Artificial joints with magnetic attraction or repulsion

An artificial hip joint for implantation into the living body, comprising a substantially hollow-spherical socket portion adapted to be anchored in the pelvis and a substantially spherical head portion adapted to be anchored in the femur, said socket portion and said head portion each including a substantially hollow-spherical permanent magnet, said permanent magnets being polarized so as to repel each other, said head and socket portions being shaped so as to permit a limited movement of said head portion in a direction out of said socket portion.

An artificial knee joint for implanation into the living body, comprising a trough-shaped socket portion adapted to be anchored in the tibia and a substantially cylindrical head portion adapted to be anchored in the femur, the trough shape of said socket portion including a first cylindrical portion receiving said head portion in the straight position of said knee joint, a second cylindrical portion receiving said head portion in the rectangularly bent position of said knee joint, and a third portion connecting said first and second cylindrical portions, the radius of curvature of said first and second cylindrical portions being slightly greater than the radius of curvature of said head portion and the radius of curvature of said third portion being essentially greater than said radius of curvature of said first and second cylindrical portions, each of said head and socket portions including a substantially hollow-spherical permanent magnet, said magnets being polarized so as to attract each other.

An artificial shoulder joint for implantation into the living body, comprising a socket portion adapted to be anchored in the scapula and having a substantially spherical concave surface, and a substantially spherical head portion adapted to be anchored in the humerus, said socket portion including a block-shaped permanent magnet and said head portion including a substantially hollow-spherical permanent magnet, both said permanent magnets being polarized so as to attract each other, the surface of said head portion being substantially greater and having a smaller radius of curvature than said spherical concave surface of said socket portion, wherein the permanent magnet included in said head portion has a thickness increasing towards its upper end.

An artificial joint for implantation into the living body, comprising a head portion and a socket portion each adapted to be fixedly connected to a respective bone, each of said head and socket portions including at least one polarized magnet, said head and socket portions being shaped so as to permit their mutual movement with respect to one another, said magnets being polarized so as to create a repulsion force between said head and socket portions.

An artificial joint for implantation into the living body, comprising a head portion and a socket portion each adapted to be fixedly connected to a respective bone, at least one of said head and socket portions including at least one polarized magnet and the other portion consisting at least partly of one of a ferromagnetic material and a polarized magnet, said head and socket portions being shaped so as to permit their mutual movement with respect to one another, at least one of said polarized magnets having an increasing thickness in a direction corresponding to predetermined movement of said head and socket portions with respect to one another, whereby variable magnetic forces are applied to aid said movement.