KR102763086B1 - Spine stretching device - Google Patents

Abstract

A spinal stretching device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a backrest portion against which a spine of a subject leans, a leg structure supporting the backrest portion, a seat portion supporting the buttocks of the subject, a traction portion for sliding the seat portion on the backrest portion, and a lumbar fixing portion for fixing the lumbar portion of the subject so as not to be separated from the seat portion.
The spinal stretching device of the present invention has a structure capable of fixing the lumbar region and a structure capable of moving the lumbar region away from the subject's head, thereby effectively decompressing the subject's spine through a compact structure.

Description

{SPINE STRETCHING DEVICE}

The present invention relates to a spinal stretching device, and more specifically, to a spinal stretching device which can be manufactured in the form of a chair or a bed on which a subject can sit, and when manufactured in the form of a chair, the angle of the chair can be adjusted after the subject sits on the chair, and when manufactured in the form of a bed, the angle of the subject's legs can be adjusted, thereby providing the subject with an action such as massage or treatment by using the device to stretch the spine of the subject.

In general, lumbago, a symptom of lower back pain, is a fateful disease that occurs as humans, unlike other animals, evolved to walk on two feet. Approximately 80% of the entire population suffers from lumbago regardless of gender or age. In addition, in addition to the aforementioned lumbago, cervical pain diseases such as the so-called straight neck (or turtle neck) symptom are also common due to the recent spread of smartphones, which causes many people to bend their heads for long periods of time. The above spinal disease frequently occurs in all people, including workers who carry heavy loads, office workers who spend most of their time sitting in a chair or computer in an incorrect posture, and housewives who stand in front of a sink for long periods of time to take care of household chores. The causes of these spinal diseases are diverse, including disc disease, ankylosing spondylitis, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, spondylolysis, internal disc herniation, acute and chronic lumbar sprain, straight neck, and turtle neck symptoms, but most of them are accompanied by stiffness in the muscles that support the spine, so they can be significantly alleviated simply by relaxing these muscles.

Recently, various methods have been studied as a way to effectively improve the above spinal diseases, and one of them is spinal decompression physical therapy using spinal traction. The basic principles of spinal traction have been provided by chiropractors, osteopaths, and other properly trained health professionals for a long time. Both traction and decompression therapy are applied with the goal of relieving pain and promoting an optimal healing environment for intervertebral disc bulge, degenerative disc, or herniated disc. Pain is relieved as a result of creating negative pressure within the intervertebral disc to promote shrinkage or reposition of the herniated disc or intervertebral disc bulge material and/or the formation of low pressure within the disc that causes the inflow of healing nutrients and other substances into the disc. Additionally, spinal decompression is used to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or one or more compressed nerve roots passing through the spine. Decompression of the spinal nerve elements is a key element in the treatment of spinal disorders such as radiculopathy, myelopathy, and claudication. Spinal decompression therapy involves stretching the spine, either with traction devices or with electrically powered devices, with the goal of alleviating low back pain. Devices that apply traction to the torso to facilitate decompression of the spinal discs and provide relief from low back pain to individuals are known in the art. However, current decompression devices are bulky, difficult to operate, and require the user to remain in a single position and posture, such as lying prone on a table. Additionally, current devices are limited to certain torso types, making them unsuitable for individuals who may be in significant pain.

Therefore, there is a demand for a new type of device that can be used at home by manufacturing hospital-use traction/decompression therapy devices that were too large and expensive to use at home and thus difficult for individuals to access, in the form of a chair or bed, so that individuals can easily receive spinal traction decompression therapy.

KR 10-2124863 B1

The present invention is intended to solve the above problems, and aims to decompress the spine of a subject by securing a device having the function of fixing the cervical and lumbar vertebrae of the subject and separating the cervical and lumbar vertebrae from each other.

A spinal stretching device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a backrest portion on which a spine of a subject rests, a leg structure supporting the backrest portion, a seat portion supporting the buttocks of the subject, a traction portion for sliding the seat portion on the backrest portion, and a lumbar fixing portion for fixing the lumbar portion of the subject so as not to be separated from the seat portion.

In a spinal stretching device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the lumbar fixing part may include a belt part formed to surround the lumbar part of the subject, and an air pocket positioned on a surface of the belt part facing the lumbar part and expanding to bring the lumbar part into close contact with the seat part and the backrest part.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a spine stretching device further includes an upper body fixing member that fixes the upper body of the subject and is disposed on the backrest, and the traction member includes a rail member that is disposed on the lower end of the backrest and extends in one direction toward the upper end, and a traction body that slides on the rail member and is coupled to the seat member; the position of the upper body fixing member can stretch the spine of the subject by moving the traction body in the other direction while not moving on the backrest.

A spinal stretching device according to one embodiment of the present invention further includes a support member that supports the seat member on the leg structure, and the support member can play a role of stably supporting the seat member when the subject sits on the seat member.

In a spinal stretching device according to one embodiment of the present invention, the backrest portion and the leg structure are hinge-connected to each other, and after the subject sits on the seat portion, the backrest portion can be tilted with respect to the leg structure, thereby causing the support portion and the seat portion to be separated from each other and allowing the seat portion to move in the other direction.

The spinal stretching device of the present invention has a structure capable of fixing the lumbar region and a structure capable of moving the lumbar region away from the subject's head, thereby effectively decompressing the subject's spine through a compact structure.

In addition, the spinal stretching device of the present invention can respond to various spinal conditions of various people by allowing the inclination of the spine of the subject to be set to an angle suitable for spinal decompression.

FIGS. 1A and 1B are perspective views of a spinal stretching device in an initial state according to one embodiment of the present invention;
FIGS. 2A and 2B are perspective views of a spinal stretching device for performing spinal stretching according to one embodiment of the present invention;
Figures 3a and 3b are usage diagrams of a multifunctional bed-type device of a spinal stretching device to which a lumbar fixing part according to one embodiment of the present invention is applied; and
FIG. 4 is a pressure sensor arrangement diagram according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings. It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to specific embodiments, but includes various modifications, equivalents, and/or alternatives of the embodiments of the present invention. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar components.

In this document, the expressions "have", "can have", "include", or "may include" indicate the presence of a feature (e.g., a numerical value, function, operation, or component such as a part), but do not exclude the presence of additional features.

In this document, the expressions "A or B", "at least one of A and/or B", or "one or more of A or/and B" can include all possible combinations of the items listed together. For example, "A or B", "at least one of A and B", or "at least one of A or B" can all refer to cases where (1) at least one A is included, (2) at least one B is included, or (3) both at least one A and at least one B are included.

The expression "configured to" as used herein can be used interchangeably with, for example, "Suitable for", "Having the capacity to", "Designed to", "Adapted to", "Made to", or "Capable of". The term "configured to" does not necessarily mean "specifically designed to".

The terms used in this document are only used to describe specific embodiments and may not be intended to limit the scope of other embodiments. The singular expression may include the plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, may have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art described in this document. Among the terms used in this document, terms defined in general dictionaries may be interpreted as having the same or similar meaning in the context of the related technology, and shall not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning unless explicitly defined in this document. In some cases, even if a term is defined in this document, it cannot be interpreted to exclude the embodiments of this document.

The embodiments disclosed in this document are presented for the purpose of explanation and understanding of the disclosed technical contents, and do not limit the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of this document should be interpreted to include all modifications or various other embodiments based on the technical idea of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail. Prior to this, the terms or words used in this specification and claims should not be interpreted as limited to their usual or dictionary meanings, and should be interpreted as meanings and concepts that conform to the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concept of the term in order to explain his or her own invention in the best way.

Therefore, the configurations of the embodiments described in this specification are only some of the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical ideas of the present invention, and it should be understood that there may be various equivalents and modified examples that can replace them at the time of filing this application.

Throughout the specification, whenever a part is said to “include” a component, this does not mean that it excludes other components, but rather that it may include other components, unless otherwise stated.

The objects, specific advantages and novel features of the present invention described in this specification will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and preferred embodiments. In this specification, when adding reference numerals to components in each drawing, it should be noted that the same components are given the same numerals as much as possible even if they are shown in different drawings. In addition, terms such as "one side", "the other side", "first", "second", etc. are used to distinguish one component from another component, and the components are not limited by the terms. Hereinafter, in describing the present invention, a detailed description of related known technologies that may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention will be omitted.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings, wherein like reference numerals indicate like elements.

Hereinafter, a spinal stretching device (1) according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Figures 1a to 2b are perspective views of a spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

A spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a backrest (100) on which the spine of a subject (P) rests, a leg structure (200) supporting the backrest (100), a seat (300) supporting the buttocks of the subject (P), a traction member (400) that slides the seat (300) on the backrest (100), and a lumbar fixing member (500) that fixes the lumbar region of the subject (P) so that it does not come off the seat (300).

A spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a backrest portion (100), a leg structure (200), a seat portion (300), a traction portion (400), and a lumbar fixing portion (500). FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate an initial state (first state) in which the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention does not provide a spinal stretching function to a subject (P), and FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate a state (second state) in which the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention provides a spinal stretching function to a subject (P). When the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention is in the first state, the structures of the backrest portion (100), the leg structure (200), and the seat portion (300) may have the form of a typical chair. In addition, the angle of the backrest (100) can be adjusted to be horizontal to the ground to form the spinal stretching device (1) in the form of a bed. The lumbar fixing member (500) fixes the lumbar region of the subject (P) so that it does not come off the seat (300), and FIGS. 3A and 3B show that the lumbar fixing member (500) is formed in the seat (300). In the present invention, the term “buttocks” refers to the hips or thighs, and therefore, when the spinal stretching device (1) of the present invention is used in a chair form, the seat (300) can directly support the buttocks, which is the buttocks, and when the spinal stretching device (1) of the present invention is used in a bed form, the seat (300) can directly support the thighs, which is the buttocks, which is natural in terms of the anatomy of the body and the structure of the chair or bed.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the backrest (100) serves to support the spine of the subject (P), the leg structure (200) serves to support the backrest (100), and the seat (300) supports the buttocks of the subject (P) and is the part where the subject (300) sits.

A spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a traction unit (400). The traction unit (400) is configured to slide the seat portion on the backrest portion (100), and the stretching function that decompresses the lumbar region of the subject (P) becomes available due to the role of the traction unit (400).

That is, in the present invention, a traction unit (400) and a lumbar fixing unit (500) are provided at the same time, and the lumbar fixing unit (500) fixes the lumbar region of the subject (P) so that it does not come off the seat unit (300), and in this state, the traction unit (400) slides the seat unit (300) on the backrest unit (100) so that the spine of the subject (P) can be stretched and decompressed. In addition, when the backrest unit (100) is formed parallel to the ground and the spine stretching device (1) of the present invention is formed in a bed shape, the angle of the seat unit (300) is formed to be adjustable with respect to the backrest unit (100), so that the leg angle of the subject (P) can be formed at an optimal leg angle at which the lumbar region of the subject (P) can be decompressed. It goes without saying that such an angle adjustment function of the seat unit (300) can be applied even when the spine stretching device (1) is manufactured in the shape of a chair.

Figures 3a and 3b illustrate in detail the lumbar fixation part (500) of the present invention.

In a spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention, the lumbar fixing part (500) may include a belt part (510) formed to surround the lumbar part of the subject (P) and an air pocket (520) positioned on a surface of the belt part (510) facing the lumbar part and expanding to bring the lumbar part into close contact with the seat part (300) and the backrest part (100).

The lumbar fixing part (500) of the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a belt part (510) and an air pocket (520). As can be seen in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the belt part (510) surrounds the abdomen of the subject (P) and serves to fix the lumbar part to the seat part (300). The air pocket (520) is arranged on a surface of the belt part (510) facing the lumbar part to adhere the lumbar part to the seat part (300) and the backrest part (100). When the buckles of the belt part (510) are fastened to each other, air is injected into the air pocket (520) to expand, thereby pushing the abdomen of the subject (P) toward the backrest part (100) and the seat part (300), thereby allowing the lumbar part of the subject (P) to adhere to the backrest part (100) and the seat part (300).

Figures 1b and 2b illustrate in detail the structure of the traction unit (400) of the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention.

A spine stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention further includes an upper body fixing member (not shown) that is arranged on the backrest member (100) to fix the upper body of the subject (P), and the traction member (400) includes a rail member (410) that is arranged on the lower end of the backrest member (100) and extends in one direction toward the upper end, and a traction body (420) that slides on the rail member (410) and is coupled to the seat member (300), and the position of the upper body fixing member (not shown) is such that the traction member (400) moves in the other direction without moving on the backrest member (100), thereby stretching the spine of the subject (P).

A spinal stretching device (1) according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include an upper body fixing part (not shown). The upper body fixing part (not shown) and the lumbar fixing part (500) are configured to fix the upper body and lumbar part of the subject (P), respectively. In order to traction and decompress the spine of the subject (P), the spine must be able to be stretched in both directions. Therefore, the spinal stretching device (1) of the present invention is provided with an upper body fixing part (not shown) for fixing the upper spine of the subject (P) and a lumbar fixing part (500) for fixing the lumbar part, so that the upper body fixing part (not shown) is fixed to the backrest part (100), and the distance between the upper body fixing part (not shown) and the lumbar fixing part (500) increases by the movement of the traction part (400), so that decompression treatment can be performed on the spine of the subject (P).

The traction unit (400) of the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a rail unit (410) and a traction body (420). Referring to FIGS. 1B and 2B, the rail unit (410) and the traction body (420), which are components of the traction unit (400), are illustrated. The rail unit (410) may have one end positioned at the lower end of the backrest unit (100) and may extend in one direction from the one end toward the upper end of the backrest unit (100). In other words, the rail unit (410) provides a path that can move in one direction or the other direction near the lower end of the backrest unit (100). The traction body (420) slides on the rail unit (410) and is coupled with the seat unit (300) to move the seat unit (300) in one direction or the other direction. Accordingly, the position of the upper body fixing part is not moved from the backrest part (100), and the traction part (400) moves in the other direction that stretches the spine of the subject (P), thereby allowing stretching to decompress the spine of the subject (P).

Referring to Fig. 2b, a second state of a spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention is illustrated.

A spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention further includes a support member (600) that supports the seat member (300) on the leg structure (200), and the support member (600) can play a role in stably supporting the seat member (300) when the subject (P) sits on the seat member (300).

In a spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention, the backrest part (100) and the leg structure (200) are hinge-connected to each other, and after the subject (P) sits on the seat part (300), the backrest part (100) is tilted with respect to the leg structure (200), so that the support part (600) and the seat part (300) are separated from each other, and the traction part (400) can be moved in the other direction.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, the backrest (100) of the spine stretching device (1), and the seat (300), the traction unit (400), and the lumbar fixing unit (500), which are components coupled to the backrest (100), are tilted from the first state of Fig. 1a to the second state of Fig. 2a in order to progress from the first state to the second state. At this time, in the first state, the seat (300) is supported on the leg structure (200) so that the subject (P) can sit comfortably, but in order for the spine stretching device (1) to change to the second state, the front of the seat (300) must be separated from the leg structure (200). Therefore, a support unit (600) that supports the seat (300) may be additionally provided on the leg structure (200).

The backrest part (100) and the leg structure (200) of the spinal stretching device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention can be hinge-coupled to each other. The connection of the backrest part (100) and the leg structure (200) can be achieved by an angle adjustment part that can adjust the angle of the backrest part (100). Therefore, in a first state where the subject (P) is seated on the seat part (300), the backrest part (100) begins to tilt with respect to the leg structure (200), and the support part (600) and the seat part (300) are separated from each other. At this time, since the seat part (300) in the first state is supported by the support part (600), movement in other directions is impossible. However, as the backrest part (100) begins to tilt, the seat part (300) separates from the support part (600), so movement in other directions becomes possible, and the spinal stretching device (1) can be changed to the second state.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, it is obvious that the towing unit (400) may additionally be provided with a power device (not shown) capable of driving the towing body (420), and further, a power device (not shown) that provides power to an angle adjustment unit provided to adjust the angle of the backrest unit (100) may additionally be provided. It is also obvious that according to one embodiment of the present invention, a pneumatic device coupled to the air pocket (520) may additionally be provided.

A multifunctional bed-shaped device (1) according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a control unit.

A plurality of pressure sensors (110) spaced apart in one direction at a predetermined interval can be arranged on the backrest (100) of the present invention, where the back of the subject (P) touches. When the backrest (100) is tilted and the spine stretching device (1) enters the second state, the control unit can determine the angle of the backrest (100) that can most effectively decompress the spine of the subject (P). Data for the control unit to determine the angle of the backrest (100) can be obtained through a plurality of pressure sensors (110) spaced apart in one direction at a predetermined interval from the backrest (100). The role of the control unit is to allow the backrest (100) to tilt the body of the subject (P) to pull the spine and decompress it, and at this time, the inclination of the body of the subject (P) is adjusted through the pressure value measured by the plurality of pressure sensors (110). When a human spine is lying down, a part of the vertebrae may come off the floor due to the S-shaped curve. In this case, when the spine is stretched by the upper body fixing part and the lumbar fixing part (500) moving away from each other, the spine of the subject (P) is not efficiently decompressed. Therefore, in order to make the spine of the subject (P) adhere to the backrest part (100) as much as possible, the backrest part (100) is tilted with respect to the leg structure (200). At this time, the control part can recognize that the spine of the subject (P) is stretched as much as possible and adhered to the backrest part (100) when the deviation of the pressure value measured by the pressure sensor (110) formed in the same arrangement as in FIG. 4 is formed within a certain range.

That is, the control unit measures the pressure values from the plurality of pressure sensors (110) while the backrest unit (100) adjusts the angle with respect to the leg structure (200) by the angle adjustment unit. At this time, when the measured values of all the pressure sensors (110) fall within a certain percentage range from the average of the pressure values measured from the plurality of pressure sensors (110), it can be determined that the angle of the backrest unit (100) is the spinal decompression angle that is most suitable for the subject (P). The plurality of pressure sensors (110) can be arranged along one direction from the center of the width direction of the backrest unit (100) so as to be arranged along the line of the spine. When the measured values of all the pressure sensors (110) fall within a 5% range from the average of the measured values from the plurality of pressure sensors (110), the control unit can determine that the body inclination is suitable for the subject (P).

Although the present invention has been described in detail through specific examples, this is intended to specifically explain the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto, and it will be apparent that modifications or improvements can be made by those skilled in the art within the technical spirit of the present invention.

All simple modifications or changes of the present invention fall within the scope of the present invention, and the specific protection scope of the present invention will be made clear by the appended claims.

P: Subject 1: Spinal Stretching Device
100 : Backrest 110 : Pressure sensor
200 : Bridge structure 300 : Seat section
400: Towing part 410: Rail part
420: Traction body 500: Lumbar fixation part
510: Belt section 520: Air pocket
600 : Support

Claims (5)

The backrest portion against which the subject's spine leans;
A leg structure that supports the backrest and is hinge-connected to the backrest;
A seat portion supporting the buttocks of the subject;
A traction unit including a rail unit positioned at the lower end of the backrest unit and extending in one direction toward the upper end, and a traction body that slides on the rail unit and is coupled to the seat unit, thereby sliding the seat unit on the backrest unit;
A lumbar fixation device that fixes the lumbar region of the subject so that it does not dislocate from the seat;
A plurality of pressure sensors arranged at a set interval along the one direction from the center of the width direction of the backrest portion; and
A spinal stretching device, comprising: a control unit that adjusts the angle of the backrest portion through pressure value data measured from the plurality of pressure sensors when the backrest portion is tilted with respect to the leg structure.
In claim 1,
The above control unit,
A spinal stretching device, wherein when all measured pressure values of the plurality of pressure sensors fall within a certain percentage range from an average of the pressure values measured from the plurality of pressure sensors, the angle at which the backrest portion is tilted with respect to the leg structure is determined to be a spinal decompression angle suitable for the subject.
In claim 1,
The above lumbar fixation part is,
A belt portion formed to surround the lumbar region of the subject; and
A spinal stretching device, comprising: an air pocket positioned on a surface of the belt portion facing the lumbar region and inflated to bring the lumbar region into close contact with the seat portion and the backrest portion.
In claim 3,
Further comprising an upper body fixing member that fixes the upper body of the subject and is placed on the backrest;
A spine stretching device that stretches the spine of the subject by moving the traction body in the other direction while the position of the upper body fixing part does not move on the backrest part.
In claim 4,
Further comprising a support member for supporting the seat member on the above bridge structure;
The above support serves to stably support the seat when the subject sits on the seat.
A spinal stretching device in which, after the subject sits on the seat, the backrest is tilted with respect to the leg structure, the support part and the seat part are separated from each other, and the seat part is able to move in the other direction.