Actuated prosthesis for amputees
AssigneeVicthom Human Bionics Inc.
InventorsStephane Bedard, Pierre Olivier Roy
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The actuated leg prosthesis comprises a knee member, a socket connector provided over the knee member, an elongated trans-tibial member having a bottom end under which is connected an artificial foot, and a linear actuator. A first pivot assembly allows to operatively connect the trans-tibial member to the knee member. A second pivot assembly allows to operatively connect an upper end of the actuator to the knee member. A third pivot assembly allows to operatively connect a bottom end of the actuator to the bottom end of the trans-tibial member. The prosthesis can be provided as either a front actuator configuration or a rear actuator configuration.
Claims22
An actuated leg prosthesis for replacement of a leg of an above knee amputee, the prosthesis comprising:
- a knee member;
- a socket connector assembly for connecting a socket to said knee member;
- a trans-tibial member having opposite top and bottom ends spaced apart along a main longitudinal axis;
- a connector assembly for connecting an artificial foot to said bottom end of said trans-tibial member;
- a first pivot assembly for operatively connecting said top end of said trans-tibial member to said knee member to permit relative rotation between said knee member and said trans-tibial member about a first pivot axis defined by said pivot assembly;
- and
- a linear actuator comprising a rotary motor, a screw rotatable by said rotary motor and a follower displaceable along said screw upon rotation thereof by said rotary motor, said rotary motor being pivotally connected to said trans-tibial member via a second pivot assembly defining a second pivot axis and said follower being pivotally connected to said knee member at a location spaced from said first pivot assembly and thereby defining a third pivot axis,
- wherein said first pivot axis is a prosthetic knee joint, wherein during locomotion, rotation of said rotary motor rotates said screw in or out of said follower thereby causing a corresponding rotation of said knee member relative to said trans-tibial member about said first pivot axis and wherein relative rotation between said knee member and said trans-tibial member is about said first pivot axis only, relative rotation between said linear actuator and said trans-tibial member is about said second pivot axis only, and relative rotation between said linear actuator and said knee member is about said third pivot axis only.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.