US 12,440,361 B2
Orthopaedic joint and method for controlling same
Dirk Seifert, Vienna (AT); and Florian Fuchs, Hollabrunn (AT)
Assigned to OTTO BOCK HEALTH CARE PRODUCTS GMBH, Vienna (AT)
Appl. No. 17/771,121
Filed by OTTO BOCK HEALTHCARE PRODUCTS GMBH, Vienna (AT)
PCT Filed Oct. 7, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/078102
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Apr. 22, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/078516, PCT Pub. Date Apr. 29, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 10 2019 128 508.9 (DE), filed on Oct. 22, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0370224 A1, Nov. 24, 2022
Int. Cl. A61F 5/00 (2006.01); A61F 5/01 (2006.01)
CPC A61F 5/0102 (2013.01) [A61F 5/0125 (2013.01); A61F 2005/0167 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An orthopedic joint comprising an upper part and a lower part pivotably arranged on the upper part, and a resistance device which is arranged between the upper part and the lower part and which provides resistance against a pivoting movement of the upper part relative to the lower part about a pivot axis, and which has an adjustment device by means of which the resistance is adjustable, wherein the adjustment device is coupled to a control device, which is coupled to at least one sensor, such that the resistance is adjustable by means of the control device on the basis of sensor data that are transmitted from the at least one sensor to the control device, wherein the control device has stored in it a function in which the joint is locked against pivoting in at least one direction in accordance with the sensor data, and the function can be activated for locking and deactivated for unlocking on the basis of the sensor data, wherein at least one parameter for activating the function and at least one parameter for deactivating the function are correlated with one another, wherein threshold values for the parameters for activation and/or deactivation are stored, and the threshold values are variable, and wherein the threshold values for activation and deactivation are positively correlated.
 
7. A method for controlling an orthopedic joint comprising an upper part and a lower part pivotably arranged on the upper part, and a resistance device which is arranged between the upper part and the lower part and which provides resistance against a pivoting movement of the upper part relative to the lower part about a pivot axis, and which has an adjustment device, the method comprising:
adjusting the resistance using the adjustment device on the basis of sensor data transmitted from at least one sensor to a control device connected to the adjustment device, in such a way that the joint is locked against pivoting upon activation of a function and unlocked upon deactivation of the function, wherein at least one threshold value for a parameter for activating the function and at least one threshold value for a parameter for deactivating the function are correlated with one another, and wherein the threshold values are positively correlated with one another.
 
12. A method for controlling an orthopedic joint, wherein the joint comprises an upper part and a lower part pivotably arranged on the upper part, and a resistance device which is arranged between the upper part and the lower part and which provides resistance against a pivoting movement of the upper part relative to the lower part about a pivot axis, and which has an adjustment device, the method comprising:
adjusting the resistance using the adjustment device on the basis of sensor data transmitted from at least one sensor to a control device connected to the adjustment device, in such a way that the joint is locked against pivoting upon activation of a function and unlocked upon deactivation of the function, wherein at least one threshold value for a parameter for activating the function and at least one threshold value for a parameter for deactivating the function are positively correlated with one another and are variable.