FR2703229A1 - Locking device for a bed rail, rail and bed thus equipped. - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a locking device for a bed rail, rail and bed thus equipped, having the structure of a deformable parallelogram. It is of the type composed of two main parts (3, 4) which can be locked and unlocked with respect to each other by means of an elastic snap-in system comprising a control means such as a push button (30) mounted in one of the main parts (3, 4). This device is remarkable in that it includes, for safety reasons, a means for blocking said elastic snap-in system, which can be actuated, in the unlocking direction, by displacement of an operating member (25). remote from said control means (30).

Description

LOCKING DEVICE FOR A BED BARRIER,

BARRIER AND BED WITH EQUIPMENT

  The present invention relates in particular to a device for

  locking for a bed rail.

  It is a bed barrier having the structure of a deformable parallelogram located in a vertical plane parallel to one of the sides of the bed, and comprising longitudinal bars articulated on at least two substantially vertical uprights equipped with horizontal pivot axes These barriers can be operated from a deployed position to a retracted position and vice versa They are commonly used in

  hospitals, to ensure the protection and / or detention of bedridden patients.

  The invention also relates to a barrier equipped with

  this locking device and to a bed provided with such a barrier.

  French patent application NO 2 647 654, in the name of the applicant, relates to a barrier of the type mentioned above. This barrier comprises means for locking in the deployed position. These means comprise two main parts which can be locked and unlocked. relative to each other by means of an elastic snap-in system comprising a control means consisting of

  a push button, mounted in one of said parts.

  It is therefore sufficient, to unlock the barrier, to manually push the push button then, to bring the barrier into the retracted position, to grasp it at one of the handles which equip it, to

  accompany it in a pivoting movement.

  The movement to unlock the barrier is therefore very simple In addition, the position of the push button is easy to locate, the color of the latter being most often very different from that

of the barrier proper.

  This barrier gives full satisfaction in terms of operation. However, since the movement to be made for unlocking is simple, it sometimes happens that children press, by play, on the push button In the event that the barrier is in place on a bed frame in an inclined position ( raised footboard), the barrier retracts by itself, due to its own weight This can be harmful, both for the child and for the bedridden patient (finger trapping between the bars of the barrier). An object of the present invention is to improve the safety of

  this type of barrier when it is unlocked.

  Another object is to improve the ergonomics of this barrier so as to avoid any trapping of fingers when it is in position

retracted.

  These objectives are achieved in accordance with the invention thanks to the fact that it provides a locking device for a bed rail, the latter having the structure of a deformable parallelogram situated in a vertical plane parallel to one of the sides of the bed and comprising longitudinal bars articulated on at least two substantially vertical uprights, this device being composed of two main parts articulated to each other around a pivot of transverse axis (perpendicular to the plane containing the barrier) and can be locked and unlocked with respect to each other by means of an elastic snap-in system so that in the locked state the barrier is kept upright and in the unlocked state it can be lowered , one of said main parts being fixed to the bed edge spar, while the other is integral with the base of one of said vertical uprights, this click system elastic uetting comprising a control means such as a push button mounted in one of said main parts, characterized in that it comprises a means for blocking said elastic latching system, which can be actuated, in the direction of release, by movement of an operating member remote from said control means. Thus, to unlock the barrier, it is necessary to successively implement two different actions. It is understood that these maneuvers cannot be carried out unexpectedly, which reduces the risks of unwanted unlocking. In addition, the gestures to be made

  for unlocking are more difficult for a child to understand.

  According to other characteristics and advantages of this device, said operating member is provided in the upper part of the barrier; said operating member consists of a handle disposed at the end of one of said longitudinal bars, on the same side as said latching system; said handle is disposed at the end of the upper longitudinal bar; the substantially vertical upright disposed on the side of the handle is hollow and it comprises a control linkage housed inside the upright, which kinematically connects said handle to the locking means; the linkage comprises a pin associated with said handle, which forms a hinge axis for the latter and which is guided in translation in a substantially vertical light provided in the upright, the release of the elastic snap-in system being obtained by displacement of said handle to the top; the locking means consists of a lug forming the lower end of the linkage, this lug being in the locked position on the line of action of the control means and preventing movement of the latter; said linkage comprises means capable of maintaining the lug on the line of action of the control means in the absence of movement of said linkage; the distance which separates the axes of articulation of the two uprights is greater than that which separates the axes of articulation from said upper bar and said handle comprises a housing capable of allowing

  the sliding of the bar, inside the handle.

  The invention also relates to a barrier equipped with a

  device of the kind mentioned above as well as a bed thus equipped.

  Other features and advantages of describing a

  preferred embodiment, made with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 represents, in side view a bed on which is placed a barrier equipped with the locking device of the invention, FIGS. 2 and 3 are simplified views, from the front and in vertical section of the locking device, respectively in the locked and unlocked positions; Figure 4 is a more detailed side view, also in vertical section, of the means of Figures 2 and 3; Figure 5 is a partial view of Figure 3, illustrating one of the gestures to be made in order to unlock the barrier; Figures 6 and 7 are block diagrams illustrating the position of the barrier respectively in the raised and retracted position; FIG. 8 is a partial view in vertical section of part of the locking means, intended to illustrate the sliding of the

  barrier top bar in the operating handle.

  The bed barrier 2 is shown in FIG. 1 and mounted on one of the two side rails 11 of the edge of a bed 1 This bed has been shown diagrammatically, the vertical bars 10 belonging respectively to the

  foot and headboard (the headboard is located to the right of the figure).

  Furthermore, the feet 12 of the bed have been shown partially; these rest for example on a console which is equipped with wheels facilitating the

moving the bed.

  The barrier 2, for example metallic, is formed of a series of parallel longitudinal bars 21, 22, 23 as well as two substantially vertical uprights 20 and 20 'The upper bar 22 is articulated on the uprights 20 and 20' around articulation axes 220 and 220 ′ Similarly, the bars 21 have at their ends 210 articulation axes 24 These axes are attached to parts 200 integral with the

uprights 20 and 20 '.

  Each of the uprights 20 and 20 'is articulated with respect to a part 4 which is fixed to the side member 11 of the bed. It will be noted that a handle of

  operation 8 allows this part to be secured to the beam.

  It will also be noted that the upright 20, which has an oblique lower part and a vertical main part, is integral

  of a part 3 which is itself articulated on the corresponding part 4.

  In the same way, the upright 20 'is integral with a part 3' articulated on the associated part 4. The longitudinal bar 23 connects the two parts 4 of the barrier together, so that the correct positioning of one of these parts on the side member immediately ensures the correct positioning of the other part. Parts 3 and 4 together form a locking device of known type, which corresponds to that described in the applicant's patent application, mentioned above. It will be considered that its

  content forms an integral part of this description However, we

  the essential characteristics will be summarized below.

  Part 3 is articulated on part 4 around a pivot 6 of axis 202 perpendicular to the general plane of the barrier When the barrier 2 is erected, parts 3 and 4 are locked and occupy the position shown in Figure 2 In view of locking and unlocking, the part 3 comprises a through bore 32 in which is mounted a push button 30, shaped to push the element 5 of a

  spring ratchet housed in part 4.

  The pivot 6 mentioned above is housed on the one hand inside a cylindrical recess 41 formed in the part 4 and in a bore 31 provided in the part 3 Means not shown are provided for

  immobilize the pivot in translation, that is to say along the axis 202.

  The pawl 5 is housed in a recess 40 which extends parallel to the recess 41 Behind the pawl 5, that is to say on the left of FIGS. 2 and 3, is provided a compression spring 7 tending to

  constantly bring out the pawl 5 of the bore 40.

  A vertical bore 33 is provided in part 3, which makes

  communicate its upper face with bore 32.

  According to the invention, this locking device of known type is characterized in that it comprises a means for blocking the push button 30 which can be actuated, in the unlocking direction, by the movement of a member remote operation of said means of

  control constituted by the push button.

  As shown in Figures 2 to 4, the upright 20 is formed of a hollow metal tube, and is welded at its base on the upper and horizontal face of the part 3 The bore 33 communicates with the interior of the upright Two diametrically opposite vertical lights 201 are formed not far from its upper opening These lights are arranged in a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal vertical plane

bed.

  As can be seen in the appended figures, the device of the invention comprises a handle 25 which is provided at the end of the upper bar 22 situated on the same side as the locking device 3, 4. Another handle 26 is molded on the opposite end

of this bar.

  The handle 25 comprises strictly speaking two separate parts 250 and 254 The part 250 is intended for the handling of the handle To this end it comprises, on the side directed downwards reliefs 251 for the fingers of the hand The parts 250 and 254 are separated by a vertical partition 257 The part 254 has the shape of a shell which has an opening 256 directed downwards but also to the left,

  that is to say on the side opposite to the partition 257.

  The part 250 is hollow and open on the side opposite to the part 254 The left end of the bar 22 is housed there As will be seen below, during the lowering and straightening of the barrier, the bar 22 can slide at the inside of the handle, as indicated by the double arrow

F (see Figure 4).

  A pin 253 passes through the handle 25 at the level of two orifices 258 provided in the opposite vertical sides of the part 254 This

  pin passes through the two lights 201 mentioned above.

  We understand that this pin forms a hinge pin

  220 for the upper bar 22 of the barrier, relative to the upright 20.

  This pin is made integral, as shown in Figures 2 to 4, with a linkage 9 housed inside the upright 20 A connecting piece 92, having a bore 920 for a pressure screw, is

  provided to ensure the connection between the pin and the linkage.

  The linkage 9 is formed by two separate rods 90 and 91 connected, at the bend of the upright 20, by a connecting piece 93

(f igure 4).

  The lower end 914 of the rod 91 constitutes a lug forming a locking means for the push button 30 of the part 3,

as will be explained later.

  Between the connecting piece 93 and the lug 914 of the rod 91, the latter carries a metallic piece of generally cylindrical shape 912 It comprises an annular ring 913 at its base,

  forming support shoulder for a 911 helical compression spring.

  The upper part of this spring rests on a mounted piece 910

  from the outside by means of a light 913 provided in the upright 20.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the structure of the barrier is such that the distance L 2 which separates the two articulation axes 202 and 202 'from the uprights 20 and 20' on the bed frame, is greater than the distance LI which separates the two axes of articulation of the longitudinal bar 22, formed respectively by the pin 253 and by the axis 220 'Furthermore, it will be noted that the two axes 24 disposed on the side of the upright are aligned with the axis 202 while the two axes 24 arranged on the side of the upright 20 ′ are aligned with the articulation axis 202 ′ The consequences of such an arrangement will be explained below, when lowering and

deployment of the barrier.

  We will now explain how the

  barrier locking device.

  When the barrier is kept erected, the parts 3 and 4 are in the position shown in Figures 1 and 2 The bore 40 of the

  part 4 is then in the extension of the bore 32 of part 3.

  The spring pawl 5 can therefore slide inside the bore 40 so that it comes out to come to be placed partially in the hole 32 mentioned above; thus the device of part 3 can no longer pivot

  around the axis 202, the device being in the locked state.

  When the barrier is in the position of FIGS. 1 and 2, any movement of movement of the push button 30 in order to bring the spring pawl 5 into the interior of the bore 40 is prevented by the fact that the lug 914 comes out of the bore 33 to place itself on the line of action of this push button. Indeed, its head 300 abuts against the lug 914.

  The push button is therefore immobilized.

  In order to unlock the barrier, it is then necessary to start by pulling the handle 25 upwards in the direction of the arrow G (FIG. 3) The longitudinal bar 22 which is attached to it pivots about its axis 220 'In addition, the movement of lifting the handle brings up the pin 253 to come into abutment against the upper edge of the lights 201 This movement causes the lug 914 to be withdrawn from the hole 32 via the linkage 9

(position of figure 3).

  While holding the handle in the position of FIG. 3, the push-button 30 is pressed (arrow H, FIG. 5) Due to the withdrawal of the lug 914, the push-button can sink into the bore 32 in order to push the spring pawl 5 towards the inside of the bore 40 We are then in the position of FIG. 5, the part 3, as well as the whole of the barrier, which can then be moved in order to his lowering the

along the bed frame.

  It is therefore understood that to unlock the barrier it is necessary to implement a first movement then, the latter being maintained, to operate a second movement distinct from the first, this in two different places of the barrier. Thus, an unexpected unlocking of the barrier does not

  most likely cannot be implemented.

  Note that the opening 256 of part 254 of the handle

  allows the barrier to be lowered, without any problem of angular movement.

  Because the distance L 2 is greater than the distance LI, when the barrier is folded down from the position of FIG. 6 to bring it into the position of FIG. 7, this barrier behaves in the manner of a deformable parallelogram However, during this lowering movement of the barrier, the left end of the longitudinal bar 22 slides inside the handle 25 by a distance L 3 This distance

  is notably a function of the difference in length between L 2 and LI.

  This particular structure of the barrier makes it possible to obtain, when the barrier is completely folded down along the bed, a sufficient spacing for the passage of the fingers of the hand, in particular in the zones A, B and C identified in FIG. 7, c '' respectively between the upright 20 and the lower bar 21, between the upright 20 and the intermediate bar 21 and between the handle 25 and the intermediate bar 21 On

  this avoids any incident due to finger trapping.

  In another embodiment of the device according to the invention, the metal linkage 9 replaced by a cable system.

Claims (9)

  1 locking device for a bed rail (2), the latter having the structure of a deformable parallelogram situated in a vertical plane parallel to one of the sides of the bed and comprising longitudinal bars (21, 22) articulated on at least two substantially vertical uprights (20, 20 '), this device being composed of two main parts (3, 4) articulated to each other around a pivot (6) with transverse axis (202) (perpendicular to the plane containing the barrier) and which can be locked and unlocked with respect to each other by means of an elastic snap-in system (5, 7) so that in the locked state the barrier ( 2) is kept upright and in the unlocked state it can be lowered, one (4) of said main parts being fixed to the side rail (11) of the bed, while the other (3) is integral with the base of one of said vertical uprights (20, 20 '), this snap-in system elastic stage (5, 7) comprising a control means such as a push button (30) mounted in one of said main parts (3, 4), characterized in that it comprises a locking means (914 ) of said elastic snap-in system (5, 7), which can be actuated, in the unlocking direction, by displacement   an operating member (25) remote from said control means (30).   2 Device according to claim 1, characterized in that   said operating member (25) is provided in the upper part of the barrier (2).   3 Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said operating member consists of a handle (25) disposed at the end of one of said longitudinal bars (21, 22), on the same side as   said latching system (5, 7).   4 Device according to claim 3, characterized in that said handle (25) is disposed at the end of the longitudinal bar upper (22).   Device according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that the substantially vertical upright (20) disposed on the side of the handle (25) is hollow and in that it comprises a control linkage (9) housed therein the upright (20), which kinematically connects said handle (25) by means of blocking (914).   6 Device according to claim 4, characterized in that the linkage (9) comprises a pin (253) associated with said handle (25), which forms a hinge axis for the latter and which is guided in translation in a light ( 201) substantially vertical provided in the upright (20), the release of the elastic snap system being obtained by   displacement of said handle (25) upwards.   7 Device according to claim 6, characterized in that the locking means consists of a lug (914) forming the lower end of the linkage (9), this lug (914) being in the locked position on the line of action control means (30) and preventing movement of this last.   8 Device according to claim 7, characterized in that said linkage (9) comprises means (910, 911, 912) able to maintain the lug on the line of action of the control means (30) in the absence of displacement of said linkage.   9 Device according to one of claims 4 to 8, characterized   in that the distance (L 2) which separates the articulation axes (202, 202 ') from the two uprights (20, 20') is greater than that (LI) which separates the articulation axes (220, 220 ' ) of said upper bar (22) and in that said handle (25) comprises a housing (255) capable of allowing sliding   of the bar (22) inside the handle (25).   Bed rail fitted with a device conforming to one of the claims 1 to 9.   11 Bed fitted with a barrier according to claim 10.