Supply columns provide an organized supply of electricity and various gases to medical care areas such as hospital rooms, operating rooms, emergency rooms, and intensive care units. Supply columns include supply lines for electricity, various gases, and nitrogen control systems for power pneumatic tools. The supply lines typically supply for example, oxygen, air, nitrous oxide, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, helium and vacuum to the room. A typical supply column retains supply lines in a single organized supply head to avoid potential entanglement of the various supply lines and to protect the supply lines from damage.

Supply columns are mounted to ceilings and positioned where they are easily accessible but do not obstruct the working area of the care providers. Some supply columns have adjustable lengths to provide flexibility in positioning the supply head in the work area.

Supply columns are typically assembled at a manufacturing facility and transported to a medical care facility to be connected to a pre-installed ceiling mount.

Installation of a supply column occurs in roughly two steps. First, the supply lines of the supply column are coupled to corresponding supply connectors located on the ceiling mount within the room. Then, bolts on the ceiling mount are coupled to brackets on the supply column to secure the supply column to the ceiling.

The various gas and electrical connectors are coupled to the ceiling mount in a predetermined pattern at the manufacturing facility. The ceiling mount is then shipped to the medical care facility prior to shipping the remainder of the supply column. Therefore, the ceiling can be prepared and the ceiling mount can be installed in the room prior to receiving the supply column.

According to the present invention, a supply column includes a column body having an outer shell defining an interior region and an opening into the interior region, and a plurality of supply lines positioned within the interior region of the supply column to extend through the opening. An alignment apparatus of the present invention includes a body member and a plurality of ports. When the alignment apparatus is positioned over the opening of the supply column, each of the supply lines is positioned in a port in the alignment apparatus to support the supply lines during transportation of the supply column from the manufacturing facility to the care facility.

Illustratively, the supply lines are positioned in selected ports so that each supply line is aligned with a respective connector on the ceiling mount that was previously shipped to the care facility. In other words, the ports in the alignment apparatus are aligned with connection locations on the ceiling mount so that the supply lines are held in an organized manner to facilitate coupling of the supply lines to the connectors on the ceiling mount.

Also according to the present invention, a method of installing a supply column onto a ceiling of a room is provided. The supply column includes an outer shell, a plurality of supply lines positioned within the outer shell, and a ceiling mount.

The method includes the steps of installing the ceiling mount on the ceiling or the room, providing an alignment apparatus to align the plurality of supply lines in a predetermined pattern, locating the alignment apparatus on the outer shell of the supply column, connecting the plurality of supply lines to at least one of an electrical supply and gas supply, and coupling the outer shell to the ceiling mount.

Additional features of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon consideration of the following detailed description of the illustrated embodiments exemplifying the best mode of carrying out the invention as presently perceived.

Brief Description of the Drawings The detailed description particularly refers to the accompanying figures in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a gas and electrical supply apparatus including a ceiling mount coupled to a ceiling and having a plurality of male supply

connectors extending therefrom, a supply column positioned below the ceiling mount and including an outer shell and a plurality of female supply connectors extending therefrom, and an alignment apparatus positioned on the supply column to support the plurality of female supply connectors in a predetermined position; Fig. 2 is a top view of the alignment apparatus of Fig. 1 showing the alignment apparatus including a body member, instructions printed on the body member, a plurality of diagonal tear lines extending across the body member, a plurality of ports arranged in predetermined positions, and a plurality of reliefs positioned adjacent to the ports; Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 1 showing the supply column positioned below the ceiling mount and the alignment apparatus positioned on the supply column to support the female supply connectors ; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view similar to Fig. 3 showing several of the female supply connectors coupled to the male supply connectors while the alignment apparatus continues to align and support the other female supply connectors; Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to Fig. 3 showing the female supply connectors coupled to the male supply connectors before removal of the alignment apparatus from the supply column; and Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view similar to Fig. 3 showing the supply column coupled to the ceiling mount and the alignment apparatus removed from the supply column.

Detailed Description of the Drawings As shown in Fig. 1, a supply column 16 is provided to furnish an organized supply of electricity and various gases to medical care facilities.

Illustratively, the supply column 16 supplies electricity and gases such as, for example, oxygen, air, nitrous oxide, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, helium, and vacuum to the room.

In addition, data lines may be routed through the supply column 16, if desired.

Supply apparatus 10 includes a supply column 16, a ceiling mount 12 configured to support supply column 16 on a ceiling 14, and an alignment apparatus 28 positioned on supply column 16. As shown in Fig. 1, ceiling mount 12 is pre-installed

on ceiling 14 and supply column 16 is positioned below ceiling mount 12 in preparation for installation on ceiling 14.

Supply column 16 includes a plurality of supply conduits 24 positioned within supply column 16 and a supply head 54 having a plurality of supply line outlets 56 and a plurality of supply controls 58 coupled to supply line outlets 56. Supply column 16 further includes a column body 46 having an outer shell 22, an interior region 48 defined by outer shell 22, an opening 50 into interior region 48, and a plurality of detents 39. An inner body portion 55 coupled to supply head 54 is movable in a telescoping manner from a retracted position shown in Fig. 1 to an extended position. Supply controls 58 of supply head 54 regulate the flow of gas or electricity carried by supply conduits 24. Supply conduits 24 are positioned within interior region 48 of supply column 16 for protection and extend through opening 50 to couple to ceiling mount 12 as shown in Figs. 1 and 3.

Alignment apparatus 28 is positioned over opening 50 of supply column 16 to align and support supply conduits 24 while supply column 16 is transported from the manufacturing facility until it is installed in a medical care facility. As shown in Fig. 2, alignment apparatus 28 includes a substantially flat body member 30, instructions 32 printed on body member 30, a central aperture 66, and a plurality of tear lines 40. Body member 30 also includes a perimeter edge 68, a plurality of alignment notches 41 in perimeter edge 68, a plurality of circular numbered openings or ports 34, and a plurality of circular main ports 36. Although Fig. 2 shows fourteen numbered ports 34 and three main ports 36, it is within the scope of this disclosure for the alignment apparatus 28 to include fewer or more numbered and main ports 34,36.

The ports 34,36 may also have different sizes and shapes. Illustratively, medical gas supply lines are located in ports 34 and electrical supply lines are located in ports 36.

During manufacture of supply column 16, the male connectors 20 are connected to the ceiling mount 12 in a predetermined pattern. The connectors 20 are gas specific connectors which prevent connection of the wrong type of gas to the supply conduits 24. The female connectors 27 within the supply column 16 are coupled to the ports 34,36 of the alignment apparatus 28 in a predetermined pattern which matches the predetermined pattern of the male connectors 20 on the ceiling support 12. The numbers adjacent ports 34 help with installing the proper female

connectors 27 in the predetermined pattern. The alignment apparatus 28 is then positioned over opening 50 of supply column 16, as shown in Fig. 1. Detents 39 of column body 46 are positioned in alignment notches 41 of alignment apparatus 28 to position alignment apparatus 28 on supply column 16 in a predetermined position relative to column body 46. When alignment apparatus 28 is positioned over opening 50, the body member 30 aligns and supports the supply conduits 24 in a predetermined arrangement that matches their installation orientation with ceiling mount 12.

As shown in Fig. 2, alignment apparatus 28 further includes a plurality of reliefs 38 positioned adjacent to numbered and main ports 34, 36 to provide expandability to ports 34,36 for easier insertion of supply conduits 24 through ports 34,36. Reliefs 38 include a plurality of relief cuts 42 extending from inner edges 52 of numbered and main ports 34,36 out into a portion of the body member 30. Reliefs 38 further include a plurality of annular fold lines 44 positioned around inner edges 52 of numbered and main ports 34,36 to provide hinge points for the reliefs 38. It is understood that the relief cuts 42 and fold lines 44 may have other orientations or configurations, if desired.

As shown in Fig. 1, ceiling mount 12 includes a mounting plate 18 and a plurality of male supply connectors 20 coupled thereto. As shown in Fig. 3, supply conduits 24 of supply column 16 include supply lines 26 and female supply connectors 27 coupled thereto. During transportation and installation of supply column 16, alignment apparatus 28 is positioned on supply column 16 to support supply lines 26 and to align female supply connectors 27 in the predetermined arrangement that corresponds with the arrangement of male supply connectors 20 as shown in Fig. 3.

As shown in Fig. 4, female supply connectors 27 are individually coupled to the corresponding male supply connectors 20 while alignment apparatus 28 supports the other female supply connectors 27 until all of the female supply connectors 27 are coupled to the corresponding male supply connectors 20 as shown in Fig. 5. Thus, alignment apparatus 28 supports supply conduits 24 in the predetermined arrangement during transportation of supply column 16 to avoid entanglement of supply lines 26 and aligns female supply connectors 27 with the corresponding male supply connectors 20 to facilitate alignment and connection of the female supply connectors 27 with the corresponding male supply connectors 20.

After all female supply connectors 27 are coupled to the corresponding male supply connectors 20, supply column 16 is coupled to ceiling mount 12 as shown in Fig. 6. Ceiling mount 12 includes a plurality of bolts 15 coupled to mounting plate 18 as shown in Fig. 1. Supply column 16 includes a plurality of brackets 17 and a sleeve 60 to cover column body 46 adjacent to ceiling mount 12 as shown in Fig. 3.

Brackets 17 are coupled to bolts 15 of ceiling mount 12 to mount supply column 16 to ceiling mount 12. Then, sleeve 60 is moved in direction 61 to fit against ceiling mount 12 to cover bolts 15, female supply connectors 27, and male supply connectors 20 and provide a more pleasing appearance after supply column 16 is installed.

Before mounting supply column 16 to ceiling mount 12, alignment apparatus 28 is removed from between supply column 16 and ceiling mount 12 as shown in Fig. 6. To remove the alignment apparatus 28, body member 30 is torn along tear lines 40. To aid in tearing alignment apparatus 28, body member 30 of alignment apparatus 28 is illustratively made of cardboard. It is understood that other suitable materials may be used for the body member 30.

Although in the preferred embodiment alignment apparatus 28 includes two tear lines 40, it is within the scope of this disclosure for body member 30 to include fewer or more tear lines 40. Furthermore, although in the preferred embodiment alignment apparatus 28 includes diagonal tear lines 40 extending between the corners of body member 30, it is within the scope of this disclosure for tear lines 40 to be positioned in other configurations. For instance, in an alternative embodiment (not shown) tear line 40 extends between a first edge 62 and a second edge 64 of body member 30.

Although the invention has been described in detail with reference to certain illustrated embodiments, variations and modifications exist within the scope and spirit of the invention as described and as defined in the following claims.