Electrically driven artificial arm

In a prosthesis for a person with an amputation above the elbow, said prosthesis including an upper arm socket which is adapted to be attched to the stump or shoulder portion of the person's torso and an elbow and forearm section attached to said upper arm socket, an improved connection means between the upper arm socket and the elbow section which provides humeral rotation, said improved connection means comprising:

• an annular fitting which is adapted to be attached to the end of the upper arm socket, said annular fitting having a cylindrical end portion which extends away from the upper arm socket and which as a substantially flat, circular end face, said cylindrical end portion being substantially coaxial with the longitudinal axis of the upper arm socket, said cylindrical end portion further having a circumferencial flange or ring adjacent to the flat, circular end face thereof;
• providing the elbow section with a substantially flat upper end;
• an annular friction band having an annular recess formed around the inside surface at one end portion thereof so that the annular recess is adapted to engage the circumferential flange on said annular fitting, with the other end portion of the friction band adapted for attachment to the upper end of the elbow section to hold the flat upper end of the elbow section in parallel closely spaced relationship with the flat, circular end of the annular fitting;
• and
• an adjustable tension band adapted to encircle the friction band and to provide adjustable compression of the friction band,
• whereby the ease with which the elbow section can be rotated relative to the upper arm socket can be adjusted incrementally between essentially free rotation and various degrees of restrained rotation by adjusting the tension band to increase or decrease the compression exerted by the tension band on the friction band.

In a prosthesis for a person with a amputation above the elbow, said prosthesis including an upper arm socket which is adapted to be attached to the stump or shoulder portion of the person's torso, an elbow member attached to the upper arm socket and a forearm member hingedly attached to the elbow member, an improvement comprising means for locking the forearm member in place with respect to the elbow member, said improvement comprising:

• a locking pin member mounted within a hollow cavity in the elbow member, with an opening in the elbow member through which the locking pin is adapted to move;
• means for moving the locking pin back and forth in the opening in the elbow member between an extended position in which the end of the locking pin extends outwardly from said opening in the elbow member and a retracted position in which the end of the locking pin is retracted so as to not extend outwardly from said opening;
• said forearm member having an enclosed hollow end portion which is pivotally attached to the elbow member, with an opening being provided in said hollow end portion of the forearm so that the elbow member is received within the hollow end portion of the forearm member when the forearm member is pivoted about its attachment to the elbow member, said forearm member also having attached firmly to an inside surface of the hollow end portion thereof a curved, elongate, lock member which has a plurality of detent holes equally spaced along the length thereof, said lock member being positioned along said inside surface so that as the forearm member pivots about its attachment to the elbow member, the curved, elongate, lock member moves in an arc such that the detent holes therein move successively back and forth directly beneath the opening in the elbow member through which the locking pin is adapted to move,whereby the forearm member can be locked in place with respect to the elbow member at various positions in the pivotal movement of the forearm member relative to the elbow member by activating the lock pin to extend from the opening in the elbow member to engage one of the detent holes in the lock member.

In a prosthesis for a person with an amputation above the wrist, said prosthesis including a forearm member and a hook or simulated hand, an improved means simulating a wrist, said improved means comprising:

• a substantially cylindrical attachment member having external threads at one end thereof, with the other end of the attachment member being adapted to be secured to the forward end of the forearm member;
• an insert member comprising a cylindrical body which is open at one end and has an end cap at the other end thereof, said cylindrical body having a raised band circumscribing the central portion thereof, with the diameter of the raised band being of such size that the insert member with the raised band is adapted to fit coaxially within the one end of the cylindrical attachment member, said end cap having a bore therethrough which is coaxial with the cylindrical body of the insert member and which is adapted to receive attachment means for a hook or simulated hand for attachment to said cap member;
• an elastomeric o-ring adapted to fit circumferentially around the cylindrical body of the insert member between the one end of the cylindrical body and the raised band on the cylindrical body;
• abutment means in the interior of the cylindrical attachment member, said abutment means adapted to fit over the cylindrical body of the insert member and to abut the o-ring when said one end of the insert member is fit within the cylindrical attachment member such that the o-ring is constrained between the raised band on the cylindrical body and the abutment means as the insert member is moved toward the abutment means;
• and
• a screw ring adapted to be threaded on the external threads of the cylindrical attachment member and to advance the insert member toward the abutment means within the cylindrical attachment member as the scew ring is advanced on the threads of the cylindrical attachment member, thereby compressing the o-ring between the abutment member, the raised ring, the cylindrical body of the insert member, and the interior surface of the cylindrical attachment member to progressively inhibit rotational movement of the insert member relative to the attachment member as the screw ring is advanced on the threads of the cylindrical attachment member.