DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running, in particular in rehabilitation or prevention stages.

Conventional systems used for this function in the rehabilitation field as described , for example, in the documents US201 1 120567 and US2014087922 have some limitations.

Being fully harnessed, the patient does not have total control of the torso, or the supporting structure of the patient is too bulky and unsuitable to allow walking/running free from constraints.

Supports of this kind were conceived and designed mainly to safely support patients with serious deficits who are not autonomous, (post stroke, cerebral palsy, MS, etc. ) and who require a total and solid support during walking (also to support the work of the physiotherapists).

In the orthopaedic field, where conditions are much less severe and the patient is able to maintain control of the torso without difficulty, there is the need to find a new technological solution capable of combining efficiency, functionality and practicality.

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running that is simple.

Another object is to provide a device that allows the patient total mobility while reducing the body weight.

A further object is to provide a device that allows the activities of the patient to be controlled.

Yet another object is to provide a device that allows adjustable reduction of the body weight.

In accordance with the present invention, these and other objects are achieved by a device for reducing the body weight of a patient during walking or running on a treadmill, characterized by comprising a pair of pneumatic pistons, secured at the bottom and at the side to said treadmill; said pair of pneumatic pistons are secured at the top to a pelvic harness; said treadmill comprises load cells for reading the body weight of said patient; said device comprises means for providing said pneumatic pistons with a pressure necessary to reduce said body weight of said patient by the desired amount, in response to the reading of said load cells.

Further characteristics of the invention are described in the dependent claims.

The advantages of this solution with respect to prior art solutions are many.

The device exploits the principle of the thrust of two pneumatic pistons that, due to a special pelvic harness, reduce the joint load of the patient (reduction of the gravitational constant).

Preferably, the device is mounted on a belt with sensors (or any other platform with sensors) provided with load cells and interfaced with a personal computer for reading of the load signals applied.

The device reads the body weight of the patient positioned on the belt or platform in real time through the load cells. The operator, using a software interface, establishes the component of weight bearing relief to apply to the patient (10%, 20%, 50%, up to 100%). The device supplies the pistons with the necessary pressure to obtain the weight relief set.

The rehabilitation logic is very simple and useful. In the acute stage of rehabilitation, after weighing the patient, the therapist decides the reduction component of the joint load to start walking (e.g. , 30% of the joint weight, very similar to Archimedes' principal when submerged in water). When the body weight of the patient begins to improve and consequently the patient starts to walk autonomously, the therapist will automatically reduce the aid component of the system to 20-10%, until eliminating it completely in the advanced post-acute stage. A very important aspect of this device is its simplicity and the possibility of freeing the torso of the patient while at the same time performing the function of reducing the joint load.

In fact, it is known and scientifically documented by many authors how, during rehabilitation, important it is for the patient to perceive the position of the torso freely (without constraints) to take a correct posture during the dynamic stage of walking (cardio-postural).

The device preferably comprises a release system of the pistons and of the harness, which are blocked at the side of the belt, which is particularly important to be able to use the belt freely, without the device.

In fact, in the last stage of rehabilitation, when the patient is able to correctly maintain a good posture and no longer requires any support, it is useful for the patient to walk-run without obstructions.

This characteristic is also essential for a correct evaluation.

Moreover, the device is preferably inserted in the visual control system of the patient provided with 3D video cameras positioned in front of the patient.

The solution used for the joints that support and anchor the pistons is particularly interesting. One of the main functions that the device required in order to perform was total lightness and mobility.

During walking the pelvic movement is a very complex movement of a spiral type, meaning that there are components in anterior-posterior and top-to-bottom direction. These movements are very precise and the mechanical structure of the harness needed for the patient must be able to follow this delicate motor pattern naturally.

The technical solution adopted was to use rubber supports capable of simultaneously performing two functions: full mobility on all axes and at the same time stabilization of the structure in the neutral point. Alternatively, general spring systems could be used.

The hardness of the rubber supports also determines the degree of mobility.

In fact, the device can be provided with three or more levels of hardness of the rubber supports and consequently of the mobility of the pistons.

Low hardness (very mobile but also unstable), medium hardness (medium mobility and stability), high hardness (reduced mobility but great stability for patients with more serious deficits).

Preferably, the rubber joints have been positioned not only at the base of the pistons but also at the pelvic harness. In this way, the rods of the pistons will have complete mobility.

If these latter rubber joints are not present, the rods of the pistons, having in this case limited degrees of freedom, are subjected to considerable strain, at their blocking or breaking limit.

The device can also be adjusted to the height of the patient. In fact, due to the sliding guides of the pistons, the operator can easily adjust the height of the structure to adapt it to the patient.

Moreover, the device can also be adapted for any belt available on the market. In fact, the device is provided with special hook couplings that allow it to be fastened to many of the belt structures available on the market.

A compressor and a pressure regulator provided with the device can regulate the thrust (with or without feedback to load cells) to reduce the joint load of the patient.

The characteristics and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a practical embodiment thereof, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 shows a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running, secured to a treadmill in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 2 shows a front view of a piston of a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 3 shows a side view of a piston of a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 4 shows the pistons connected to a pelvic harness of a device for reducing the body weight during walking or running in accordance with the present invention.

With reference to the accompanying figures, a device 10 for reducing the body weight during walking or running in accordance with the present invention is secured to a treadmill 1 1 of a known type.

The device 10 comprises two pneumatic pistons 12 positioned at the sides of the treadmill 1 1 .

In alternative to the pneumatic pistons 12, pistons with another technology, of magnetic, electromagnetic, electro pneumatic, electrical or similar type, can be used .

The pneumatic pistons 12 are connected at the top to a semi-rigid pelvic harness 13 capable of uniformly transferring the force from bottom to top.

In particular, in the case shown, this is a rigid disc, to which the pneumatic pistons 12 are connected and an underlying flexible harness made of fabric or plastic that facilitates the movements of the patient.

Alternatively, the pelvic harness 13 comprises a simple belt or a climbing harness connected at the side to the two pneumatic pistons 12. The pelvic harness 13 is supported only by the two pneumatic pistons 12.

The semi-rigid pelvic harness 13 transfers the thrust of the pistons 12 onto the same plane as the centre of gravity (C.O.G) of the patient. This allows maximum freedom of movement and full proprioceptive control of the torso during normal walking and during running with spiral physiological movement of the pelvis.

The pneumatic pistons 12 are connected at the bottom to the side bars 20 of the treadmill 1 1 .

The connection preferably comprises hook couplings 21 that allow anchoring to the side bars 20 of many of the treadmill structures available on the market.

The hook couplings 21 are U-shaped structures inclined by 90°, preferably adjustable in height so as to adapt to the size of the side bars 20 of the treadmill 1 1 . These are then secured by means of bolts or butterfly screws.

The pneumatic pistons 12 are secured to the couplings 21 by means of support joints 25 and anchor the pistons made of rubber.

In the figure, three joints are represented for each piston; however, this number can be variable according to requirements and to their strength.

In fact, the hardness and the number of the flexible rubber joints 25 also determine the degree of mobility.

In fact, the device can be provided with three (or more) levels of hardness of the rubber of the rubber joints 25 and, therefore, of the mobility of the pistons.

The joints 25 supply the necessary mobility to the pneumatic pistons 12, allowing them to tilt according to the forces applied, and at the same time, when no forces are applied, they return to their substantially vertical central rest position.

The joints 25 have a substantially laterally indented cylindrical shape; however, they can have any shape.

They comprise a first lower base 26 secured with a bolt to the coupling 21 , and a second upper base 28 secured with a bolt 29 to a base 30 of the pneumatic piston 12.

The pneumatic pistons 12 further comprise at the top similar support joints 31 and anchor the pistons 12.

The rod 32 of the piston 12 ends with a first plate 33 to which the joints 31 (two in this case) are secured , which are in turn secured to a second plate 34 on which the pelvic harness 13 will be secured.

The joints 25 and 31 can be replaced by springs. The pneumatic pistons 12 further comprise means for adjusting the length of the pistons 12, and therefore of the device, to the height of the patient.

In fact, through sliding guides inside the pistons 12, by means of a knob 40 the operator can easily adjust the height of the structure to adapt it to the patient, inserting it in appropriate slots 41 positioned on the pistons 12.

The device 10 preferably further comprises a system 45 for coupling and releasing of the pistons 12, which are blocked at the side of the treadmill 1 1 , which is particularly important to be able to use the belt freely, without the device.

The system 45 comprises a U-shaped structure inclined by 90°, for each piston, into which the plate 30 is inserted . The opening is sufficiently wide, so that during the activity of the patient the plate 30 can move and tilt freely.

In the event of blocking, for normal use of the treadmill 1 1 , the operator operates the lever 46 that blocks the plate 30 inside the system 45.

The pelvic harness 13 is detached and the treadmill 1 1 can be used normally.

Moreover, the treadmill 1 is preferably of the type with sensors, i.e. , provided with load cells (not shown) and interfaced with a personal computer for the reading of the load signals applied.

Therefore, it reads the body weight of the patient positioned on the belt or platform in real time through the load cells.

The system 10 comprises a compressor and a pressure regulator (not shown), preferably connected to a computer that provides the pistons 12 with the pressure required to reduce the joint load of the patient by the desired amount. The signal can thus be made to react and the computer controls the measurement of the sensors of the treadmill 1 in real time and adjusts the pressure to be supplied to the pistons 12.

The system 10 can further comprise a visual control system 50 of the patient provided with 3D video cameras positioned in front of the patient, to monitor the posture of the patient and to compare it with a predetermined posture and provide information on a monitor 51 to correct the posture of the patient. A control system, for example by means of a touch screen 52, is used to provide information and commands to the system.

The visual control system can be applied to the system 10, due to the fact that no support equipment is placed between the 3D video cameras and the patient, as instead is often the case in prior art devices.

The materials used , and the dimensions, can be any depending on requirements and on the state of the art.

The system thus conceived is susceptible to numerous modifications and variants, all falling within the scope of the inventive concept; moreover all the details can be replaced by technically equivalent elements.