Reinforced plastics artificial limb component and method for making same
AssigneeChas. A. Blatchford & Sons Limited
InventorsEric Brown, Neil L. Hancox
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An artificial limb component having one portion with an open channel cross-section and method for making the component in which woven sheets of carbon fibre reinforced plastics material in prepreg form are laid up on an inflatable expandable moulded mandrel, which is then placed in a lower mould half, a corresponding upper mould half being placed on the lower half to complete the mould. Air pressure is applied via pipe to the interior of the mandrel which is expanded within the mould halves to compress the prepreg sheets to the required shape.
Claims11
A lightweight, load-bearing shin component for an artificial leg, the component comprising an elongate upper portion of open channel shape in cross section, an elongate lower portion of closed tubular cross section, and an intermediate hollow portion joining the upper portion to the lower portion, the component being molded from a plurality of sheets of plastics material, at least two of the sheets having reinforcement fibers, the reinforcement fibers of at least one of the said at least two sheets running at a predetermined non-zero angle to reinforcement fibers of at least one other of the said at least two sheets said intermediate hollow portion being a transition portion between two portions of said component both having different configurations, in cross-section, from each other.
A method of molding a lightweight, load-bearing shin component for an artificial limb, the method comprising the steps of providing a plurality of sheets of plastics material, at least two of the sheets having reinforcement fibers, the reinforcement fibers of at least one of the said at least two sheets running at a predetermined angle to reinforcement fibers of at least one other of the said at least two sheets, placing the sheets between an expandable internal mandrel and a rigid external mold, and expanding the mandrel to compress the sheets between the mandrel and the mold, the mold including three differently shaped portions which cause the component to be formed with an elongated upper portion of open channel shape in cross section, an elongate lower portion of closed tubular cross section, and an intermediate hollow portion joining the upper portion to the lower portion where said component is to have an open channel shape, the open side being achieved by disposing said sheets on three sides of said mandrel only.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.