Hinge assembly for an orthopedic knee brace and knee brace incorporating the hinge assembly

A hinge assembly for an orthopedic knee brace having upper and lower support arms, said hinge assembly comprising:

• a hinge support member;
• a first gear member pivotally supported relative to said hinge support member and having gear teeth on a portion thereof, said first gear member coupled for rotation with said upper support arm and having an articulation surface adjacent a surface of said upper support arm;
• and
• a second gear member pivotally supported relative to said hinge support member and having gear teeth mating with said gear teeth of said first gear member, said second gear member coupled for rotation with said lower support arm and having an articulation surface adjacent a surface of said lower support arm;
• said articulation surfaces of said first and second gear members being configured to allow a predetermined degree of medial/lateral articulation of said upper and lower support arms while maintaining relative coplanarity of said first and second gear members.

An orthopedic knee brace, comprising:

• an upper leg cuff mountable above the knee of a wearer;
• a lower leg cuff mountable below the knee of the wearer,
• an upper support arm extending from said upper leg cuff;
• a lower support arm extending from said lower leg cuff;
• and
• a hinge assembly disposed between said upper and lower leg cuffs, said hinge assembly comprising a first gear member having gear teeth on a portion thereof, said first gear member coupled for rotation with said upper support arm and having an articulation surface communicating with a corresponding surface of said upper support arm, and a second gear member having gear teeth intermeshing with said gear teeth of said first gear member, said second gear member coupled for rotation with said lower support arm and having an articulation surface communicating with a corresponding surface of said lower support arm;
• wherein said knee brace is configured to allow a predetermined degree of medial/lateral articulation of said upper and lower support arms while maintaining relative coplanarity of said first and second gear members.

A hinge assembly for an orthopedic knee brace having upper and lower support arms, said hinge assembly comprising:

• a hinge support;
• a first gear member pivotally connected to said hinge support, said first gear member coupled for rotation with said upper support arm and having an articulation surface adapted to communicate with a surface of said upper support arm;
• and
• a second gear member pivotally connected to said hinge support, said second gear member coupled for rotation with said lower support arm and having an articulation surface adapted to communicate with a surface of said lower support arm,
• wherein said hinge assembly is configured to allow a predetermined amount of articulation of said upper and lower support arms in a plane substantially perpendicular to a plane of rotation of said first and second gear members.