US 5,542,138 · Granted 1996-08-06
The Swiveling Hospital Bed Remote That Lets Patients Stay in Control
Imagine a hospital bed remote control that swings toward you whether you're lying in bed or sitting in a chair beside it. This patent describes a flexible arm system attached to the bed frame that pivots and extends, keeping the control panel exactly where you need it without having to stretch or reach awkwardly.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a bedside control unit mounted on a hospital bed frame with an articulated support system—specifically a vertical support member connected to the bed, topped with an overhead arm that can pivot between two positions: one extending over the bed itself, and another reaching outward toward a bedside chair. The control module hangs from this movable arm. What's protected is this combination of the base attachment, the pivoting vertical support, the overhead arm mechanism, and the ability to reposition the entire control panel from bed to chair without disconnecting it.
Why it matters
Hospital beds are inherently uncomfortable, and patients already struggling with mobility or pain shouldn't have to hunt for their call button or environmental controls. By making the control unit swing on command, this patent removes friction from basic patient independence—adjusting bed height, calling nurses, controlling temperature. In a healthcare environment obsessed with patient satisfaction scores and reducing caregiver strain, a control system designed around actual patient positions (horizontal in bed, vertical in a chair) is a small but meaningful quality-of-life improvement that compounds across thousands of hospital stays.
Real-world use
Every time a patient recovering from surgery reaches for the button to adjust their bed without straining, or a visitor in a bedside chair summons a nurse without waking the patient, they're benefiting from this patented articulation.
Original USPTO abstract
A bedside control unit for a hospital bed is operable from a position within the bed and also from a bedside chair. The bedside control unit includes a base which attaches to the frame of a hospital bed. An articulated support is connected to the base which includes a vertically extending support member pivotally connected to the base, and an overhead support arm pivotally connected to an upper end of the support member. The control module is suspended from the overhead support arm. The support arm is moveable between a first position in which the support arm extends over the hospital bed and a second position in which the support arm extends outward from the bed. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the bedside control unit includes data storage means for storing data, such as patient information, and a display for displaying information stored in the control module.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,542,138
- Filing date
- 1995-02-06
- Grant date
- 1996-08-06
- Assignee
- Williams; Terry N. / Parrish; George R.
- Inventor(s)
- WILLIAMS; TERRY N., PARRISH; GEORGE R.
- CPC class
- H04M1/2474
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