US 12,220,337 B2
Soft braces to prevent injury to a joint or body segment
Ata Kiapour, Wayland, MA (US); Dmitry Popov, Somerville, MA (US); Rachel M. Granberry, Saint Paul, MN (US); Danielle L. Nathanson, Chicago, IL (US); Asa M. Eckert-Erdheim, Cambridge, MA (US); and Conor James Walsh, Cambridge, MA (US)
Assigned to PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE, Cambridge, MA (US)
Appl. No. 16/621,501
Filed by PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE, Cambridge, MA (US); and CHILDREN'S MEDICAL CENTER CORPORATION, Boston, MA (US)
PCT Filed Jun. 13, 2018, PCT No. PCT/US2018/037397
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Dec. 11, 2019,
PCT Pub. No. WO2018/232029, PCT Pub. Date Dec. 20, 2018.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/519,079, filed on Jun. 13, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0214869 A1, Jul. 9, 2020
Int. Cl. A61F 5/01 (2006.01); A63B 71/08 (2006.01)
CPC A61F 5/0106 (2013.01) [A61F 5/0111 (2013.01); A61F 5/0118 (2013.01); A61F 5/0123 (2013.01); A63B 71/081 (2013.01); A61F 2005/0183 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A soft brace comprising:
one or more tensile elements configured to limit excessive movement of a knee joint;
wherein a placement of the one or more tensile elements and a tension of each of the one or more tensile elements provides resistance against excessive movement of the knee joint,
wherein at least one of the one or more tensile elements is configured to extend from a position proximal the knee joint to a position distal the knee joint around at least one of a medial aspect or a lateral aspect of the knee joint to provide resistance against knee rotation in at least one of a frontal plane or a transverse plane;
a plurality of soft tissue anchors configured to be positioned on a body around the knee joint, the one or more anchors being configured to anchor one or more of the one or more tensile elements to the body to provide force distribution relative to the knee joint; and
at least one anchor support cable directly connected to:
at least two soft tissue anchors of the plurality of soft tissue anchors, and
the at least one of the one or more tensile elements,
wherein the at least one anchor support cable is configured to restrict the at least one of the one or more tensile elements from deviating from an approximate center of rotation of the knee joint;
wherein, as configured to limit excessive movement of the knee joint, the one or more tensile elements do not generate tension during normal movement of the knee joint.