Prosthetic foot
View Patent ↗A stable shock absorbing prosthetic foot that transfers energy between heel strike and toe-off. A toe plate is separated from one or more other plates by a bumper assembly located at each of the toe end and heel end of the foot. Certain embodiments of the shock absorbing foot of the present invention are designed for use with a prosthetic ankle. A torsion adapter may also be used to attach a prosthetic foot of the present invention to the remainder of a prosthesis.
1. A prosthetic apparatus, comprising:
an ankle support plate;
a foot plate;
a toe bumper assembly connecting a toe end of the ankle support plate to a toe end of the foot plate, the toe bumper assembly comprising a first sleeve, a first elastomeric snubber, and a first T-nut, the first elastomeric snubber residing between the toe end of the foot plate and the toe end of the ankle support plate, and the first sleeve passing through a mounting hole in the toe end of the ankle support plate and into a bore in the first elastomeric snubber, and the first T-nut passing through a mounting hole in the toe end of the foot plate, such that a first threaded fastener is passed through a bore in the first sleeve to engage a like-threaded section of the first T-nut to secure the toe end of the foot plate to the toe end of the ankle support plate, the first T-nut and the first elastomeric snubber defining a maximum and a minimum separation of the toe end of the foot plate from the toe end of the ankle support plate; and
a heel bumper assembly connecting a heel end of the ankle support plate to a heel end of the foot plate, the heel bumper assembly comprising a second sleeve, a second elastomeric snubber, and a second T-nut, the second elastomeric snubber residing between the heel end of the foot plate and the heel end of the ankle support plate, and the second sleeve passing through a mounting hole in the heel end of the ankle support plate and into a bore in the second elastomeric snubber, and the second T-nut passing through a mounting hole in the heel end of the foot plate, such that a second threaded fastener is passed through a bore in the second sleeve to engage a like-threaded section of the second T-nut to secure the heel end of the foot plate to the heel end of the ankle support plate, the second T-nut and the second elastomeric snubber defining a maximum and a minimum separation of the heel end of the foot plate from the heel end of the ankle support plate.
2. The prosthetic apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a curvature of the ankle support plate mimics a curvature of the foot plate.
3. The prosthetic apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a prosthetic ankle supported on the ankle support plate.