Adjustable Jack Insert for Lumbar Spinal Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional spinal vertebrae support implants, such as titanium plates, cause discomfort and limit motion due to their invasive nature and inability to accommodate dynamic spinal alignment, leading to nerve pinching and misalignment issues like scoliosis.
Innovation Solution
The development of ergonomically designed jack inserts and cushioning implants that establish desired vertical and lateral spacing between lumbar vertebrae, using a plastic body with varying durometer ratings and mechanisms like screw lift and ratchet systems, to provide adjustable support and prevent nerve pinching.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If titanium plates are used to immobilize vertebrae, then spinal alignment is fixed, but flexibility of motion is significantly limited and discomfort occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a dynamic jack insert mechanism that can be adjusted between different positions. The jack allows the upper vertebra to be elevated or lowered relative to the lower vertebra, transforming the rigid fixed alignment into an adjustable dynamic configuration. This resolves the contradiction by enabling both stable alignment when needed and flexible motion when required.
Solution Approach 2:
The jack insert changes the spacing parameter between vertebrae, allowing the vertical distance to be adjusted. By varying the jack's extension state, the system can maintain spinal alignment when the jack is in a specific position while allowing motion flexibility when adjusted to different positions, thus resolving the contradiction between stability and flexibility.
2Reliability
If titanium plates are screwed to vertebrae, then vertebrae are immobilized, but discomfort and pain are associated with implanting
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the invasive titanium plate from the spinal column and replaces it with a non-invasive jack insert that can be placed between the vertebrae. This removes the harmful factor of surgical implantation while maintaining the ability to immobilize and align the vertebrae, thus resolving the contradiction between reliability and harmful effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The jack insert acts as an intermediary device placed between the vertebrae to achieve immobilization and alignment without directly screwing into the bone. This mediator approach eliminates the painful surgical implantation process while still providing the necessary spinal support and alignment functionality.
3Strength
If fixed brace supports are installed, then spinal support is provided, but adaptability to dynamic spinal conditions is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The jack insert provides dynamic adaptability by allowing adjustment of the vertical spacing between vertebrae. The mechanism can be modified to accommodate different spinal conditions and alignment requirements, transforming the fixed brace into a dynamically adaptable support system that maintains strength while adapting to changing spinal needs.
Data Source
AI summary
An insert for establishing a desired spacing between a pair of succeeding vertebrae and having a body including an extending end for supporting a location associated with a first selected lumbar vertebrae. An opposite extending end supports a spaced apart and opposing location associated with a second successively positioned lumbar vertebrae. Upon pre-positioning the body in an open space established between the vertebrae, an actuating input causes the first extending end to displace outwardly relative to the second end and into contacting support with the vertebrae.