Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch

One of the many possible solutions to the forearm crutch would be Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch was thought of by Jackson Jansen through existing technology in the biomedical engineering and biophysics field. Prosthetic legs, made for Paralympic runner Oscar Pistorius by a company called Flex-Foot Cheetahs invented by Van Phillips, inspired the idea of carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer blades attached to the lower body of crutches.   

There are many advantages of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch over prior art.  Current medical crutches apply a large amount of force to the human axilla (underarm) while in use.  This can cause a painful rash which is detrimental to one’s mobility even further. The dampening of this force would be created by the oscillating spring effect of the carbon-fiber instead of a solid uninterrupted force that is supported directly by the axilla.

Another solution to counteract the pain causing design of the medical crutch is an ergonomic and cushioned crutch pads.  The crutch pads of a medical are located at the very top of the crutch and goes directly under the axilla.  This usually has a distinctive dark grey tint.  The material is made out of a synthetic thermoplastic that is molded to a certain temperature to fit a given design.  The thermoplastic pads are meant to work as cushions but they do not do a good job doing so.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is much more comfortable to the user making it very user friendly and healthy.  The crutch pad of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch has a larger surface area allowing the pressure under one’s arm to significantly decrease.  The crutch pad will be in the shape of a semicircle to maximize the area to utilize the axilla and lower deltoids. The knowledge of general physics mechanics tells us that pressure is equal to the force over the area; pressure is inversely related to the area.  Therefore, the larger the area, the smaller the pressure.  This equates to even more pressure being dampened while using crutches.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is also very strong and capable of supporting an ample amount of weight.  The aluminum shaft of the forearm crutch is very skinny in many designs like the Lumex Deluxe edition.  Forearm crutches like these have a 2 inch diameter shaft which is not as supportive as a 4 inch diameter shaft attached to carbon-fiber blades.  The forearm crutches like the Lumex Deluxe edition are prone to snapping if bent excessively or if they were to fall on the ground repeatedly because of the small diameter shaft.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutches are very durable mostly because of the thick aluminum double shaft and the carbon-fiber polymer.

One of the most important features of the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is that it is very user friendly.  One can use the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch with no crutch experience and very little instruction.  The style in with crutches are used can vary.  A mistake with the common medical crutch is that people tend to swing them laterally, too wide, or outward, too in-front.  This can be detrimental or even add pain to one’s current health condition.  When swinging forearm or normal crutches too wide, this creates a longer distance to the center of mass and balance which in-turn, causes the loss of balance and the creates a high risk of falling.  When swinging the forearm or normal crutches too far, it creates the inverse effect of swinging one’s body too far (the distance that the crutches were swung).  This responsive motion causes the user to lose balance at the end of the cycle when his or her feet hit the ground.  This is because his or her velocity increases and accelerates in mid-air and has a significantly different final velocity than initial velocity.  When contact is finally made with the ground by the user, the user will most likely stumble, which may cause further injury.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Clutch works well to counteract these occurrences with the spring potential and torque of the carbon-fiber blades  always apply energy back to the center of the double shafted frame of the crutch.  In any orientation the Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch will allow the user to keep his or her balance much more easily than any other type of medical crutch on the market.  This is important because it reduces further injury to those that have existing injuries, hence the reason to initially need to use crutches.

The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch is also efficient for walking up steps.  The common practice with forearm and common crutch when walking up steps is that one takes off and hold the crutches as one walks up each step.  This is very inefficient and could be painful to those that have serious injuries in which weight cannot be applied to a certain leg.  The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch would have a spring effect when going up stairs.  It would be fairly easy even for those that are not athletic to “hop” up the stairs using the carbon-fiber blades.  This hopping effect would be a natural motion made by the oscillating carbon-fibers in the blades.  This action is made safe by the hard synthetic elastomer on the foot of each blade to prevent slipping.

The Ergonomic Flexi-Crutch would have a lot of competition on the market, but it would make a smart alternative to those crutches that cause pain such as rashes, axilla bruising, and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.  This medical crutch would not slow down the daily lifestyle of student athletes or busy elderly people compared to other crutches on the market.  The public is ready to see new creations in biomedical engineering.  The common crutch has been around for over 30 years. An aesthetically pleasing carbon-fiber blade attached to an ergonomic crutch would be desired over the common and forearm crutch.