Motorized traction device for a patient support

A patient support, comprising:

• a support frame, including a plurality of wheels to move the support frame along a floor;
• an external power input, coupled to the patient support, to provide an external power to the patient support;
• a traction device, coupled to the support frame, the traction device including a storage position spaced from the floor and a use position to contact the floor;
• an external power detector, coupled to the external power input, configured to generate an external power signal if the external power is supplied to the external power input;
• a controller, coupled to the external power detector, to receive the external power signal, the controller configured to enable movement of the traction device to the use position, upon receipt of the external power signal;
• a motor, coupled to the traction device, to drive the traction device for powered movement of the patient support;
• and
• a force user input device coupled to the motor, the force user input device being operable to receive a force from a user and provide a force signal based on the force.

A patient support, comprising:

• a support frame, including a plurality of wheels to move the support frame along a floor;
• an external power input, coupled to the patient support, to provide an external power to the patient support;
• a traction device, coupled to the support frame, the traction device including a storage position spaced from the floor and a use position to contact the floor;
• an external power detector, coupled to the external power input, configured to generate an external power signal if the external power is supplied to the external power input;
• and
• a controller, coupled to the external power detector, to receive the external power signal, the controller configured to enable movement of the traction device to the use position, upon receipt of the external power signal,
• wherein the controller is adapted to disable movement of the traction device from the storage position to the use position in the absence of the external power signal, and
• further comprising a wheel mode detector coupled to the controller, configured to generate a steer mode signal upon placing the wheels in a steer mode.