Ankle Support Assembly for Stable Gait Retraining
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Solution Overview
Problem
Patients with severe medical conditions such as strokes or traumatic brain injury face difficulty in maintaining a steady gait and often trip over their feet due to lack of appropriate devices for ankle support during walking therapy.
Innovation Solution
An ankle support device with adjustable straps and swivel joints to maintain shoulder-width leg positioning, facilitating normal gait retraining by ensuring feet remain apart and allowing independent steps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If patients walk without support devices, then they have natural movement freedom, but they cannot maintain proper foot spacing and trip over their feet
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an ankle support device as an intermediary between the patient's ankles and the ground. This device includes ankle straps that wrap around each ankle and connect via a tensioning mechanism, serving as a mediator that provides external support to maintain proper foot spacing without restricting natural walking motion. The device acts as a temporary scaffold that helps patients regain confidence and proper gait patterns during rehabilitation.
Solution Approach 2:
The ankle support device employs dynamic elements including a tensioning mechanism with adjustable resistance, allowing the support force to adapt to the patient's movement phase. The device includes movable connection points and flexible straps that dynamically adjust to maintain constant tension throughout the walking cycle, providing continuous stability while preserving natural gait mechanics.
2Reliability
If rigid braces are used to maintain leg positioning, then foot spacing is maintained, but natural walking motion is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The device allows dynamic adjustment of key parameters including tension force, connection point positions, and strap lengths. The tensioning mechanism can be adjusted to provide different resistance levels appropriate for various stages of rehabilitation. Connection points can be repositioned to accommodate different foot spacing requirements, enabling the device to adapt to changing patient needs while maintaining proper gait mechanics.
Solution Approach 2:
The ankle support device transitions from static rigid structures to dynamic flexible elements that adapt throughout the walking cycle. The tensioning mechanism actively adjusts forces based on movement phase, and flexible straps conform to ankle geometry changes, providing consistent support while allowing natural gait variations.
3Reliability
If complex therapy equipment is provided, then gait training is supported, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The ankle support device is divided into independent modular components: separate ankle straps for each foot, individual tensioning mechanisms, and discrete connection elements. This segmentation allows the device to be manufactured using simple, well-established components and enables easy adjustment or replacement of individual parts without affecting the entire system, thereby reducing overall complexity while maintaining therapeutic effectiveness.
Data Source
AI summary
The Ambulatory Device is the only product of its kind that has the capability of spacing the legs and feet apart at a proper width to prevent slipping, tripping, and falling when relearning how to walk. This unprecedented device is uniquely designed with an adjustable bar that can be modified to accommodate specific user body metrics and is carefully crafted with durable, high-quality materials to ensure long-term sustainability during private or therapeutic sessions.