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US 8,585,624 B2Granted
Dynamic stabilizing knee support system
AssigneeS/S Dynamics LLC
InventorRobert Scott Swanson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A knee brace assembly with a proximal compression system adapted to be secured to the thigh and a distal compression system adapted to be secured to the calf. The brace includes lateral and distal hinge assemblies connecting the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to permit rotational movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system. At least one inelastic strap extends around the proximal compression system and the distal compression system. The strap is leveraged to tighten the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to compress soft tissue in the thigh and calf when the leg is extended, but to release the proximal compression system and the distal compression system when the leg is in flexion.
Claims21
A knee brace assembly comprising:
- a proximal compression system adapted to be secured to a thigh;
- a distal compression system adapted to be secured to a calf;
- a proximal medial strap capture and a proximal lateral strap capture attached to the proximal compression system;
- a medial leverage strut anchor and a lateral leverage strut anchor attached to the proximal compression system;
- a distal medial strap capture and a distal lateral strap capture attached to the distal compression system;
- a distal medial strut anchor and a distal lateral strut anchor attached to the distal compression system;
- a lateral hinge assembly connecting a lateral portion of the proximal compression system and a lateral portion of the distal compression system to permit rotational movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system;
- a medial hinge assembly connecting a medial portion of the proximal compression system and a medial portion of the distal compression system to permit rotational movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system;
- and
- a first inelastic strap extending around the proximal compression system and the distal compression system, wherein the first strap crosses around the proximal compression system with a first segment extending from a medial position into the proximal lateral strap capture and a second segment extending from a lateral position into the proximal medial strap capture, wherein the first segment extends from the proximal lateral strap capture into the lateral leverage strut anchor, wherein the first segment extends from the lateral leverage strut anchor to the distal lateral strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the distal compression system, wherein the second segment extends from the proximal medial strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor, wherein the second segment extends from the medial leverage strut anchor to the distal medial strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the distal compression system;
- a second inelastic strap extending around the distal compression system and the proximal compression system, wherein the second strap crosses around the distal compression system with a third segment extending into the distal medial strap capture and a fourth segment extending into the distal lateral strap capture, wherein the third segment extends from the distal medial strap capture to the lateral leverage strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the proximal compression system, wherein the fourth segment extends from the distal lateral strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the proximal compression system;
- and
- wherein the first strap and the second strap are is leveraged by the distal medial strap capture, distal lateral strap capture, proximal medial strap capture, proximal lateral strap capture, medial leverage strut anchor, lateral leverage strut anchor, distal medial strut anchor, and distal lateral strut anchor to tighten the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to compress soft tissue in the thigh and calf when the leg is extended, but to release the proximal compression system and the distal compression system when the leg is in flexion.
10 more elements
A knee brace assembly comprising:
- a proximal compression system adapted to be secured to a thigh;
- a distal compression system adapted to be secured to a calf;
- a proximal medial strap capture and a proximal lateral strap capture attached to the proximal compression system;
- a medial leverage strut anchor and a lateral leverage strut anchor attached to the proximal compression system;
- a distal medial strap capture and a distal lateral strap capture attached to the distal compression system;
- a distal medial strut anchor and a distal lateral strut anchor attached to the distal compression system;
- a lateral hinge assembly connecting a lateral portion of the proximal compression system and a lateral portion of the distal compression system to permit rotational movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system, wherein the lateral hinge assembly is configured to provide more than one axis of movement when the leg is in flexion, but only provide one axis of rotation when the leg is extended;
- a medial hinge assembly connecting a medial portion of the proximal compression system and a medial portion of the distal compression system to permit rotational movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system, wherein the lateral hinge assembly is configured to provide more than one axis of movement when the leg is in flexion, but only provide one axis of rotation when the leg is extended;
- a first inelastic strap extending around the proximal compression system and the distal compression system, wherein the first strap crosses around the proximal compression system with a first segment extending from a medial position into the proximal lateral strap capture and a second segment extending from a lateral position into the proximal medial strap capture, wherein the first segment extends from the proximal lateral strap capture into the lateral leverage strut anchor, wherein the first segment extends from the lateral leverage strut anchor to the distal lateral strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the distal compression system, wherein the second segment extends from the proximal medial strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor, wherein the second segment extends from the medial leverage strut anchor to the distal medial strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the distal compression system;
- a second inelastic strap extending around the distal compression system and the proximal compression system, wherein the second strap crosses around the distal compression system with a third segment extending into the distal medial strap capture and a fourth segment extending into the distal lateral strap capture, wherein the third segment extends from the distal medial strap capture to the lateral leverage strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the proximal compression system, wherein the fourth segment extends from the distal lateral strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the proximal compression system;
- and
- wherein the first strap and the second strap are leveraged by the distal medial strap capture, distal lateral strap capture, proximal medial strap capture, proximal lateral strap capture, medial leverage strut anchor, lateral leverage strut anchor, distal medial strut anchor, and distal lateral strut anchor to provide stability to the PCL and ACL by tightening the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to compress soft tissue in the thigh and calf when the leg is extended, but to release the proximal compression system and the distal compression system when the leg is in flexion.
9 more elements
A knee brace assembly comprising:
- a proximal compression system adapted to be secured to a thigh;
- a distal compression system adapted to be secured to a calf;
- a proximal medial strap capture and a proximal lateral strap capture attached to the proximal compression system;
- a medial leverage strut anchor and a lateral leverage strut anchor attached to the proximal compression system;
- a distal medial strap capture and a distal lateral strap capture attached to the distal compression system;
- a distal medial strut anchor and a distal lateral strut anchor attached to the distal compression system;
- hinge means for pivotally connecting the proximal compression system and the distal compression system, wherein the hinge means is configured to allow the thigh and calf may move independently to allow the tibia to rotate on the femur when the leg is in flexion, but restricts movement of the proximal compression system with respect to the distal compression system to rotation about an axis when the leg is in extension;
- a first inelastic strap extending around the proximal compression system and the distal compression system, wherein the first strap crosses around the proximal compression system with a first segment extending from a medial position into the proximal lateral strap capture and a second segment extending from a lateral position into the proximal medial strap capture, wherein the first segment extends from the proximal lateral strap capture into the lateral leverage strut anchor, wherein the first segment extends from the lateral leverage strut anchor to the distal lateral strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the distal compression system, wherein the second segment extends from the proximal medial strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor, wherein the second segment extends from the medial leverage strut anchor to the distal medial strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the distal compression system;
- a second inelastic strap extending around the distal compression system and the proximal compression system, wherein the second strap crosses around the distal compression system with a third segment extending into the distal medial strap capture and a fourth segment extending into the distal lateral strap capture, wherein the third segment extends from the distal medial strap capture to the lateral leverage strut anchor and extends around a medial side of the proximal compression system, wherein the fourth segment extends from the distal lateral strap capture to the medial leverage strut anchor and extends around a lateral side of the proximal compression system;
- and
- wherein the first strap and the second strap are leveraged to tighten the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to compress soft tissue in the thigh and calf when the leg is extended, but to release the proximal compression system and the distal compression system when the leg is in flexion.
8 more elements
A knee brace assembly comprising:
- a proximal compression system adapted to be secured to a thigh;
- a distal compression system adapted to be secured to a calf;
- one or more proximal connectors attached to the proximal compression system;
- one or more distal connectors attached to the distal compression system;
- a first inelastic strap routed between the proximal compression system and the distal compression system through at least a portion of the proximal connectors and the distal connectors, wherein the first inelastic strap has a first segment that extends from a medial position to a lateral position and a second segment that extends from a lateral position to a medial position to cross over each other on an anterior side of the knee brace assembly;
- and
- a second inelastic strap routed between the proximal compression system and the distal compression system through the proximal connectors and the distal connectors;
- wherein the second inelastic strap has a third segment that extends from a medial position to a lateral position and a fourth segment that extends from a lateral position to a medial position to cross over each other on an anterior side of the knee brace assembly;
- and
- wherein the proximal connectors and the distal connectors are arranged on the proximal compression system and distal compression system, respectively, to restrict movement of the first strap and the second strap in a manner that tightens the proximal compression system and the distal compression system to compress soft tissue in the thigh and calf when the leg is extended, but releases the proximal compression system and the distal compression system when the leg is in flexion.
7 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.