A patient support for supporting a patient includes an inflatable mattress defining a support surface and a pneumatic system for inflating the inflatable mattress. The pneumatic system includes a pressurized reservoir for holding pressurized air and selectively releases pressurized air from the reservoir to the mattress.

A patient support includes a plurality of stacked layers of cushioning material, at least two of the layers comprising foam, each of the at least two layers having a different firmness, and at least one of the layers comprising a gel-based cushioning layer.

This invention is a smart bed or mattress for reducing pressure ulcers with an orthogonal array of movable straps or layers which creates a low-pressure area. The location of the low-pressure area is selected to be under a portion of a person's body which is at risk for getting a pressure ulcer. A low-pressure area can be created: where straps which have been slackened overlap; where elastic segments of movable straps overlap; or where the movement of straps creates an opening.

A patient support includes a mattress with an inflatable bladder, where the inflatable bladder has a cavity and an upper bladder wall forming an outwardly facing side for facing and supporting the patient on the patient mattress and forming an inwardly facing side facing into the cavity. The patient support further includes a light transmitter operable to emit light through the cavity to impinge on the inwardly facing side of the upper bladder wall and a light receiver operable to detect a reflection of the light off the inwardly facing side of the bladder wall, with the light receiver generating a signal responsive to detecting the reflection. A controller is in communication with the light transmitter and is operable to determine immersion of a patient into the mattress based on the signal from the light receiver.

Described herein is a chair for relieving pressure points from prolonged sitting. The chair comprises a plurality of armrests, the armrests comprising: an armrest frame; a foam layer coupled to an upper portion of the armrest frame; and a first gel infused foam layer coupled to an upper portion of the foam layer. The chair further comprises a seat bottom, the seat bottom comprising: a seat bottom frame; a sinuous spring base coupled to the seat bottom frame; a plurality of coil springs coupled to the sinuous spring base; and a second gel infused foam layer coupled to the coil springs. The chair further comprises a seat back, the seat back comprising: a seat back frame; elastic webbing coupled to the seat back frame; and one or more cushions coupled to the seat back frame.

The present invention relates to a disposable absorbent pad comprising multiple layers. In particular, the absorbent pad of the present invention maintains skin dryness by absorbing moisture while preventing leakage to the skin or the bed linens, allowing air circulation at the surface of the patient's skin to prevent heat buildup, and is strong enough to allow the patient to be repositioned, even when the pad is wet. In a particular embodiment the first layer is comprised of a fluid-permeable, porous material, the second layer is disposed under the first layer and is comprised of at least one super absorbent material, and a base layer disposed under the second layer.

An inflatable device for turning or positioning a person in a bed. The inflatable device includes an inflatable body formed by a top sheet and a bottom sheet disposed beneath the top sheet to define a cavity configured to be inflated such that the top sheet forms a top wall of the cavity and the bottom sheet forms a bottom wall of the cavity. The device further includes at least one port having a port opening in fluid communication with the cavity and configured to provide an air input for air for inflating the cavity, wherein the at least one port comprises an elastic member for adjusting a size of the port opening.

Disclosed are apparatus and methodology for an adjustable width foam mattress which involves the use of modified lateral or side edges of an engineered foam mattress. Such lateral portions include collapsible structures for lateral adjustment of the overall width of the mattress. While different shapes are possible, one exemplary arrangement includes plural elongated octagonally-shaped openings. The long sides of such elongated structures form stops against each other as they fill the void of the opening. The relatively shorter sides of such structures articulate during collapse to accommodate such movement. As a result, and as the long sides fill in voids, the support structure essentially switches uniformly from one density to another, when moved from its expanded to its compressed position. An inflatable/deflatable member may be used to assist with expansion and compression of a lateral support structure.

A high-performance, low-cost modular cushion using range of novel dynamically responsive materials has been designed and developed for use in seating pressure relief. The use of individual contained spheres creates a localized area of gel to minimize both flattening under pressure, and inflating in areas without contact while the elastic nature of the polymers creates a durable system that recovers rapidly from deformation. Gel balls of varying densities have been developed to optimize performance. Quantification of individual ball mechanical properties has been completed which provides load-deflection curves to inform optimal ball array layout based on user interface pressure distributions. A fitting algorithm is proposed which will employ the patient's seating interface pressure distribution to design a personalized modular cushion layout which will evenly distribute contact pressure across seating support interface and maximize contact pressure area.

Disclosed are apparatus and methodology for reducing humidity (i.e., moisture) and/or heat within and/or adjacent a patient support mattress, without requiring any electrical power. A spacer fabric is used to create a non-crushable area of support below a patient's core area, where moisture and heat more commonly buildup. Integrated air cells in the mattress have resilient elements such as open-celled foam interiors. The air cells are connected by air tubing to the spacer fabric, and the mattress is otherwise vented externally from the spacer fabric. As a result, the patient's movement causes air to be expelled from or drawn into the air cells, which in turn results in air movement in the spacer fabric below a patient or user, resulting in cooling effects by removing moisture and/or heat, all without requiring external or internal electrical power.