The present invention relates to an automatic apparatus configured to wind rolls of hygienic material, optionally paper, intended for use on examination tables, e.g. for medical examinations, for physiotherapy sessions, visits and applications by a beautician, to perform massages and for making tattoos, for covering with hygienic material the supporting surface on the examination tables, which allows in an hygienic, simple, fast, effective and reliable and ecological way to cover an examination tables with the correct quantity of required paper and to minimize the dimensions of paper to be discarded.

The present invention also relates to an examination tables, e.g. for medical examinations, for physiotherapy sessions, for visits and applications by a beautician, to perform massages and for making tattoos, equipped with the automatic apparatus according to the invention and a set of paper rolls configured to be used in the automatic apparatus according to the invention.

It is known that the examination tables commonly used in medical offices and hospitals, in particular intended to receive the body of a patient during a medical examination and/or a physiotherapy session (or even examination tables commonly used in the offices of beauticians, masseurs and tattooists), have a padded table on the top surface of which the patient can lie. By way of example, Figure 1 shows one examination table 100 of the prior art provided with a padded table, comprising a seat section 110 and a back section 120 hinged to the seat section 110 so that the seat section can be raised with respect to the latter. The padded table is supported by a metal frame 130, provided with a control rod for the lifting of the head section 120, which metal frame is connected to two front legs 140 and two rear legs 150 resting on the floor, wherein the two front legs 140 can be constrained to each other by a front transverse bar 145 and the two rear legs 150 can be constrained to each other by a rear transverse bar 155; in particular, the two rear legs 150 have two adjustable feet 160 at the ends, to allow the padded table to be arranged in a horizontal orientation, compensating for any irregularities in the floor. Other prior art examination tables, similar to the examination table 200 shown in Figure 2, can have a wooden frame 230 instead of a metal one, connected to two front legs 240 and two rear legs 250 resting on the wooden floor and bound together by a front cross bar 245 and a rear cross bar 255 made of wood. For hygienic reasons, the top surface of the padded table is normally covered with a paper covering taken from a roll of paper, for a length suitable to cover the padded table, so that the paper is interposed between the patient and the top surface of the padded table. The paper used for one patient is then removed and discarded, and a new length of paper is taken from the roll to receive the next patient, thus obtaining disposable paper covers; in particular, the paper rolls are provided with a plurality of transverse tear lines to allow the operator to easily remove the paper from the roll.

In order to allow an easier and faster application of the paper to the top surface of the padded table for each patient, as shown for example in Figure 3 for the prior art examination table 300 having a metal frame 130, the prior art solutions have a fixed shaft 310 connected to the rear legs 150 of frame 130 by means of two clamp connectors 320 (only one of which being visible in Figure 3) provided with respective connection arms 330 (only one of which being visible in Figure 3) connected to the fixed shaft 310; (at least) one of the two connection arms 330 is elastically connected to the fixed shaft 310, in such a way as to allow an operator to disconnect it to insert the fixed shaft 310 into the central hole of a paper roll 350 (by sliding the paper roll 350 on the fixed shaft 310). Other examination tables of the prior art, such as examination table 400 having a metal frame 130 shown in Figure 4 (moreover comprising one further metal longitudinal bar 156 for connecting the front transverse bar 145 to the rear transverse bar 155), can have the fixed shaft 310 connected to the front legs 140 (instead of rear legs 140) similar to what is shown in Figure 3.

In particular, thanks to the clamp connectors 320, the fixed shaft 310 can be retrofitted to existing examination tables, as shown in Figures 3 and 4, although it should be borne in mind that further prior art examination tables have such fixed shafts (or similar rotating shafts) incorporated into the structure. By way of example, the wooden examination table 500 of the prior art, of which a detail is shown in Figure 5, is provided with two brackets 510 fixed to the rear legs 250 and provided with through holes wherein respective ends 520 of the insertable shaft are inserted in the central hole of a paper roll 350; for this purpose, the shaft can be slid through the through holes of the 510 brackets.

However, such prior art examination tables, even though provided with shafts that can be inserted into the central hole of a paper roll, do not allow a simple replacement of the paper from the top surface of the padded table. Furthermore, these prior art examination tables cause the roll paper, when removed after subsequent applications on the examination table, to occupy a much larger space than that occupied by the initial paper roll, which can be several tens of meters long, making It is not easy for the operator to dispose of the discarded paper and thereby causing waste disposal problems.

To overcome these problems, some solutions have been developed in the prior art which include automatic systems for wrapping sheets of paper or other hygienic materials applied on examination tables by means of motorized rollers, such as the systems described in documents US 3810263, US4003704, W002078491, US6499156 and US 2009/049616.

However, even such automatic systems of the prior art suffer from some drawbacks.

In fact, in order to apply the correct amount of required paper, they are extremely complex and, consequently, expensive, require special arrangements of the examination tables and, therefore, cannot be retrofitted to existing examination tables.

The object of the present invention is therefore to allow in a hygienic, simple, fast, effective, reliable and ecological way to cover an examination table with the correct amount of paper, or other hygienic sheet material, which is necessary and minimize the size of the paper, other hygienic sheet material, to be eliminated.

It is a specific object of the present invention an automatic apparatus configured to wind rolls of sheets of hygienic material intended for use on examination tables, comprising a housing supporting an electric motor, configured to be controlled by a processing and control unit, the motor being operatively associated with a rotating drive shaft, having a free end, configured to be inserted into the hole of a hollow cylindrical core of a receiving roll intended to receive one sheet of hygienic material that is wound on the receiving roll when the drive shaft rotates, wherein a proximal locking element is coupled to the drive shaft and a distal locking element is configured to be removably coupled to the free end of the drive shaft, wherein the proximal locking element and the distal locking element are configured to limit the movements of the receiving roll on the drive shaft along a longitudinal axis thereof, wherein the free end of the drive shaft is supported by a support, wherein, when the distal locking element is coupled to the free end of the drive shaft, the proximal locking element (and the distal locking element are configured to interact with a respective end of the receiving roll, wherein said receiving roll is configured to remain stably coupled on the drive shaft, so that one rotation of the drive shaft causes the receiving roll to correspondingly rotate.

According to another aspect of the invention, the electric motor can be supported by the housing through one base thereof, wherein the rotating drive shaft can have one end coupled to the electric motor, wherein the distal locking element can be configured to be slidably removably coupled to one portion of the free end of the drive shaft, wherein the portion of the free end of the drive shaft can be provided with one or more protruding elastic stop elements, each one of the protruding elastic stop elements being configured to be in a locking limit position, wherein it prevents the distal locking element, when coupled to portion of the free end of drive shaft, to be removed by the drive shaft, wherein support can be coupled to base of housing, and wherein, when the distal locking element is coupled to the portion of the free end of the drive shaft, the proximal locking element and the distal locking element can be configured to interact with a respective end of said hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll.

According to an additional aspect of the invention, the proximal locking element can have truncated cone shape with vertex arranged in a direction opposite to the electric motor, and the distal locking element can have truncated cone shape with cylindrical axial through channel and can be configured to be slidably removably coupled to the portion of the free end of the drive shaft, with vertex arranged towards the electric motor.

According to another aspect of the invention, said one or more protruding elastic stop elements can form a plurality of protruding elastic stop elements arranged along two respective longitudinal straight lines diametrically opposite to each other on a lateral surface of the drive shaft, wherein each one of the protruding elastic stop elements is configured to assume any position between said locking limit position and a compressed position, at which each one of the protruding elastic stop elements is housed in a corresponding slit of the lateral surface of the drive shaft to allow the distal locking element to slide on the drive shaft towards the free end, and wherein the portion of the free end of the drive shaft is also provided with two longitudinal ribs, optionally arranged along two respective longitudinal straight lines diametrically opposite to each other on the lateral surface of the drive shaft, configured to slide in two respective slots of the cylindrical axial through channel of the distal locking element.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the support can be saddle shaped and an end mushroom, provided with a head disk and a cylindrical stem, can be coupled, optionally in a removable way, to the free end of the drive shaft, wherein the head disk is spaced apart from the free end of the drive shaft, whereby a gap is present between the head disk and the free end of the drive shaft in which the saddle shaped support is configured to insert and to support the cylindrical stem, whereby the free end of the drive shaft is supported by the saddle shaped support through the cylindrical stem.

According to an additional aspect of the invention, the proximal locking element and the distal locking element can comprise or consist of a proximal locking plate and a distal locking plate, respectively, wherein the support can comprise or consist of an end plug having a stem that can be inserted in a longitudinal housing of the free end of the drive shaft, the distal locking plate being configured to be removably coupled to the free end of the drive shaft through the plug, wherein the end plug can be fixed to the distal locking plate, optionally trough one or more screw, wherein optionally said receiving roll is configured to be stably coupled on the drive shaft through an interference and/or interlocking and/or a friction coupling, wherein optionally the electric motor is operatively associated to the rotating drive shaft through a transmission element.

According to another aspect of the invention, the automatic apparatus can also comprise a guiding group configured to control an alignment of said sheet of hygienic material in the winding on the receiving roll.

According to a further aspect of the invention, said guiding group can comprise one base slider through which the support is coupled to the base, wherein the base slider is configured to slide into a linear guide that is not parallel to the rotation axis of the electric motor, optionally arranged substantially orthogonally to the axis of the electric motor, wherein the base slide is configured to be controlled by said processing and control unit, wherein an intermediate position of the base slide along the linear guide is a reference position wherein, when the base slide is at said reference position, the drive shaft is arranged along the rotation axis of the electric motor, the automatic apparatus further comprising a proximal proximity sensor and a distal proximity sensor arranged on the base and configured to detect presence and distance of respective proximal and distal portions of said sheet of hygienic material, wherein, when the processing and control unit detects, through the two proximal and distal proximity sensors, that one of the two proximal and distal portions of the sheet is more distant than the other proximal or distal portion of the sheet from the respective proximal or distal proximity sensor, the processing and control unit is configured to move the base slide along the linear guide until the two proximal and distal portions of the sheet are substantially at the same distance from the respective proximal and distal proximity sensors.

According to an additional aspect of the invention, the proximal proximity sensor and / or the distal proximity sensor can be ultrasonic sensors.

According to another aspect of the invention, said guiding group can include one couple of alignment panels, each comprising one pivot portion extending along one longitudinal direction and one cutting edge inclined with respect to said longitudinal direction, wherein each pivot portion is configured to be inserted into a respective guide longitudinal channel of two guide longitudinal channels of which the sheet of hygienic material is provided, and to keep one forward direction of the sheet during winding on the receiving roll parallel to the longitudinal direction along which the same pivot portion of the respective alignment panels extends, wherein each cutting edge is configured to cut a respective one of said two guide longitudinal channels during winding of the sheet of hygienic material on the receiving roll.

According to a further aspect of the invention, said guiding group can further include one guiding plate having one face facing the couple of alignment panels, wherein the sheets of hygienic material is configured to slide along said face, during winding on the receiving roll.

According to an additional aspect of the invention, said couple of alignment panels can be fixedly coupled to the proximal locking plate and distal locking plate, respectively.

According to another aspect of the invention, the electric motor can be configured to be powered through one battery, optionally rechargeable and/or through one power supply stage connected to the electrical network.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the housing may also include a lid configured to cover the base, when the housing is in a closed configuration, and to make the base accessible when the housing is in an operational configuration.

According to an additional aspect of the invention, the automatic apparatus can also include one or more support legs and / or mechanical connection components configured to removably couple the automatic apparatus to one examination table.

Another specific object of the present invention is an examination table comprising an automatic apparatus configured to wind rolls of sheets in hygienic material as just described.

It is a further object of the present invention, an assembly of donor roll and receiving roll intended to be used in the automatic apparatus configured to wind rolls of sheets of hygienic material as just described, wherein the receiving roll has ends configured to interact with the proximal and distal locking elements, wherein one sheet of hygienic material, optionally paper, has a leading edge and a trailing edge attached to the receiving roll and to the donor roll, respectively, and wherein the sheet is wound on the donor roll. The automatic apparatus according to the invention offers many advantages.

First of all, it is simple, inexpensive and can also be retrofitted to existing examination tables.

Furthermore, the automatic apparatus according to the invention allows to quickly, effectively and reliably cover an examination table with the required correct amount of sheet of hygienic material, e.g. paper, being able, at least in some embodiments, to automatically compensate for any misalignment of the sheet of hygienic material with respect to the receiving roll that collects the discarded material.

Finally, thanks to the winding in the receiving roll that collects the discarded material, which minimizes the issues of replacement and contact with the hygienic material already used for patients, the hygienic material, optionally paper, to be discarded is compact and has substantially the same size of the donor roll before starting the application of the hygienic material to the examination table, thus simplifying any storage before disposal and subsequent disposal of the discarded material.

The present invention will be now described, for illustrative but not limiting purposes, according to its preferred embodiments, with particular reference to the Figures of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a first examination table of the prior art;

Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a second examination table of the prior art;

Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a third examination table of the prior art;

Figure 4 shows a perspective view of a fourth examination table of the prior art;

Figure 5 shows a perspective view of a particular fifth examination table of the prior art;

Figure 6 shows a perspective view of a first embodiment of the automatic apparatus according to the invention, applied to an examination table and in a closed configuration;

Figure 7 shows a perspective view of the automatic apparatus of Figure 6, in an open configuration;

Figure 8 shows a top plan view of an assembly of the automatic apparatus of Figure 7 (Fig. 8A), a plan view of the distal locking element of the automatic apparatus of Figure 7 (Fig. 8b), a perspective view of this distal locking element (Fig. 8c) and an enlargement of said perspective view (Fig. 8d);

Figure 9 shows a perspective view of the automatic apparatus of Figure 7, during winding of a receiving roll; Figure 10 shows a perspective view of an examination table provided with a second embodiment of the automatic apparatus according to the invention;

Figure 11 shows a perspective view of a detail of the examination table of Figure 10;

Figure 12 shows a perspective view of the automatic apparatus of Figure 10;

Figure 13 shows a perspective view of a first detail of the automatic apparatus of Figure

10;

Figure 14 shows a perspective view of a second detail of the automatic apparatus of Figure 10; and

Figure 15 shows a perspective view of a third detail of the automatic apparatus of Figure 10.

In the Figures the same reference numerals will be used for similar elements. Furthermore, the drawings are merely illustrative and the dimensions of the components shown in the Figures should not be considered essential characteristics for the invention.

With reference to Figure 6, it can be observed that a first embodiment of the automatic apparatus according to the invention is configured to be removably coupled to an already existing examination tables, optionally having a metal frame, a seat section 110 of the padded table thereof being visible and the two rear legs 150 resting on the floor.

The automatic apparatus comprises a housing 600 provided with two legs 610, constrained to each other by a transverse bar 615, each of which is removably coupled to a respective rear leg 150 of the examination table by means of two pairs of clamp connectors 620-630 and 620 ' -630 'clamp, respectively arranged at different heights with respect to the floor (on which the legs of the automatic apparatus and of the examination table rest), wherein the clamp connectors of each pair of clamp connectors 620-630 and 620'-630' are respectively arranged on the leg 610 of the automatic apparatus and on the rear leg 150 of the examination table and are connected to each other by a connection bar 640 and 640 ', which consequently is coupled in a removable way both to the leg 610 of the automatic apparatus and to the rear leg 150 of the examination table..

It should be kept in mind that other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may have the connection bars 640 and 640 integrally (i.e. irremovably) coupled to the legs 610 of the automatic apparatus and/or a different number of supporting legs resting on the floor and/or different supporting elements on the floor (e.g., walls or arches), always remaining within the protection scope of the present invention. Furthermore, it must be borne in mind that further embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention can have the housing 600 which is incorporated into the structure of the examination table, e.g. integrally or removably coupled to the frame of the examination table, optionally in an appropriate seat thereof, whereby the front 140 and rear 150 legs of the examination table support the entire structure, including the housing 600, always remaining within the scope of protection of the present invention.

With reference to Figures 6 and 7, it can be observed that the housing 600 comprises a base 720A, which is substantially parallel to the floor when the automatic apparatus is coupled to an examination table, connected to a rear wall 720B which, when the apparatus automatic is coupled to an examination table, is substantially orthogonal to the floor and is optionally in contact with the rear end of the seat section 110 of the padded table and/or with the rear end of the frame of the examination table.

The housing 600 also comprises a lid having three sections 700A, 700B and 700C which can be tilted with respect to each other, the lid being configured to cover the base 720A when the housing 600 is in a closed configuration, shown in Figure 6, wherein a first section 700A of the lid rests on the free end (not connected to the base 720A) of the rear wall 720B and is substantially parallel to the base 720A, a second section 700B is substantially parallel to the rear wall 720B, and a third section 700C laterally closes the housing and is substantially orthogonal both to the base 720A and to the rear wall 720B; in particular, the lid can be stably maintained in the closed configuration by means of two sets of press studs, the male components thereof (whose heads 712 are visible in Figures 6 and 7 - and 9) being arranged on the third section 700C and the female components 714 thereof (visible in Figures 7 and 9) protruding from the base 720A to which they are coupled. In that case, the examination table is longer with respect to the original dimensions without housing 600.

When the housing 600 is in an operational configuration, shown in Figures 7 and 9, the first and second sections 700A and 700B of the lid are substantially aligned and the third section 700C is closed on the first section 700A by the male components 712 of the two assemblies of press studs that couple to two further female components (not visible) provided on the internal wall of the first section 700A.

It should be kept in mind that other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may have a different arrangement of the lid configured to close the base, e.g. in the closed configuration of Figure 6 the lid can be stably coupled to the rear wall 720B (optionally by means of one or more press-stud assemblies), and in a further open configuration the lid can be folded with the first section 700A stably coupled to the second section 700B (optionally by means of one or more press-stud assemblies) and/or stably coupled to the base 720A (optionally by means of one or more press-stud assemblies, the female components of which protrude from the base 720A to which they are coupled in a similar manner to the coupling between third section 700C and base 720A), always remaining within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 7 and 8, it can be seen that the base 720A supports an electric motor 800 configured to rotate a drive shaft 810 configured to be inserted into the central hole of a receiving roll (such as that indicated by the reference number 352 in Figure 9), provided with a hollow cylindrical core (usually made of cardboard) intended to receive the paper, or other hygienic material, which is removed from the examination table. The electric motor 800 can be powered by an autonomous battery (e.g. housed inside the same container as the electric motor), optionally rechargeable, and/or by means of a power supply stage connected to the mains by conventional electric cables (not shown in the Figures). In particular, the drive shaft 810 has an end directly coupled to the electric motor 800 (i.e. to the shaft thereof without interposition of kinematic transmission mechanisms) and a free end.

A proximal locking element 820, having a truncated cone shape with the vertex arranged in the opposite direction to the electric motor 800, is integrally coupled to the drive shaft 810. A distal locking element 830, having a truncated cone shape with a cylindrical through axial channel 835, is removably coupled to the free end of the drive shaft 810, advantageously with the vertex towards the electric motor 800. The terms "proximal" and "distal" refer to the distance of the locking element considered with respect to the electric motor 800, so that the proximal locking element 820 is integrally coupled to the drive shaft 810 at the end thereof coupled to the electric motor 800, while the distal locking element 830 is removably coupled to the drive shaft 810 at its free end (and, although it can also slide along the drive shaft 810, its distance from the electric motor 800 is always greater than the distance of the proximal element 820 from the electric motor 800).

The distal locking element 830 has the cylindrical axial through channel 835 of a diameter substantially corresponding to the diameter of the drive shaft 810, whereby the distal locking element 830 is configured to slide externally on the drive shaft 810 starting from the free end thereof. In particular, a portion 840 of the free end of the drive shaft 810 is provided with a plurality of protruding elastic stop elements 845, optionally arranged along two respective longitudinal straight lines diametrically opposite each other on the lateral surface of the drive shaft 810, each one of the protruding elastic stop elements being able to be in any position between two limit positions: a rest position, wherein the protruding elastic stop element 845 protrudes from the lateral surface of the drive shaft 810, and a compressed position, wherein the protruding elastic stop element 845 is housed in a corresponding slit in the lateral surface of the drive shaft 810 allowing the distal locking element 830 to pass it and slide towards the free end. The shape of the protruding elastic stop elements 845 is such that, in the rest position, it allows the distal locking element 830 to slide on the drive shaft 810 towards the electric motor 800 and prevents the distal locking element 830 from passing it and sliding in the opposite direction (i.e. towards the free end); by way of example, the shape of each protruding elastic stop element 845 can have a triangular longitudinal section (in particular a right-angled triangle which, when the protruding elastic stop element 845 is in the rest position, is arranged with a cathetus parallel to the axis of the driving shaft 810 and with the other cathetus perpendicular to the axis of the driving shaft 810 and facing the electric motor 800), in a similar way to the elastic fins with which the umbrella shafts are provided.

The portion 840 of the free end of the drive shaft 810 is also provided with two (or more) longitudinal ribs 848, optionally arranged along two respective longitudinal straight lines diametrically opposite each other on the lateral surface of the drive shaft 810 (and angularly interposed between the two longitudinal straight lines along which the protruding elastic stop elements 845 are arranged). These longitudinal ribs 848 are configured to slide in two respective grooves 838 of the cylindrical axial through channel 835 of the distal locking element 830.

An end mushroom, equipped with a head disk 850 and a cylindrical stem 855, is coupled (optionally in a removable way) to the free end of the drive shaft 810; in particular, the cylindrical stem 855 can be screwed into a corresponding longitudinal threaded seat of the drive shaft 810 or fitted into a corresponding longitudinal receiving seat of the drive shaft 810. When the end mushroom is coupled to the drive shaft 810, the head disk 850 is spaced from the free end of the drive shaft 810, whereby a (cylindrical) slot is present between the head disk 850 and the free end of the drive shaft 810.

To stably mount a receiving roll (such as that indicated by reference number 352 in Figure 9) on the drive shaft 810, starting from a situation wherein the housing 600 is in the open configuration and the distal locking element 830 is removed from the drive shaft 810, the operator slides the hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll 352 on the drive shaft 810 until a first end of the hollow cylindrical core rests on the conical surface of the proximal locking element 820, then slides the distal locking element 830 on the drive shaft 810, starting from the free end thereof by pushing the conical surface of the distal locking element 830 against the second end of the hollow cylindrical core (i.e. towards the motor 800), until the hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll 352 is stably locked on the drive shaft 810 between the proximal locking element 820 and the distal locking element 830, where the distal locking element 830 is locked in its position thanks to the protruding elastic stop elements 845 (and to the interaction between longitudinal ribs 848 and grooves 838), so that both the proximal locking element 820 and the distal locking element 830 are stably coupled to the drive shaft 810. In other words, the proximal locking element 820 and the distal locking element 830 are configured to limit the displacements of the receiving roll 352 on the external surface of the drive shaft 810 along its longitudinal axis.

Once the receiving roll 352 has removed all the paper (coming from an analogous donor roll, mounted on a fixed or idle shaft positioned at the back section of the examination table to which the automatic apparatus according to the invention is applied), or other hygienic material, progressively placed on the examination table, the operator can remove the receiving roll 352 by lowering the protruding elastic stop elements 845 and removing the distal locking element 830.

In particular, the leading edge of the sheet of paper (or other hygienic material), which must be progressively arranged on the examination table, can be fixed on the hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll 352 by means of an adhesive tape (for example an adhesive longitudinal strip that extends on the external surface of the receiving roll 352 parallel to the longitudinal axis of its hollow cylindrical core).

Preferably, the sheet of paper (or other hygienic material) is devoid of transverse tear lines.

Advantageously, the sheet of paper (or other hygienic material) can already be supplied with the leading and trailing edges fixed to a receiving roll 352 and to a donor roll, on which the sheet that will be progressively wound onto the receiving roll 352 is initially wound, and optionally it can be accompanied by adhesive or double-sided tape to possibly attach the torn edges of the sheet in the event that it is torn. - IB -

The automatic apparatus of Figures 6-9 is provided with a guiding group configured to check the correct alignment of the sheet 355 of paper (or other hygienic material) in the winding on the receiving roll 352. In fact, the base 720A is provided with a linear guide 860 arranged not parallel to the rotation axis of the electric motor 800, optionally arranged substantially orthogonally to the rotation axis of the electric motor 800, wherein a base cursor 870 of a saddle support 875 configured to support the portion of the cylindrical stem 855 is configured to slide when the end mushroom is coupled to the drive shaft 810 and to hold the drive shaft 810 in a position parallel to the base 720A. Optionally, the central position along the linear guide 860 is the reference position wherein the base cursor 870 is and which corresponds to the position of the rotation axis of the electric motor 800, so that, when the base cursor 870 is in said reference position, the drive shaft 810 is entirely arranged along the axis of rotation of the electric motor 800. Other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention can provide that said reference position is an intermediate position of the base slider 870 along the linear guide 860 different from the central position.

The base 720A is also provided with a proximal proximity sensor 880 and a distal proximity sensor 885, arranged in proximity to the rear wall 720B and configured to detect the presence and distance of respective proximal and distal portions of a sheet 355 of paper, or other hygienic material, while being wound onto a receiving roll 352, as shown in Figure 9. Also in this case, the terms "proximal" and "distal" refer to the distance of the considered proximity sensor with respect to the electric motor 800, so that the proximal sensor 880 is located at a distance from the electric motor 800 lower than the distance from which the distal sensor 885 is located. Optionally, the distance between the two proximity proximal 880 and distal 885 sensors is the maximum possible, although their position must allow detecting the presence and distance of respective proximal and distal portions of the sheet 355 as it is wound on the receiving roll 352, whereby, as shown in Figure 8a, the proximal sensor 880 is arranged in a position close to the proximal locking element 820 and the distal sensor 885 is arranged in a position close to the distal locking element 830, such that (when a receiving roll 352 is stably locked on the drive shaft 810 between the proximal locking element 820 and the distal locking element 830) the mutual distance between the proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors is shorter (or at most equal ) to the mutual distance between the proximal 820 and distal 830 locking elements.

The electric motor 800 and the base slider 870 are controlled by a processing and control unit (not shown in the Figures) to which also the two proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors are connected. A power button 890, three control buttons and two signalling LEDs connected to the processing and control unit are arranged on the electric motor container. In particular:

- a first control button 892, when pressed by an operator, activates the electric motor 800 for a predetermined period of time causing the clockwise rotation of the drive shaft 810 and any receiving roll 352 present thereon (according to the arrow indicated with C in Figure 7), whereby the receiving roll 352 drags and removes the paper, or other hygienic material, from the examination table for a length corresponding to the predetermined period of time and the rotation speed of the drive shaft 810 (and, to a lesser extent, to the thickness of the receiving roll 352);

- a second control button 894, when pressed by an operator, activates the electric motor 800 for a predetermined period of time causing the clockwise rotation of the drive shaft 810 and any receiving roll 352 present thereon (according to the arrow indicated with C in Figure 7), so that the receiving roll 352 drags and removes the paper, or other hygienic material, from the examination table while the second control button 894 is pressed;

- a third control button 896, when pressed by an operator, activates the electric motor 800 causing the counter-clockwise rotation of the drive shaft 810 and any receiving roll 352 present thereon (according to the arrow indicated with C in Figure 7), so that the receiving roll 352 unwinds the paper, or other hygienic material, already wound thereon toward the examination table, while the third control button 896 is pressed;

- a first LED 897, optionally a green one, indicates when the automatic device is actually on;

- a second LED 897, optionally a red one, signals when the electric motor 800 is being operated.

It should be borne in mind that other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention can have different control and/or signalling input/output interfaces, for example keyboards and/or displays and or acoustic buzzers, always remaining within the scope protection of the present invention.

During the actuation of the electric motor 800 and the consequent clockwise rotation of the drive shaft 810 (according to the arrow indicated by C in Figure 7), whereby the receiving roll 352 drags and removes the paper or other hygienic material from the examination table, the two proximal 880 and distal 885 sensors allow the processing and control unit to detect any misalignment of the sheet 355 which is dragged with respect to the receiving roll 352 and, accordingly, with respect to the drive shaft 810, and to automatically compensate for this misalignment by moving the base slider 870.

In fact, if such a misalignment occurs, the sheet 355 has wrinkles at one of the two lateral ends (according to the width) of the same sheet while the other lateral end is stretched, so that one of the two proximity sensors will detect a distance of the respective portion shorter than the distance detected by the other sensor. In this case, the processing and control unit moves the base slider 870 along the linear guide 860 and, consequently, moves the free end of the drive shaft 810 towards or away from the rear wall 720B until the two proximal and distal portions of sheet 355 are substantially at the same distance (except for predetermined tolerance intervals, optionally adjustable by the operator, for example according to the type of hygienic material of sheet 355, and/or optionally automatically adjustable by the processing and control unit, for example based on the rotation speed of the drive shaft 810) by the respective proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors.

By way of example, in the case wherein the processing and control unit detects, through the two proximity sensors, that the proximal portion of sheet 355 corresponding to the proximal proximity sensor 880 is more stretched than the distal portion of the sheet 355 corresponding to the distal proximity sensor 885 (whereby the proximal portion of the sheet 355 is more distant from the proximal proximity sensor 880 than the distal portion of the sheet 355 is distant from the distal proximity sensor 885), the processing and control unit moves the base slider 870 along the linear guide 860 away from the rear wall 720B, and, consequently, moves the free end of the drive shaft 810 away from the rear wall 720B until the two proximal and distal portions of the sheet 355 are at substantially the same distance ( not taking into account predetermined tolerance ranges) from the respective proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors. Alternatively, in the case wherein the processing and control unit detects, through the two proximity sensors, that the proximal portion of sheet 355 corresponding to the proximal proximity sensor 880 is less stretched than the distal portion of the sheet 355 corresponding to the distal proximity sensor 885 (whereby the proximal portion of the sheet 355 is closer to the proximal proximity sensor 880 than the distal portion of the sheet 355 is closer to the distal proximity sensor 885), the processing and control unit moves the base slider 870 along the linear guide 860 toward the rear wall 720B, and, consequently, moves the free end of the drive shaft 810 closer to the rear wall 720B until the two proximal and distal portions of the sheet 355 are at substantially the same distance ( not taking into account predetermined tolerance ranges) from the respective proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors.

The two proximal 880 and distal 885 sensors allow the processing and control unit to also detect any breakage of sheet 355, since in this case the proximity sensors no longer detect the respective portion of sheet 355; in this case, the processing and control unit can deactivate the electric motor 800 and stop the rotation of the drive shaft 810. In the case wherein the sheet 355 tears apart, the operator can attach the two torn edges of the sheet, e.g. by means of an adhesive or bi-adhesive tape, and in this case it can be useful to activate the electric motor through the third control button 896 to make the drive shaft 810, and consequently the receiving roll 352, counter-clockwise rotate (according to the arrow indicated with A in Figure 7) to better position the flap that has been wound on the receiving roll 352.

Advantageously, the two proximal 880 and distal 885 proximity sensors are ultrasonic sensors. It must be kept in mind that other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention can have additionally or alternatively other types of sensors configured to detect the presence and distance of respective proximal and distal portions of a sheet 355 of paper, or other hygienic material, always remaining within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Furthermore, it must be borne in mind that further embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may additionally have a second saddle support, optionally provided with a base slider configured to slide along a respective linear guide arranged not parallel to the rotation axis of the electric motor 800, more optionally arranged substantially orthogonally to the rotation axis of the electric motor 800, wherein the second saddle support is configured to support the drive shaft 810 at the end closest to the electric motor 800, always remaining within the scope of the present invention.

With reference to Figures 10-15 (which also show some hidden components) you can see an examination table 900 equipped with a second embodiment of the automatic apparatus according to the invention. The donor roll 903 is mounted on an idle shaft positioned at the back section 120 of the examination table 900 by means of brackets 906, optionally removable ones (to allow retrofit application to existing examination tables), connected to the front legs 140 of the same examination table 900. The receiving roll 952 is mounted on an idle shaft positioned at the seat section 110 of the examination table 900 by means of brackets 908, optionally removable ones (to allow retrofit application to existing examination tables), connected to the rear legs 150 of the same examination table 900. However, it is to be kept in mind that other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may have connections with the examination table different from brackets 906 and 908 illustrated in Figures 10-13, always remaining within the scope of protection of the present invention.

As shown in Figure 11, the idle shaft around which the donor roll 903 is wound has the two ends 912 that can be easily inserted, in a removable way, in respective grooves of plates 914 coupled to the respective brackets 906 and configured to rotate when inserted in the same grooves. The donor roll 903 can comprise a tube that is coupled with the idle shaft by means of an integral or removable coupling: in the first case, the idle shaft must be replaced together with the donor roll 903 when this has finished all the sheet 955 of paper (or other hygienic material), while in the second case the idle shaft can be reused for a plurality of donor rolls 903.

As shown in Figures 12-15, it can be seen that the automatic apparatus comprises a housing 917 which supports an electric motor 800 operatively associated, by means of a transmission 919, to the drive shaft 810 on which the receiving roll 952 is stably coupled, in a removable way, provided with a hollow cylindrical core (usually made of cardboard) intended to receive the paper, or other hygienic material, which is removed from the examination table 900. The electric motor 800 of the automatic apparatus of Figures 10-15 is also controlled by a processing and control unit which can be connected to a control and/or signalling input/output interface, comprising for example keyboards and/or displays and/or acoustic buzzers, similarly to the automatic apparatus of Figures 6-9.

A proximal locking plate 927 and a distal locking plate 933, integrally coupled to the respective brackets 908, are configured to limit the displacements of the receiving roll 952 on the external surface of the drive shaft 810, along the longitudinal axis thereof. Again, the terms "proximal" and "distal" refer to the distance of the locking plate considered with respect to the electric motor 800, so that the proximal locking plate 927 is integrally coupled to the housing 917 of drive shaft 810 at the end thereof operatively coupled to the electric motor 800, while the distal locking plate 933 is removably coupled to the drive shaft 810 at the free end thereof (so that, its distance from the electric motor 800 is always greater than the distance of the proximal locking plate 927 from the electric motor 800). In particular, the free end of the drive shaft 810, opposite the end operatively coupled to the electric motor 800, is removably coupled to the distal locking plate 933 by means of an end plug 937, having a stem that can be inserted in a longitudinal seat of the free end of the drive shaft 810, wherein the end plug 937 can be fixed to the distal locking plate 933 by means of two screws 943 having winged heads. In other words, the proximal locking plate 927 and the distal locking plate 933 act as proximal locking element and distal locking element, respectively, while the end plug 937 acts as a support, with which the automatic apparatus is provided, of the free end of the drive shaft 810.

In particular, the stable coupling between the hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll 952 and the drive shaft 810 can be obtained by interference, interlocking or friction coupling.

The automatic apparatus of Figures 10-15 is provided with a guiding group configured to check the correct alignment of the sheet 955 of paper (or other hygienic material) in the winding on the receiving roll 952. In particular, the sheet 955 of paper (or other hygienic material) wound on the donor roll 903 is provided with two guide longitudinal channels, advantageously obtained by folding and gluing the edges of the longitudinal sides (i.e. of the long sides) of the sheet 955 on the same sheet, so as to create two respective longitudinal channels on the edges of the longitudinal sides of sheet 955. The guiding group of sheet 955 comprises a guiding plate 947 which is integrally coupled to the proximal and distal locking plates 927 and 933 so as to be arranged substantially orthogonally to the floor, on which the two front legs 140 and the two rear legs 150 of the examination table 900, at the rear end of the seat section 110 of the examination table 900 (i.e. the end of the seat section 110 opposite the back section 120) rest. Each of the two proximal and distal locking plates 927 and 933 is provided with a respective alignment panel 953 and 957 (possibly fixed, as shown in Figures 10-15, or incorporated to the respective locking plate), comprising a pivot portion 928 and 934 extending along a longitudinal direction and a cutting edge 929 and 936 inclined with respect to said longitudinal direction. Each pivot portion 928 and 934 is configured to fit into a respective guide longitudinal channel of the two guide longitudinal channels with which the sheet 955 of hygienic material is provided (on its longitudinal edges) and to maintain the forward direction of the sheet 955 during winding around the receiving roll 952, parallel to the longitudinal direction along which the pivot portion 928 and 934 of the respective alignment plate 953 and 957 extends. During the winding around the receiving roll 952, the two guide longitudinal channels of the sheet 955, advancing, are cut by the inclined cutting edge 929 and 936 by stretching the folded edges of the longitudinal sides (i.e. of the long sides) of the sheet 955, favouring a orderly winding of the same sheet 955 on the receiving roll 952, avoiding any misalignments of the sheet 955 with respect to the receiving roll 952. The alignment panels 953 and 957 can be provided with tensioning devices configured to widen and stretch the sheet 955 of hygienic material; by way of example, these tensioning devices can comprise or consist of elastic elements positioned at the alignment panels 953 and 957 and configured to fit into a respective guide longitudinal channel of the two guide longitudinal channels with which sheet 955 is provided and to pull it towards the outside of the same sheet 955, so as to widen and stretch the sheet 955 of hygienic material.

In particular, during winding on the receiving roll 952, the sheet 955 slides along the face of the guiding plate 947 facing the outside of the examination table 900, or opposite the face of the guiding plate 947 facing the inside of the same examination table (i.e. facing the two front legs 140 of the examination table 900), whereby the alignment panels 953 and 957 face the face of the guiding plate 947 facing the outside of the examination table 900. An idler roller 963, connected to the proximal and distal locking plates 927 and 933 in an intermediate position between the guiding plate 947 and the receiving roll 952, is configured to redirect the sheet 955 from the guiding plate 947 to the receiving roll 952.

In other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention, the sheet 955 can slide along the face of the guiding plate 947 facing the inside of the examination table (i.e. facing the two front legs 140 of the examination table 900), whereby the alignment panels 953 and 957 face the face of the guiding plate 947 directed toward the inside of the examination table 900.

The methods of use of the automatic apparatus of Figures 10-15 to allow the use of receiving rolls 903 and donor rolls 952 to which a sheet 955 of hygienic material is connected, are similar to those already illustrated for the automatic apparatus of Figures 6- 9. In particular, the leading edge of the sheet 955 of hygienic material, which must be progressively arranged on the examination table, is brought up to the two alignment panels 953 and 957, whose pivot portions 928 and 934 are inserted into the two guide longitudinal channels of which the sheet 955 is provided, and this initial edge of sheet 955 is then moved forward, causing the cutting edges 929 and 936 to cut the two guide longitudinal channels of sheet 955, until it reaches the hollow cylindrical core of the receiving roll 952 where it is fixed by means of an adhesive tape (for example an adhesive longitudinal strip which extends on the external surface of the receiving roll 952 parallel to the longitudinal axis of its hollow cylindrical core).

It should be kept in mind that the guiding group illustrated with reference to Figures 10- 15 can also be used in the automatic apparatus shown in Figures 6-9. In particular, two alignment plates (similar to plates 953 and 957 of Figures 10-15) can be connected to the base 720A of housing 600 upstream of the drive shaft 810, i.e. in a position interposed between the rear wall 720B of the housing 600 and the drive shaft 810). Alternatively, at least one of the alignment plates can be connected to the base 720A of the housing 600 via a respective proximal or distal locking plate (similar to the proximal 927 and distal 933 locking plates of Figures 10-15), configured to limit the displacements of the receiving roll 952 on the external surface of the drive shaft 810 along its longitudinal axis; in this case at least one of the proximal and distal locking elements 820 and 830 shown in Figures 6-9 may be missing.

Other embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may provide mechanisms for forming the two guide longitudinal channels of sheet 955, positioned downstream of the donor roll 903, on which sheet 955 is in this case wound in an extended configuration.

Further embodiments of the automatic apparatus according to the invention may additionally have at least one ultraviolet (UV) radiation lamp, configured to disinfect and/or sterilize at least the exposed surface of the sheet of paper (or other hygienic material) which has received the body of a patient. By way of non-limiting example, such at least one UV lamp can be positioned in the housing 600 of the automatic apparatus shown in Figures 6-9, or connected between the proximal locking plate 927 and the distal locking plate 933 of the automatic apparatus shown in Figures 10-15. In the above, the preferred embodiments have been described and a number of variations of the present invention have been suggested, but it is to be understood that those skilled in the art can make other variations and changes without departing from the scope of protection thereof, as defined by the appended claims.