers and the bending takes place by different pressurization of the chambers. The bending takes place in a normal plane on the support surface.

By increasing or decreasing the pressure, the total length of each cell is increased or decreased, as a result of which the contact surface is raised or depressed. The control unit formed by a computer, for example, controls valves in the flow path to or from the cells. Appropriate programs can be used to individually control the valves according to the body size, shape and weight of the respective patient.

A particularly precise control of the length and the curvature of each cell is particularly possible if at least one sensor element is provided per chamber for detecting the chamber pressure.

Each cell advantageously has a bellows area, which is preferably arranged in the cell half closer to the support surface. This enables both the length change and the bending movement of the cell in a very simple and low-wear manner.

A honeycomb-shaped cross-section of the cells makes optimum use of the available space on the one hand and on the other hand each point of the support is covered by a cell.

A replaceable cushion element is preferably attached to each cell in the area of the support surface. The elastic cushion element serves as a pressure transmission element between the body of the person lying down and the cells.

With the support according to the invention, in addition to the pure relief of body pressure, a massage treatment, for example for neurological treatment, is also possible. The support thus also allows reflex zone treatments to be carried out. It is provided that each cell can be brought into an oscillating oscillation by cyclical pressure increase and pressure reduction. The bending and compression movement of the cells can be superimposed on the bending movement.

Easy handling is achieved in that several cells, preferably a bundle of 21 cells, are combined to form a preferably hexagonal cell block. The bending planes of the finger-like cells can be oriented differently within a module-like cell block in order to be able to carry out targeted movement and massage patterns.

In order to be able to use the support also for seat devices, it is advantageous if a plurality of cell blocks arranged next to one another are pivotally connected to one another by joints. Two areas of cell blocks can thus be pivoted relative to one another, whereby both a seat surface and a back surface can be formed, for example, with one and the same support.

In a particularly preferred embodiment variant of the invention it is provided that the cells of a cell block are combined in terms of control to form a control block of the control unit. On the one hand, this allows the number of components to be kept to a minimum and, on the other hand, rapid control of the cell blocks. The response behavior of the cells and the sensory data transmission is shortened decisively when several control blocks are combined to form a higher-level control node of the control unit, which are connected via an address coding unit to a control and display computer of the control unit. This enables real-time display and instantaneous movement specification by the control unit.

• Fig.1 und 2 die erfindungsgemäße Auflage in einer Seitenansicht,
• Fig.3 die Auflage von oben,
• Fig.4 die Auflage in einer weiteren Seitenansicht,
• Fig.5 eine Zelle der Auflage schematisch in ausgelenktem Zustand,
• Fig.6 eine Frontalansicht der Zelle,
• Fig.7 die Zelle aus Fig.6 von oben,
• Fig.8 eine Zelle im Längsschnitt nach der Linie VIII-VIII in Fig.9,
• Fig.9 eine Zelle im Querschnitt nach der Linie IX-IX in Fig.8,
• Fig.10 und 11 die Zelle in einer anderen Ansicht,
• Fig.12, 13 und 14 verschwenkbare Zellenblöcke in verschiedenen Ansichten,
• Fig.15 ein Blockdiagramm eines Steuerungsblockes,
• Fig.16 ein Blockdiagramm eines Steuerungsknotens und
• Fig.17 ein Blockdiagramm einer Anzeige- und Knotensteuerung der Steuereinheit.

The invention is explained in more detail with the aid of the figures. Show it:

• 1 and 2 the edition according to the invention in a side view,
• 3 the support from above,
• 4 shows the edition in a further side view,
• 5 shows a cell of the support schematically in the deflected state,
• 6 shows a frontal view of the cell,
• 7 the cell from FIG. 6 from above,
• 8 shows a cell in longitudinal section along the line VIII-VIII in FIG. 9,
• 9 shows a cell in cross section along the line IX-IX in FIG. 8,
• 10 and 11 the cell in a different view,
• 12, 13 and 14 pivotable cell blocks in different views,
• 15 shows a block diagram of a control block,
• 16 shows a block diagram of a control node and
• 17 shows a block diagram of a display and node control of the control unit.

1 to 3 show an application of the support 1 according to the invention in a lying device 2. The lying device 2 is fastened on a frame 5 which can be swiveled and / or moved about a longitudinal axis 3 and a transverse axis 4, as a result of which the support 1 and a person 6 ', 6 "located on the support can assume a wide variety of positions, such as in particular from FIGS 2 and 4. The inclination about the transverse axis 4 is symbolized by β in FIG. 4. The support 1 has a person 6 ', 6 "lying in the knee 6a, hip 6b and neck region 6c - which is of the most varied Body structure and height can be, as indicated by the reference numerals 6 'and 6 "- joints 7, whereby a neck support, as shown in FIG. 1, or a sitting position according to FIG. 2 can be realized. The joints 7 of the support 1 allow the support 1 to be used not only in the case of lying devices 2 but also in the case of seat devices (not shown here). As can be seen in FIG. 3, the support 1 consists of cell blocks 25a arranged next to one another, 25b, 25c, 25d, which in turn are each formed from a large number of individual cells 15. About the joints 7, the cell blocks 25a can be angled in relation to the cell blocks 25b and these in turn can be angled in relation to the cell blocks 25c and finally with respect to the cell blocks 25d to an angle of approximately 90 °.

As can be seen from FIG. 4, the support 1 according to the invention is connected via control lines 8 and sensor lines 9 to a control unit 10, which will be explained in more detail with reference to FIGS. 15 to 17. Furthermore, the support 1 is connected via at least one pressure line 11 and optionally via a return line 12 and a container 13 to a pump 14 which supplies the liquid or gaseous pressure medium to the support 1. If air is used as the pressure medium, the return line line 12 and the container 13 can be omitted.

The support 1 itself consists of individual finger-shaped, fillable cells 15 which, viewed in the direction of their longitudinal axis 16, have a honeycomb-shaped, hexagonal layout, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 11. The bearing surface 17 is formed by a cushion element 19 which is detachably fastened to the head 18 of the cell 15. In the half closer to the support surface 17, the cell 15 has a bellows area 20, in which the cell 15 can be bent. As a result, the neutral fiber of the cell 15 formed by the longitudinal axis 16 is bent in two directions of a normal plane 17 ″ onto the support plane 17 ′ by an angle α of approximately 20 ° to 50 °, preferably by 35 °, and an oscillating movement of the cell 15 allows.

Each cell has at least two elongated, separate chambers 21a and 21b. Each chamber 21a, 21b has a connection 22a, 22b for the pressure medium, wherein to control the pressure in the chambers 21a, 21b with the pressure line 11 and the pump 14, and optionally with the return line 12 and the container 13, flow-connectable valves 23a , 23b are provided, which are controlled by control unit 10 via control lines 8. The sensor elements 24a, 24b deliver an actual value signal of the pressure present in the chambers 21a, 21b, whereupon a control pulse is sent to the valves 23a, 23b in the event of a deviation between the actual and the desired value. The valves 23a, 23b can of course also be used as Unit formed and attached directly to the cell 15.

The oscillating movement of a cell 14 is achieved in that both chambers 20a, 20b are simultaneously pressurized and simultaneously relieved of pressure. The bending movement is caused by different pressurization of the two chambers 21a, 21b of a cell 15, as a result of which the cell 15 on the side of the chamber 21b pressurized with more expansion, and on the side of the chamber 21a pressurized with less pressure, a contraction occurs .

The cells 15 are controlled tactilely by the control unit 10 and are preferably pneumatically regulated in terms of position and pressure. The cells 15 are combined in a module-like manner into bundles of 21 pieces to form a honeycomb-shaped cell block 25a, 25b, 25c, 25d. These cell blocks can be seen in FIG. 3, but above all in FIGS. 12 to 14.

13 shows a plan view of a plurality of cell blocks 25a, 25b of the support 1 which are arranged next to one another and consist of individual cells 15. For example, in the knee 6a, hip 6b and neck area 6c of a person lying on the support 15, the cell blocks 25a and 25b are above joints 7 pivotally connected to one another, with recesses 27 being provided in the overlap region of the walls 26 of the cell blocks 25a, 25b. In FIG. 13, the cell blocks 25a, 25b are shown lying in one plane without being pivoted. 12 shows a side view from the left of the cell blocks 25a and 25b, the cell blocks 25b being shown in three different pivot positions 25b, 25b ', 25b' '. Fig. 14 shows the cell blocks 25a and 25b '' in a view from the front in a maximum swivel position.

Through a targeted assembly of the individual cells 15 - which consist of plastic, for example Teflon - on the cell blocks 25a, 25b, 25c, 25d, different movement patterns of the cells 15 can be realized. Each cell 15 can be controlled directly by the control unit having a computer, whereby a massage of the person can be carried out according to patterns and directions of movement predetermined by the therapist, which can be entered via the computer keyboard and displayed on the monitor.

After a bedridden person has been introduced into the bed formed by the lying device, the computer adjusts the body support pressure on the basis of the body size, the body shape and the body weight. This ensures that the weight of the person is evenly distributed over the entire surface of the body.

The control unit 10 has a display and node control 47 with a computer 50 for real-time display and a control computer 51 for programming the movement sequence, as well as a number of control nodes 40, each of which groups a number of control blocks 39 in sensor and motor groups. This is shown schematically in block diagrams in FIGS. 15 to 17. The tasks of real-time display and control can, if necessary, also be performed by one and the same computer.

15 shows how each cell block consisting of twenty-one cells 15 is combined in terms of control to form a control block 39. The signals from the sensors 24a and 24b of the cells 15 are fed to a pressure transducer evaluation circuit 28 via sensor lines 9 and pass further into a 2 × 21-channel analog multiplexer 29, from which the coded sensor signals are fed to an A / D converter 30. The analog multiplexer 29 is connected directly and via the A / D converter 30 to a control part or macro command interface 31, which on the one hand provides information for coding to the analog multiplexer 29, and on the other hand actual value data to a transmission unit 35 for the transfers sensory data to data bus A. The control part or macro command interface 31 supplies a setpoint specification 32 for the actual / setpoint comparison 33, the result of which is passed on as a controlled variable to a 2 × 21-channel digital demultiplexer 34 which, via the control part or the macro command interface 31, also directly with a receiving unit 36 for the data bus B transmitting macro commands is connected. The commands decoded by the digital demultiplexer 34 are channeled to the respective control circuit 37 for the valve unit 23, which valve unit 23 has the two valves 23a and 23b for controlling the connections 22a and 22b for the chambers 21a, 21b of each cell 15. The functions and components symbolized by the reference numerals 29 to 36 can each be combined in an integrated circuit IC1.

In each case 10 to 20 control blocks 39, as can be seen in FIG. 16, are combined to form a control node 40. Within a control node 40, a common data bus A, which transmits all the sensor data of the control blocks 39, or a common data bus B, which transmits all the motor data of the control blocks 39, is connected to a collecting node 41 or a distribution node 42. After adding 43 the respective node address, the sensory data are fed to a bus end interface 45, from where they are fed to the sensory node data bus KA. Analogously to this, macro instructions of the motorized data bus KB reach a bus reception interface 46, from which after removal 44 of the node address they are supplied to the distribution node 42 for the common macro instruction bus B of the control blocks 39. The functions 41 to 46 can again be combined on an integrated module IC2.

As can be seen from FIG. 17, all sensory data bus KA and motor data bus KB of all control nodes 40 are connected to an address coding unit 48 for the sensor data and macro commands. The sensor data are collected in a memory array 49 and forwarded to a computer or computer part 50 for real-time display. The control computer 51 for programming the sequence of movements of the cells 15 - in interaction with the computer or computer part 50 for the display and a person operating the control unit 10 - passes macro commands to the address coding unit 48 for the macro commands, from where they via the motorized data bus KB Control nodes 40 and the motorized data bus B of the control blocks 39, the cell blocks 25 and finally as individual commands to the control circuits 37 for the valve units 23 of the individual cells 15. The address coding unit 48 and the memory array 49 are advantageously accommodated in an assembly IC3.

The cells 15 can be individually readjusted via the control computer 51 of the control unit 10, so that a complete relief can be achieved at protruding parts of the body, such as the pelvic bone, coccyx, etc.

Claims (11)

Support for a sitting or lying device, in particular for beds, wheelchairs, etc., to prevent bedsores of people with reduced mobility, with a large number of cells (15) which can be filled independently of one another and arranged closely next to one another, the cells (15) being approximately transverse to Support surface (1) which can be deflected and acted upon with hydraulic or pneumatic pressure and is deformable in its longitudinal direction, the longitudinal axis (16) of which is arranged approximately normal to the support surface (17) and each cell (15) can be actuated individually via at least one control unit (10) Valve (23a, 23b) can be controlled per cell (15), characterized in that each cell (15) can be bent onto the support surface (17 ') in at least one normal plane (17''). Support according to claim 1, characterized in that each cell (15) has at least two separate and independently controllable chambers (21a, 21b) which extend over the length of the cell and the bending is effected by different pressurization of the chambers (21a, 21b). Support according to claim 2, characterized in that at least one sensor element (24a, 24b) is provided per chamber (15) for detecting the chamber pressure. Pad according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that each cell (15) has a bellows area (20) which is preferably arranged in the cell half closer to the contact surface (17). Support according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the cells (15) have a honeycomb cross section. Support according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that an exchangeable cushion element (19) is attached to each cell (15) in the region of the support surface (17). Support according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that each cell (15) can be brought into an oscillating oscillation by cyclical pressure increase and pressure reduction. Pad according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that a plurality of cells (15), preferably a bundle of 21 cells, are combined to form a preferably hexagonal cell block (25a, 25b, 25c, 25d; 25). Support according to claim 8, characterized in that a plurality of cell blocks (25a, 25b, 25c, 25d) arranged next to one another are pivotally connected to one another by joints (7). Support according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the cells of a cell block (25) are combined in terms of control to form a control block (39) of the control unit (10). Support according to claim 10, characterized in that a plurality of control blocks (39) are each combined to form a superordinate control node (40) of the control unit (10), which via an address coding unit (48) with a control and display computer (50, 51) of the control unit (10) are connected.

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