Lower Extremity Support With Ball-Mount Isolation Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing surgical support systems for the lower extremity during orthopedic surgery often create electrical conductivity between the patient and the operating table, leading to potential burns and other injuries, and they typically have complex moving parts that cause wear and tear, constrain movement, and create pinch points.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable surgical support system featuring a lower extremity support with a downwardly extending ball mount that can be selectively inserted into and rotated within a plurality of conically shaped apertures in a base plate, eliminating direct electrical contact with the operating table and minimizing moving parts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional support devices are mounted via clamps or bars to a metal edge or rail of the operating table, then the support device can be securely positioned, but an electrically conductive connection is created between the support device and the operating table
Solution Approach 1:
A non-conductive base plate is introduced as an intermediary between the support device and the operating table. The base plate has a non-conductive interface that prevents electrical current from traveling from the operating table through the support device to the patient, while still providing secure positioning through friction fit or locking mechanisms.
2Adaptability or versatility
If adjustable support devices include moving parts for positional adjustment, then the position of the foot, lower leg and/or knee can be adjusted during surgery, but wear and tear, complexity and pinch points are created
Solution Approach 1:
The support device is divided into separate modular components including a base plate, support structure, and positioning elements. Each component can be independently adjusted or repositioned, providing versatility without requiring complex moving parts within a single integrated structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates dynamic adjustment capabilities through features such as rotatable elements and repositionable components that allow the support structure to be adjusted to various positions during surgery, maintaining adaptability while minimizing mechanical complexity.
3Ease of operation
If conventional support devices are designed with multiple moving parts for adjustment, then positional flexibility is improved, but needless wear and tear and pinch points are created
Solution Approach 1:
Complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms are removed from the design. Instead, the device uses simple, robust components that can be easily repositioned or replaced, eliminating wear and tear associated with intricate moving parts while maintaining positional flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
The adjustable surgical support system includes a lower extremity support for receiving and supporting the foot and lower leg of a patient laying supine on an operating table. A ball mount extending downwardly from the lower extremity support is selectively insertable within one of a plurality of apertures arranged in a matrix and formed in an underlying base plate. The apertures are conical in nature such that the ball mount is stable to horizontal forces when placed therein. The base plate may include at least one upwardly open channel that receives a foot rest for anchoring the adjustable surgical support system to the operating table. Surgeons and other surgical personnel may adjust the position of the foot and/or lower leg during surgery by removing and selectively inserting the ball mount into any one of the other apertures in the base plate, or rotating the same within the selected aperture.