Rotating Platform Shoulder Orthosis for Adjustable Support
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current shoulder orthoses are difficult to adjust and cumbersome, limiting their effectiveness in providing the desired position for shoulder joint healing and comfort.
Innovation Solution
A rotating platform rigid shoulder orthosis with a torso belt, forearm sling, and a lockable rotating platform featuring a torso conforming element and a malleable semi-rigid supporting element, allowing for adjustable orientation and support of the arm.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a shoulder sling is used to encapsulate the arm and limit mobility, then the stability and support for the shoulder joint is improved, but the ease of operation and adjustability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The orthosis incorporates a rotatable platform that allows dynamic adjustment of the arm's position. The platform can be rotated to different angles (e.g., 0°, 45°, 90°) to accommodate various degrees of abduction and rotation, transforming a static sling into a dynamically adjustable support system that maintains stability while improving ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The design changes the positional parameters of the arm support through controlled rotation of the platform. By adjusting the rotation angle of the platform, the system can modify the arm's abduction angle and rotational position, enabling precise control over the therapeutic position while maintaining the stabilizing function of the sling
2Reliability
If the arm is positioned in a fixed desired orientation, then the healing effectiveness is improved, but the adaptability to different injury protocols deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The rotatable platform provides multiple fixed angular positions (0°, 45°, 90°, etc.) that correspond to different therapeutic protocols. This dynamic positioning capability allows the orthosis to adapt to various injury types and recovery protocols while maintaining the precise positioning required for effective healing
Solution Approach 2:
The orthosis is designed to serve multiple therapeutic functions through the adjustable platform. A single device can accommodate different injury protocols (e.g., post-surgical positioning, dislocation prevention, comfort positioning) by rotating the platform to appropriate angles, making it a universal solution for various shoulder rehabilitation needs
Data Source
AI summary
An orthosis is provided, including a torso belt configured to be secured around a torso of a patient, a forearm sling configured to support a forearm of the patient, and a lockable rotating platform. The lockable rotating platform includes a torso conforming element configured to be held against the torso of the patient by the torso belt, and a malleable semi-rigid supporting element. The torso conforming element includes a central portion and is curved along its length of extension between first and second ends to, thereby, conform to the torso of the patient. The malleable semi-rigid supporting element includes a rotation hub rotatably coupled to the central portion of the torso conforming element, a forearm platform operatively connected to the rotation hub, and a forearm support strut operatively connected between the rotation hub and a forearm support platform. Other orthoses and related methods are also provided.