Extendable Shaft Massage Device for Trigger Point Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing self-administered massage devices are inadequate for providing precise and sustained pressure on trigger points, often leading to excessive force and potential injury, as they tend to roll away from the target site and require manual effort, which can cause tension in other body parts.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable massage device with an extendable and retractable shaft and a replaceable pressure accessory, such as a ball, that allows users to apply sustained pressure with minimal effort by leveraging their body weight, ensuring precise targeting and minimizing manual exertion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If a ball or spherical object is used for self-administered massage, then the rounded contours are well-suited for application on trigger points, but the ball tends to roll away from the target tissue site and is difficult to keep in place
Solution Approach 1:
The massage device is segmented into multiple functional components: a handle for gripping, an extendable shaft for positioning, and a pressure accessory (ball) for trigger point application. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function optimally while working together as a unified system.
Solution Approach 2:
The extendable shaft acts as an intermediary between the user's hand and the pressure accessory. It provides a stable connection that prevents the ball from rolling away while allowing precise positioning and adjustment of the pressure application point.
2Measurement precision
If manual force is exerted to apply therapy to one area of the body, then targeted massage can be achieved, but it may result in undesirable contraction or tension in other parts of the user such as hands, arms, and neck
Solution Approach 1:
The device extends the massage application into a new dimensional space by using an extendable shaft that allows the user to reach distant body parts without straining the arms, shoulders, or neck. This transforms the massage action from a localized manual effort to a distributed mechanical advantage system.
Solution Approach 2:
The extendable shaft serves as a mechanical intermediary that transfers and amplifies the user's input force from the handle to the pressure accessory, enabling deep tissue massage without requiring the user to exert excessive manual force directly on the target area.
3Ease of operation
If an extendable shaft is added to allow leverage of body weight, then sustained pressure can be applied with minimal effort, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The shaft incorporates dynamic adjustment capabilities, allowing the user to extend or retract it to the optimal length for different body areas and pressure requirements. This dynamic adaptability enables the device to maintain simplicity while providing versatile functionality across multiple application scenarios.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to therapeutic body massage devices, and more particularly, to an extendable and retractable massage device which is particularly effective in relieving tender and painful connective tissue and muscular conditions, including but not limited to trigger points. The present invention is directed to an appliance having an adjustable shaft that can access all points on both sides of the body and that allows an individual to place a pressure accessory element of the appliance between the body and a flat surface to apply sustained pressure to a treatment site with minimal effort without taxing other parts of the body and without the pressure accessory element dislodging from the treatment site. The present invention further provides a massage system and a method of self-administering massage therapy on a body or limb.