JP2019088602A - Lower extremity orthosis and assistance handle body for lower extremity orthosis - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a lower extremity orthosis that assists walking by a lower limb in the paralysis while having an extremely simple and lightweight configuration, and can easily perform the adjustment of a direction and a distance of reaching to stretch the lower limb in the swing phase in one walking cycle, and provide an assistance handle body for the lower extremity orthosis.SOLUTION: A lower extremity orthosis includes a shoe 2 worn in the lower limb of a wearing subject, a thigh support body 3 being wound on a thigh and held, a shin support body 4 being wound on a shin and held, a strut body 5 mounted on both sides of left and right of these support bodies 3, 4 and the shoe 2 and supporting the support of body weight by the lower limb, and an assistance handle body 6 mounted at the outside of the strut body 5B positioned at the outside of the thigh. This assistance handle body 6 includes a mounting part 7 extended so as to conform to the strut body 5A, and a gripper hand part 8 being bent in the substantially L-shape and formed to this mounting part 7.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a leg brace and an assist handle body for a leg brace, which are used for rehabilitation of a patient who developed paralysis of the leg due to a disorder of the brain and central nerve.

  FIG. 7 shows the configuration of a conventional lower extremity brace 90 shown in Patent Document 1. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, the lower limb orthosis 90 includes a thigh support portion 91, an under knee front support portion 92, a lower leg back support portion 93, a buttock portion 94, and a support 95. In addition, the post 95 is provided with a knee joint 96 which enables bending and extension of the knee.

  By attaching the lower limb brace 90 to the patient's foot, it is possible to perform rehabilitation of the patient who has the paralysis of the lower limb to recover the muscle strength of the lower limb, and to provide training that enables walking with his / her lower limb. That is, by assisting the muscle activity of the lower leg in one walking cycle using the lower leg brace 90, it is performed to obtain ideal muscle activity.

  FIG. 8 is a view showing an example in which an assist loop is formed in the leg brace. That is, support rods 95 are formed on the left and right sides of the thigh support portion 91, and aid loops 97 are provided on the left and right sides of the thigh support portion 91 for enabling assistance by the assistant to the support 95 of the leg brace 90. By forming it so as to cross between the columns 95, the helper can grasp the assistance loop 97 by its arm 98 and lift the front of the thigh or the like to assist the patient's walking swing.

  FIG. 9 shows an example of forming an assistance bar that can be grasped by an assistant. That is, by providing an annular synthetic resin aid bar 99 at the upper end of the thigh outer side support column 95 of the lower limb brace 90, the assistant grasps the aid bar 99 and lifts the outer side of the thigh. As a result, it becomes possible to assist the patient's walking start.

JP, 2014-113312, A

  However, when the conventional assistance loop 97 and the assistance bar 99 are used for swinging, the swinging time can be extended compared to the non-paralyzed side in swinging until the heel comes in contact with the ground in the early stage of the swinging. However, it is difficult to orient the hip joint during the swing phase from the swing phase to the heel phase, and there is a problem that the toes of the paralyzed lower limbs are easily turned to the outer rotation position.

  That is, in the assistance loop 97, it is easy to assist the forward swing of the lower leg in the swing phase of one walking cycle with assistance, but the toe of the foot is in order to position the portion of the hand on the front of the thigh It was difficult to assist in control of the body center of gravity in the middle of the stance phase in which the heel of the other leg leaves the ground from the grounded load response phase.

  On the other hand, the assistance bar 99 is attached to the upper end of the side surface of the support column 95, which facilitates the control of the center of gravity in the stance phase, but in assistance in the swing phase, distortion is caused by applying a large force to the synthetic resin. It was a problem and I could not apply enough power. In addition, when this assistance bar 99 is formed with the metal provided with sufficient rigidity, there also existed a problem of becoming a hindrance of walk by the weight of the assistance bar 99 itself besides the increase in manufacturing cost.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described matters, and while assisting in walking with a paralyzed lower limb while having a very simple and lightweight structure, extends the lower limb during the swing phase in one walking cycle. An object of the present invention is to provide a leg brace that can easily adjust the direction and distance of reaching, and an assist handle for the leg brace.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the first invention is a shoe worn on the lower limb to be worn, a thigh support body wound around a thigh, a shin support body wound around a shin, and these support bodies and And a support handle attached to the left and right sides of the shoe to support weight support by the lower leg, and an assist handle attached to the outside of the support, the assist handle extending along the support There is provided a leg brace, comprising: a mounting portion; and a grip portion formed by bending the mounting portion in a substantially L shape. (Claim 1)

  Attach the shoes to the leg of the user who has paralyzed the lower limbs, attach the shin support to the calf and the thigh support to the thigh, and attach the support to the left and right sides of the thigh by the thigh support. It is possible to support the support body in a state where the support body is placed along the left and right sides of the calf by the shin support body and the support body is placed along the left and right sides of the ankle part by the shoes. Therefore, even if the user has a leg weakness and strength is reduced, the weight can be supported by the leg by his own will, and self-walking using the leg can be supported.

  Furthermore, it is possible for an assistant to hold the grip to assist the patient's walking. At this time, the direction of the lower leg and the distance to reach can be adjusted without difficulty by the aid handle body bent in a substantially L shape. That is, at the time of swinging out of one walking cycle, it is possible to swing out with the same cycle and time as the non-paralyzed side by assistance using the assist handle body, and the orientation of the hip joint does not become excessive external rotation even in the swing phase It is easy to help.

  The above-mentioned shin support portion and thigh support body are formed in a band form of synthetic bark, leather, cloth or other sheet body and wound around the shin or thigh by means of surface fasteners, hooks, buttons, shoelaces, belts, etc. Preferably, it is formed so as to be able to hold the winding state, optimally comprising a fastening belt formed on the outer periphery of the support body body to be wound around the thigh or shin and easily provided detachably by means of a surface fastener. As a result, it is possible to reduce the time taken to attach the lower extremity brace and to perform the reliable attachment. In addition, form a non-woven fabric, sponge, cotton, a raised part, etc., as a cushioning material on the inside of the shin support body and the thigh support body, so that pain does not occur in the contact area of the shin, calf and thigh in the wearing state. be able to.

  The assisting handle body is a substantially L-shaped frame made of metal having sufficient rigidity such as aluminum, magnesium, titanium, steel, stainless steel, etc., and a buffer material such as sponge, synthetic resin, rubber is wound as a grip of the assistant. It is preferable to have a grip portion, whereby simplification and weight reduction can be achieved with the minimum necessary configuration. Further, the attachment portion of the assisting handle body may be, for example, a biz stop using screw holes provided at the upper and lower sides, whereby it can be made detachable from the leg orthosis main body.

  The column body includes a knee joint that enables bending and extension of the knee at a position corresponding to the knee, and the knee joint is biased in a direction to extend the knee at the upper end of the column below the knee, An urging switching operation piece for switching the urging state to exert an urging force on bending and stretching of the knee by connecting a post on the knee to the urging coupling body, and the urging coupling body by the urging switching operation piece The knee provided on the column body by providing the column body on the knee and the pivoting support portion for supporting the column body below the knee so that the column body on the knee can freely turn in the bending and extension direction It is possible to bend and stretch the knee by the joint.

  In the state where the biasing switching operation piece is switched to the biasing state, the biasing coupling body is coupled to the strut body on the knee, so the strut body on the knee is attached to the strut body below the knee in the knee extension direction. It is configured to be bendable and extensible in a biased state. Therefore, even in a state where power is not applied to the lower limbs as a result of paralysis, the biasing force applied to the biasing connector can support the knee in a direction to stretch, and the user carries the weight by his / her lower limbs Is possible. In addition, when the user wants to bend the knee in response to the urging force applied to the urging coupling body, it can be bent.

  Furthermore, the user who has recovered enough to support the weight of the user in the lower limbs can perform knee flexion and extension with his or her strength by switching the bias switching operation piece to the biased release state. Being able to do efficient rehabilitation for training more natural gait.

  The biasing connection body may have various configurations, for example, a flat plate rotatably connected to a column below the knee, and a stepped portion which is pressed in the direction of extension of the knee by the biasing force of a spring; The bias switching operation piece slidably formed in the vertical direction with respect to the support on the knee is provided with a slit that can not rotate with respect to the support on the knee by engagement. Can provide sufficient strength while being simple. Preferably, the spring is provided with a knee support adjusting mechanism for adjusting the biasing force by pressing the spring by screwing, so that walking on its own can be gradually achieved according to the degree of recovery.

  The support includes an ankle joint which can be tilted while urging the ankle back and forth in a predetermined range at a position corresponding to the ankle, and this ankle joint tilts the support under the ankle against the support over the ankle By providing the tilting support portion freely supported and the elastic bodies before and after exerting biasing force on tilting in the front-rear direction with respect to the support body below the ankle, sufficient force can be applied to the ankle Even for a user who can not do it, since it is possible to control the anteroposterior line system in the ankle, it is possible to support self-walking.

  Since the elastic bodies provided in the front and back can separately set the biasing force applied to the forward tilting and the backward tilting, it is possible to make an optimum adjustment for supporting walking. The elastic body is preferably a spring, and is further preferably provided with an ankle support adjusting mechanism for adjusting the biasing force by pressing the spring by screwing.

  The second invention is attached to the outer support of the lower limb brace supporting self-walking when the leg muscle strength is lowered by mounting the support along the side of the lower leg to be mounted, and along the support According to the present invention, there is provided an assistance handle body for a lower limb brace characterized by comprising an attachment portion which is extendedly connected and a grip portion which is bent in a substantially L shape with respect to the attachment portion.

  The assistant handle body is easily attached to the outer column body of the lower limb orthosis which brings the column body along the side of the lower leg, and the assistant can grasp the grip to assist the patient in walking. At this time, the direction of the lower leg and the distance to reach can be adjusted without difficulty by the aid handle body bent in a substantially L shape. That is, at the time of swinging out of one walking cycle, it is possible to swing out with the same cycle and time as the non-paralyzed side by assistance using the assist handle body, and the orientation of the hip joint does not become excessive external rotation even in the swing phase It is easy to help.

  In the embodiment to be described later, the grip portion of the assisting handle body is formed in a substantially L shape by being bent at approximately 90 ° with respect to the mounting portion, but the present invention The angle of bending is not limited to about 90 °. That is, the frame may be formed at an obtuse angle (e.g., 130 to 140) or an acute angle more than 90 [deg.].

  As described above, by attaching the leg brace of the present invention to the user's leg, it is possible to perform rehabilitation of independent walking using the paralyzed leg, and the assistant holds the grip of the assisting handle body. It is possible to assist the user's walking, and to prevent the lower extremity from being in the external rotation position, thereby assisting the user to perform the independent walking.

It is a front view which shows the structure of the leg orthosis of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the assistance handle body of the said leg orthosis. It is a figure explaining the connection of the assistance handle body with respect to the said leg brace. It is a figure explaining composition and operation of a knee joint of the above-mentioned leg brace. It is a figure explaining the operation | movement in another state of the said knee joint. It is a figure explaining the structure and operation | movement of the ankle joint of the said leg brace. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the conventional leg orthosis. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the conventional leg orthosis. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the conventional leg orthosis.

  Hereinafter, the configuration of the leg brace 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 1, the lower limb orthosis 1 comprises a shoe 2 worn on the lower limb to be attached, a thigh support body 3 wound around a thigh, a shin support body 4 wound around a shin, and these support bodies 3 , 4 and a support body 5 (5A, 5B) attached to the left and right sides of the shoe 2 to support weight support by the lower leg, and an assist handle body 6 attached to the outside of the support body 5B located outside the thigh. Prepare.

  Each of the supports 5A and 5B has a knee joint 10 at a position corresponding to a knee and an ankle hand 11 at a position corresponding to an ankle. In the following description, in order to clarify the position, the support 5 on the knee above the knee joint 10 is the support 5 H, and the support 5 from the knee joint 10 to the ankle joint 11 is the support 5 M, The support 5 below the ankle joint 11 is referred to as a support 5L. Each of the shoe 2, the thigh support 3 and the shin support 4 includes belts 12, 13 and 14 which can be detached in a state in which each part is tightened by a surface fastener.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the assisting handle body 6 is provided with an attaching portion 7 extending along the column body 5 </ b> A, and a grip formed by bending the attaching portion 7 in a substantially L shape. And 8 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the mounting portion 7 has a width substantially equal to that of the support body 5 and can form two biz holes 16 according to the two screw holes 15 provided in the support body 5, and sufficient As it is made of a steel material having a length for coupling by force and is bent in a substantially L shape, the grip portion 8 can be extended in a substantially horizontal direction by being assembled to the support body 5 with the screw 17 it can. In addition, since the framework of the assisting handle body 6 is a frame made of substantially L-shaped steel or the like, the weight can be reduced while the force in the front-rear direction, the vertical direction, and the rotational direction is easily applied to the support 5 It can be transmitted, adjustment of the direction and distance of one walking cycle can be performed, and both the external rotation position and the internal rotation position can be prevented.

  Further, since the assisting handle body 6 can be easily attached to the column body 5 by the two screws 17, the column body 5 is present even in the general leg brace. By attaching easily, assistance by a helper can be performed.

  The grip portion 8 of the assisting handle body 6 is formed in a substantially L-shape by being bent at approximately 90 ° with respect to the attachment portion 7, but the present invention makes the angle at which the frame is bent approximately 90 It is not limited to °. That is, the frame may be formed at an obtuse angle (e.g., 130 to 140) or an acute angle more than 90 [deg.].

  As shown in FIG. 5, the knee joint 10 is biased in the direction to extend the knee at the upper end of the column 5M below the knee, and the bridge 5H on the knee. A biasing switching operation piece 19 for switching to a biasing state in which the biasing force is applied to bending and stretching of the knee by connecting to 18 and the connection with the biasing coupling body 18 being released by the biasing switching operation piece 19 In the released state, the support body 5H on the knee and the rotation support portion 20 for supporting the support body 5M below the knee so as to be rotatable in the bending and extending directions are provided.

  The biasing connection body 18 is a flat plate made of metal having sufficient strength such as stainless steel rotatably connected at the rotation support portion 20 with respect to the column body 5M. The support is achieved by engagement of the lower end of the biasing switching operation piece 19 formed of a step-like portion 18A pressed in the extension direction and a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross-section formed slidably in the vertical direction with respect to the support 5H. And a slit 18B that can not rotate with respect to the body 5H. Reference numeral 22 denotes a groove for housing the spring 21, 23 is an urging tip provided at the tip of the spring 21 and abutted against the step 18A, and 24 is a screw-in operation to press the other end of the spring 21 to adjust the knee support It is a stress adjustment screw that becomes a mechanism.

  In the biased state shown in FIG. 4, it comprises a spherical projection 25 biased in a projecting direction by the support 5 H, and a recess 26 provided at a position corresponding to the projection 25. When the biasing switching operation piece 19 is lowered, the lower end of the biasing switching operation piece 19 engages with the slit 18B. Further, since the projection 25 abuts on the upper end of the biasing switching operation piece 19, the biasing switching operation piece 19 is configured not to be easily moved upward.

  When trying to rotate the column body 5H about the rotary support 20 with respect to the support 5M in the biased state, it is necessary to rotate the biasing connector 18 accordingly. Therefore, it is necessary to apply force by resisting the biasing force of the spring 21 in order to turn the support 5H. That is, since the knee of the user wearing the lower extremity brace 1 is biased in the extension direction by the biasing force of the spring 21, it is possible to support the user who has the leg muscle weakness even walking independently.

  Further, by adjusting the biasing force of the spring 21 using the knee support adjusting mechanism 24, it is possible to adjust the force for supporting the bending and stretching of the knee. The distal end portion of the spring 21 can exert an urging force on the step portion 18A via the urging tip 22 so that a sufficient urging force can be stably exerted on the urging coupling body 18.

  On the other hand, the biasing switching operation piece 19 can be held in the biasing releasing state by bringing the recess 26 into alignment with the projection 26 in the biasing releasing state shown in FIG. 5. In this biasing releasing state, the biasing switching operation Since the piece 19 can be separated from the biasing connector 18, the column 5H can be rotatably supported on the column 5M at the knee joint 10.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the ankle joint 11 has a tilting support portion 27 for supporting the support 5L below the ankle in a freely tiltable manner with respect to the support 5M above the ankle, and the front-back direction with respect to the support 5L below the ankle. It has elastic bodies 28F and 28R before and after exerting biasing force on tilting. The elastic bodies 28F and 28R are preferably springs, and their tip end portions abut on the upper end of the column 5L via the contact pieces 29, respectively. Further, each elastic body 28F, 28R is provided with an ankle support adjusting mechanism 30 for adjusting the biasing force by screwing.

  The ankle joint 11 configured as described above can bias the ankle angle to a predetermined angle with appropriate strength. Therefore, even a user who does not have force on the ankle can stand relatively easily and walk. The ankle support adjustment mechanism 30 can also be used to adjust the ankle angle and biasing force.

  By using the lower limb orthosis 1 configured as described above, a user who is paralyzed in the lower limbs can stand on his own even if he or she can not sufficiently apply his or her muscle strength. In addition, when there is an assistant, it is possible to hold the assistant handle body and perform assistance to move the leg of the user along the leg brace 1 in the vertical and horizontal directions. In addition, the grip portion 8 bent in a substantially L shape can easily assist in forcing the external rotation of the foot. In addition, since an assistance handle body is a very simple structure, it can prevent that the leg brace 1 becomes heavy.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lower leg orthosis 2 Shoes 3 Thigh support portion 4 Leg support portion 5 Column 6 Assistive handle 7 Mounting portion 8 Grip hand portion 10 Knee joint 11 Ankle joint 18 Bias connection body 19 Bias switching operation piece 20 Rotation support portion 27 Tilting support 28F, 28R elastic body

Claims (2)

Shoes to put on the lower limbs to be worn,
A thigh support body that is wound around and held on the thigh,
A shin support body that is wound around the shin and held,
These support bodies and a post body attached to the left and right sides of the shoe to support weight support by the lower limbs,
And an assist handle attached to the outside of the support;
The assisting handle body extends along the support body, and
A lower-limb orthosis comprising a grip portion formed by being bent in a substantially L-shape with respect to the mounting portion. Attached to the outer support of the lower limb brace that supports self-walking when the leg muscle strength declines by mounting the support along the side of the target lower leg.
An attachment portion extending along the column body;
An assistant handle body for a lower limb orthosis, comprising: a grip portion bent in a substantially L shape with respect to the attachment portion.