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Orthopaedic sensor module and system for determining joint forces of a patient's knee joint

  • US 10,070,973 B2
  • Filed: 03/31/2012
  • Issued: 09/11/2018
  • Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2012
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. An orthopaedic surgical device for measuring a joint force of a patient'"'"'s joint, the orthopaedic surgical device comprising:

  • a tibial paddle shaped to be positioned between a proximal end of a patient'"'"'s tibia and a distal end of a patient'"'"'s femur, the tibial paddle having (i) a substantially planar upper surface, (ii) a substantially planar bottom surface, (iii) a top paddle housing having a first outer sidewall that defines an outer edge of the top paddle housing, a first opening defined in the substantially planar upper surface, and a first inner sidewall that defines a first centrally-located aperture that is spaced apart from the first outer sidewall and extends inwardly from the first opening, the first centrally-located aperture being enclosed completely by the first inner sidewall, (iv) a bottom paddle housing having a second outer sidewall that defines an outer edge of the bottom paddle housing, a second opening defined in the substantially planar bottom surface, and a second inner sidewall that defines a second centrally-located aperture that is spaced apart from the second outer sidewall and extends inwardly from the second opening, the second centrally-located aperture being enclosed completely by the second inner sidewall, and (v) a posterior notch extending inwardly from the first outer sidewall and the second outer sidewall, wherein the first and second apertures are in fluid communication with each other to define, in part, a vertical passageway through the tibial paddle that is spaced apart from the posterior notch,a sensor array positioned in the tibial paddle and configured to generate sensor signals indicative of a joint force between the patient'"'"'s tibia and femur, the sensor array comprising a plurality of medial-anterior sensors to measure a medial-anterior force component of the joint force, a plurality of medial-posterior sensors to measure a medial-posterior force component of the joint force, a plurality of lateral-anterior sensors to measure a lateral-anterior force component of the joint force, and a plurality of lateral-posterior sensors to measure a lateral-posterior force component of the joint force, each of the medial-anterior sensors and lateral-anterior sensors having a substantially equal surface area and each of the medial-posterior sensors and lateral-posterior sensors having a substantially equal surface area,an elongated handle secured to the tibial paddle and defining a longitudinal axis that is offset from an anterior-to-posterior bisecting axis of the tibial paddle,a first display secured to an end of the handle distal from the tibial paddle, anda circuit positioned in the handle, the circuit configured to receive the sensor signals from the sensor array and to control the first display to provide a visual indication of the medial-lateral balance of the joint force.

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