Powered roll-in cots
View Patent ↗According to one embodiment, a roll-in cot may include a support frame, a pair of back legs, a pair of front legs, and a cot actuation system. The pair of back legs and the pair of front legs can be slidingly coupled to the support frame. Each of the pair of front legs can include a front wheel and an intermediate load wheel. The intermediate load wheel is offset from the front wheel by a load wheel distance. A front actuator can raise the pair of front legs such that the front wheel and the intermediate load wheel of each of the pair of front legs are aligned along a loading level. The intermediate load wheel of each of the pair of front legs can be offset from the pair of back legs by a loading span. The load wheel distance can be greater than the loading span.
1. A roll-in cot comprising:
a support frame comprising a front end, and a back end; a pair of back legs slidingly coupled to the support frame;
a pair of front legs slidingly coupled to the support frame, wherein each of the pair of front legs comprises a front wheel and an intermediate load wheel, wherein the front wheel and the intermediate load wheel are configured to be simultaneously in contact with a loading surface, and wherein the intermediate load wheel is offset from the front wheel by a load wheel distance; and
a cot actuation system comprising a front actuator that moves the pair of front legs and a back actuator that moves the pair of back legs, wherein:
the front actuator retracts the pair of front legs such that the front wheel and the intermediate load wheel are aligned along a loading level when the front wheel and the intermediate load wheel are in contact with the loading surface;
the intermediate load wheel of each of the pair of front legs is offset, along the loading level, from the pair of back legs by a loading span; and
the load wheel distance is greater than the loading span.
2. The roll-in cot of claim 1 , further comprising:
a back carriage member slidingly engaged with the support frame and rotatably coupled to the pair of back legs, wherein each of the pair of back legs comprises a wheel linkage and a back wheel coupled to the wheel linkage, and wherein each of the pair of back legs defines a back leg span that extends from the back carriage member through the wheel linkage, and wherein a loading angle α is formed by the back leg span and the loading level such that the loading angle α is an acute angle.
3. The roll-in cot of claim 1 , wherein the distance between the front end of the cot and the front wheel is less than the distance between the front end of the cot and the intermediate load wheel when the pair of front legs are retracted and the intermediate load wheel is supported by a loading surface.