Knee support

Abstract

The invention relates to a knee support (2) having fastening means (10) for arranging on a knee joint (K) of a wearer (T), and having lighting means which are held on the fastening means (10) and which have at least one headlamp device (20; 28), directed away from an outer side (22), for generating a focused light beam that can be oriented in a forward direction (RV) away from the outer side (22). It is provided that the headlamp device (20) is held on a lateral holding region (26; 30) of the outer side (22) and has at least one active luminous body (24A) which forms a front headlamp and which is held on a first outer side (S1) of a headlamp housing (G) of the headlamp device (20), wherein a rear light is provided on a second outer side (S2) of the headlamp housing (G) facing away from the first outer side (S1).

Description

[0001] Knee holder

[0002] Description

[0003] The invention relates to a knee support according to the preamble of claim 1. This comprises fastening means suitable for attaching the knee support to a wearer's knee joint. Furthermore, the knee support comprises lighting means that are held directly or indirectly to the fastening means. The lighting means comprise at least one spotlight device for generating a focused light beam, which is directed away from an outer side of the knee support. By using at least one spotlight device directed away from the knee support, the lighting means can be used to illuminate a path or a work area of ​​the wearer in the dark or under other poor visibility conditions.

[0004] DE 20 2018 102 751 U1 discloses a knee brace in the form of a knee pad that, in addition to its protective function against external stresses on the affected knee, also features a luminous element. The luminous element can be formed by a fluorescent and / or phosphorescent material or by a light source activated by a switch or photosensor. In any case, the luminous element is intended to ensure better visibility of the wearer in poor lighting conditions.

[0005] The disadvantage of the conventional knee pad is that the provided light source can only produce diffuse light. This makes it only useful in very specific applications, namely when the knee in question needs to be protected while simultaneously increasing the wearer's visibility, particularly in poor visibility conditions.

[0006] The object of the invention is to avoid the aforementioned disadvantages in a generic knee support and to enable a more versatile use.

[0007] This object is achieved by a knee holder with the features of claim 1. For this purpose, the headlight device is held on a lateral holding region of the outer side and has at least one active light element which forms a headlight and which is held on a first outer side of a headlight housing of the headlight device, wherein a rear light is provided on a second outer side of the headlight housing facing away from the first outer side. As a result, a rear light can also be provided at the same time to illuminate the front angular area. In this way, the wearer is also clearly visible from behind, for example by other road users, while moving along a path or road in the dark.Mounting it on a side mounting area allows the front and rear lights to be mounted on a single headlight assembly. The rear light can be formed by an active light source and / or a passive light source or a reflector. Furthermore, the rear light is preferably red, so that third parties can distinguish the wearer's direction of view or direction of movement from their rear, especially in the dark.

[0008] While the illumination is provided by the knee rest, the wearer has both hands free to perform other activities or walk or run undisturbed. This allows the knee rest to be used, for example, during outdoor sports such as running or walking, while walking the dog, during work activities, on expeditions, during rescue operations, or in the military field under temporarily or permanently poor lighting conditions, particularly in unfamiliar or confusing terrain. For example, the knee rest can be worn while working on construction sites, in agriculture or forestry, or in the forwarding and transport services sector, or similar.In addition to working outdoors, the knee rest is also particularly suitable for use in poorly or inconsistently lit spaces, for example by tradespeople or do-it-yourselfers on construction sites, particularly in old buildings, or by industrial workers, warehouse workers, delivery drivers, and so on. When used outdoors, the knee rest has the particular advantage over headlamps, particularly in that in the event of precipitation such as rain or snow, the wearer is not blinded by drops or flakes illuminated by the light sources near the eyes. The fastening devices of the knee rest can be selected so that they allow themselves to be attached to the knee joint or can be attached over legwear worn by the wearer in the area of ​​the knee joint.

[0009] Advantageously, the rear light is also formed by at least one active light source. This allows an actively illuminated rear light to be provided simultaneously for illuminating the front angle. This allows the wearer to be clearly visible from behind, for example, while moving along a path or road in the dark, for example, by other road users.

[0010] In a particularly preferred embodiment, the fastening means form a circumferential receiving area for accommodating the wearer's knee joint. For this purpose, the fastening means can be connected to one another in a loop-like manner or can be permanently looped. In this permanent or producible, closed, circumferential position, the preferably elastic loop forms a receiving area in which a knee joint of a wearer of the knee brace can be accommodated, thus securely attaching the knee brace to the wearer's leg at knee height.

[0011] Advantageously, the focused light beam can be directed away from the outside of the knee support in a frontal direction defined by the fastening means, which corresponds to a frontal direction of the wearer of the knee support. This allows the light beam to be directed forward from the wearer of the knee support, i.e., particularly in the direction of their gaze and / or movement. In this way, for example, a walking path or work area of ​​the wearer can be particularly well illuminated.

[0012] It is advantageous if the at least one headlight device has at least two or more active illuminants in order to be able to illuminate a relatively large area in the direction of view and / or movement of the wearer. The term active illuminant refers to illuminants that convert electrical current into light and thus actively illuminate. It is also advantageous if the at least two active illuminants are aligned in different illumination directions in order to be able to illuminate different areas. The different areas can be formed, for example, by a path in front of the wearer, such as in particular in the area close to the ground, and by a working area that extends at arm height of the wearer.Alternatively or additionally, the different lighting directions can also be used to illuminate a specific area in different body positions, such as a work area at the wearer's arm height in a standing and in a sitting or kneeling position.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment, two of the active luminous elements with different illumination directions can also have different colors. For example, at least one active luminous element directed toward the front can have a white or yellowish color or emit a white or yellowish glow, while an active luminous element directed toward the rear can have a red color and emit a correspondingly red glow. This allows third parties to see, for example, the direction in which the wearer of the knee brace is facing or moving, even at night.

[0014] Advantageously, the at least one active illuminant is formed by a light-emitting diode (LED). This allows for low energy consumption of the headlight device. In this way, the means required for supplying energy to the headlight device can be limited to low weight and / or small dimensions. The energy supply means can be formed, for example, by storage means such as batteries or rechargeable accumulators. As an alternative to the storage means, the energy supply means can also be formed by power generation means that, for example, utilize the kinetic energy in the relevant knee joint to generate electrical energy.

[0015] Furthermore, it is advantageous if the headlight device is held on a first holding area on the outside of the knee holder and a second headlight device is fastened to a second holding area on the outside facing away from the first holding area. In this way, on the one hand, a central area of ​​the knee holder can be kept free in order to be able to provide, for example, protective means or padding adjacent to the receiving area of ​​a kneecap of the wearer. At the same time, complete illumination in front of the central area can be ensured by generating a light beam in the desired direction on two sides of it. Overall, this allows a larger viewing angle of the wearer to be illuminated.

[0016] Advantageously, the fastening means comprise a shell-shaped protective device arranged at the front for partially accommodating a knee joint of the wearer, wherein the at least one headlight device is removably mounted on the protective device. The knee holder can thus be used in any case as a knee pad and / or puncture protection, protecting the relevant knee from external impacts, such as in particular from pressure loads resulting from a kneeling posture. Furthermore, such a knee holder or knee pad reduces the risk of injury to the wearer, particularly in the event of a fall, which in turn can prevent work absences. If required, the knee pad can also be equipped with the at least one headlight device in order to additionally illuminate an area in front of the protective device.The protective device also protects the knee from cold and wet conditions. This makes the knee brace particularly suitable for elderly or disabled people.

[0017] It is advantageous if, when the knee brace is attached to the wearer's knee joint, a light beam directed in a first illumination direction can be generated by means of the at least one headlight device, which is substantially parallel to a center normal that can be generated on the protective device. In this way, when the wearer is in an upright posture, the light beam is directed forward in their direction of gaze and / or movement, in order to illuminate a path ahead, particularly near the ground.

[0018] Alternatively or additionally, when the knee brace is in place, the headlight device can generate at least one light beam directed in a further illumination direction, which is directed upwards at an angle or at a right angle to the center normal that can be generated on the protective device. In this way, when the wearer is in an upright posture, the light beam is directed, for example, toward a work area of ​​the wearer in which they are performing manual work.

[0019] Preferably, the at least one headlight device can be activated and deactivated, for example by means of a manually operated on / off switch, by means of a remote control, or automatically depending on a sensor signal. A corresponding sensor can be used in particular to determine the light intensity present at a location and / or an orientation of the headlight device, with control electronics activating or deactivating a predetermined number and arrangement of the active light elements of the headlight device depending on the determined values. In this way, the use of the individual active light elements can be limited to those applications in which they are required due to the existing lighting conditions or to illuminate a specific area.

[0020] It is advantageous if the at least one headlight device has an adjustable light intensity. This allows the at least one headlight device, or the light generated by it, to be adjusted in intensity or brightness as needed. The required light intensity can be set either by means of a dimmer or by activating a desired number of active light sources.

[0021] Advantageously, the at least two active light sources, which have different illumination directions, can be activated / deactivated and / or adjusted independently of one another in order to illuminate only a selected area. Activation and deactivation can be performed by the wearer of the knee support or by automatic control based on a position sensor, which, for example, activates the active light sources that are directed forward or upward in a kneeling position, while simultaneously deactivating the active light sources that are directed downward toward the floor.Furthermore, the above-mentioned object is achieved by a headlight device which is used with a knee holder in one of the above-mentioned embodiments and which for this purpose has a headlight housing on which the at least two active light elements are held, wherein at least one of the active light elements forms a headlight which is held on a first outer side of the headlight housing. At the same time, a rear light which is formed by at least one of the active light elements is provided on a second outer side of the headlight housing, facing away from the first outer side. This rear light can hereby also be provided for illuminating the front angular area. In this way, the wearer can also be clearly seen from behind, for example by other road users, while moving along a path or road in the dark.

[0022] Preferably, several active illuminants are arranged along a curved area on the upper side of the headlight housing. Such an arrangement allows the active illuminants in question to be easily aligned with an increasing or decreasing inclination relative to one another, which in turn allows a larger angular range to be illuminated with several bundled light beams.

[0023] The at least one active light element of the rear light preferably shines red, so that third parties can also distinguish the direction of view or the direction of movement of the wearer from his back, especially in the dark.

[0024] It is pointed out that all features of the subject matter according to the invention described above are interchangeable or combinable with one another, unless an exchange or combination thereof is excluded for technical reasons.

[0025] The figures show an exemplary embodiment of the invention. Figure 1 shows a side view of a knee support according to the invention with a

[0026] Headlight system,

[0027] Figure 2 is a front view of the knee support according to Figure 2 with two

[0028] Headlight devices and

[0029] Figure 3 is a side view of the knee holder according to Figure 1 in a kneeling position of the wearer.

[0030] Fig. 1 shows a knee support 2 in the form of a work knee pad, which, by way of example, has a shell-shaped protective device 4. The protective device 4 serves to partially accommodate a knee joint K of a wearer T in order to protect this knee joint K against external influences, such as, in particular, pressure loads in a kneeling position. For this purpose, the protective device 4 can, for example, have padding 6 and / or a protective outer shell 8, which partially cover the knee joint K when the knee support 2 is applied. This also allows the accommodated knee K to be additionally protected against cold and moisture.In addition, the protective device 4 can also have active heating means on the outer shell 8 (not shown), which are supplied with a battery, for example, or have a self-heating substance in order to protect the respective knee joint K against cooling down or to actively heat it during longer periods outdoors and / or at low ambient temperatures.

[0031] The wearer T of the knee support 2 can, for example, be any worker, such as a craftsman, a forestry or agricultural worker, an industrial worker, a warehouse worker, a forwarding agent, a transport service provider, a delivery person, or the like, who works outdoors in the dark or in poorly or inconsistently lit areas or rooms, such as on any construction site. Alternatively, the wearer T can also use the knee support 2 privately, such as as an outdoor sports enthusiast, do-it-yourselfer, dog walker, or the like. Furthermore, the knee support 2 can also be used on expeditions or during rescue operations or in the military sector. The knee support 2 has fastening means 10 for securing it to the respective knee joint K.The fastening means 10 comprise, for example, two loop-shaped sections 12 made of an elastic material and fixing straps 14, which can be brought into a likewise closed circumferential position via a hook-and-loop fastener 16. In any case, the fastening means 10, alone or together with the protective device 4, permanently and / or in the closed circumferential position, form a receiving area 18 for the knee joint K. The optional fixing straps 14 serve to additionally secure the position of the knee holder 2 in a preferred position on the knee joint K by tightening and fixing it by means of the hook-and-loop fasteners 16. Alternatively or in addition to forming a circumferential receiving area 18, the fastening means 10 can also comprise known and suitable means for securely fixing the knee holder to trousers at knee height, such as a clamping device (not shown).

[0032] As can also be seen from Figure 1, illuminants are also arranged on an outer side 22 of the knee support 2 or the fastening means 10. The illuminants comprise a headlight device 20, which comprises an arrangement of several active illuminants 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D in the form of LEDs and / or incandescent lamps, each of which can emit a focused light beam.

[0033] At least two of the active illuminating elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D are held on a headlight housing G of the headlight device 20 such that their light beams are generated in different illumination directions RL1, RL2, RL3, RL4. As shown, several of the active illuminating elements 24A can be aligned on a first outer side S1 of the headlight housing G substantially parallel to a center normal N, which is defined, for example, by a center point M of the protective device 4. By means of these active illuminating elements 24A, a focused first light beam can be generated in a first illumination direction RL1, which, when the wearer T is in an upright posture or walking upright, illuminates an area or path extending in front of him in the manner of a headlight.In addition, several of the active light elements 24B are arranged in a curved region 25 of the headlight housing G, whereby the active light elements 24B each have a certain angle of incidence relative to one another. This in turn generates a common light beam over a larger angular range in a second illumination direction RL2. In this illumination direction RL2, for example, a work area A in front of the upper body of the wearer T or within their arm's reach can be completely illuminated by the active light elements 24B. This enables the wearer T to perform activities within this work area A even in the dark or in poor lighting conditions.

[0034] Opposite the active luminous elements 24A and 24B, at least one further active luminous element 24C can also be provided, which is directed in a third illumination direction RL3 that is steeply upward relative to the central normal N. In this way, the further active luminous element 24C can be used, for example, to illuminate the work area A even in a kneeling position according to Figure 3.

[0035] The active luminous elements 24A to 24C can also be mounted so as to be at least partially rotatable in order to enable optimized illumination of a respective activity area, regardless of the posture adopted during an activity or which must be adopted due to space constraints.

[0036] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 1, at least one active illuminating element 24D can be arranged on a second outer side S2 facing away from the first outer side S1 and directed in a fourth illumination direction RL4. In contrast to the active illuminating elements 24A acting as headlights, which are directed in the first illumination direction RL1, the at least one active illuminating element 24D thereby functions as a rear light. In order to make the direction of view or movement of the wearer T visible to third parties, the active illuminating elements 24A and 24D can have different colors. In particular, the active illuminating elements 24A acting as headlights can glow white or yellowish, and the at least one active illuminating element 24D acting as a rear light can glow red. Alternatively or in addition to the red-illuminating active illuminating element 24D, a red reflector can also be used.As can be seen from Figure 2, in addition to the headlight device 20, which is held on a first lateral holding area 26, a second headlight device 28 can be provided, which is fastened to a second lateral holding area 30 of the knee holder 2, facing away from the first lateral holding area 26. The two holding areas 26, 30 are arranged laterally of the shell-shaped protective device 4 or the knee received therein, so that the headlight device 20 is not covered to the front or rear by the protective device 4 or the knee, and thus the front headlight and the rear light can emit light simultaneously. In addition, the at least one headlight device 20; 28 can be removably held on the outer side 22 so that it can be removed when not in use and the knee holder 2 can thus be used solely as a knee pad.For this purpose, detachable connecting means 32 are provided between the at least one headlight device 20; 28 and the outer side 22 of the knee holder 2, which can be formed by any known and suitable connecting means, such as hook-and-loop fasteners, a snap-in or plug-in connection, a button connection or the like.

[0037] As an alternative to the partially curved headlight housing G, a cuboid-shaped headlight housing G can also be used, as shown in Figure 2 using the right headlight device 28, on which the active luminous elements 24A, 24C, 24D are held on different outer sides.

[0038] Furthermore, the knee support 2 can alternatively also be provided without the protective device 4 and can have at least one headlight device 20; 28, which can be connected, for example, directly or via detachable connecting means 32 to the outer side 22 of the fastening means 10. This allows the knee support 2 to function purely as a lighting aid.

[0039] Regardless of the use of the protective device 4, the at least one headlight device 20 can also be activated or deactivated as needed when the knee holder is attached. For this purpose, an on / off switch 34 of the headlight device 20 is provided, for example, as can be seen from Figures 1 and 2. By means of this on / off switch 34, the respective headlight device 20 as a whole or its active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D can be activated or deactivated individually. By activating a specific number of the active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D, a desired light intensity of the headlight device 20 can be set. Alternatively or additionally, a dimmer (not shown) can also be provided to enable continuous adjustment of the desired light intensity.

[0040] Alternatively or in addition to the on / off switch 34, which is operated by the support T of the knee holder, a sensor 36 can also be arranged on the headlight device 20. This sensor can, for example, detect the light intensity present at the location of use, so that the active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D can be automatically activated or deactivated depending on the light present at the time, and their light intensity can be adjusted accordingly. In this way, the sensor 36 can function, in particular, as part of a twilight switch.

[0041] Alternatively or additionally, the sensor 36 can also serve as a position sensor in order to automatically activate the required active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D or automatically deactivate the unused active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D depending on the posture of the wearer T. Furthermore, alternatively or additionally, a remote control of the headlight device 20 can be provided via an app, which is stored and executable, for example, on a mobile phone of the wearer T (not shown) and by means of which the active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D can be controlled individually or jointly.

[0042] As can be seen from Figure 3, the active illuminating element 24D, which is directed obliquely upwards in the second illumination direction RL2, allows its light beam to be directed onto the work area A even in a kneeling position. In this way, the work area A within arm's reach of the wearer T can be easily illuminated by means of the at least one headlight device 20; 28, even in a kneeling position. At the same time, the downward-directed active illuminating elements 24A, which are not required in this case, can be deactivated.

[0043] The selection of the activated and deactivated active light elements 24A, 24B, 24C, 24D can be carried out either by the carrier T itself via the on / off switch 34, by means of a remote control, such as via an app, or automatically depending on a position or orientation of the headlight device 20; 28 determined by the sensor 36.

[0044] To supply energy to the active light elements 24, the headlight device 20 can comprise batteries or rechargeable accumulators (not shown). Alternatively or additionally, a generator can also be provided on the knee holder 2, by means of which a movement of the support T is converted into electrical energy and used or stored to supply the active light elements 24 (not shown).

[0045] It is pointed out that all elements and features of the various embodiments of the subject matter according to the invention described above are interchangeable or combinable with one another, unless an exchange or combination thereof is excluded for technical reasons.

Claims

1. Knee holder (2) with fastening means (10) for attachment to a knee joint (K) of a carrier (T), and with lighting means held on the fastening means (10), which have at least one headlight device (20; 28) directed away from an outer side (22) for generating a bundled light beam which can be aligned away from the outer side (22) in a front direction (RV), characterized in that the headlight device (20) is held on a lateral holding region (26; 30) of the outer side (22) and has at least one active illuminant (24A) which forms a front headlight and which is held on a first outer side (S1) of a headlight housing (G) of the headlight device (20), wherein a rear light is provided on a second outer side (S2) of the headlight housing (G) facing away from the first outer side (S1).

2. Knee holder according to claim 1, characterized in that the rear light is formed by at least one active light element (24D).

3. Knee support according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the fastening means (10) form a circumferential receiving area (18) for receiving the knee joint (K).

4. Knee holder according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the at least one headlight device (20; 28) has at least two active luminous elements (24A, 24B, 24C, 24D).

5. Knee support according to claim 4, characterized in that the at least two active luminous elements (24A, 24B, 24C, 24D) have at least two different luminous directions (RL1, RL2, RL3, RL4) relative to one another.

6. Knee support according to claim 5, characterized in that at least two of the active luminous elements (24A, 24B) with different luminous directions (RL1, RL2, RL3, RL4) also have different colors.

7. Knee support according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the at least one active light source (24A, 24B, 24C, 24D) is formed by an LED.

8. Knee holder according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the headlight device (20) is held on a first lateral holding region (26) of the outer side (22) and a second headlight device (28) is fastened to a second lateral holding region (30) of the outer side (22) facing away from the first holding region (26).

9. Knee holder according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the fastening means (10) have a protective device (4) arranged on the front and extending in a shell-like manner for partially receiving the knee joint (K), wherein the at least one headlight device (20; 28) is held detachably.

10. Knee holder according to claim 9, characterized in that in the applied state of the knee holder (2) by means of the at least one headlight device (20; 28) a light beam directed in a first lighting direction (RL1) can be generated, which is substantially parallel to a center normal (N) that can be generated on the protective device (4).

11. Knee support according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that in the applied state of the knee support (2) by means of the headlight device (20; 28) at least one light beam directed in a further lighting direction (RL3) which is directed upwards with respect to the mean normal (N) that can be generated on the protective device (4).

12. Knee support according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the at least one headlight device (20; 28) can be activated and deactivated.

13. Knee support according to one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the at least one headlight device (20; 28) has an adjustable light intensity.

14. Knee support according to one of claims 3 to 13, characterized in that the at least two active luminous elements (24A, 24B, 24C, 24D), which have different illumination directions (RL1, RL2, RL3, RL4), can be activated / deactivated and / or adjusted independently of one another [automatically; position sensor-controlled].

15. Headlight device for use with a knee holder according to one of claims 1 to 14, which has a headlight housing (G) on which the at least two active lighting elements (24A, 24B, 24C, 24D) are held, characterized in that at least one of the active lighting elements (24A) forms a front headlight which is held on a first outer side (S1) of the headlight housing (G) and a rear light is provided on a second outer side (S2) of the headlight housing (G) facing away from the first outer side (S1), which rear light is formed by at least one of the active lighting elements (24D).

16. Headlight device according to claim 15, characterized in that the at least one active luminous element (24D) of the rear light illuminates red.

17. Headlight device according to claim 16, characterized in that a plurality of active luminous elements (24B) are arranged along a curved region (25) of the headlight housing (G).

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