MEDICAL BOOM WITH ARTICULATED ARMS AND A BASE WITH PRECONFIGURED REMOVABLE MODULAR RACKS USED FOR STORING ELECTRONIC AND UTILITY EQUIPMENT

• US 20070176060A1
• Filed: 03/14/2007
• Published: 08/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Compview Medical
• Original Assignee: Compview Medical
• Inventors: White, Paul, Palatov, Dennis, Vollum, Larry
• Granted Patent: US 7,644,898 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 248/124.100
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2050/105 Cabinets
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2050/185 Drawers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/10 Furniture specially adapted for surgical or diagnostic appliances or instruments
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/13 Trolleys, e.g. carts
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/50 Supports for surgical instruments, e.g. articulated arms
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/917 Video display screen support
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/919 Adjustably orientable video screen support
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 248/921 Plural angular

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a medical boom with articulated arms and a base cabinet designed to accommodate modular equipment and utility racks that include video processing, computer, and electronic, and other utility equipment that can be easy inserted and removed from the base cabinet is disclosed. The boom includes a stationary base that is configured to be installed into an operating room and one or more boom arms supported by the stationary base and configured to extend over an operating table in the operating room. The structural base includes one or more bays configured to receive a modular rack of electrical equipment. In various embodiments, the structural base cabinet further incorporates wiring to connect the equipment installed in the modular racks to video monitors and other equipment mounted on the articulated booms. The modular racks are preconfigured with a variety of electronic equipment such as computers, video processors and the like. The modular racks are installed in the base cabinet subsequent to the cabinet'"'"'s structural installation in the operating room and may be readily removed or replaced at a later time.

Claims

1. A medical boom, comprising:

a stationary base configured to be installed in an operating room;

a boom arm supported by the stationary base and configured to extend over an operating table in the operating room; and

a bay in the stationary base configured to a receive a removable equipment rack, the removable equipment rack including electrical equipment.

2. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the bay further includes a plurality of slots in the stationary base and the removable equipment rack includes a plurality of trolley wheels designed to fit into the slots in the stationary base.

3. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the bay in the stationary base includes a first opening to receive the equipment rack facing a first direction and a second opening to receive the equipment rack facing a second direction.

4. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the bay further includes one or more guide rails and the equipment rack includes guides configured to engage the guide rails when inserting the equipment rack into the bay.

5. The medical boom of claim 1, further comprising a second bay, the second bay configured to include one or more of the following:

shelves and/or draws.

6. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the bay includes a lock to lock the equipment rack in place in the bay.

7. The medical boom of claim 1, further comprising electrical wiring in the stationary base to electrically couple the electrical equipment in the rack when the rack is installed in the bay to a power source.

8. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the boom arm further comprises a retractable handle to position the boom arm.

9. The medical boom of claim 8, wherein the boom arm comprises one or more segments coupled together by one or more joints respectively, and one or more appendage arms connected to the boom arm.

10. The medical boom of claim 9, wherein the one or more segments and joints are configured to route wires through the boom arm, wherein the wires can be selectively routed through either the top and/or the bottom of the boom arm so that equipment can be selectively mounted both above and/or below the boom arm.

11. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the boom arm further comprises one or more articulated appendage arms to support one or more video displays over the operating table.

12. The medical boom of claim 11, further comprising one or more cowlings to cover wires coupled to the one or more video display respectively.

13. The medical boom of claim 1, wherein the stationary base is configured to support a plurality of the boom arms at one of the four corners of the stationary base.

14. The boom of claim 1, further comprising electrical wiring electrically coupled between one or more video displays supported by the boom arm to the electronic equipment in the rack when the rack is in the bay of the stationary base.

15. The boom of claim 14, wherein the electrical wiring provides video signals and power between the electronic equipment in the rack in the bay and the one or more video displays.

16. A method, comprising:

fabricating a structural cabinet of a medical boom, the structural cabinet having one or more bays for receiving one or more racks of electrical equipment;

fabricating articulated boom arms configured to be supported by the structural cabinet;

fabricating the one or more racks of electrical equipment configured to be installed in the one or more bays of the structural cabinet; and

arranging to ship to a customer facility the structural cabinet and the articulated boom arms of the medical boom without the racks installed in the one or more bays of the structural cabinet.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

configuring and testing the electrical equipment in the one or more racks prior to shipment to the customer facility; and

shipping the one or more racks to the customer facility after configuration and testing.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

installing the structural cabinet in the customers facility;

attaching the articulated boom arms to the structural cabinet;

installing the one or more racks into the one or more bays of the structural cabinet at the customer facility after installing the structural cabinet.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising suspending one or more video displays to the articulated boom arms.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising providing electrical power to the electrical equipment in the one or more racks installed in the one or more bays in the structural base of the medical boom.

21. The method of claim 17, further comprising providing video signals from the electrical equipment in the one or more racks installed in the one or more bays through electrical wires provided in the structural base and routed through the articulated boom arms to the one or more video monitors.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising periodically removing the installed one or more racks to repair, service, upgrade or replace the electrical equipment provided in the removed rack.