Patent Application
20060229755
This invention generally pertains to covers for prosthetic devices and other dynamic or flexible supporting devices. More particularly, this invention relates to covers for prosthetic or orthotic devices and other dynamic or flexible supporting members bearing photographic images of corresponding body parts or articles that give the covered devices the appearance of corresponding body parts or corresponding articles, both at rest and dynamically. The invention also relates to methods and apparatus for making such covers for prosthetic devices and other dynamic or flexible supporting devices that replicate the appearance of corresponding body parts or articles.
Amputees generally do not wish to draw attention to their prostheses. Accordingly, a good prosthesis should be as realistic looking and cosmetically appropriate as possible. While cosmetically appointed prostheses are commercially available, they typically exhibit limited realism. For example, one known prosthetic covering is a basic, monochromatic glove with indentations to resemble knuckles and nails. The glove comes in a limited selection of sizes (e.g., five sizes for adults and children) and colors (e.g., sixteen colors for each size). Unfortunately, it is not always possible to achieve a good color match between the cosmetic glove and the amputees' corresponding existing hand. Moreover, the glove is monochromatic and thus lacks a realistic depth of color. Finally, the glove often does not match the person's skin complexion (freckles, variations in skin tone, etc.)
One way to overcome these limitations has been to painstakingly paint detailed features onto a customized prosthetic or prosthetic cover (e.g., fingernails, toenails, skin creases, knuckle lines, hair, and base skin color). However, such customized prostheses are very costly due to the high artistic skill and substantial labor needed to make them. For example, an aesthetically enhanced hand cover marketed under the name LIVINGSKIN is available from Aesthetic Concerns of Middletown, N.Y. The material for the LIVINGSKIN cover is made up of three different layers, simulating the three layers of skin: epidermis, dermis and subcutaneous layers. Professional artists paint each individual cover to closely match the original limb, typically using photographs of the person's existing limb as a reference for color and detail. Although a prosthetic having such a cover can have a lifelike appearance, the required skill and labor to create the cover make hand-painted prostheses or prosthesis covers too expensive for the average amputee. The costs will become all the more problematic when it becomes necessary to replace covers that become irreversibly soiled or damaged.
Thus, it can be seen that there is a need for improved aesthetically accurate covers for prostheses and orthoses that can be made by a cost-effective method and duplicated without excessive additional expense. There is also a need for improved, economical covers for prosthetic and orthotic devices and other dynamic or flexible supporting devices replicating the appearance of corresponding body parts or corresponding articles both at rest and dynamically. Finally, there is a need for a light chamber that makes it possible to produce photographic images of body parts with a degree of accuracy, realism and reproducibility sufficient to satisfy medical requirements, including the exacting requirements for making the covers of this invention.
In accordance with the foregoing, a method and apparatus for creating a flexible cover for prostheses, orthoses and other dynamic or flexible supporting devices is provided. In one embodiment of the invention, the method includes the steps of capturing images of at least a portion of an existing body part of a person, digitally processing and manipulating the images as necessary, printing the resulting representation onto a flexible cover, and applying the cover to a prosthetic configured to replace a missing body part of a person or to an orthotic device designed to improve the function of movable body parts. The covers may also be supplied with appropriate images, and applied to dynamic or flexible devices like robotic arms or to other dynamic or flexible devices.
In a related embodiment of the invention, the capturing step includes inserting the body part of the person into a specially designed light chamber that enables the production of photographic images with a degree of accuracy, realism and reproducibility sufficient to satisfy the exacting requirements of the covers of this invention.
In one important embodiment, the chamber comprises an enclosure with at least one curved wall having at least three camera access holes with non-coplanar central axes, a source object access aperture for receiving body parts or articles to permit portions thereof to be photographed as desired, a color calibration scale, and one or more LED arrays to provide shadowless lighting of the source object.
In another embodiment, the image captured using a light chamber of the invention is one of a plurality of captured images of the body part, and the processing step includes merging a plurality of such captured images into a single two-dimensional representation of the body part. The processing step may further include enlarging or reducing the two-dimensional representation by a ratio sufficient to accommodate shrinkage or expansion of the cover that occurs during the applying step.
In yet another embodiment of the invention, the processing step further includes selecting a color profile that accounts for the hue of the material being used for the cover.
It is another object of the invention to permit a person to select from such varying images the skin color for a prosthetic cover that the person finds the most appealing.
In still another embodiment of the invention, the printing step includes putting the cover onto a substantially flat article, feeding the substantially flat article bearing the cover into a printer, and applying an image to the article.
In still another embodiment of the invention, the printing step includes putting the cover onto a substantially flat article, attaching the article to a substantially flat carrier, feeding the carrier with the attached article into a printer, and applying an image to the article.
In yet another embodiment, the cover is fed into a printer where a representation derived from the images of a source object is applied to the top surface of the cover and then it is flipped over and the feeding and printing steps are repeated.
Another embodiment of the invention is a method for creating a realistic looking cover configured to fit onto a prosthesis that includes the steps of placing an existing body part of a person into a light chamber comprising an enclosure that has a calibration reference scale contained within the enclosure; photographing the existing limb and the calibration reference scale within the light chamber; calibrating a printer using the calibration reference scale; and using the printer to print a representation of the existing body part onto a cover for the prosthesis.
In a related embodiment, the photographing step includes coupling a digital camera to an aperture in the enclosure described above and capturing an image of the existing limb through the aperture with the camera.
In another related embodiment, the calibrating step includes designing a specific International Color Consortium (“ICC”) profile for the representation to be applied to the cover.
In still another embodiment, the printing step comprises fitting the cover over a transport form that is sized to stretch the cover so that it is enlarged from its nominal size to a size corresponding to the prosthesis that is to receive the cover, attaching the covered transport form to a carrier, and feeding the carrier into a printer to apply an image to the cover.
Yet another embodiment of the invention is a method for making a cover for a prosthesis or orthosis for a person that includes the steps of creating a cover that is configured to fit on the prosthesis or orthosis, fitting the cover onto a substantially flat article, attaching the article with the fitted cover to a substantially flat carrier, feeding the carrier with the attached article through a printer, and printing a representation of at least a part of the person's body onto the cover.
A further embodiment of the invention includes placing a part of a person's body corresponding to a missing limb into an enclosure, activating a light within the enclosure, digitally photographing the part from at least three different angles within the enclosure, creating a representation based on the visual data obtained in the photographing step, and applying the representation to a flexible cover for a prosthesis to replace the missing limb.
A further embodiment includes capturing a digital image of a body part, digitally processing and manipulating the digital image on a computer, and transferring the resulting representation from the computer to a printer to print the representation onto a cover for a prosthesis or an orthosis.
In yet another embodiment, the method further includes placing a heat-shrinkable cover replicating a body part prepared in accordance with the method of the invention onto a prosthesis or orthosis, and heating the cover to shrink it to produce a snug fit.
In still another related embodiment the method further includes stretching over a prosthetic or an orthotic cover replicating a body part prepared in accordance with the method of the invention.
In yet another related embodiment, the method further includes shifting the cover between printing onto the top and bottom surfaces of the cover by an amount sufficient to camouflage the interface between the top and bottom cover images.
In a further embodiment the method includes a differential stretch system to camouflage the interface between the top and bottom cover images in which in a first pass printing an image is applied to the top surface of an elastic cover maintained at a neutral stretch and then the cover is flipped 180° and an image is applied in a second pass printing while the printed side is maintained at an increased stretch and the exposed unprinted side is maintained at the neutral stretch.
In a further embodiment, the method includes editing the representation applied to the cover to remove scars, or other anomalies that would make both the healthy limb and the cosmetic covering look unrealistically symmetrical.
These and other aspects and attributes of embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings and detailed description of the invention.
Embodiments of the invention are generally directed to methods and apparatus for making covers for dynamic or flexible prosthetic and orthotic devices and other dynamic or flexible supporting devices and to the covers so produced. There are various ways of carrying out this method. In one embodiment, the method includes the following steps: (1) creating enhanced lighting conditions; (2) arranging one or more cameras to photograph from different vantage points a three-dimensional object comprising a body part, a body surface, or an article whose surface appearance is to be replicated on a prosthesis, orthosis or other dynamic supporting device (hereinafter referred to as the “source object”); (3) processing and manipulating the resulting images into a representation of the three-dimensional object for application to a flexible cover; (4) printing the representation onto a flexible cover configured to fit over and follow the contours of the prosthesis, orthosis or other supporting device (referred to below as the “target object”); and (6) securing the cover onto the surface of the target object.
Embodiments of the invention are illustrated below by describing methods and apparatus for making a prosthetic cover bearing a representation of a corresponding source object (body part). These examples are not to be construed as limiting the invention which relates not only to covers for prosthetic devices but also to covers for orthotic devices and to covers for other dynamic or flexible supporting members bearing representations of corresponding body parts or articles so that the covered devices have the appearance of corresponding body parts or corresponding articles, both at rest and dynamically. Thus, the target objects include prostheses, orthoses and other dynamic or flexible supporting members.
The Dynamic or Flexible Target Objects
The target objects onto which the covers of embodiments of the present invention are intended to be applied include prostheses for visible typically exposed dynamic or flexible body parts, particularly exposed tubular limb structures including hands, hands and arms up to the elbow, hands and arms up to the shoulder, fingers, feet, feet and ankles, feet and legs up to the knee, feet and legs up to the hip, as well as tubular sections of arms, legs, the neck or the trunk of the body. The target objects also include typically visible orthoses like leg and arm braces and other appliances used to support, align or improve the function of movable parts of the body. Finally, the covers may be used over any disfiguring scarring such as after-bum injuries or to simulate or hide body tattoos on the hands, arms, feet, legs, and trunk. The target objects do not include the face or the head.
Additionally, the covers may be supplied with appropriate images, and applied to dynamic or flexible devices like robotic arms or to other dynamic or flexible devices. For example, where it is desirable or necessary that a robotic arm supply not only a necessary function but also that it produce an anthropomorphic effect, the robotic arm may be supplied with a hand-wrist-arm cover bearing a human hand-wrist-arm image in accordance with this invention.
The Cover
Covers for use in embodiments of the invention are made of sheets of material that are configured to fit over and follow the contours of the target object. An example of a cover would be a blank glove 2 (i.e., the glove prior to the image of a person's hand being printed on it) as illustrated in
The cover material may be a heat-shrinkable material. Preferably, however, it will be an elastic material, that is, a flexible, low modulus of elasticity material, capable of expanding and contracting to return to its original or nominal dimensions without fatigue. Elastic materials that may be used in the practice of the invention include, but are not limited to, latex, silicone, rubber, and vinyl. Among these elastic materials, nitrile rubber (a co-polymer of butadiene and acrylonitrile) is currently preferred. If a heat-shrinkable material is used, it may be a shrinkable polymeric film such as heat-shrinkable polyvinyl chloride (“PVC”), polyethylene phthalate, and glycol modified polymers (“PETG”) that have the requisite durability and shrink at a controllable uniform rate to produce a proper fit.
In certain applications such as a cover for a hand/arm prosthesis where one part of the prosthesis (e.g., the hand) is designed to rotate with respect to another part of the prosthesis (e.g., the arm), it may be desirable to use a multi-part cover, for example a cover where one part covers the hand and the other part covers the adjoining wrist and arm. In such a multi-part cover, at least two cover parts will abut and preferably overlap but remain free to move with respect to each other. Where the parts overlap, an appropriate lubricant may be applied to reduced friction and wear.
Additionally, where two or more parts of such a multi-part cover are intended to cover prosthesis components that are subject to different types or levels of wear, the cover parts may be made of different materials appropriate to the different wear levels. For example, in a hand-wrist-arm prosthesis, the cover for the hand component may be made of nitrile rubber while the cover for the wrist or arm component of the prosthesis may be made of vinyl. Furthermore, the thicknesses of the cover parts may also vary as desired to address the different requirements of the prosthesis components. In all cases following the process explained in more detail below, embodiments of the present invention make it possible to produce consistent images across the cover parts notwithstanding variations in the printing characteristics or color (or differences in the ICC profile) of the material used to make the cover parts.
As noted above, the cover may be used with burn victims as itself a skin prosthesis” applied after healing at the burn site.
The cover material may be any appropriate color or shade, and it may be opaque or translucent. Indeed, in some applications it may be desirable to use a transparent material and to modify the image processing and modifying step to produce an appropriate image for inside-the-cover printing. In this case an additional step would be performed after the printing is completed in which the cover is turned inside-out after printing to place the image in a protected location on the inside of the cover and therefore behind the exposed surface of the cover.
The cover material may be coated with an acrylic acetate to facilitate reliable and consistent color reproduction in the final product. If an acrylic acetate coating is used, then the coating should be applied using rollers, wire form coating, or other application method that produces a uniform and smooth coating to help insure an accurate and reproducible color profile in the final cover image. Among the above coating methods, wire form coating is currently preferred. Following coating, the cover surface should be allowed to cure before an image is printed on it, preferably using an inkjet printer as discussed below. Although the acrylic acetate can be applied to the cover material before the covers are made, it is preferred to apply it to formed covers to insure precise and uniform coating.
The cover will be shaped to fit over the dynamic or flexible target object (e.g., a glove over a hand prosthesis) either by way of an undersize or stretch fit for a cover made of an elastic material or by way of an oversize fit for a cover made of a heat shrinkable material. Where the target object is a prosthetic hand, for example, the cover should be shaped as a glove optionally including wrist and arm portions, optionally including independently movable cover parts as discussed earlier. Where an elastic material is used it should have elasticity characteristics that permit it to be stretched without damage to at least about 25% of its nominal size and preferably to about 10% of its nominal size. This will ensure that a close-fitting cover can be made that once placed on the dynamic or flexible target object will tightly and closely follow the target object contours, fitting into the nooks and crannies of the target object to the extent reasonably possible and staying there as the target object moves and flexes.
The thickness of the cover material should be sufficient to make it durable, but it must also be thin enough to enable it to follow the contours of the target object. Generally, the material should be from about 0.003 to about 0.050 inches in thickness and more preferably it will be from about 0.008 to about 0.012 inches in thickness.
The surface of the cover may be smooth. Alternatively it may be provided with a roughened or enhanced friction surface or with roughened or enhanced friction portions in selected areas of the cover. For example, the finger tips of a hand prosthesis cover or the heel of a foot prosthesis cover may be provided with roughened or enhanced friction portions. Gripping or other areas that are subject to increased wear may also be reinforced by placing additional material thickness at these areas of the cover. Finally, the cover may be provided with a textured surface emulating the tactile characteristics of the surface of the limb replaced by the prosthesis. For example, a cover for a hand prosthesis with such a surface would give the person fitted with a touch-sensitive hand prosthesis more accurate feedback from the prosthetic hand. It would also give others who touch the textured surface of the hand prosthesis cover tactile feedback making the prosthetic hand seem more lifelike to them.
In one alternative embodiment, a two-layer cover may be used. In this embodiment, the inner cover portion would provide the physical texture of the prosthesis, including fingernail beds, the palm creases, etc. One method of making such an inner cover is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,453,604 in connection with forming a mold that is the reversed replica of a human hand and using that mold to make elastic gloves that replicate the contours of a human hand. In this embodiment of the present invention, a generally smooth outer cover portion bearing the representation of the human hand (or other limb) would be fit over the inner cover.
Additionally, elastic gloves for prostheses that replicate the contours of a human hand (e.g. those made by processes like that of U.S. Pat. No. 2,453,604 referred to above) may be flattened and printed with the representation of the corresponding limb in accordance with the process of the present invention.
The Light Chamber
It is preferred in the practice of the present invention that a light chamber providing enhanced lighting conditions be used to produce the photographic images that are to be used in creating the representation transferred onto the cover. One such enhanced light chamber 10 is illustrated in
Access end 16 of chamber 10 may be entirely open for receiving the body parts or articles that are to be photographed or it may be closed and provided with an access aperture (not shown) for receiving the body parts (e.g. a hand and wrist inside the chamber with the arm extending outside). This opening may be provided with a curtain or tarp (not shown) to block out extraneous light. If an access aperture is provided as discussed above, a sleeve (not shown) may encircle the aperture to block out extraneous light.
Back end 18 of the chamber preferably is open to permit a limb to extend out from the back of the chamber if necessary. For example, where it is necessary to photograph a person's forearm, the area of the forearm to be photographed will be properly positioned within the chamber with the hand extending through the back end of the chamber. In an alternate embodiment, the back end may be covered and an egress aperture (with or without a sleeve) provided to permit the limb to extend through the back of the chamber.
It is preferred at least three camera mount apertures 22, 24, and 26 as shown are formed in curved top 14 permitting the contents of the chamber to be photographed from varying angles. It is preferred that the central axes of these camera mount apertures not be coplanar to ensure the production of optimal three-dimensional images from the photographic images taken of a particular source object in the chamber. Also, any desired number of camera mount apertures may be formed in curved top 14. The camera mount openings may be provided with sleeves (not shown) to hold the camera(s) in place during the image-taking process. Preferably, these sleeves will be attached to framework 20. Also, the cameras may be supported independently of the camera mount apertures by, for example, supporting the camera(s) on tripod(s). The image coverage by cameras mounted to the chamber are represented by lines 22A, 24A and 26A which illustrate the field of view of the cameras.
Light chamber 10 preferably will include a calibrated scale 28 positioned on the bottom 29 of the chamber to assist in assessing color in the final image applied to the cover. The scale may be a checkerboard pattern with two inch square calibrated three-step gray scale patches. Alternatively, a color scale could be used such as a Greta Macbeth color chart.
RGB Values for gray scale patches preferably will be “255, 255, 255” for white, “128, 128, 128” for the mid tone, and “0, 0, 0” for black. In another embodiment, only the outer perimeter of the inner surface of the light tent will have this checkerboard pattern, and the center portion will be a neutral gray (RGB “128, 128, 128”). The checkerboard pattern may also have lines at predetermined increments (e.g., 0.1 inch) to provide size scale reference information. For example, if a hand is the source object being photographed, this size scale information can be used to compute the diameter of the fingers, wrist, palm, etc. Since digital cameras derive color via gray scale ratios as measured through red green and blue filters, at the production phase the calibrated gray scale can be used to remove any color cast from the photographic reproduction of the scale in the background thereby insuring the color of the skin will be accurately represented.
LED arrays 30, 32, 34, and 36 are provided at a fixed distance from the imaging area to light the source object. The LED arrays are of a fixed intensity and provide uniform lighting that shadowlessly lights the entire object including its crevices and grooves to produce optimal images. While four arrays are shown in
The LED arrays preferably will be selected to provide a color temperature between about 5000 and 5700 degrees K. This color temperature represents the most common daylight color temperature, and is the most pleasing to normal viewing. LED arrays do not generate significant amounts of heat, thereby ensuring that if a person were to touch them while a limb is being photographed within the chamber, there is no risk of burn injuries. Also, LED's operate on low voltage, eliminating risks associated with locating high voltage near the limb. Furthermore, single LED failures in the array do not compromise the quality of the image, where if more conventional lighting were used, single failures could adversely affect the final image. Finally, once the light chamber is arranged, there is no further need for calibration or set up on the part of the technician to capture the images as needed.
Since a person's good limb is in fact living tissue, the color of the skin on the living limb goes through numerous changes over the course of a day due to changes in the skin's perfusion of blood associated with, among other things, varying physical orientation of the limb. This variation in skin color can be reproduced by photographing the limb in different physical orientations. For example, the chamber may be mounted for pivotal movement along edge 38, so that photographs of a particular good limb can be taken in a generally resting horizontal position, an upwardly angled (for example, 30° above the horizontal) position or a downwardly angled position (for example, 30° below the horizontal. Since the limb color will vary with the varying blood perfusion associated with these different positions, the color of the limb in these photographs will vary to correspond to the level of profusion.
Changes in skin perfusion are also associated with changes in temperature. The light chamber therefore may also be equipped to reproduce variations in skin color by providing means to heat or cool the chamber to produce such changes in surface perfusion in the limb being photographed associated with changes in temperature. To do this, it is preferred that the access and back ends of the chamber be closed and provided with access and egress apertures (preferably with sleeves) as discussed above. Heating and cooling will be supplied to the chamber by conventional means.
Varying the level of skin perfusion leads into yet another aspect of the present invention. Thus, images reflecting differing skin perfusion may be generated for a particular limb that is to serve as a source object for a prosthesis cover. The person choosing the final image to be applied to the cover can choose the optimum image from these differing images thereby maximizing the satisfaction of the person receiving the final prosthesis cover. For example, images may be taken with the limb at different temperatures and thus different skin perfusion and different coloring (e.g. a warmer hand may be more red in color and a colder hand may be more blue). A sample of these different images can be printed and the person receiving the prosthetic covering can choose which of the samples they prefer be used to make the final cosmetic glove. Also, if the person receiving the prosthetic covering wants to alter these images, for example by enhancing the red component to suggest a warmer limb, the image can be easily so altered at this point and printed for approval.
Another embodiment of a light chamber 50 in accordance with the present invention is shown in
The above light chambers may be used for applications outside of preparation of covers in accordance with embodiments of the present invention to reproduce very accurate matches of skin tone and also depth and overall image for a variety of other purposes. For example, the light chamber may be used in skin mapping, for documentation of accurate body part images, and for pre-implant surgical applications where it is important to obtain the precise color for an implant.
The Printing Equipment
The method described herein may be carried out using a conventional personal computer and conventional printer that are hard-wired or wirelessly linked to one another. The printer should be capable of responding to digital color profiles and of printing on materials up to about 0.060 inches in thickness. One printer that has been found to be particularly useful in the practice of the present invention is the Epson 4800 printer, available from Seiko Epson Corporation of Japan. Also, the ink used, which may be pigment or dye-based, must have good water-resistance, color consistency, color stability, durability. Epson K3 inks are currently preferred.
Since different types and colors of base cover material respond to printed images differently, it is desirable to have predetermined calibration data for each contemplated type of base cover material. For example, a custom ICC profile may be created for each color and type of cover material. Such profiles can be generated by printing known color values on the cover material, allowing the colors on the material to stabilize for a period of time, and measuring the resulting color characteristics. Ink ratios can be adjusted and recorded through incremental testing until the printed characteristics are suitably close to the calibrated target. If the cover material is transparent or translucent, the color of the target object (e.g., the color of a covered prosthetic limb) will be taken into account during the calibration process. If ICC profiles are used, then the camera, printer, image manipulation software, and computer monitor preferably will all be capable of being calibrated using the ICC profiles.
Method steps that may be employed in a preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described in detail. It is to be understood, however, that there are many possible ways to carry out each of these steps, and that the ways described below are only examples.
Creating Enhanced Lighting Conditions
The first step of creating optimal lighting conditions is carried out by setting up a light chamber, such as the light chamber 10 of
It is preferred that light chamber 10 be used so as to facilitate accurate reproduction of colors and features of the three-dimensional object without undesired shadowing effects as discussed above. In one suitable configuration, four high-intensity fixed position LED arrays with a color temperature of 5000K.-5700K. are positioned within light chamber 10 around the source object. An LED array capable of being triggered via wireless synchronization from a camera can be used if desired. Size and color scale tools also set up within the light chamber also as described earlier.
Camera Set-Up
The step of setting up one or more cameras near the source object according to an embodiment of the invention will now be described. In this embodiment, a digital camera is physically positioned near the object and set to a resolution and image size that is high enough to confer an acceptable level of detail. One possible advantage of a digital camera over a film camera is that digital photographs allow for better color correction and color matching under varying lighting conditions. The appropriate resolution and image size settings for the camera may be determined based on fine art photography techniques. For example, if the aesthetic covering needs to look realistic when viewed from a distance greater than 12 inches, then each camera should capture at least 240 pixels for each inch of printed image.
For example, if a three-dimensional object that is to be photographed is an amputee's existing hand, and the aesthetic covering to be produced is a glove for a prosthetic hand intended to appear life-like when viewed from a distance greater than 12 inches, and if the glove has a length of about 17 inches from the fingertip to the bottom of the glove (near the elbow) and has a width of about 7 inches, then a suggested resolution of each camera would be as follows:
17 inches×240 pixels per inch=4080 pixels
7 inches×240 pixels per inch=1680 pixels
Because current digital cameras often have a 3:2 aspect ratio for image capture, the camera in this example may be set to a resolution of at least 4080×2720 (11.1 megapixels) prior to photographing the amputee's existing hand. Additionally, it is preferred that the camera be set to capture and store images in an uncompressed or “RAW” format, although JPG or similar formats can be used. Given that the process for matching color of living skin, and that image capture will be done by different technicians, different locations, RAW images are preferred because variation in camera software will not affect the results ultimately obtained in the processing of the RAW data.
Thus, where a cover is designed to be stretched 10% beyond the cover size when it is later fitted over the prosthesis (the “target size”), the image as photographed can be manipulated to achieve the desired quality in the final image on the cover. In order to do this in this 10% stretch example, the source object image is enlarged 10% beyond the target size. Thus, when the glove is fitted onto the prosthesis it is reduced 10% and therefore carries the source object image as photographed (as processed and manipulated).
Capturing a Representation of the Source Object
According to an embodiment of the invention, photographs of the source object are taken from various camera mount apertures around the center of the light chamber to capture a complete view. For example, these images may be taken from 30, 45, 90, 135 and 150 degree angles (which would require two additional apertures like features 22, 24, and 26 of
To photograph a person's existing limb, for example, the person inserts the limb (e.g., a hand), through access aperture 20 of light chamber 10 of
This example assumes, however, that the amputee has an existing corresponding limb to serve as a model for photographic replication. For situations where a person has no suitable corresponding limb, such as a double amputee, a selected standard image or a photograph of a model's limb having suitable physical characteristics may be used. A library of images of limbs may be generated for this purpose, so that amputees may choose a desired image from the library for application to a prosthesis cover in accordance with the invention.
The invention provides other ways of addressing occasions where it is necessary or desirable to generate color profiles and other visual characteristics from body parts or areas other than corresponding body parts. For example, in a case of a bilateral hand amputee or a burn victim, another body area having corresponding visual characteristics could be scanned to obtain the appropriate color profile for the cover. Thus, this image could be processed and manipulated in accordance with embodiments of the invention (e.g. by using the “clone” and “patch” features of PhotoShop) to produce an image suitable for application to the cover.
Processing the Digital Images into a Representation of the Source Object
In an embodiment of the invention, processing the digital images to form the representation of the source object, includes adjusting the representation if necessary to achieve the appropriate color, and resizing the representation, if necessary to accommodate expansion or contraction that is anticipated to occur when the cover to which the representation is applied is fitted onto a three-dimensional object. The process of converting multiple images of the three dimensional object into the representation consists of stitching together the various images that form a 180 degree view of the object to form a flat image of the appropriate dimensions. In this process, the various sections are precisely matched to various skin features and markings to ensure proper image alignment. The final two-dimensional representation is then flipped if necessary and sized to the correct two-dimensional size to match the dimensions of the prosthesis on which the cover will be worn on. Also, the representation may be edited as desired including editing to remove scars or other anomalies that would make both the healthy limb and the covered prosthetic look unrealistically symmetrical.
More specifically, the captured digital images may be merged or digitally “stitched” into a two-dimensional representation to be used in the printing process. The merging process can be performed using imaging processing software that has photo merge capability and ICC profile management capabilities. An Adobe Photoshop program photo merge feature may be used for this purpose. The photo merge process allows the multiple images to be merged together seamlessly into a two dimensional representation to be printed on the cover. Adobe Photoshop version CS2 is currently preferred. Also, where the target object is generally a mirror image of the prosthesis, the “flip invert” or “invert” features of the software can be used to convert the representation as required for the cover of the prosthetic
Once the flattened representation of the three-dimensional object is created and appropriate sized, the desired color may be matched and calibrated. A reference gray scale contained within the light chamber (and therefore captured in the image along with the three-dimensional object) may be used for this purpose. For example, digital cameras typically capture images as a combination of gray scale representations of red, green and blue color channels. Accordingly, the three checkerboard colors of RGB can be set to exact values, facilitating a nearly perfect color rendition of anything in the light chamber. Preferably, the computer monitor used in setting up the final printing colors is also calibrated with an ICC profile.
Printing the Representation onto a Flexible Cover
To print the two-dimensional representation onto a flexible cover in an embodiment of the invention, the base cover is first placed on a transport form. The transport form should be substantially flat and rigid to help hold the cover in a desired two-dimensional shape during printing. As explained earlier, it is desirable to print the representation such that it has the desired size and color characteristics of the target object. One way to accomplish this is to stretch the material over the transport form by an amount equaling the degree of stretch required for the target fit. The transport form may be sized to yield the desired amount of stretch.
Referring to
Referring to
One possible approach to ensuring proper registration involves taking a photograph of a blank cover mounted appropriately on the transport mechanism which will be, for example, an 8½×11 sheet which will accurately and repeatably move through the printer. This photograph can then be displayed on the computer monitor where the printed representation will be moved into position to precisely print onto the blank cover image to ensure proper and accurate registration in the final printed cover.
It is also highly desirable to eliminate or minimize unprinted seams between the top and the bottom images. This can be accomplished generally by techniques by which the representation on the opposite sides of the cover overlap along the interface of the top and bottom cover images. Typically, the overlapping areas will be printed at a reduced opacity level where the overlap occurs to further camouflage the seam or interface. Two techniques developed by the present inventors for minimizing or eliminating unprinted seams are a roll-and-print technique and a differential stretch technique.
The roll-and-print technique is illustrated in
The differential stretch technique is illustrated in
As previously discussed, in one embodiment the base cover material may be a heat-shrinkable material. The image is expanded for printing in a size such that the image will shrink to 100% upon final shrink-fitting to the target object (e.g., the prosthetic limb). When a heat-shrinkable material is used for the base cover, then the base cover may also be placed on a transport form and carriers for printing as described in the previous example, except that the base cover is not stretched during the process.
After the two-dimensional representation has been printed on the cover, the resulting product may be treated to improve wear and appearance, depending on the type of ink and material used for the base cover. For example, a waterproof coating and/or a gloss-reduction finish coating may be applied to provide the cover with a more realistic appearance as compared to latex or vinyl, which can otherwise have an unrealistic sheen. Coatings may be applied in a separate suitable application step such as with a spray or roller. Also, various portions of the cover can be treated with coatings that reduce both the gloss and surface friction, thereby making it easier for the amputee to put clothes over the cover according to various embodiments of the present invention.
Next, a nitrile rubber glove 70 is mounted onto an enlarged form to stretch the glove to a size about 110% of its nominal size as shown in the diagrammatic glove back view of
Choosing Cover Color Profiles for Amputees
Although prosthesis covers made in accordance with embodiments of the invention will be substantially less expensive than artist painted prostheses (and more accurate), they still will involve significant expense. A person that receives a particular color cover and is unhappy with it, requiring that a different color cover be made, will incur substantial additional expense for a new cover. Misunderstandings will be able to be prevented by preparing a two-dimensional photograph of the skin tone or color chosen, so that the person will be able to be shown that the cover produced corresponds to the color chosen. The higher probability of the desired outcome achieved by previewing different colors and making a choice before the cover is made constitutes an important contribution of the present invention. Additionally, where color changes are desired, it will be possible to adjust the color without taking additional photographs by making appropriate adjustments in the data processed by the software as discussed above.
For Caucasians particularly, there are color changes in exposed limbs that occur due to season changes. That is, limbs that are exposed to the sun in the summer become suntanned or otherwise change in color due to sun exposure. The present invention makes it possible to adjust the image color to take into account the level of suntan where desired. Thus, in some cases, a person may have a “summer cover” and a “winter cover.”
It can be seen from the foregoing that a new and useful method for making a cosmetic covering for prosthesis has been described. It should be noted that the use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in the context of describing the invention (especially in the context of the following claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and the plural, unless otherwise indicated. Recitation of ranges of values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplary language (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to better illuminate the invention and does not pose a limitation on the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential to the practice of the invention.
Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, including the best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention. It should be understood that the illustrated embodiments are exemplary only, and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention.
This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/670,561, filed on Apr. 12, 2005, and incorporated by reference in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60670561 | Apr 2005 | US |
