Many products and materials being used in operating rooms besides medical electrical equipment are designed by considering certain hygiene criteria. All equipment from operating table to lamps, electrical equipped devices to surgery tools, sockets to pendants are manufactured in accordance with these criteria and related standards. Operating Theatre Control Panels are used as a compact product containing many control and visual featured equipment required to be available in the Operating Theatre. Operating Theatre Control Panels are contemporary and reliable products designed for providing the most possible comfortable environment both for the patient and the operation team and maintaining optimal working conditions required in the Operating Theatre.

Operating Theatre Control Panels from Past to Present

Operating Theatre Control Panels have served medical and technical personnel for long years, always improved itself regarding features contained and confronted us with many designs. Increasing requirements, new standards, medical and technical personnel’s demand of working under better conditions, realizing operation of patients at more hygienic and comfortable medical areas, electrical hardware’s to support faster and reliable operations and daily changing requirements sustain development of Operating Theatre Control Panels. Operating Theatre Control Panels started to be used in 90s and drawing attention with their stainless steel front surface designs, are confronting us with many different solutions today in terms of their front surfaces. Many alternatives such as stainless steel, fiber alloy surfaces, membrane surfaces, special glass alloys, polycarbon materials, completely touch screen surfaces are being used in design of Operating Theatre Control Panels. The most important issue to be considered here is to prefer surfaces complying with hygiene standards.

Despite old generation Operating Theatre Control panels did not have very successful structures in terms of hygiene, they had characteristics enough for fulfilling functional needs of personnel with terms of those years.

With the technology improved at the beginning of 2000s, Membrane Surface Operating Theatre Control Panels became more popular and started to be used with stainless steel surfaces. Then, Membrane designs replaced with Aluminium alloy surfaces however these three different designs are still being used.

Very rapidly improving screen technology has indicated itself in many areas such as mobile phones and televisions, and had an important role in Operating Theatre Control Panels. At the latest point, state-of-art touch screens are providing privileges to their users in Operating Theatre Control Panels.

Improved Functional Features in Operating Theatre Control Panels

All electrical controls can be performed manually through the Operating Theatre Control Panels. Another feature is to ability to perform all information exchange required for the air conditioning automation.

As indicated above, Operating Theatre Control Panels have a structure containing many control and visual featured equipment those are required to be available in the Operating Theatre.

Some of these features;

• General illumination control
• Operation lamp control
• Clock and Chronometer Feature
• Music Broadcast System
• Telephone
• Heat, humidity indicator
• Room pressure difference indicator
• HEPA filter contamination indicator
• Heater control
• Medical gas alarm panel

Besides these features, considering today’s rapidly improving technological improvements, visual concepts and easy usage, structure and features of Operating Theatre Control Panels are changing every day and provide new generation solutions. When Doctor, medical personnel and manager demands are added to these, Operating Theatre Control Panels are taking their places in hospitals with endless features.

Some of these features;

• PC based operating systems
• Large screen touch panels (21,5″)
• RS-485, Modbus master/slave and TCP/IP communication infrastructure
• SCADA Integration
• Internet access
• Movement Sensors
• IP Telephone
• PACS monitoring feature through Web
• Feature of listening MP3 music via USB
• Reading PDF files via USB
• Feature of video talk through web via camera
• Insulated Power System Alarm indicator

Conclusion

Today, Operating Theatre Control Panel with many designs and structures are being manufactured to fulfil demands of users. User and environment friendly Operating Theatre Control Panels responding electrical and mechanical requirements as well as visual designs are gaining importance are seem to sustain their improvement with their innovative aspects.