Patent attributes
In order to simplify the switching of medical or surgical equipment in an operating theatre, there is proposed a switching device for medical or surgical equipment which is characterized by a planar floor mat having sensors distributed over the surface area thereof, said sensors producing an electrical signal corresponding to the position of a foot of an operator on the floor mat when the foot is located near the respective sensor, and by a data processing system which is connected to the floor mat and is programmed in such a manner that it stores the instantaneous position of the foot on the floor mat as a starting position when activated by an activating signal, selects at least one switching area of the floor mat which has a predetermined location relative to the starting position, and produces a switching signal when the foot is located near a sensor in the switching area.
