Relief system for at least partially relieving the body weight of a person

Abstract

A relief system for at least partially relieving the body weight of a person includes at least one first fastening device for fastening a first end of a first support device and at least one second fastening device for fastening a second end of the first support device which are formed on a cuff, such that an equally distributed tensile force is exerted on the cuff at the first fastening device and second fastening device when the first support device is guided through a guide device during a movement of the cuff when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person. This advantageously permits a simple connection in particular of a bedridden patient to the relief system, without the patient first having to be moved, without other medical/therapeutic devices being disturbed, and without limiting the patient's stepping/walking movement.

Claims

1. A relief system for at least partially relieving the body weight of a person, the relief system comprising: a suspension; a cuff for receiving at least part of a thigh of the person; a first support device for operatively connecting said cuff to said suspension, said first support device having first and second ends; a guide device disposed on said suspension for guiding said first support device; and at least one first fastening device formed on said cuff for fastening said first end of said first support device and at least one second fastening device formed on said cuff for fastening said second end of said first support device; said first support device running via said guide device for exerting an equally distributed tensile force on said cuff at said first fastening device and said second fastening device upon said first support device being guided through said guide device during a movement of said cuff when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person.

2. The relief system according to claim 1, which further comprises: at least one third fastening device formed on said cuff; and a second support device having a first end fastened to said at least one third fastening device and a second end connected to said suspension for exerting a variable tensile force on said cuff at said at least one third fastening device upon said second support device being guided through said guide device during a movement of said cuff when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person.

3. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein said first fastening device, said second fastening device and said at least one third fastening device are variably disposed at an angle of 120° to each other in a closed condition of said cuff.

4. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein at least one of said first support device or said second support device is at least one of a band, a belt, a strap or a chain.

5. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein at least one of said first support device or said second support device is formed of a disinfectable plastic or polyurethane or has a disinfectable or polyurethane coating.

6. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein at least one of said first support device or said second support device is longitudinally adjustable at least at one end.

7. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein said guide device has at least one slide eyelet or a deflection roller to which said first support device is operatively connected.

8. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein said suspension is part of a head end of a hospital bed configured to be in a fixed position or of a hospital bed configured to be raised to a vertical position.

9. The relief system according to claim 2, which further comprises a device for longitudinal displacement configured to displace said suspension along a longitudinal direction or along a longitudinal direction of a hospital bed.

10. The relief system according to claim 2, which further comprises an additional device for at least partially taking up further weight of the person.

11. The relief system according to claim 2, which further comprises: at least one of a device for longitudinal displacement, an additional device for at least partially taking up further weight of the person or a verticalization mechanism of a hospital bed; and a sensor for measuring a weight force on the person or for measuring a force acting on outer extremities of the person, said sensor providing control data for controlling at least one of said device for longitudinal displacement, said additional device or said a verticalization mechanism.

12. The relief system according to claim 2, wherein: said suspension is one of two suspensions spaced apart from each other or spaced apart from each other at a head end of a hospital bed; said cuff is one of two cuffs; and said first support device is one of two first support devices each operatively connecting a respective one of said cuffs to a respective one of said suspensions.

13. The relief system according to claim 2, which further comprises a holding system for at least one of the upper body or the waist of a person.

14. The relief system according to claim 1, wherein said first fastening device and said second fastening device are variably disposed at an angle of 180° to each other in a closed condition of said cuff.

15. The relief system according to claim 1, wherein said guide device has at least one slide eyelet or a deflection roller to which said first support device is operatively connected.

16. The relief system according to claim 1, wherein said suspension is part of a head end of a hospital bed configured to be in a fixed position or of a hospital bed configured to be raised to a vertical position.

17. The relief system according to claim 1, which further comprises a device for longitudinal displacement configured to displace said suspension along a longitudinal direction or along a longitudinal direction of a hospital bed.

18. The relief system according to claim 1, which further comprises an additional device for at least partially taking up further weight of the person.

19. The relief system according to claim 18, wherein said additional device is a base plate disposed at a foot end of a hospital bed or a foot module of a rehabilitation mechanism.

20. The relief system according to claim 1, which further comprises: at least one of a device for longitudinal displacement, an additional device for at least partially taking up further weight of the person or a verticalization mechanism of a hospital bed; and a sensor for measuring a weight force on the person or for measuring a force acting on outer extremities of the person, said sensor providing control data for controlling at least one of said device for longitudinal displacement, said additional device or said a verticalization mechanism.

21. The relief system according to claim 1, wherein: said suspension is one of two suspensions spaced apart from each other or spaced apart from each other at a head end of a hospital bed; said cuff is one of two cuffs; and said first support device is one of two first support devices each operatively connecting a respective one of said cuffs to a respective one of said suspensions.

22. The relief system according to claim 1, which further comprises a holding system for at least one of the upper body or the waist of a person.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 shows a front view of an embodiment of a relief system according to the invention with two suspensions spaced apart from each other and fastened to the head end of a hospital bed;

(2) FIG. 2 shows the relief system from FIG. 1, with a holding system for the upper body and/or the waist of a person;

(3) FIG. 3 shows a side view of the relief system from FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 4 shows a side view of a relief system with a suspension and with a first support means; and

(5) FIG. 5 shows a side view of a relief system with a suspension and with a first support means and a second support means.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(6) In the following description of preferred embodiments of the present invention, identical reference signs designate identical or comparable components.

(7) FIG. 1 shows a front view of an embodiment of a relief system 4 according to the invention with two suspensions 44a and 44b spaced apart from each other and fastened to the head end 51 of a hospital bed 5. In this embodiment, a cuff 1a, 1b is operatively connected to a respective suspension 44a, 44b via a first support means 41a, 41b. The suspensions 44a, 44b can be designed separately and arranged, as shown, at the head end 51 of a hospital bed 5, or they can also be part of a head end 51 of a hospital bed 5. The hospital bed 5 is preferably designed to be able to be raised vertically, such that, by movement of the hospital bed 5 from the horizontal, a person 9 lying on it can be pivoted from the horizontal position all the way to a completely upright position.

(8) The cuffs 1a and 1b can preferably be designed in the manner described in the parallel application DE 10 2018 102 107.1 filed today by the applicant, for which reason reference is made in full to this parallel application in order to avoid repetition, and they serve to receive at least part of an outer extremity of a person 9 and, as shown here, can be designed as thigh cuffs for receiving a thigh 91 of the person 9. At least one guide means 46a, 46b for guiding the first support means 41a, 41b is arranged respectively on the suspensions 44a, 44b, wherein the one or more guide means 46a, 46b preferably have at least one slide eyelet or, as here, a deflection roller 461, to which the first support means 41a, 41b are operatively connected. The one or more support means 41a, 41b can be designed as a band, belt, strap and/or a chain. They are preferably formed from a disinfectable plastic, in particular from polyurethane, or are provided with a disinfectable coating, in particular of polyurethane, in order to make them easier to clean.

(9) To perform rehabilitation exercises or training, a person 9 can now be connected to the relief system 4, for example, via one or both cuffs 1a, 1b. For this purpose, the cuffs 1a, 1b, designed here as thigh cuffs, can advantageously be arranged on at least part of an outer extremity, here on a thigh 91, by a third party, without having to lift the upper body 92 and/or waist 93 of the person 9, and can thus secure the person 9. If the hospital bed 5 that can be raised vertically is now pivoted from a horizontal position to a vertical position, the downward force acting on the person 9 increases as the pivoting angle increases.

(10) As can be seen from FIG. 1, an additional means 53 for at least partially taking up further weight of the person, and in the form of a base plate 531 or of a foot module 532 of a rehabilitation mechanism 55, can be arranged at the foot end 54 of the hospital bed 5.

(11) If the person 9 is operatively connected to the additional means 53 for at least partially taking up further weight of the person, the weight load on the outer extremities, in particular on the legs, of the person 9 would increase continuously as the pivoting angle increases and, consequently, as the downward force increases.

(12) However, since at least one first fastening means 16a, 16b for fastening a first end 411a, 411b of the first support means 41a, 41b and at least one second fastening means 17a, 17b for fastening a second end 412a, 412b of the first support means 41a, 41b are formed on the cuffs 1a, 1b, such that an equally distributed tensile force Z is exerted on the cuffs 1a, 1b at the first fastening means 16a, 16b and second fastening means 17a, 17b when the first support means 41a, 41b is guided through the guide means 46a, 46b during a movement B of the cuffs 1a, 1b when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person, at least part of the body weight of the person 9 is taken up.

(13) Depending on the severity of the person's condition and/or on the form of rehabilitation and/or mobilization exercises that are to be performed, the person 9 can be received exclusively by the one or more cuffs 1a, 1b, or, alternatively, a holding system 6 for the upper body 92 and/or the waist 93 of the person can be provided, in order to additionally stabilize the person.

(14) FIG. 2 shows the relief system 4 from FIG. 1 with a holding system 6 for the upper body 92 and/or the waist 93 of a person 9. Bands for fixing the person 9 to the hospital bed 5 are shown here. However, the holding system 6 can also be configured as an upper body and/or waist strap, harness or the like.

(15) FIG. 3 shows a side view of the relief system 4 from FIG. 1. It will be seen that a means 45 for longitudinal displacement can be arranged at the head end 51 of the hospital bed 5 and is preferably designed to displace the suspension 44a, 44b along a longitudinal direction L, in particular of a hospital bed 5.

(16) In addition, as is shown in FIG. 3, a sensor 47 for measuring a weight force on the person 9, in particular for measuring the force acting on the outer extremities, can be arranged at the head end 51 of the hospital bed 5 and/or at the additional means 53 for at least partially taking up further weight of the person 9, preferably at the foot module 532 of a rehabilitation mechanism 55 (cf. FIG. 1) or at a base plate 531 arranged at the foot end 54 of the hospital bed 5 (cf. FIG. 2), which sensor 47 provides control data for the control of a means 45 for longitudinal displacement, of an additional means 53 for at least partially taking up further weight of the person 9, and/or of a verticalization mechanism 52 of a hospital bed 5.

(17) FIG. 4 shows a side view of a relief system 4 with a suspension 44a, 44b and with a first support means 41a, 41b. The lines cutting obliquely through the support means 41a, 41b are here intended to indicate that the figure is not shown true to scale and that the length of the support means 41a, 41b must be imagined as being longer in comparison to the dimensioning of the other structural parts shown.

(18) At least one first fastening means 16a, 16b for fastening a first end 411a, 411b of the first support means 41a, 41b and at least one second fastening means 17a, 17b for fastening a second end 412a, 412b of the first support means 41a, 41b are formed on the cuff 1a, 1b, such that an equally distributed tensile force Z is exerted on the cuff 1a, 1b at the first fastening means 16a, 16b and second fastening means 17a, 17b when the first support means 41a, 41b is guided through the guide means 46a, 46b during a movement B of the cuff 1a, 1b when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person 9. The movement B of the cuff 1a, 1b can be triggered here by a stepping or walking movement of the person 9 or by a movement initiated by a rehabilitation mechanism 55, in particular by the foot module 532 of the latter.

(19) In the example shown here, the support means 41a, 41 b runs via a guide means 46a, 46b designed as a deflection roller 461 and is operatively connected with its first end 411a, 411 b to the first fastening means 16a, 16b and with its second end 412a, 412b to the second fastening means 17a, 17b.

(20) In this way, a deflection of the tensile force from the front to the rear of the cuff 1a, 1b is effected via the deflection roller 461, as a result of which a constant relief force is generated, and the outer extremities of the person 9, in particular the legs, that are received by the cuff 1a, 1b remain able to be moved or to move.

(21) The fastening means 16a, 16b and/or 17a, 17b can be arranged variably on a closed cuff 1a, 1b, such that, in the case of two fastening means 16a, 16b and/or 17a, 17b, these can be arranged at an angle of 180° to each other. The variable arrangement of the fastening means 16a, 16b and/or 17a, 17b can preferably be effected by rails, as shown in FIG. 4 at the second fastening means 17a, 17b, and/or by the provision of several fastening means spaced apart from each other, shown here at the first fastening means 16a, 16b.

(22) To permit better adaptation to the dimensions of the respective user, the first support means 41a, 41b can also be designed to be longitudinally adjustable at least at one end 411a, 411b and/or 412a 412b. In FIG. 4, a means 43a, 43b for the longitudinal adjustment of the first support means 41a, 41b is shown for example near the second end 412a, 412b. The means 43a, 43b for the longitudinal adjustment can preferably be formed as a buckle, with various holes spaced apart from one another in a first support part 41a, 41b configured as a strap, or as an adjusting screw in a support means 41a, 41b configured as a chain or (steel) cable.

(23) Finally, FIG. 5 shows a side view of a relief system 4 with a suspension 44a, 44b and a first support means 41a, 41b and a second support means 42a, 42b. In this variant of the invention, at least one third fastening means 18a, 18b is formed on the cuff 1a; 1b for fastening a first end 421a, 421b of a second support means 42a, 42b whose second end 422a, 422b is connected to the suspension 44a, 44b, such that a variable tensile force Zv is exerted on the cuff 1a, 1b at the third fastening means 18a, 18b when the second support means 42a, 42b is guided through the guide means 46a, 46b during a movement B of the cuff 1a, 1b when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person 9. The third fastening means 18a, 18b on a closed cuff 1a, 1b can also preferably be arranged variably such that, in the case of three fastening means 16a, 16b and 17a, 17b and 18a, 18b, these can be arranged at an angle of 120° to each other. At the zero point of the movement, i.e. with the suspended extremity of the person 9 extended and approximately straight, the force acting on the cuff 1a, 1b is in this way advantageously distributed uniformly to the cuff 1a, 1b, which advantageously increases the stability of the relief system 4, in particular as regards lateral tilting of the cuff. During a movement B of the cuff 1a, 1b in the context of a rehabilitation or mobilization exercise, the tensile force Zv on the third fastening means 18a, 18b decreases and the relief force distributes itself uniformly as tensile force Z to the first support means 41a, 41b or the first fastening means 16a, 16b and second fastening means 17a, 17b. As can be seen in FIG. 5, the second support means 42a, 42b can also be designed to be advantageously longitudinally adjustable at least at one end 421a, 421b, 422a or 422b.

(24) The present invention relates to a relief system 4 for at least partially relieving the body weight of a person 9, characterized in that at least one first fastening means 16a, 16b for fastening a first end 411a, 411b of the first support means 41a, 41b and at least one second fastening means 17a, 17b for fastening a second end 412a, 412b of a first support means 41a, 41b are formed on a cuff 1a, 1b, such that an equally distributed tensile force Z is exerted on the cuff 1a, 1b at the first fastening means 16a, 16b and second fastening means 17a, 17b when the first support means 41a, 41b is guided through the guide means 46a, 46b during a movement B of the cuff 1a, 1b when loaded by at least part of the body weight of the person 9. It advantageously allows a bedridden patient in particular to be easily connected to the relief system 4 without said patient first of all having to be repositioned, without interfering with other medical/therapeutic devices, for example catheters and/or diagnostic sensors, and without limiting the patient in terms of a stepping/walking movement. It is of course also suitable for use in traditional rehabilitation equipment and/or sports equipment for patients not confined to bed.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(25) 1a, 1b cuff 16a; 16b first fastening means 17a; 17b second fastening means 18a; 18b third fastening means 4 relief system for the body weight of a person (9) 41a; 41b first support means 411a; 411b first end of the first support means 41a; 41b 412a; 412b second end of the first support means 41a; 41b 42a; 42b second support means 421a; 421b first end of the second support means 42a; 42b 422a; 422b second end of the second support means 42a; 42b 43a; 43b means for longitudinal adjustment 44a; 44b suspension 45 means for longitudinal displacement 46a; 46b guide means 461 deflection roller 47 sensor 5 hospital bed 51 head end 52 verticalization mechanism 53 additional means for taking up weight 531 base plate 532 foot module 54 foot end 55 rehabilitation mechanism 6 holding system 9 person 91 thigh 92 upper body 93 waist L longitudinal direction Z equally distributed tensile force Zv variable tensile force B movement of the cuff 1a; 1b