Variable Resistance Beam Orthotic Dynamics
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing equipment and devices, such as sports gear, medical braces, and fitness equipment, lack the ability to dynamically adjust stiffness and flexibility in real-time, limiting user performance and convenience, as they are often fixed in design and require multiple pieces to accommodate varying conditions or user needs.
Innovation Solution
The development of a variable resistance beam (VRB) technology that allows for adjustable stiffness and flexibility through mechanical methods, such as selector mechanisms or hand positioning, enabling equipment to change resistance levels in real-time, applicable to various devices like sports gear, medical braces, and footwear.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If equipment is designed with fixed stiffness and flexibility characteristics, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but adaptability to different user needs and conditions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements adjustable stiffness and flexibility characteristics in sporting equipment through mechanical adjustment mechanisms. Users can dynamically change equipment properties during use or between sessions, transforming fixed equipment into adaptable systems that respond to varying user needs, skill levels, and performance goals without requiring multiple different equipment pieces.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables modification of key physical parameters (stiffness, flexibility, resistance levels) of sporting equipment through adjustable mechanisms. By allowing users to change these parameters, the equipment becomes versatile enough to accommodate different user requirements, from beginners to advanced athletes, and adapt to different training phases or performance conditions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple pieces of equipment are provided to accommodate varying conditions, then adaptability improves, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates multi-functional sporting equipment that can serve multiple purposes and adapt to different conditions through built-in adjustment mechanisms. A single piece of equipment can be configured for different resistance levels, stiffness characteristics, or flexibility settings, replacing the need for multiple specialized equipment pieces and reducing overall system complexity while maintaining versatility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines multiple functional capabilities into a single piece of equipment by integrating adjustment mechanisms that allow users to modify equipment characteristics. This merging of functions (different resistance levels, stiffness settings, flexibility options) into one adaptable device reduces the total number of equipment pieces needed while maintaining the ability to accommodate varying conditions.
3Force
If equipment stiffness is increased for performance enhancement, then power transmission improves, but flexibility and comfort deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of stiffness characteristics, allowing users to optimize the balance between power transmission and flexibility based on their specific needs. Users can adjust equipment stiffness to achieve optimal power transfer when needed, while maintaining flexibility and comfort during other phases of use or for different skill levels, eliminating the need to choose between opposing characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables different parts of the equipment or different aspects of equipment performance to have different stiffness characteristics through selective adjustment. This allows optimized power transmission in specific areas or during specific movements while maintaining flexibility in other areas, creating a balanced performance profile that addresses both power and comfort requirements.
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 users to customize equipment resistance levels dynamically, enhancing performance and convenience by allowing adjustments to suit changing conditions or user needs without the need for multiple devices, improving both athletic performance and recovery processes.
Implementation Method 1
a resilient rod, beam or shaft that produces variable resistance when bent or rotated
Data Source
AI summary
An active suspension orthotic support system is disclosed. The suspension orthotic support system comprises at least one variable resistance beam extending from a heel section to a mid-arch section of the footwear, wherein rotation of the variable resistance beam from a first position to a second position causes a resistance provided by the variable resistance beam to vary between a minimum resistance to a maximum resistance.