Zonal Stretch Apparel for Elbow Joint Injury Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Repeated stress on the elbow joint during baseball pitching leads to overuse syndromes and injuries due to valgus and compressive forces, restricting mobility and causing injuries like medial collateral ligament sprains and osteochondral fractures.
Innovation Solution
An article of apparel with a cylindrical portion around the elbow joint featuring a pattern with varying density zones, providing greater stretch resistance parallel to the plane of bending and lesser resistance perpendicular to it, allowing for enhanced flexibility and reduced injury risk.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If uniform stretch resistance is applied around the elbow joint, then the apparel provides consistent support, but it restricts the natural range of motion and flexibility needed for pitching
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different densities of support elements (such as elastic fibers or reinforcement patterns) at different locations around the elbow joint. Areas experiencing higher stress during pitching receive greater support density, while areas requiring flexibility receive lesser support density. This non-uniform distribution allows the apparel to provide targeted injury prevention where needed while maintaining natural range of motion in other areas.
2Strength
If high stretch resistance is applied to prevent valgus stress, then injury risk decreases, but the apparel becomes too rigid and limits elbow flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The apparel incorporates varying densities of support elements oriented in specific directions. Areas parallel to the plane of bending have higher support density to resist valgus stress, while areas perpendicular to the bending plane have lower support density to maintain flexibility. This anisotropic design allows the material to exhibit different mechanical properties in different directions, simultaneously achieving stress resistance and flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The support element pattern is deliberately designed with asymmetric density distribution around the elbow joint, matching the asymmetric loading patterns experienced during pitching. The higher density areas are positioned to counteract specific stress vectors (such as valgus stress), while lower density areas allow natural movement. This asymmetric configuration optimizes both strength and adaptability according to the actual mechanical demands of the sport.
Data Source
AI summary
Various articles of apparel having a cylindrical portion, such as an arm region or a leg region, for extending around a joint (such as an elbow or a knee) of a wearer are disclosed. The cylindrical portion includes a textile material, for example, and a pattern located on a surface of the textile material or knitted into the textile material. The pattern has a first density in at least one area of the cylindrical portion oriented substantially parallel to a plane of bending of the joint, and the pattern has a second density in at least one area of the cylindrical portion oriented substantially perpendicular to the plane of bending of the joint. A purpose of the pattern may be to decrease the probability of an overuse syndrome or other injury occurring as a result of use of the joint.