The present invention generally relates to devices for maintaining one or more portions of the human lower extremity in a fixed position. More particularly, the present invention provides a modular device and kit utilizing a plurality of individual components which form an easily collapsible and transportable leg support used to support the leg, foot, and/or ankle in a fixed position.
Injuries involving the human lower extremity, such as the toe, foot, or ankle, can occur as a result of many causes, the most common being trauma. In the most serious traumas, surgical intervention is often required. Upon completion of such surgical intervention, the individual is often required to immobilize and refrain from heavy use of the injured body part to allow for complete recovery. While not all foot injures are serious enough to require surgical intervention, proper treatment in non-surgical injuries also requires preventing the injured from suffering pain and risking further damage. Most foot injuries involving fractures, as well as sprains and strains, caused by sports or work related activities can be treated with the home remedy of rest, ice, compression, elevation (RICE). To significantly increase recovery time, a three day regime of RICE, particularly when inflammation is present, is often suggested by physicians. Such treatment helps minimize any inflammation, pain, and swelling that is associated with the injury.
Devices for maintaining the foot, or portions thereof, in a fixed position are known in the art. Such devices include casts, splints, or elevation devices that are generally designed to fix the foot, ankle, or toe in place. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,385,534 describes a splint and kit for assembling the splint. The splint is described as including a plurality of components which, when assembled, provide a device which conforms to the upper portion of the leg. The components include a support member, a pad for cushioning the support member against the leg, and one or more straps for securing the support member to the body. A pair of flexible members for fixedly retaining the flexion angle of the support member is also described.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,449,339 describes a heel supporting protective boot. The boot is described as being useful for bed patients. The boot comprises a formed flexible, compressible foam material and leg supporting portions for supporting a patient's foot. While the boot is designed to fix the foot inserted therein in place, the device fails to prevent the foot from horizontal movement when a patient is sleeping, and is generally made of thick foam which can be uncomfortable. Moreover, the boot is described as being compressible; however, repeated compression can result in shape deformity. Also, the size makes it difficult to ship and store.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,692 describes a foot drop leg splint which is described as useful for stabilizing a patient's foot. The splint is described as having a rigid support frame with a contoured foam insert. Removable straps are used to hold the splint onto the patient. The leg splint is formed of a unitary piece and therefore makes it difficult to ship. Moreover, given the size of the device, storage of the device can be problematic.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,572,573 describes a heel elevating device designed to help reduce chaffing, skin shear, pressure sores or pressure ulcers. The device is described as containing a self-standing, generally U-shaped lower leg support. This device is similar to other devices that utilize a foam block base for support. Similar to the other devices, such construction is difficult to ship, requires space for storage, and can be uncomfortable in use.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,920,657 describes an elevation device adapted to support an extremity of a patient. The device is described as utilizing the packaging for the device to form a finished product. The disadvantage of this device is that it requires a significant space when shipped as the device is formed from a three dimensionally shaped shipping box.
The present invention provides a modular device and kit utilizing a plurality of individual components which form an easily collapsible and transportable leg support used to support the leg, foot, and/or ankle in a fixed position. In the unassembled position, the individual components are designed to maintain a generally planar shape so that each of the pieces that form the assembled unit can lay flat against each other. In this configuration, the collapsible leg support device can be easily stored, shipped, or moved from place to place.
In a preferred, albeit illustrative example, the collapsible leg support device has a plurality of components assembled together to form a three-dimensional configuration constructed and arranged to maintain one or more portions of a human lower extremity in a fixed position. The leg support comprises a first side wall having a first end, a second end, and a first side wall main body. The first side wall has at least one first connector member of a first connector assembly and at least one first connector member of a second connector assembly. The leg support device further includes a second side wall having a first end, a second end, and a second side wall main body. The second side wall has at least one first connector member of a first connector assembly, and at least one first connector member of a second connector assembly. The first and second walls are arranged in a substantially parallel manner and spaced apart to form an area sized to contain one or more portions of a human lower extremity. A back wall panel has a second connector member of said first connector assembly. At least one stabilizing member is secured to the first and second side walls with the stabilizing member containing a second connector member which engages the first connector member to form a second connector assembly. Preferably, the first connector assembly provides for a first position engagement and a second secured position where at least one of the connector members is translatable, or moves relative to the other to properly align and secure the corresponding components.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that is easily transportable.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be easily and quickly assembled.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be easily and quickly disassembled.
It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be easily stored using minimal space.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support which is inexpensive to ship.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a leg support device that prevents or minimizes movement of the leg when in an elevated position.
It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support device that provides for maintaining the position of the leg when in an elevated position.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support kit that is easily transportable.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a leg support kit that is easily stored using minimal space.
It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support kit which is inexpensive to ship.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be readily assembled from a kit.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be readily assembled from a kit wherein the kit enables practical storage and transportation.
It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be readily assembled from a kit wherein the kit is compact.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a leg support that can be readily assembled from a kit wherein the kit is stackable.
Other objectives and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with any accompanying drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, certain embodiments of this invention. Any drawings contained herein constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and features thereof.
While the present invention is susceptible of embodiment in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described a presently preferred, albeit not limiting, embodiment with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated.
Referring to
Referring to
The second side wall 14 contains a first end 46, a second end 48, and a main body 50 there between. The distance between the first end 46 and the second end 48 can be varied and defines the length of the second side wall 14. Integrally formed with or attached to the second end 48 is a second panel member 52 which forms a generally L-shaped configuration with the main body 50 formed through a right angle or curvature. The second panel member 52 contains one or a plurality of first connector members 34, illustrated herein as keyhole shaped slotted member 36. The keyhole shaped slotted member 36 is sized and shaped to receive the second connector member. Along the bottom edge 54 is a plurality of first horizontal stability connector members 40 illustrated herein as slotted members 42. The main body 50 may also contain an aperture 44.
Both the side walls 12 and 14 are sized and shaped generally to the same dimensions so that the first wall 12 can be placed on the second wall 14, or vice versa, and fit together. The second panels 32 and 52 can be constructed and arranged to be nestable within each other, thereby minimizing the space needed when disassembled and arranged in kit configuration. Preferably, the first and second side walls 12 and 14, as well as the other components of the device, may be made of any strong, sturdy and light weight material, such as but not limited to plastics. However, each of the components may be made from other materials such as metals, including steel, wood or wood composites. Additionally, the device 10 may be designed so that some components are made of one type of material, i.e. plastic materials, and other components are made of second, different material, i.e. metal.
A back wall or back wall panel 16 is used to provide support and act as a stress reducing mechanism when a leg is inserted to maintain the inserted foot in a comfortable position. Additionally, the back wall panel can be adapted to prevent side-to-side movement of the foot while being stabilized. The back wall panel 16 contains a first inner surface 56 which makes contact directly or indirectly with the foot inserted within the device 10, see
Once the back wall panel 16, the first side wall 12 and the second side wall 14 are engaged, they form a partially enclosed structure with an open front area 68, see
Referring to
Stabilizing member 20 is illustrated as a horizontally positioned bar having a first end 88, a second end 90, and a planar main body 92. A bottom edge 94 preferably is sized to allow contact with a surface, such as a floor or bed mattress. The planar main body 92 contains one or more second horizontal stability connector members 80, illustrated herein as slotted portion 82, which are sized, shaped and arranged to engage with the first horizontal stability connector members 40 to form a second connector assembly, or a horizontal stability connector assembly. Each of the ends 88 and 90 may contain an angled surface 96 and 98 for increased stability. The stabilizing member 20 may also include a horizontal plate 99, see FIG. 13B, arranged in a generally perpendicular manner to the planar main body 92, and extending outwardly to provide enhanced stability when the collapsible leg support device 10 is assembled.
In use, the collapsible leg support in accordance with the present invention could be distributed to an individual at a point of injury treatment facility, such as a hospital emergency room or physician's office. The unique advantage of the present invention is that the individual components of the device 10 can be easily stored as a kit, unassembled in bag 22, see
Alternatively, the collapsible leg support can be provided in a kit format that is available to the patients at commercial points of sale, such as a drug store, pharmacy, general merchandise store or online via the internet, by mail order, etc., whereby the patient obtains the kit independent from his/her physician or facility. In either case, when the patient is in need of immobilizing his/her leg, including the foot, ankle, and toes, the patient assembles the device 10. The device 10 is designed to be securely placed on most surfaces, such as a floor or couch. In many instances, the device is used when the patient is sleeping. Accordingly, the device can be assembled and placed on a mattress of a bed.
Referring to
As illustrated in the embodiments described previously, the first connector assembly utilized requires a first contact and translation to a second secured position. Referring back to FIGS. 14 and 15A-15C, the second connector members 60 positioned on the outer surface 58 of the back panel are aligned with the plurality of keyhole shaped slotted members 34 positioned on the second panel member 32 of the first side panel 12 and the second panel member 52 of the second side wall 14. As illustrated in
The stabilizing members 18 and 20 are then secured to the bottom of the collapsible device 10, see
A bottom support panel 112, see
Once the collapsible device 10 is no longer needed, the components can be disassembled, removed and placed into the bag 22. The bag 22 is stored until assembly is required.
All patents and publications mentioned in this specification are indicative of the levels of those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains. All patents and publications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.
It is to be understood that while a certain form of the invention is illustrated, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and any drawings/figures included herein.
One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention is well adapted to carry out the objectives and obtain the ends and advantages mentioned, as well as those inherent therein. The embodiments, methods, procedures and techniques described herein are presently representative of the preferred embodiments, are intended to be exemplary and are not intended as limitations on the scope. Changes therein and other uses will occur to those skilled in the art which are encompassed within the spirit of the invention and are defined by the scope of the appended claims. Although the invention has been described in connection with specific preferred embodiments, it should be understood that the invention as claimed should not be unduly limited to such specific embodiments. Indeed, various modifications of the described modes for carrying out the invention which are obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be within the scope of the following claims.