COMPUTERIZED ORTHOTIC PRESCRIPTION SYSTEM

• US 20120255160A1
• Filed: 09/28/2011
• Published: 10/11/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Orthocare Innovations, LLC
• Original Assignee: Orthocare Innovations, LLC
• Inventors: Boone, David Alan, Kobayashi, Toshiki
• Granted Patent: US 9,295,576 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 29/592
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1038 Measuring plantar pressure during gait
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/112 Gait analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6811 External prosthesis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6828 Leg
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6829 Foot or ankle
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/5049 Computer aided shaping, e.g. rapid prototyping
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 5/0111 for the feet or ankles
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 5/0127 for the feet A61F5/0111 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49 Method of mechanical manufacture
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49004 including measuring or testing of device or component part
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49764 with testing or indicating
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49771 Quantitative measuring or gauging
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49773 by radioactive tracing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49774 by vibratory or oscillatory movement
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49776 Pressure, force, or weight determining
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49778 with aligning, guiding, or instruction

Abstract

A method for tuning an orthosis for the correct stiffness and/or shank angle includes via one or more computers, receiving patient information including forces experienced by a joint of a patient wearing an orthosis, wherein the orthosis has a degree of stiffness and a shank angle, via one or more computers, comparing the patient information to model information, wherein the model information includes the forces of a correctly functioning joint, and changing the degree of stiffness and/or the shank angle of the orthosis.

Claims

1. A method for tuning an orthosis, comprising:

via one or more computers, receiving patient information including forces experienced by a joint of a patient wearing an orthosis, wherein the orthosis has a degree of stiffness and/or shank angle;

via one or more computers, comparing the patient information to model information, wherein the model information includes the forces of a correctly functioning joint; and

changing the degree of stiffness and/or shank angle of the orthosis.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, via the one or more computers, providing a deviation between the patient information and the model information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising, via the one or more computers, providing a recommendation on whether to increase or decrease stiffness and/or shank angle of the orthosis.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the recommendation is sent over a network.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the patient information is sent from a local computer over a network to a remote server, and the recommendation is sent from the remote server to the local computer.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the joint is the ankle.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the joint is the knee.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the joint is the hip.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising, via the one or more computers, receiving patient physical information that describes a distance from the joint to a reference point.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the joint is an ankle, and the reference point is located at the posterior of the heel along a horizontal line from the ankle.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending patient information over a network.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising trimming a portion of the orthosis to decrease stiffness.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising increasing or decreasing the friction of a mechanical pivot linking two components of an orthosis.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising increasing or decreasing the shank angle of the orthosis.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient information is compiled from information gathered during walking as a patient'"'"'s foot contacts the ground.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the model information is corrected for the weight of the patient.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the model information is compiled from samples of correctly functioning joints.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the forces are moments causing the joint to rotate.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a graph of the patient information.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a graph of the model information.

21. A method for tuning an orthosis, comprising:

placing an insole sensor in a shoe of a patient wearing an orthosis over a joint, wherein the insole sensor includes sensors forward and to the rear of the ankle joint;

allowing the patient to walk with the sensor;

collecting patient information from the insole sensor, including forces sensed by the forward and rear sensors;

comparing the patient information to model information, wherein the model information includes the forces of a correctly functioning joint; and

changing a degree of stiffness and/or shank angle of the orthosis.

22. The method of claim 21, further comprising, with the changed orthosis, allowing the patient to walk, collecting patient information from the insole sensor, including forces sensed by the forward and rear sensors, comparing patient information to model information, wherein the model information includes the forces of a correctly functioning joint.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprising displaying a graph of patient information and model information.