Orthopedic knee brace suspension system which includes non-slippage inflatable air pillows and a pump

• US 5,641,322 A
• Filed: 02/29/1996
• Issued: 06/24/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 01/03/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Enhanced Medical Technologies L.L.C.
• Original Assignee: S.R. Orthopedic Laboratories, Inc.
• Inventors: Rothenberg, Russell A., Silver, Daniel M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dvorak, Linda C.
• Application Number:
  US08/609,919
• Time in Patent Office: 481 Days
• Field of Search: 602/5, 602/13, 602/16, 602/26, 602/23, 128/DIG. 20, 417/432
• US Class Current: 602/13
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 5/012 inflatable
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 5/0123 for the knees A61F5/0106 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/20 Inflatable splint

Abstract

An orthopedic knee brace which includes a pump, the orthopedic knee brace also including a thigh cuff and a pair of inflatable air pillows interposed between the thigh cuff and the thigh of the wearer to prevent slippage. The pillows are mounted on the thigh cuff in positions located on the opposite side of the femur of the wearer within the medial femoral hollows in position to engage the femoral condyles. The pump is mounted on the thigh cuff, and it serves to inflate and deflate the air pillows. The pump includes a hollow housing, together with a release valve mounted at an accessible position on the housing to permit the air pillows to be conveniently deflated when desired.

Claims

1. In combination:

An orthopedic knee brace including an upper cuff having at least one air pillow mounted thereon at the lower end thereof to hold the upper cuff from slipping when the air pillow is inflated;

a pump mounted on the outer surface of said upper cuff, said pump comprising;

a pump housing having an inlet at the upper end thereof and having an outlet at the lower end thereof, a first tube coupling said outlet to said air pillow, and said pump housing having a resilient top serving as an inflater for said air pillow, first and second one-way valves respectively mounted in the inlet and outlet of said pump housing so that pressure applied to said resilient top causes said first valve to close and forces pressurized fluid through said outlet and through said second valve and through said first tube into the interior of said air pillow, and release of said resilient top causes said second valve to close and causes pressurized fluid to be drawn into the interior of said pump housing through said inlet and through said first valve;

a release valve mounted on said cuff adjacent to the upper end of said pump and in a position to be readily accessible to the wearer of said cuff, and a second tube having a lower end coupled to said first tube and having an upper end coupled to said release valve for coupling said first tube to said release valve to enable said release valve to serve as a deflator for said pillow.

2. The pump defined in claim 1, in which said release valve is a spring-loaded manually operated valve.