Knee Brace with Adjustable Ring Fasteners for Ligament Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional knee stabilizing braces require separate models for different ligament damages, limiting their versatility and necessitating multiple brace types for various ligament injuries.
Innovation Solution
A knee stabilizing brace design featuring a flexible brace body with detachable ring-like fasteners and support stays, allowing for adjustable fastening configurations to accommodate different ligament damages without the need for multiple brace types, using four ring-like fasteners and engaging regions for customizable strapping.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the fastening band is fixed onto a particular portion of the knee brace body, then the brace provides stable support for that specific ligament damage, but it cannot be used for other ligament damages
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening band is designed to be movable and repositionable along the knee brace body rather than fixed at a single location. This allows the same brace to be adapted for different ligament damages by adjusting the fastening band position, resolving the contradiction between providing stable support and maintaining versatility.
Solution Approach 2:
The knee brace body is designed with multiple engagement points and a reconfigurable fastening system that can accommodate different fastening patterns for various ligament damages (ACL, PCL, MCL, LCL). This universal design allows one brace to serve multiple functions for different injury types.
2Reliability
If separate knee brace models are prepared for each damaged ligament portion, then each brace can be optimized for specific ligament damage, but the number of brace types increases
Solution Approach 1:
A single knee brace model incorporates multiple fastening bands and engagement points that can be configured for different ligament damages. This universal design eliminates the need for separate brace models while maintaining optimized support for each specific injury type through adjustable fastening patterns.
Solution Approach 2:
The knee brace is divided into functional segments with independent fastening bands and engagement points. This segmentation allows flexible configuration where only the necessary portions are activated for each specific ligament damage, providing specialized support without requiring entirely different brace models.
3Ease of manufacture
If the fastening band extends diagonally upward from the lower ends of the bag-like support members, then the brace structure is simplified, but the strapping method cannot be adjusted for different ligament damages
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening band configuration is made dynamic and adjustable rather than fixed in a single diagonal path. Multiple engagement points along the brace body allow the fastening band to be routed in different patterns depending on the ligament damage type, maintaining structural simplicity while enabling flexible strapping methods.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4(a)~4(b)
AI summary
The invention provides a knee stabilizing brace which is usable regardless of a damaged portion of a ligament of a knee joint. The knee stabilizing brace includes a brace body (1) which has a back-side body portion (1A) adapted to be applied to a back side of a thigh, a poples, and a back side of a crus, and right and left front-side body portions (1B, 1 C), which are adapted to be applied to a front side of the thigh, a kneecap, and a front side of the crus, right and left support stays (2, 3) for reinforcement, and upper and lower fastening bands (4, 5, 6, 7) for fastening the brace body (1) around a thigh portion, wherein the brace body (1) is adapted to be fitted around a knee portion by overlapping and engaging surface fasteners of the right and left front-side body portions (1B, 1C), four ring-like fasteners (41, 42, 43, 44) are provided on upper, lower, right, and left sides of the back side of the back-side body portion (1A), four engaging regions (101, 102, 103, 104) are set to upper, lower, right, and left sides of the right and left front-side body portions (1B, 1C), and first and second fastening bands (50, 51) for patella which are detachably engaged into one of the four ring-like fasteners (41, 42, 43, 44) and one of the four engaging regions (101, 102, 103, 104) are provided.