Detailed Explanation of Electric Bed Motors in Medical Equipment

1. Component Composition

Electric hospital beds, as an essential piece of equipment in modern hospitals, care centers, and home healthcare, not only improve patient comfort but also significantly reduce the burden on caregivers. The structure integrates multifunctional adjustment mechanisms and intelligent control systems, mainly consisting of the following key modules:

• Main Bed Frame and Lifting Structure: Constructed from high-strength steel and anti-corrosion coatings, supporting the entire bed frame. The lifting structure is typically designed with a scissor-type or parallel pushrod design to raise and lower the bed (with a height adjustment range of 400mm to 800mm).
• Back/Leg Adjustment System: Uses multiple hinged bed plates and pushrod motors to support the backrest (0°–70°) and leg elevation (0°–40°), adapting to different treatment and resting posture requirements.
• Multi-axis Electric Pushrod System: The core driving structure, distributed at various movable parts of the bed to perform precise movements.
• Control System: Composed of a central control module, distributed control terminals, and handheld remote controllers, with functions such as operation memory, synchronized control, posture preset, and misoperation protection.
• Safety Auxiliary Modules: Including bed rails, emergency stop buttons, wheel lock mechanisms, and sensor feedback systems to ensure absolute safety during patient adjustment.
• Additional Functions: High-end models are also equipped with under-bed lighting, patient presence sensing, wireless alarm systems, and USB charging ports, pushing the electric hospital bed toward greater intelligence.

2. Working Principles

All adjustment actions in an electric hospital bed are driven by multiple linear pushrod motors. Operators issue commands via a handheld controller or central control panel. The signal is processed by the main control unit, activating the corresponding motor, which drives the screw or slider structure to move a specific part of the bed. For example:

• Overall Lifting: Lifting motors on both sides of the bed frame extend and retract synchronously, lifting the entire bed.
• Backrest Lifting: Pushrod motors behind the backboard push the hinge mechanism upward, putting the patient in a semi-sitting position.
• Leg Adjustment: The motor below the legs lifts the bed plate to improve lower limb circulation.
• Tilt Function (Trendelenburg/Reverse Trendelenburg): By coordinating motors at different parts of the bed, the angle of the bed can be adjusted to raise the head and lower the feet, or vice versa, suitable for specific surgeries or emergency situations.

The system typically includes position feedback sensors (e.g., Hall effect sensors) to monitor the execution status in real time, preventing over-travel or shock operations, ensuring smooth and safe movements.

3. Key Role of Motors in the System

The motor is the foundation for the fine movement control, stable output, and long-term operation of the electric hospital bed, playing the following core roles:

• High Thrust Linear Motion: The main lifting motor needs to output a thrust of 6000~10000N to lift the entire bed and support stable operation under offset or dynamic loads.
• High Precision Angle Control: The pushrod motor must achieve a repeat positioning accuracy within ±1° to ensure consistency in bed adjustments and patient comfort.
• Synchronized Coordination: The backrest and leg adjustments often require coordinated control. The system must ensure the coordination of different motors to avoid "unilateral failure," which could make the bed unstable or cause patient discomfort.
• Quiet Operation and Comfort Design: Medical environments require very low noise (≤45dB). Therefore, motors use worm gear reduction, ball screws, and other low-noise designs.
• Electromagnetic Compatibility and Safety: All motor systems must comply with IEC 60601-1 and EMC anti-interference standards to ensure long-term stable operation in high magnetic fields and complex electrical environments.
• Corrosion and Moisture Resistance: Hospital beds require disinfecting and cleaning. The motor system must have an IP54~IP66 protection level to prevent damage from liquid splashes, dust ingress, or long-term exposure to humid environments.
• Maintenance Convenience: Motors are designed with long maintenance cycles and compact structures for easy replacement, improving hospital equipment management efficiency.

4. Customized Motor Solutions

For different types of electric hospital beds, such as ICU critical care beds, surgical transfer beds, and rehabilitation beds, we offer highly integrated linear drive motor system solutions.

We mainly recommend the GPG-LA72 series high-thrust pushrod motors, which use high-strength ball screws and metal gear sets. These motors support a maximum dynamic load output of 10,000N and are equipped with Hall encoders and dual limit structures to ensure precise movement, fast positioning, and controllable stroke. Combined with the GPG-MCU820 intelligent control unit, up to six motors can be controlled independently or in tandem, supporting commonly used posture presets, emergency return positioning, and remote monitoring.

For the backrest and leg adjustment modules, we recommend the GPG-LA45 series medium-sized pushrod motors, with thrust ranges from 2000 to 4000N, suitable for installations in compact spaces. Their special gear lubrication design ensures quiet operation and reduces heat generation, meeting the high demands for quiet, continuous operation in hospital rooms.

To enhance system intelligence, we offer optional Bluetooth control modules, NFC hospital room identification systems, and wireless remote control modules, which are easy to integrate with hospital information systems (HIS) or smart nursing platforms for remote adjustment, patient identification, and usage data uploading. Additionally, all motor structures are made of anodized aluminum shells with dustproof seals, and the entire system is certified by CE, RoHS, and ISO13485 medical device certifications, meeting the needs of global mainstream markets.