JP2002330985A - Supporter for knee - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a supporter for knees which is capable of warming or cooling knee joint sites and can stably fix warming and cooling means for this purpose at the knees on the occasion of exercise. SOLUTION: The supporter for the knees comprises a kneepad patching which covers the kneecap site, a knee wrapping patching which is attached at one end to the kneepad patching and can be freely attachably and detachably engaged at the other end with and from the kneepad patching and a thermal refrigerant bag which is attachably and detachably fixed to the rear surface of the kneepad patching and includes a thermal refrigerant for warming or cooling. A recessed part housing the thermal refrigerant from the rear surface side is formed about at the central part of the knee wrapping patching. The thermal refrigerant bag is formed to a toric shape opened by water tightly housing the thermal refrigerant and thermal refrigerant fixing means inserts the toric section of the toric thermal refrigerant bag to two cord rings fixed at both ends to the circumference of the recessed part of the kneepad patching at the both ends, thereby fixing the thermal refrigerant bag.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a knee joint supporter capable of heating or cooling a knee.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, knee supporters have been used for treatment or alleviation of symptoms such as sprains and bruises at knee joints, and various types are known.

[0003]

A conventional knee supporter is designed to relieve pain and symptoms by tightening the knee support at a knee joint or its upper and lower positions with a constant force. To alleviate these symptoms, a method of keeping warm or a method of cooling may be effective, but it has been difficult to apply the knee supporter to such a method of cooling.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide and use a knee supporter capable of heating or cooling a knee joint. In particular, the present invention makes it possible to effectively heat and cool the knee using the same supporter, and to provide a heating / cooling means for the knee that is stable even during exercise. The present invention provides a knee supporter which can be fixed to a knee.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A knee support of the present invention is a knee support for covering and protecting a knee joint. The knee support has a knee rest member for covering a patella portion and one end attached to the knee rest member. A knee wrap member having the other end engageable with the knee pad cloth, and a thermal refrigerant bag containing a thermal refrigerant liquid for heat retention or cooling detachably attached to the back surface of the knee pad member. It is assumed that.

At the time of mounting, a heated or cooled thermal refrigerant bag is placed on the back side of the knee rest member, and the knee rest member is arranged so as to contact the kneecap of the person or its periphery. By wrapping around the part and engaging the end with the upper surface of the knee rest member, the thermal refrigerant bag can come into contact with the vicinity of the kneecap by pressing from the knee rest member. Since the thermal refrigerant bag can be appropriately cooled or heated in advance and then fixed to the knee by the knee pad member and the knee winding member, the thermal refrigerant bag cools the knee and cures bruises and sprains. Or to warm the knee to relieve joint pain and coldness.

[0007]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In a supporter according to the present invention, a knee wrap member is joined to a side of the knee rest member, and the other end is removably joined to the knee rest member around the knee. And fixed to the knee.

[0008] It is preferable that the knee pad member is provided with a thermal refrigerant bag fixing means by forming a concave portion for accommodating the thermal refrigerant bag from the back side substantially at the center. Such a recess allows the thermal refrigerant bag to be stably attached, and the thermal refrigerant bag can stably contact the vicinity of the kneecap, directly or indirectly through thin clothing, and bend and extend to the knee. Even if there is, it does not fall off.

Further, it is preferable to adopt a shape in which the above-mentioned thermal refrigerant bag has an annular shape by storing the thermal refrigerant liquid in a watertight manner. By adopting an annular shape, it can be stably positioned in the above-mentioned concave portion, and the hole in the center of the annular shape can be stably positioned without being disturbed by the protrusion of the kneecap.

As such a thermal refrigerant bag, one in which a liquid thermal refrigerant is sealed in a heat sealable resin film is used. As the thermal refrigerant bag, for example, a mixture containing a superabsorbent polymer, water, and propylene glycol can be used.
The mixture is sealed in a resin film bag to form a thermal refrigerant bag. The thermal refrigerant bag is attached to the supporter body in a state where the thermal refrigerant bag is pre-heated and kept at about the same or higher temperature as the body temperature or cooled and kept at a low temperature, and heats or cools the knee in this state.

[0011] The thermal refrigerant bag is formed in an annular bag, and the annular portion is shaped so that it can be disposed around the kneecap, that is, the patella. The ring portion may be a closed ring or an open ring, but by making it an open ring, the diameter of the ring portion is
It can be enlarged or reduced according to the size of the kneecap to be mounted, and is convenient for mounting in a recess.

The lap pad is provided with the means for fixing the thermal refrigerant bag as described above. As an example, at least two laces having both ends fixed around the concave portion of the lap pad are provided as the cords. It is preferable to insert and fix the annular portion of the annular thermal refrigerant bag opened in the ring. This form has an advantage that it is easy to fix the ring-shaped thermal refrigerant bag to the fixing means through the cord, and it is easy to remove the bag before and after heating and cooling.

[0013] The knee pad member and the knee wrap portion forming the supporter body can be formed of a soft and flexible material, for example, soft plastic, rubber, knitted fabric, woven fabric, a mixture of these materials, and other materials. It can be composed of materials. Preferably, the knee pad member is made of a cloth piece, and in particular, the knee pad cloth piece can be formed of a relatively thick, so-called waist cloth. The other lap member is further formed of a soft thin cloth piece, and a rubber-knitted elastic band is particularly preferable.

The above-mentioned knee wrapping member is preferably made of a pair of upper and lower cloth pieces, one end of which is fixed to one side of the lapping member and extended. On the other hand, the above-mentioned knee wrapping member may be composed of a total of two pieces of cloth, one end of which is fixed and extended from each side of the knee rest member. It may be formed from three or more cloth pieces,

At the other end of the knee wrapping member or the knee wrapping cloth, a knee lining member is made of a pile of nylon fiber, and is provided with a hook-and-loop fastener which can be removably engaged therewith. It is preferable because the detachable engagement can be easily performed and the joining force is relatively large.

[0016]

1A and 1B are exploded views of a knee supporter 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The supporter includes a supporter body 11 and a heat refrigerant which is exchangeably attached to the supporter body 11. FIG. Bag 1
2, the supporter body includes a substantially rectangular knee pad and a knee winding member attached to the side of the knee pad. This embodiment shows an example in which a cloth is used for the knee pad member and the knee wrap member. The knee-wrap cloth is attached to one lateral side of the knee-pad cloth, and a pair of upper and lower knee-wrap cloths is used.

The knee pad cloth 2 is formed of a relatively thick cloth body, and has a curved upper and lower edge. And a recess protruding from the back surface 22 side to the front surface 21 side is provided around the periphery thereof.
2 can be accommodated. In addition, in the hollow 26,
In this example, it is covered with a thin mesh ground to ensure air permeability.

The knee-wrapped cloth piece 3 is formed by using two cloth pieces 3a and 3b which are rich in elasticity, and one end 33 of each of the knee-wrapped cloth pieces 2 is used.
In this example, it is stitched to one of the left and right ends 23, and the other end 34 is provided with hook-and-loop fasteners 4, 4 which can be engaged with the front side of the knee pad cloth piece 2 so as to surround the knee. It has an appropriate length that can be wound. Thus, the knee pad cloth 2 is positioned at the kneecap, the knee pad cloth 22 is turned around the back of the knee, and the hook-and-loop fastener at the end is engaged with the front side of the knee pad cloth 2 to the knee. Can be attached. Knee pad cloth 2
In response to the hook-and-loop fastener 4, the front side of the knee pad cloth is provided with a hook-and-loop fastener to which the hook-and-loop fastener 4 can be attached and detached.

The above-mentioned knee pad cloth 2 is formed of, for example, a urethane foam resin piece 27 and a nylon pile 28 adhered to both sides thereof (see FIG. 4), and a concave portion 6 is formed by heat compression. . Further, it is formed by being sewn and fixed at two places around the periphery of the concave portion 6 using the rubber cords 51 and 51 in a ring shape, and the heat refrigerant bag 12 fixing means 5 is formed. For the other lap cloth piece 3, an elastic mesh cloth knitted with polyester yarn and raw rubber yarn is used. As described above, the hook-and-loop fastener 4 is attached to the other end of the knee wrap piece 3, and the hook-and-loop fastener can be detachably engaged with the nylon pile 28 on the surface 20 of the lap piece.

As shown in FIG. 2, in this example, the thermal refrigerant bag 12 has an open annular shape. Thermal refrigerant bag 12
Is formed by laminating two annular resin films 19 on the front and back sides and thermocompression bonding only at the peripheral portion, and a liquid heat refrigerant 18 is sealed between the two layers of the film 19 (see FIG. 4). . The ends 14, 15 of the open ring are appropriately tapered.
Normally, the thermal refrigerant bag 12 is formed such that both end portions 14 and 15 appropriately overlap each other.

The heat refrigerant 18 is preferably liquid in the operating temperature range. In particular, it does not solidify even when cooled.
It is made of a material having a certain degree of flexibility. For such a heat refrigerant, a mixture of a water-absorbing pomer, water and ethylene glycol is used.

The knee pad cloth 2 has a back surface 21 substantially at the center.
A concave portion 6 for accommodating the thermal refrigerant bag 12 is formed from the side.
Does not deviate from the recess 6.

Examples of such a thermal refrigerant bag fixing means 5 include:
As shown in FIG. 2, at least two rubber straps 51, both ends of which are fixed at both ends around the concave portion 6, corresponding to the above-mentioned thermal refrigerant bag 12 having an open annular shape, 2 and further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 1B, as another element of the thermal refrigerant bag fixing means, two portions around the periphery of the concave portion 6 around the annular periphery of the thermal refrigerant bag 12. And a pair of curved engaging projections 54 and 55 that engage with the projections.

As shown in FIG. 1B, when the thermal refrigerant bag 12 is mounted, the annular portion of the annular thermal refrigerant bag 12 is inserted through the rubber straps 51 and 52 from the ends 14 and 15 thereof. , And the annular periphery thereof is formed by a pair of curved engagement pieces 54,
55, and is stably positioned.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1 (B), the ends 14 and 15 of the open ring of the thermal refrigerant bag 12 are inserted through the two rubber straps of the thermal refrigerant bag fixing means. The rubber band 51 of the book tightens and engages the wide portion 13 of the annular portion, and the other rubber band 52 tightens and engages the overlapped end portions 14 and 15 to form a pair in the concave portion 6. Between the engagement pieces of
The thermal refrigerant bag 12 can be fixed. Moreover, this fixing method has an advantage that the thermal refrigerant bag 12 can be easily attached and detached.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show a state in which the knee supporter 1 equipped with such a thermal refrigerant bag 12 is attached to the body knee. Thermal refrigerant bag 1
The annular portion is positioned so as to be positioned around the kneecap against the second hole portion 16. Next, the two upper and lower knee wrapping pieces 3 protruding from one side of the lap pad piece 2 are turned to the back of the knee, and the hook-and-loop fastener 4 at the joint at the end is pulled while being appropriately pulled.
The pile 20 is engaged with the pile fabric on the surface 20 of the knee pad 2. As a result, the knee supporter 1 is fixed to the knee, and the upper and lower two knee wrapping pieces 3 are used.
The knee pad cloth piece 2 does not move up and down, and the thermal refrigerant bag 12 is stably arranged around the kneecap.

Prior to use, the thermal refrigerant bag 12 is heated or cooled to an appropriate temperature in advance. The heating of the thermal refrigerant bag is performed with hot water, for example, by dipping or by using a microwave oven. Cooling of the thermal refrigerant bag is performed while being held in a refrigerator.

[0028]

As described above, the knee supporter has a knee pad member for covering the patella portion, a knee wrapping member detachably engageable with the knee pad member, and a heat retaining or cooling member detachably fixed to the back surface of the knee pad cloth. And a heat-refrigerant bag containing a heat-refrigerant liquid, by heating or cooling the heat-refrigerant bag in advance, thereby heating and cooling the knee, effectively alleviating inflammation and pain at the site and It can be done conveniently.

If the knee pad member includes a knee pad cloth piece and the knee wrap member is a knee wrap cloth piece 3 having elasticity, the knee for heating and cooling is relatively soft and can be easily used even during exercise. Supporters can be provided.

If the knee pad member is formed with a concave portion for accommodating the thermal refrigerant bag from the rear side substantially at the center and the thermal refrigerant bag fixing means is provided, the thermal refrigerant bag can be stably positioned at the knee portion, and the movement can be achieved. It does not come off or slip off, and can be used for a long time.

If the above-mentioned heat-refrigerant bag is made of a ring that accommodates the heat-refrigerant body in a water-tight manner, it is particularly easy to attach the knee rest member to the concave portion, and the protrusion of the kneecap can be reduced. Even if there is, it can be stably positioned around the knee.

The above-mentioned heat-refrigerant bag is formed in an open annular shape, and the heat-refrigerant bag fixing means is formed by at least two straps whose both ends are fixed at both ends around the concave portion of the knee rest member. Then, by inserting the annular portion of the annular thermal refrigerant bag into the cord and fixing it, the thermal refrigerant bag can be stably set in the concave portion, and displacement due to motion can be effectively prevented.

The knee winding member may be constituted by a pair of upper and lower cloth pieces extending from one side of the knee pad member, or a cloth piece extending one by one from both sides of the knee pad member. ,
The displacement of the knee rest from the kneecap can be effectively prevented, and the heating and cooling at that site can be effectively continued.

If the other end of the knee wrap member is a hook-and-loop fastener which can be detachably engaged with the pile of nylon fiber of the knee wrap member, there is an advantage that the operation of joining the knee wrap member can be facilitated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a development view of a knee supporter according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 (A) is a front view, and FIG. 1 (B) is a rear view.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a main body and a thermal refrigerant bag of the knee supporter according to the embodiment of the present invention are separated.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a knee supporter according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a knee supporter according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Knee supporter 12 Thermal refrigerant bag 2 Kneeling cloth piece 3 Knee-wrapping cloth piece 4 Surface fastener 5 Thermal refrigerant bag fixing means 6 Recess

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) A61F 7/10 A61F 7/10 330R

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A knee supporter for covering and protecting a knee joint, a knee support member for covering a patella portion, one end attached to the knee support member, and the other end detachably attached to the knee support member. A knee supporter comprising: a knee wrap member that can be engaged; and a thermal refrigerant bag containing a thermal refrigerant liquid for heat retention or cooling, which is detachably fixed to a back surface of the knee rest member. 2. The knee supporter according to claim 1, wherein the knee pad member is a knee pad cloth piece, and the knee wrap member is a knee wrap cloth piece having elasticity. 3. The knee pad according to claim 1, wherein the knee pad member is provided with a thermal refrigerant bag fixing means by forming a concave portion for accommodating the thermal refrigerant bag at a substantially central portion from the back side. Supporters. 4. The thermal refrigerant bag according to claim 1, wherein the thermal refrigerant bag has an annular shape by accommodating the thermal refrigerant in a watertight manner.
4. The supporter for a knee joint according to any one of items 1 to 3, above. 5. The heat-refrigerant bag fixing means comprises at least two straps having both ends fixed to the periphery of a concave portion of the knee pad member, wherein the heat-refrigerant bag has an open annular shape. ,
The knee joint supporter according to claim 3 or 4, wherein an annular portion of an annular thermal refrigerant bag is inserted into and fixed to the strap. 6. The knee joint supporter according to claim 1, wherein the knee wrap member comprises a pair of upper and lower cloth pieces extending from one side of the knee pad member. . 7. The knee joint supporter according to claim 1, wherein the knee winding member is formed of a piece of cloth extending one by one from both sides of the knee pad. 8. The knee according to claim 1, further comprising a hook-and-loop fastener at the other end of the knee winding member, the hook-and-loop fastener being detachably engageable with a pile of nylon fibers of the knee pad member. Supporter for joints.