Automated systems, devices, and methods for transporting and supporting patients

Abstract

Systems, devices, and methods are described for moving a patient to and from various locations, care units, etc., within a care facility. For example a transport and support vehicle includes a body structure including a plurality of rotatable members operable to frictionally interface the vehicle to a travel path and to move the vehicle along the travel path, and a surface structured and dimensioned to support an individual subject. A transport and support vehicle can include, for example, an imager operably coupled to one or more of a power source, a steering assembly, one or more of the plurality of rotatable members, etc., and having one or more modules operable to control the power source, steering assembly, one or more of the plurality of rotatable members, etc., so as to maintain an authorized operator in the image zone.

1 .- 49 . (canceled) 
     
     
         50 . An article of manufacture, comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:
 one or more instructions for detecting an authorization status associated with operator-guide; 
 one or more instructions for acquiring operator-guide verification information from an operator-guide identification device, the operator-guide verification information to be acquired including information indicative of at least one of an operator-guide authorization status, an operator-guide identity, and an operator-guide reference guidance information; and 
 one or more instructions for generating one or more control commands for maintaining a self-propelled operator-guided vehicle at target separation from the operator-guide identification device. 
   
     
     
         51 . The article of manufacture of  claim 50 , further comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:   one or more instructions for detecting a location of the operator-guide identification device associated with the operator-guide.   
     
     
         52 . The article of manufacture of  claim 50 , further comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:   one or more instructions for generating one or more control commands for maintaining the self-propelled operator-guided vehicle at a target separation from the operator-guide identification device responsive to a change of location of the operator-guide identification device relative to the self-propelled operator-guided vehicle.   
     
     
         53 . The article of manufacture of  claim 50 , further comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:   one or more instructions for determining a location of the operator-guide identification device associated with the operator-guide relative to the self-propelled operator-guided vehicle.   
     
     
         54 . The article of manufacture of  claim 50 , further comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:   one or more instructions for determining a velocity difference between the operator-guide identification device and the self-propelled operator-guided vehicle.   
     
     
         55 . The article of manufacture of  claim 50 , further comprising:
 a non-transitory signal-bearing medium bearing:   one or more instructions for controlling one or more of propulsion, braking, or steering responsive to detected velocity difference between the operator-guide identification device and the self-propelled operator-guided vehicle.   
     
     
         56 .- 189 . (canceled)