Flexor Press Trigger Point Therapy Lever Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing self-treatment tools for the psoas and iliacus muscles require users to lay prone, elongating the muscles and making them more painful to treat, whereas applying pressure with shortened muscle bellies aligns better with neuromuscular treatment protocols.
Innovation Solution
A massaging apparatus for trigger point therapy comprising an anchoring sheet, a thumb sleeve, and a massaging device, which allows for controlled pressure application by anchoring onto the user's body and enabling the massaging device to be positioned at various angles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If users lay prone on top of existing self-treatment tools, then body weight provides pressure to the muscles, but the psoas and iliacus muscles become elongated making treatment more painful
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a lever arm as an intermediary mechanical element between the user's body weight and the massaging surface. The lever arm allows indirect application of force through mechanical advantage, enabling pressure to be applied without the user's body weight directly elongating the target muscles. The fulcrum acts as another intermediary point that transforms the applied force into effective massage pressure while maintaining proper muscle positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the mechanical parameters of force application by introducing a lever system with adjustable arm lengths and fulcrum positions. This allows modification of the force vector and pressure distribution, enabling effective massage pressure to be applied while keeping the muscle bellies in a shortened, less painful state rather than the elongated state caused by direct body weight application.
2Device complexity
If existing tools use body weight for pressure, then simple design is maintained, but complete control of pressure applied is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the static pressure application of existing tools into a dynamic system with movable lever arms and adjustable fulcrum positions. This dynamic design allows users to control pressure by adjusting the lever arm position and angle, providing fine-grained control over the force applied to the muscles while maintaining relative design simplicity through the use of basic mechanical components.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the pressure application mechanism into distinct functional components: the lever arm, fulcrum, and massaging surface. This segmentation allows independent adjustment of each component to optimize pressure control, enabling users to modify the mechanical advantage and force distribution without redesigning the entire device, thus balancing control capability with design simplicity.
3Speed
If users apply pressure directly with body weight, then immediate pressure is achieved, but muscle bellies become elongated reducing treatment effectiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates preliminary positioning actions through the lever arm system that allows users to first establish the correct anatomical positioning and muscle shortening before applying therapeutic pressure. The lever mechanism enables preparatory adjustment of the massage point and muscle state, ensuring the muscle bellies are in the optimal shortened position before force is applied, thereby improving treatment effectiveness without sacrificing pressure application speed.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention is a massaging apparatus suited for trigger point therapy. The massaging apparatus suited for trigger point therapy contains an anchoring sheet, a thumb sleeve, and a massaging device. The anchoring sheet contains a sheet aperture, a first end, and a second end. The first end and the second end are terminally opposite to each other along the anchoring sheet. The sheet aperture is positioned adjacent to the first end, opposite to the second end. The sheet aperture traverses through the anchoring sheet. The thumb sleeve is connected within the sheet aperture. The thumb sleeve is concentrically aligned and connected to the sheet. The massaging device is hingedly connected to the thumb sleeve, opposite to the anchoring sheet through a first hinge.