Debossed Hand Pad with Slip-Resistant Texture for Yoga Wrist Stress
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing yoga and floor-based exercise practices often cause hand slipping and excessive stress on the hands and wrists, particularly for individuals with preexisting conditions or injuries, due to inadequate friction between the hands and the exercise mat, which can lead to injuries and limit participation in these beneficial exercises.
Innovation Solution
A portable, affordable, and resilient hand pad system with a slip-resistant surface texture and a debossed human hand profile cavity, optionally convertible into a yoga block form, to prevent hand slipping and reduce wrist stress, featuring a multi-layered construction with a slip-resistant coating and a lanyard for easy storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If a thin resilient mat is used for yoga practice, then portability and ease of storage are improved, but hand slipping and wrist stress increase due to inadequate friction and support
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a hand pad as an intermediary device between the hand and the mat surface. This hand pad provides enhanced friction and support without requiring a complete change to the mat system, thus preventing hand slipping while maintaining portability.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of making the entire mat thicker or changing its overall properties, the patent applies a specialized hand pad only at the specific location where hand contact occurs. This localized solution provides enhanced friction and support precisely where needed, without compromising the overall portability of the yoga equipment.
2Stress or pressure
If a thicker or more supportive mat is used, then hand and wrist stress is reduced, but portability and ease of storage deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the support function into two separate components: a thin portable mat for base support and a dedicated hand pad for hand and wrist support. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall portability.
Solution Approach 2:
The hand pad acts as an intermediary support element that provides the necessary cushioning and stress relief for hands and wrists without requiring the entire mat to be thicker or heavier.
3Reliability
If a non-slip coating is applied to the mat surface, then hand slipping is prevented, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent separates the non-slip function into a distinct hand pad component rather than applying it to the entire mat. This allows the non-slip properties to be concentrated where needed while keeping the mat manufacturing simple and cost-effective.
Solution Approach 2:
The hand pad can be manufactured as a separate, potentially replaceable component using cost-effective materials and processes, avoiding the need for expensive specialized mat manufacturing.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Effectively prevents hand slipping and reduces stress on the hands and wrists during yoga and other floor-based exercises, allowing individuals with preexisting conditions to practice safely and comfortably, while also providing support similar to traditional yoga blocks.
Implementation Method 1
combinations of lateral and longitudinal movement of the practitioner's body often place directional stresses on the hands, fingers and wrists, of the users that are typically only counteracted by the forces of friction between the mat surface and the portion of the user's hands in direct contact with the mat
Implementation Method 2
resilient hand form pad and optional block accessory constructed for supporting one or both hands of a user during the practice of yoga or any other floor-based static exercise
Data Source
AI summary
A hand pad for stabilizing and supporting on a floor or other surface the hand of a user during either stationary/static or dynamic exercises includes a hand pad body having a top surface defining a debossed profile of a human hand, or human hand-shaped cavity, for receiving therein a hand of a user. An optional complementary block may be provided having a top side constructed for releasable engagement with the hand pad body.