Undergraduate Thesis Project: Knee Brace Joint

This thesis came out of the class, 2.752 Development of Medical Products. Our group designed and built a knee brace joint that is custom to the patient's knee joint geometry and perfectly mimics the motion of the natural joint.  For more details, read our paper.  The joint surfaces were fabricated out of stainless steel and made use of an internal preload spring and hard stops to prevent hyperextension and hyperflexion.  Two joints were fitted onto an off-the-shelf knee brace.  

Thesis Media

3D printed prototype of gear/cam mechanism. Preliminary hard stop hook is also prototyped.

3D printed prototype of gear/cam mechanism. Preliminary hard stop hook is also prototyped.

Joint assembly minus second outer plate and preload spring. The tabs on the tibial and femoral components are bent for easier coupling to the off-the-shelf brace.

Joint assembly minus second outer plate and preload spring. The tabs on the tibial and femoral components are bent for easier coupling to the off-the-shelf brace.

Both joints attached to off-the-shelf brace. Notice the small thickness profile.

Both joints attached to off-the-shelf brace. Notice the small thickness profile.

User wearing the brace. The joint is meant to align with the knee joint. Further refinement and fitting will provide a better match between user and brace.

User wearing the brace. The joint is meant to align with the knee joint. Further refinement and fitting will provide a better match between user and brace.