Prosthetic Sock Management Tool with Color-Coded Pouches
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Solution Overview
Problem
Patients with lower limb amputations face challenges in managing prosthetic socks, including skin breakdown, discomfort, and non-compliance due to inadequate sock management and care, leading to issues like skin damage and reduced prosthesis usage.
Innovation Solution
A prosthetic sock management tool comprising washable pouches with color-coded, numbered, or Braille identifiers, and a patient education component with easy-to-read instructions for optimal sock use and care, facilitating organization, identification, and maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If patients carry a variety of socks to change throughout the day, then sock fit and comfort are optimized, but convenience and portability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple individual socks into a single integrated sock system with modular components that can be adjusted and reconfigured. This merging approach allows patients to have one portable sock system that provides multiple fit options through adjustable plies and interchangeable components, eliminating the need to carry multiple separate socks while maintaining fit optimization capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The sock system incorporates universal design features including adjustable plies, interchangeable components, and size-adjustment mechanisms that allow a single sock system to serve multiple functions and accommodate different fit requirements throughout the day. This multi-functionality enables patients to optimize fit without carrying multiple specialized socks for different conditions.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If patients wash and dry socks daily, then hygiene and skin health are improved, but sock fabric durability deteriorates due to repeated washing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates a repair kit with interchangeable components and patches that allow damaged sock sections to be replaced or repaired rather than discarded. This enables patients to maintain hygiene through daily washing while recovering and extending the functional life of sock components, preventing total sock replacement despite repeated laundering.
Solution Approach 2:
The sock system includes pre-applied protective coatings and reinforced high-wear areas designed to withstand repeated washing. The fabric is treated beforehand with durability-enhancing finishes and constructed with extra reinforcement in areas prone to damage, cushioning against the degrading effects of daily laundering while maintaining hygiene capabilities.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If patients use thick plush socks for comfort, then limb comfort is improved, but sock visibility and identification deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates color-coded identification systems, reflective materials, and visible markers into the sock design that maintain visibility even through thick plush materials. Different colors or patterns indicate different sock types, sizes, or conditions, allowing easy identification and proper selection while preserving the comfort-providing plush construction.
Data Source
AI summary
A device and method for managing a plurality of groups of socks where the device includes a plurality of pouches attached to one another and a patient education and compliance tool. Each group has at least one sock. Socks of each of the groups have different characteristics from one another. The groups of socks are adapted for use between a limb of a patent and a socket of a prosthetic device. Each pouch is adapted for securing at least one sock from a group. The method includes sorting the plurality of groups of socks according to the characteristic, associating each pouch with a respective one of the groups, and securing each group of socks within an associated pouch.