Garment system including at least one sensor and at least one actuator responsive to the sensor and related methods
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A garment system, comprising:
- at least one flexible compression garment configured to be worn on at least one body part of a subject, the at least one flexible compression garment defining an interior space configured to receive the at least one body part;
motion-conducive equipment;
one or more sensors disposed on or in the motion-conducive equipment, the one or more sensors configured to sense at least one characteristic associated with movement of the subject or at least one physiological characteristic of the subject, the one or more sensors further configured to output one or more sensing signals indicative of the at least one characteristic;
one or more actuators positioned relative to the at least one flexible compression garment and configured to selectively constrict or selectively dilate the at least one flexible compression garment; and
a control system operably coupled to the one or more actuators and further operably coupled to the one or more sensors to receive the one or more sensing signals therefrom, the control system including control electrical circuitry configured to direct the one or more actuators to selectively constrict or selectively dilate the at least one flexible compression garment responsive to the one or more sensing signals from the one or more sensors.
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Abstract
Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a garment system including at least one sensor and at least one actuator that operates responsive to sensing feedback from the at least one sensor to cause a flexible compression garment to selectively constrict or selectively dilate, thereby compressing or relieving compression against at least one body part of a subject. Such selective constriction or dilation can improve muscle functioning or joint functioning during use of motion-conducive equipment, such as an exercise bike or rowing machine.
74 Citations
56 Claims
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1. A garment system, comprising:
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at least one flexible compression garment configured to be worn on at least one body part of a subject, the at least one flexible compression garment defining an interior space configured to receive the at least one body part; motion-conducive equipment; one or more sensors disposed on or in the motion-conducive equipment, the one or more sensors configured to sense at least one characteristic associated with movement of the subject or at least one physiological characteristic of the subject, the one or more sensors further configured to output one or more sensing signals indicative of the at least one characteristic; one or more actuators positioned relative to the at least one flexible compression garment and configured to selectively constrict or selectively dilate the at least one flexible compression garment; and a control system operably coupled to the one or more actuators and further operably coupled to the one or more sensors to receive the one or more sensing signals therefrom, the control system including control electrical circuitry configured to direct the one or more actuators to selectively constrict or selectively dilate the at least one flexible compression garment responsive to the one or more sensing signals from the one or more sensors. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A method of selectively controlling a compression garment, the method comprising:
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sensing at least one characteristic of a subject moving on at least one piece of motion-conducive equipment using one or more sensors associated therewith; comparing the sensed at least one characteristic to a threshold characteristic; and responsive to comparing the at least one characteristic, actuating one or more actuators in at least one flexible compression garment worn on the subject to selectively constrict or selectively dilate on at least one body part of the subject. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56)
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Specification