US3209747A

US3209747A - Heart resuscitation apparatus with means for quickly adjusting to the size of the patient

Info

Publication number: US3209747A
Application number: US266375A
Authority: US
Inventors: Robert L Guentner
Original assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corp
Current assignee: CBS Corp
Priority date: 1963-03-19
Filing date: 1963-03-19
Publication date: 1965-10-05
Anticipated expiration: 1982-10-05
Also published as: IT1006502B

Description

1965 R. L. GUENTNER 3,

HEART RESUSCITATION APPARATUS WITH MEANS FOR QUICKLY ADJUSTING TO THE SIZE OF THE PATIENT Filed March 19, 1963 Robert L. Guenmer BYE} Y INVENTOR z AGENT United States Patent HEART RESUSCITATION APPARATUS WITH MEANS FOR QUICKLY ADJUSTING TO THE SIZE OF THE PATIENT Robert L. Guentner, Catonsville, Md., assignor to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Mar. 19, 1963, Ser. No. 266,375 3 Claims. (Cl. 128-53) The present invention relates to a heart resuscitator and more particularly to heart resuscitator units which employ a fluid pressure actuator operatively connected to a chestcompressing member for exertion of a rhythmic downward force on the breastbone of a heart arrest victim to alternately compress and release the victims heart and thereby cause it to pump blood.

In such heart resuscitation apparatuses which employ such a pneumatically-driven chest-compressing member to apply pulses of forces to the heart arrest victims chest, it is desirable, particularly when such apparatus is of the portable type, to limit the stroke of the actuator to less than that which would afford a chest-compressing member travel great enough to accommodate all sizes of heart arrest victims, so that an initial adjustment of the actuator becomes necessary upon setup of the resuscitator apparatus at its introduction to a heart-arrest victim. Since a persons central nervous system suffers permanent damage upon cessation of blood circulation for more than three to four minutes, the time required for setup of the apparatus is critical.

In view of the foregoing remarks, it becomes a prime object of the present invention to provide, in such heart resuscitation apparatus, a reciprocable fiuid-pressure-operated actuator and mounting construction and arrangement which enables the aforementioned initial orientation adjustment of the actuator relative to the heart-arrest victim to be made with a minimal amount of time and effort.

In keeping with the foregoing object, this is realized in the illustrative embodiment of the invention described herein by a mounting of the actuator in the housing or frame of the apparatus such that it is constrained against radial movement but is normally free to be shoved downwardly to automatically-upwardly-locked positions, together with a simple means for freeing the actuator for upward movement to a repose position for removal of the patient and return of the apparatus to standby conditions.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a three-dimensional view of a heart resuscitator apparatus embodying the invention; and

FIG. 2 is an elevation view in cross-section, illustrating schematically details of the heart-compressing member, the actuator, and its mounting and locking arrangement in accord with the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the heart resuscitator apparatus for external closed-chest heart compressing may be of the portable form exemplified in FIG. 1 which comprises: a C-shaped frame 1 having a bottom plate 2 adapted to be slid under the back of the heart arrest victim while lying horizontally on his back; a hollow vertical column 3 extending upwardly from the base 2; and a hollow arm 4 secured to the upper end of the column 3 and extending horizontally therefrom above the bottom plate 2. In this form, the arm 4 carries the reciprocable actuator in form of a heart-compressing cylinder 5, the column 3 forms a pocket for storing a bottle 6a of compressed gas for operating the cylinder 5, and a handle 7a on column 3 facilitates carrying of the unit.

3,209,747 Patented Oct. 5, 1965 In accord with the present invention, referring particularly to FIG. 2, the hollow horizontally-extending arm 4 of the frame 1 comprises top and

bottom wall members

6 and 7 having vertically-aligned

openings

8 and 9 therein, respectively, through which the cylinder 5 extends and which, in slidable contact with the outer surface of the cylinder, act as a radial constraint holding the cylinder aligned in a vertical attitude coaxial with such openings, while permitting adjustable movement of the cylinder in the axialwise direction, as initially downward for bringing a reciprocable member in form of a chest-compressing plunger head 11 into initial contact with the chest of the heart arrest victim 12 in the site of the breastbone while a movable abutment in form of an operating piston 13 attached via connecting means 10 is in its uppermost position preparatory to operation of the equipment, and subsequently upward for release of the heart-resuscitated patient following operation of the equipment. A knob 14 attached to the upper end of the cylinder 5 facilitates manual orientation movement of such cylinder during such initial adjustment and final release.

To automatically lock the cylinder 5 against vertical movement while permitting it to be shoved. downward, a plate-like one-way self-locking tab 17 is provided which has a square-edged opening 18 therein in encirclement of the cylinder. The tab 17 has a slidable pivot association with vertically spaced-apart stops 20 and 21 secured to the arm 4 and is biased upward by a compression spring 23 toward an upward locking position in which it is shown in the drawing with sharp edges of opening 18 contacting the outer surface of the cylinder in a tilted manner which bites into such surface and tends to further tilt tab 17 about stop 20 upwardly when effort is applied to move the cylinder 5 upwardly, which is prevented by the radial constraint of the cylinder so that its upward movement is thus normally locked, and which permits downward movement of the cylinder through such tab as same tends to be moved about the stop 21 and in a direction against the bias of spring 23, which presents clearance between opening 18 and the outer surface of the cylinder, thereby being self-unlocking for downward movement of the cylinder 5.

To permit raising of the cylinder 5 for such as release of the patient following use of the equipment, the tab 17 is adapted to be depressed for cocking about the lower stop 21 against the bias of spring 23 to disengage the edges of opening 18 in such tab from the cylinder 5. Such adaptation takes the form of an extension of the tab through an opening 30 in the outer wall of the arm 6 to render such tab readily available for such manual depression.

A flexible hose 32 conveys fluid under pressure to and from the pressure chamber 33 at the top of cylinder 5 for operating the piston 13.

Although an illustrative embodiment of the invention has been described herein with a degree of particularity, it is not intended that the invention necessarily be so limited, except as lies within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a pneumatic heart resuscitator unit, a frame, a reciprocable chest-compressing member constructed for engagement with the chest of a heart arrest victim to apply a rhythmic downward force on the breastbone for causing pumping of the Victims heart, a reciprocable fluid pressure actuator including an elongated actuator housing and a movable abutment therein operatively connected to said chest-compressing member having a stroke sufiicient for chest-deflection movement but less than that required for initial orientation movement to suit various: sizes of victims, means secured to said frame for guiding constraint of said actuator housing, spring-biased one way locking means carried by said frame and constructed and arranged in cooperation with said actuator housing to permit rapid victim-direction-advancing movement of said housing within said guiding constraint while automatically locking said housing against movement in the reverse direction, thereby allowing the reciprocable chest-compressing member to be brought rapidly into initial contact with the victims chest while assuring that the actuator housing will be locked against reactionary movement during exertion of force by such member against the victims chest, and means for unlocking said one-way locking means to permit retraction of said actuator housing to a repose position.

2. The combination as set forth in claim 1, wherein said one-way locking means comprises an elongated tab extending transversely of said actuator housing and having an opening therein fitting loosely therearound, pivot means secured to the aforesaid frame and receiving one end of said tab and bias spring means urging said tab toward i a cooked attitude in which the edges of said opening lock with the surface of said actuator housing when it is urged in the one direction, but unlock to permit actuator housing movement in the opposite direction.

3. The combination set forth in claim 2, wherein the means for unlocking said one-way locking means is in the form of an extension of said tab to permit pivotal movement thereof manually against the bias of said spring.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,062,299 12/36 Erickson 128-52 X 2,483,395 10/49 Benson 287-58 FOREIGN PATENTS 673,551 3/39 Germany.

RICHARD A. GAUDET, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. IN A PNEUMATIC HEART REUSCITATOR UNIT, A FRAME, A RECIPROCABLE CHEST-COMPRISING MEMBER CONSTRUCTED FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CHEST OF A HEART ARREST VICTIM TO APPLY A RHYTHMIC DOWNWARD FORCE ON THE BREASTBONE FOR CAUSING PUMPING OF THE VICTIM''S HEART, A RECIPROCABLE FLUID PRESSURE ACTUATOR INCLUDING AN ELONGATED ACTUATOR HOUSING AND A MOVABLE ABUTMENT THERIEN OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID CHEST-COMPRISING MEMBER HAVING A STROKE SUFFICIENT FOR CHEST-DEFLECTION MOVEMENT BUT LESS THAN THAT REQUIRED FOR INITIAL ORIENTATION MOVEMENT TO SUIT VARIOUS SIZES OF VICTIMS, MEANS SECURED TO SAID FRAME FOR GUIDING CONSTRAINT OF SAID ACTUATOR HOUSING, SPRING-BIASED ONE WAY LOCKING MEANS CARRIED BY SAID FRAME AND CONSTRUCTED AND ARRANGED IN COOPERATION WITH SAID ACTUATOR HOUSING TO PERMIT RAPID VICTIN-DIRECTION-ADVANCING MOVEMENT OF SAID HOUSING WITHIN SAID GUIDING CONSTRAINT WHILE AUTOMATICALLY LOCKING SAID HOUSNG AGAINST MOVEMENT IN THE REVERSE DIRECTION, THEREBY ALLOWING THE RECEPROCABLE CHEST-COMPRESSING MEMBER TO BE BROUGHT RAPIDLY INTO INITIAL CONTACT WITH THE VICTIM''S CHEST WHILE ASSURING THAT THE ACTUATOR HOUSING WILL BE LOCKED AGAINST REACTIONARY MOVEMENT DURING EXERTION OF FORCE BY SUCH MEMBER AGAINST THE VICTIM''S CHEST, AND MEANS FOR UNLOCKING SAID ONE-WAY LOCKING MEANS TO PERMIT RETRACTION OF SAID ACTUATOR HOUSING TO A REPOSE POSITION.