Soft Gripper Blood Pressure Cuff for Arm Diameter Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Elderly individuals and those with shoulder diseases face difficulties in tightening or detaching conventional blood pressure measuring cuffs due to arm diameter variations, making it challenging to obtain accurate measurements.
Innovation Solution
A soft gripper system comprising elongated actuators that deform in response to fluid supply, allowing automatic adaptation to arm thickness, with separate air supply ports for controlled bending and detachment, and integrated Hook-and-Loop fasteners for secure fitting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional blood pressure measuring cuffs are used, then they can measure blood pressure, but they are difficult for elderly and those with shoulder diseases to tighten or detach by themselves due to arm diameter variations
Solution Approach 1:
The soft gripper automatically surrounds and grips the arm through fluid pressure without requiring manual tightening or fastening by the user. The actuator deforms in response to fluid supply, causing the leading end to automatically contact and wrap around the arm, eliminating the need for user intervention in tightening operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical fastening systems (Velcro, buckles, buttons) with a fluid-driven soft actuator system. The soft gripper uses pneumatic or hydraulic pressure to deform and wrap around the arm, substituting mechanical user-operated fastening with automated fluid-powered actuation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the blood pressure measuring cuff is designed to fit various arm diameters, then adaptability improves, but the complexity of adjusting and securing the cuff increases
Solution Approach 1:
The soft gripper achieves adaptability to various arm diameters by changing the volume and pressure of the fluid in the actuator. By adjusting fluid pressure parameters, the actuator deforms to different degrees, allowing the leading end to wrap around arms of different thicknesses without requiring mechanical adjustment mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses fluid pressure (pneumatics or hydraulics) to control the deformation of the soft actuator. The fluid-driven system provides continuous adjustable pressure to adapt the gripper's circumference to match different arm diameters, replacing complex mechanical adjustment mechanisms with simple fluid pressure control.
3Stability of the object's composition
If rigid elements are used to define discrete bending points in the actuator, then structural control improves, but the ability to adapt to varying arm thickness is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a flexible soft actuator without rigid elements, allowing continuous deformation and bending to adapt to different arm thicknesses. The soft material enables the actuator to wrap smoothly around the arm contour, providing both structural control through material properties and adaptability through flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The soft actuator is designed to be dynamically deformable, transitioning from a relaxed state to an inflated state that wraps around the arm. This dynamic capability allows the actuator to adapt its shape and curvature to match different arm geometries, whereas rigid elements would constrain the bending to fixed discrete points.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables easy and secure mounting of blood pressure measuring cuffs on individuals with varying arm diameters, facilitating self-measurement for both thin and thick arms, and simplifying the process of tightening and removal.
Implementation Method 1
an elongated first actuator and an elongated second actuator, which are deformed in response to supply of a fluid
Implementation Method 2
each of the first and second actuators is sequentially deformed along with the outer peripheral surface of the object to surround the object
Implementation Method 3
integrated Hook-and-Loop fasteners for secure fitting
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A soft gripper (1) that surrounds and grips an outer peripheral surface of an object, the soft gripper (1) includes an elongated first actuator (2) and an elongated second actuator (3), which are deformed in response to supply of a fluid. The first actuator (2) and the second actuator (3) extend from bases (n) of the first and second actuators (2,3) toward opposite sides each other. When receiving the supply of the fluid, each of the first and second actuators (2,3) sequentially surrounds the object from the base (n) toward a side of a leading end (s) of the each of the first and second actuators (2,3).