Black Box Joint Brace for Real-Time Limb Motion Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing joint braces are passive devices that fail to provide real-time feedback on kinetic movements, making it difficult for wearers to recognize potential injuries and requiring post-injury diagnosis by health practitioners through physical inspection or imagery.
Innovation Solution
A black box joint brace equipped with sensors, a power source, and memory to record and transmit spatial positions, rotary motion, pulse, and temperature data to generate a video clip of limb movements for health care practitioners.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If joint braces are made as passive devices with simple elastic material and straps, then the device complexity is low and ease of manufacture is high, but the ability to provide real-time monitoring and injury diagnosis is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple sensing functions (position, velocity, acceleration, pulse, temperature) into a single joint brace device, merging the capabilities of multiple separate monitoring devices into one integrated wearable system that comprehensively captures kinetic movement data and physiological parameters
Solution Approach 2:
The joint brace is designed as a multi-functional device that simultaneously provides mechanical support through elastic material, real-time positional tracking through sensors, physiological monitoring through pulse and temperature sensors, and data transmission through wireless communication, making it a universal monitoring and support system
2Measurement precision
If joint braces include multiple sensors and computing systems for real-time monitoring, then the measurement precision and diagnostic capability are improved, but the weight and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent places sensors and monitoring components only at specific locations where they are most needed for accurate measurement, such as positioning sensors on the flexible sleeve to detect limb position and rotary motion sensors at joints to measure angular movement, rather than distributing weight uniformly across the entire device
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces heavy mechanical measurement systems with electronic and optical sensing technologies, using positional sensors, accelerometers, and wireless transmission to capture kinetic data without requiring bulky mechanical linkages or complex mechanical measurement apparatus
3Area of stationary object
If joint braces are designed to envelop the entire joint with large circumference, then the coverage and support area are improved, but the flexibility and comfort are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a flexible sleeve made of neoprene or similar elastic material that conforms to the contour of the limb and joint, providing comprehensive coverage and support while maintaining flexibility and comfort through the inherent properties of flexible polymer materials that can stretch and move with the joint
Data Source
AI summary
A black box joint brace incudes a flexible sleeve such as a neoprene sleeve defining a hollow channel with a circumference that is less than a circumference of a target limb encapsulating a mammalian joint such as a knee joint, elbow joint, wrist joint or ankle joint. The brace additionally includes a power source fixed to the sleeve and a set of positional sensors disposed opposite to one another on the sleeve and sensing a spatial position of each of different limbs positioned oppositely across the mammalian joint. Finally, the joint brace includes memory powered by the power source and storing the spatial position sensed by the set of positional sensors.