Sensor-Guided Body Weight Support for Dynamic Gait Therapy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing body-weight support systems for gait therapy face challenges such as static unloading, limited adjustability, bulky motorized trolleys, delayed system responses, and cable management issues, which hinder safe and effective over-ground gait training for patients with walking impairments.
Innovation Solution
A trolley-based system with sensors and an electronic control system that dynamically supports patient weight, adjusts in real-time, and minimizes trolley interference, using a drive mechanism suspended from a track with a tether and sensors to monitor patient and system conditions, enabling continuous modulation of support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a passive trolley and rail system is used to support patient weight, then the system structure is simple, but the patient must compensate for trolley dynamics which destabilizes the subject and results in abnormal compensatory gait strategy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the passive mechanical trolley system with an active control system that uses sensors to detect patient motion and electronically actuates the trolley to counterbalance dynamics. This substitution of mechanical passivity with electronic-active control eliminates the destabilizing effect while maintaining structural simplicity.
2Ease of operation
If static unloading is used where shoulder straps are set to fixed length, then the system is simple to operate, but it results in abnormal ground reaction forces and altered muscle activation patterns in the lower extremities
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the static unloading system into a dynamic one by continuously adjusting the support force based on real-time sensor feedback. The shoulder straps transition from fixed length to dynamically adjustable length, allowing the system to adapt to patient movement and maintain natural ground reaction forces and muscle activation patterns.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback control loop where sensors detect patient position and movement, and this information is used to continuously adjust the support force. This feedback mechanism ensures that the system responds to patient needs in real-time, maintaining therapeutic effectiveness while preserving ease of operation through automated control.
3Reliability
If motorized trolley systems are used to reduce trolley mass effect, then patient stability is improved, but the trolley becomes bulky and system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the motorization functions directly into the trolley structure, integrating the drive mechanism, sensors, and control electronics into a unified compact unit. This consolidation reduces overall system complexity while maintaining the active control capabilities needed for patient stability.
4Reliability
If continuous weight support modulation is implemented, then gait therapy effectiveness is improved, but manual adjustment requirements increase operator workload
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables the system to automatically modulate weight support based on sensor feedback without requiring manual operator intervention. The electronic control system self-adjusts the support force in real-time, maintaining therapeutic effectiveness while eliminating the need for continuous manual adjustment.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus includes a drive mechanism, a patient support mechanism, and an electronic system. The drive mechanism is included in a trolley and is configured to suspend the trolley from a support track. The drive mechanism includes a first sensor configured to sense an operating condition of the drive mechanism. The patient support mechanism couples to the trolley and includes a tether and a second sensor. The tether can be operatively coupled to a patient such that the patient support mechanism supports the patient. The second sensor is configured to sense an operating condition of the patient support mechanism. The electronic system is included in the trolley and has at least a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to define a gait characteristic of the patient based at least in part on a signal received from the first sensor and a signal received from the second sensor.