Soft-Actuated Robotic Knee Brace for Cartilage Regeneration
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current unloader braces for knee joint issues are rigid and do not facilitate cartilage regeneration, leading to a need for pharmacological remedies or surgical procedures for addressing degenerated articular cartilage.
Innovation Solution
A soft-actuated robotic brace with a sleeve and struts, featuring soft-bodied actuators with elastomeric materials and pressurizable chambers, that applies forces at specific angles to unload pressure on the knee joint, promoting cartilage regeneration through distraction and appropriate loading.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rigid unloader braces are used to address knee joint issues, then structural support and pressure unloading are achieved, but cartilage regeneration is not facilitated
Solution Approach 1:
The brace incorporates soft-bodied actuators that can dynamically adjust their mechanical properties and apply controlled forces to the knee joint. These actuators transition between different states (e.g., inflated/deflated) to provide adaptive support and promote cartilage regeneration, moving away from static rigid structures toward dynamic, responsive systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The brace utilizes changeable physical parameters through pressurizable chambers containing elastomeric materials. By controlling pressure changes within these chambers, the brace can modify its mechanical characteristics, apply variable forces, and adjust its behavior to facilitate cartilage regeneration while maintaining structural support.
2Reliability
If pharmacological remedies or surgical procedures are used for cartilage regeneration, then cartilage regeneration is achieved, but invasive interventions and side effects are introduced
Solution Approach 1:
The brace replaces pharmacological and surgical interventions with a mechanical system designed to promote cartilage regeneration through physical means. The soft-bodied actuators apply controlled mechanical forces and the brace structure provides mechanical support, eliminating the need for invasive drugs or surgery while achieving cartilage regeneration goals.
Solution Approach 2:
The brace system is designed to be self-contained and self-regulating, with the soft-bodied actuators automatically responding to knee joint conditions through pressure changes. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for continuous pharmacological intervention or surgical procedures, providing autonomous cartilage regeneration support.
3Reliability
If soft-bodied actuators with pressurizable chambers are used, then cartilage regeneration is promoted through appropriate loading, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The brace employs soft-bodied actuators constructed from flexible elastomeric materials that can be formed into various configurations. These flexible shells and thin films allow for complex geometries and integrated structures that can be manufactured more easily than rigid components with complex internal mechanisms, while still providing the necessary mechanical functions for cartilage regeneration.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a brace for regeneration of tissue in a knee comprising a sleeve and a first strut; where the first strut comprises an upper portion comprising a first jig; where the first jig comprises a slot for hosting a first strap that is in contact with the sleeve; a central portion that comprises a central strut that is in fluid communication with an actuator located on a first side of the knee that imposes a force on the knee; where the force is inclined at an angle to a longitudinal axis of the first strut; and a lower portion that comprises a second jig; where the second jig comprises a slot for hosting a second strap that contacts the sleeve at an opposite end relative to a position that the first strap contacts the sleeve.