A massage apparatus includes a sheet member attachable to a skin of a body, and a pressure unit that presses the skin from the sheet member. The sheet member is elastic and thermoplastic such that the sheet member is hardened at a temperature of the skin and is softened at a predetermined temperate different from the temperature of the skin. The sheet member has one or more indications indicating an area of the skin to which the sheet member is to be attached. The pressure unit applies a pressure to the skin so as to provide a predetermined pressure distribution in which positions of the pressure distribution are defined with reference to one or more positions on the body in a situation in which the sheet member is attached to the area.

A massage apparatus includes a frame defining a central opening, with a web of mesh cloth or fabric spanning the opening. A plurality of SMA wire segments span the central opening directly adjacent to the cloth or fabric. The wire segments are joined at opposed ends to a power circuit that provides ohmic heating for the wires. The wires may be actuated singly and sequentially, the contraction of each wire providing a compression of the body portion upon which it impinges. The apparatus may be a portable massage device for use with any chair, or built into a chair or bed or other furniture, or a slipcover.

Provided is a massage system for a massage facility in which a robot arm is provided and a massage is performed with respect to a user by the robot arm, the system including a control unit configured to cause the robot arm to perform a massage operation in response to a program, and a setting unit configured to receive a setting operation of a setting position used for the massage operation from an operator, in which the control unit is configured to cause the robot arm to perform the massage operation with respect to a treatment position based on the setting position.

Active comfort controlled bedding systems include a variable firmness control and/or variable climate control. The active comfort controlled bedding systems generally include a plurality of air bladders, each one of the plurality of air bladders includes a pressure sensor configured to measure pressure within a respective air bladder. A control unit configured to selectively operate a pump and valves to sequentially adjust a pressure in two or more of the plurality of the air bladders having an applied load of an end user thereon to provide a repeating pattern within the two or more plurality of the air bladders, wherein the repeating pattern is defined by a pressure increase and subsequent decrease in a selected one of the plurality of the air bladders followed by a pressure increase and subsequent decrease in a selected other one of the plurality of the air bladders to provide a massaging action.

A wearable health management system includes a flexible member configured to be worn on an affected area by a patient. At least one actuator is operably coupled to the flexible member. The at least one actuator is configured to be adjusted between a deployed state and a non-deployed state. At least one of a photoplethysmogram sensor and a bioimpedance sensor is coupled to the flexible member to obtain one or more health metrics from the patient. A controller is in communication with the at least one actuator. The controller is configured to adjust the at least one actuator to the deployed state to provide a selected pressure to the affected area.

A garment for providing circulatory-related disorder therapy includes a skin contacting layer, a backing layer, and a coupling. The backing layer is coupled to the skin contacting layer such that the skin contacting layer and the backing layer form a plurality of macro-chambers. A first one of the plurality of macro-chambers is partitioned into a plurality of micro-chambers. Each of the plurality of micro-chambers is in direct fluid communication with at least one other of the plurality of micro-chambers. The coupling is coupled to the backing layer and is configured to supply pressurized air directly into the first macro-chamber such that the pressurized air is delivered to a first one of the plurality of micro-chambers of the first macro-chamber.

A device for applying compression to a patient's limb includes a sleeve and a control unit configured to supply pressurized fluid to the sleeve using the following inflation/deflation process: inflating the at least one chamber from an initial pressure to a first pressure; maintaining the at least one chamber at the first pressure for a first predetermined amount of time; changing the pressure in the at least one chamber from the first pressure to a second pressure, wherein the second pressure is greater than the initial pressure; maintaining the at least one chamber at the second pressure for a second predetermined amount of time; changing the pressure in the at least one chamber from the second pressure to the first pressure or a third pressure greater than the second pressure; maintaining the at least one chamber at the first pressure or the third pressure for a third predetermined amount of time; and deflating the at least one chamber to zero pressure or a fourth pressure.

A system is disclosed for stimulating venous and arterial circulation in a patient to prevent deep vein thrombosis, which includes a first inflatable garment sleeve configured to be wrapped around the left calf of the patient and having a first air input tube extending from an exterior surface thereof, a second inflatable garment sleeve configured to be wrapped around the right calf of the patient and having a second air input tube extending from an exterior surface of the second garment sleeve, a portable pump for cyclically inflating the first and second garment sleeves, and a bifurcated tube assembly for connecting the portable pump to the first and second air input tubes of the first and second garment sleeves.

A system for improving blood circulation, the system comprising a control unit comprising a processor and at least one article of footwear wherein one or more of the at least one articles of footwear together or alone comprise: one or more actuators coupled to and controlled by the control unit; one or more electrically-conductive paths; one or more sensors integrated into the at least one article of footwear and coupled to the processor, for providing measurement signals to the control unit; and the system further comprising an electrical power supply for supplying electrical power to the one or more sensors by means of the one or more electrically-conductive paths.

Various embodiments of systems, devices, components, and methods for providing external therapeutic vibration stimulation to a patient are disclosed and described. Therapeutic vibration stimulation is provided to at least one location on or adjacent to a patient's skin (such as through clothing or a layer disposed next to the patient's skin), and is configured to trigger or induce resonance or high amplitude oscillations in a cardiovascular system of the patient. Inducing such resonance can aid in training autonomic reflexes and improve their functioning.