A waist support with hip joint function of anti-falling protection and a method for anti-falling protection
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202611188670.X
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2026-08-06
- Publication Date
- 2026-10-13
AI Technical Summary
[0010]本发明针对现有技术的上述问题,提供一种具有防摔倒保护髋关节功能的护腰及摔倒保护方法,解决了现有护腰缺乏髋关节摔倒防护、检测精度低易误判的问题,提升了穿戴防护安全性与摔倒判断的准确性和可靠性
(1)在用户摔倒接触地面前快速触发双侧安全气囊充气,缓冲髋关节撞击,避免其直接接触地面造成损伤,同时同步将摔倒状态与GPS定位发送至紧急联系人,提升了使用安全性;
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Figure CN122893756A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to the field of wearable protective equipment technology, specifically to a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions, and a fall protection method. Background Technology
[0002] Lumbar support devices are commonly worn protective equipment used in daily sports and work scenarios. They are mainly used to support and protect the lumbar spine, reducing the risk of lumbar injuries. Currently, conventional pulley lumbar support structures on the market have limited functionality and significantly limited protective dimensions. They only provide basic protection for the lumbar spine and lack specialized protection structures for the hip joint. When a user accidentally falls during sports, walking, or work, the hip joint will directly impact the ground, which can easily cause hip contusions, fractures, and other injuries, resulting in serious inadequacy in protection.
[0003] To optimize the performance of lumbar support devices, some existing lumbar support devices have added airbag structures. For example, the existing technology with patent publication number CN215778963U only has a single safety airbag. The placement and opening logic of the airbag are designed for daily protection of the lumbar spine. Its core function is to cushion the pressure on the lower back in daily life, rather than to protect against the impact of a fall. It cannot quickly inflate and cushion the fall before the user hits the ground, and therefore cannot meet the hip joint protection needs in fall situations.
[0004] At the same time, existing fall detection algorithms for wearable protective devices generally suffer from many technical defects such as low accuracy, poor reliability, high energy consumption, and weak adaptability, which seriously restricts the practical application of intelligent protective waist support devices.
[0005] Currently, most mainstream fall detection solutions rely on triaxial accelerometers for data acquisition and status determination. However, the data acquisition dimensions of a single sensor are limited, making it highly susceptible to interference from everyday human movements such as running, bending, and jumping. This results in poor accuracy and interference resistance in fall detection, leading to frequent misjudgments and missed detections, and an inability to accurately trigger protective actions. For example, a fall detection method and wearable device disclosed in patent publication number CN120753630A attempts to combine a triaxial accelerometer, tilt sensor, and camera to achieve fall detection, but this technical solution has inherent and unavoidable defects.
[0006] On the one hand, the technology lacks publicly available dedicated wearable devices, making it incompatible with protective structures like lumbar supports and impractical for widespread use. On the other hand, the solution relies on camera imaging for judgment, which requires precise camera angles; the camera must be directly facing the body to effectively collect data. However, wearable devices like wristbands and lumbar supports are worn in various postures and orientations, resulting in a very low hit rate. Furthermore, external interference factors such as clothing patterns, ambient lighting, and object outlines can easily lead to misjudgments in image recognition, significantly reducing the accuracy of fall detection.
[0007] In addition, this solution requires continuous image AI analysis and computation, resulting in extremely high device power consumption. Wearable devices generally have limited battery capacity, and continuous image processing will quickly deplete the device's power, severely shortening its battery life and failing to meet the needs of long-term wearable use. Furthermore, this solution uses a monocular camera to collect image data, lacking depth information support. This leads to significant calculation errors when deriving the human body's three-dimensional coordinates and fitting the ground plane equation in complex and unknown scenarios, further reducing the accuracy and stability of fall assessment and making it unsuitable for the all-weather, high-precision protection requirements of lumbar support devices.
[0008] Furthermore, existing fall detection solutions employing a "six-axis IMU + attitude angle + fixed threshold" approach still have significant technical shortcomings: First, the fixed threshold parameters cannot adapt to the differences in human movement intensity in various scenarios such as daily indoor walking and outdoor running. False triggers are prone to occur in high-intensity scenarios, while false misses are likely in calmer scenarios. Second, most solutions use single-condition or two-stage composite judgment logic, lacking a multi-stage progressive confirmation mechanism. This makes it difficult to distinguish between a real fall and similar actions such as strenuous exercise or rapid bending, further hindering the reduction of the false judgment rate. Third, the solutions cannot dynamically adjust the judgment threshold based on individual user movement habits and physical condition, resulting in insufficient individual adaptability and an inability to balance detection sensitivity and anti-interference performance.
[0009] In summary, current pulley-type waist protectors suffer from several drawbacks, including limited protection dimensions and lack of hip joint fall protection. The accompanying fall detection technology also suffers from numerous defects, such as low accuracy, weak anti-interference ability, high energy consumption, poor adaptability, and high false alarm rate. As a result, they cannot achieve accurate prediction and rapid protection at the moment of a fall, and thus cannot meet users' needs for comprehensive and highly reliable safety protection when falling. Summary of the Invention
[0010] To address the aforementioned problems in the prior art, this invention provides a lumbar support with fall protection and hip joint protection functions, as well as a fall protection method. This solves the problems of existing lumbar supports lacking hip joint fall protection and having low detection accuracy and easy misjudgment, thereby improving the safety of wearing protective gear and the accuracy and reliability of fall judgment.
[0011] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention proposes a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions, comprising a waist belt, wherein the waist belt comprises two symmetrically arranged half waist belts, each half waist belt having an airbag on its outer side, each airbag being connected to a CO2 cylinder, each CO2 cylinder being connected to a cylinder detonation device, the two cylinder detonation devices being connected to a main control board, and the main control board being mounted on one half waist belt; The main control board integrates a six-axis IMU, a main control chip, a low-pass filter, a complementary filter, an RF module, a GPS locator, a PI controller, a power supply, a storage module, a mode switching module, a motion baseline construction module, and a threshold adaptive correction module. The storage module has a built-in fall detection algorithm. The gas cylinder detonation device includes a cylindrical connector. One end of the connector is installed on the mouth of a CO2 gas cylinder, which is placed inside an airbag. The connector has a threaded portion in the middle, which is screwed onto the air inlet of the airbag. An exhaust port is provided on the connector between the threaded portion and the gas cylinder. The connector contains a striking pin for puncturing the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder, which is propelled by a deflagration thrust.
[0012] Preferably, the end of the firing pin away from the CO2 cylinder is provided with a sliding sleeve that is slidably disposed in the connector, the end of the sliding sleeve away from the firing pin is provided with an electric ignition head that is connected to the main control board, gunpowder is provided between the sliding sleeve and the electric ignition head, a spring is provided between the sliding sleeve and the firing pin, and an electric wire is connected between the main control board and the electric ignition head.
[0013] Preferably, the split waist belt is provided with a first connector for connecting the airbag. The first connector adopts a double-layer fabric structure, with one layer sewn onto the split waist belt, and the inner sides of the two layers of fabric are respectively provided with Velcro with a rough side and a hook side.
[0014] Preferably, the two opposite ends of the two waistbands are provided with second connectors for connection on both the inner and outer sides. The two second connectors on the inner and outer sides of the two waistbands are Velcro with a hook and loop side, respectively. The opposite ends of the two waistbands are connected by a third connector that can adjust the distance between them. The third connector includes multiple pulleys, which are divided into two rows and disposed on the two waistbands. The upper and lower halves of the two rows of pulleys are respectively connected to a pull cord. The two pull cords pass around the corresponding multiple pulleys and are respectively connected to an adjusting member. The two adjusting members are respectively connected to the second connectors on the outer side of the two waistbands. The inner side of the adjusting member is provided with a Velcro hook side or a Velcro loop side corresponding to the second connector.
[0015] A fall protection method is also proposed, based on a lumbar support with fall protection and hip joint protection function as described in any one of the claims, comprising the following steps: S1. Wear the lumbar support on the user's waist, with the two airbags located on both sides of the user's hip joint, and select the corresponding working mode through the mode switching module; S2. When a user falls, the main control board, based on its built-in fall judgment algorithm and the data collected by the six-axis IMU, combined with the adaptively corrected judgment threshold, confirms that the user has entered a fall state through multiple stages, and then sends an ignition signal to the gas cylinder detonation device. S3. The gas cylinder detonation device is activated, and the firing pin inside punctures the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder under the push of the deflagration thrust. The safety airbag inflates and opens before the user falls and hits the ground to protect the user's hip joint. S4. The radio frequency module built into the main control board synchronously sends information to the user's mobile phone via Bluetooth signal, and notifies the user's emergency contact through the APP pre-installed on the mobile phone, informing them that the user has fallen and the GPS location of the fall.
[0016] Preferably, in step S2, the fall detection algorithm logic is as follows: S21. Scene mode configuration: The mode switching module supports at least two working modes, including normal mode and outdoor mode. Different working modes have corresponding preset initial judgment thresholds. S22. Data Acquisition and Filtering: Acquire the raw data output from the six-axis IMU, including three-axis acceleration and three-axis angular velocity, as the input source for the algorithm. Use a low-pass filter to filter the raw data, remove high-frequency noise, and retain the effective low-frequency signals related to human motion. S23. Motion baseline construction and threshold adaptive correction: Based on the filtered six-axis IMU data, the acceleration variance and angular velocity variance are calculated to construct the current real-time motion baseline; the current motion baseline is compared with the preset standard motion baseline in the current mode to obtain the motion state error; the error is converted into a threshold correction amount through negative feedback adjustment, and the initial judgment threshold of the current mode is dynamically corrected to obtain the real-time target threshold. S24. Feature Extraction: Based on the filtered effective data, extract four key features that are strongly correlated with fall behavior: acceleration amplitude, angular velocity amplitude, vertical velocity, and vertical angle, to provide a basis for subsequent threshold judgment. The vertical angle includes roll angle and pitch angle. S25. Multi-stage fall confirmation: The characteristics of the weightlessness stage, impact stage, tilting stage and stationary stage are judged in chronological order. When the characteristic parameters of the four stages meet the corresponding real-time target thresholds, the human body is finally judged to have entered a fall state.
[0017] Preferably, in step S25, the specific determination rule for multi-stage fall confirmation is as follows: Weightlessness phase: This corresponds to the process of the body losing support and beginning to tilt. The determination conditions are: when the acceleration amplitude is less than the weightlessness target threshold, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than the angular velocity target threshold, and the vertical velocity is less than the vertical velocity target threshold, the weightlessness phase is triggered when all three conditions are met. That is, when the acceleration amplitude is less than 0.82g, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than 47.3° / s, and the vertical velocity is less than -1.2m / s, the weightlessness phase is determined to have begun. Impact phase: This corresponds to the process of the body accelerating downward and about to hit the ground. The determination condition is: if the acceleration amplitude suddenly increases and exceeds the impact target threshold within a preset time after entering the weightlessness phase, the impact phase is determined. Tilt or roll phase: Corresponding to the posture characteristics of the body tilting, the judgment condition is: within the preset time window before and after the impact phase, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than the target threshold for roll angle, or the pitch angle is greater than the target threshold for pitch angle, that is, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than 28° or the pitch angle is greater than 45°, it is judged that the body has entered the tilt phase; when it is judged that the body has entered a state of weightlessness and when it is judged that the body has begun to roll or tilt, it is judged that the body has entered a falling state. The stationary phase corresponds to the process of the body becoming stationary after falling and hitting the ground. The determination condition is: within a preset time after entering the impact phase, the acceleration amplitude drops back to the range of 0.9g~1.1g and the angular velocity amplitude is less than the target threshold of the stationary angular velocity. When this state continues to meet the preset time, the stationary phase is determined to have been entered.
[0018] Preferably, in step S23, the specific process of constructing the motion baseline and correcting the threshold is as follows: The filtered six-axis IMU data is segmented using a sliding time window. The variances of the three-axis acceleration and the three-axis angular velocity within each window are calculated, and the two are weighted and fused to obtain the current motion baseline value. Pre-store the standard motion baseline values corresponding to each working mode, and calculate the difference between the current motion baseline value and the standard motion baseline value as the motion state error. The error is mapped to the correction amount of each judgment threshold by a preset negative feedback gain coefficient. The correction amount is then added to the corresponding initial judgment threshold to obtain the real-time target threshold. The higher the motion intensity, the larger the motion baseline value, and the greater the positive correction amplitude of the corresponding judgment threshold.
[0019] Preferably, the acceleration amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the accelerations along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. The angular velocity amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the angular velocities along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. Vertical acceleration in world coordinate system Triaxial acceleration , , By roll angle and pitch angle The formula for calculating this is: (Projected onto the vertical direction of the world and subtracted from the gravitational acceleration g). ; The vertical velocity It is obtained by integrating the vertical acceleration, and the calculation formula is: ; In the formula, The vertical acceleration at the current moment, For the acceleration of the previous moment, The vertical velocity at the current moment, The vertical velocity at the previous moment. The sampling interval; The roll angle and pitch angle The calculations are based on the collected triaxial acceleration data, and the specific calculation formulas are as follows: ; ; In the formula, , , These are the acceleration components along the X, Y, and Z axes, respectively, and the three-axis accelerations. , , The physical meanings are completely identical; the only difference is the capitalization. The roll and pitch angles are corrected using a PI controller and a complementary filter.
[0020] Preferably, in step S3, the gas cylinder detonation device employs a dual PMOS transistor drive circuit, and the operation flow of the gas cylinder detonation device is as follows: S31. When the main control board determines that the user has entered a fall state based on the fall judgment algorithm, the main control board sends an ignition signal, and the onboard chip I / O port of the main control board outputs a voltage signal to the electric ignition head through a wire. S32, The electric ignition head of the gas cylinder detonation device ignites the gunpowder, and the explosion of the gunpowder causes the sliding sleeve to move towards the CO2 gas cylinder, and the sliding sleeve pushes the firing pin to pierce the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder; S33. The high-pressure CO2 gas in the CO2 cylinder enters the airbag through the exhaust port, filling the airbag.
[0021] Therefore, this invention proposes a lumbar support and fall protection method with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions, the beneficial effects of which are as follows: (1) The double airbags are quickly inflated before the user falls and hits the ground to cushion the impact on the hip joint and prevent it from directly contacting the ground and causing injury. At the same time, the fall status and GPS location are sent to the emergency contact, which improves the safety of use. (2) The fall detection algorithm based on a six-axis IMU with multiple feature thresholds is adopted. The algorithm combines low-pass filtering, complementary filtering and PI controller to correct the attitude angle, which improves the accuracy and anti-interference of fall detection, reduces the probability of false judgment and false miss, requires no image processing, has low power consumption, and is suitable for long-term wear. The waist belt adopts an adjustable split structure, which can be adapted to users with different waist sizes. The safety airbag is easy to install and does not affect daily activities when not triggered, thus balancing protection performance and wearing comfort. (3) Set up a multi-scene mode switching function, configure different initial thresholds for different usage scenarios such as daily life and outdoor, adapt to the motion characteristics of different scenarios, reduce the probability of misjudgment and missed judgment in cross-scene, adopt a four-stage progressive fall confirmation mechanism, verify the motion characteristics step by step according to the physical time logic of the fall, effectively filter the interference of fall-like actions such as vigorous exercise and rapid bending over, and greatly improve the accuracy of fall judgment.
[0022] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. Attached Figure Description
[0023] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions according to the present invention; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the main structure of a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to the present invention; Figure 3 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to the present invention from another perspective; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the combined structure of a safety airbag with fall prevention and hip joint protection function, a CO2 cylinder, a cylinder detonation device and a main control board according to the present invention. Figure 5This is a schematic diagram of the combined structure of a CO2 gas cylinder and a gas cylinder detonation device for a waist support with anti-fall and hip joint protection functions according to the present invention. Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the cooperation structure between a waist belt with anti-fall and hip joint protection function and a third connecting member according to the present invention. Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating a fall protection method for a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to the present invention. Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the fall detection algorithm logic of a lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to the present invention; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the gas cylinder ignition drive circuit for a waist support with anti-fall and hip joint protection function according to the present invention.
[0024] Figure Labels 1. Waist belt; 2. First connector; 3. Airbag; 4. CO2 cylinder; 5. Cylinder detonation device; 51. Connector; 52. Wire; 53. Threaded part; 54. Exhaust port; 55. Electric ignition head; 56. Sliding sleeve; 57. Firing pin; 58. Gunpowder; 59. Spring; 6. Main control board; 7. Second connector; 8. Third connector; 81. Pulley; 82. Pull rope; 83. Adjusting component; 9. Half waist belt. Detailed Implementation
[0025] To make the technical solutions, advantages, and objectives of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below. The described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the described embodiments of the present invention without creative effort are within the protection scope of this application.
[0026] Unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used in this invention shall have the ordinary meaning as understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains.
[0027] like Figures 1-9 As shown, the present invention provides a lumbar support and a fall protection method with the function of preventing falls and protecting the hip joint.
[0028] This lumbar support is worn by the user to protect the user's hip joint. The lumbar support includes a waist belt 1, which is worn around the user's waist. The waist belt 1 consists of two symmetrically arranged half-waist belts 9, which facilitate the user's wearing process. The connection gap between the two half-waist belts is adjustable to accommodate users with different waist sizes.
[0029] Each of the two half-belts 9 has an airbag 3 on its outer side. The airbag 3 is used to protect the user's hip joint in the event of a fall. The two airbags 3 are located on either side of the user's hip joint to ensure protection of the user's hip joint.
[0030] Each airbag 3 is connected to a CO2 cylinder 4, and each CO2 cylinder 4 is connected to a cylinder detonation device 5. Two cylinder detonation devices 5 are connected to a main control board 6, which is mounted on a split waist belt 9.
[0031] The two airbags 3 are controlled by a main control board 6 to ensure that the two airbags 3 can be activated synchronously, ensuring that the user's hip joints are properly protected even if the user rolls after a fall.
[0032] CO2 cylinder 4 is used to inflate airbag 3, ensuring the protective function of airbag 3; cylinder detonation device 5 is used to open the cylinder opening of CO2 cylinder 4, allowing the high-pressure CO2 gas inside CO2 cylinder 4 to be released and fill airbag 3, forming a soft cushioning pad; main control board 6 is used to determine whether the user has fallen and, after determining that the user has entered a fall state, can immediately activate cylinder detonation device 5 to open the cylinder opening of CO2 cylinder 4, allowing CO2 gas to be released and fill airbag 3.
[0033] The airbag 3 is in an uninflated state when the user is not in a fall, and it will only inflate immediately when the user is determined to be in a fall. This can effectively prevent the airbag 3 from inflating when the user is not in a fall and thus affecting the user's daily activities.
[0034] The main control board 6 integrates a six-axis IMU, a main control chip, a low-pass filter, a complementary filter, an RF module, a GPS locator, a PI controller, a power supply, a storage module, a mode switching module, a motion baseline construction module, and a threshold adaptive correction module. The storage module has a built-in fall detection algorithm.
[0035] A six-axis IMU is used for user posture perception and motion capture, enabling the acquisition of human motion data, including three-axis acceleration and three-axis angular velocity data, as the input source for algorithms.
[0036] The mode switching module allows users to manually switch or automatically identify and switch working modes, which include at least a normal mode and an outdoor mode. The normal mode is suitable for low-intensity activities such as indoor walking and daily living, with a more sensitive initial threshold setting. The outdoor mode is suitable for medium- to high-intensity activities such as outdoor walking and jogging, with a more conservative initial threshold setting to avoid false alarms triggered by everyday physical impacts. The initial thresholds for each mode cover all judgment parameters, including weightlessness threshold, angular velocity threshold, vertical velocity threshold, angle threshold, impact threshold, and stationary threshold.
[0037] The main control chip is the core of computing power and processing center of the entire main control board 6. It is a highly integrated integrated circuit used to issue all instructions.
[0038] Low-pass filters are used to filter raw data, removing high-frequency noise such as slight tremors of the user's limbs and high-frequency noise caused by environmental interference, while retaining effective low-frequency signals related to human movement, thus improving the accuracy of subsequent feature extraction.
[0039] Complementary filters are used to fuse data from different sensors. They can work with PI controllers to correct attitude angles, roll angles, and pitch angles. This avoids the cumulative error caused by long-term integration due to zero-point drift and temperature drift of the gyroscope in a six-axis IMU, which ultimately leads to the angles gradually deviating from the true value.
[0040] The PI controller is a proportional-integral controller, which can calculate a smooth and continuous output value based on the current error to correct the roll and pitch angles.
[0041] The radio frequency module integrates a Bluetooth protocol stack, which can synchronously send information to the user's mobile phone via Bluetooth signal. Then, through a pre-installed APP on the mobile phone, it notifies the user's emergency contacts that the user has fallen and the GPS location of the fall. The GPS location is calculated by the GPS locator to determine the user's current geographical location and precise time.
[0042] The power supply provides power to the main control board 6. The storage module is used to save configuration parameters and historical data. The fall detection algorithm is burned into the storage module and is called by the main control chip.
[0043] The gas cylinder detonation device 5 includes a cylindrical connector 51. One end of the connector 51 is installed on the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder 4. The connector 51 and the CO2 gas cylinder 4 are screwed together into the airbag 3, so that the CO2 gas cylinder 4 is placed inside the airbag 3.
[0044] The connector 51 has a threaded part 53 in the middle, which is screwed onto the air inlet of the airbag 3; the connector 51 has an exhaust port 54 located between the threaded part 53 and the CO2 cylinder 4; the connector 51 has a striking pin 57 for puncturing the mouth of the CO2 cylinder 4, which is pushed by a deflagration thrust.
[0045] One half of the connector 51 is screwed into the interior of the airbag 3 and connected to the air inlet of the airbag 3 through the threaded part 53 in the middle of the connector 51. The other half of the connector 51 is exposed outside the airbag 3, and the exposed part of the connector 51 is used to connect to the main control board 6.
[0046] The exhaust port 54 is used to allow high-pressure CO2 gas from the CO2 cylinder 4 to enter the airbag 3. Specifically, the high-pressure CO2 gas flows out of the mouth of the CO2 cylinder 4 and enters the cavity of the cylindrical connector 51, and then enters the airbag 3 through the exhaust port 54. The firing pin 57 is used to puncture the mouth of the CO2 cylinder 4. The firing pin 57 is propelled by a deflagration thrust, which is generated by a chemical explosion and deflagration, thereby pushing the firing pin 57 towards the CO2 cylinder 4 to puncture the mouth of the CO2 cylinder 4.
[0047] The end of the firing pin 57 away from the CO2 cylinder 4 is provided with a sliding sleeve 56 that is slidably disposed in the connector 51. The end of the sliding sleeve 56 away from the firing pin 57 is provided with an electric ignition head 55 that is connected to the main control board 6. Gunpowder 58 is provided between the sliding sleeve 56 and the electric ignition head 55. A spring 59 is provided between the sliding sleeve 56 and the firing pin 57. A wire 52 is connected between the main control board 6 and the electric ignition head 55.
[0048] The sliding sleeve 56 is slidably disposed in the cavity of the connector 51. A spring 59 is provided between the sliding sleeve 56 and the firing pin 57 for the elastic setting of the firing pin 57. The electric ignition head 55 is connected to the main control board 6 through the wire 52. Gunpowder 58 is provided on the side of the sliding sleeve 56 near the electric ignition head 55.
[0049] When the main control board 6 determines that the user has fallen, its onboard chip I / O port outputs a voltage signal to the electric ignition head 55. The electric ignition head 55 emits sparks, which can ignite and detonate the gunpowder 58, thereby generating a huge thrust, pushing the sliding sleeve 56 to move. Through the sliding sleeve 56, the firing pin 57 is pushed to hit the CO2 cylinder 4, achieving the purpose of piercing the mouth of the CO2 cylinder 4.
[0050] The split waist belt 9 is equipped with a first connector 2 for connecting the airbag 3. The first connector 2 adopts a double-layer fabric structure, with one layer sewn onto the split waist belt 9. The inner sides of the two layers of fabric are respectively provided with Velcro with a hook and loop side. The corresponding split waist belt 9 is also provided with a corresponding Velcro hook or loop side to facilitate the fixation of the lower inner layer of the double-layer fabric. The left and right sides and the top of the double-layer fabric are sewn together. The bottom of the double-layer fabric is open to facilitate the storage and deployment of the airbag 3. The sides of the double-layer fabric near the main control panel 6 have exits to provide an exit for the installation of the gas cylinder detonation device 5.
[0051] The two half-belts 9 are provided with second connectors 7 on the inner and outer sides of their far apart ends for connection. The two second connectors 7 on the inner and outer sides of the two half-belts 9 are Velcro with a rough surface and a hook surface, respectively, which facilitates connection with the adjustment part 83 of the third connector 8 and adjustment of the position of the adjustment part 83. The two half-belts 9 are connected by a third connector 8 that can adjust the distance between them.
[0052] The second connector 7 facilitates the connection of the ends of the two half-belts 9, thereby enabling the belt 1 to be worn around the user's waist.
[0053] The third connector 8 includes multiple pulleys 81, with a total number of 4N pulleys 81, where N is not less than 2. The multiple pulleys 81 are divided into two rows and are respectively located on the two half-belts 9. The upper and lower halves of the two rows of pulleys 81 are respectively connected to a pull rope 82. The two pull ropes 82 pass around the corresponding multiple pulleys 81 and are respectively connected to an adjusting member 83. The two adjusting members 83 are respectively connected to the second connector 7 on the outside of the two half-belts 9. The inner side of the adjusting member 83 is provided with a hook and loop fastener or a loop fastener corresponding to the second connector 7.
[0054] Pulleys 81 are used to connect and guide the pull rope 82. The structure of two rows and multiple pulleys 81 ensures that the pull rope 82 can wind from top to bottom, allowing both halves of the waist belt 9 to be connected together from top to bottom, ensuring a secure and stable connection. The number of pulleys 81 is 4N, and N is not less than 2, ensuring that the number of pulleys 81 in both rows is an even number, thus guaranteeing that the number of pulleys 81 in the upper half and the lower half is the same.
[0055] The pull cord 82 has two cords that are wound around multiple pulleys 81 on the upper and lower halves of the two half-belts 9 respectively, so as to facilitate the adjustment of the distance between the upper halves and the lower halves of the two half-belts 9 respectively, ensuring that the two half-belts 9 connected by the third connector 8 can fit the user's wear and ensure wearing comfort.
[0056] The adjusting member 83 is used to connect with the pull cord 82 and the second connecting member 7. The inner side of the adjusting member 83 is provided with Velcro, which can be quickly connected with the second connecting member 7 and the connection position can be adjusted, thereby facilitating the adjustment of the distance between the two half belts 9.
[0057] The fall protection methods based on the above-mentioned waist support include the following steps: S1. Wear the waist support on the user's waist, connect the two half waist belts 9 with the second connectors 7 and adjust the tightness. The two airbags 3 are located on both sides of the user's hip joint. Select the corresponding working mode through the mode switching module. S2. When a user falls, the main control board 6, based on its built-in fall judgment algorithm and the data collected by the six-axis IMU, combined with the judgment threshold after adaptive correction, confirms that the user has entered the fall state through multiple stages, and then sends an ignition signal to the gas cylinder detonation device 5. S3, the gas cylinder detonation device 5 is activated, and the firing pin 57 inside punctures the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder 4 under the push of the deflagration thrust. The safety airbag 3 inflates and opens before the user falls and hits the ground to protect the user's hip joint. The S4 and main control board 6's built-in radio frequency module synchronously send information to the user's mobile phone via Bluetooth signal, and notify the user's emergency contacts through the pre-installed APP on the mobile phone, informing them that the user has fallen and the GPS location of the fall.
[0058] The fall detection algorithm logic is as follows: S21. Scene mode configuration: The mode switching module supports at least two working modes, including normal mode and outdoor mode. Different working modes have corresponding preset initial judgment thresholds. S22. Data Acquisition and Filtering: Acquire the raw data output from the six-axis IMU, including three-axis acceleration and three-axis angular velocity, as the input source for the algorithm. Use a low-pass filter to filter the raw data, remove high-frequency noise, and retain the effective low-frequency signals related to human motion. S23. Motion baseline construction and threshold adaptive correction: Based on the filtered six-axis IMU data, the acceleration variance and angular velocity variance are calculated to construct the current real-time motion baseline; the current motion baseline is compared with the preset standard motion baseline in the current mode to obtain the motion state error; the error is converted into a threshold correction amount through negative feedback adjustment, and the initial judgment threshold of the current mode is dynamically corrected to obtain the real-time target threshold. In S23, the specific process of motion baseline construction and threshold correction is as follows: A sliding time window with a window length of 1 second and a step size consistent with the sampling interval was used to segment the filtered six-axis IMU data, and the variance of the three-axis acceleration within each window was calculated. variance of triaxial angular velocity The current motion baseline value B is obtained by weighted fusion of the two values, and the calculation formula is as follows: ; in, These are the weighting coefficients for the variance of acceleration. This is the weighting coefficient for the variance of angular velocity, with different preset values depending on the scene mode; Pre-store the standard motion baseline value B0 corresponding to each working mode, and calculate the difference between the current motion baseline value and the standard motion baseline value. As a measure of motion state error; The error is controlled by a preset negative feedback gain coefficient. The correction amount is mapped to each judgment threshold, and then added to the corresponding initial judgment threshold to obtain the real-time target threshold. : ; In the formula, This is the initial value for the threshold corresponding to the current mode. The negative feedback gain coefficient is configured for the corresponding threshold, and different types of thresholds are configured with independent gain coefficients; When the user's exercise intensity increases and the exercise baseline increases, the threshold is positively corrected to raise the judgment threshold and reduce false triggers; when the exercise is gentle and the baseline decreases, the threshold is negatively corrected to ensure detection sensitivity.
[0059] S24. Feature Extraction: Based on the filtered effective data, extract four key features that are strongly correlated with fall behavior: acceleration amplitude, angular velocity amplitude, vertical velocity, and vertical angle, to provide a basis for subsequent threshold judgment. The vertical angle includes roll angle and pitch angle. S25. Multi-stage fall confirmation: The characteristics of the weightlessness stage, impact stage, tilting stage and stationary stage are judged in chronological order. When the characteristic parameters of the four stages meet the corresponding real-time target thresholds, the human body is finally judged to have entered a fall state.
[0060] In S25, the specific rules for confirming multi-stage falls are as follows: Fall detection is based on the physical process of a real fall, divided into four consecutive stages: weightlessness, impact, tilting or rolling, and coming to rest. A fall is only determined when the four stages sequentially meet the corresponding threshold conditions. Weightlessness phase: This corresponds to the process of the body losing support and beginning to tilt. The determination conditions are: when the acceleration amplitude is less than the weightlessness target threshold, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than the angular velocity target threshold, and the vertical velocity is less than the vertical velocity target threshold, the weightlessness phase is triggered when all three conditions are met. That is, when the acceleration amplitude is less than 0.82g, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than 47.3° / s, and the vertical velocity is less than -1.2m / s, the weightlessness phase is determined to have begun. Impact phase: This corresponds to the process of the body accelerating downward and about to hit the ground. The determination condition is: if the acceleration amplitude suddenly increases and exceeds the impact target threshold within a preset time after entering the weightlessness phase, the impact phase is determined. Tilt or roll phase: Corresponding to the posture characteristics of the body tilting, the judgment condition is: within the preset time window before and after the impact phase, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than the target threshold for roll angle, or the pitch angle is greater than the target threshold for pitch angle, that is, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than 28° or the pitch angle is greater than 45°, it is judged that the body has entered the tilt phase; when it is judged that the body has entered a state of weightlessness and when it is judged that the body has begun to roll or tilt, it is judged that the body has entered a falling state. The stationary phase corresponds to the process of the body becoming stationary after falling and hitting the ground. The determination condition is: within a preset time after entering the impact phase, the acceleration amplitude drops back to the range of 0.9g~1.1g and the angular velocity amplitude is less than the target threshold of the stationary angular velocity. When this state continues to meet the preset time, the stationary phase is determined to have been entered.
[0061] When the four stages are triggered sequentially in time and all meet the corresponding real-time target thresholds, the main control chip outputs the fall judgment result and triggers the fire bottle detonation device.
[0062] The roll and pitch angles are corrected using a PI controller and a complementary filter, avoiding the cumulative error caused by long-term integration due to zero-point drift and temperature drift of the gyroscope, and preventing the angles from gradually deviating from the true value.
[0063] By using complementary filters, both static stability and dynamic tracking capability can be achieved. By leveraging the integral adjustment characteristics of the PI controller, the steady-state residual error and long-term small drift issues of complementary filters can be resolved, enabling zero steady-state error output of attitude angles (roll and pitch). In other words, the dual-layer correction architecture, which combines complementary filtering with precise PI closed-loop correction, simultaneously suppresses high-frequency vibration noise, low-frequency integral drift, and fixed deviation error.
[0064] Among them, acceleration amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the accelerations along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. angular velocity amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the angular velocities along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. Vertical acceleration in world coordinate system Triaxial acceleration , , By roll angle and pitch angle The formula for calculating this is: (Projected onto the vertical direction of the world and subtracted from the gravitational acceleration g). ; Vertical velocity It is obtained by integrating the vertical acceleration, and the calculation formula is: ; In the formula, The vertical acceleration at the current moment, For the acceleration of the previous moment, The vertical velocity at the current moment, The vertical velocity at the previous moment. The sampling interval; Roll angle and pitch angle The calculations are based on the collected triaxial acceleration data, and the specific calculation formulas are as follows: ; ; In the formula, , , These are the acceleration components along the X, Y, and Z axes, respectively, and the triaxial acceleration. , , The physical meanings are completely identical; the only difference is the capitalization. The gas cylinder detonation device 5 employs a dual PMOS transistor drive circuit. This circuit features a high-side bidirectional drive architecture with a symmetrical and compact overall structure, adaptable to the miniaturized installation requirements of embedded carriers. It also effectively blocks forward residual current and reverse current from the load, protecting the main control board 6 and preventing attitude data distortion caused by voltage surges. Its operating procedure is as follows: S31. When the main control board 6 determines that the user has entered a fall state based on the fall judgment algorithm, the main control board 6 sends an ignition signal, and the onboard chip I / O port of the main control board 6 outputs a voltage signal of about 3V to the electric ignition head 55 through the wire 52. S32, the electric ignition head 55 of the gas cylinder detonation device 5 ignites the gunpowder 58. The explosion of the gunpowder 58 causes the sliding sleeve 56 to move towards the CO2 gas cylinder 4. The sliding sleeve 56 pushes the firing pin 57 to pierce the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder 4. S33, the high-pressure CO2 gas in the CO2 cylinder 4 enters the airbag 3 through the exhaust port 54, filling the airbag 3.
[0065] like Figure 9 As shown, the gas cylinder ignition drive circuit is a safety ignition control circuit with status detection, which includes a detection unit, an ignition control unit, and an ignition execution unit.
[0066] The detection unit is used for real-time detection of the gas cylinder installation status; the ignition control unit consists of the power switch branches QA4 and QA5 controlled by pin P0.08 and the grounding switch branches QA6 and Q2 controlled by pin P0.09. The ignition circuit is only turned on when both circuits are triggered at the same time.
[0067] The ignition actuator unit consists of interface U12 and protection diode DA3, which drives the high-voltage ignition of the electric igniter 55. Initially, pin P0.08 is low, pin P0.09 is high, and pin P0.10 detects voltage via an ADC (analog-to-digital converter) to determine if a gas cylinder is connected to interface U12. If connected, the voltage is high; otherwise, it is low, thus detecting the cylinder's installation status. Upon detection of a fall, pin P0.08 goes high, pin P0.09 goes low, the circuit is activated, and approximately 3V is generated at interface U12 to detonate the gas cylinder.
[0068] Therefore, this invention provides a lumbar support and fall protection method with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions. It solves the problems of existing lumbar supports that only protect the lumbar spine and lack a hip joint cushioning structure, failing to quickly inflate before conventional airbags can land, and relying on three-axis sensors and cameras for fall detection, which leads to false positives / false negatives, high energy consumption, and poor adaptability. This invention uses dual airbags with a deflagration-type gas cylinder triggering structure to inflate and cushion the hip impact before landing; a six-axis IMU combined with a multi-feature threshold algorithm, filtering, and PI correction ensures accurate, interference-resistant, and low-energy fall recognition; the wearable structure is adjustable to fit different waist sizes, and a location warning is simultaneously pushed after a fall, significantly improving the reliability of fall protection and the safety of wearing it.
[0069] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and not to limit them. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent substitutions can still be made to the technical solutions of the present invention, and these modifications or equivalent substitutions cannot cause the modified technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the present invention.
Claims
1. A lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection functions, characterized in that, The device includes a waist belt comprising two symmetrically arranged half-waist belts, each half-waist belt having an airbag on its outer side, each airbag being connected to a CO2 cylinder, each CO2 cylinder being connected to a cylinder detonation device, and the two cylinder detonation devices being connected to a main control board, which is mounted on one half-waist belt. The main control board integrates a six-axis IMU, a main control chip, a low-pass filter, a complementary filter, an RF module, a GPS locator, a PI controller, a power supply, a storage module, a mode switching module, a motion baseline construction module, and a threshold adaptive correction module. The storage module has a built-in fall detection algorithm. The gas cylinder detonation device includes a cylindrical connector. One end of the connector is installed on the mouth of a CO2 gas cylinder, which is placed inside an airbag. The connector has a threaded portion in the middle, which is screwed onto the air inlet of the airbag. An exhaust port is provided on the connector between the threaded portion and the gas cylinder. The connector contains a striking pin for puncturing the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder, which is propelled by a deflagration thrust.
2. A lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The end of the firing pin away from the CO2 cylinder is provided with a sliding sleeve that is slidably disposed in the connector. The end of the sliding sleeve away from the firing pin is provided with an electric ignition head that is connected to the main control board. Gunpowder is provided between the sliding sleeve and the electric ignition head. A spring is provided between the sliding sleeve and the firing pin. An electric wire is connected between the main control board and the electric ignition head.
3. A lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The split waist belt is provided with a first connector for connecting the airbag. The first connector adopts a double-layer fabric structure, with one layer sewn onto the split waist belt, and the inner sides of the two layers of fabric are respectively provided with Velcro with a rough side and a hook side.
4. A lumbar support with fall prevention and hip joint protection function according to claim 1, characterized in that, The two waistbands are provided with second connectors on both the inner and outer sides of their far ends. The two second connectors on the inner and outer sides of the two waistbands are Velcro with a hook and loop side, respectively. The waistbands are connected to their near ends by a third connector that can adjust the distance between them. The third connector includes multiple pulleys, which are arranged in two rows on the two waistbands. The upper and lower halves of the two rows of pulleys are connected to a pull cord. The two pull cords pass over the corresponding pulleys and are connected to an adjusting member. The two adjusting members are connected to the second connectors on the outer sides of the two waistbands. The inner side of the adjusting member is provided with a Velcro hook side or a Velcro loop side corresponding to the second connector.
5. A fall protection method, based on a lumbar support with fall protection and hip joint protection function as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1. Wear the lumbar support on the user's waist, with the two airbags located on both sides of the user's hip joint, and select the corresponding working mode through the mode switching module; S2. When a user falls, the main control board, based on its built-in fall judgment algorithm and the data collected by the six-axis IMU, combined with the adaptively corrected judgment threshold, confirms that the user has entered a fall state through multiple stages, and then sends an ignition signal to the gas cylinder detonation device. S3. The gas cylinder detonation device is activated, and the firing pin inside punctures the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder under the push of the deflagration thrust. The safety airbag inflates and opens before the user falls and hits the ground to protect the user's hip joint. S4. The radio frequency module built into the main control board synchronously sends information to the user's mobile phone via Bluetooth signal, and notifies the user's emergency contact through the APP pre-installed on the mobile phone, informing them that the user has fallen and the GPS location of the fall.
6. A fall protection method according to claim 5, characterized in that, In S2, the fall detection algorithm logic is as follows: S21. Scene mode configuration: The mode switching module supports at least two working modes, including normal mode and outdoor mode. Different working modes have corresponding preset initial judgment thresholds. S22. Data Acquisition and Filtering: Acquire the raw data output from the six-axis IMU, including three-axis acceleration and three-axis angular velocity, as the input source for the algorithm. Use a low-pass filter to filter the raw data, remove high-frequency noise, and retain the effective low-frequency signals related to human motion. S23. Motion baseline construction and threshold adaptive correction: Calculate the acceleration variance and angular velocity variance based on the filtered six-axis IMU data to construct the current real-time motion baseline; compare the current motion baseline with the preset standard motion baseline in the current mode to obtain the motion state error. By adjusting the negative feedback, the error is converted into a threshold correction amount, and the initial judgment threshold of the current mode is dynamically corrected to obtain the real-time target threshold. S24. Feature Extraction: Based on the filtered effective data, extract four key features that are strongly correlated with fall behavior: acceleration amplitude, angular velocity amplitude, vertical velocity, and vertical angle, to provide a basis for subsequent threshold judgment. The vertical angle includes roll angle and pitch angle. S25. Multi-stage fall confirmation: The characteristics of the weightlessness stage, impact stage, tilting stage and stationary stage are judged in chronological order. When the characteristic parameters of the four stages meet the corresponding real-time target thresholds, the human body is finally judged to have entered a fall state.
7. A fall protection method according to claim 6, characterized in that, In S25, the specific rules for determining multi-stage falls are as follows: Weightlessness phase: This corresponds to the process of the body losing support and beginning to tilt. The determination conditions are: when the acceleration amplitude is less than the weightlessness target threshold, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than the angular velocity target threshold, and the vertical velocity is less than the vertical velocity target threshold, the weightlessness phase is triggered when all three conditions are met. That is, when the acceleration amplitude is less than 0.82g, the angular velocity amplitude is greater than 47.3° / s, and the vertical velocity is less than -1.2m / s, the weightlessness phase is determined to have begun. Impact phase: This corresponds to the process of the body accelerating downward and about to hit the ground. The determination condition is: if the acceleration amplitude suddenly increases and exceeds the impact target threshold within a preset time after entering the weightlessness phase, the impact phase is determined. Tilt or roll phase: Corresponding to the posture characteristics of the body tilting, the judgment condition is: within the preset time window before and after the impact phase, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than the target threshold for roll angle, or the pitch angle is greater than the target threshold for pitch angle, that is, when the absolute value of the roll angle is greater than 28° or the pitch angle is greater than 45°, it is judged that the body has entered the tilt phase; when it is judged that the body has entered a state of weightlessness and when it is judged that the body has begun to roll or tilt, it is judged that the body has entered a falling state. The stationary phase corresponds to the process of the body becoming stationary after falling and hitting the ground. The determination condition is: within a preset time after entering the impact phase, the acceleration amplitude drops back to the range of 0.9g~1.1g and the angular velocity amplitude is less than the target threshold of the stationary angular velocity. When this state continues to meet the preset time, the stationary phase is determined to have been entered.
8. A fall protection method according to claim 7, characterized in that, In step S23, the specific process of motion baseline construction and threshold correction is as follows: The filtered six-axis IMU data is segmented using a sliding time window. The variances of the three-axis acceleration and the three-axis angular velocity within each window are calculated, and the two are weighted and fused to obtain the current motion baseline value. Pre-store the standard motion baseline values corresponding to each working mode, and calculate the difference between the current motion baseline value and the standard motion baseline value as the motion state error. The error is mapped to the correction amount of each judgment threshold by a preset negative feedback gain coefficient. The correction amount is then added to the corresponding initial judgment threshold to obtain the real-time target threshold. The higher the motion intensity, the larger the motion baseline value, and the greater the positive correction amplitude of the corresponding judgment threshold.
9. A fall protection method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The acceleration amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the accelerations along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. The angular velocity amplitude The calculation formula is: ; In the formula, , , These are the angular velocities along the x, y, and z axes, respectively. Vertical acceleration in world coordinate system Triaxial acceleration , , By roll angle and pitch angle The formula for calculating this is: (Projected onto the vertical direction of the world and subtracted from the gravitational acceleration g). ; The vertical velocity It is obtained by integrating the vertical acceleration, and the calculation formula is: ; In the formula, The vertical acceleration at the current moment, For the acceleration of the previous moment, The vertical velocity at the current moment, The vertical velocity at the previous moment. The sampling interval; The roll angle and pitch angle The calculations are based on the collected triaxial acceleration data, and the specific calculation formulas are as follows: ; ; In the formula, , , These are the acceleration components along the X, Y, and Z axes, respectively, and the three-axis accelerations. , , The physical meanings are completely identical; the only difference is the capitalization. The roll and pitch angles are corrected using a PI controller and a complementary filter.
10. A fall protection method according to claim 6, characterized in that, In S3, the gas cylinder detonation device adopts a dual PMOS transistor drive circuit, and the operation process of the gas cylinder detonation device is as follows: S31. When the main control board determines that the user has entered a fall state based on the fall judgment algorithm, the main control board sends an ignition signal, and the onboard chip I / O port of the main control board outputs a voltage signal to the electric ignition head through a wire. S32, The electric ignition head of the gas cylinder detonation device ignites the gunpowder, and the explosion of the gunpowder causes the sliding sleeve to move towards the CO2 gas cylinder, and the sliding sleeve pushes the firing pin to pierce the mouth of the CO2 gas cylinder; S33. The high-pressure CO2 gas in the CO2 cylinder enters the airbag through the exhaust port, filling the airbag.
Citation Information
Patent Citations
Fall judgment method and wearable device thereof
CN120753630A
Waistband
CN215778963U