Knee Sling

Abstract

A sling for use with wheeled walker is disclosed. The sting reversibly attached to the two handles of a walker and forms a sling in which a user can place a leg. When a user cradles an injured or otherwise burdened leg in the nadir of the sling, the stress on their joints is partially alleviated and their upright stability is supported, The sling is removable and adjustable by the user and may be cleaned and disinfected as necessary, allowing it to be used and reused by those in a rehabilitation of assistive care facility.

Claims

1. A sling for supporting a knee comprising a body having a breadth and a width, a top surface, a bottom surface, a first side, and a second side, a) said first side comprising a first attachment means, b) said second side comprising a second attachment mean, c) said first attachment means capable of being reversibly attached to a handle of a wheeled walker, and the second attachment means capable of being reversibly attached to the other handle of a wheeled walker such that the breadth of the sling's body forms a nadir centered between the first and second attachment means.

2. The sling of claim 1 in which the first side further comprises a slide fastener and in which the first attachment means is a loop surrounding a handle of a wheeled walker formed by looping the sling's body over the handle and through the slide fastener.

3. The sling of claim 1 in which the body's second side's bottom face comprises one member of a two member fastening system and the body's bottom face further comprises the second member of a two member fastening system at approximately the said nadir, a) such that the second attachment means is a loop surrounding a handle of a wheeled walker's

4. The sling of claim 1 further comprising a cushioned pad positionable to the sling's nadir.

5. The sling of claim 1 further comprising at least one auxiliary strap comprising a first end and a second end, a) said first end connected to the sling's body at approximately the level of the nadir and, b) said second end comprising an attachment means capable of being reversibly attached to a point on a wheeled walker other than a handle.

6. The sling of claim 1 in which the sling's body comprises a non-skid flexible material capable of supporting at least 136 kilograms.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] FIG. 1 is an illustration of the subject matter of this application showing the sling in place on a wheeled walker.

[0009] FIG. 2 is a view of the sling, unattached to a wheeled walker.

[0010] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a sling further comprising additional securing straps.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] The following description and drawings referenced therein illustrate embodiments of the application's subject matter. They are not intended to limit the scope. Those familiar with the art will recognize that other embodiments of the disclosed method are possible. All such alternative embodiments should be considered within the scope of the application's disclosure.

[0012] Each reference number consists of three digits. The first digit corresponds to the figure number in which that reference number is first shown. Reference numbers are not necessarily discussed in the order of their appearance in the figures.

[0013] The subject matter of this application pertains to devices which at least partially support an injured or otherwise burdened leg. In particular, the subject matter of this application attaches to a wheeled walker and supports the user's injured or otherwise burdened leg. This assistive support partially alleviates the user's reliance on their other leg and arms to steady themselves and maintain their balance. This alleviation further allows the user the remove one or both hands from their wheeled walker in order to interact with the world by lessening the risk of falling. The subject matter of this application further pertains to such supportive devices which can be attached and removed from a wheeled walker with a minimum of effort and which are comprised of materials which can be laundered or cleaned without the need for specialized equipment.

[0014] For ease in drafting and hopefully, in reading, the subject matter of this application is referred to as a sling. This sling comprises structures and features as detailed.

[0015] The sling comprises a body (101) having a breadth (401) and a width (402), a first wheeled walker attachment means (102), and a second wheeled walker attachment means (103). The body comprises a top surface (104), a bottom surface (105), a first side (201), and a second side (202). Each of the sides further comprises a terminus. Preferred embodiments further comprise a cushioned kneepad (106) which may be fixed along the sling's body or may be capable of moving along the sling's body.

[0016] In some embodiments, at least one of the body's sides further comprises one member of a two member fastening system (204). In these embodiments, the complementary member of the two member fastening system (205) is also located on the sling's body such that engaging the two member fastening system closes a loop formed by the sling's body.

[0017] In the most preferred embodiment the sling body's first side's terminus comprises a slide fastener such as a lashing point, D-ring, slide, loop, or similar structure (206) most commonly made of a hard plastic or metal. In this embodiment, the first wheeled walker attachment point is formed by the sling body's second side wrapping around one of the wheeled walker's handles (107) and passing though the fastening structure (206) and pulled tight, thereby forming a loop (207) around the wheeled walker's handle by the sling's first side. The sling body's second side is then wrapped around the wheeled walker's other handle (107) such that the sling's span between the wheeled walker's handles forms a nadir in which the user's knee is cradled. Also a portion of the sling's body's second side's bottom face comprises one member of a two-member fastening system (204) which is paired with the other member of a two-member fastening system (205) located on the body's bottom face such that reversibly attaching these fastening members closes the loop surrounding the wheeled walker's handle and comprising the second wheeled walker attachment means (103). In a most preferred embodiment, a cushioned kneepad (106) may be moved over the sling's nadir to more gently cradle the user's knee.

[0018] In most preferred embodiments, slipping of the sling as the user moves is reduced by having the sling's body comprise a rubberized material such as a reinforced rubberized webbing. The sling's body may be comprised or such rubberized material may in part of in whole, provided that the rubberized material contact the wheeled walker's handles when in use.

[0019] In some alternative embodiments the sling's body may further comprise one or more auxiliary connection straps which may be attached to points on a wheeled walker other than the two handles to decrease horizontal movement of the sling. In a preferred embodiment, the sling's body comprises three such auxiliary straps: a first strap (303) and a second strap (304), each of which comprises an attachment means (306, 307) which can attach to first (109) and second (110) non-handle lateral attachment points on a wheeled walker, and a third strap (305) comprising an attachment means (308) which can connect to a third attachment point (111) on a wheeled walker.