A patient transport apparatus for transporting a patient over a surface. The patient transport apparatus has support wheels coupled to a base and swivelable about swivel axes. An auxiliary wheel assembly is coupled to the base and includes an auxiliary wheel configured to move between a plurality of wheel positions, and an actuator operably coupled to the auxiliary wheel to move the auxiliary wheel between the plurality of wheel positions. A sensing system with a sensor is provided to detect a motion condition of the patient transport apparatus. A controller is coupled to the sensing system and to the actuator, and is configured to drive the actuator to move the auxiliary wheel between the plurality of wheel positions based on the motion condition of the patient transport apparatus.

A number of patient beds are disclosed. Some patient beds have siderails that are movable by a patient so that the patient can egress from the bed without interference from the siderails. Various caregiver control panels and patient control panels for controlling features and functions of a patient bed are also disclosed. For example, a cart with caregiver control inputs, including hand inputs on a graphical user interface (GUI) and foot inputs, is disclosed. Patient positioning and transfer devices are also disclosed. Various types of in-bed physical therapy devices are also disclosed.

A patient bed includes turn assist panels to rotate portions of a mattress. Some patient beds have siderails that are movable by a patient so that the patient can egress from the bed without interference from the siderails. Some patient beds have caregiver control panels for controlling features and functions of the patient bed, such as movement of the turn assist panels.

Systems and methods for a load sensing system that determines a mass on a bed. The systems generally are in the form of a castor base, particularly one that can be used as part of an adjustable hospital bed. The load sensing system serves to determine the mass of any object or objects (typically a human or animal patient) which is placed on the bed by having the mass create a force on lever arms of a plurality of load cells in the castor base. The load sensing systems are designed to work without hindering the adjustable functionality of the bed and can accurately determine mass (weight) at any position of the bed, and potentially even while the bed is adjusting between positions.

A patient support apparatus includes a frame and a mattress positioned on the frame. The mattress has an electronic component positioned within an interior of the mattress. An inductive power transmitter is coupled to the frame. An inductive power receiver is positioned within the interior of the mattress and electrically coupled to the electronic component.

A hospital bed height limiting system comprising a processing unit operatively connected to each of a user interface, an elevation mechanism of the hospital bed and a height sensor. The processing unit is operable to receive a minimum height via the user interface and receive from the height sensor a current elevation mechanism height. The processing unit is operable to determine the bed height based on the current elevation mechanism height, and in response to the bed height being equal to the minimum height, the processing unit is operable to cause the elevation mechanism to stop a downward movement of the elevation mechanism. A hospital bed comprising the hospital bed height limiting system is also provided.

A patient support, such as a mattress, includes a plurality of inflatable bladders. Depth sensors are included in the support that measure the degree of penetration of a patient into the mattress. An air pressure sensor is also included that measures the pressure inside at least one bladder. A suitable inflation level of the mattress is determined by monitoring the rate of change of the depth with respect to air pressure as the bladder is either inflated or deflated. By detecting an inflection point in the graphical relationship of the depth and pressure outputs, a suitable inflation point for the bladders is determined that reduces interface pressures experienced by the patient, yet does not overly sink the patient into the mattress to a degree of discomfort. Analyzing the outputs of the depth and pressure sensors can also be used to detect a patient's heart rate and respiration rate.

A patient support apparatus for patients. The patient support apparatus comprises a base and a litter supported by the base. The patient support apparatus also comprises powered devices that perform one or more predetermined functions on the patient support apparatus. A user interface is employed to control the powered devices. The user interface is designed to enable caregivers to cause operation of the powered devices with fewer buttons, while retaining functionality in using powered devices.

A patient support apparatus may include a foam frame defining a space. A bladder assembly may be positioned in the space. The bladder assembly may include a plurality of foam filled bladders. Each of the foam filled bladders may be interconnected by a manifold. A plurality of mutually exclusively selectable pressure relief valves may be provided to release air from the bladder assembly.

A patient support apparatus comprises a plurality of load cells, a frame supported on the load cells, a mattress, a plurality of air pressure sensors, and a control system. The mattress includes a plurality of inflatable zones positioned on the frame, the mattress and frame cooperating to direct any patient load through the mattress and frame to the load cells. Each of the plurality of air pressure sensors measures the pressure in a respective inflatable zone of the mattress. The control system includes a controller operable to receive a separate signal from each of the plurality of load cells and each of the plurality of air pressure sensors and process the signals to identify motion of the patient. The motion of the patient is further processed by the controller to characterize the nature of the patient motion and, based on the characterization of the patient motion, the controller automatically updates a patient profile in a patient record to reflect the characterization of the patient motion.