Prosthesis Device

Abstract

A prosthesis device having a tension element, fastened to a tensile force brace, which drives a movable component of a prosthesis device upon applying a tension force, wherein a sensor device is allocated to the tension element which detects the actuation of the tension element and activates a motor allocated to the movable component.

Claims

1-12. (canceled)

13. A prosthesis device, comprising: a body harness configured to be connected to a body part; a movable component; a motor; a tensioning element which is fastened to the body harness and which drives the movable component of the prosthesis device when a tensile force is applied by the body part; a sensor device assigned to the tensioning element to detect the tensile force applied by the body part to the tensioning element and to activate the motor, the motor operable to apply tension in the tensioning element to move or to assist movement of the movable component.

14. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the movable component is configured as a mechanical gripper or joint component.

15. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein a support force applied by the motor is proportional to the tensile force applied by the tensioning element.

16. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the motor is coupled to at least one of the tensioning element and the movable component via a gear.

17. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 16, wherein the gear is configured as a cable winding gear, toothed belt gear, toothed wheel gear, drum gear, friction gear or planetary gear.

18. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 16, wherein a geared transmission and a proportionality factor of the gear are adjustable.

19. The prosthesis device as claimed claim 13, wherein a support force provided by the motor is adjustable.

20. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the movable component is loaded with a spring force which counteracts at least one of the tensioning element and the motor.

21. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the sensor device has a force sensor in the tensioning element or in a deflection roller.

22. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the force sensor is configured as a force-measuring bolt.

23. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the motor is assigned to at least one of the tensioning element and the movable component via a coupling.

24. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the motor drives the tensioning element or separately drives the movable component.

25. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein a first end portion of the tensioning element is fastened to the body harness and a second end portion of the tensioning element is fastened to the movable component, and the motor is operatively coupled to the tensioning element at a location between the first and second end portions.

26. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, further comprising a prosthetic hand, the prosthetic hand comprising the movable component.

27. The prosthesis device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the prosthesis device is configured as a gripping prosthesis.

28. A gripping prosthesis comprising: a body harness configured to be connected to a body part; a movable gripping member; a tensioning element which is fastened to the body harness and which moves the gripping member when a tensile force is applied by the body part; a sensor device assigned to the tensioning element to detect the tensile force applied by the body part to the tensioning element and to activate a motor, the motor applying tension in the tensioning element to move or to assist movement of the gripping member.

29. A method of operating a prosthesis device, comprising: providing a body harness, a tensioning element fastened to the body harness, a movable component coupled to the tensioning element, a sensor device, and a motor; connecting the body harness to a body part of a user; driving the movable component with the tensioning element when a tensile force is applied by the body part; detecting, with the sensor device, the tensile force applied by the body part to the tensioning element; activating the motor to apply tension in the tensioning element to move or to assist movement of the movable component.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising: providing at least one of a deflection roller, a support roller, and a coupling interposed between the tensioning element and the moveable component; engage and disengage the motor using the at least one of the deflection roller, support roller, and coupling.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the body harness is configured to be connected to the body part on one side of a sagittal plane of the user's body, and the movable part is configured to be positioned on an opposite side of the sagittal plane of the user's body.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the body harness is configured to be interposed in-line between the body part and the tensioning member, and the sensor device detects tension applied by the body part to the tensioning element via the body harness.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Illustrative embodiments of the invention are set out below and are explained in more detail with reference to the attached figures, in which:

[0031] FIG. 1 shows a movable component in the form of a gripper; and

[0032] FIG. 2 shows a schematic illustration of the prosthesis device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] A movable component 1 in the form of a mechanical gripper, configured as a hook, is shown on its own in FIG. 1. The mechanical gripper 1 has a main body 2, at one end of which a fastening device 3 in the form of a thread is arranged or formed for the purpose of fixing to a prosthesis socket (not shown). Two fingers 10, 20, shaped like hooks and configured to grip objects (in the form of a pen in FIG. 1), are formed at the end of the main body 2 opposite the fastening device 3. A first finger 20 is fastened rigidly to the main body 2, and the second finger 10 is mounted pivotably on the main body 2, wherein the pivot axis (not shown) is configured in such a way that the second finger 10 can be moved away from the first finger 20, such that a space between the two fingers 10, 20 can be made larger or smaller. The movement of the second finger 10 away from the first finger 20 takes place counter to an opposing force which allows the two fingers 10, 20 to bear on each other in the non-actuated state. The opposing force is exerted via a rubber ring 4 which is placed around a base 11, 21, respectively, for the second finger 10 and first finger 20. The rubber ring 4 is placed in grooves and is thus mounted exchangeably on the two bases 11, 21. Depending on the intended use, and on the required holding force that is to be exerted between the two fingers 10, 20, different rubber rings 4 can be placed in the groove. If only a low holding force is required, a resilient rubber ring 4 is inserted; if a high holding force is required, a more stable rubber ring 4 is used that has less extensibility and elasticity and therefore greater resistance to an excursion.

[0034] The fingers 10, 20 can be fastened to the respective base 11, 21 in an exchangeable manner, for example screwed in, or inserted in some other way and fixed with form-fit engagement.

[0035] To move the second finger 10 away from the first finger 20, a tensioning element 5 is fastened to a third finger 12, which is coupled rigidly to the second finger 10. The tensioning element 5 is configured in the form of a tensioning strap or cable or a cable pull and is mounted with form-fit engagement on the third finger 12, in a groove 6 formed in the latter. The groove 6 extends along the proximal side of the third finger 12, i.e. the side directed toward the prosthesis socket, and permits a change of the leverage when force is transmitted from the tensioning element 5 to the second finger 10. The farther outward the tensioning element 5 is moved, the greater is the lever travel, as a result of which the force that has to be applied is reduced and at the same time the opening travel between the fingers 10, 20 is reduced. The third finger 12 is coupled to the second base 11 and protrudes from the latter, such that the second base 11 and therefore also the second finger 10 are pivoted about the pivot axis when a tensile force is applied by the tensioning element 5. The pivot axis is oriented substantially perpendicularly with respect to the substantially circular main surfaces of the disk-like main body 2. When the tensioning element 5 is pulled, the third finger 12, and with its also the second finger 10, moves downward in the direction of the arrows; when the tensile force is reduced, the third finger 12, and with it also the second finger 10, moves upward in the direction of the arrows, since the rubber ring 4 exerts the corresponding opposing force. The object to be gripped, a pen in the illustrative embodiment shown, is held between the first finger 20 and the second finger 10 and can be laid against the third finger 12.

[0036] In the case of a body-powered prosthesis, the actuation of the tensioning element 5 can take place exclusively via a movement of a part of the body, for example the shoulder of the treated or intact arm.

[0037] FIG. 2 shows the prosthesis device in a schematic illustration. A body harness 7, which is coupled to a prosthesis socket 8, is fitted on a patient, who is indicated on the left in the schematic illustration. The body harness 7 is fastened to the contralateral, intact shoulder and guided in the form of a loop around the shoulder. On the back, in the region of the upper thoracic vertebra, the loop is secured in a ring, to which a tensioning element 5 in the from of a tensioning strap is fastened. When the intact shoulder is moved forward, this has the effect that a tensile force is applied to the tensioning element 5. The tensioning element 5 is guided along the upper arm on the treated side, such that the tensioning element 5 is guided inside the prosthesis socket 8. In the embodiment shown, the tensioning element 5 is configured initially as a strap which, inside the prosthesis socket 8, is then coupled to a cable-shaped tensioning element 5, for example a wire pull, a cord, the core of a Bowden cable or the like, or transitions into a tensioning element 5 of such a kind.

[0038] A support device 50, shown schematically and on an enlarged scale, is arranged inside the prosthesis socket 8. The support device 50 can be constructed as a module and can have a housing 51 inside which the cable-shaped tensioning element 5 coming from the body harness 7 is guided. The tensioning element 5 is guided around a deflection roller 52, which is coupled to a sensor device 81 in the form of a force-measuring bolt. From the deflection roller 52, the tensioning element 5 is guided by way of a support roller 54, and from there it is fastened to the third finger 12 of the movable component 1. FIG. 2 shows an alternative embodiment of the movable component in the form of a mechanical gripper 1 in which the main body 2 is not shaped as a circular disk and in which the element 4 generating the opposing force is not configured as a rubber ring but instead configured with a triangular contour and as a tension spring. When the tensioning element 5 is subjected by the body harness 7 to a tensile force in the direction away from the mechanical gripper 1, the deflection roller 52 is rotated, likewise the support roller 54, and the two fingers 10, 20 are thereby moved away from each other.

[0039] An electric motor 60 with a drive shaft 61 is arranged inside the support device 50. The motor 60 is supplied with energy via an electrical energy accumulator 70. The motor 60 is assigned a control device 80, by which the motor 60 is activated or deactivated. In the illustrative embodiment shown, the deflection roller 52 is assigned a sensor device 81 in the form of a force-measuring bolt. When a tensile force is applied to the tensioning element 5, the deflection roller 52 is subjected to a torque and to a force which is measured via the sensor device 81. The signal is sent to the control device 80 via a signal amplifier 82. When a tensile force within the tensioning element 5 is detected at the deflection roller 52, the motor 60 is activated via the control device 80. The drive shaft 61 is driven. An output shaft 62 is coupled to the drive shaft 61 via a cable winding gear 90. The drive shaft 61 winds up a coupling cable and thereby rotates the output shaft 62, which is coupled to the support roller 54 via a coupling 63. The coupling 63 can be configured as a centrifugal coupling or spring-loaded toothed-wheel coupling. It is likewise possible that the coupling has a serrated spur toothing which is oriented such that force is transmitted only in the direction of support of the tensile force of the tensioning element 5.

[0040] In the illustrative embodiment shown, the support roller 54 has to rotate to the left in order to open the mechanical gripper 1; the flanks of the serrated spur toothing would then fall away to the right. Instead of a cable winding gear as shown, it is possible for toothed wheel gears, toothed belt gears, drum gears or friction gears or planetary gears to be formed between the motor 60 and the support roller 54. By means of the different diameters of the drive shaft 61 and of the output shaft 62, it is possible to achieve different transmission ratios of the cable winding gear 90, and adaptation can easily be achieved by exchanging the respective shafts or the drums on the respective shafts 61, 62 and/or the support roller 54.

[0041] The support force applied by the motor 60 can be adjusted via the control unit 80. The adjustment can be made according to the planned use of the mechanical gripper 1 or according to the personal preference of the user.

[0042] Instead of a force-measuring bolt as the sensor device 81 on the deflection roller 52, it is also possible and provided for that the sensor device 81 is arranged along the course of the tensioning cable 5, for example in the form of a tensile force sensor, which determines the tensile force effective in the tensioning element 5. The sensor data can be transmitted to the signal amplifier 82 wirelessly or also by wire. Along most of its length, the tensioning element 5 can be routed through a sheath in order to avoid chafing of the tensioning element 5 on the skin or on the clothes of the user.

[0043] The support device 50 can be configured as a module and simply fitted onto an existing body-powered prosthesis. The tensioning element 5 simply has to be placed around the deflection roller 52 and the support roller 54, which means only a slight lengthening of the tensioning element 5 compared to direct fastening on the mechanical gripper 1. Should the energy accumulator 70 be empty or the motor 60 have a defect, the prosthesis device can continue to be used without any great limitation in respect of its function; only the comfort is reduced.

[0044] Instead of force being applied by the motor 60 via the tensioning element 5, in an alternative embodiment the drive is coupled directly to the movable second finger 10. The support device 50 can be integrated in the main body 2 and coupled in a force-transmitting manner to the movable finger 10 via a gear arrangement, for example a friction gear or a toothed wheel gear with a suitable coupling 63. If a tensile force is then detected by the sensor device 81, which can also be arranged directly in the tensioning element 5, the sensor device 81 can transmit this by cable or wirelessly to the signal amplifier 82 of the control device 80, whereupon the motor 60 is then activated. In this way, it is possible to dispense with loading of the tensioning element 5 by the additionally applied motor force. Modifications to the attachment of the tensioning element 5 to the mechanical gripper 1 are not necessary. The support device 50 is provided as a separate mechanical component, in the form of a prefabricated module with the motor 60 and the integrated controller 80 together with the energy accumulator 70, and simply has to be fastened in the main body 2 or on the main body 2. The force of the motor 60 is then transmitted via a suitable coupling 63 in order to drive the movable finger 10. The extent of the force which is to be applied, likewise the duration for which it is to be applied, are defined by the tensile forces that are determined in the sensor device 81. It is possible to adopt a linear proportionality between the tensile force applied via the tensioning element 5 and the additionally provided motor force; alternative proportionality factors are possible. A common aspect of both embodiments is that the functionality of the mechanical gripper 1 is maintained in the event of a failure of the support device 50.