KR102255057B1 - Anterior cruciate ligament brace - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an anterior cruciate ligament orthosis, and wraps around the knee of a wearer and absorbs shock; An upper pad spaced apart from the upper part of the buffer pad and having a fixing means so as to be fixed to the wearer's thigh; A lower pad provided spaced apart from the lower part of the buffer pad and having a fixing means so as to be fixed to the lower leg of the wearer; A pair of upper supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the upper pad, and supporting both sides of the thigh portion; A pair of lower supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the lower pad, and supporting both sides of the lower leg; And a control unit provided on both sides of the buffer pad to connect the upper support and the lower support, and to control a degree of bending of the knee in response to a movement state of the wearer, wherein the control unit includes a set angle of the wearer's knee. An angle adjuster configured to adjust a bending angle so as to be bent so as to define a rotation range of the upper support and the lower support around the control unit; A pressure sensor that measures the pressure applied to the upper support and lower support that moves within a rotation range to determine the movement state of the wearer; And a communication module that calculates the information of the angle adjuster and the pressure sensor and transmits the calculated information to the wearer's mobile so that the wearer can check the movement state and recovery state in real time. Anterior cruciate ligament orthosis designed to help prevent secondary injury or rehabilitation of patients who have undergone surgical wound treatment, the disabled, the elderly, especially patients due to rupture or injuries of the anterior cruciate ligament where it is difficult to move the knee. will be.

Description

Anterior cruciate ligament brace {ANTERIOR CRUCIATE LIGAMENT BRACE}

The present invention relates to an anterior cruciate ligament orthosis, and more specifically, rehabilitation of patients who have undergone knee joint surgery or orthopedic wound treatment, the disabled, the elderly, especially patients due to rupture or injury of the anterior cruciate ligament, which is difficult to move the knee. It relates to an anterior cruciate ligament brace configured to help prevent or secondary injuries.

The knee of the human body is the largest joint and consists of three bones (femur, tibia, patella) and cartilage that acts as a cushion between the bones and ligaments and muscles around it. You have to endure it.

These knees are an important part of the body's most active exercise, and many bad knee symptoms appear due to excessive exercise or various injuries, aging, and diseases. Accordingly, many types of protectors and braces are used for prevention and treatment purposes. It is used for rehabilitation treatment due to cruciate ligament rupture.

The cruciate ligament can be divided into an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL).

At this time, the posterior cruciate ligament is the posterior cruciate ligament, and the anterior cruciate ligament is the knee, which attaches to the rear surface of the tibia and supports it so that the tibia does not move backwards relative to the femur while traveling in an oblique direction. As the primary stability structure for the anterior movement of the tibia, it prevents the anterior movement and excessive extension of the tibia and limits the internal rotation of the tibia.

Rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament is usually prone to rupture or damage during high-load exercise such as soccer, basketball, handball, and skiing, and if not treated properly, the risk of recurrence is high, and symptoms can last for a long time.

For this reason, the role of assistive devices for rehabilitation after receiving surgery or orthopedic treatment for the knee is recognized as important.

Conventional knee braces include parts and assemblies that assist the linear movement of the upper support with displacement in a direction away from the lower support, and parts and assemblies that assist the rotational movement of the upper support with rotational angular displacement toward the front of the wearer. As the motions are made independently of each other, the movement paths of the linear motion and the rotational motion overlap each other and interfere with each other due to the independent direction, making it difficult for the wearer to move and walk smoothly. There was a problem.

In order to solve such a conventional problem, Patent Document 1 includes an upper support, a lower support, a joint part, and an elastic member, the upper support is detachably attached to the upper part of the knee brace, and the lower support is attached to and detached from the lower part of the knee brace. , The joint part connects the upper support and the lower support, and the elastic member is connected to the upper support and the lower support, so that when the user bends or extends the knee, a load is applied to the leg curl and leg extension using a joint brace without a separate exercise device. We provided a rehabilitation exercise machine for joint braces that could perform the exercise.

However, Patent Literature 1 has a problem that the support is fixed to fix the joint by minimizing the movement of the ligaments, so that the patient's body shape and the severity of the injury are not considered at all. If maintained for a certain period of time, there is a problem that a lot of time is required for rehabilitation treatment due to hardening of the joints.

KR 10-2010-0018599 A KR 10-2011-0026543 A

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a buffer pad made of a hard elastic body, an upper support and a lower support made of an upper and lower pad and a rigid body, and a fixing means and a binding band that can be adjusted according to the body shape of the wearer, and the wearer. It is composed of a control unit that controls the degree of bending of the knee of the knee, identifies the movement state and risk, and transmits information to the wearer's mobile in real time, so that the joint movement and walking of the wearer can be smoothly performed by being closely fixed to the wearer's body shape. The purpose is to provide an anterior cruciate ligament brace that can shorten the time required for rehabilitation treatment because it can prevent abnormal joint movement or excessive force is applied.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention wraps the wearer's knee, and a buffer pad for absorbing the shock; An upper pad spaced apart from the upper part of the buffer pad and having a fixing means so as to be fixed to the wearer's thigh; A lower pad provided spaced apart from the lower part of the buffer pad and having a fixing means so as to be fixed to the lower leg of the wearer; A pair of upper supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the upper pad, and supporting both sides of the thigh portion; A pair of lower supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the lower pad, and supporting both sides of the lower leg; And a control unit provided on both sides of the buffer pad to connect the upper support and the lower support, and to control a degree of bending of the knee in response to a movement state of the wearer, wherein the control unit includes a set angle of the wearer's knee. An angle adjuster that adjusts a bending angle so as to be bent so as to define a rotation range of the upper support and the lower support around the control unit; A pressure sensor that measures the pressure applied to the upper and lower supports that move within a rotation range to determine the movement state of the wearer; And a communication module that calculates the information of the angle adjuster and the pressure sensor and transmits the calculated information to the wearer's mobile so that the wearer can check the exercise state and the recovery state in real time. to provide.

In this case, the fixing means is fixed to one side of the upper pad and the lower pad, respectively, and is detachably coupled to the other side of the upper pad and the lower pad, so that the length can be adjusted according to the body shape of the wearer.

In addition, the buffer pad, the upper pad and the lower pad are made of a hard elastic body so that the outer side is in close contact with the shape of the wearer's knee, thigh, and lower leg, and the upper support and the lower support support the knee in response to the wearer's motion state. It is characterized in that it is made of a rigid body to be able to be.

In this case, the upper support and the lower support further include a plurality of binding bands that surround the femoral and lower thighs of the wearer so that the anterior cruciate ligament brace can be worn without shaking, and adjust the tightening strength according to the body shape of the wearer. Characterized by that.

In addition, the control unit may further include an acceleration sensor configured to detect the movement state of the wearer in real time by measuring an instantaneous acceleration according to the movement of the wearer so as to determine the risk applied to the wearer's knee.

By providing the present invention configured as described above, it is closely fixed in accordance with the wearer's body shape to facilitate the movement and walking of the wearer, prevents the injury from deteriorating due to abnormal movement or shaking of the joint, and the movement state of the wearer, By grasping the risk and recovery status in real time, it can be prevented in advance so that there is no strain on the joints, the time required for rehabilitation treatment for recovery can be shortened, and the risk of recurrence can be minimized.

1 is a block diagram showing an anterior cruciate ligament brace according to the present invention.
2 is an exemplary view showing an upper pad of an anterior cruciate ligament brace according to an embodiment.
Figure 3 is a block diagram showing the control unit of the anterior cruciate ligament orthosis according to the present invention.
4 is an exemplary view showing a binding band of an anterior cruciate ligament brace according to an embodiment.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those of ordinary skill in the same technical field can easily implement the present invention.

The present invention can help to prevent rehabilitation or secondary damage of patients who have undergone knee joint surgery or orthopedic wound treatment, the disabled, the elderly, especially patients due to rupture or damage of the anterior cruciate ligament, which is difficult to move the knee. It relates to an anterior cruciate ligament orthosis that assists so that the anterior cruciate ligament orthosis according to the present invention is a buffer pad 100, an upper pad 200, a lower pad 300, and an upper It may be composed of a support 500, a lower support 600 and a control unit 700.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the buffer pad 100 may protect the wearer's knee safely by absorbing a shock that may be applied according to a rehabilitation treatment or exercise state by covering the wearer's knee. .

In addition, the buffer pad 100 may be made of a rigid elastic body having both rigidity and elasticity so that the buffer pad 100 is in close contact with each wearer to fit a different body shape and securely protects the wearer's knee without being damaged.

At this time, in order to prevent the skin from being damaged or inflamed due to friction generated by the buffer pad 100 in close contact with the wearer's knee, the inside of the buffer pad 100 is soft, such as cotton or sponge, and prevents external impact. It may be made of a pad that can be buffered, and it is desirable to make the outer cover part made of a hard elastic body to alleviate the impact applied from the outside, and to safely protect the knee without friction of the skin.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper pad 200 may be spaced apart from the upper part of the buffer pad 100, and may be fixed to the wearer's thigh by a fixing means 400, and the lower pad 300 may be provided spaced apart from the lower portion of the buffer pad 100, and like the upper pad 200, may be fixed to the lower leg of the wearer by the fixing means 400.

At this time, the upper pad 200 and the lower pad 300 minimize the risk of damage by making the outer cover part made of a hard elastic body, similar to the buffer pad 100, and strengthen the thigh and lower leg of the wearer. It can be securely fixed and supported, and it is made of a pad that can cushion the impact softly such as cotton or sponge inside, so that it is securely fixed without friction of the skin, and the wearer can be prevented from feeling uncomfortable.

In addition, the upper pad 200 and the hard elastic body portion, which is the outer cover of the lower pad 300, is not configured to cover the entire thigh and lower leg of the wearer, but assuming that the thigh and lower leg are circular, they have a semicircular shape. Can be done.

That is, the upper pad 200 has a semicircular outer cover made of a hard elastic body provided at the rear portion of the wearer's thigh to firmly support the rear portion of the thigh portion, and the front portion of the thigh portion has a body shape of the wearer, that is, , The fixing means 400 capable of adjusting the length so that the upper pad 200 can be closely fixed in accordance with the thickness or shape of the thigh portion may be provided, and the lower pad 300 has a semicircular shape made of a rigid elastic body. The outer cover of the wearer is provided at the front part of the lower leg and can firmly support the front part of the lower leg, and the same fixing means as the fixing means 400 provided on the upper pad 200 at the rear part of the lower leg ( 400) may be provided so that the lower pad 300 may be closely fixed to fit the thickness or shape of the lower leg of the wearer.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the fixing means 400 may be fixed to one side of the upper pad 200 and the lower pad 300, respectively, and the upper pad 200 and the lower pad 300 ) Is detachably coupled to the other side of the anterior cruciate ligament brace so that the anterior cruciate ligament brace can be easily worn, and by adjusting the length of the fixing means 400 while wearing the anterior cruciate ligament brace, the wearer's body shape That is, it can be secured in close contact with the thickness or shape of the thigh and lower leg.

At this time, the fixing means 400 is preferably made of a Velcro-type band, but is not limited thereto, and may be coupled by a button or a hook method, and the thickness of the thigh and lower leg of the wearer using a length adjusting clip By adjusting it according to the shape or shape, the anterior cruciate ligament brace can be worn with a sense of stability.

That is, the wearer wearing the anterior cruciate ligament brace adjusts the length of the fixing means 400 as shown in FIG. Since the outer cover portion is in close contact with the wearer's thigh and lower leg in accordance with the thickness or shape of the wearer, there is no inconvenience even if the wearer moves, and the anterior cruciate ligament brace is worn without shaking, thereby securing a sense of stability.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the buffer pad 100 and the upper pad 200 may be formed in a pair so as to mutually connect both sides of the buffer pad 100 and the upper pad 200, and serve to support both sides of the femur of the wearer. The upper supporter 500 may be formed as a pair to interconnect both sides of the buffer pad 100 and the lower pad 300, and serve to support both sides of the lower leg of the wearer. What can be performed is the lower support 600.

At this time, in the upper support 500 and the lower support 600, the anterior cruciate ligament orthosis accurately and sturdyly supports the wearer's knee even in an exercise state in which the wearer moves or rehabilitation treatment, so that the wearer's knee is abnormally twisted or It can play a role of preventing bending.

To this end, the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 are made of a rigid body having strong rigidity to firmly support the wearer's knee without external impact or bending or twisting even in a state in which the wearer is moving. Preferably, the control unit 700 is provided on both sides of the buffer pad 100 to which the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 are connected to each other, so that the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 are connected to each other. It can be connected by strengthening the unity.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the controller 700 may play a role of controlling the degree of bending of the knee in response to the movement state of the wearer, and in performing movement or rehabilitation treatment after knee surgery or treatment By allowing the degree of bending of the knee to be gradually adjusted according to the opinion of a doctor or an expert, it is possible to prevent recurrence of damage or rupture of the anterior cruciate ligament due to an unreasonable motion, or an increase in the rehabilitation period.

To this end, the control unit 700 controls the knee bending angle so that the wearer's knee is bent only by a set angle, and the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 are rotated around the control unit 700. An angle adjuster 710 capable of defining a range may be provided, and as shown in FIG. 3, a pressure sensor 720 and a communication module 730 may be provided in addition to the angle adjuster 710.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the pressure sensor 720 is adjusted by the angle adjuster 710 to move the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 according to the movement state of the wearer within a certain rotation range. The pressure applied to) can be measured.

That is, it is possible to measure the pressure applied while the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 move through the pressure sensor 720 provided in the control unit 700, and the upper support 500 and the By calculating the pressure applied to the wearer's knee based on the pressure measured by the lower support 600, it is possible to grasp the risk of the wearer's movement state and excessive pressure.

In addition, the communication module 730 calculates the angle and angle change process set by the angle adjuster 710 and the information measured by the pressure sensor 720 and transmits the calculated information to the wearer's mobile (M). As a result, the wearer can check the exercise state and recovery state in real time, and when it is determined that excessive pressure is applied to the knee, a warning or notification signal is transmitted to the mobile (M) so that the wearer can immediately check it. In addition, it can be assisted so that stable rehabilitation treatment can be achieved without being overwhelmed.

In this case, the communication module 730 may be configured as a Bluetooth or short-range communication means so that the wearer can be connected to a portable mobile (M).

In addition, an application that converts and displays the information signal of the communication module 730 into a display signal so that the wearer can easily check and grasp the information transmitted through the communication module 730 through the mobile M Separately, it may be installed on the mobile (M), but the present invention is not limited thereto, and can also be checked through an application (basic installation configuration such as text or alarm) installed by default on the mobile (M).

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 700 may further include an acceleration sensor 740 capable of detecting the movement state of the wearer in real time by measuring an instantaneous acceleration according to the movement of the wearer. Together with the pressure sensor 720, it is to be able to more accurately and accurately determine the degree of risk applied to the wearer's knee.

In the anterior cruciate ligament orthosis having the configuration as described above, in addition to the fixing means 400 for fixing the upper pad 200 and the lower pad 300 to the thigh and lower leg of the wearer, the anterior cruciate ligament orthosis A plurality of binding bands 800 for each of the wearer's thigh and lower leg may be further provided to be worn without shaking.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the binding band 800 is in a horizontal direction between the upper support 500 and the lower support 600 forming a pair, respectively, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4. It may be provided as, and can be made in a structure capable of adjusting the tightening strength so that it can be fixed according to the body shape of the wearer, that is, the thickness or shape of the thigh and lower leg.

In this case, the binding band 800 is preferably made of a Velcro-type band like the fixing means 400, but is not limited thereto, and may be coupled by a button or a hook method.

In addition, the buffer pad (with the upper support 500 and the lower support 600), the widths of both sides are adjusted according to the body shape of the wearer by the adjustment of the fixing means 400 and the binding band 800 100) It can also be changed to form a smooth curved surface, and can be fixed in close contact with the wearer's knee.

By providing the present invention configured as described above, it is closely fixed in accordance with the wearer's body shape to facilitate the movement and walking of the wearer, prevents the injury from deteriorating due to abnormal movement or shaking of the joint, and the movement state of the wearer, By grasping the risk and recovery status in real time, it can be prevented in advance so that there is no strain on the joints, the time required for rehabilitation treatment for recovery can be shortened, and the risk of recurrence can be minimized.

The terms and words used in the present specification and claims described above should not be construed as being limited to their usual or dictionary meanings, and the present inventors appropriate the concept of terms in order to describe their own invention in the best way. It should be interpreted as a meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention on the basis of the principle that it can be defined.

Accordingly, the configurations shown in the drawings and embodiments described in the present specification are only one of the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and do not represent all the technical ideas of the present invention, and thus they can be replaced at the time of application. It is to be understood that there may be a variety of equivalents and variations that may exist.

100: buffer pad 200: upper pad
300: lower pad 400: fixing means
500: upper support 600: lower support
700: control unit 710: angle adjuster
720: pressure sensor 730: communication module
740: acceleration sensor 800: binding band
M: Mobile

Claims (5)

In the anterior cruciate ligament brace,
A buffer pad that covers the wearer's knee and absorbs the shock;
An upper pad provided spaced apart from the upper portion of the buffer pad and having a fixing means capable of adjusting the length so that it can be fixed to the femur of the wearer;
A lower pad provided spaced apart from the lower part of the buffer pad and having a fixing means capable of adjusting the length so as to be fixed to the lower leg of the wearer;
A pair of upper supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the upper pad, and supporting both sides of the thigh portion;
A pair of lower supports for interconnecting both sides of the buffer pad and the lower pad, and supporting both sides of the lower leg; And
It is provided on both sides of the buffer pad and connects the upper support and the lower support, and comprises a control unit for controlling the degree of bending of the knee in response to the movement state of the wearer,
The control unit,
An angle adjuster configured to control a bending angle so that the wearer's knee is bent only by a set angle to define a rotation range of the upper support and lower support with the control unit as a center;
A pressure sensor that measures the pressure applied to the upper and lower supports that move within a rotation range to determine the movement state of the wearer;
A communication module that calculates the information of the angle adjuster and the pressure sensor and transmits the calculated information to the wearer's mobile so that the wearer can check the exercise state and the recovery state in real time; And
It includes an acceleration sensor that detects the movement state of the wearer in real time by measuring the instantaneous acceleration according to the movement of the wearer so as to determine the risk applied to the wearer's knee,
The buffer pad, the upper pad and the lower pad are made of a hard elastic body so that the outer side is in close contact with the shape of the wearer's knee, thigh, and lower leg,
The upper support and the lower support are made of a rigid body so that the knee can be supported in response to the movement state of the wearer,
In the upper support and the lower support,
The anterior cruciate ligament orthosis further includes a plurality of binding bands that surround each of the wearer's thigh and lower leg so that the anterior cruciate ligament brace can be worn without shaking, and that can adjust the tightening strength according to the wearer's body shape,
The binding band,
Anterior cruciate ligament orthosis, characterized in that provided in a horizontal direction between the upper support and the lower support each forming a pair.
The method of claim 1,
The fixing means,
An anterior cruciate ligament brace, characterized in that it is fixed to one side of the upper pad and the lower pad, and is detachably coupled to the other side of the upper pad and the lower pad so that the length can be adjusted according to the body shape of the wearer.
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