Chiropractic adjustor apparatus having housing configured for enhanced heat dissipation and symmetrical force-transmitting shaft support

• US 6,537,236 B2
• Filed: 12/26/2000
• Issued: 03/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Erchonia Corporation
• Original Assignee: Erchonia Patent Holdings LLC
• Inventors: Tucek, Kevin B., Brimhall, John W.
• Primary Examiner(s): DeMille, Danton D.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thanh, Quang D
• Application Number:
  US09/749,023
• Publication Number:
  US 20020082532A1
• Time in Patent Office: 819 Days
• Field of Search: 601/97, 601/101, 601/107, 601/108, 601/111, 601/78, 601/80, 606/237, 606/238, 606/239, D 8/59, D15/139, D24/171
• US Class Current: 601/80
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 1/008 Apparatus for applying pressure or blows almost perpendicular to the body or limb axis, e.g. chiropractic devices for repositioning vertebrae, correcting deformation
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 2023/002 having a percussion element combined with a passive spacer element for bearing against the skin
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 2201/0153 hand-held
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 2201/1669 moving along the body in a reciprocating manner
• CPC Class Codes: A61H 23/0254 with rotary motor

Abstract

A chiropractic adjustor apparatus includes a housing having a central interior cavity and a pair of opposite end portions oriented substantially the reverse of one another and extending in opposite directions from the interior cavity and having passages adapted to enhance heat dissipation from the housing, an electromagnetic drive mechanism mounted in the interior cavity of the housing, a force-transmitting shaft extending through the drive mechanism and opposite end portions of the housing and reciprocally supported by the opposite end portions of the housing in a substantially symmetrical relationship to the drive mechanism, an arrangement for actuating the drive mechanism to cause repetitive reciprocal vibratory movement of the shaft along a longitudinal axis thereof and relative to the housing, and a handle attached to the housing for gripping the apparatus.

Claims

1. A chiropractic adjustor apparatus, comprising:

(a) a housing having a longitudinal axis, a central interior cavity extending about said longitudinal axis and a pair of opposite end portions oriented substantially the reverse of one another and extending in opposite directions from said central interior cavity along and about said longitudinal axis, said opposite end portions having respective inner surfaces spaced apart from one another by said central interior cavity and extending generally parallel to one another and extending about and perpendicular to said longitudinal axis of said housing, said opposite end portions further having respective outer surfaces of conical shapes spaced in opposite directions from central interior cavity and reversely oriented with respect to one another and extending about and along said longitudinal axis of said housing such that said opposite end portions are substantially mirror images of one another, said opposite end portions further having respective central openings therethrough extending in opposite directions from said central interior cavity and the housing further having passages adapted to enhance heat dissipation from said housing, said passages extending between and open at said respective outer surfaces of said opposite end portions and said central interior cavity and extending substantially parallel with said longitudinal axis of said housing and circumferentially spaced apart from one another about and displaced radially outwardly from said longitudinal axis of said housing and said openings through said opposite end portions of said housing;

(b) an electromagnetic drive mechanism mounted in said central interior cavity of said housing;

(c) an elongated force-transmitting shaft extending through said electromagnetic drive mechanism and through said openings in said opposite end portions of said housing and having opposite ends extending beyond said opposite end portions of said housing exteriorly of said housing, said shaft reciprocally supported by said opposite end portions of said housing in a substantially symmetrical relationship to said electromagnetic drive mechanism and, extending coaxially with said longitudinal axis of said housing;

(d) means for actuating said electromagnetic drive mechanism to cause repetitive reciprocal vibratory-type of movement of said shaft along a longitudinal axis of said shaft and relative to and along said longitudinal axis of said housing; and

(e) means attached to said housing for gripping to hold said apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said housing, has a cylindrical-shaped middle portion defining said central interior cavity and being disposed between said reversely-oriented opposite end portions which extend in said opposite directions from said middle portion.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said gripping means is a handle attached to a lower side of the cylindrical middle portion of the housing for gripping by an operator to hold the apparatus, the handle having an interior compartment.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said gripping means is a handle attached to a lower side of the housing for gripping by an operator to hold the apparatus, the handle having an interior compartment.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said actuating means includes a trigger reciprocally mounted to said handle so as to extend from an exterior thereof into said interior compartment of said handle.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said actuating means further includes an electronic control module provided in said interior compartment of said handle and activated by depressing said trigger.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said drive mechanism includes a spool stationarily supported in said central interior cavity of said housing between said reversely-oriented opposite end portions thereof and having a central bore defined through said spool aligned with said openings through said opposite end portions of said housing.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said drive mechanism further includes a series of electrical windings disposed about said spool.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said elongated shaft extends through said central interior cavity of said housing and has a middle portion extending through said central bore of said spool and opposite portions extending from opposite ends of said spool to said opposite ends of said shaft.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said drive mechanism further includes a stator mounted on said shaft about said middle portion thereof and disposed within said bore of said spool in an electromagnetically coupled relationship with said electrical windings about said spool such that actuating said drive mechanism by applying predetermined pulses to said electrical windings actuates said stator and thus said shaft into said repetitive reciprocal vibratory type of movement relative to said housing.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 further comprising:

an arrangement in the form of a knob on a rear end of said shaft and first and second springs disposed about said rear end of said shaft respectively interiorly between said stator and a rear end of said housing and exteriorly between said knob and said rear end of said housing, said knob being threadable into said rear end of said housing such that by turning said knob a return force imposed by said springs on said stator and shaft can be increased or decreased to thereby adjust the amount of vibratory movement applied to a surface at a front end of said shaft.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a plurality of force transmitting elements of different configurations each adapted to be fitted to a front end of said shaft and adapted to be placed against a part of the human body to be treated such that vibratory impacts are transmitted at said front end of said shaft by a selected one of said force transmitting elements when placed against the part of the human body.

13. A chiropractic adjustor apparatus, comprising:

(a) a housing having a central interior cavity and a pair of opposite end portions oriented substantially the reverse of one another and extending in opposite directions from said central interior cavity, each of said opposite end portions of said housing having passages adapted to enhance heat dissipation from said housing, said housing being formed by a pair of separate housing parts arranged back-to-back in a reverse orientation with one another so as to define separately said opposite end portions of the housing and together said central interior cavity between said opposite end portions;

(b) an electromagnetic drive mechanism mounted in said central interior cavity of said housing;

(c) a force-transmitting shaft extending through said electromagnetic drive mechanism and through openings in said opposite end portions of said housing and reciprocally supported by said opposite end portions of said housing in a substantially symmetrical relationship to said electromagnetic drive mechanism;

(d) means for actuating said electromagnetic drive mechanism to cause repetitive reciprocal movement of said shaft along a longitudinal axis of said shaft and relative to said housing; and

(e) a handle attached to said housing for gripping to hold said apparatus, said housing parts assembled together by said handle fixedly attached on lower sides of said opposite end portions of the housing such that said handle underlies and bridges said housing parts in assembling said housing parts together and by an attachment member fixedly attached on upper sides of said opposite end portions of said housing such that said attachment member overlies and bridges said housing parts in assembling said housing parts together.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein said actuating means is supported by said handle in an interior compartment in said handle.