Ambulance cot and hydraulic elevating mechanism therefor

A power lifting apparatus for adjusting the height of a patient supporting frame on an ambulance cot, the patient supporting frame having a head end and a foot end as well as a patient support deck with a top surface for holding a person, a base frame containing wheels, and an elevating mechanism for facilitating a varying of the height of said patient supporting frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism comprising:

• an electric motor;
• a battery connected to said electric motor;
• an electric circuit for controlling said electric motor;
• a hydraulic fluid circuit comprising at least a hydraulic cylinder body having a reciprocal rod thereon and configured to effect said varying of the height of said patient supporting frame in response to relative movement between said hydraulic cylinder body and said reciprocal rod, said hydraulic cylinder body having first and second ports oriented adjacent opposite ends of said hydraulic cylinder body and through which hydraulic fluid can enter said hydraulic cylinder body;
• a hydraulic pump connected between said first and second ports and providing hydraulic fluid to said hydraulic cylinder body to effect movement of said reciprocal rod;
• and
• said electric motor drivingly connected to said hydraulic pump.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a first frame;
• a second frame;
• an elevation mechanism interconnecting said first and second frames to facilitate moving said first and second frames toward and away from one another;
• and
• a timing device mounted on one of said first and second frames and configured to provide an indication of the elapsed time that said elevation mechanism has been operated.

An ambulance cot comprising:

• a wheeled base;
• a patient litter disposed above said base;
• a support mechanism which supports said patient litter for vertical movement relative to said base, said support mechanism including elongate first and second support elements which each have first and second ends respectively pivotally coupled to said patient litter and to said base, which can each expand and contract in length, and which are pivotally coupled to each other at a location between the ends thereof for pivotal movement about an approximately horizontal pivot axis, said support mechanism further including a fixed-length link member having a first end supported on said base for pivotal movement about a common axis with said second end of said first support element, and having a second end supported on said second support element at a location axially between said pivot axis and said second end thereof for pivotal movement about a further axis which is substantially parallel to said pivot axis;
• and
• an elevating system for selectively raising and lowering the patient litter, the elevating system having at least one extensible and retractable member with first and second ends, said first end being connected to the base for pivotal movement about a common axis with said second end of said first support element and a second end pivotally supported on said second support element at a location axially between said pivot axis and said first end thereof for pivotal movement about a further axis which is substantially parallel to said pivot axis, said elevating system further comprising selectively actuable locking means for releasably locking said support mechanism so as to respectively permit and prevent vertical movement of said patient litter relative to said base.

An ambulance cot comprising:

• a wheeled base;
• and
• a patient litter disposed above and supported for adjustable vertical movement on said base by a support mechanism, the patient litter comprising:
• a pair of longitudinally extending side rails, the side rails configured to extend from a head end to a foot end of the patient litter;
• a retractable, generally U-shaped head section, the head section having a pair of parallel legs connected by a cross rail, the legs being configured to be slidably received into the interior of the respective longitudinally extending side rails, a pair of brackets connecting the legs to a head rail, a cross rail pivotally received by the brackets, at least one handle pivotally mounted for movement about an axis corresponding to or parallel to the axis of the cross rail, the handle being connected to a pin configured for rotation about the axis of rotation defined by or parallel to the axis of the cross rail.

An ambulance cot comprising:

• a wheeled base;
• a patient litter disposed above said base;
• a support mechanism which supports said patient litter for vertical movement relative to said base, said support mechanism including elongate first and second support elements which each have first and second ends respectively pivotally coupled to said patient litter and to said base, which can each expand and contract in length, and which are pivotally coupled to each other at locations between the ends thereof for pivotal movement about an approximately horizontal pivot axis, said support mechanism further including a fixed-length link member having a first end supported on said base for pivotal movement about a common axis with said second end of said first support element, and having a second end supported on said second support element at a location axially between said pivot axis and said second end thereof for pivotal movement about a further axis which is substantially parallel to said pivot axis;
• a hydraulic elevating system for selectively raising and lowering the patient litter, the hydraulic elevating system comprising an electrically operated hydraulic pump and a hydraulic cylinder, the hydraulic cylinder having a first end connected to the base for pivotal movement about a common axis with said second end of said first support element and a second end pivotally supported on said second support element at a location axially between said pivot axis and said first end thereof for pivotal movement about a further axis which is substantially parallel to said pivot axis;
• and
• a control system for said hydraulic elevating system, said control system comprising a first switch assembly and a second switch assembly, the first and second switch assemblies being electrically connected to the control system, each of the first and second switch assemblies comprising at least two operating buttons for raising and lowering the patient litter respectively, the first and second switch assemblies being physically remote from one another.

An ambulance cot comprising:

• a wheeled base;
• and
• a patient litter disposed above and supported for adjustable vertical movement on said base by a support mechanism, the patient litter comprising:
• a pair of longitudinally extending side rails, the side rails configured to extend from a head end to a foot end of the patient litter;
• a retractable, generally U-shaped head section, the head section having a pair of parallel legs connected by a cross rail, the legs being configured to be slidably received by the respective longitudinally extending side rails, and at least one handle pivotally mounted for movement about an axis of the cross rail, a latch mechanism for selectively fixing the position of the head section in at least one of an extended and a retracted position, the latch mechanism configured for operation by the at least one handle, and
• a latch disabler configured to prevent the operation of the latch mechanism by the at least one handle.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame;
• and
• a control mechanism including a cot antenna and a separate tool configured for at least one of cot programming, remote control and cot diagnostics and having a tool antenna, said control mechanism and said tool being configured for wireless communication so that said tool can execute diagnostic analysis of said control mechanism and report the results thereof.

A combination of an ambulance cot and a load system onboard an ambulance for facilitating a loading and unloading of said ambulance cot, comprising:

• said ambulance cot including a base frame, a litter frame and an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism comprising an extendable and retractable actuator connected to and extending between said base frame and said litter frame, an onboard control circuit for controlling an operation of said extendable and retractable actuator;
• said load system onboard said ambulance having thereon a load system control circuit and a device for effecting a coupling of said ambulance cot to said load system;
• a cot antenna mounted on said ambulance cot and connected in circuit with said onboard control circuit;
• a load system antenna mounted on said ambulance and connected in circuit with said load system circuit;
• and
• a separate tool configured for at least one of cot programming, remote control and cot diagnostics and load system diagnostics, said tool having a tool antenna, said tool being configured for wireless communication so that said tool can execute at least one of cot programming, remote control and diagnostic analysis of said control circuit onboard said cot and said load system circuit separately and/or together.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame to said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame;
• a motor for driving said elevating mechanism;
• a computerized control system for monitoring a state of said cot and regulating operation of said motor, said control system including a transceiver configured to communicate data concerning said cot with a computerized monitoring and diagnostic system;
• and
• an electrical energy source for energizing said motor and said computerized control system.

An ambulance cot system for facilitating the transport of a patient, comprising:

• a cot for supporting and transporting said patient to and from an ambulance, said cot comprising:
• a base frame,
• a litter frame,
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame to said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame,
• a motor for driving said elevating mechanism,
• a computerized control system for monitoring a state of said cot and regulating operation of said motor, said control system including a transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate data concerning said cot, and
• an electrical energy source for energizing said motor and said computerized control system;
• a load system mounted upon an interior surface of said ambulance and configured to selectively secure said cot within said ambulance, said load system comprising:
• a guide track for guiding movement of said cot into and out of said ambulance,
• a device for securing said cot relative to said guide track, and
• a load system control circuit for selectively monitoring and controlling one or more states of said load system, said load system control circuit including a transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate data concerning said load system;
• and
• a separate tool that can be selectively configured to monitor one or more operating states of at least one of said cot computerized control system and load system control circuit, as well as at least one of execute remote control commands and conduct diagnostic tests on at least one of said cot computerized control system and load system control circuit, said tool including a transceiver configured to wirelessly communicate data with at least one of said cot computerized control system and load system control circuit.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• and
• an X-frame support mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to support said litter frame in one of a plurality of positions relative to said base frame, said support mechanism including at least one pair of frame members pivotally secured to each other proximate the mid-length thereof, said frame members each having opposite ends respectively secured to one of said base frame and said litter frame, at least one of said pair of frame members having a first mount oriented between said mid-length thereof and said base, said at least one of said pair of frame members having a second mount oriented between said mid-length thereof and said litter frame, said first and second mounts being configured to respectively engage said base frame and said litter frame in response to said litter frame becoming proximate said base frame.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• and
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism being configured to detect a presence and an absence of a force urging a change in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame to cause said base frame and said litter frame to become oriented closer together.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• and
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism including at least one pair of frame members pivotally secured to each other proximal the mid-length thereof to form a X-frame, said frame members each having opposite ends respectively secured to one of said base frame and said litter frame, an end of said frame members adjacent at least one of said base frame and said litter frame including thereon a rotational pivot mechanism having an axis of rotation that extends co-extensively with a longitudinal axis of said frame member, said rotational pivot mechanism being configured to pivotally connect said frame members to said base frame so that relative movement between said base frame and said frame members occurs about said axis of rotation.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame;
• and
• a control system for said elevating mechanism, said control system comprising a first switch assembly and a second switch assembly, said first and second switch assemblies being electrically connected to said control system and configured to be functionally redundant of one another, each of said first and second switch assemblies comprising at least two operating buttons for raising and lowering said litter frame respectively.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame;
• a first control system configured to effect changes in distance between said litter frame and said base frame;
• and
• a second control system comprising a manually engageable handle operatively connected to said elevating mechanism and configured to usurp said first control system and only effect at least one of an increase and a reduction in distance between said litter frame and said base frame.

A combination of an ambulance cot and an ambulance having a cargo area, comprising:

• a base frame and a litter frame on said ambulance cot;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame;
• and
• an in-ambulance device configured to operatively detect a presence and absence of said ambulance cot in said cargo area, a component of said cot being configured to operatively couple with said in-ambulance device to deactivate said elevating mechanism.

A combination of an ambulance cot and a load system onboard an ambulance for facilitating a loading and unloading of said ambulance cot, comprising:

• said ambulance cot including a base frame, a litter frame and an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in distance between said base frame and said litter frame, said elevating mechanism comprising an extendable and retractable actuator connected to and extending between said base frame and said litter frame, an onboard control circuit for controlling an operation of said extendable and retractable actuator;
• said load system onboard said ambulance having thereon a load system control circuit and a device for effecting a coupling of said ambulance cot to said load system;
• a cot antenna mounted on said ambulance cot and connected in circuit with said onboard control circuit;
• and
• a load system antenna mounted on said ambulance and connected in circuit with said load system circuit, said onboard control circuit being configured for a first mode of operation when communication between antennas is present and a second mode of operation when communication between antennas is not present.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism comprising a hydraulic circuit having an extendable and retractable hydraulic actuator, said elevating mechanism being connected to and extending between said base frame and said litter frame, and a drive mechanism coupled through conduits to said hydraulic actuator for effecting a pumping of hydraulic fluid to said hydraulic actuator;
• and
• a velocity fuse device connected in circuit with said hydraulic actuator and through which hydraulic fluid flows to at least one of extend and retract said extendable and retractable hydraulic actuator, said velocity fuse being configured to permit a maximum hydraulic fluid flow rate in an event of a ruptured conduit to thereby regulate a speed of at least one of extension and retraction of said extendable and retractable hydraulic actuator to thereby regulate a speed of descent of said litter frame toward said base frame.

An ambulance cot comprising:

• a base frame and a litter frame;
• a deployment mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in distance between said litter frame and said base frame, said deployment mechanism having a detection device configured to detect a presence and an absence of a force urging a change in distance between said litter frame and said base frame to cause said base frame and said litter frame to become oriented closer together;
• and
• a control mechanism on said ambulance cot, said control mechanism including a manually operable device for controlling said deployment mechanism, said control mechanism being configured to effect a rapid movement of said deployment mechanism in response to said detection device detecting an absence of said force and in response to an operation of said manually operable device, whereby when said ambulance cot is lifted away from a support surface, causing said detection device to detect an absence of said force, and said manually operable device is operated, said base frame will be rapidly drawn toward said litter frame by said deployment mechanism.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame adjustably supported on said base frame and including an
• extendable and retractable head section;
• and
• a pouch mounted on said extendable and retractable head section.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame adjustably supported on said base frame and including a fowler pivotally connected thereto;
• and
• an accessory hook mounted to said fowler.

An ambulance cot, comprising:

• a base frame;
• a litter frame;
• an elevating mechanism interconnecting said base frame and said litter frame and being configured to effect changes in elevation of said litter frame relative to said base frame, said elevating mechanism comprising a hydraulic circuit having an extendable and retractable hydraulic actuator, said elevating mechanism being connected to and extending between said base frame and said litter frame, and a drive mechanism coupled through conduits to said hydraulic actuator for effecting a pumping of hydraulic fluid to said hydraulic actuator;
• and
• said hydraulic actuator having a cylinder body and a piston movably supported in said cylinder body, said piston having an elongate rod mounted thereto for movement therewith;
• a weep valve and a connection connecting an interior of said cylinder body to a port on said hydraulic body that is adjacent an end of said cylinder body that said elongate rod exits said cylinder body, said connection being oriented on a side of said piston oriented at said end remote from said end so that when said piston is at said end, hydraulic fluid will be permitted to flow from said interior of said cylinder body through said weep valve to prevent a pressure build up in said cylinder body.