Femur Support Assembly for Precise Leg Positioning in Arthroplasty
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical procedures for knee and hip replacements face challenges in efficiently positioning and orienting the patient's leg, particularly the femur, to facilitate optimal surgical access and manipulation during procedures like total hip arthroplasty.
Innovation Solution
A femur support assembly is designed for a surgical table, featuring a support plate with an elongated rod that is vertically movable, a rotatable elongated support with multiple apertures for mounting a femur hook, and a traction device allowing axial movement, angular rotation, and fine adjustments, enabling single-handed manipulation of the leg.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a femur support assembly with vertically movable rod and rotatable elongated support with multiple apertures is used, then positioning precision and orientation flexibility of the femur are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The femur support assembly is divided into distinct functional segments: a vertically movable rod for height adjustment, a rotatable elongated support with multiple apertures for angular positioning, and a femur hook for securing the bone. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while maintaining overall system flexibility and precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The assembly incorporates dynamic elements including vertical movement of the rod along the support structure, rotation of the elongated support about the rod axis, and multiple aperture positions for the femur hook. These dynamic capabilities enable precise positioning at various heights and angles while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure.
2Ease of operation
If a traction device with course-adjustment and fine-adjustment features is used, then manipulation precision and ease of operation are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The traction device incorporates a course-adjustment feature that allows preliminary, gross positioning of the femur before fine-tuning. This preliminary action enables quick initial placement and orientation, reducing the time and complexity required for subsequent precise adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The device provides both course-adjustment for large movements and fine-adjustment for small precision movements. This dual-adjustment capability allows the operator to use the appropriate level of adjustment precision for each positioning step, improving overall ease of operation without requiring maximum precision for every adjustment.
3Productivity
If axial movement and angular rotation of the patient's leg are performed simultaneously by a single member, then surgical productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The femur support assembly merges multiple adjustment functions into a single integrated structure. The vertically movable rod and rotatable elongated support work together as one unit, allowing a single operator to simultaneously control both axial positioning and angular orientation of the femur through coordinated movement of the integrated mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The traction device is designed with multi-functionality, enabling it to perform both course-adjustment and fine-adjustment, as well as facilitate simultaneous axial movement and angular rotation. This universal design allows one device to handle multiple positioning tasks that would otherwise require separate mechanisms.
Data Source
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AI summary
A femur support assembly attachable to a surgical table. The support assembly is comprised of a support plate, and an elongated rod reciprocally movable in a generally vertical direction relative to the support plate. An elongated support is mounted to the rod. The elongated support is rotatable about the rod and has a plurality of like apertures formed thereon. Each of the apertures defines a mounting position. A femur hook is provided having an end dimensioned to be received in one of the plurality of apertures.