US3609777A

US3609777A - Beds

Info

Publication number: US3609777A
Application number: US853008A
Authority: US
Inventors: Kenneth Malcolm Agnew; Timothy Coward
Original assignee: National Research Development Corp UK
Current assignee: National Research Development Corp UK; National Research Development Corp of India
Priority date: 1968-08-29
Filing date: 1969-08-26
Publication date: 1971-10-05
Anticipated expiration: 1988-10-05
Also published as: GB1286253A; DE1943816A1

Abstract

A BED CAPABLE OF RAISINGS A PATIENT FROM A SUPINE TO AN UPRIGHT POSITION. THE MATTRESS-SUPPORTING DECK IS SUPPORTED FROM A WHEELED SUBFRAME BY A HINGED POST AND TWO ARMS. THE ARMS ARE PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO ONE ANOTHER AND ONE IS PIVOTALLY CONNECTED TO THE DECK AND THE OTHER TO THE SUB-FRAME. THE PIVOT AXES ARE ALL PARALLEL. AN ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN SCREW JACK OR JACKS SERVES TO RAISE THE DECK BY PIVOTING IT ABOUT THE HINGE IN THE POST. A PLATFORM IS PROVIDED ON THE FOOT END OF THE DECK PRIOR TO RAISING TO SUPPORT THE FOOT OR FEET OF A PATIENT AS THE DECK IS RAISED. WHEN THE DECK IS RAISED THE PLATFORM IS CLOSE ADJACENTLY THE FLOOR AND THE WHEELS AT THE FOOT END OF THE SUB-FRAME ARE RAISED OFF THE FLOOR BY REACTION OF THE FOOT END OF THE DECK WITH THE FLOOR.

Description

Oct. 5, 1971 K. M.AGNEW ETAL 3,609,777

BEDS

6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 26, 1969 L mm MN NW Oct. 5, 1971 AGNEw EI'AL 3,609,777

BEDS

Filed Aug. 26, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 5, 1971 AGNEW EIAL 3,609,777

BEDS

Filed Aug. 26, 1969 6 Sheets-$heet 5 Oct. 5, 1971 AGNEW ETIAL 3,609,111

BEDS

6 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 26, 1969 Oct. 5, 1971 K. M. AGNEW ETAL 3,609,711

BEDS

Filed Aug. 26, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Oct. 5, 1971 K. M. AGNEW ETAL 3,609,717

BEDS

Filed Aug. 26, 1969 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 US. Cl. -62 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A bed capable of raising a patient from a supine to an upright position. The mattress-supporting deck is supported from a wheeled subframe by a hinged post and two arms. The arms are pivotally connected to one another and one is pivotally connected to the deck and the other to the subframe. The pivot axes are all parallel. An electrically driven screw jack or jacks serves to raise the deck by pivoting it about the hinge in the post. A platform is provided on the foot end of the deck prior to raising to support the foot or feet of a patient as the deck is raised. When the deck is raised the platform is close adjacent the floor and the wheels at the foot end of the sub-frame are raised off the floor by reaction of the foot end of the deck with the floor.

This invention relates to beds and more particularly, but not exclusively, to beds suitable for use in the treatment of leg amputees in the post-operative period.

Beds are known which may have the inclination to the horizontal of their mattress supporting structures altered within a small range of inclinations which are desired for elevation of the feet or head in the treatment of certain medical conditions.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a bed which may raise a person lying on the bed from a supine to an upright position.

According to the present invention there is provided a bed comprising a lower frame including means for engaging a floor, an upper frame adapted to carry a mattress, the upper frame being connected to the lower frame by a hinge having a horizontal axis disposed at a distance from the floor approximately equal to the distance between two parallel planes, one of said planes passing through the foot end of the upper frame and the other of said planes passing through the hinge axis, both of said planes being normal to the general plane of the upper frame, and by two arms pivotally connected to one another, one of said arms being pivotally connected to the upper frame, and the other of said arms being pivotally connected to the lower frame, and means for selectively altering the inclination of the arms one to the other and thereby moving the upper frame about said hinge axis to move said upper frame to an upright position from a generally horizontal position.

The means for selectively altering the inclination of the arms one to the other may include a screw-jack device driven by a motor and may act between the two arms or between the lower frame and one of said arms.

In cases wherein the means for selectively altering the inclination of the arms one to the other acts between the lower frame and one of the arms, the latter may be that arm which is pivotally connected to the upper frame.

When the upper frame is in a generally horizontal position the pivotal connection of one of the arms to the upper frame may be disposed substantially vertically above the pivotal connection of the other of the arms to the lower frame and the arms may extend in general paral lelism from the pivotal connections to the upper and United States Patent ice lower frames, respectively, towards the hinge connecting the upper frame to the lower frame. The means for engaging the floor may include wheels and in this case it is desirable to provide the upper frame with articulated feet adapted to engage the floor when the upper frame is in the upright condition, the arrangement being such that the wheels nearer the foot end of the lower frame are raised from the floor by reaction of the feet with the floor as the upper frame approaches the upright position.

A platform may be provided which is engageable with the foot end of the upper frame, the arrangement being such that the platform is parallel to and close adjacent the floor when the upper frame is in its upright position.

Two embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a side elevational view of a bed in accordance with the present invention, the bed being illustrated in a condition in which there is slight elevation of the foot end above the head end;

FIG. 2 illustrates the bed illustrated in FIG. 1 with the mattress carrying frame in an upright condition;

FIG. 3 illustrates a foot portion of the bed, in the condition illustrated in FIG. 2, on an enlarged scale and in greater detail;

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken on the line IVIV in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken on the line VV in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 illustrates a side elevational view of a second embodiment of the present invention, the view being similar to that of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 illustrates the bed illustrated in FIG. 6 with the mattress carrying frame in an upright condition;

FIG. 8 illustrates a cross-sectional view taken on the line VIIIVIII in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of parts of the bed illustrated in FIGS. 6 to 8.

In FIGS. 1 to 5 there is illustrated a bed comprising a lower frame 1, an upper frame 3 and means 5 for raising the upper frame 3 from a horizontal to an upright, nearly vertical position.

The lower frame 1 comprises two spaced-apart parallel members 7 mounted from the floor 9 by

castors

11, 13 at their ends. The members 7 are held in fixed spacedapart relationship by transverse members 15. Extending vertically upwards from the members 7 adjacent the Wheels 11 are two pillars 17. Each pillar 17 carries adjacent its upper end a pivot pin 19 and the axes of the two pivot pins 19 are aligned and horizontal.

The upper frame 3 comprises two parallel spaced-apart longitudinal members 21 held in fixed spaced-apart relationship by intermediate transverse members 23 and end transverse members 25 at the foot end 27 and the head end 29 of the upper frame 3. The

members

21 and 25 carry a deck 31 for supporting a mattress (not shown) which is securable by tapes to the upper frame 3. Extending downwardly from one of the transverse members 23 are two arms 33 which engage with the pivot pins 19. The arms 33, pillars 17 and pivot pins 19 constitute a hinge between the upper and lower frames which allows pivotal movement of the upper frame about the axis of the pivot pins 19.

The distance of the axis of the pivot pins 19 above the floor 9 is approximately equal to the distance between two parallel planes, both of which are normal to the longitudinal members 21 and one of which includes the foot end 27 and the other of which includes the axis of the pivot pins 19. This relationship will subsequently be described herein in greater detail.

The means 5 for raising the upper frame 3 from a horizontal position to a nearly vertical position, that is,

for moving the upper frame 3 about the axis of the pivot pins 19, comprises two

arm structures

35, 37 pivotally connected to one another at 39. The arm structure is pivotally connected to the upper frame 3 at 41 and the arm structure 37 is pivotally connected at to posts 43 upstanding from the lower frame 1. The axes of the

pivotal connections

39, 41, 45 are parallel to one another and to the axis of the pivot pins 19. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the pivotal connection 41 is substantially vertically above the pivotal connection 45 when the upper frame 3 is in a generally horizontal position, and the

arm structures

35, 37 extend from the

pivotal connections

41, 45 towards the hinge constituted by arms 33, pillars 17 and pivot pins 19.

Acting between the two

arm structures

35, 37 are two screw jacks 47 driven by an electric motor 49, carried by the arm structure 37, through a belt 51 and a common drive shaft 53. The bodies 46 of the jacks 47 are mounted in gimballs 50 on the arm structure 37 and the upper ends of the screwed rods 48 of the jacks act through gimballs 52 on the arm structure 35.

The arm structure 37 is provided with a stop 55 which co-operates with one of the transverse members 15 of the lower frame to limit downwards pivotal movement of the arm structure 37 about the pivot 45.

The electric motor 49 is controlled by switches in a handset 57 on a wander lead 59 which is connected to a control box (not shown) through a plug and socket connection. Limit switches 60, 61 are provided to stop the electric motor 49 at the two extremes of motion of the upper frame 3.

As a safety measure, power can only be supplied to the motor 49 if a knob 63 with an electrically-conductive threaded shank is threadedly engaged in a threaded bore in a contact box 65 at the head end 29 of the upper 2- frame 3. The shank serves to bridge contacts in the contact box 65 and thereby allow power to fiow to the motor. Preferably, the potential in the wander lead 59, limit switches 60, 61 and the contact box 65 is low.

The knob 63 when present in its operative position at the head end 29 of the upper frame 3 prevents the association of a bed head (not shown) with the head end of the upper frame.

The bed is provided with detachable bed head and bed foot (not shown) which have downwardly extending tongues which are received in channels '67 provided at the head and foot ends of the upper frame 3. The bed head and bed foot rest on the upper frame 3 and are held against movement relative to the upper frame 3 by co-operation of the tongues and channels and by gravity.

It is because the bed head is not secured to the frame that the knob 63 and contact box 65 arrangement is provided to ensure that the upper frame 3 cannot be raised to the upright position until the bed head has been taken off the upper frame 3, it being impossible to insert the knob 63 in the presence of the bed head.

A platform 71 is provided which is substituted for the bed foot prior to raising of the upper frame 3 to the upright position. The platform 71 has tongues 73 which co-operate with the channels 67 at the foot end of the bed to fixedly locate the platform relative to the upper frame 3. As can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the general plane of the platform 71 is not perpendicular to the general plane of the upper frame 3. The included angle between the platform 71 and the upper frame 3 is 105. This angle is chosen because it is not required that the upper frame 3 shall be vertical when in its fully upright position. It has been found that an angle of 15 to the vertical is quite acceptable and hence, when the upper frame has been raised to a position in which it is inclined at 15 to the vertical, the platform 71 is parallel to the floor 9.

The platform 71 is formed of side members 75 and a transverse member 76 supporting a sheet metal foot board 77. The arrangement is such that the foot board 77 is as near to the floor as possible when the upper frame 3 is in its upright position.

The foot end 27 of the upper frame 3 is provided at its side with two articulated feet 79 (illustrated only in FIG. 3) which engage the fioor 9 when the upper frame 3 is in its upright position. Each foot 79 consists of a body 81 having a non-slip, floor engaging-surface 83, and a link 85. The body 81 is pivotally connected to the link and the link is pivotally connected to the side members 21 of the upper frame 3. The floor engaging surface 83 projects beneath the platform 71 when the upper frame is in its upright position.

The articulated feet are provided to take account of unevenness of the fioor 9 so that both sides of the foot end 27 of the upper frame 3 are supported from the floor 9, regardless of minor irregularities of the floor, when the upper frame is in its upright position.

The distance between two planes normal to the plane of the upper frame 3 and one of which includes the floor-engaging surfaces 83 of the feet, and the other of which includes the pivot axis 19 is greater than the height of the pivot axis 19 above the floor 9 when the upper frame 3 is in a horizontal position. In this way, the wheels 11 are lifted off the floor 9 as the feet 79 engage the floor when the upper frame approaches its upright position (as can be seen in FIG. 2). In this way, the bed is held, by the feet, against undesired movement over the floor when the upper frame is in its upright and nearly upright positions and the upper frame is supported at both sides.

As can be seen in FIG. 1, the upper frame can assume an inclination of, for example, 5 to the horizontal with the head end 29 lower than the foot end 27. This is desirable in the treatment of certain medical conditions.

When the upper frame is being lowered from its upright position, the stop 55 contacts the transverse member 15 of the lower frame 1 just before the upper frame reaches a horizontal position. Thereafter, further lowering of the head end 29 of the upper frame, under the control of the screw jacks 47, is accompanied by pivotal motion of the upper arm structure 35 about

pivots

39 and 41. This motion is possible by virtue of the proximity of the pivots 39 to the pivots 19 and of the tolerances in the various pivots. When the upper frame 3 has reached its 5 angle of depression (illustrated in FIG. 1), the limit switch 61 cuts out the motor 49 and at this time the end of the arm structure 35 beneath the pivot 41 is resting on the end of the arm structure 37 above the pivot 43 and hence, in this lowered condition, the pivot 39 plays little or no part in supporting the upper frame and the arm structures 35 are substantially free of bending movement.

It has been found desirable to include the stop 55 for cooperation with the lower frame 1, at least when the upper frame is horizontal and has an angle of depression, in order to relieve the bending moment on the lower arm structure 37 and the stresses on the pivot 45 when the upper frame is in the aforesaid positions which would otherwise be the positions which create the greatest moment and stresses. The stop 55 thus enhances the stability of the upper frame and avoids the necessity of providing a stronger arm structure and pivot which would otherwise be necessary to provide the same degree of stability.

The beds described above and subsequently herein with reference to FIGS. 6 to 9 may be used in the period immediately following the amputation of one or both legs of a patient. It is known that the sooner a leg amputee can be caused to apply his weight to the stump or stumps after the amputation, the less is the loss of use of the remaining leg muscles. With the above described bed, an amputee can be raised from a supine position to an upright position whilst lying on the mattress, without effort by the amputee.

It is desirable that during the raising the amputee be provided with hand holds secured to the upper frame in order to steady himself and, if found necessary, to somewhat reduce, by use of the arm muscles, the force on the stump or stumps directly or indirectly in engagement with the platform 71. A hand hold which is suitable for use with the above described bed is described in the copending U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 850,011, filed in the name of Kenneth Malcolm Agnew on the same day as this application. The hand hold described in the aforesaid copending patent application may also be used as a safety side for the bed and may be moved to a position in which it does not interfere with bed making or nursing operations on any part of the patient. Movement of the structure between the three positions in which it acts as a hand hold and as a safety side and in which it is stowed out of the way is achieved by pivotal motion about two pivot axes, the structure remaining attached to the bed at all times.

Let it be assumed that a patient having had one leg amputated above the knee is lying on the bed with the upper frame in the position illustrated in FIG. 1 and with the normal bed head and bed foot in position on the bed and with safety sides described in the aforementioned copending patent application in their positions in which they act as safety sides.

The motor 49 is connected to a source of power and the wander lead 59 is plugged into the control system. The bed head is removed and the knob 63 is threadedly engaged in the contact box 65. The bed foot is removed and the platform 71 is secured to the foot end 27 of the upper frame. The bed clothes covering the patient are removed, and the saftey sides are moved from positions in which they act as safety sides to positions in which they act as hand holds. The patient is moved down the bed until his remaining foot is in contact with the platform. A false leg is secured to the remaining stump and is adjusted in length so that its free end is level with the sole of the foot of the good leg. The safety sides, now acting as hand holds, are positionally adjusted along the upper frame so that they are in a desirable position for the patient to brace himself during raising to the upright position and to control the portion of this weight imposed on the platform 71 through his good leg and through his stump and false leg.

The nurse, or physiotherapist, takes up the handset 57 and depresses the switch appropriate for causing the motor 49 to rotate in the sense for moving the upper frame 3 towards the upright position. The wander lead 59 is of a length sutficient to allow the nurse to position herself at the foot end 27 of the bed. The switches on the handset 57 are such that release of either switch causes immediate cessation of movement of the upper frame 3 and the screw jacks 47 are such that the upper frame is held in the position in which it was upon cessation of the drive by the motor 49. The upper frame with the amputee on the mattress disposed thereon is raised to the upright position. As the upper frame 3 approaches the upright position, the feet 79 engage the floor and prevent movement of the bed over the floor. When the upper frame has reached its upright position, determined by actuation of the limit switch 60 engaging the arm structure 37, the amputee can exercise his leg and stump whilst remaining close adjacent the mattress and with the hand holds close to hand or can step off the platform 71 for a greater freedom of exercise. Because the foot board 77 is close adjacent the floor, the patient does not have any appreciable step down on to the floor or step up on to the platform 71.

When the patient is to be lowered to a supine position. the second switch is depressed which causes rotation of the motor 49 in the opposite sense. The upper frame may be stopped at any angle of elevation or depression within the limit imposed by the limit switch 61. After exercise of the stump, the platform 71 is removed, the normal bed foot is replaced, the knob 63 is removed which allows replacement of the bed head, the wander lead 59 is unplugged, the power lead is unplugged from the power source, the hand holds are moved to their stowed positions, the bed clothes are replaced, and, if necessary, the safety sides are returned from their stowed positions to the positions in which they act as safety sides.

In FIGS. 6 to 9 there is illustrated a second embodiment of the present invention. Many parts in the second embodiment are similar to parts in the first embodiment and these parts in the second embodiment will be given the same reference numeral as the parts to which they correspond in the first embodiment but the suffix a will be added. Description will only be given of features of the second embodiment which differ from the first embodiment.

In the second embodiment the upper frame 3a is carried in part from the lower frame 1a by the pillars 17a, arms 33a and pivot pins 19a. The upper frame 3a includes a beam 101 secured to the underside thereof. The beam 101 consists of the parallel spaced-apart members 103 between which there is fixedly secured a strut 105 which extends perpendicularly to and downwards from the plane of the upper frame 3a and at its lower end it is bifurcated and receives one end of a beam 107. The beam 107 and strut 105 are pivotally connected by a pin 109 the axis of which is parallel to the common axis of the pivot pins 19a. The other end of the beam 107 is pivotally connected to the upper end of an arm 111 the lower end of which is pivotally connected to the posts 43 11 carried by one of the transverse members 15a of the lower frame 1a. The

axes

113, 115 of the pivotal connection between the beam 107 and arm 111 and between the arm 111 and posts 43a, respectively, are parallel to the common axis of the pivot pins 19a and to the axis of the pin 109.

Each of the members 7a of the lower frame 1a carries 3. lug and the two lugs 120 support a frame '122 for pivotal motion about an axis 124 which is parallel to the common axis of the pivot pins 19a and to the axis of the pin 109 and to the

axes

113, 115.

The frame 122 carries an electric motor 126 and gear box 128 unit. A threaded rod .130 is carried by a journal and thrust bearing disposed in a housing 131 which is mounted on the frame 122 with the axis of the threaded rod aligned with the axis of, and drivingly connected to, the output of the gear box 128. The threaded rod 130 is threadedly engaged with a nut 132 which is carried by plates 134 attached to the beam 107. The nut is pivotally connected to the plates 134 for pivotal movement of the nut about an axis 136 which is parallel to the

axes

124, 115, 113.

The beam 107 is apertured to allow the threaded rod 130 to extend therethrough in all operative positions. The gear box 128, threaded rod 130 and nut 132 constitute a screw jack arrangement for selectively altering the inclination of the beam 107 and arm 111.

Experience with electrical equipment in hospitals has shown that it may be desirable to complete electrically isolate electrical equipment and in this case the motor 126 and gear box 128 is electrically isolated from the frame 122 and the threaded rod 130 is driven from the gear box through the intermediary of a dog 135 formed of electrically non-conductive material. The electrically conducting wander lead 59 and the control unit 57 may be omitted and a mechanical arrangement including Bowden cables may be used instead. Such a mechanical wander lead and control unit would operate switches close adjacent the motor which switches would be electrically isolated from the wander lead and the bed structure. The contact box 65 and knob 63 would also be omitted and a mechanical lock might be substituted so that even if the bed were to be raised to the vertical with the bed head still associated with the bed, the bed head could not tip or fall on to a person on the bed.

Although not illustrated in FIGS. 6 to 9, it is to be understood that the foot end 27a of the upper frame 3a is provided with articulated feet similar to the articulated feet 79 illustrated in FIG. 3 and that a platform similar to the platform 71 may be associated with the foot end 27a of the upper frame 3a in a manner similar to that described with reference to FIG. 3.

The shaft 53 which serves to operate the jacks 47 in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 5, and the gear box 128 may be provided with means for co-operation with a crank which may be employed, in the event of an electrical power failure, to rotate the screwed rods 48 or the screwed rod 130, respectively, to raise or lower the upper frame manually.

In operation of the bed illustrated in FIGS. 6 to 9, the same procedure is adopted as is described with respect to FIGS. 1 to 5. As the bed is raised from the generally horizontal position illustrated in FIG. 6 to the nearly vertical position illustrated in FIG. 7, the relative positions of the beam 107,, arm 111, motor frame 122 and threaded rod 130 change fromthose illustrated in FIG. 6 to those illustrated in FIG. 7. The motor 126 drives the gear box 128- and the gear box rotates the threaded rod 130. As the threaded rod 130 rotates, the nut 132 moves along the threaded rod 130' so that the distance between the

axes

124 and 136 is increased or decreased depending upon the direction of rotation of the rod 130.

We claim:

1. A bed comprising:

a rigid lower frame including means for engaging a floor;

an upper frame adapted to carry a mattress;

.a hinge means connecting said upper frame to said lower frame;

said hinge means having an axis extending transversely of said bed and disposed at a distance above the floor 1 approximately equal to the distance between two parallel planes, one of said planes passing through the foot end of the upper frame and the other of said planes passing through the hinge axis, both of said planes being normal to the general plane of the upper frame;

a first arm means;

{first pivot means pivotally connecting said first arm means to structure associated with said upper frame;

a second arm means;

second pivot means pivotally connecting said second arm means to structure associated with said lower frame;

third pivot means pivotally connecting said first and second arm means;

extensible jack means having [first and second relatively movable parts;

fourth pivot means pivotally connecting the first part of said jack means to said first arm means at a location between said first and third pivot means;

the axis of said hinge means and the axes of said first,

second, third and fourth pivot means being parallel to one another and to the floor;

said jack means being adapted to act on said first arm means at said location between said first and third pivot means and upon extension to cause said upper frame to pivot about the axis of said hinge means towards an upright position from a generally horizontal position; and securing means connecting the second part of said jack means to a portion of the bed so that the jack means can function to move said upper frame of the bed.

2. A bed as in claim 1, wherein said securing means 8 comprises fifth pivot means pivotally connecting the second part of said jack means to said lower frame.

3. A bed as in claim 2, wherein:

said first arm means extends from said first pivot means in a direction generally away from said hinge means when said upper frame is in a horizontal position; and

when considered in the direction from the foot towards the head of the bed the order of the pivot means is: first, fifth, fourth, second and third.

4. A bed as in claim 3, wherein: the line of extensibility of said jack means is substantially vertical when said upper frame is in the upright position.

'5. A bed as in claim l1, wherein: said jack means includes a drive motor.

6. A bed as in claim 1, wherein said securing means comprises fifth pivot means pivotally connecting the second part of said jack means to said second arm means.

7. A bed as in claim 6, wherein:

said \fil'St and second arm means overlie one another when said upper frame is in said horizontal position;

the first pivot means is located substantially vertically above the second pivot means; and

the fourth pivot means is located substantially vertically above the fifth pivot means.

8. A bed as in claim 6, wherein:

said means for engaging a floor includes wheels; and

said upper frame includes articulated feet adapted to engage the floor when said upper frame is in said upright position, the arrangement being such that the wheels nearer the foot end of the lower frame are raised from the floor by reaction of the feet with the fioor as the upper frame approaches the upright position.

9. A bed as in claim 6, including: a platform adapted to engage with the foot end of said upper frame, whereby when said upper frame is in said upright position said platform is parallel to and close adjacent the floor.

10. A bed as in claim 6, wherein: said jack means includes a drive motor. 5

11. A bed as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said means engaging the floor including: wheels; and

said upper frame includes:

articulated feet adapted to engage the floor when said upper frame is in said upright position, the arrangement being such that the wheels nearer the foot end of the lower frame are raised from the floor by reaction of the feet with the floor as the upper frame approaches the upright position.

12. A bed as claimed in claim 1, including: a platform adapted to engage with the foot end of said upper frame, whereby when said upper frame is in said upright position said platform is parallel to and close adjacent the floor.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,445,258 7/ 1948 Beem 562UX 2,8 87,691 5/ 1959' Talarico et al. 562 3,231,904 2/1966 Shulkin 5-62 3,243,825 4/ 1966 Tabbert 5-62 3,398,971 8/ 1968 Seidel 562X PAUL R. GI'LLIAM, Primary Examiner