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Therapeutic Devices
This classification is for therapeutic devices. Most of the categories are self-explanatory, but a few words about "wall plates" would not be amiss. Often, doctors or hospitals would mount equipment on the wall. It would stay in one place, and wouldn't take up precious floor space. This was especially true for devices that depended on electricity: power cords weren't all that good, and the wall socket wasn't even invented until the 1920's. It made sense to wire things once and for all. Some of them were quite versatile - they would have power for examination lamps, for wire cautery loops, or for direct electrical stimulation of the patient's nerves and muscles. Many devices were large, wall-mounted, and wired in place. But as the twentieth century wore on, they got smaller, power cords got plugs, and there were sockets to plug into. Eventually portable devices were made, with the same functions as wall-mounted devices of an earlier day. We decided to call the whole family "wall plates" even though some rolled on wheels, and others were picked up by handles. We have hundreds of pacemakers. There's no way to discuss them all. Right now, our web site discusses only the very first pacemakers.
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