US2233911A - Clamp - Google Patents

Description

March 4, 1941. c. R. CARSON CLAMP Filed Aug.

INVITA/TOR ATTaR/VE/ Patented Mar. 4, 1941 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

The present invention relates particularly to a form of clamp adapted to adjustably support a mechanism on a hospital bed.

In the application of various means for treatment of bedridden patients in hospitals it has been common practice to use a movable oor stand upon which such means, such as irrigators, croup tents, etc., are suspended. Such stands are highly objectionable for many reasons. For instance, they are quite heavy; they are without wheels because they must maintain a rigid position when once placed, and consequently they must be dragged from one bed to another, or from one room to another; standing upon the iioor, they seriously obstruct the operations of the attendant nurse and doctors; they are clumsy, unwieldly, and ineicient.

It is therefore, one object of the present invention to provide a means for properly supporting a device or devices of any kind over a hospital bed without in any manner obstructing the floor area about the bed, and that will effectively correct the objectionable features above set forth.

It is also an object of the invention to provide means of the character indicated that can be easily attached to, or removed from, the side rail of a bed; that will permit the quick and easy adjustment of the devices supported thereon relative to the bed; that will be economical to manufacture, light in weight, quickly and easily assembled and disassembled, strong, durable, and highly efcient in its practical application.

In the drawing:

Figure l is an isometric perspective view showing a device embodying my invention, partly in section and with part broken away.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same showing the mode of application to a bed rail.

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view of a modified form.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, I show at I a rectangular housing, the top of the same being indicated at 2, the bottom at d 3, the two sides at 4 and 5, and the outer end at 6.

The top 2 is projected beyond the sides 4-5 as at 1, and terminates in a downwardly and inwardly turned flange forming a hook as 8.

The bottom 3 also is projected beyond the sides 4-5 as at 9 and terminates in an upwardly turned ange as at I.

In the present case the bed rail is shown at Il as an angle iron with one flange lying in a horizontal plane and the other in a vertical plane,

and directed inwardly and downwardly, respectively, as at IZand I3.

Since the hook 8 and ange I0 perform active services in securing the clamp in position it is desirable that they be proportioned so as to en- 5. gage the flanges I2-I3 with the least possible movement. To this end the distance I4 is made a little greater than the width of flange I2, and the distance I5 is just great enough to permit the iiange I3 to seat in the shoulder between the 10 part 9 and the adjacent edges of sides 4--5 and permit the hook 8 to pass over the edge of flange I2.

By means of the above arrangement and proportioning of the several parts to place the clamp on the rail it is only necessary to rst seat the bottom edge of flange I3 as above described, and as shown clearly in Figure 2, then swing the housing I into a horizontal position and seat the flanges I2-I3 in hook 8 and against flange I 0 respectively as shown in Figure 1.

Slidably mounted in, and substantially filling the housing I, is a wooden block I6 having a bore I7 formed vertically therethrough to receive any standard, as I8, for supporting various devices not shown.

At I9 is shown a screw threaded through the outer end 6 as at 20, and slidably engaging, or passing through, a bore ZI in block I6.

By means of this construction the standard I8 30 may be adjusted as desired in the bore I'I and then held securely in position by tightening set screw I9. But in tightening the screw I9 on standard I8 it forces the standard against the side of the bore nearest rail II, and consequently continued inward movement of the screw forces the entire block toward and against the rail II, the one operation eifectively binding the standard in the block I6, and at -the same time clamping the housing I immovably on the rail I I.

In the embodiment of :the invention shown in Figure 3 the screw I9 does not pass through the block I5 and communicate with the passage I1, but bears against a metallic button or disc 24 seated in the side of the block as shown.

In this embodiment the passage I'I is only slightly larger in diameter than the standard I8, and the block IG is split clear through on one side from that side to the passage I'I as 50 indicated at 25, and this split, is so positioned as -to extend vertically of the block and at an angle, preferably at right angles, to the plane of the button 24.

By means of the construction above described may be applied to the block because the disc 24 will prevent the screw I9 from boring into the wood.

The above described embodiment of the invention is particularly desirable because it does not permit the screw I9 to deface the louter surface of the standard I8 as is the case when the device is constructed and used as shown in Figure 1.

-In order to permit the movement of blockl IB in housing I I pro-vide slots as22 .and 23 in the top and bottom parts 2 and 3 respectively.

By loosening the screw I9 the standard I8 may be raised or lowered as desired, and at the same time the whole device may be shiftedas desired along a bed rail, or removed therefrom and placed upon the opposite side of the bed or upon any other bed of similar construction.

Although a certain( specic embodiment of theinvention has been illustrated and described, it will be understood that various alterations in the details of construction and mode of assembly and operation may be made without departf ing from the scope-of the invention as indicated in the appended claims. I claim: v 1. In combinationan angle iron rail, a housing having an opening formed therein to face the rail and an extension overlying the top of the rail terminating in a hook formed to engage the inner edge of the top of the rail and an extension overlying the bottom edge of the rail and terminating in an upstanding ange to engage the inner side of said bottom edge, a member slidably mounted in said housing to move through said opening therein and engage the rail and having a passage formed therethrough in angular relation to its direction of movement adapted to slidably engage a supporting member and a passage formed therein in angular relation to the first passage and communicating therewith, and a screw threaded through said housing and passing through the second passage to engage the supporting member whereby said sup-porting member may be urged into fixed engagement with the slidable member and the slidable member into xed engagement with the rail.

2. A compound clamp comprising a housing provided with means disposed to engage spaced portions on one side of a supporting rail, a clamping element slidably associated therewith and disposed to engage the rail in opposed relation to said means, said element having a passage formed therethrough adapted to slidably engage a supporting standard and split on one side from the passage to its outer surface to form a clamping element, and clamp operating means inserted between the housing and said element operative to simultaneously clamp the clamping element on a supporting standard therein Vand urge the said clamping element into fixed relationship with the rail.

CLOYES R. CARSON.

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