JP7520487B2 - Nurse cart display stand with bumper - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a nurse cart fixture (hereinafter referred to as a nurse cart terminal, or simply a cart terminal) that is installed in a location (such as a nurse center or an adjacent location) where multiple carts called nurse wagons or nurse carts (hereinafter referred to as nurse carts) used in hospitals and other facilities are gathered and arranged to carry necessary equipment and charge electronic devices.

In hospitals with inpatients, nurses use nurse carts equipped with the necessary equipment, tools, and supplies, including computers, so that they can make rounds between patients and take necessary measures such as measuring the patient's blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, etc., and changing intravenous fluids, bandages, etc.

When the nurses gather at a nursing center, for example, the nurse carts carried by each nurse are placed side by side and close to each other on the cart terminal.

At the cart terminal, where multiple nurse carts are placed close to each other, nurses can charge the computers and PHS phones they use for work, and also operate the computers on the nurse carts.

Incidentally, in a conventional cart terminal in which multiple nurse carts are arranged close together, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, there is a cart terminal CT in which the left and right sides of a housing section Sb, which is roughly rectangular in shape when viewed from the front and has a small front-to-rear width, are supported by roughly inverted T-shaped side frames SF.

When multiple nurse carts are arranged facing each other on both the front and rear sides of the cart terminal CT, the caster-equipped feet of each nurse cart abut the lower part of the housing part Sb, and the housing part Sb performs a stopper function to prevent the tip of the top board of each nurse cart from colliding with the housing part Sb of the cart terminal CT or covering the top surface of the housing part Sb.

The housing section Sb of the cart terminal CT is formed as a hollow chamber, and also has a function for storing power cords and their excess length. In addition, the left and right side frames SF that support the housing section Sb are formed with an exterior that has a front-to-back width equal to the front-to-back width of the housing section Sb.

However, if the front-to-rear width of the housing part Sb is made, for example, half or less of the front-to-rear width shown in Figures 5 and 6 in order to change the external appearance of the cart terminal CT, the function of preventing the tip of the top board of the nurse cart from colliding with the housing part Sb, or the function of preventing the tip side of the top board from covering the top surface of the housing part Sb, which was provided with this cart terminal CT, will be lost.

JP 2013-226188 A

The objective of the present invention is to provide a cart terminal that has a structure in which the tip of the top board of a nurse cart placed in the cart terminal does not collide with the cart terminal and the top boards of nurse carts placed facing each other do not interfere with each other, even in a cart terminal designed in a form in which the function of preventing the tip of the top board of a closely arranged nurse cart from colliding with the cart terminal or the function of preventing the tip of the top board from covering the upper surface of the cart terminal, which was provided by conventional cart terminals due to their shapes, is lost due to design changes, etc.

The cart terminal of the present invention, which has been made to solve the above problems, has the following configuration:
This nurse cart terminal is equipped with side frames formed in a roughly inverted T shape in side view by horizontal feet extending in the front-to-rear direction and support parts rising roughly vertically from roughly the center of the length of the feet, and an upper connecting frame connecting the facing upper parts of the side frames arranged at a distance in the left-to-right direction, and is characterized in that a bumper is installed between the facing lower parts of the side frames to regulate the approaching position of the nurse carts so that the top boards of the nurse carts arranged close to each other and facing each other on the front and rear sides of the nurse cart terminal do not interfere with each other.

The bumper is formed by connecting both ends of at least two parallel steel pipe members with a connecting member to form a generally rectangular shape in plan view. The bumper can be formed by bending the edge of the long side, or the edge of the long side and the short side of a generally rectangular steel plate in plan view into a generally U-shaped or inverted L-shaped cross section.

The bumper can be attached to the side frame by using an attachment member between the connecting member and the side frame, or between the short side and the side frame.

The upper connecting frame in the present invention has a vertically long, approximately inverted concave cross section or a vertically long, approximately square cross section, and is provided with an electrical connector including a power outlet on its top surface or on both the front and rear surfaces.

In addition, the upper connecting frame has a single top plate that is placed on the upper connecting frame via a top plate support member that the upper connecting frame has, and the single top plate has an electrical connector including a power outlet.

In the nurse cart terminal of the present invention, the upper connecting frame has an electrical connector on its upper surface, and two top plates are provided in a manner sandwiching the upper end of the upper connecting frame via a top plate support member.

In addition, the tabletop support members that support the two tabletops are detachably attached to the tabletop support member mounting portions provided on the front and rear surfaces of the support column.

Furthermore, the mounting sections for the tabletop support members for the two tabletops are provided in the upper half of the front and rear surfaces of the support column, allowing the tabletop support members to be mounted at selected heights.

In the present invention, a cart terminal can be formed in which two tabletops are supported by tabletop support members attached at different heights to the front and rear surfaces of the support column.

The support portion of the side frame may be formed with a strength member having a horizontally-facing, generally concave cross-sectional shape and a removable cover member that covers the open surface of the strength member.

When the support column has the above structure, the mounting portion for the tabletop support member for the two tabletops is provided on the strength member of the support column.

Furthermore, panel members including a fascia can be provided on the front and rear of the upper and lower connecting frames in a removable or openable manner.

The cart terminal of the present invention has bumpers at the bottom of the left and right side frames that determine the limit of how close the nurse cart can get. Therefore, even if the cart terminal is designed with a small front-to-rear width, the caster-equipped feet of the nurse cart will come into contact with the bumpers before the top board reaches the cart terminal, thus avoiding interference between the top boards of facing nurse carts and preventing the tips of the top boards from colliding with the cart terminal.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of a cart terminal according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the cart terminal of FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a front view of the cart terminal of FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a side view of an example of a nurse cart arranged on the cart terminal of FIG. 1 . FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of a conventional cart terminal. FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the cart terminal of FIG. 5 .

Next, an embodiment of a cart terminal according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
1 to 4, reference numeral 1 denotes a horizontal foot extending in the front-to-rear direction, 1a denotes adjusters provided on both ends of the underside of foot 1, and 2 denotes a support column provided in a vertical position at approximately the center of the length of foot 1. Due to design requirements, support column 2 is made much thinner than the front-to-rear width of the support column of the conventional cartwheel mill shown in Figures 5 and 6.

The foot 1 and the support column 2 connected to the foot 1 form a side frame SF having a generally inverted T shape in side view. The support column 2 in the illustrated side frame SF is formed so that its length (height) is greater than the height at which top plates 6 and 7, which will be described later, are provided.
Although not shown, the cart terminal according to the present invention also includes a cart terminal that uses a support portion 2 that is approximately the same height as the upper surfaces of the top plates 6 and 7 in Figure 1, or a support portion 2 that is higher than the height of the support portion 2 shown in Figure 1.

The two side frames SF are arranged at a distance from each other in the left-right direction, and an upper connecting frame 3 is erected and connected to the upper parts of the opposing surfaces of the left and right side frames SF, forming an example of a cart terminal CT that includes the left and right side frames SF and the upper connecting frame 3 connected to the side frames SF.

The upper connecting frame 3 is formed, for example, by a connecting frame main body 3a having a vertically elongated, generally concave cross-sectional shape. The connecting frame main body 3a may have a detachable lid that covers its upper opening. The front-to-rear width of the connecting frame main body 3a is the same as the front-to-rear width of the support column 2, but is made smaller (thin). This is to make the front-to-rear width of the cart terminal CT look slimmer (smarter) due to design requirements.

The cross-sectional shape of the connecting frame body 3a is not limited to the vertically elongated, approximately concave shape described above, and it is possible to use, for example, a combination member in which two members with horizontally concave cross sections face each other, or a vertically elongated, approximately square cross-sectional member.

The connecting frame body 3a has a cord insertion structure that allows an electrical cord to be passed through from its underside and then pulled out to its top side.

A bumper 4 is installed on the lower part of the opposing surfaces of the left and right side frames SF. The illustrated bumper 4 is formed into a bumper having a substantially horizontally rectangular outline in a plan view, with a bumper body 4a made of two steel pipe members with an outer dimension of a separation width of about 200 to 300 mm and connecting members 4b that connect and integrate at least both ends of the two steel pipe members. The bumper 4 is connected (fixed) to the opposing inner surfaces of the side frames SF by bolts, nuts, screws, etc. at the connecting members 4b at both ends.
The bumper body 4a may use two or more steel pipe members, and it is optional whether the steel pipe members are square pipes or round pipes. Instead of the steel pipe members, a channel material with a cross section of a roughly U-shape may be used for the bumper body 4a. The connecting members 4b may be only two at both ends, or may be four or more including both ends.

As long as the width (front-to-back width) in the direction parallel to the foot 1 is 200 to 300 mm, the bumper 4 may be formed by bending an approximately rectangular steel plate member at its long side edge, or at its long side and short side edges, into a cross section that is approximately C-shaped or approximately inverted L-shaped to form the bumper 4 with an approximately rectangular outline in a plan view.
In the case of a bumper 4 made of a steel plate member, whose edges are not bent on the left and right sides in the longitudinal direction, in order to join the bumper 4 to the inner surfaces of the side frames SF (support parts 2), mounting members (not shown) may be interposed between the left and right end portions of the bumper 4 and the opposing inner surfaces of the left and right side frames SF. The mounting members may also be used to join the inner surfaces of bumpers 4 and side frames SF of other shapes.

The front-to-rear width of each of the bumpers 4 described above is greater than the front-to-rear width of the support column 2 (width parallel to the foot 1). As mentioned above, the front-to-rear width of the support column 1 is narrow, and the front-to-rear width of the entire cart terminal is made smaller to match this width, so if the bumper 4 is not provided, interference will occur between the top boards of the nurse carts arranged opposite the cart terminal. Incidentally, in the conventional cart terminal CT shown in Figures 5 and 6, the front-to-rear width of the support column of the side frame SF and the front-to-rear width of the housing part Sb that forms the terminal body are formed to be equal, so the width is wide, and due to this width, interference does not occur between the top boards of the nurse carts arranged opposite each other. Note that in Figures 5 and 6, the same symbols are used for the same members as in the cart terminal CT in Figures 1 to 4.

In the present invention, the cart terminal CT of the present invention in its most basic form is constructed from the left and right side frames SF each having the foot portion 1 and support portion 2, the upper connecting frame 3 connecting the two side frames SF, and the bumper 4 installed on the lower portion of the side frames SF.

The embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 4 is the basic form of the cart terminal CT of the present invention, to which the configuration described below has been added.

In the basic form of the cart terminal CT of the present invention, two panel-shaped members 5 are detachably installed between the upper connecting frame 3 and the lower bumper 4 on both the front and rear sides of the left and right support columns 2. The space between the two panel members 5 can be used as a passage for electrical cords and as a storage area for excess cords.

In the basic form of the cart terminal CT of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 1, a single top plate 6 is placed on the top surface of the upper connecting frame body 3a. Electric connectors 6a, including power outlets connected to the electric cords, are arranged at equal intervals on the top surface of the top plate 6 (four in the example shown). Electric connectors 6a, such as USB ports, are arranged near the front edge of the underside of the single top plate 6.
The present invention also includes a cart terminal CT in which two top plates are provided to sandwich the top surface of the upper connecting frame body 3a having a lid.

The single tabletop 6 is supported by bracket-shaped tabletop support members 7 and 8 attached to the respective support columns 2 of the left and right side frames SF. The single tabletop 6 is also supported by a tabletop support member (not shown) attached to the middle of the upper connecting frame 3, although this is not shown in the figure.

In the cart terminal CT of the present invention shown in Figures 1 to 4, the support members 2 of the left and right side frames SF use support members with upper sides 2a whose upper ends are positioned higher than the height of the top plates 6, 7. This is to allow the support bar members 9 for engaging display panels, etc. to be installed between the opposing surfaces of the upper sides 2a of the left and right support members 2.

The cart terminal CT of the present invention is as described above, and the bumpers 4 provided on the lower parts of the left and right side frames SF that form the cart terminal CT have the following functions and effects.
That is, as shown in Fig. 4, when the nurse cart NC approaches the cart terminal CT, the tip Na of the top board N1 of the nurse cart NC does not collide with the cart terminal CT. This is because the tip parts Nb of the feet N2 equipped with the casters N3 of the nurse cart NC first come into contact with the bumper 4. As a result, even in the case of a cart terminal CT in which the front-to-rear width of the terminal body made up of the left and right support parts 2, the upper connecting frame 3, and the panel members 5 is designed to be small, the tip Na of the top board of the nurse cart NC does not collide with the terminal body Tb (see Fig. 4).

Furthermore, even if the top board N1 of the nurse cart NC is located at a position higher than the upper surface of the cart terminal CT, the top board N1 does not cover the upper surface of the cart terminal CT, so the top boards N1 of nurse carts NC arranged opposite each other do not interfere with each other, and operation of a PC placed on each top board N1 is not hindered by the presence of the nurse cart NC on the opposite side.
In FIG. 4, N4 is a support post of the nurse cart NC, N5 is a shelf provided on the support post N4, and N6 is a handle for pushing and pulling.

CT Cart Terminal (Nurse Cart Fixtures)
SF Side frame 1 Foot 2 Support 3 Upper connecting frame 4 Bumper

Claims (4)

A nurse cart terminal includes side frames formed in a generally inverted T shape in side view by horizontal feet extending in the front-rear direction and support columns rising generally vertically from the longitudinal center of the feet, and an upper connecting frame connecting the upper portions of the side frames facing each other and spaced apart in the left-right direction,
A bumper is installed between the opposing lower parts of the side frames to regulate the approaching position of the nurse cart so that the top boards of the nurse carts arranged close to and facing the front side and rear side of the nurse cart terminal do not interfere with each other, and two fascia-shaped panel members are installed between the upper connecting frame and the bumper,
When viewed from the side, the front panel member is located rearward of the front end of the support column, and the rear panel member is located forward of the rear end of the support column ,
The bumper includes a bumper body that comes into contact with the nurse cart when the nurse cart approaches the bumper,
the bumper body includes a portion that protrudes forward from the support pillar portion in a side view and a portion that protrudes rearward from the support pillar portion in a side view,
The support column is set to less than 300 mm.
A display unit for nurse carts characterized by the above. 2. The nurse cart fixture of claim 1, wherein the bumper is formed by connecting both ends of at least two steel pipe members arranged in parallel with each other with a connecting member to give an outline shape that is approximately rectangular when viewed from above. The nurse cart fixture of claim 1, wherein the bumper is formed by bending the edge of the long side, or the edge of the long side and the short side, of a steel plate that is approximately rectangular when viewed from above into an approximately C-shape or an approximately inverted L-shape in cross section. A nurse cart fixture as claimed in claim 2 or 3, wherein the bumper, which is installed on the lower part of the opposing side frames, is connected to the side frames via an attachment member between the connecting member and the side frame, or between the short side and the side frame.

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