US3484874A - Bed pan device - Google Patents

Description

"D 1969 F. J. BICKENHEUSER, JR 3,434,874

BED PAN DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 39, 1966 y Frank J. B/ckenheuseqw;

6U ATTORNEY DO'PWM BED PAN DEVICE Filed Sept. 30 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I2 /a w INVENTOR. Frank J B/C/Qhhfluilfln ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,484,874 BED PAN DEVICE Frank J. Bickenheuser, Jr., P.0. Box 2568, Tulsa, Okla. 73101 Filed Sept. 30, 1966, Ser. No. 583,208

Int. Cl. A61g 9/00 US. Cl. 4-112 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE In the care of bed ridden patients it is well known that the handling and use of a bed pan presents many problems for both the attendant or nurse and the patient. At the present time, the most usual manner of use of a bed pan comprises the placing of the pan beneath the patient for use, and removing the pan subsequent to use thereof. The removed pan is normally covered with a suitable cloth, or the like, and transported to the proper disposal facilities for disposal of the contents. The pan must then be sterilized prior to use with another patient. This is not only a distasteful procedure for both the patient and attendant, but also is considered to be somewhat unsanitary in that germs may often be spread from one patient to another from this type of handling of body wastematerials. The usual manipulation of a patient dur ing placing of the patient on a bed pan frequently results in the dislodging of any needle or the like, which may be fastened or secured to the patient, such as for supplying blood or intravenous feeding or the like. This is very unpleasant for both the patient and attendant. Furthermore, the usual bed pan in use today requires substantially constant attention to the patient during the use thereof and the sterilizing procedure is both expensive and time consuming which is a great disadvantage, particularly in the light of the critical shortage of nurses and qualified medical or hospital personnel today.

The present invention contemplates a novel bed pan device particularly designed and constructed for overcoming the above disadvantages. The novel device comprises a substantially fiat base member adapted for disposition on the upper surface of a bed. A relatively flat seating portion having a central aperture is disposed on the upper surface of the base member and can be elevated or lowered with respect thereto. A disposable receptacle is removably secured in the aperture and remains substantially flat in the lowered position of the seat but sags to form a waste receiving chamber upon elevation of the seating portion. The seating portion may be alternately raised and lowered in any well known manner, and preferably is actuated by means of a suitable hand crank mechanism extending beyond the outer confines of the bed. A back supporting member is also provided for the device and may be elevated into a position against the back of the patient as desired for supporting the patient in a substantially upright sitting position during utilization of the bed pan device.

In order to install and use the apparatus, the patient may be rolled or otherwise moved to one side of the bed by a hospital attendant, or the like, whereby the apparatus may be disposed on the upper surface of the bed. The patient may then be rolled or moved into a position on the device subsequent to installation thereof on the bed. When the patient is properly orientated with respect to the seating portion and back support device, the seating portion may be elevated to the desired 3,484,874 Patented Dec. 23, 1969 position, preferably through a distance of approximately six inches. The back support may be disposed adjacent the patients back for supporting him in a sitting position, and a suitable seat belt, similar to safety belts utilized in automobiles, may be secured around the body of the patient for securely retaining him in position on the elevated seating portion. As the seating portion is elevated, the disposable receptacle will sag in the central aperture to provide a chamber for receiving the body waste materials from the patient. The patient may be left in this position unattended until such a time as he is through with the use of the device. The attendant may then easily remove the disposable receptacle, lower the seating portion and back support for lowering the patient onto the surface of the bed. The device may then be easily removed from the bed.

The used receptacle and contents may be dropped into the usual water closet for disposal. The material from which the receptacle is constructed is dissolvable in Water, and thus facilitates the disposal of the entire bag and contents. Of course, one side of the receptacle is coated with a suitable wax whereby the receptacle is dissolvable from one side only. The dissolvable side of the receptacle is the outer side, whereby the bag will dissolve upon being dropped into the water in the water closet or other disposal of facility. The wax coating may be quickly and easily flushed away with the contents of the receptacle upon dissolving of the outer material of the bag.

It is an important object of this invention to provide a novel bed pan structure for use with bed ridden patients and which is particularly designed for reducing time and labor required for use thereof.

Another object of this invention is to provide a novel bed pan structure which may be utilized in a manner substantially conforming to the normal toilet facilities, thus increasing the efficiency thereof.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a novel bed pan structure which reduces the time required in attendance by nursing personnel, and the like.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel bed pan structure having a disposable container in combination therewith for greatly increasing the sanitary conditions of use of the device.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a novel disposable container for use with a bed pan device and which is also dissolvable for facilitating disposal of the container and contents subsequent to use of the bed pan device.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a novel disposable container for use with a bed pan device which is dissolvable from one side only for facilitating the use and disposal thereof.

Other and further objects and advantageous features of the present invention will hereinafter more fully appear in connection with a detailed description of the drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a bed pan device embodying the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of a bed pan device embodying the invention.

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a plan view of a bed having a bed pan device as depicted in FIGURES 1 through 3 disposed thereon.

FIGURE 5 is a side elevational view of a seating portion embodying a modified form of the invention.

FIGURE 6 is a plan view of a receptacle embodying the invention.

FIGURE 7 is a sectional elevational view taken on line 3 7-7 of FIGURE 6, and enlarged in thickness for purposes of illustration.

Referring to the drawings in detail and particularly FIGURES 1 through 4, reference character 10 generally indicates a bed pan device comprising a substantially fiat base plate portion 12 and a movable seating portion 14 carried thereby. The base member 12 may be removably secured to the upper surface of a bed 16, or the like, in any suitable manner, and as depicted herein a plurality of straps 18 may be pivotally secured to the base 12, with one strap 18 being secured to each corner thereof. The base plate 12 is preferably constructed of a strong, sturdy, light weight material, such as aluminum or other metallic plate, and the straps 18 may be made of metal, plastic, fabric, or any other suitable material. It is preferable to provide means (not shown) at the outer end of each strap 18 for clamping over or otherwise engaging the opposite sides of the bed 16 whereby the plate 12 may be substantially centrally disposed on the bed 16 as shown in FIGURE 4, and securely retained in position thereon. The pivotal connection of the straps 18 with the plate 12 permits adjustment of the angular position of the straps 18 in order to facilitate securing of the device 10 to a bed 16 of substantially any width.

The seating portion 14 is substantially flat and may be of any desired configuration, as is well known, for providing comfort for a patient sitting or otherwise resting thereon. As depicted herein, the seating member 14 is substantially annular, but of a slightly oval configuration and is provided with a central aperture 20 for removably receiving a receptacle 22, as will be hereinafter set forth in detail. However, it is to be understood that the overall configuration of the seat 14 may be of a biforcated type structure, or any other well known structure for this type of device. The Seating portion 14 is preferably substantially centrally disposed with respect to the upper or exposed surface 24 of the plate 12 and can be elevated or lowered with respect thereto. It is to be understood that any suitable type of structure or mechanism may be utilized for alternately raising and lowering the seat 14, and there is no intention to limit the invention to the particular combination of elements depicted herein.

As shown in FIGURES 1 through 4, the seat 14 is supported by a pair of transversely extending lifting arms 26 and 28, and it is preferable that the seating portion 14 is rigidly secured to the arms 26 and 28 for providing a stability to the device 10 during the use thereof. The arms 26 and 28 extend beyond one side of the seating portion 14 as particularly shown in FIGURE 2. The

arms 26 and 28 terminate in apertured enlarged portions 30 and 32, respectively, each for receiving a suitable ball nut 34. The arms 26 and 28 are rigidly secured to the respective ball nuts 34 and each ball nut 34 is threadedly secured to a ball screw 36 whereby rotation of the screws 36 in one direction will cause the nuts to move upwardly, as viewed in the drawings, and rotation of the screws 36 in an opposite direction will cause the nuts to move downwardly. Of course, the arms 26 and 28 are rigidly secured to the respective ball nuts 34 and move upwardly and downwardly simultaneously therewith. The ball screws 36 and ball nuts 34 may be of any suitable well known type which are used in applications wherein substantially frictionless movement is required.

As particularly shown in FIGURE 3, the screws 36 are preferably disposed within a housing 38 which may be either integral with the base plate 12, as depicted herein, or suitably secured thereto. The housing 38 comprises a pair of spaced upwardly extending sidewalls 40 and 42, a pair of upwardly extending end walls 44 and 46 and an upper cover 47 which form a substantially closed box type structure. One sidewall, for example the wall 42 is provided with a pair of spaced substantially parallel slots 48 and 50 for slidably receiving the arms 26 and 28, respectively, therethrough.

The screws 36. are disposed in substantial planar alignment within the housing 38 and are suitably journaled therein for rotation. For example, as shown in FIGURE 3, the lower end of each screw 36 is journaled in the plate 12 by means of a bearing member 52 (only one of which is shown) and the upper end of each screw 36 is similarly journaled in the cover 47 by means of a bearing member 54. Each screw 36 is provided with a gear member 56 which may be keyed or otherwise secured in the proximity of the upper end thereof for simultaneous rotation therebetween. A drive gear 58 (FIGURE 2) is journaled to the upper cover 47 in any suitable manner (not shown) and is centrally disposed between the screws 36 whereby both gears 56 will be engaged by the gear 58 for simultaneous rotation thereby. The drive gear 58, in turn, is driven by a bevel gear 60, or the like, as is well known. The gear 60 may be carried by a shaft 62 which extends between the sidewalls 40 and42 and is journaled for rotation in any well known manner, such as a bushing or bearing 64, or the like. The shaft 62 preferably extends beyond the sidewall 40 for receiving a suitable bell crank device 66 which may be manually operated in the usual manner for transmitting rotation to the shaft 62. Of course, the gear 60 is keyed or otherwise secured to the shaft 62 for rotation simultaneously therewith.

As the bell crank device 66 is utilized for rotation of the shaft 62, the gear 60 will be rotated for transmitting rotation to the drive gear 58. The gear 58 transmits rotation to the gears 56 whereby the gears 56 rotate in a common direction and in synchronization. The screws 36 are thus rotated in a common direction and at a common speed by the respective gears 56. Rotation of the screws 36 in one direction causes the ball nuts 34 to rise or move upwardly along the respective screws 36, as viewed in FIGURES 1 and 3. The upward movement of the nuts 34 causes the arms 26 and 28 to move upwardly in unison for elevating the seating portion 14 with respect to the base 12. Of course, rotation of the screws 36 in an opposite direction causes the ball nuts 34 to move downwardly whereby the arms 26 and 28 move downwardly for lowering the seating portion 14 with respect to the base member. The upward movement of the seating portion 14 is limited by the engagement of the arms 26 and 28 with the upper closed ends of the slots 48 and 50, respectively, and the downward movement of the seat 14 is limited by the engagement of the arms 26 and 28 with the upper surface 24 of the plate 12. Of course, other stop means may be provided for limiting the movement of the seating portion 14, if desired. In addition, whereas the upper surface of the cover 47 as depicted herein is substantially flat, it is to be understood that the surface thereof may be concave, if desired, in order to provide a cradle for receiving one arm of the patient therein during use of the device 10, as will be hereinafter set forth.

A back support device, generally indicated at 68, is provided for supporting the back of a patient in a substantially upright sitting position during use of the device 10. As shown in FIGURES 1 through 4, the back support 68 comprises a frame type structure 70 having a transversely extending back rest member 72 suitably secured thereon for engaging the back of the patent. The frame 70 may be pivotally secured to the base 12 as depicted herein and in any suitable manner, such as the pivot pins 74 and 76, or may be similarly pivotally secured to the seating portion 14 itself. The back support 68 may be provided with any suitable latching means for securing the frame 70 in any desired angular position with respect to the base 12, and as shown herein a transversely extending shank 78 carried by the frame 70 extends through an elongated slot 80 provided in an arm 82 pivotally secured to the sidewall 42 at 84. The pin 78 is slidable in the slot 80 and may be locked in substantially any desired position therein in any suitable or Well known manner (not shown) for securing the frame 70 and back rest 72 in the desired position for supporting the patient in a sitting position on the seat 14.

In order to use the device 10, the patient (not shown) may be rolled, or otherwise moved, to one side of the bed 16 and the plate 12 may be disposed substantially in the center of the bed with the housing portion oppositely disposed with respect to the position of the patient. The outer ends of at least two of the straps 18 may be anchored to one side of the bed in any suitable manner, and the patient may be rolled or moved onto the device 10, preferably with his back disposed in proper alignment with the seat 14 and back support 68. The remaining two straps 18 may then be suitably anchored to the opposite side of the bed whereby the entire device Will be securely retained in position on the upper surface of the bed. The bell crank mechanism may then be manually operated in the usual manner for rotating the screw 36 in a direction for elevating the seat 14, and patient disposed thereon. Of course, the back support structure 68 may be moved into a supporting position, if desired, whereby the patient will be supported in a substantially upright sitting position on the seat 14. It is preferable to anchor the body of the patient to the apparatus by means of a belt (not shown) or the like which may extend around the body of the patient and the back support structure 68 for holding the patient. Of course, the belt may be either a separate item or may be suitably secured to the device 10 for convenience.

As the seating portion 14 is elevated, the receptacle 22 will sag downwardly in the aperture 20 to provide a chamber for: receiving body waste materials. Subsequent to placing the patient in the proper position on the device 10, the attendant may leave the patient until such a time as the patient is through using the apparatus. The attendant then may easily remove the receptacle 22 and drop the receptacle and contents into a water closet, or the like, for disposal. The seat 14 may then be lowered by manual operation of the bell crank 66 for rotating the screws 36 in an opposite direction. The back support 68 may also be lowered, and the belt removed from the patient. The patient may then be rolled to one side of the bed to facilitate removal of the device from the bed in a reverse manner as hereinbefore set forth with regard to the in stallation thereof.

It is to be noted that the upper surface of the cover 47 provides a convenient arm rest for the patient. This is particularly important for patients having needles, or the like, secured to the arm, such as for blood transfusion, or the like. The relatively small amount of movement required for the patient in order to use the device 10 substantially precludes accidental dislodging of any needles, or the like, from the arm, and the provision of an arm rest also greatly reduces the possibility of dislodging of the needles.

A modified form of the invention is schematically depicted in FIGURE 5 wherein a base member 12a, similar to the base 12, may be provided having a movable seating portion 14a disposed thereabove. A plurality of pivotal linkage members 90 may be interposed between the base member 12a and seat 14a whereby one link member of each linkage 90 is pivotally secured between the base 12a and seat 14a as shown at 92 and 94, and the free end of the other link member of each linkage member 90 is slidably secured to the base 12a. A threaded shank or screw member 96 is interposed between the base 12a and 14a and is connected to the linkage members 90 in such a manner that rotation of the screw 96 in one direction will cause the linkage member 90 to pivot toward a folded or collapsed position whereby the seating portion 14a will be raised with respect to the base portion 12a, and rotation of the shank 96 in an opposite direction will cause the linkage members 90 to move toward a substantially straight position whereby the seat- 6 12a. The utilization of the modified device as shown in FIGURE 5 will be substantially as hereinbefore set forth with respect to the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Of course, any suitable means may be provided for alternate raising and lowering of the seating portion 14. For example, hydraulically or pneumatically operated pistons may be utilized in lieu of the ball screws and ball nuts. There is no intention of limiting the invention to the mechanisms disclosed herein.

Referring now to FIGURES 6 and 7, the receptacle 22 is constructed from a suitable plastic-water soluble film in a thickness range of .001 gauge to .0015 gauge, and is preferably the plastic-water soluble film made by Union Carbide and sold under the name Radel POX. The plastic film is preferably made in webs and one side of the sheet or web is sprayed with a wax in any well known manner to provide a complete and thorough coating of the said one side of the web. The wax coating is preferably of the type manufactured by Sunray DX under the name M-l60. A wax solvent is moved with the wax prior to the spraying or coating operation in order to provide more efiicient coating of the plastic film. The wax solvent may be of any suitable type, such as toluene, trichloride ethylene, petrol naptha, or the like, but the petrol naphtha is considered preferable.

The coated plastic film may be cut into circular flat sheets or main portions 97 in any well known manner (not shown) and an annular member 98 is glued, or otherwise bonded around the outer periphery thereof. The ring 98 is preferably constructed from paper, or the like, such as is commonly used in toilet seat covers today. The ring member 98 may be removably secured to the seating portion 14 in any well known manner (not shown), such as by spring urged fingers, or the like, adjacent the under surface of the seat. The circular sheet is of a size to permit folding or pleating thereof in a manner similar to the well known ice bag whereby the sheet will lie substantially flat (as shown in FIGURE 7) in the lowered position of the seat 14 but will sag in the raised position of the seat 14, as shown in FIGURE 1.

The interior surface of the receptacle 22 is the coated surface, and the wax coating will withstand temperatures up to 168 F. Since body temperatures do not reach this temperature, it will be apparent that the receptacle 22 will retain body wastes during use of the device 10. When the receptacle is removed from the device 10 and dropped into a water closet, or the like, the water will dissolve the circular portion 97 and the wax will be released in the water, as will the ring member 98. The remains may be easily flushed away with relatively little possibility of stoppage of the sewage facilities.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a novel bed pan structure and disposable/dissolvable receptacle therefor which greatly facilitates the use of the bed pan device for poth a patient and attendant. The novel bed pan structure includes a seating portion which may be elevated during use to provide for greater comfort for the patient during use, and may be lowered for facilitating placing of a patient there on. In addition, a disposable/dissolvable receptacle is provided for receiving the body wastes during use of the device. The receptacle greatly reduces hazards of germs, and the like, and may be readily discarded for disposal of both the bag and contents. The novel device is simple and efiicient in operation and economical and durable in construction.

Changes may be made in the combination and arrangement of parts as heretofore set forth in the specification and shown in the drawings, it being understood that any modification in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made within the scope of the following claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A bed pan device comprising a base plate, a movable seating portion carried by the base plate, means cooperating between the substantially horizontal base plate and the seating portion to provide straight essentially vertical upward and vertical downward reciprocal movement of the seating portion with respect to the base plate so that the seating portion remains substantially parallel to said base plate, stationary arm support means carried by the base plate, back support means adjustably secured to the base plate, and receptable means removably secured to the seating portion for receiving waste material therein.

2. A bed pan device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the means for raising and lowering the seating portion comprises ball screw and ball nut means, crank means for rotation of the ball screw whereby the ball nut is moved therealong, support means carried by the ball nut and movable therewith, said support means engageable with the seating portion for vertical reciprocation thereof simultaneously with the ball nut.

3. A bed pan device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the receptacle means is both disposable and dissolvable.

4. A bed pan device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the base plate is provided with means for removably securing the device to the bed.

5. A bed pan device as set forth in claim 1 wherein the receptacle means is constructed of a material which is soluble film of a thickness range from .001 gauge to .0015 gauge, and having one side thereof coated with a wax solution capable of withstanding temperatures up to 168 F.

8. A disposable/dissolvable receptacle comprising a main portion constructed from a plastic-water soluble plastic film, an annular member secured around the outer periphery of the main portion for removably securing the receptacle to an apertured member, said plastic-water soluble plastic film having one side thereof coated with a wax solution wherein the film is dissolvable from one side only.

9. A disposable/dissolvable receptacle as set forth in claim 8 wherein the wax solution is capable of withstanding temperatures in excess of body waste temperatures.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 735,135 8/1903 McLennan 4-112 1,086,584 2/1914 Bown 4-112 1,229,240 6/1917 Day 4-112 1,650,261 11/1927 Carlson 4'112 2,204,343 6/1940 Dawson 4-112 2,299,640 10/1942 Michon 4-112 2,530,965 11/1950 Horn 4-112 2,713,688 7/1955 Johnson 4-112 3,107,360 10/1963 Van Syoc et al 4-142 3,115,644 12/1963 Bloodworth 4-112 3,263,241 8/1966 Saulson 4-112 LAVERNE D. GEIGER, Primary Examiner D. B. MASSENBERG, Assistant Examiner

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