Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
WNJ-0048-CA
PATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUS WITH CAREGIVER REMINDERS
BACKGROUND
[0001] The present disclosure relates to patient support apparatuses,
such as beds, cots,
stretchers, operating tables, recliners, or the like. More specifically, the
present disclosure relates to patient
support apparatuses that include various reminder functions.
[0002] Conventional patient support apparatuses comprise a base, a
litter frame, a support deck
upon which the patient is supported, a lift system for lifting and lowering
the litter frame relative to the base,
and an articulation system for articulating one or more sections of the
support deck. Control of these and
other systems of the patient support apparatus is performed via a user
interface provided on a footboard or
on one or more of the side rails of the patient support apparatus. Often,
operation of the user interface is
complex, making the user interface difficult to operate.
[0003] Most healthcare facilities expect their caregivers to ensure
that the patient support
apparatuses are configured in a particular manner (e.g. one or more components
are in a desired state).
These expectations are in addition to the caregiver's many other
responsibilities, and in many instances the
duty of ensuring the patient support apparatuses are properly configured may
be overlooked and/or
forgotten.
SUMMARY
[0004] According to various aspects, an improved patient support
apparatus is provided that is
configured to provide reminders to the caregiver in order to assist the
caregiver in configuring the patient
support apparatus in a desired manner before the caregiver exits from the room
in which the patient
support apparatus is positioned. The reminders may be issued in multiple
manners, including an initial,
reminder screen that is shown on a display of the patient support apparatus.
In some embodiments, the
patient support apparatus may be configured to implement both patient-specific
reminders that apply only
to the specific patient currently assigned to the patient support apparatus
and global reminders that apply to
all patients that are assigned to the patient support apparatus. By managing
these different types of
reminders, the patient support apparatus automatically assists the caregiver
in ensuring that, if a reminder
is turned off for a particular patient, it is not turned off for all patients.
Further, the patient support apparatus
may be configured to automatically turn on the patient-specific reminder in
response to the caregiver
arming the exit detection system, thereby ensuring that reminders are
automatically issued for that patient
in the future.
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[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a patient
support apparatus is provided
that includes a support surface, a display, an exit detection system, a
memory, a reminder control, an
arming control, and a controller. The support surface is adapted to support a
patient thereon. The exit
detection system is adapted to be armed and disarmed, and to issue an exit
alert when the patient exits
from the patient support apparatus while the exit detection system is armed.
The memory includes a first
setting and a second setting stored therein. The first setting indicates
whether a reminder to arm the exit
detection system is to be issued for all patients and the second setting
indicates whether the reminder is to
be issued for a specific patient. Each of the first and second settings are
adapted to be in an on state in
which the reminder is issued and an off state in which the reminder is not
issued. The reminder control is
adapted to allow a user to change the first setting between the on state and
the off state. The arming
control is adapted to arm and disarm the exit detection system. The controller
is configured to detect when
a patient is present on the support surface and to display the reminder on the
display if the first setting is in
the on state and the exit detection system is not armed. The controller is
further adapted to not display the
reminder on the display if the second setting is in the off state.
[0006] According to other aspects, when both the first and second settings
are in the off state, the
controller is adapted not to display the reminder. When both the first and
second settings are in the on
state, the controller is adapted to display the reminder.
[0007] In some aspects, the controller is further adapted to display
the reminder if the first setting
is in the off state and the second setting is in the on state, and to not
display the reminder if the first setting
is in the on state and the second setting is in the off state. The user is
able to turn the second setting on
and off for a given patient.
[0008] In some aspects, the reminder includes a first option to
dismiss the reminder and a second
option to turn off the reminder. The controller is adapted to remove the
reminder when a user selects the
first option but to leave the first and second settings unchanged. When a user
selects the second option,
the controller is adapted to remove the reminder and set the second setting to
the off state.
[0009] In some aspects, the arming control automatically switches the
second setting to the on
state when the exit detection system is armed.
[0010] In some aspects, the reminder control automatically switches
the second setting to the off
state when the first setting is set to the off state.
[0011] In some aspects, the patient support apparatus includes a new
patient control. When
activated, the new patient control is configured to leave the first setting
unchanged and automatically
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change the second setting to the same state as the first setting. The new
patient control may also erase
patient-specific data stored in memory when the new patient control is
activated.
[0012] According to another aspect of the disclosure, the patient
support apparatus further
includes an audio playback circuit in communication with the controller. The
audio playback circuit stores
at least one audio file used to alert hospital staff if the exit detection
system is triggered. An amplifier is in
communication with the audio playback circuit and the amplifier increases the
volume of the audio file. The
amplifier is connected to a speaker which emits the audio file to alert a
caregiver that the exit detection
system has been triggered.
[0013] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a
patient support apparatus is
provided that includes a support surface, a display, a monitoring system, a
memory, a reminder control, an
arming control, and a controller. The support surface is adapted to support a
patient thereon. The
monitoring system is adapted to monitor, when armed, a plurality of components
onboard the patient
support apparatus and to issue a monitoring alert if any one or more of the
plurality of components are in
an undesired state. The memory includes a first setting and a second setting
stored therein. The first
setting indicates whether a reminder to arm the monitoring system is to be
issued for all patients and the
second setting indicates whether the reminder is to be issued for a specific
patient. Each of the first and
second settings are adapted to be in an on state in which the reminder is
issued and an off state in which
the reminder is not issued. The reminder control is adapted to allow a user to
change the first setting
between the on state and the off state. The arming control is adapted to arm
and disarm the monitoring
system. The controller is configured to detect when a patient is present on
the support surface and to
display the reminder on the display if the first setting is in the on state
and the monitoring system is not
armed. The controller is further adapted to not display the reminder on the
display if the second setting is
in the off state.
[0014] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, when
both the first and second
settings are in the off state, the controller is adapted not to display the
reminder. When both the first and
second settings are in the on state, the controller is adapted to display the
reminder. The controller is
further adapted to display the reminder if the first setting is in the off
state and the second setting is in the
on state, and to not display the reminder if the first setting is in the on
state and the second setting is in the
off state. The user is able to turn the second setting on and off for a given
patient.
[0015] In some aspects, the reminder includes a first option to dismiss the
reminder and a second
option to turn off the reminder. The controller is adapted to remove the
reminder when a user selects the
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first option, but to leave the first and second settings unchanged. When a
user selects the second option,
the controller is adapted to remove the reminder and set the second setting to
the off state.
[0016] In some aspects, the arming control automatically switches the
second setting to the on
state when the monitoring system is armed.
[0017] In some aspects, the reminder control automatically switches the
second setting to the off
state when the first setting is set to the off state.
[0018] In some aspects, the patient support apparatus includes a new
patient control. When
activated, the new patient control is configured to leave the first setting
unchanged and automatically
change the second setting to the same state as the first setting. The new
patient control may also erase
patient-specific data stored in memory when the new patient control is
activated.
[0019] According to one aspect of the present invention, the patient
support apparatus further
includes an audio playback circuit in communication with the controller. The
audio playback circuit stores
at least one audio file used to alert hospital staff if the monitoring system
is armed and is triggered. An
amplifier is in communication with the audio playback circuit and the
amplifier increases the volume of the
audio file. The amplifier is connected to a speaker which emits the audio file
to alert a caregiver that the
monitoring system has been triggered.
[0020] Before the various aspects disclosed herein are explained in
detail, it is to be understood
that the claims are not to be limited to the details of operation, to the
details of construction, or to the
arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or
illustrated in the drawings. The
aspects described herein are capable of being practiced or being carried out
in alternative ways not
expressly disclosed herein. In addition, it is to be understood that the
phraseology and terminology used
herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as
limiting. The use of "including" and
"comprising" and variations thereof is meant to encompass the items listed
thereafter and equivalents
thereof as well as additional items and equivalents thereof. Further,
enumeration may be used in the
description of various aspects. Unless otherwise expressly stated, the use of
enumeration should not be
construed as limiting the claims to any specific order or number of
components. Nor should the use of
enumeration be construed as excluding from the scope of the claims any
additional steps or components
that might be combined with or into the enumerated steps or components.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0001] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a patient support apparatus having
first and second user
interfaces, according to one aspect of the disclosure;
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[0002] FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of the first user interface
depicted in FIG. 1;
[0003] FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view of the second user interface
depicted in FIG. 1;
[0004] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of various components of the
patient support apparatus and its
environment, including the first user interface and a sensor system;
[0005] FIG. 5 is an illustrative brake reminder screen that may be
displayed on a display of the first
user interface;
[0006] FIG. 6 is an illustrative nurse call reminder screen that may be
displayed on the display of the
first user interface;
[0007] FIG. 7 is an illustrative power source reminder screen that may
be displayed on the display of
the first user interface;
[0008] FIG. 8 is an illustrative Wi-Fi reminder screen that may be
displayed on the display of the first
user interface;
[0009] FIG. 9 is an illustrative bed exit reminder screen that may be
displayed on the display of the
first user interface;
[0010] FIG. 10 is an illustrative monitoring system reminder screen that
may be displayed on the
display of the first user interface;
[0011] FIG. 11 is an illustrative global settings screen that may be
displayed on the display of the first
user interface;
[0012] FIGS. 12A-12C are flow diagrams of a reminder management
algorithm executed by a
controller associated with the first and/or second user interfaces;
[0013] FIG. 13 is an egress reminder algorithm executed by the
controller;
[0014] FIG. 14 is an illustrative bed alarm monitoring screen that may
be displayed on the display of
the first user interface;
[0015] FIG. 15 is an illustrative new patient screen that may be
displayed on the display of the first
user interface;
[0016] FIG. 16 is an illustrative menu screen that may be displayed on
the display of the first user
interface; and
[0017] FIG. 17 is an illustrative monitoring system configuration screen
that may be displayed on the
display of the first user interface.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
[0018] An illustrative patient support apparatus 30 incorporating one
or more aspects of the
present disclosure is shown in FIG. 1. Such a patient support apparatus may be
like that described in
WIPO PCT Application No. 2002/257475, filed on June 18, 2020, entitled
"Patient Support Apparatus With
Caregiver Reminders". Although the particular form of patient support
apparatus 30 illustrated in FIG. 1 is
a bed adapted for use in a hospital or other medical setting, it will be
understood that patient support
apparatus 30 could, in different aspects, be a cot, a stretcher, a gurney, a
recliner, an operating table, a
residential bed, or any other structure capable of supporting a person,
whether stationary or mobile and/or
whether medical or residential.
[0019] A support structure 32 provides support for the patient. The support
structure 32 illustrated in
FIG. 1 comprises a base 34 and a support frame 36. The base 34 comprises a
base frame 35. The
support frame 36 is spaced above the base frame 35 in FIG. 1. The support
structure 32 also comprises a
patient support deck 38 disposed on the support frame 36. The patient support
deck 38 comprises several
sections, some of which are capable of articulating (e.g., pivoting) relative
to the support frame 36, such as
a back (fowler) section 41, a seat section 43, a leg section 45 and a foot
section 47. The patient support
deck 38 provides a patient support surface 42 upon which the patient is
supported. A lift system 37 may be
coupled to the support structure 32 to raise and lower the support frame 36,
patient support deck 38, and
patient support surface 42 to different heights relative to the base frame 35,
including to a lowest height
relative to the base frame 35. Such a lift system 37 may be like that
described in U.S. Patent Application
Pub. No. 2017/0246065, filed on February 22, 2017, entitled "Lift Assembly For
Patient Support Apparatus".
[0020] A mattress (not shown) is disposed on the patient support deck 38
during use. The mattress
comprises a secondary patient support surface upon which the patient is
supported. The base 34, support
frame 36, patient support deck 38, and patient support surface 42 each have a
head end and a foot end
corresponding to designated placement of the patient's head and feet on
patient support apparatus 30.
The base 34 comprises a longitudinal axis L1 along its length from the head
end to the foot end. The
construction of the support structure 32 may take on any known or conventional
design, and is not limited
to that specifically set forth above.
[0021] Patient barriers, such as side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 are coupled
to the support frame 36 and/or
patient support deck 38 and are thereby supported by the base 34. A first side
rail 44 is positioned at a
right head end. A second side rail 46 is positioned at a right foot end. A
third side rail 48 is positioned at a
left head end. A fourth side rail 50 is positioned at a left foot end. In the
aspect shown, the head end side
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rails 44, 48 are mounted to the back section 41 for movement with the back
section 41. The foot end side
rails 46, 50 are mounted to the support frame 36 for movement with the support
frame 36. If patient
support apparatus 30 is a stretcher or a cot, there may be fewer side rails.
The side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 are
movable relative to the back section 41/support frame 36 to a raised position
in which the side rails 44, 46,
48, 50 block ingress and egress into and out of patient support apparatus 30,
one or more intermediate
positions, and a lowered position in which the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 are
not an obstacle to such ingress
and egress. In the aspect shown, the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 are connected
to the back section 41 and/or
the support frame 36 by pivotal support arms to form four bar linkages. Such
side rails and the manner in
which they may be raised/lowered are shown and described in U.S. Patent
Application Pub. No.
2017/0172829, filed on December 15, 2016 and entitled "Powered Side Rail For A
Patient Support
Apparatus".
[0022] A headboard 52 and a footboard 54 are coupled to the support
frame 36. The headboard 52
and footboard 54 may be coupled to any location on patient support apparatus
30, such as the support
frame 36 or the base 34. In still other aspects, patient support apparatus 30
does not include the
headboard 52 and/or the footboard 54.
[0023] Caregiver interfaces 56, such as handles, are shown integrated
into the headboard 52,
footboard 54, and side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 to facilitate movement of patient
support apparatus 30 over a
floor surface F. Additional caregiver interfaces 56 may be integrated into
other components of patient
support apparatus 30. The caregiver interfaces 56 are graspable by the
caregiver to manipulate patient
support apparatus 30 for movement, to move the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50, and
the like.
[0024] Wheels 58 are coupled to the base 34 to facilitate transport over
the floor surface F. The
wheels 58 are arranged in each of four quadrants of the base 34 adjacent to
corners of the base 34. In the
aspect shown, the wheels 58 are caster wheels able to rotate and swivel
relative to the support structure 32
during transport. Each of the wheels 58 forms part of a caster assembly 60.
Each caster assembly 60 is
mounted to the base 34. Brake 61 may be associated with one or more of the
wheels 58 to arrest rotation
of the wheels when active. Brake 61 may be manually or electronically
actuated. It should be understood
that various configurations of the caster assemblies 60 and/or brake 61 are
contemplated. In addition, in
some aspects, the wheels 58 are not caster wheels and may be non-steerable,
steerable, non-powered,
powered, or combinations thereof. Additional wheels are also contemplated. For
example, patient support
apparatus 30 may comprise four non-powered, non-steerable wheels, along with
one or more powered
wheels. In some cases, patient support apparatus 30 may not include any
wheels.
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[0025] In other aspects, one or more auxiliary wheels (powered or non-
powered), which are movable
between stowed positions and deployed positions, may be coupled to the support
structure 32. In some
cases, when these auxiliary wheels are located between caster assemblies 60
and contact the floor surface
F in the deployed position, the auxiliary wheels cause two of the caster
assemblies 60 to be lifted off the
floor surface F, thereby shortening a wheel base of patient support apparatus
30. A fifth wheel may also be
arranged substantially in a center of the base 34.
[0026] The mechanical construction of patient support apparatus 30 may
be the same as, or nearly
the same as, the mechanical construction of the Model 3002 S3 bed manufactured
and sold by Stryker
Corporation of Kalamazoo, Michigan. This mechanical construction is described
in detail in the Stryker
Maintenance Manual for the MedSurg Bed, Model 3002 S3, published in 2010 by
Stryker Corporation of
Kalamazoo, Michigan. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that
patient support apparatus 30 can
be designed with other types of mechanical constructions, such as, but not
limited to, those described in
U.S. Patent No. 7,690,059, issued April 6, 2010, entitled "Hospital Bed,"
and/or U.S. Patent No. 8,689,376,
issued April 8, 2014, entitled "Patient Handling Device Including Local Status
Indication, One-Touch Fowler
Angle Adjustment, and Power-On Alarm Configuration". The mechanical
construction of patient support
apparatus 30 may also take on forms different from what is disclosed in the
aforementioned references.
[0027] Additionally, patient support apparatus 30 includes a user
interface 62 supported by the
support structure 32 of patient support apparatus 30. Although shown at the
foot end of patient support
apparatus 30, user interface 62 may be disposed at the head end, and/or on one
or more sides of patient
support apparatus 30. More specifically, one or more user interfaces 62 may be
attached to the headboard
52, footboard 54, and/or side rails 44, 46, 48, 50, or at any other suitable
location, via fasteners, welding,
snap-fit connections, or the like. In some versions, each user interface 62
comprises a separate housing
fixed to the headboard 52, footboard 54, and/or side rails 44, 46, 48, 50, or
other suitable locations. In
other versions, the housings of user interfaces 62 are integrated into the
headboard 52, footboard 54,
and/or side rails 44, 46, 48, 50. In at least one aspect, one of the user
interfaces 62 is attached to the
footboard 54 of patient support apparatus 30 and other user interfaces 62 are
attached to one or more of
the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50. A user interface 62 attached to the footboard
54 shall be described in detail,
but the features and functions to be described are equally applicable to the
other user interfaces 62 that
may be located elsewhere on patient support apparatus 30.
[0028] FIG. 2 depicts a perspective view of user interface 62 attached to
the footboard 54. User
interface 62 includes a display 64a. Display 64a may be a touchscreen-type
display, although it will be
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understood that a non-touchscreen display may alternatively be used. Display
64a displays one or more
visual indicators, one or more controls, and/or one or more control screens,
as will be discussed more
below. Display 64a may comprise an LED display, OLED display, or another type
of display.
[0029] Display 64a is configured to display a plurality of different
screens thereon, only one of which is
shown in FIG. 2. Specifically, display 64a is shown in FIG. 2 displaying a
motion control screen 154.
Motion control screen 154 includes a plurality of motion controls 107a-i that,
when touched, cause
movement of the associated component(s) of patient support apparatus 20. Thus,
for example, pressing
and holding motion control 107c causes back section 41 to be pivoted upwardly,
while pressing and holding
motion control 107d causes back section 41 to be pivoted downwardly. If the
user wishes to control other
aspects of patient support apparatus 20 besides movement, he or she can
navigate to different screens
that include different controls and/or other information about patient support
apparatus. Thus, for example,
if the user presses navigation control 66a, user interface 62 displays an exit
detection control screen 300
(shown in FIG. 14) that allows the user to control various aspects of exit
detection system 150. If the user
presses navigation control 66b, user interface 62 displays a monitoring
control screen 350 (shown in FIG.
17) that allows the user to control various aspects of the monitoring system
152. If the user presses
navigation control 66c, user interface 62 displays a scale screen (not shown)
that allows the user to take a
patient weight reading and/or control other aspects of the scale system. Still
further, if the user presses
home navigation control 66d, user interface 62 displays a home screen that, in
some aspects, includes
controls for accessing all of the functionality of patient support apparatus
20.
[0030] In some aspects, if the user presses navigation control 66a, patient
support apparatus 30 is
configured to not only display the exit detection control screen 300, but to
also automatically arm exit
detection system 150. In such aspects, patient support apparatus 30 may also
be configured to both
display a monitoring screen and to automatically arm monitoring system 152 in
response to the user
touching navigation control 66b. Further details of the operation of these
navigation controls 66a and 66b,
in at least one aspect, are disclosed in commonly assigned U.S. patent
application serial number
62/868,240, filed June 28, 2019, by inventors Kurosh Nahavandi et al. and
entitled "Patient Support
Apparatus with Improved User Interface".
[0031] User interface 62, in some aspects, also includes a dashboard 64b
(FIG. 2) that communicates
the current states of various conditions of patient support apparatus 30 to a
caregiver. Dashboard 64b
comprises a plurality of icons 70 that are illuminated via icon lights 68 to
thereby act as visual indicators for
indicating the current state of different conditions of patient support
apparatus 30. For example, a first icon
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70a (e.g., a graphical symbol of an alert over a bed) is backlit by a
corresponding light 68 when exit
detection system 150 is armed; a second icon 70b (e.g., a graphical symbol of
an eye) is backlit by a
second light 68 when monitoring system 152 is armed; a third icon 70c (e.g., a
graphical symbol of an
arrow and bed) is backlit by a third light 68 when the bed is at its lowest
height (or below a threshold
height); a fourth icon 70d (e.g., a graphical symbol of an unplugged AC power
cord) is backlit by a fourth
light 68 when the patient support apparatus 20 is plugged into an electrical
wall outlet; and a fifth icon 70e
(e.g., a graphical symbol of a lock and wheel) is backlit by a fifth light 68
when the brake is activated. The
lights 68 positioned behind these icons 70a-e may be controlled to be
illuminated in different colors,
depending upon what state the associated condition is currently in (e.g. the
brake is deactivated, exit
detection system 150 is disarmed, etc.) and/or one or more of them may
alternatively not be illuminated at
all when the associated condition is in another state. Fewer or additional
icons 70 may be included as part
of dashboard 64b. The plurality of icons 70 may be dead-fronted on the
dashboard 64b of user interface 62
such that the plurality of icons 70 are only visible by the caregiver when
illuminated by icon lights 68
supported in the housing of user interface 62.
[0032] Dashboard 64b, unlike display 64a, retains the illumination of one
or more of icons 70a-e at all
times. That is, display 64a is configured in some aspects to go to sleep
(blank) after a predetermined time
period elapses without usage. Dashboard 64b, however, retains the illumination
of the various icons 70
even after display 64a goes blank, thereby providing the caregiver with
information about the status of
patient support apparatus 30 when display 64a is blank. Thus, for example, if
the brake is not activated
and icon 70e is illuminated with an amber or red color, this illumination
remains for as long as the brake
remains inactive, even if display 64a times out and goes to sleep (or
otherwise goes blank).
[0033] Still referring to FIG. 2, one or more reflective surfaces 76 may
be located on the patient
support apparatus 30 proximate user interface 62. The reflective surfaces 76
may be disposed relative to
user interface 62 such that one or more indirect lights 78a supported by the
housing of user interface 62
project light away from user interface 62 toward the reflective surfaces 76 to
be reflected off the reflective
surfaces 76 and outward from the patient support apparatus 30 to act as
another visual indicator. Indirect
lights 78a may be located on a bottom of the housing of user interface 62 to
project the light away from the
bottom of the housing toward the reflective surfaces 76. Accordingly, indirect
lights 78a may be hidden
from view by the housing. The light may be reflected, for example, in several
directions, including generally
horizontal directions, for being easily viewed by a caregiver at a distance
from the patient support
apparatus 30. As shown in FIG. 2, in one example, one of the reflective
surfaces 76 is disposed
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underneath user interface 62 to reflect light away from the patient support
apparatus 30. The reflective
surface 76 may be a surface of the footboard 54, or may be any surface capable
of reflecting light from
indirect lights 78a, and may be present elsewhere on the patient support
apparatus 30. Similar reflective
surfaces 76 may be present on the headboard 52 and/or one or more of the side
rails 44, 46, 48, 50 to
reflect light from other user interfaces 62.
[0034] Reflective surfaces 76 are adapted in many aspects to generate
diffuse reflection, rather than
specular reflection. That is, surfaces 76 are not mirrored surfaces, but
instead are colored surfaces that
scatter the light emitted from lights 78a in multiple directions and/or at
many angles. In many aspects,
surfaces 76 are colored a white color, or an off-white color, such that the
color composition of the light
emitted by indirect lights 78a is not substantially changed after reflection
from surfaces 76. The color of
light emitted by indirect lights 78a is variable, and in several aspects,
comprises the same color palette as
icon lights 68. For example, in at least one aspect, indirect lights 78a may
emit light of three different
colors: amber, red, and green, and icon lights 68 are also able to emit light
of the same three colors. It will
be understood that the term "light" as used herein is broad enough to cover
multiple LEDs, bulbs, or other
light emitting structures, such that the term "light" includes structures
wherein one LED, bulb, or the like is
used for emitting a first color, a second LED, bulb, or the like is used for
emitting a second color, and so on.
[0035] Indirect lights 78a are configured to emit light constantly at
certain times, to emit light in a
pulsed fashion at other times, and to emit light in a flashing fashion at
still other times. The times at which
first and second lights are configured to be controlled in this manner, as
well as the colors of the light that
they are adapted to emit, are discussed in greater detail below.
[0036] Both icon lights 68 and indirect lights 78 may comprise RGB LEDs
("Red-Green-Blue Light
Emitting Diodes"). Icon lights 68 and/or indirect lights 78 may comprise a
single RGB LED, or may
comprise a plurality of LEDs. Icon lights 68 and indirect lights 78 may also
comprise one or more
incandescent bulbs, halogen lamps, neon lamps, fluorescent tubes, and/or any
other types of light emitting
devices. In some aspects, patient support apparatus 20 includes one or more
direct lights 102 located on
the sides of user interface 62 that emit light through light-transmitting
covers C attached to the housing of
user interface 62 (FIG. 2). When included, direct lights 102 are controlled in
synchrony with indirect lights
78a, as will be discussed in greater detail below.
[0037] In some aspects, additional user interfaces may be present on the
patient support apparatus
30, spaced from user interface 62. FIG. 3 depicts a perspective view of a user
interface 80 attached to the
side rail 44. A similar user interface 80 may be located on an opposing side
rail. These user interfaces 80
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may have more or less functionality than user interface 62, and may have their
own displays, indicator
panels with associated icons, and/or reflective surfaces to project light
outward from the side rails, for
example.
[0038] User interface 80 includes a plurality of controls and one or
more visual indicators. The
controls include bed orientation controls 84 with associated icons 86; support
deck section controls 88
which raise and lower the back (fowler) section 41 and leg section 45 of the
patient support deck 38 relative
to the support frame 36; bed height controls 90 which operate the lift system
37 to raise and lower the
support frame 36, patient support deck 38, and patient support surface 42 to
different heights relative to the
base frame 35; and brake control 92 which operates brake 61 (e.g. turns brake
61 on and off)
[0039] As shown in FIG. 3, in one aspect, the plurality of bed orientation
controls 84 includes an
egress control 84a which is represented on the interface by a first icon 86a
(e.g., an associated graphical
symbol of a patient leaving a bed). Egress control 84a is a user input device
associated with facilitating
egress of the patient from the patient support apparatus 30. Pressing egress
control 84a reconfigures the
patient support apparatus 30 into a position that allows easier exit from the
apparatus or an "egress
orientation." The same control 84a, or a similar control (not shown), can be
employed to allow ingress into
the patient support apparatus 30.
[0040] Other bed orientation controls include a Trendelenburg control
84b for reconfiguring the patient
support apparatus 30 into a Trendelenburg orientation, which is represented on
the interface by a second
icon 86b (e.g. an associated graphical symbol of a patient in a Trendelenburg
position), a chair control 84c
for reconfiguring the patient support apparatus 30 into a chair orientation,
which is represented on the
interface by a third icon 86c (e.g. an associated graphical symbol of a
patient in a chair position), a flat
control 84d for reconfiguring the patient support apparatus 30 into a flat
orientation, which is represented
on the interface by a fourth icon 86d (e.g. an associated graphical symbol of
a patient in a supine position),
a foot elevation control 84e for reconfiguring the patient support apparatus
30 into a foot elevation
orientation, which is represented on the interface by a fifth icon 86e (e.g.
an associated graphical symbol of
a patient in a foot elevation position), and a reverse Trendelenburg control
84f for reconfiguring the patient
support apparatus 30 into a reverse Trendelenburg orientation, which is
represented on the interface by a
sixth icon 86f (e.g. an associated graphical symbol of a patient in a reverse
Trendelenburg position).
[0041] User interface 80 includes a reminder light 94 that is activated
in order to remind the caregiver
to disarm exit detection system 150 prior to the patient egressing from the
apparatus 30. An
arming/disarming control 96 is provided, in some aspects, on user interface 80
to allow the caregiver to arm
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or disarm exit detection system 150 from the user interface 80. As shown in
FIG. 3, in one aspect, the
reminder light 94 is supported in the housing of user interface 80 that
illuminates an associated icon 98
(e.g., a graphical symbol of an alert) of the arming/disarming control 96.
[0042] In at least one aspect, reminder light 94 is controlled to emit
white light (steady, flashing, or
pulsing) when a user presses on egress control 84a while exit detection system
150 is armed, and to emit
no light at all other times except when exit detection system 150 is armed and
detects a patient exiting from
patient support apparatus 30. When such a patient exit is detected, reminder
light 94 may be activated to
emit a red flashing light. The red flashing illumination of reminder light 94
during an exit detection alert is
configured, in at least some aspects, to be synchronized with the red flashing
of other lights (e.g. indirect
lights 78a, 78b) that also occurs when an exit detection alert is issued. Such
synchronization means that
not only is reminder light 94 activated at the same times as the other lights,
but the waveform used to carry
out the flashing (non-sinusoidal) is of the same period, frequency, and
general shape (although the
amplitude may be different). Other manners of activating reminder light 94 may
also be employed.
[0043] Icon 98 is positioned over reminder light 94 such that reminder
light 94 illuminates icon 98
when reminder light 94 is activated. The illumination of icon 98 serves to
remind the caregiver to disarm
exit detection system 150 when egress control 84a is pressed and exit
detection system 150 is armed.
Further, the flashing illumination of icon 98 by reminder light 94 during a
bed exit alert serves as an
additional indication to the caregiver of the cause of the alert. In the
illustrated aspect, icon 98 and
reminder light 94 are integrated into an arming/disarming control 96.
Arming/disarming control 96 enables
the caregiver to disarm and/or arm exit detection system 150 when pressed. In
some aspects, reminder
light 94 may be separate and spaced from arming/disarming control 96 and/or
user interface 80 may omit
arming/disarming control 96.
[0044] Still referring to FIG. 3, at least one reflective surface 100 is
located on the side rails proximate
user interface 80. The reflective surface 100 is disposed relative to user
interface 80 such that one or more
indirect lights 78b supported by the housing of user interface 80 project
light away from user interface 80
toward the reflective surface 100 to be reflected off the reflective surface
100 and outward from the side
rails to act as another visual indicator.
[0045] Indirect lights 78b are located on a bottom of the housing of
user interface 80 and project light
away from the bottom of the housing toward the reflective surface 100.
Accordingly, indirect lights 78b are
hidden from view by the housing. The light they emit is reflected, for
example, in several directions,
including generally horizontal directions, for being easily viewed by a
caregiver at a distance from the
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patient support apparatus 30. As shown in FIG. 3, in one example, one of the
reflective surfaces 100 is
disposed underneath user interface 80 to reflect light away from the side rail
44. Reflective surface 100,
like reflective surface 76, is a diffuse reflector, not a specular reflector,
and is, in at least some aspects, the
same color as reflective surface 76.
[0046] As will be discussed in more detail below, icon lights 68, indirect
lights 78a-b, and direct lights
102 are controlled to emit lights in different manners at different times,
depending upon the state of patient
support apparatus 30. Specifically, icon lights 68, indirect lights 78a-b, and
direct lights 102 may be
activated continuously at times, may be flashed at other times, and may be
pulsed at still other times. As
used herein, the term "pulsing" or its variants refers to controlling the
illumination of one or more lights such
that its light intensity increases and decreases in a generally sinusoidal
manner. That is, the light gradually
gets brighter and brighter until it reaches a peak and then gradually gets
dimmer and dimmer until it
reaches a trough (which may have the light completely shut off for a fleeting
moment), and then this cycle
repeats. In contrast, the term "flashing" refers to changing the intensity of
the lights, but in a manner that is
much more precipitous. For example, in some aspects, "flashing" refers to
controlling the lights such that
the intensity of the light they emit generally varies in a square wave
fashion. Alternatively, flashing of the
lights may be carried out such that the emitted light intensity varies
generally as a sawtooth wave, or as a
triangle wave, or in some other non-sinusoidal manner. By using a non-
sinusoidal wave form for flashing
the lights, the effect is to present a visually harsher and more immediate
sense of urgency to the caregiver
than the sinusoidal waveform used during the pulsing of the lights. For this
reason, lights 68 and/or 78 are
pulsed as part of a gentle reminder to the caregiver and flashed when an alert
is issued, as will be
discussed in greater detail below.
[0047] The flashing of the lights may also be carried out at a higher
frequency than the pulsing of the
lights. In at least one aspect, the pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b, 102 repeats
itself with a frequency on the
order of once every two to five seconds, although other frequencies may be
used. By pulsing at this
frequency, the synchronized illumination of lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 changes
its intensity with roughly the
same frequency as a human breathes, and this relatively low time period
creates a non-urgent, yet
persistent, visual effect, thereby reminding the caregiver that one or more
tasks still need to be completed
to put patient support apparatus 30 in the proper configuration, yet doing so
in a manner that is not
distractive or unappealing to the caregiver. In contrast, the synchronized
flashing of lights 68, 78a-b, and
102 is carried out, in at least one aspect, at a frequency faster than once
every two to five seconds, such
as, but not limited, to, at least once per second, if not faster. As will be
discussed more below, the flashing
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of lights is typically only implemented when an alert has issued (red flashing
when exit detection system
150 detects a patient alert; amber flashing when monitoring system 152 detects
an alert with respect to a
monitored condition), while the pulsing of the lights (amber) is typically
only implemented when a reminder
is being communicated to the caregiver to perform one or more configuration
tasks with respect to patient
.. support apparatus 30.
[0048] FIG. 4 illustrates various components of user interface 62 in
more detail, as well as a sensor
system S coupled to user interface 62 and several other components of patient
support apparatus 20 that
interact with user interface 62. User interface 62 includes a controller 104
having one or more
microprocessors, microcontrollers, field programmable gate arrays, systems on
a chip, discrete circuitry,
.. and/or other suitable hardware, software, or firmware that is capable of
carrying out the functions described
herein. Controller 104 is adapted to communicate with side rail user
interfaces 80 via a network bus (e.g. a
Controller Area Network, a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) bus, an Ethernet
connection, a RS-485 bus,
etc.). Controller 104 sends commands and messages to one or more control
structures within user
interface 80 that carry out the selective activation and deactivation of
indirect lights 78b and/or reminder
lights 94. As will be discussed more below, the activation of indirect lights
78b is typically carried out in
synchrony with indirect lights 78a, direct lights 102, and, in at least some
situations, icon lights 68.
Controller 104 is configured to process instructions stored in memory 106 to
control operation of user
interface 62 and lights 68, 78a-b, 94, and 102. Controller 104 also controls
what screens are shown on
display 64a.
[0049] Power to the patient support apparatus 30 is provided by an external
power source 108 or a
battery power supply 110. An alternating current (A/C) power cord 112 provides
power from the external
power source 108 to the patient support apparatus 30 and is plugged into a
corresponding outlet (e.g., wall
outlet 114, FIG. 1) to receive external power.
[0050] Patient support apparatus 30 includes a wireless network
transceiver 116 (FIG. 4), such as,
but not limited to, a Wi-Fi transceiver 116 adapted to wirelessly communicate
with one or more wireless
access points 118 of a conventional healthcare facility network 120. The
wireless access points 118 are
adapted to communicate with a hospital network 120 (e.g. a local area network
or LAN) of the facility in
which the patient support apparatus 30 is located. Controller 104 is thereby
able to use network
transceiver 116 to send signals to and receive signals from one or more
servers located on hospital
network 120.
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[0051] Patient support apparatus 30 also includes a nurse call interface
122 for communicatively
coupling patient support apparatus 30 to a conventional nurse call system.
Conventional nurse call
systems typically include one or more nurse call servers 124 coupled to the
hospital network 120, one or
more nurse call outlets 126 positioned in each patient room, wiring coupling
the nurse call outlets 126 to
nurse call server 124, and other structures. In some aspects, nurse call
interface 122 is a wired interface
adapted to couple to, and communicate with, nurse call outlet 126 via a nurse
call cable 128. A first end of
cable 128 is coupled to nurse call interface 122 and the other end is coupled
to nurse call outlet 126. One
example of such a wired nurse call interface is the cable interface disclosed
in more detail in commonly
assigned U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0293849, filed on April
4, 2018 and entitled "Patient
Support Apparatuses with Reconfigurable Communication".
[0052] In other aspects, nurse call interface 122 is a wireless
interface adapted to communicate
wirelessly with nurse call outlet 126. Several examples of wireless nurse call
interfaces 122 that enable
wireless communication between patient support apparatus 30 and an adjacent
nurse call outlet 126 are
disclosed in the following commonly assigned patent references and may be
implemented in patient
support apparatus 30 herein: U.S. Patent Application Publication No.
2016/0038361, filed on August 6,
2015 and entitled "Patient Support Apparatuses with Wireless Headwall
Communication"; U.S. Patent
Application No. 16/217,203, filed on December 12, 2018 and entitled "Smart
Hospital Headwall System";
U.S. Patent Application No. 16/193,150, filed on November 16, 2018 and
entitled "Patient Support
Apparatuses with Location/Movement Detection"; and U.S. Patent Application No.
16/215,911, filed on
December 11, 2018 and entitled "Hospital Headwall Communication System". Still
other types of wireless
or wired nurse call interfaces may, of course, be used.
[0053] A sensor system S comprising one or more sensors 130, 132, 134,
136, 138, 140, 142, 144 is
integrated into the patient support apparatus 30 to generate one or more
signals corresponding to the
various states of the monitored conditions. Controller 104 issues commands to
user interfaces 62, 80 and
the lights 68, 78a-b, 94, 102 based on the signals that controller 104
receives from sensor system S. Thus,
sensor system S provides inputs to controller 104 of the various states of
different components of patient
support apparatus 30 and controller 104 uses that state data to output
commands to user interfaces 62, 80,
and/or the lights 68, 78a-b, 94, 102.
[0054] Sensor system S includes one or more force sensors 130, side rail
sensors 132, HOB angle
sensors 134, height sensors 136, brake sensors 138, power source sensors 140,
WiFi connections sensors
142, and nurse call connection sensors 144. Force sensors 130 output signals
in response to downward
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forces exerted onto support deck 38 by the patient and/or objects, and force
sensors 130 may be
implemented as load cells, although other types of force sensors may be used.
Side rail sensors 132
output signals that indicate a current position of side rails 44, 46, 48, 50
so that controller 104 can
determine whether the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 are in the raised position
(up), lowered position (down), or in
one of the intermediate positions.
[0055] HOB angle sensor 134 outputs signals that indicate a current
angle of the back section 41 so
that controller 104 can determine whether the back section 41 is at or above a
preset angle relative to the
support frame 36 or at less than the preset angle. Height sensors 136 output
signals that indicate a current
height of the support frame 36 so that controller 104 can determine whether
patient support apparatus 30 is
at the lowest height or not. Brake sensors 138 output signals that indicate
whether the brakes 61 are active
(on) or inactive (off). Power source sensors 140 output signals that indicate
whether or not the AC power
plug that provides power from the external power source 108 to patient support
apparatus 30 is plugged
into a corresponding outlet (e.g., wall outlet) to receive external power. The
Wi-Fi connection sensors 142
output signals that indicate whether the Wi-Fi transceiver 116 is connected or
disconnected to the wireless
access point 118 (or a specific server on network 120). Nurse call sensor 144
outputs signals that indicate
whether the nurse call interface 122 is connected to the nurse call outlet 126
or disconnected from the
nurse call outlet 126.
[0056] These sensors 130, 132, 134, 136, 138, 140, 142 may include one
or more load cells, pressure
sensors such as piezoelectric and piezoresistive sensors, Hall Effect sensors,
capacitive sensors, resonant
sensors, thermal sensors, limit switches, gyroscopes, accelerometers, motion
sensors, ultrasonic sensors,
range sensors, potentiometers, magnetostrictive sensors, electrical current
sensors, voltage detectors,
and/or any other suitable types of sensors for carrying out their associated
functions.
[0057] Force sensors 130 are part of an exit detection system 150 that
determines if the occupant has
exited patient support apparatus 30. Force sensors 130 can also be part of a
scale system that detects the
weight of an occupant of patient support apparatus 30, the details of which
are not described herein. Force
sensors 130 are adapted to detect downward forces exerted on the patient
support surface 42, i.e. by an
occupant of support deck 38. Thus, when an occupant is positioned on support
deck 38 and substantially
still (i.e. not moving in a manner involving accelerations that cause forces
to be exerted against support
deck 38), force sensors 130 will detect the weight of the occupant. Force
sensors 130 can also be used to
determine a center of gravity of the occupant in order to determine if the
occupant is about to exit patient
support apparatus 30. In alternative aspects, the outputs from force sensors
130 are analyzed, not to
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determine a center of gravity, but instead to determine a weight distribution
and/or a change in weight
distribution, such as by determining one or more ratios of the relative
weights sensed by force sensors 130
and using them to determine if the occupant is about to exit patient support
apparatus 30. In still other
aspects, force sensors 130 may be modified to detect forces other than, or in
addition to, the downward
forces exerted by the occupant. Other types of sensors may additionally or
alternatively be used for
determining if the patient has exited, or is about to exit.
[0058] The particular structural details of exit detection system 150
can vary widely. In some aspects,
exit detection system 150 is constructed in accordance with the exit detection
system described in U.S.
Patent No. 5,276,432, issued January 4, 1994, entitled "Patient Exit Detection
Mechanism for Hospital
Bed". In such aspects, exit detection system 150 may include multiple zones
that trigger an alert when the
patient's center of gravity travels outside of the zone. In this manner, exit
detection system is able to have
its sensitivity selected by the caregiver. Other types of exit detection
systems may also or alternatively be
used.
[0059] Exit detection system 150 is configured to be armed and disarmed.
When armed, exit
detection system 150 issues an alert when the occupant exits patient support
surface 42, or is about to exit
patient support apparatus 30. In response to the alert issued by exit
detection system 150, controller 104
flashes lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 (and in some cases, reminder light 94) in a
red color. Controller 104 may
also display an exit detection alert screen on display 64a which includes
portions that are red and that flash
in synchrony with lights 68, 78a-b, and 102.
[0060] When flashing lights 68, controller 104 is configured in at least
one aspect to only flash the icon
light 68 that is positioned behind the icon corresponding to the condition
that is alerting. Thus, when exit
detection system 150 detects a patient exit and issues an alert, controller
104 is configured to flash only the
light 68 positioned behind icon 70a (which corresponds to the exit detection
system 150). The lights 68
positioned behind the other icons 70b-g may remain activated (or deactivated)
in whatever manner in which
they were previously activated (or deactivated) immediately prior to the exit
detection alert. Thus, for
example, if the icon light 68 positioned behind brake icon 70e was previously
activated to display a steady
green color prior to exit detection system 150 issuing an alert, controller
104 is configured in at least one
aspect to continue to keep light 68 steadily activated with a green color
while it flashes the light 68 (red)
behind exit detection alert icon 70a during the exit detection alert.
[0061] User interface 62 communicates with controller 104 and allows the
caregiver to control various
aspects of exit detection system 150, such as, but not limited to, arming or
disarming exit detection system
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150, customizing a setting of exit detection system 150, such as customizing a
sensitivity level of exit
detection system 150 (FIG. 14, discussed in more detail below), and cancelling
an alert issued by exit
detection system 150. Other customizable settings for exit detection system
150 are possible.
[0062] Monitoring system 152 comprises a collection of sensors and a
processing unit, such as
controller 104, that processes the outputs from the collection of sensors to
determine if any one or more of
the components monitored by the sensors are in an undesired state. If any one
or more are in an
undesired state, and monitoring system 152 is armed, it issues an alert. In
some aspects, monitoring
system 152 includes side rail sensors 132, HOB angle sensors 134, height
sensors 136, and brake sensors
138. Other types of sensors may additionally or alternatively be used for
determining the state of one or
more monitored conditions of the patient support apparatus 30. The particular
structural details of
monitoring system 152 can vary widely. An exemplary monitoring system is
described in U.S. Patent No.
8,844,076, filed on January 27, 2014, entitled "Patient Handling Device
Including Local Status Indication,
One-Touch Fowler Angle Adjustment, and Power-On Alarm Configuration". Other
types of monitoring
systems may be used.
[0063] Monitoring system 152 is configured to be armed and disarmed. When
armed, bed monitoring
system 152 issues an alert when at least one monitored condition of the
patient support apparatus 30 is in
an undesired state, which may include when one or more of the side rails are
down, when the HOB angle is
less than the preset angle, when the bed is not flat, or when the brake are
not engaged. Controller 104 is
configured, in at least one aspect, to synchronously flash lights 78a, 78b,
and 102 in an amber color when
bed monitoring system 152 issues an alert. Controller 104 may further be
configured to synchronously
flash the icon light 68 positioned behind bed monitor icon 70b in an amber
color when bed monitoring
system 152 issues an alert.
[0064] User interface 62 communicates with controller 104 and enables
the caregiver to control one or
more aspects of bed monitoring system 152. User interface 62 allows the
caregiver to control various
aspects of bed monitoring system 152, such as, but not limited to, navigating
to a bed monitor control
screen 350, arming or disarming bed monitoring system 152, and cancelling an
alert issued by bed
monitoring system 152. Display 64a displays information regarding bed
monitoring system 152, such as,
but not limited to, displaying a bed monitor control screen 350, and
displaying an alert issued by bed
monitoring system 152.
[0065] When the exit detection system 150 or bed monitoring system 152
issue an alert, the controller
104, in at least one aspect, triggers an auditory alarm. The auditory alarm
may be stored in at least one
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audio playback circuit 146 connected to the controller 104 through SPI
communication. Additionally, or
alternatively, the audio playback circuit 146 is operated through a standalone
switch. The audio playback
circuit 146 stores one or more prerecorded audio files to be used as auditory
alarms and plays them back.
In one example, the audio playback circuit 146 stores one audio file
corresponding to an alert issued by the
exit detection system 150 and a second audio file corresponding to an alert
issued by the bed monitoring
system 152. The audio playback circuit 146 may be any suitable electronic chip
that stores and plays back
audio files, for example, the Digital ChipCorder IC (ISD 2100) from Nuvoton.
The signal from the positive
and negative outputs of the audio playback circuit 146 is sent through a low
pass filter to eliminate noise
and inaudible frequencies.
[0066] The audio playback circuit 146 is connected to an audio amplifier
147, for example, the mono
class-D TPA3112D1PWPR from Texas Instruments. The audio amplifier 147
increases the volume output
by the audio playback circuit 146. The volume of the auditory alarm is
controlled by the audio playback
circuit 146. In one aspect, the volume of the audio playback circuit 146 is
increased to meet International
Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards for medical devices. The audio
amplifier 147 has four gains
set to the highest gain setting. The audio amplifier 147 outputs an amplified
differential signal that is then
passed through a filter. The audio amplifier 147 is connected to a speaker 148
which emits the amplified
audio file. In one aspect, the audio amplifier 147 has four PWM differential
speakers to drive the speaker
148. The speaker 148 may be a 4 ohm or 8 ohm speaker. As depicted in FIG. 4,
the audio playback circuit
146, audio amplifier 147, and speaker 148 are external to the user interface
62. In an alternative aspect,
the audio playback circuit 146, audio amplifier 147, and speaker 148 may be
integrated into the user
interface 62.
[0067] FIG. 2 illustrates one example of a motion control screen 154
that can be displayed on display
64a. Motion control screen 154 includes a plurality of controls, some or all
of which can include
touchscreen controls, non-touchscreen controls, or a combination thereof. The
controls perform a variety
of different functions, and the number, function, lay-out, size, and/or other
characteristics of these controls
may vary from what is shown in FIG. 2, and may also vary depending upon what
screen is being displayed
at a given time by display 64a. Motion control screen 154 may be displayed
initially after the patient
support apparatus 30 is powered on or switches to a wake mode, as explained in
more detail below, or it
may be displayed in response to a caregiver navigating to it from another
screen.
[0068] With reference to FIG. 14, in some aspects, controller 104 displays
an exit detection control
screen 300 on display 64a. The exit detection control screen 300 is used by a
caregiver or other user to
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control aspects of exit detection system 150, and can include an arming
control that enables the caregiver
to arm and/disarm exit detection system 150. The arming control can set the
sensitivity level of the exit
detection system 150 to a low setting 302, a medium setting 304, or a high
setting 306. The sensitivity
level determines the displacement of a patient required for the controller 104
to issue an alert for the exit
detection system 150. The exit detection system 150 can be disarmed by
pressing the off control 308. The
exit detection control screen 300 may have a home control 310 to dismiss the
exit detection control screen
300 without any changes to the exit detection system 150 and return the user
to a main menu (not shown).
[0069] With reference to FIG. 17, in some aspects, controller 104
displays a monitoring system control
screen 350 on display 64a. The monitoring control screen 350 is used by a
caregiver or other user to
control aspects of monitoring system 152, and can include an arming control
that enables the user to arm
and/disarm monitoring system 152. The arming control can set a number of
characteristics of the
monitoring system 152 including the height 352 of patient support apparatus
30, the position of the side
rails 354, the angle of the head of the bed 358, and the position of the bed
360 (i.e. bed flat). The caregiver
may enable or disable the monitoring of each of the characteristics 352, 354,
358, and 360. Once the
caregiver or other user has set the characteristics to their desired state,
the user can use save control 356
to arm the system 152. The user can use exit control 362 to leave the
monitoring control screen 350 and
return to whichever screen was previously displayed on display 64a.
[0070] In FIG. 16, a menu screen 320 that may be displayed on display
64a is shown. The menu
screen 320 can allow a caregiver or other user to navigate to various screens
to show information about or
to control patient support apparatus 30. The menu screen 320 includes a scale
control 322; a lock control
324; a settings control 326; a bed alarm control 328; a history control 330; a
service control 332; a
monitoring system control 334; a night light control 336; a help control 338;
a pressure control 340; a turn
control 342; and a pulmonary control 344. Pressing the bed alarm control 328
causes the exit detection
control screen 300 to appear on display 64a. Pressing the monitor system
control 334 causes the
monitoring system control screen 350 to appear on display 64a. Pressing the
settings control 326 brings
up another screen that allows the user to navigate to the global settings
screen of FIG. 11. The menu
screen 320 has a home control 346 to cause the home screen to appear on
display 64a. The menu screen
320 has a cancel control 348 to dismiss the menu screen 320 and return to the
previously displayed
screen.
[0071] Returning to FIG. 2, for some aspects, controller 104 operates
display 64a in multiple different
modes, including a sleep mode and a wake mode. Controller 104 activates
display 64a when the patient
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support apparatus 30 is in the wake mode and deactivates display 64a when the
patient support apparatus
30 is in the sleep mode. Controller 104 switches from the wake mode to the
sleep mode after a
predetermined time period of inactivity at user interfaces 62, 80 has elapsed,
i.e. after a timeout period.
When in the sleep mode, controller 104 switches back to the wake mode and
activates display 64a upon
detecting that the user has touched display 64a, or another portion of any of
user interfaces 62, 80.
[0072] During operation of patient support apparatus 30, controller 104
is configured to repetitively
check to see whether each component in a set of components is in its desired
state and, if any one or more
of them are not, to issue a reminder to the caregiver to place the components
in their desired state. In at
least one aspect, the set of components and their desired states includes the
following: exit detection
system 150 (armed); monitoring system 152 (armed), brake 61 (activated), and
power cord 112 (plugged
into an electrical outlet). It will be understood that this set of components
may be varied in different aspects
and that, in some of those different aspects, the set of components that are
repetitively monitored by
controller 104 for reminder purposes may be customized by users of patient
support apparatus 30. It will
further be understood that the monitoring of the set of components for
reminder purposes is carried out
automatically and repetitively at all times that patient support apparatus 30
is powered on, and not just at
times when display 64a is in the wake mode.
[0073] Still further, it will be understood that the repetitive
monitoring of the set of components for
reminder purposes is different from the monitoring that is carried out by
monitoring system 152. The
monitoring that is carried out by monitoring system 152 is only carried out
when monitoring system 152 is
armed. Additionally, the monitoring that is carried out by system 152 may be
of a different set of
components and/or conditions than the set of components that controller 104
monitors for reminder
purposes. For example, in many aspects, monitoring system 152 monitors the
position of one or more side
rails 44, 46, 48, and/or 50, while controller 104 is not configured to monitor
the side rails (in at least one
aspect) for reminder purposes. Still further, the consequences of the
monitoring carried out by controller
104 for purposes of reminders and for purposes of monitoring system 152 are
different. If controller 104
detects a component that is in an undesired state for purposes of its reminder
monitoring, it issues a
reminder. In contrast, if controller 104 detects a component that is in an
undesired state as defined by
monitoring system 152, it issues an alert, rather than a reminder. As
mentioned previously, controller 104
is configured, in at least some aspects, to flash lights 68, 78a-b, and/or 102
in response to an alert, and to
pulse lights 68, 78a-b, and/or 102 in response to a reminder.
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[0074] In addition to issuing a reminder via the pulsing of lights 68,
78a-b, and/or 102, controller 104 is
configured to issue a reminder by displaying a reminder screen on display 64a.
The particular reminder
screen is, in at least one aspect, different for each of the different
components that patient support
apparatus 30 is configured to issue reminders for. Thus, for example, if brake
61 is deactivated, controller
104 displays a brake reminder screen, and if AC power cord 112 is not plugged
in, controller 104 displays
an AC power cord reminder screen that is different. Examples of the types of
reminder screens that are
displayable by controller 104 on display 64a are shown in FIGS. 5-10 and
described in further detail below.
[0075] Before turning to the individual reminder screens shown in FIGS.
5-10, it should be noted that
controller 104, in at least one aspect, is configured to display a
corresponding reminder screen only once
.. during a wake session of display 64a. That is, once display 64a is awake,
controller 104 displays a
reminder screen if any of the components for which reminders are set is in an
undesired state. If the
reminder screen is dismissed by the user (discussed more below), controller
104 does not display the
reminder screen again unless display 64a first switches the sleep mode and
then back to the wake mode.
Upon re-entering the wake mode, controller 104 is configured to issue these
reminder screens for any
components that are not in their desired state when display 64a re-awakens. In
this manner, a caregiver is
typically only reminded once with a reminder screen for any given interaction
with patient support apparatus
30, thereby allowing the caregiver to use display 64a for other functions
while still reminding the caregiver
of tasks that should be completed. In contrast, and as will be discussed more
below, the pulsing of lights
68, 78a-b, and/or 102 continues at all times that patient support apparatus 30
is detected to not be in a
.. proper configuration, regardless of whether a reminder screen is being
displayed on display 64a and
regardless of whether display 64a is in the wake mode or sleep mode.
[0076] Some non-limiting examples of reminder screens are provided in
the FIGS. 5-10. It will be
understood that the particular layouts of the reminder screens shown in FIGS.
5-10 are but one of a large
variety of different ways in which controller 104 may present a reminder
screen. It will also be understood
that the display of any of the reminder screens of FIGS. 5-10 may occur
shortly, or immediately, after
display 64a switches from the sleep mode to the wake mode if the corresponding
component was in the
undesired state while display 64a was in the sleep mode. On the other hand, if
the corresponding
component is initially in its desired state when display 64a is woken from the
sleep mode to the wake
mode, the corresponding reminder screen will not be displayed until, and if,
the user switches the state of
.. the corresponding component to its undesired state. Still further, in some
instances, the reminder screen
may not be displayed at all if the only time the corresponding component is in
its undesired state is when
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display 64a is in the sleep mode. In at least one alternative aspect, however,
the reminder screens of
FIGS. 5-10 are also displayed when display 64a is in the sleep mode and a
change to the undesired state
occurs. In this alternative aspect, the change to the corresponding undesired
state acts as a trigger for
waking display 64a, and controller 104 displays the corresponding reminder
screen in response to this
trigger.
[0077] FIG. 5 is an illustrative brake reminder screen 156 that is
displayed on display 64a of user
interface 62 of FIG. 2 when controller 104 detects that brake 61 is
deactivated. Brake reminder screen 156
includes an activation control 158 and an ignore control 160. Upon user-
activation of the activation control
158, controller 104 is operable to turn brake 61 on. The activation control
158 controls the state of brake
61, and automatically changes the state of the brake to the desired state,
e.g. the engaged or on state.
Upon user-activation of the ignore control 160, controller 104 is operable to
clear the reminder screen 156
and does not turn brake 61 on. After clearing the reminder screen 156,
controller 104 is operable to display
the motion control screen 154 or another previously displayed screen on
display 64a, or otherwise enable
the caregiver to use user interface 62, and does not turn brake 61 on. The
pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b,
and/or 102 that is simultaneously triggered (with the display of brake
reminder screen 156) by brake 61
being in the undesired state continues after reminder screen 156 is cleared,
and continues until not only
brake 61 is in its desired state, but all of the components for which
reminders are issued are in their
respective desired states.
[0078] FIG. 6 is an illustrative nurse call reminder screen 162 that may
be displayed on display 64a of
user interface 62 of FIG. 2 when nurse call cable 128 is not connected to a
nurse call outlet 126, or wireless
communication between patient support apparatus 30 and the nurse call outlet
126 is not functioning.
Nurse call reminder screen 162 includes an ignore control 164. Upon user-
activation of the ignore control
164, controller 104 is operable to clear the reminder screen 162. After
clearing the reminder screen 162,
controller 104 is operable to display the motion control screen 154 or another
previously displayed screen
on display 64a, or otherwise enable the caregiver to use user interface 62.
Controller 104 is also operable
to clear the reminder screen 162 if the caregiver couples nurse call interface
122 to the nurse call outlet
126 while the reminder screen 162 is being displayed.
[0079] In some aspects, controller 104 does not synchronously pulse
lights 68, 78a-b, or 102 in
response to nurse call interface 122 being disconnected from nurse call outlet
126. Instead, in such
aspects, controller 104 activates the icon light 68 behind nurse call icon 70f
and leaves it activated until the
nurse call interface 122 is connected to the nurse call outlet 126, regardless
of whether or not reminder
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screen 162 is cleared or not. The activation of the light 68 behind nurse call
icon 70f may be carried out
such that that light emits an amber color. Further, the activation of the
amber color may be steady or
pulsed.
[0080] FIG. 7 is an illustrative power source reminder screen 166 that
may be displayed on display
64a of user interface 62 of FIG. 2. Controller 104 displays power source
reminder screen 166 on display
64a when the power cord 112 is unplugged and the patient support apparatus 30
is not receiving external
power from the external power source 108. Power source reminder screen 166
includes an ignore control
168. Upon user-activation of the ignore control 168, controller 104 is
operable to clear the reminder screen
166. After clearing the reminder screen 166, controller 104 is operable to
display the motion control
screen 154 or another previously displayed screen on display 64a, or otherwise
enable the caregiver to use
user interface 62. Controller 104 is also operable to clear the reminder
screen 166 if the caregiver plugs in
the power cord 112 while the reminder screen 166 is being displayed. The
pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b,
and/or 102 that is simultaneously triggered (with the display of power source
reminder screen 166) by
power cord 112 being unplugged continues after reminder screen 166 is cleared,
and continues until not
only power cord 112 is plugged into an electrical outlet, but also until all
of the components for which
reminders are issued are in their respective desired states.
[0081] FIG. 8 is an illustrative Wi-Fi reminder screen 170 that may be
displayed on display 64a of user
interface 62 of FIG. 2. Controller 104 displays Wi-Fi reminder screen 170 on
display 64a when the patient
support apparatus 30 is not connected to Wi-Fi, e.g. if the Wi-Fi transceiver
116 is disconnected from a
wireless access point 118 (or a server on network 120). Wi-Fi reminder screen
170 includes an ignore
control 172. Upon user-activation of the ignore control 172, controller 104 is
operable to clear the reminder
screen 170. After clearing the reminder screen 170, controller 104 is operable
to display the motion
control screen 154 or another previously displayed screen on display 64a, or
otherwise enable the
caregiver to use user interface 62. Controller 104 is also operable to clear
the reminder screen 170 if the
caregiver connects the patient support apparatus 30 to Wi-Fi while the
reminder screen 170 is being
displayed.
[0082] In some aspects, controller 104 does not synchronously pulse
lights 68, 78a-b, or 102 in
response to wireless transceiver 116 being disconnected from local area
network 120. Instead, in such
aspects, controller 104 activates the icon light 68 behind wireless
communication icon 70g and leaves it
activated until the network transceiver 116 is able to communicate with local
area network 120, regardless
of whether or not reminder screen 170 is cleared or not. The activation of the
light 68 behind wireless
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communication icon 70g may be carried out such that that light emits an amber
color. Further, the
activation of the amber color may be steady or pulsed.
[0083] FIG. 9 is an illustrative bed exit reminder screen 174 that may
be displayed on display 64a of
user interface 62 of FIG. 2. Controller 104 displays bed exit reminder screen
174 on display 64a when all
three of the following conditions occur: exit detection system 150 is
disarmed, a patient is present on
patient support apparatus 30, and memory 106 includes a desired arming state
for exit detection system
150. The desired arming state may refer to a global setting indicating that
exit detection system 150 should
be turned on/off for all patients, or it may refer to a patient-specific
setting indicating that exit detection
system 150 should be turned on/off only for the specific patient currently
assigned to patient support
apparatus 20. The patient-specific setting is re-set to the same value as the
global setting whenever a new
patient is assigned to patient support apparatus 20.
[0084] Thus, for example, if a first patient has the patient-specific
reminder setting turned off for exit
detection system 150 while the global reminder setting for exit detection
system 150 is turned on, controller
104 will not issue any reminders to turn on exit detection system 150 while
that patient is assigned to the
patient support apparatus (unless the patient-specific reminder is changed to
the on state while the patient
is assigned to the patient support apparatus). However, when a new patient is
assigned to the patient
support apparatus, controller 104 will automatically change the patient-
specific reminder setting to on (in
order to match the global reminder setting that is on). Reminders will
therefore be issued to turn on exit
detection system 150 for as long as the new patient is assigned to the patient
support apparatus (or until
.. the caregiver turns off the patient specific reminder for the exit
detection system 150).
[0085] If the user desires exit detection system 150 to always be
armed for all patients, the user is
able to set this desired global state in memory 106 by, for example, accessing
the screen shown in FIG. 11
and selecting the global reminder setting for the exit detection system 150,
as discussed more below with
respect to FIG. 11. If the user does not want a reminder issued for all
patients to arm exit detection system
150, he or she can un-select the global reminder setting in FIG. 11. The
control of patient-specific settings
for exit detection system 150 is carried out through screens 174 (FIG. 9) and
screen 310 (FIG. 14). When
a caregiver activates the "turn off' option of screen 174, controller 104
automatically sets the patient
specific reminder setting for the exit detection system 150 to the off state
(and does not change the global
setting). When a caregiver arms the exit detection system 150, such as by
selecting the exit detection
control icon 308 (which toggles between the messages "turn off' and "turn
on"), controller 104 automatically
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sets the patient specific reminder setting for the exit detection system 150
to the on state (and does not
change the global setting).
[0086] Bed exit reminder screen 174 includes an off control 178 and a
dismiss control 180. Upon
user-activation of the off control 178, controller 104 is operable to change
the patient-specific setting for exit
detection system 150 from on to off. This patient-specific setting is stored
in memory 106. The activation
of the off control 178 does not change the global setting that is stored in
memory for exit detection system
150 that applies to all patients (except this setting is overridden by a
contrary setting for the specific patient
currently assigned to patient support apparatus 20).
[0087] If the caregiver desires to turn the reminder for the exit
detection system 150 back on for the
specific patient assigned to patient support apparatus 20, the caregiver can
do so by using the exit
detection control screen 300 (FIG. 14). That is, controller 104 is configured
to automatically switch the exit
detection reminder setting back to the on state for a specific patient
whenever the exit detection system 150
is armed, or re-armed. Controller 104 does not, however, change the state of
the global exit detection
reminder setting in response to the arming or disarming of exit detection
system 150. Instead, changes to
the global settings for exit detection system 150 can only be made via global
setting screen 190 (FIG. 11).
[0088] Upon user-activation of the dismiss control 180, controller 104
is operable to clear the
reminder screen 174 and does not arm exit detection system 150. After clearing
the reminder screen 174,
controller 104 is operable to display the motion control screen 154 or another
previously displayed screen
on display 64a, or otherwise enable the caregiver to use user interface 62.
The pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b,
and/or 102 that is simultaneously triggered (with the display of bed exit
reminder screen 174) by exit
detection system 150 being disarmed continues after reminder screen 174 is
cleared, and continues until
not only exit detection system 150 is armed, but all of the components for
which reminders are issued are
in their respective desired states. In an alternative aspect, the pulsing of
lights 68, 78a-b, and/or 102 is not
simultaneously triggered by the exit detection system 150 being disarmed. In
yet another aspect, the exit
detection system 150 is not tied to the lights at all.
[0089] FIG. 10 is an illustrative monitoring system reminder screen 182
that may be displayed on
display 64a of user interface 62 of FIG. 2. Controller 104 displays monitoring
system reminder screen 182
on display 64a when all three of the following conditions occur: monitoring
system 152 is disarmed, a
patient is present on patient support apparatus 30, and memory 106 includes a
desired arming state for
monitoring system 152. The desired arming state may refer to a global setting
indicating that monitoring
system 152 should be turned on/off for all patients, or it may refer to a
patient-specific setting indicating that
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monitoring system 152 should be turned on/off only for the specific patient
currently assigned to patient
support apparatus 20. The patient-specific setting is re-set to the same value
as the global setting
whenever a new patient is assigned to patient support apparatus 20.
[0090] Thus, for example, if a first patient has the patient-specific
reminder setting turned off for
monitoring system 152 while the global reminder setting for monitoring system
152 is turned on, controller
104 will not issue any reminders to turn on monitoring system 152 while that
patient is assigned to the
patient support apparatus (unless the patient-specific reminder is changed to
the on state while the patient
is assigned to the patient support apparatus). However, when a new patient is
assigned to the patient
support apparatus, controller 104 will automatically change the patient-
specific reminder setting to on (in
order to match the global reminder setting that is on). Reminders will
therefore be issued to turn on
monitoring system 152 for as long as the new patient is assigned to the
patient support apparatus (or until
the caregiver turns off the patient specific reminder for the monitoring
system 152).
[0091] If the user desires monitoring system 152 to always be armed for
all patients, the user is able
to set this desired global state in memory 106 by, for example, accessing the
screen shown in FIG. 11 and
selecting the global reminder setting for the monitoring system 152, as
discussed more below with respect
to FIG. 11. If the user does not want a reminder issued for all patients to
arm monitoring system 152, he or
she can un-select the global reminder setting in FIG. 11. The control of
patient-specific settings for
monitoring system 152 is carried out through screens 182 (FIG. 10) and screen
362 (FIG. 17). When a
caregiver activates the "turn off' option of screen 182, controller 104
automatically sets the patient specific
reminder setting for the monitoring system 152 to the off state (and does not
change the global setting).
When a caregiver arms the monitoring system 152, such as by selecting various
features to be armed on
screen 362 and pressing "save," controller 104 automatically sets the patient-
specific reminder setting for
the monitoring system 152 to the on state (and does not change the global
setting).
[0092] Monitoring system reminder screen 182 (FIG. 10) includes an off
control 186 and a dismiss
control 188. Upon user-activation of the off control 186, controller 104 is
operable to turn off the monitoring
system 152 for the current patient and clear the reminder screen 182. This
patient-specific setting is stored
in memory 106. The activation of the off control 186 does not change the
global setting that is stored in
memory for monitoring system 152 that applies to all patients (except this
setting is overridden by a
contrary setting for the specific patient currently assigned to patient
support apparatus 20).
[0093] If the caregiver desires to turn the reminder for the monitoring
system 152 back on for the
specific patient assigned to patient support apparatus 20, the caregiver can
do so by using the monitoring
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system control screen 320 (FIG. 16) to arm the monitoring system 152. That is,
controller 104 is configured
to automatically switch the monitoring system reminder setting back to the on
state for a specific patient
whenever the monitoring system 152 is armed, or re-armed. Controller 104 does
not, however, change the
state of the global monitoring system reminder setting in response to the
arming or disarming of monitoring
system 152. Instead, changes to the global settings for monitoring system 152
can only be made via global
setting screen 190 (FIG. 11).
[0094] Upon user-activation of the dismiss control 188, controller 104
is operable to clear the reminder
screen 182 and does not arm monitoring system 152. After clearing the reminder
screen 182, controller
104 is operable to display the motion control screen 154 or another previously
displayed screen on display
64a, or otherwise enable the caregiver to use user interface 62. The pulsing
of lights 68, 78a-b, and/or 102
that is simultaneously triggered (with the display of monitoring reminder
screen 182) by monitoring system
152 being disarmed continues after reminder screen 182 is cleared, and
continues until not only monitoring
system 152 is armed, but all of the components for which reminders are issued
are in their respective
desired states. In an alternative aspect, the pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b,
and/or 102 is not simultaneously
triggered by the monitoring system 152 being disarmed.
[0095] From the foregoing description, it can be seen that controller
104 is configured to issue a
plurality of different reminder screens when various components of patient
support apparatus 30 are in
undesired states. For many of these components, patient support apparatus 30
is configured to also pulse
lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 to serve as a visual reminder to the caregiver, and
to continue to pulse these
lights until all of the components of the patient support apparatus 30 are in
their desired state. In this
manner, lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 continue to be pulsed while the caregiver
may be busy performing other
duties, and this continued pulsing serves as a gentle, yet persistent,
reminder that he or she needs to
change at least one more condition of patient support apparatus 30 before it
will be in its desired state. To
see which specific condition(s) need to be changed, he or she can consult
dashboard 64b and see which of
icons 70a-g are being illuminated in an amber color. Those icons 70a-g that
correspond to components
that are in their desired states are illuminated with a green color. Dashboard
64h therefore provides an
easy to read visual indicator of what, if any, components are not currently in
their desired states.
[0096] As mentioned previously, patient support apparatus 30 is
configurable by caregivers to always
issue reminders to arm exit detection system 150 and/or monitoring system 152
when controller 104
detects that either or both of these systems are disarmed. This is
accomplished by accessing a global
setting screen 190, such as shown in FIG. 11.
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[0097] FIG. 11 is an illustrative global settings screen 190 that is
displayable on display 64a of user
interface 62 of FIG. 2. Access to screen 190 may be accomplished by selecting
a settings control (not
shown) provided on the motion control screen 154 or on another screen shown on
display 64a, or
elsewhere on user interface 62. Global settings screen 190 includes multiple
controls for selecting whether
arming of exit detection system 150 is required or is not required for new
patients, whether arming of
monitoring system 152 is required or is not required for new patients, and the
preset angle for the head-of-
bed (HOB) angle for new patients. The settings for the new patient protocol
are stored in memory 106.
[0098] The global settings screen 190 includes setting controls 192a,
192b and associated indicators
194a, 194b for each of the settings that can be selected. The setting controls
192a, 192b may alternatively
be referred to as global controls. In the illustrated example, a first setting
control 192a is associated with
exit detection system 150 and a second setting control 192b is associated with
monitoring system 152.
Text and/or graphics, or other forms of visual content, are associated with
the setting controls 192a, 192b,
to indicate which of the settings correspond to which control.
[0099] The setting indicators 194a, 194b show whether the associated
setting is currently being
applied or not. The setting indicators 194a, 194b are generated on the screen
190 in a first color or with a
first graphic when the associated setting is currently being applied and in a
second color or with second
graphic when the associated setting is not currently being applied. In the
illustrated example of screen 190,
the exit detection system setting control 192a and the monitoring system
setting control 192b are both
currently being applied, and their associated indicators 194a, 194b are
generated on the screen 190 in
green with a check mark. When a setting is not selected, the associated
indicator is generated on the
screen 190 in gray without a check mark. The setting indicators 194a, 194b may
alternatively employ text
or graphics, or other forms of visual content, to indicate the currently
applied settings.
[00100] With the setting controls 192a, 192b selected as shown in FIG.
11, the globally desired state of
both exit detection system 150 and monitoring system 152 is the armed state,
and controller 104 will issue
a reminder to remind the caregiver to arm these systems 150, 152 if the
patient is present on the patient
support apparatus 30 and either system 150, 152 is disarmed.
[00101] Global settings screen 190 also includes a HOB angle state
control 196. Pressing the state
c0ntr01196 switches the preset HOB angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees. In
FIG. 11, the preset
HOB angle is shown as being 30 degrees. Upon user-activation of the HOB angle
state control 196,
controller 104 is operable to change the default preset HOB angle to 45
degrees. Subsequent selection of
the HOB angle preset state control 196 changes the default preset HOB angle
back to 30 degrees. In
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some aspects, monitoring system 152 monitors the HOB angle and, when armed,
issues an alert if the
HOB angle dips below the threshold chosen on global settings screen 190.
[00102] The global settings screen 190 also includes a return control 198
for returning to the motion
control screen 154 (FIG. 2). Upon user-activation of the return control 198,
controller 104 is operable to
display the motion control screen 154 on display 64a.
[00103] FIGS. 12A-12C depict a flow diagram of a reminder management
algorithm 200 executed by
controller 104. Reminder management algorithm 200 controls what form the
various reminders take, when
they are issued, and what effect, if any, they may have on other functionality
of patient support apparatus
30. In some aspects, only a single reminder screen is displayed at a given
time. In such situations, if
multiple components are in their undesired states simultaneously, controller
104 displays the reminder
screens serially. The particular order in which the reminder screens are
displayed may be configurable by
the user and/or changed in different aspects.
[00104] Algorithm 200 starts at a start step 201 (FIG. 12A). As noted
previously, algorithm 200 is
configured in at least one aspect to be substantially continuously executed
upon power up of patient
support apparatus 30. Accordingly, start step 201 commences, in at least some
aspects, at the time, or
shortly after the time, patient support apparatus 30 is powered on.
[00105] From step 201, controller 104 proceeds to step 202 where it
determines if brake 61 (FIG. 1) is
on and if nurse call interface 122 (FIG. 4) is communicatively coupled to a
nurse call outlet 126. This
determination is made based on input from the brake sensors 138 and the nurse
call sensors 144. If it is
determined that brake 61 is on and the nurse call interface 122 is connected,
controller 104 proceeds to
step 204. If brake 61 is off and/or nurse call interface 122 is not
communicatively coupled to nurse call
outlet 126, controller proceeds to step 206.
[00106] At step 206, controller 104 displays the corresponding reminder
screen (e.g. reminder screen
156 of FIG. 5 or reminder screen 162 of FIG. 6) and begins pulsing lights 68,
78a, 78b, and 102 if brake 61
is off (and if these lights were not previously pulsing). If these lights were
previously pulsing, controller 104
continues to pulse them. If brake 61 is on but nurse call interface 122 is not
communicatively coupled to a
nurse call outlet 126, controller 104, in at least one aspect, is configured
to not pulse lights 68, 78a, 78b
and 102, but instead activates the light 68 behind nurse call icon 70f in a
steady amber color.
[00107] It will be understood that, for all of the steps of algorithm 200
that refer to the pulsing of lights
(including, but not limited to, step 206), such pulsing refers to the
synchronous pulsing of lights 68, 78a,
78b, and 102 that creates the breathing or glowing effect previously
described. Further, it will be
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understood that all references to the pulsing of lights 68 refer to, in at
least some aspects, the pulsing of the
specific icon light 68 that corresponds to the component that is not in its
desired state. Thus, if brake 61 is
off, controller 105 pulses the icon light 68 at step 206 that is positioned
behind icon 70e. If the other
components corresponding to the other icons 70a-d and 70f-g are all in their
desired state, controller 104
illuminates the lights 68 behind these icons in a steady green color. Thus,
only the icons 70a-g that
correspond to components not in their desired state are pulsed, in at least
some aspects. In other aspects,
the icons 70a-g that correspond to components not in their desired state are
steadily illuminated in an
amber color. In still other aspects, some icons 70a-g that correspond to
components not in their desired
state are pulsed while others of those icons 70a-g that correspond to
components not in their desired state
are illuminated with a steady color, such as amber. Still other variations are
possible.
[00108] After step 206 (FIG. 12A), controller 104 proceeds to step 208
wherein it determines if the
caregiver has ignored the reminder or corrected the state of brake 61 and/or
nurse call interface 122. For
example, if controller 104 determines that the ignore control 160 on the brake
reminder screen 156 has
been selected or that the ignore control 164 on the nurse call reminder screen
162 has been selected, then
controller 104 proceeds to step 210. At step 210, controller 104 clears the
reminder screen 156 and/or 162
from display 64a, but continues to pulse the lights (if they were pulsed at
step 206). Clearing reminder
screen 156 and/or 162 allows the caregiver to utilize display 56a for
performing other tasks, including taking
corrective action with respect to brake 61.
[00109] After step 210, controller 104 proceeds to step 212 and prevents
the arming of exit detection
system 150 and/or monitoring system 152. When brake 61 is not engaged or the
nurse call interface 122 is
disconnected, patient support apparatus 30 is configured to prevent exit
detection system 150 and/or
monitoring system 152 from being armed. If the state of brake 61 and/or nurse
call interface 122 are later
corrected, controller 104 re-enables arming of exit detection system 150
and/or monitoring system 152.
This feature encourages the caregivers to remember to arm brake 61.
[00110] If, at step 208, controller 104 determines that the brake
activation control 158 on the brake
reminder screen 156 has been selected and/or that the nurse call interface 122
has been connected to a
nurse call outlet 126, then controller 104 proceeds to step 214 in which the
reminder is cancelled.
Cancelling the reminder at step 214 includes clearing the reminder screen. It
may also include ceasing the
pulsing of the lights 68, 78a,b, and 102, depending upon the conditions of the
other components that are
monitored for reminders by controller 104, as will be discussed further below
in more detail with respect to
step 260. From step 214, controller 104 proceeds to step 204.
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[00111] It is noted that while FIG. 12A shows the state of brake 61 and
the nurse call interface 122
being checked simultaneously at step 202, this is merely done for purposes of
visual brevity, and that
controller 104 actually checks these states serially, and that it may do so in
any order. Additionally,
algorithm 200 may be modified to only check the state of brake 61 or only
check the state of the nurse call
interface 122, or in some aspects, to skip step 202 altogether.
[00112] At step 204 (FIG. 12A), controller 104 determines if the patient
support apparatus 30 is
plugged in, e.g. if the power cord 112 is plugged into the wall outlet 114
(FIG. 1) and is receiving external
power from the external power source 108, based on signals from the power
source sensors 140. If it is
determined that the patient support apparatus 30 is plugged in to the external
power source 108, controller
104 proceeds to step 216 and determines if the patient support apparatus 30 is
connected to Wi-Fi.
[00113] If, at step 204, controller 104 determines that patient support
apparatus 30 is unplugged,
controller 104 proceeds to step 218 and issues a reminder to plug in the power
cord 112. In one example,
the power cord reminder comprises displaying the power cord reminder screen
166 (FIG. 7) on display 64a
and pulsing lights 68, 78a, 78b, and 102.
[00114] After step 218, controller 104 proceeds to step 220 and determines
if the caregiver has ignored
the reminder or corrected the state of the power cord 112. For example, if
controller 104 determines that
the ignore control 168 on the power reminder screen 166 has been selected,
then controller 104 proceeds
to step 222 and clears the reminder screen 166. Controller 104, however,
continues to pulse the lights 68,
78a, 78b, and 102 at step 222. The clearance of the reminder screen and
continued pulsing of the lights
allows the caregiver to operate user interface 62, including display 64a,
while still reminding the caregiver
that corrective action should be taken.
[00115] If, at step 220 (FIG. 12A), controller 104 determines that the
power cord 112 has been plugged
in, then controller 104 proceeds to step 224 in which the reminder is
cancelled. Cancelling the reminder at
step 224 includes clearing the power reminder screen 166 from display 64a.
Cancelling the reminder at
step 224 may also include ceasing the pulsing of the lights 68, 78a, 78b, and
102, depending upon the
conditions of the other components that are monitored for reminders by
controller 104, as will be discussed
further below in more detail with respect to step 260. From step 224,
controller 104 proceeds to step 216.
[00116] At step 216, controller 104 determines if the patient support
apparatus 30 is connected to Wi-
Fi, e.g. if the Wi-Fi transceiver 116 is connected to the wireless access
point 118 (FIG. 3), based on input
from the Wi-Fi connection sensor 142. If it is determined that the patient
support apparatus 30 is
connected to Wi-Fi, then controller 104 proceeds to step 236 (FIG. 12B).
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[00117] If, at step 216 (FIG. 12A), controller 104 determines that
patient support apparatus 30 is not
connected to Wi-Fi, controller 104 proceeds to step 226 and issues a reminder.
In one example, the Wi-Fi
reminder comprises displaying the Wi-Fi reminder screen 170 (FIG. 8) on
display 64a and pulsing lights 68,
78a, 78b, and 102. In another aspect, the reminder issued at step 226 omits
pulsing of the lights 68, 78a,
78b, and 102, and instead only illuminates the specific icon light 68
positioned behind icon 70g in an amber
color. Other variations may, of course, be implemented.
[00118] After issuing the reminder at step 226, controller 104 proceeds
to step 228 where it determines
if the caregiver has ignored the reminder or corrected the state of the Wi-Fi
connection. For example, if
controller 104 determines that the ignore control 172 on the Wi-Fi reminder
screen 170 has been selected,
then controller 104 proceeds to step 230 and clears the Wi-Fi reminder screen
170 from display 64a so that
the caregiver can use user interface 62. In some aspects, controller 104
continues to pulse lights 68, 78a,
78b, and 102. In other aspects, controller 104 merely keeps icon 70g
illuminated in a steady amber color at
step 230. In either aspect, the clearance of the reminder screen and the
continued activation of one or
more lights allows the caregiver to operate user interface 62, including
display 64a, while still reminding the
caregiver that corrective action should be taken.
[00119] If, at step 2228, controller 104 determines that the Wi-Fi
transceiver 116 has successfully
established communication with the wireless access point 118 (and/or a
specific server on network 120),
then controller 104 proceeds to step 234 in which the reminder is cancelled.
Cancelling the issued
reminder at step 234 includes clearing the Wi-Fi reminder screen 170 from
display 64a. Cancelling the
reminder at step 234 may also include ceasing the pulsing of the lights 68,
78a, 78b, and 102, depending
upon the conditions of the other components that are monitored for reminders
by controller 104, as will be
discussed further below in more detail with respect to step 260. Cancelling
the issued reminder at step 234
may also, or alternatively, include changing the activation of the icon light
68 positioned behind icon 70g to
a steady green color.
[00120] From step 216, controller 104 proceeds to step 236, which is
illustrated in FIG. 12B. At step
236, controller 104 determines if personnel at the healthcare facility (e.g.
caregivers) have armed the exit
detection system 150 of the patient support apparatus 30 since the previous
iteration of algorithm 200. This
is determined by consulting memory 106, which stores the settings selected by
the caregiver, or other
authorized personnel, using global setting screen 190 (FIG. 11) and the exit
detection control screen 300
(FIG. 14). If controller 104 determines at step 236 that the exit detection
system 150 has not been armed
since the previous iteration, it proceeds to step 240. If controller 104
determines at step 236 that the exit
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detection system 150 has been armed since the previous iteration, it proceeds
to step 238. At step 238, the
controller 104 sets the bed exit patient-specific reminder to the on state and
proceeds to step 240.
[00121]
[00122] At step 240 (FIG. 12B), the controller 104 determines whether the
global bed exit reminder is
on. This is determined by consulting memory 106, which stores the settings
selected by the caregiver, or
other authorized personnel, using global setting screen 190 (FIG. 11). If the
controller 104 determines at
step 240 the global bed exit reminder is in the off state, the controller 104
proceeds to step 237 (FIG. 12C).
If the controller 104 determines at step 240 the global bed exit reminder is
in the on state, the controller 104
proceeds to step 242. In another aspect, the controller 104 may skip step 240
and go straight to step 242.
[00123] At step 242 (FIG. 12B), the controller 104 determines whether the
patient-specific bed exit
reminder is on. This is determined by consulting memory 106, which stores the
settings selected by the
caregiver, or other authorized personnel, using exit detection control screen
300 (FIG. 14). If the patient-
specific bed exit reminder is off, the controller 104 proceeds to step 237
(FIG. 12C). If the patient-specific
bed exit reminder is on, the controller 104 proceeds to step 244.
[00124] At step 244 (FIG. 12B), controller 104 determines if there is a
patient on the patient support
apparatus 30, based at least in part on input from the force sensors 130 (FIG.
4). If it is determined that
there is no patient on patient support apparatus 30, controller 104 proceeds
to 5tep237 (FIG. 12C). If it is
determined at step 244 that a patient is present on patient support apparatus
30, controller 104 proceeds to
step 246 and determines if exit detection system 150 is armed. In some
aspects, a delay may be followed
by controller 104 before proceeding from step 244 to step 246 in order to give
the caregiver some time
between the patient entering patient support apparatus 30 and the issuance of
a reminder to arm exit
detection system 150.
[00125] If, at step 246 (FIG. 12B), it is determined that exit detection
system 150 is armed, the
controller proceeds to step 237 (FIG. 12C). If, at step 246, it is determined
that exit detection system 150 is
disarmed, then controller 104 proceeds to step 248 and determines whether the
bed exit reminder screen
174 (FIG. 9) has been dismissed. If, at step 248, it is determined that the
bed exit reminder screen 174
(FIG. 9) has not been dismissed, the controller 104 proceeds to step 251 and
issues a reminder to the
caregiver to arm exit detection system 150. The reminder comprises displaying
the corresponding
reminder screen on display 64a (e.g. bed exit reminder screen 174 (FIG. 9)).
If, at step 248, it is
determined that the bed exit reminder screen 174 (FIG. 9) has been dismissed,
the controller 104 proceeds
to step 237 (FIG. 12C).
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[00126] From step 250, controller 104 proceeds to step 252 and determines
if the caregiver has
dismissed the reminder or turned off the desired arming state for system 150.
For example, if controller
104 determines that the dismiss control 180 on the bed exit reminder screen
174 has been selected, then
controller 104 proceeds to step 254. At step 254, controller 104 clears the
reminder screen 174. The
clearance of the reminder screen allows the caregiver to operate user
interface 62, including display 64a.
From step 254, the controller 104 proceeds to step 237 (FIG. 12C)
[00127] If, at step 252 (FIG. 12B), controller 104 determines that the
off control 178 on the bed exit
reminder screen 174 has been selected, then controller 104 proceeds to step
256. At step 256, controller
104 clears the reminder screen from display 64a and clears the desired arming
state for exit detection
system 150 in memory 106. Thus, off control 178 provides a supplemental manner
for a caregiver to
change the desired arming state of system 150 (in addition to global setting
control screen 190 (FIG. 11)).
The desired arming state of system 150 can also be changed using exit
detection control screen 300 (FIG.
14, described in more detail below). In some aspects, the change to the
desired arming states made at
step 256 carries over to all future iterations of algorithm 200 until a new
patient is assigned to patient
support apparatus 30. In other aspects, the change to the desired arming
states made at step 256 carries
over to all future iterations of algorithm 200, including new patients that
are assigned to patient support
apparatus 30. From step 256, controller 104 proceeds to step 237 (FIG. 12C).
[00128] At step 237 (FIG. 12C), controller 104 determines if personnel at
the healthcare facility (e.g.
caregivers) have armed the monitoring system 152 of the patient support
apparatus 30 since the previous
iteration of algorithm 200. This is determined by consulting memory 106, which
stores the settings selected
by the caregiver, or other authorized personnel, using global setting screen
190 (FIG. 11) and the
monitoring system control screen 350 (FIG. 17). If controller 104 determines
at step 237 that the
monitoring system 152 has not been armed since the previous iteration, it
proceeds to step 241. If
controller 104 determines at step 237 that the monitoring system 152 has been
armed since the previous
iteration, it proceeds to step 239. At step 239, the controller 104 sets the
patient-specific monitoring
reminder to the on state and proceeds to step 241.
[00129] At step 241 (FIG. 12C), the controller 104 determines whether the
global monitoring reminder
is on. This is determined by consulting memory 106, which stores the settings
selected by the caregiver, or
other authorized personnel, using global setting screen 190 (FIG. 11). If the
controller 104 determines at
step 241 the global monitoring reminder is in the off state, the controller
104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG.
12A). If the controller 104 determines at step 241 the global monitoring
reminder is in the on state, the
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controller 104 proceeds to step 243. In another aspect, the controller 104 may
skip step 241 and go straight
to step 243.
[00130] At step 243 (FIG. 12C), the controller 104 determines whether the
patient-specific monitoring
reminder is on. This is determined by consulting memory 106, which stores the
settings selected by the
caregiver, or other authorized personnel, using monitoring control screen 350
(FIG. 17). If the patient-
specific bed exit reminder is off, the controller 104 proceeds to step 260
(FIG. 12A). If the patient-specific
bed exit reminder is on, the controller 104 proceeds to step 245.
[00131] At step 245 (FIG. 12C), controller 104 determines if there is a
patient on the patient support
apparatus 30, based at least in part on input from the force sensors 130 (FIG.
4). If it is determined that
there is no patient on patient support apparatus 30, controller 104 proceeds
to step 260 (FIG. 12A). If it is
determined at step 245 that a patient is present on patient support apparatus
30, controller 104 proceeds to
step 247 and determines if monitoring system 152 is armed. In some aspects, a
delay may be followed by
controller 104 before proceeding from step 245 to step 247 in order to give
the caregiver some time
between the patient entering patient support apparatus 30 and the issuance of
a reminder to arm
monitoring system 152.
[00132] If, at step 247 (FIG. 12C), it is determined that monitoring
system 152 is armed, the controller
104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG. 12A). If, at step 247, it is determined that
monitoring system 152 is
disarmed, then controller 104 proceeds to step 249 and determines whether the
monitoring system
reminder screen 182 (FIG. 10) has been dismissed. If, at step 249, it is
determined that the monitoring
system reminder screen 182 (FIG. 10) has not been dismissed, the controller
104 proceeds to step 251 and
issues a reminder to the caregiver to arm monitoring system 152. The reminder
comprises displaying the
corresponding reminder screen on display 64a (e.g. monitoring system reminder
screen 182 (FIG. 10)). If,
at step 249, it is determined that the monitoring system reminder screen 182
(FIG. 10) has been dismissed,
the controller 104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG. 12A).
[00133] From step 251, controller 104 proceeds to step 253 and determines
if the caregiver has
dismissed the reminder or turned off the desired arming state for system 150.
For example, if controller
104 determines that the dismiss control 188 on the monitoring system reminder
screen 182 has been
selected, then controller 104 proceeds to step 255. At step 255, controller
104 clears the reminder screen
182. The clearance of the reminder screen allows the caregiver to operate user
interface 62, including
display 64a. From step 255, the controller 104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG. 12A)
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[00134] If, at step 253 (FIG. 12C), controller 104 determines that the
off control 186 on the monitoring
system reminder screen 182 has been selected, then controller 104 proceeds to
step 257. At step 257,
controller 104 clears the reminder screen from display 64a and clears the
desired arming state for
monitoring system 152 in memory 106. Thus, off control 186 provides a
supplemental manner for a
caregiver to change the desired arming state of system 152 (in addition to
global setting control screen 190
(FIG. 11)). The desired arming state of system 152 can also be changed using
bed monitor control screen
350 (FIG. 17, described in more detail below). In some aspects, the change to
the desired arming states
made at step 257 carries over to all future iterations of algorithm 200 until
a new patient is assigned to
patient support apparatus 30. In other aspects, the change to the desired
arming states made at step 257
carries over to all future iterations of algorithm 200, including new patients
that are assigned to patient
support apparatus 30. From step 257, controller 104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG.
12A).
[00135] From step 254, controller 104 proceeds to step 260 (FIG. 12A).
At step 260, controller 104
determines if all of the conditions in the set of conditions that are
monitored for purposes of issuing
reminders are in their respective desired states. In the particular aspect
shown in FIGS. 12A-12Cof
algorithm 200, this includes checking to see if brake 61 is activated, if
nurse call interface 122 is coupled to
nurse call outlet 126, if power cable 112 is plugged into an electrical
outlet, if network transceiver 116 is in
communication with network 120, if exit detection system 150 is armed, and if
monitoring system 152 is
armed. If the answer to all of these question is yes (i.e. all of these
components are in their desired states),
controller 104 proceeds to step 262 and stops the pulsing of lights 68, 78a,
78b, and 102 (to the extent they
were previously pulsed). From step 262, controller 104 returns to step 202 and
repeats the execution of
algorithm 200. If the answer to the question at step 260 is no (i.e. at least
one of the components is not in
its desired state), controller 104 skips step 262 and returns to step 202
where it repeats the execution of
algorithm 200. It can therefore be seen from steps 260 and 262 that controller
104 only ceases the pulsing
of the lights 68, 78a, 78b, and 102 when patient support apparatus 30 has all
of its components properly
configured. In some aspects, algorithm 200 may be modified to only check the
desired arming state for exit
detection system 150 or may only check the desired arming state for monitoring
system 152.
[00136] When controller 104 repeats algorithm 200 (i.e. starts at step
202 for a second or subsequent
time), controller 104 does not re-display any of the reminder screens that it
previously displayed during a
previous iteration of algorithm 200, unless display 64a has been put to sleep
between the initial display of
the reminder screen and the subsequent iteration of algorithm 200, or the exit
detection system 150 and/or
the monitoring system 152 have been armed since the previous iteration. In
this manner, the caregiver is
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not presented with the same reminder screen re-appearing during a given
session of display 64a being
awake unless the caregiver has armed the exit detection system 150 and/or the
monitoring system 152.
Instead, the reminder screen(s) only appear once and then never appear again
so long as display 64a
remains in the wake mode and the caregiver has not turned the reminder off and
on again by re-arming
either of the systems 150, 152. The caregiver is therefore presented with a
particular reminder screen only
once while continuously utilizing display 64a (e.g. using it sufficient to
keep it awake) unless the caregiver
re-arms either of the systems 150, 152 during usage, which reminds the
caregiver but, other than the single
time the reminder screen is displayed, does not interfere with the caregiver's
usage of display 64a and/or
user interface 62.
[00137] In some aspects, the patient support apparatus 30 only includes the
exit detection system 150
or only includes the monitoring system 152. In other aspects, the patient
support apparatus includes the
exit detection system 150 and the monitoring system 152 in combination with
each other and/or other
monitoring systems.
[00138] In one aspect, controller 104 activates lights 68, 78a-b, and 102
when the exit detection
reminder and/or the monitoring system reminder are triggered. In many aspects,
controller 104 also
activates lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 in additional situations beyond those
specifically discussed above. For
example, in one aspect, controller 104 is configured to flash lights 68, 78a-
b, and 102 once (such as in a
green color) when any one of the following occurs: (1) support frame 36 is
lowered to its lowest height; (2)
back section 41 is pivoted to its threshold HOB angle (e.g. 30 degrees, 45
degrees, etc); (3) a weight
reading has been successfully taken of the patient's weight, and (4) equipment
has been successfully
added to, or removed from, a weight log maintained by patient support
apparatus 30 of non-patient
weight(s). With respect to this last function (adding and removing weight from
a weight log), controller 104
and/or another controller onboard patient support apparatus 30 may be
configured to implement an
add/remove weight log function, several examples of which are disclosed in
commonly assigned U.S.
patent application serial number 62/885,954, filed August 13, 2019, by
inventors Kurosh Nahavandi et al.
and entitled, "PATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUS WITH EQUIPMENT WEIGHT LOG". Other
types of
weight log add/remove functions may alternatively or additionally be used.
[00139] In some aspects, controller 104 is also configured to activate
lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 in a
steady, green color when both exit detection system 150 and monitoring system
152 are armed (or only
one of these is armed if the user has utilized screen 190 of FIG. 11 to change
the desired arming state¨
stored in memory 106¨of the other one of these systems to be a disarmed
state). This steady, green
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activation of lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 only occurs when all of the reminder
conditions are in their proper
state. Thus, the caregiver will see a steady green light around most of the
external perimeter of patient
support apparatus 30 only when patient support apparatus 30 has been properly
configured and the
desired systems 150, 152 have been armed. The steady green light therefore
provides an easily visible
confirmation to the caregiver that everything on the patient support apparatus
30 has been properly
configured, and the lack of the steady green light (e.g. a pulsing amber
light, or some other illumination
state) indicates that the patient support apparatus 30 is not completely
configured in its desired manner.
[00140] Lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 are also used to indicate when an alert
condition is detected by exit
detection system 150 and/or monitoring system 152. When exit detection system
150 detects that a patient
has exited from patient support apparatus 30, controller 104 flashes lights
68, 78a-b, and 102 in a red color.
When monitoring system 152 detects that one or more of the components
monitored by system 152 are in
an undesired state, controller 104 flashes lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 in an
amber color. Still other manners
of using lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 may also or alternatively be implemented.
[00141] In addition to controlling lights 68, 78a-b, and 102, controller
104 is further configured, in at
least some aspects, to control a light positioned behind brake control 92 on
side rail user interface 80 (FIG.
3). In such aspects, controller 104 may be configured to pulse this light in
an amber color, and to do so in
synchrony with the pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b, and 102, when brake 61 is
deactivated. Additionally,
controller 104 may be configured to activate this light to a white color when
brake 61 is activated (or in
some cases, to a green color). If side rail user interface 80 is modified to
include additional controls beyond
what is shown in FIG. 3 that correspond to any of the conditions that trigger
reminder screens (discussed
above), controller 104 may be configured to activate lights positioned behind
such controls on side rail user
interface 80 in the same manners as it activates lights 68, 78a-b, and 102, as
discussed above.
[00142] In addition to controlling the activation of lights 68, 78a-b,
and 102, controller 104 may also be
configured to control one or more sounds emitted by a beeper and/or the audio
playback circuit 146, amp
147, and speaker 148 positioned onboard patient support apparatus 30. In such
aspects, controller 104
may be configured to emit a single beep whenever monitoring system 152 is
triggered (i.e. detects an
undesired condition), whenever the brake 61 is deactivated, whenever the AC
power cord 112 is
unplugged, whenever support frame 36 is lowered to its lowest height; whenever
back section 41 is pivoted
to its threshold HOB angle (e.g. 30 degrees, 45 degrees, etc.), whenever a
weight reading has been
successfully taken of the patient's weight, and whenever equipment has been
successfully added to, or
removed from, a weight log maintained by patient support apparatus 30 of non-
patient weight(s). Controller
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104 may additionally, or alternatively, be configured to emit a continuous
beeping when exit detection
system 150 detects a patient's exit and/or when exit detection system 150
cannot be armed due to, for
example, a patient not settling. This continuous beeping is configured to
continue until the caregiver
corrects the situation and/or turns off the corresponding alerting system 150,
152.
[00143] It will be understood by those skilled in the art that algorithm
200 may be substantially modified
from what is shown in FIGS. 12A-C. For example, the specific set of conditions
for which reminders are
issued may be modified. Additionally, the order shown in these figures in
which the conditions are checked
may be changed. Algorithm 200 may also be changed such that controller 104
makes different selections
for which conditions lead to the pulsing of lights 68, 78a-b, and 102 versus
which conditions only lead to the
display of a light on dashboard 64b. In other words, controller 104 may be
configured to pulse lights 68,
78a-b, and 102 when any of the conditions illustrated on dashboard 64b (FIG.
2) are in an undesired state,
or in alternative aspects, any subset of these conditions.
[00144] Controller 104 may also delay issuing a reminder in response to a
change in state of one or
more of the monitored features, conditions, or components, such that patient
support apparatus 30 does
not indicate an undesired state in response to a momentary change in state.
For example, the caregiver
may deactivate brake 61 momentarily to adjust a position of the patient
support apparatus 30, but then
immediately reset brake 61 back to being active. This process may take no more
than 30 seconds or less.
Accordingly, controller 104 may monitor a time period once the state has
changed and delay the associated
notification of the state change until a predetermined period of time has
elapsed. The predetermined
period of time may be 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 seconds, or other predetermined period
of time.
[00145] Prior to algorithm 200, if the exit detection system 150 or the
monitoring system 152 was
turned off via the corresponding reminder screen, the patient-specific
reminder would be off for the rest of
the patient's stay and the only way to enable the patient-specific reminder
was using a bed zero screen 312
like the one depicted in FIG. 15. The bed zero screen 312 is displayed on
display 64a and allows a
caregiver or other user to assign a new patient to the patient support
apparatus 30. The bed zero screen
312 has a cancel control 314, a no control 316, and a yes control 318. When a
user uses the cancel
control 314, the bed zero screen 312 is dismissed, the memory 106 retains the
patient-specific reminders,
and the caregiver can continue to use display 64a and/or user interface 62.
When a user uses the no
control 316, the bed zero screen 312 is dismissed, the memory 106 retains the
patient-specific reminders,
and the caregiver can continue to use display 64a and/or user interface 62.
When a user uses the yes
control 318, the bed zero screen 312 is dismissed, the memory 106 clears the
patient specific reminders for
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both the exit detection system 150 and the monitoring system 152, and the
caregiver can continue to use
display 64a and/or user interface 62 to set up patient apparatus 30 for the
new patient. Algorithm 200
allows the patient-specific reminders for the exit detection system 150 and
the monitoring system 152 to be
re-set without having to use bed zero screen 312 and erasing all of the other
patient-specific data.
[00146] In some aspects, patient support apparatus 30 is provided with an
egress function, which can
be activated by user-activation of egress control 84a on the side rail user
interface 80, or optionally via the
footboard user interface 62. The egress function allows the caregiver to move
the components of support
deck 38 and frame 36 into a position that allows easier exit from the
apparatus 30, e.g. into an "egress
orientation," with the intention that the patient will be exiting the
apparatus 30. Accordingly, this can conflict
with exit detection system 150 when it is armed, as the egress of the patient
detected by the force sensors
130 causes the controller to issue an exit alert. FIG. 13 depicts an egress
reminder algorithm 280 that
controller 104 follows when the egress function is activated which can remind
the caregiver to turn off exit
detection system 150 if it is armed to prevent an undesired alert from being
issued.
[00147] Egress reminder algorithm 280 begins a step 282 when the egress
function is activated by the
caregiver. Activation of the egress function comprises selection of egress
control 84a (FIG. 3) on the side
rail user interface 80. From step 282, controller 104 proceeds to step 284 and
determines whether exit
detection system 150 is armed or disarmed. If exit detection system 150 is
disarmed, controller 104
proceeds to step 286 and moves the patient support apparatus 30 to the egress
orientation. User-
activation of egress control 84a transmits a signal to controller 104 that
causes controller 104 to operate the
actuators to move the support frame 36, patient support deck 38, patient
support surface 42, and/or one or
more deck sections 41, 43, 45, 47 to a position that allows the patient to
exit the patient support apparatus
more easily. For example, controller 104 can raise the back section 41 and
lower the support frame 36,
patient support deck 38, and patient support surface 42 relative to the base
frame 35, including to a lowest
height relative to the base frame 35.
25 [00148] In aspects of patient support apparatus 30 with powered
side rails 44, 46, 48, 50, user-
activation of egress control 84a can also result in moving one or more of the
side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 in a
manner to facilitate patient egress from the patient support apparatus 30,
such as raising or lowering one or
more of the side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 and/or re-orienting one or more of the
side rails 44, 46, 48, 50 to make
patient egress easier.
30 [00149] If exit detection system 150 is armed, from step 284
controller 104 proceeds to step 288 and
activates the reminder light 94 and/or lights 102 in order to remind the
caregiver to disarm exit detection
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system 150 prior to the patient egressing from the apparatus 30. The reminder
at step 288 may also send
an alert to the nurse station via a 37-pin connector or may alert wirelessly.
If the patient egress was not
intended by the caregiver, the reminder can also serve to alert the caregiver
that an egress is occurring.
After activation of the reminder light 94 and/or lights 102, controller 104
proceeds to step 286 and moves
the patient support apparatus 30 to the egress orientation.
[00150] Once the patient support apparatus 30 is in the egress
orientation, controller 104 proceeds to
step 290 and the algorithm 280 ends. If, at any point after illumination of
the reminder light 94 and/or lights
102, exit detection system 150 is disarmed, such as by user-activation of the
arming/disarming control 96,
controller 104 is configured to turn off the reminder light 94 and/or lights
102.
[00151] To the extent not already described, the different content and
functions of the various control
screens of patient support apparatus 30 may be used in combination with each
other as desired, and/or the
content and/or functions of one control screen may be applied to one or more
other control screens.
Further, the selected content shown in any particular control screen herein is
not to be construed that it
must have all of the content shown therein. For example, aspects including the
exit detection system, the
monitoring system, the user interfaces, the reminder screens, the reminder
management, and the egress
function can be implemented independently of each other or in any sub-
combination on the patient support
apparatus 30.
[00152] Various additional alterations and changes beyond those already
mentioned herein can be
made to the above-described aspects. This disclosure is presented for
illustrative purposes and should not
be interpreted as an exhaustive description of all aspects or to limit the
scope of the claims to the specific
elements illustrated or described in connection with these aspects; the
invention is defined by the claims.
For example, and without limitation, any individual element(s) of the
described aspects may be replaced by
alternative elements that provide substantially similar functionality or
otherwise provide adequate operation.
This includes, for example, presently known alternative elements, such as
those that might be currently
known to one skilled in the art, and alternative elements that may be
developed in the future, such as those
that one skilled in the art might, upon development, recognize as an
alternative. Any reference to claim
elements in the singular, for example, using the articles "a," "an," "the" or
"said," is not to be construed as
limiting the element to the singular.
43
Date Recue/Date Received 2021-05-27
