US 12,390,378 B2
Patient support with lift assembly
Connor Feldpausch St. John, Kalamazoo, MI (US); William Dwight Childs, Plainwell, MI (US); and Gary L. Bartley, Kalamazoo, MI (US)
Assigned to Stryker Corporation
Filed by Stryker Corporation, Kalamazoo, MI (US)
Filed on Dec. 9, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/116,240.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/948,540, filed on Dec. 16, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2021/0177679 A1, Jun. 17, 2021
Int. Cl. A61G 7/012 (2006.01); A61G 1/013 (2006.01); A61G 7/002 (2006.01); A61G 7/005 (2006.01); A61G 7/018 (2006.01)
CPC A61G 7/012 (2013.01) [A61G 1/013 (2013.01); A61G 7/018 (2013.01); A61G 7/002 (2013.01); A61G 7/005 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A patient support apparatus comprising:
a base;
a frame supported relative to said base, said frame configured to support a deck for supporting a patient thereon;
a lift assembly for raising or lowering said frame relative to said base and being pivotally coupled to said frame at an upper end thereof and pivotally coupled to said base at a lower end thereof;
said lift assembly including a first leg and a second leg, said second leg being pivotally mounted to said first leg at a medial portion thereof to form an inverted Y-shaped leg assembly when unfolded; said lift assembly being configured to be raised from a lowermost configuration according to a starting force SF that is less than a maximum force F1 when raising said frame relative to said base after said lift assembly is raised from said lowermost configuration; and
an actuator mounted in said lift assembly with a mounting configuration to produce said maximum force F1 when raising said frame occurring after said lift assembly is raised from said lowermost configuration, a minimum force F2 when lowering said frame or raising said frame after said lift assembly is raised from said lowermost configuration, and said starting force SF at the lowermost configuration that is less than said maximum force F1, and wherein said minimum force F2 is in a range of 50% to 70% of said maximum force F1.
 
13. A patient support apparatus comprising:
a base;
a frame supported relative to said base, said frame configured to support a deck for supporting a patient thereon;
a lift assembly for raising or lowering said frame relative to said base and being pivotally coupled to said frame at an upper end thereof and pivotally coupled to said base at a lower end thereof;
an actuator having a base and an extendable rod;
said lift assembly including a first leg and a second leg, said second leg being pivotally mounted to said first leg at a medial portion of said second leg to form an inverted Y-shaped leg assembly, said medial portion between first and second ends of said second leg that are spaced apart from said medial portion of said second leg;
said second leg having a crank arm;
a first link having first and second ends, said first end of said first link coupled to said crank arm; and
a second link having first and second ends, said first end of said second link pivotally coupled to said extendable rod of said actuator, and said second end of said second link coupled to said second end of said first link, said second link configured to apply force to said crank arm via said first link, and said first link configured to move in a nonlinear path to thereby push or pull on said crank arm from a range of angles and thereby unfold or fold said first leg and said second leg with respect to each other to contract or extend said lift assembly.