JPH0215466Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an air mat for preventing bedsores, particularly to a mat suitable for use as beds for bedridden elderly people and seriously ill people.

(Prior Art) Various mats have been developed to prevent pressure ulcers that occur in long-term care patients such as bedridden elderly people and critically ill patients, but none of them have been able to achieve a sufficient pressure ulcer prevention effect. However, recently, the causes of pressure ulcers are (1) continuous pressure on bony prominences such as the hips and heels, which obstructs the flow of capillaries in those areas, leading to local cell necrosis; (2) Bacteria proliferate in areas where necrosis has occurred due to moisture and body heat from patient sweating. It was revealed that this was caused by As a result, it was found that dispersing the weight of the patient's body weight on the pressure area and drying the patient's skin is effective in preventing and treating pressure ulcers. Attempts have been made to use an array of air mats to inflate and deflate a large number of air bags alternately while feeding air into the air bags and causing a breeze to leak out through the micropores.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) The above method has an excellent effect on preventing pressure ulcers. However, in such an air mat, in order to alternately inflate and deflate the air bags in the even and odd rows, a flow path switching means is absolutely necessary to alternately connect the air supply pipes connected to the air bags in each row to the pump. be,
A solenoid valve is normally used as the flow path switching means, but due to its structure, it is inevitable that this solenoid valve will generate operating noise when switching.

The operating noise of this solenoid valve when it opens and closes can be quite audible late at night and often disturbs patients' sleep.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The inventors of the present invention have arrived at the present invention as a result of intensive studies in order to provide a quiet air mattress for preventing pressure ulcers that does not disturb the patient's sleep. In other words, the present invention has an air supply port at one end and an air discharge port at the other end, and arranges a large number of elongated air bags each containing an elastic body inside to form a mat. A first air supply pipe is connected to the air supply port, a second air supply pipe is connected to the air bags in the odd rows, and the ends of each air supply pipe are connected to a pump device, and the air bags in the even rows are connected to a first air supply pipe. A thin tube with a large number of holes and a sealed tip is connected to at least one air outlet of each of the odd-numbered air bags, and the thin tube is connected between the air bags. Along with placing it in
The first air supply pipe and the second air supply pipe connected to the pump device are alternately pressed by a cam to open and close the first air supply pipe and the second air supply pipe to leak breeze from the thin tubes while forming even-numbered rows. This air mat for preventing bedsores is configured to alternately inflate and deflate the air bags in the odd rows and the air bags in the odd rows, and detect the operation of the cam with a sensor to flash a lamp.

(Function) The air mat of the present invention uses a mat in which air bags containing elastic bodies are arranged in parallel, so the amount of air supplied can be reduced to about 1/3 compared to conventional mats. Because of the large amount of air, it was necessary to use a solenoid valve to switch the air supply pipe, but now it is possible to use a cam that periodically presses on the air supply pipe to open and close it.

(Example) Next, an example of the anti-bedsore air mat of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view of the air mat of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of the mat. The mat includes a mat A which is composed of a large number of air bags 1 containing elongated elastic bodies 2, a first air supply pipe 4 connected to the air supply ports 3 of the air bags in the even rows of the mat, and a first air supply pipe 4 connected to the air supply ports 3 of the air bags in the even rows of the mat; A second air supply pipe 5 connected to the air supply ports of the air bags in the row, an air pump device 6 for supplying air to the air bags, and an air outlet 8 of the air bags.
The main part is a thin tube 7 having a large number of pores 11 connected to it.

The air bag 1 is an airtight bag-like body made of a plastic sheet such as polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene, a rubber sheet, or a cloth or the like covering the same,
An air supply port 3 is provided at one end thereof.
Further, an air outlet 8 is provided at the other end. This air bladder usually has a diameter of 10 to 16 cm when inflated and a length of
It becomes a cylindrical bag of 50 to 150 cm.

The air bags are connected together to form an air mat having a length of about 100 to 200 cm and a width of about 50 to 100 cm. By joining strips of cloth or plastic film, which are usually square or rectangular in shape and are stacked at regular intervals on a base sheet of cloth or plastic film, in a line parallel to one side of the base sheet at regular intervals. The mat can be constructed by inserting air bladders into a plurality of consecutive cavities formed by the mat.

An elastic body 2 having elasticity sufficient to support the weight pressure when the air bag is deflated is housed inside the air bag 1. Examples of this elastic body include (1) a bag formed from a plastic sheet such as polyvinyl chloride or polyethylene or a rubber sheet into an airtight long and narrow bag and injecting air, water, gel, etc. into the bag; 2) Open-cell foams such as polyurethane foam and foam rubber, or lamination of the above foams with closed-cell foams such as polyethylene foams, polyvinyl chloride foams, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer foams. (3) A plastic sheet with a large number of independent air chambers in a convex shape, or a sheet of closed-cell foam laminated on the back side of the above film so that the air chambers are on the outside. (4) A self-retaining plastic core with poor elasticity, such as polystyrene foam or a plastic tube, wrapped around a polyurethane foam having elasticity, etc. can be used. .
Among them, the elastic body described in Utility Model Publications No. 50-17706 and No. 50-2172, which is made by wrapping an elastic foam material over a plastic sheet having a large number of independent air chambers, has excellent heat retention and insulation effects, and It is preferably used because the elasticity can be adjusted arbitrarily. This elastic body usually has a diameter of 5 to 15 cm and a length of 50 to 100 cm. The elastic bodies accommodated in the air bags may be the same, or the materials, shapes, etc. of the elastic bodies housed in the even-numbered and odd-numbered air bags may be different.

A branch of the first air supply pipe 4 is connected to the air supply ports of the even-numbered air bags constituting the mat so that air can be supplied. Further, a branch of the second air supply pipe 5 is connected to the air supply ports of the air bags in the odd rows so that air can be supplied. and the air outlet of at least one even-numbered air bladder and at least one odd-numbered air bladder has a 0.01
A large number of pores 11 of ~0.5 mm are bored, and thin tubes whose tips are closed are connected and arranged parallel to the air bag. In order to deflate the air bag by stopping the supply of air to the air bag and letting the air supplied to the air bag leak through the pores, this thin tube is inserted into at least the air bags in the even rows and the air bags in the odd rows. It is important to connect each one as one. Although the tubes may be connected to the outlets of all air bladders, it is better to connect the tubes to the air bladders in areas where pressure sores are likely to occur, such as the patient's shoulders and lower back, so that the breeze leaks only to these areas. You may also do so. In that case, it is necessary to seal the outlet of the air bag to which no capillary is connected. The above-mentioned thin tube may be placed parallel to the air bag, but if placed at the top of the cylindrical air bag, the thin tube will be occluded by the weight of the patient, so it is preferable to place it in the recess formed between the two air bags. . By arranging it in such a recess, air can leak out uniformly from all the pores without being compressed.

The ends of the first and second air supply pipes are connected to an air pump device 6 via a branch pipe 12. Air is intermittently fed into the air bags in the even-numbered rows and the air bags in the odd-numbered rows from a pump by intermittently pressing the air supply pipes 4 and 5 connected to the branch pipes with a cam. 13 is a flow rate regulating valve.

The cam is connected to the rotating shaft 38 of a low-speed motor 37 that rotates at an appropriate cycle of 4 to 10 minutes, as shown in FIG.
The first and second air supply pipes 4 and 5 are alternately pressed down by a cam 39 fixed to the air supply pipe 39 to alternately close the air supply pipes in even and odd rows. At that time, if the cam 39 is brought into direct contact with the air supply pipes 4, 5 and pressed, the air supply pipes 4, 5 will be damaged, so the protective sheets 40, 41
It is preferable to protect the air supply pipe by coating the air supply pipe with the following. Presser support means 43 and 44 are respectively fixed on opposite sides of the cam 39 that presses down the air supply pipes 4 and 5, and pressure sensors 45 and 44 are installed at locations where the pressing force of the cam 39 is applied, such as at the tips or in the middle of the support means.
Preferably, a cam actuation detection sensor such as 46 is provided. Different electrical signals are emitted from the pressure sensors 45, 46 when the air supply pipes 4, 5 are pressed down by the cam 39 and when they are opened, so if the lamp is made to blink based on this signal, the flow path can be switched at a glance. It can be seen that it is working normally.

Next, the fourth step is to operate the pressure ulcer prevention air mat of the present invention.
This will be explained with reference to FIG. First, as shown in Fig. 4, air is supplied from the first air supply pipe to the air bags 20, 22, 24, etc. in the even numbered rows, and while the supply of air from the second air supply pipe is stopped, the air bags 20, 22, 24, etc. in the even numbered rows are The air bladders are connected to each outlet (not shown) and have small holes 11 formed in the thin tubes 7 arranged between adjacent air bladders.
It expands while leaking air. When the even-numbered air bags are inflated, the patient's weight is supported by the even-numbered air bags 20, 22, 24, . . . . During this time, the air bags 21, 23, . . . in odd-numbered rows contract while causing the air remaining in the air bags to leak out from the pores 11 formed in the thin tubes connected to the air bags.

Next, the supply of air from the first air supply pipe is stopped, and the air bags 21, 23 of the odd rows are supplied from the second air supply pipe.
When the supply of air to... is started, the air remaining in the even-numbered air bags 20, 22, 24... is transferred to the thin tubes connected to the air bags, as shown in Fig. 5. The air bladders in the even rows are deflated due to leakage through the holes 11. On the other hand, the air bags 21, 23, . . . in odd-numbered rows inflate while leaking air from the pores of the thin tubes connected to the air bags. The patient's weight is then supported by the inflated odd rows of bladders.

When both the even-numbered air bags and the odd-numbered air bags are inflating and deflating, the patient's weight is supported by the elastic body 2 housed within the air bags.

In the therapeutic mat of the present invention, the patient's support area sequentially moves from the even-numbered air bags to the elastic body housed in the even-numbered and odd-numbered air bags to the odd-numbered air bags.

This movement of the support area gives a pine surge effect to the patient, and when the air bladders in the even rows are deflated, the patient is forced to use the elastic body stored in the air bladders in the even rows and the air bladders in the odd rows, in other words, the entire area of the pine. It has the advantage of being extremely comfortable to sleep on even though the air bladder expands and contracts because it is supported.

In particular, when the air bladder is inflated and deflated in cycles of 3 to 10 minutes, the patient's support area moves in a short time, thereby strengthening the pine surge effect and further increasing the patient's sense of comfort.

(Effects of the invention) The anti-bedsore air mat of the present invention makes significantly less noise when switching channels than conventional bedsore-preventing mats that have a channel switching mechanism using a solenoid valve, and does not disturb sleep. Red light indicates flow path switching operation.
Since it can be confirmed at all times by the flashing green lamp, the patient's anxiety about malfunction can be significantly alleviated.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the anti-bedsore air mat of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a partially sectional view, and Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the opening and closing state of the air supply pipe by a cam.
4 and 5 are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the air mat. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Air bag, 2... Elastic body, 3... Air supply port, 4, 5... Air supply pipe, 6... Pump device, 7...
...Thin tube, 12...Branch tube, 39...Cam.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] An air supply port is provided at one end and an air discharge port is provided at the other end.
A mat is constructed by arranging a large number of elongated air bags each containing an elastic body, and the first air supply pipe is connected to the air supply ports of the air bags in the even rows, and the air bags in the odd rows are connected to the air bags in the odd rows. A second air supply pipe is connected, the end of each air supply pipe is connected to a pump device, and a plurality of air supply pipes are connected to at least one air outlet of each of the even-numbered and odd-numbered rows of air bladders. A capillary tube having a pore and a sealed tip is connected, and the capillary tube is arranged between air bags, and a first air supply pipe connected to the pump device and a first air supply tube connected to the pump device are connected. The cam alternately presses the two air supply pipes to open and close the first and second air supply pipes, allowing a breeze to leak from the thin tubes while alternately inflating and inflating the even-numbered and odd-numbered air bags. An air mat for preventing bedsores, characterized in that it is configured to deflate and to blink a lamp by detecting the operation of the cam with a sensor.