Hydraulic device for correcting the gait of a femoral amputee

Claim 1

A hydraulic device for regulating or correcting the gait of a femoral amputee, comprising a shock absorber including a first cylinder (3); a first piston traveling into and out of said cylinder (3) for compressing and decompressing a hydraulic fluid, a fluid-circulating system (8, 9, 11 and 16) opening through at least one outlet onto a flat area formed at one end of said cylinder (3) and operatively communicating with the other end of said cylinder, a reservoir (23) communicating with the fluid-circulating system for accommodating hydraulic fluid, a second piston including first resilient restoring means for exerting a biasing force thereagainst so as to compress said hydraulic fluid, said first piston being attached to a socket accommodating a stump of an amputated leg and a housing (1) of the device being attached to a prosthetic leg articulated to the socket or conversely, second resilient restoring means (27), a valve (21) activated by the hydraulic fluid in opposition to the force of said second resilient restoring means (27) for blocking off said outlet when the wearer moves involuntarily and the hydraulic fluid upon compression by the first piston (5) exerting a specified pressure, and a second fluid-circulating system operating partly independently of the first fluid-circulating system comprising a variable escape branch circuit (10) having an outlet below the valve (21) and enabling selective discharge of hydraulic fluid therethrough during various modes in the gait of the amputee.