US 8,723,677 · Granted 2014-05-13
The Smart Hospital Bed That Knows When You're About to Fall
Imagine a hospital bed that automatically adjusts itself to a safer position the moment it detects a patient trying to get up alone, or when the nurse leaves the room. At the same time, it alerts the care provider and sounds an alarm so someone can rush back if needed. It's like having a safety guardian built into the mattress frame.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The patent covers an adjustable hospital bed system that automatically changes position based on sensor data — specifically when it detects that a patient is attempting to leave the bed or when a caregiver has exited the room. The claims also protect the connected patient monitoring system that sends alerts and alarms to staff when the patient tries to get up without supervision. What's protected here is the combination of the automatic bed adjustment mechanism and the alert workflow tied to patient movement and room presence detection.
Why it matters
Patient falls are a leading cause of injury and death in hospitals, and reducing them saves lives and reduces liability costs for healthcare facilities. This patent represents an automated safety layer — rather than relying solely on staff vigilance, the bed itself becomes an active guardian. By combining monitoring sensors with mechanical adjustment, Masimo created a system that could reduce dangerous unattended bed-exit incidents, making it a meaningful advance in hospital safety infrastructure.
Real-world use
When a sedated or confused patient in a hospital ICU starts to roll toward the edge of the bed, the system detects movement, lowers the bed to reduce fall height, and immediately notifies the nurse station so help arrives quickly.
Original USPTO abstract
A patient safety system including an adjustable bed and a patient monitoring system is disclosed herein. The adjustable bed can automatically adjust to a safe default configuration when the safety system detects that a care provider has left the patient's room or when the safety system detects that the patient is trying to leave the bed. The patient monitoring system can send an alert to the care provider and/or sound an alarm if the patient tries to leave the bed and a care provider is not present with the patient.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 8,723,677
- Filing date
- 2011-10-19
- Grant date
- 2014-05-13
- Assignee
- Masimo Corporation
- Inventor(s)
- KIANI MASSI JOE E.
- CPC class
- A61B5/1115
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