Exo Ligament: A new means of ankle sprain prevention

Exo Ligament: A new means of ankle sprain prevention

Fleuren, M.J.D.

Molenbroek, J.F.M. (mentor)
Kleinrensink, G.J. (mentor)
Minnoye, A.L.M. (mentor)

Industrial Design Engineering

Industrial Design

2011-07-08

This thesis presents the research that was conducted to develop an injury preventive means that provides effective external support to the ankle joint without reducing comfort and flexibility. It was recognized that the currently available braces all rely on fixing something tightly around the ankle region. Although it has been proven that the use of ankle braces can reduce the accident rate 2,3,140,104, these are often rejected by athletes due to their inconvenience. The similarity between the evolved principle of the foot’s ligaments and the preferred basic function of an ankle support was guiding the analysis and concept development process. A solution was found that restricts the relative motion between two rigid parts (the foot and the lower leg) by an external ligament means. This comprises a construction that is positioned around the users ankle and subsequently connected to an attachment feature on the shoe. An ankle sprain injury occurs when high impact forces make the foot rotate beyond its normal range of motion. This should be restricted by the external ankle support. The challenge to effectively transfer a force from the foot to the lower leg was solved by the development of a half open clip that allows to exert pressure onto the malleoli without the need for strapping something tightly around the ankle. The final result of the development process was the achievement of a technical proof of principal accompanied by a patent application describing the innovative principle of motion restriction. A range of prototypes were successfully tested by athletes.

ankle
brace
support
sprain prevention

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:d253f8bc-7aa7-42ef-9c11-d3af03059132

2012-07-08

Campus only

Student theses

master thesis

(c) 2011 Fleuren, M.J.D.