US2699826A - Armhole closure for incubators for infants - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 18, 1955 I EMERSQN 2,699,826

ARMHOLE CLOSURBF'OR INCUBATORS FOR INFANTS Filed March 29, 1952 United States Patent Ofiice 2,699,826 Patented Jan. 18, 1955 ARMHOLE CLOSURE FOR INCUBATORS FOR INFANTS John H. Emerson, Arlington, Mass. Application March 29, 1952, Serial No. 279,382

3 .Claims. (Cl. 160-479) This invention relates to incubators for infants. One

example of the type of infants placed in such an incubator is a baby which has been prematurely born.

Incubators of the type to which this invention pertains consist of a baby enclosing casing which is provided with a support upon which the baby reclines. The casing is provided with one or more openings of such a size as to be able to receive the hand and forearm of a nurse or other attendant to permit feeding the bady, bathing it, changing its diapers and otherwise comforting it without removing it from the casing.

More particularly the invention relates to an improved anopening in the casing and improved closure means for providing a substantially air-tight seal between an attendants arm and the edge of the casing opening.

A further object is to-provide such an improved closure means whichautomatically closes the opening upon withdrawal of the attendants arm.

Another object is to provide such an improved closure having detachable parts which may readily be removed and replaced by a nurse or other attendant.

A further object is to provide such a closure which is adapted for use in connection with an opening in a portion of a patient enclosing casing which is curved in cross section.

A further object is to provide a novel closure for an arm opening in an incubator which is simple in operation, economical to manufacture, easy to clean and easy to replace.

Other objects relate to the construction and mode of operation and will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings which exemplify one embodiment of my invention chosen for the purposes of illustration.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an end elevation of an apparatus embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the apparatus of Fig. l on a reduced scale; and

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on the lines 33 of Pi 1.

%n the apparatus illustrated the supporting structure comprises four legs secured to a substantially rectangular frame member 11. Casters (not shown) are mounted on the lower extremities of the legs 10 so that the incubator may be readily moved from place to place.

The incubator casing comprises a stainless steel, panlike member 12 and the transparent member 13 which is upwardly curved in cross section. The upper member 13 may be made of a transparent plastic such as Lucite and it is provided with a flange 17 which rests lightly upon the flange 18 of the lower member 12. The upper member 13 is hinged to the lower member 12 by means of a pair of spaced lugs 14 secured to the upper member 13, a pair of spaced lugs 15 secured to the lower member 12 and a horizontal rod 16 which is secured to the lugs 15 and passes loosely through perforations in the lugs 14. Thus the upper member 13 may be moved upwardly about the horizontal axis formed by the rod 16 to open the casing to permit the baby to be placed therein and then lowered to close the casing.

A horizontal baby support (not shown) is provided within the lower member 12 and the infant reclines on that support while within the incubator casing.

In the embodiment which is illustrated four substantially circular openings 20 are provided in the upper casing member 13. Each of these openings is of sufficient size to receive the hand and forearm of an attendant when the attendants hand is inserted from the exterior to the interior of the incubator casing.

The closure for each casing opening 20 includes a first strip of resilient material 21, made of vulcanized rubber, neophene or the like, which is attached to one side of the periphery of the opening 20 and which bridges slightly more than one-half of the opening and a second strip of resilient material 31 attached to the casing adjacent to the other side of the periphery of the opening and bridging the portion of the opening which is not bridged by the first strip. The second strip 31 overlaps the first strip 21 adjacent to the edge of the first strip which extends across the opening. In the preferred embodiment the first strip 21 is provided with a concave edge 22 and the second strip 31 is also provided with a concave edge 32. p

The closure strips 21-3l are detachably held in position by a plurality of enlarged headed studs 40 located adjacent to the periphery of the opening 20 and a plurality of openings or perforations 41 in the portions of the strips which overlie the casing. The faces of the heads of the studs 49 which are adjacent to the casing member 13 are spaced outwardly from the casing a sufiicient distance to permit the strips to lie loosely between said faces and the casing member 13 as shown in Fig. 3. The diameter of each perforation or opening 41 is less than the diameter of the enlarged heads of the studs 40 so that the resilient strip must be stretched to enlarge the diameter of the openings to permit insertion of the heads 40 therethrough when the strip is mounted across the opening. The openings are so located in each strip that it is necessary to stretch the strip both transversely and peripherally when it is mounted over the studs 40. This causes the strip to extend tightly across the opening and also tightly between the studs 4t) peripherally of the opening after the strip has been mounted by inserting the heads through the perforations 41.

The studs 40 are provided with etxeriorly threaded portions which engage interiorly threaded perforations in the upper casing member 13 and which also engage interiorly threaded passages of the lock nuts 50.

In use, the baby is placed within the casing upon the substantially horizontal patient support (not shown) and the interior of the casing is heated to the desired temperature of from 80 F. to F. by any suitable heating means (not shown). Oxygen may be fed to the interior of the casing by any suitable means (not shown) and the temperature of the interior of the casing may be observed by a thermometer located therein (not shown).

When the nurse desires to place her hand within the casing to care for the baby she passes it between the concave edges 22 and 32 of the resilient strips 21-31 and the concave edges of the strips engage her wrist or forearm thereby maintaining a substantially air-tight seal between it and the casing and preventing the loss of heated air, oxygen or the like. When she withdraws her hand the strips automatically return to their normal position in which they bridge the opening and their adjacent edges are overlapped as shown in Fig. 3. Because the adjacent edges 22, 32 are concave, they do not catch upon each other to leave an unbridged portion of the opening as is the case when straight edges: are provided rather than concave edges.

While it is preferable to provide a concave edge for each strip, a satisfactory closure results if a concave edge is provided only on the innermost strip, i. e. the strip 21 because such a concave edge will satisfactorily detach itself from a straight edge on the outermost strip and be cause the innermost strip is the one which returns first as the nurses hand is withdrawn.

The strips may easily be detached for replacement or cleaning by pulling their peripheries outwardly. During such operation the enlarged heads of the through the perforations 41.

While I have shown and described one desirable embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that this disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that various changes in shape, proportion and arrangement of parts and the substitution of equivalent elements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In an incubator for infants having a patient enclosing casing, the upper portion of which is outwardly convex in cross section, and an opening in the convex portion of said casingfor receiving the hand and forearm of an attendant, an improved closure for said casing opening comprising a first strip of resilent material overlying the casing adjacent to the periphery of said opening and bridging approximately one-half of said opening, the edge of said strip which extends across the opening being concave, a second strip of resilient material overlying the casing adjacent to the periphery of said opening and bridging the portion of the opening which is not bridged by said first strip and overlapping the edge of the first strip which extends across the opening, the casing having a plurality of outwardly projecting studs adjacent to and spaced about the periphery of the opening, each stud having an enlarged head with its lower face spaced outwardly from the casing but below the plane of the outer edge of the opening, that portion of each strip which overlies the casing having a plurality of openings of smaller diameter than the enlarged heads whereby the edge of each opening of each strip contracts about the shank of the stud which it surrounds between the casing and the head of the stud and the strips are thereby removably attached to the casing.

2. In an incubator for infants having a patient enclosing casing and an opening in said casing for receiving the hand and forearm of an attendant, an improved closure for said casing opening comprising two strips of resilient material, each strip overlying the casing adjacent to the periphery of said opening and having overlapped edge portions extending across the opening, the edges of said strips which extend across the opening being concave,

studs 40 pass the casing having a plurality of outwardly projecting studs adjacent to and spaced about the periphery of the opening, each stud having an enlarged head with its lower face spaced outwardly from the casing and at least the major portion of said lower face being located below the plane of the outer edge of said opening, that portion of each strip which overlies the casing having a plurality of openings of smaller diameter than the enlarged heads and operative to be stretched over said heads and to engage the shanks of the studs between the casing and said heads, whereby the strips are removably attached to the casing.

3. In an incubator for infants having a patient enclosing casing, the upper portion of which is outwardly convex in cross section and an opening in the convex portion of said casing for receiving the hand and forearm of an attendant, an improved closure for said casing opening comprising two strips of resilient material, each strip overlying the casing adjacent to the periphery of said opening and having overlapped edge portions extending across the opening the edges of said strips which extend across the opening being concave, the casing having a plurality of upwardly projecting studs adjacent to and spaced about the periphery of the opening, each stud having an enlarged head with its lower face spaced above the casing but below the plane of the periphery of the opening, that portion of each strip which overlies the casing having a plurality of openings spaced inwardly from said studs and of smaller diameter than the enlarged heads, whereby the edge of each opening of each strip contracts about the shank of the stud which it surrounds between the casing and the edge of the stud and the strips are thereby removably attached to the casing.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Grieb Ian. 10, 1952

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