Field

The present invention relates to a bed support system for use in assisting people with limited mobility to remain in a comfortable and safe position whilst sleeping or when bed bound. The system is particularly useful for people with multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injuries, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy or people who have suffered a stroke. The system may be used in a hospital, care home or in a private home.

Background

It is generally desired that a person stays mostly within the periphery of the bed during sleep or whilst bed bound. This ensures a comfortable and safe position and if the person is sleeping it provides the best chance for optimal restorative sleep without interruption and minimises the risk of having a dangerous fall from the bed.

Many people struggle to remain in a desired position in bed whilst they sleep or whilst bed bound for long periods of time. This may be due to physical injury, impairment, or neurological disease. People suffering from multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injuries, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy or stroke are particularly likely to struggle to remain in a desired position at night and therefore have poor quality sleep which has detrimental health consequences.

It is an object of the invention to address the aforementioned problem, by the provision of a bed support system for maintaining a person in a desired position during sleep or whilst bed bound.

Summary

According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a support system for attaching to a bed and restricting movement of a person in a supine or prone position, the support system comprising: a base member; at least first attachment means; second attachment means; and a support member; wherein the first attachment means is configured to releasably and adjustably attach the base member to a bed; and the second attachment means is configured to releasably and adjustably attach the support member to the base member in a predetermined position such that, in use, the support member is operable to restrict the movement of a person relative to the base member when the person is in a supine or prone position. This provides the advantage of providing a system which in use can restrict the movement of a person during sleep, thereby safely ensuring the person does not roll over or slide down the bed, slide to the left or slide to the right which can cause interruption to the persons sleep. Furthermore, the system allows the arms of the person to move whilst still providing the aforementioned benefits, thereby ensuring the user stays comfortable whilst using the system.

The base member may comprise a sheet section which is configured to lay on top of a mattress or a bedsheet This provides the advantage of allowing the base member to be used as a bedsheet or on top of an existing bed sheet. This improves the versatility of the system.

The first attachment means may comprise at least one strap. This provides a simple way of releasably and adjustably attaching the base member to the bed.

The first attachment means may comprise: a first set of straps attached to a first side edge of the base member; a second set of straps attached to a second side edge of the base member opposite the first side edge wherein each of the first and second sets of straps comprises a lineal fabric strip of hook or loop fastening material.

The first attachment means may further comprise a third set of straps attached to a top edge of the base member; wherein each of the first, second and third sets of straps comprises a lineal fabric strip of hook or loop fastening material. This provides a particularly convenient way of releasably and adjustably attaching the base member to the bed.

The first attachment means may comprise: a first set of straps attached to a first side edge of the base member; a further set of straps attached to a top edge of the base member; wherein the first set of straps and the further set of straps are configured to wrap around a bed or mattress to secure the base member to the bed or mattress. This provides a secure way of attaching the base member to the bed. The second attachment means may comprise a first portion located on the base member and a second portion located on the support member, wherein the first and second portions are configured to releasably and adjustably engage to secure the support member to the base member. This allows the support member to be positioned by the user in a suitable position for providing restriction of the person laying on the bed. By providing the second attachment means in this way, the support member can be removed and repositioned on the base member as required.

The first portion may have a larger footprint area than the second portion, such that the second attachment means can be adjusted to provide releasable attachment of the support member to a plurality of locations on the base member. This allows the system to be used with persons of different sizes, as it allows the support member to be removed from the base member and reattached to the base member at a different location on the base member.

The second attachment means may comprise hook fastening material and loop fastening material. This is a particularly convenient releasable and adjustable attachment mechanism.

The first portion may comprise hook fastening material and the second portion comprises loop fastening material. Alternatively, the first portion may comprise loop fastening material and the second portion comprises hook fastening material.

The base member may comprise cotton. The base member may comprise polyester. Each of these materials ensures the person laying down on the base member will have a comfortable experience. The support member may comprise cotton. The support member may comprise polyester. Each of these materials ensures the person contacting the support member will have a comfortable experience.

The base member may be coated with a water repellent coating. The base member may be coated with a fire repellent coating. The support member may be coated with a water repellent coating. The support member may be coated with a fire repellent coating. The support member may be an elongate member. This provides the advantage of providing close contact with the side of the torso and/or the leg of a person as they are lying down on the bed, whilst still allowing the arm of the person to rest on the opposite side of the elongate member, thereby allowing the support member to stop the person from sliding down the bed, rolling over or sliding to the left or to the right

The support member may be a foam bar. The foam bar may be open-cell foam or closed cell foam. This allows a comfortable support member to be formed.

The support member may be of sponge material or dense fabric material. This allows a comfortable support member to be formed.

The support member may be formed of a flexible plastics material which defines a chamber, wherein the chamber is filled with one or more of air, gas or fluid. This allows the chamber to be transported empty of air, gas or fluid, and inflated when required, thereby saving storage and transportation costs. Additionally, filling the chamber with air, gas or fluid allows an adjustable chamber pressure to be achieved, which may be adjusted as desired in use to provide optimum comfort and support.

Brief Description Of The Drawings

An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings, in which:

Fig 1 shows a base member of a system in accordance with the present invention;

Fig 2 shows a support member of a system in accordance with the present invention;

Fig 3 shows the base member of Fig 1 together with the support member of Fig 2; and Fig 4 shows how a system in accordance with the present invention is to be used.

Detailed Description Of The Drawings

Fig 1 shows a base member 100 which is configured to be releasably attached to a bed (not shown]. The base member 100 comprises a sheet section 110 which can lay on top of a mattress in a similar fashion to a bedsheet or may be laid on top of a bedsheet. The base member 100 may entirely cover the top surface of the mattress of bedsheet, or may partially cover the top surface of the mattress or bedsheet The base member 100 comprises a first side edge 110a and a second side edge 110b. A first set of straps 120, 121, 122 are attached to the first edge 110a, and a second set of straps 123, 124, 125 are attached to a second edge 110b. Although in Fig. 1 the straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 are shown at the top, bottom and in the middle of the respective first and second side edges 110a, 110b, it will be appreciated that the straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 may be located anywhere on the respective first and second side edges 110a, 110b. Each of the straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 comprises a lineal fabric strip 120a, 121a, 122a, 123a, 124a, 125a of hook or loop fastening material facing downwards in Fig 1. Each lineal fabric strip 120a, 121a, 122a, 123a, 124a, 125a is configured to securely engage with a corresponding lineal fabric strip of hook or loop fastening material located on the bed, bed frame, mattress or another support member of a bed system. Each strap 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 may further comprise a non-slip patch (not shown), wherein each non-slip patch is configured to frictionally engage with a surface of the bed frame, thereby assisting in restricting movement of the base member 100 once the base member 100 has been arranged in position for use.

In the illustrated example a top edge 110c of the base member 100 comprises a third set of straps 126, 127, which each comprise lineal fabric strips 126a, 127a of hook or loop fastening material for engagement with corresponding lineal fabric strips of hook or loop fastening material on the bed, bed frame, mattress or another support member of a bed system. In the presently described example, the hook or loop fastening material on the lineal fabric strips 126a, 127a face upwardly in Fig 1 and are arranged to locate, in use, between the top edge of the mattress and the bed frame, and thereby attach to the bed frame.

The downwardly facing lineal fabric strips 120a, 121a, 122a, 123a, 124a, 125a in Fig. 1 are arranged to attach to the mattress or a lower portion of the bed frame below the mattress.

In some embodiments of the invention, the first and/or second set of straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 may be sufficiently long such that they can wrap entirely around the side edges and width of the mattress or bed frame and engage with another of the first or second straps to provide secure attachment Similarly, the third set of straps 126, 127 may also be sufficiently long to wrap around the top edge and the entire length of the mattress or bed frame and engage with the bottom edge of the mattress or bed frame. Alternatively, in some embodiments the third set or straps 126, 127 may engage with a fourth set of straps (not shown) located on the bottom edge llOd of the base member 100, where the bottom edge llOd is opposite the top edge 110c, which includes the third set of straps 126, 127.

In some embodiments the first set of straps 120, 121, 122 may include hook fastening material and the second set of straps 123, 124, 125 may include loop fastening material such that if the straps are sufficiently long they may extend entirely around the mattress, bed support or bed system such that the lineal fabric strips of hook fastening material engage with loop fastening material of the corresponding lineal fabric strips on the base member 100.

The first, second and third straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127 are configured to releasably and adjustably attach the base member 100 to a bed.

Although hook and loop fastening material are used in the described example, it will be appreciated that any other releasable fastener may be used to attach the base member 100 to a mattress or bed frame. Hook and loop fastening material is particularly convenient since it allows releasable attachment and adjustment for different sized mattresses or bed frames. The inventor has also envisaged press stud engagements, buttons, zips and ties, which all provide releasable and adjustable engagement if a plurality of mating components are provided at different positions.

The base member 100 and straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125 may be made of any suitable bedding material such as, but not limited to, cotton or polyester, and may additionally be coated to be water and/or fire repellent. The base member 100 may be made of a woven material.

Still referring to Fig 1, the base member 100 further comprises a first set of support member securing strips 130, 131, 132 and a second set of support member securing strips 133, 134, 135. Each of the first set and second set of support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 is arranged to provide adjustable and releasable engagement of a support member (see Fig 2) as will be described in more detail later below.

The support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 of each set are spaced apart to provide a large surface area within which a support member may be attached.

In the described example the support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 are of loop fastening material and provide for engagement of support members comprising hook fastening material. It will be understood that the support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 may instead comprise loop fastening material, or a mixture of hook and loop fastening material, so long as the support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 are registered to engage with corresponding securing features on the support members to be positioned upon and attached thereto, as will be described below with reference to Fig 2.

In some alternative embodiments, there may be provided one large square or rectangular support member securing strip rather than multiple support member securing strips as presently described. Alternatively, all of, or most of, the top surface of the base member 100 may be covered in a support member securing strip (not shown), thereby allowing attachment of a support member to anywhere on the top surface of the base member 100, thus providing a large number of securing positions.

An example support member 200, as shown in Fig. 2, comprises a lineal strip of hook fastening material 210 arranged on the support member 200 to engage with the first or second support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 of the base member 100. The example support member 200 is in the form of an elongate foam bar covered with a soft bedding material. In some embodiments of the invention the support member 200 may be one of a cylinder, triangular prism, cuboid, or another suitable 3D shape. The support member 200 has sufficient stiffness to retain a person falling or pushing against the support member 200. In this regard, the elongate foam bar may be replaced by a stiff sponge material or a dense fabric material. Alternatively, the support member 200 may be formed of a flexible plastics material defining a chamber filled with air or another gas or fluid. Open or closed cell foam materials may also be used to provide sufficient cushioning for obtaining a comfortable but functional support member 200.

The lineal strip of hook fastening material 210 may be formed as a single strip, or may be formed as two, three or more strip sections (not shown). The number of strip sections may be registered to correspond with the number of support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135 in a securing strip set As will be easily understood, the hook fastening material used in the lineal strip 210 in Fig 2 may be replaced by loop fastening material, and corresponding hook fastening material may be used in the support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135.

Alternatively, another adjustable and releasable securing mechanism may be implemented to releasably and adjustably secure the support member 200 to the base member 100. An envisaged example of a particularly convenient securing mechanism is an array of magnets located within the base member 100 and a magnet or array of magnets located within the support member 200. The magnets may be arranged such that the support member 200 can be attached at different positions on the base member 100. It is particularly convenient that magnets will create a magnet field through a covering material on the base member 100. This allows the surface of the base member 100 upon which the user will lay down to be a comfortable material such as cotton, with the array of magnets hidden within the base member 100.

Referring now to Fig 3, where the support member 200 is shown secured to the base member 100. As in the presently described example, it is most preferable that the support member 200 has a smaller footprint than the set of securing strips 130, 131, 132 to which it is attached. This allows the position of the support member 200 to be moved/adjusted into different positions on the set of securing strips 130, 131, 132 to allow use with various different sizes and shapes of people, as will now be described with reference to Fig 4.

Fig 4 shows an entire system 400 for supporting a person while they sleep or whilst bed bound. The system 400 provides support such that the person cannot roll over, slip down the bed, or slip to the left or to the right during sleep or whilst bed bound. Therefore, the system serves to improve the comfort level of the user in bed and the sleep quality of the user 300 (represented by a hooded garment in Fig 4).

The system shown in Fig 4, is not attached to a mattress or bed system, but attachment via the strap arrangements described above, with reference to Fig 1 will be easily envisaged by the reader.

To set up the system 400 to provide the aforementioned benefits, the user firstly attaches the base member 100 to a mattress or bed using the straps 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127 and lineal fabric strips 120a, 121a, 122a, 123a, 124a, 125a, 126a, 127a. The person requiring support may then lay on the base member 100 in a safe and comfortable position on their back or front. As noted above, the person 300 requiring support is represented by the hooded garment in Fig 4. The person 300 lays with their arms 301, 302 by their side and the support members 200, 201 are then attached to the base member 100 between each arm 301, 302 and the torso 303 of the person 300. The support members 200, 201 may be attached such that they are in the axilla/arm pit or close to the axilla/arm pit of the person 300. To this end, the support members 200, 201 are arranged to stop the person 300 from sliding downwards or to the left or right during their sleep or whilst bed bound for long periods of time, and to stop the person 300 from rolling over during their sleep. It is preferable to attach the support members 200, 201 close to the torso 303 or in contact with the torso 303 to restrict the movement of the person during sleep.

Persons with limited mobility may use the system 400 to remain in a comfortable and safe position whilst sleeping or bed bound. The system 400 is particularly useful for people with multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injuries, dementia, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy or people who have suffered a stroke. The system 400 may be used in a hospital, care home or in a private home. To this end, the bed to which the system 400 is attached may be a hospital bed, a care home bed, a bed at a private home, or any other bed which a person with limited mobility may lay down upon.

Advantageously, the position of the support members 200, 201 can be easily adjusted to find a comfortable and supportive position. Most advantageously, the system can be adapted for use with a variety of different shaped and sized persons by simply moving the support members 200, 201 to a different position on the support member securing strips 130, 131, 132, 133, 134, 135. It will be appreciated that the example shown provides securing of the torso 303 such that the torso 303 cannot roll over, slide down the bed, or slide to the left or right The system may be alternatively implemented such that at least one support member 200 is positioned between the legs (not shown) of a person 300 to stop downwards, left or right sliding and rolling of the person 300 during their sleep. Alternatively, a single support member 200 may be positioned at the feet (not shown) of a person 300 to stop them sliding down the bed during their sleep. Such a system may be adaptable for different heights of user by moving the support member 200 upwards or downwards on the base member 100 using the presently described invention. Whilst specific examples of the present invention have been described above, it will be appreciated that departures from the described examples may still fall within the scope of the claims defining the invention.