Active Recovery Shoe with Force Actuating Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
After strenuous exercise, the plantar venous plexus is ineffective in pumping blood back up the leg, leading to waste products pooling in the foot and lower leg, necessitating a device and method to enhance blood flow and recovery.
Innovation Solution
A shoe with a force actuating mechanism, receiver, and controller that detects physiological parameters like blood pressure and adjusts the mechanism's extension and retraction to actively pump blood through the plantar venous plexus, utilizing wireless communication and computer-readable media for control signals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the plantar venous plexus is left to function naturally after exercise, then the device complexity remains low, but blood flow and waste removal are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The shoe is divided into multiple functional segments: a sole with force actuating mechanisms, a controller, and a receiver. Each segment performs a specific function in the blood pumping process, allowing the system to achieve effective blood flow management through coordinated action of simpler individual components rather than a single complex mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the user's own physiological data (detected via the receiver) to automatically control the force actuating mechanisms. The controller processes this information and adjusts the pumping action accordingly, eliminating the need for external monitoring equipment or manual intervention, thus improving productivity without proportionally increasing device complexity.
2Productivity
If a force actuating mechanism is added to pump blood, then blood flow improvement is achieved, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to need for physiological parameter detection and control
Solution Approach 1:
The receiver continuously monitors physiological parameters and feeds this information back to the controller, which automatically adjusts the force actuating mechanisms. This closed-loop feedback system eliminates the need for user intervention or manual adjustment, making the complex blood pumping function operate automatically and seamlessly, thus maintaining ease of operation while achieving blood flow enhancement.
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual mechanical adjustment with an automated electromechanical control system. The controller uses electronic signals to actuate the force mechanisms based on detected physiological parameters, substituting complex manual operation with automated electronic control, thereby improving blood flow management without burdening the user with operational complexity.
3Productivity
If automatic control based on physiological parameters is implemented, then recovery effectiveness is improved, but the use of energy increases due to detection and control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The force actuating mechanisms operate in periodic cycles rather than continuously, activating only when physiological parameters indicate the need for blood pumping. This intermittent operation significantly reduces energy consumption compared to continuous operation, while still maintaining effective recovery by targeting specific physiological states when pumping is most beneficial.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller adjusts the operational parameters of the force actuating mechanisms based on detected physiological parameters. By dynamically changing activation thresholds, force magnitude, and cycle frequency according to real-time physiological data, the system optimizes energy usage to match actual recovery needs, improving recovery effectiveness without excessive energy consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
A shoe is provided for use by a user and for use with a communication device that transmits a physiological signal based on a detected physiological parameter of the user. The shoe includes a sole, a force actuating mechanism, a receiver and a controller. The sole has a top surface for supporting the foot of the user when being worn by the user. The force actuating mechanism provides a force to the top surface of the sole and is disposed at the sole so as to provide the force to a plantar venous plexus of the foot. The receiver receives the physiological parameter signal. The controller generates a control signal to control the force actuating mechanism. The controller further modifies the control signal based on the received physiological parameter signal.