{
  "patent_number": "US 11413210",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "Customizable Robotic Leg Braces and Modular Exoskeletons",
  "original_title": "Customizable orthotic/prosthetic braces and lightweight modular exoskeleton",
  "summary": "This patent describes a lightweight, customizable robotic leg brace system, or exoskeleton, that helps people with leg weakness walk by using special joint motors and braces molded to their body.",
  "what_it_does": "This patent details a lower limb exoskeleton designed to assist individuals with motor impairment. It includes a power control unit and multiple modular joint actuators, each containing an electric motor, an input arm, and an output arm, which provide rotary motion (Claim 1). These actuators connect hip, thigh, shank, and foot assemblies, acting as active joints for the hips, knees, and ankles (Claim 1). A key feature is the design of the hip, thigh, and shank braces: they are \"open form braces that only cover a posterior portion of a user's limb\" and are \"personalized to the user's limb geometry\" (Claim 1). Each brace has a rigid frame embedded between inner and outer layers, making it strong but not heavy (Abstract, Claim 1). The braces also include embedded pressure sensors and attachments for the joint actuators (Claim 1). For example, a child with weakened leg muscles could wear this system, and the motors would help them bend and straighten their legs, while the custom-fit, lightweight braces provide support.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Exoskeletons where the limb braces cover the entire circumference of the user's limb, as these braces are specifically \"open form\" and \"only cover a posterior portion\" (Claim 1).",
    "Braces that are not specifically \"personalized to the user's limb geometry\" (Claim 1).",
    "Exoskeletons where the joint actuators are not designed to be modular (Claim 1).",
    "Braces that lack the embedded structural frame between inner and outer layers, or are not rigid and unmalleable (Claim 1).",
    "Exoskeletons that do not include at least one pressure sensor embedded within the braces (Claim 1)."
  ],
  "filed": "2017-06-14",
  "granted": "2022-08-16",
  "expires": "2037-06-14",
  "status": "active",
  "holder": "University of Houston System",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/university-of-houston-system",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Jeffrey Joseph Gorges",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/jeffrey-joseph-gorges"
    },
    {
      "name": "Atilla Kilicarslan",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/atilla-kilicarslan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jose Luis Contreras-Vidal",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/jose-luis-contreras-vidal"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 8,
  "tags": [
    "medical_devices",
    "robotics",
    "consumer_electronics",
    "mechanical",
    "software"
  ],
  "abstract": "Improved customizable orthotic/prosthetic braces and a lightweight modular exoskeleton may aid individuals with lower limb motor impairment, including children. These customizable orthotic/prosthetic braces improve the strength and rigidity of such braces without a weight penalty. A structural frame is embedded between an inner shell and outer shell, which comprise materials that are easily moldable to conform to a user's limb. The lightweight modular exoskeleton system provides six (6) joint actuators, which are designed to be modular, that act as the active joints (e.g. hips, knees, and ankles) of the exoskeleton. Additionally, the exoskeleton may also provide four (4) passive joints for inversion/eversion of the legs and feet. Foot, crutch, and hip assemblies may also be provided for the exoskeleton. Further, the six joint actuators may be utilized between the hip brace assembly and thigh brace assembly, the thigh and shank brace assembly, and the shank brace assembly and foot assembly, where the braces may correspond to the customizable orthotic/prosthetic design. The modularity of the actuators and braces allows for exoskeleton assemblies that can be tailored to patient specific needs.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/11413210/customizable-orthoticprosthetic-braces-and-lightweight-modular-exoskeleton",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/11413210/customizable-orthoticprosthetic-braces-and-lightweight-modular-exoskeleton/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US11413210",
  "relatedPatents": []
}