Patient gurney having configurable registration capabilities

Abstract

A patient support system includes a wheeled gurney having an upper support frame with at least one open side. A front support plate and a rear support plate are attached to the upper support frame, with the rear support plate spaced apart from the front support plate to correspond to the at least one open side. There is a first registration element positioned on the front support plate and a second registration element positioned on the rear support plate. The first and the second registration elements are repeatably moveable between a first registration configuration and a second registration configuration. A method of positioning a patient support on a gurney begins by identifying a registration feature on a surface of a patient support and then identifying a mating registration feature on wheeled patient gurney that corresponds to the registration feature. Next, there is a step of altering the configuration of the mating registration feature to permit the registration feature and the mating registration feature to engage when the patient support is placed on the wheeled patient gurney. The placing step is performed by a robot, for example. Alternatively, the placing step is performed in a radiation treatment room or performed while the patient support is supporting a patient undergoing a radiation therapy.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.