Bearing technology in sports leg prosthesis

Profile

• What was needed: Plain bearing made of the polymer material iglidur Z
• Requirements: Absorption of high edge loads and shear forces, low wear and a high degree of flexibility for increased wearing comfort
• Industry: Medical technology, prostheses
• Success for the customer: The iglidur Z plain bearings successfully replace the metallic bearings. They are described by users as robust but not stiff and significantly increase comfort. Low wear also results in low clearance and a long service life.

Problem

Blatchford is an English manufacturer of prosthetic limbs that uses the latest technologies in the industry to help people around the world with mobility impairments in their daily lives. The focus is on the development of foot and leg prostheses that are designed to help the user regain this mobility in the best possible way.
This also applies to the "TT Pro", an adapter for prosthetic legs that can be used not only in everyday life, but especially during sports activities, e.g., golf. This is because the prosthetic element can allow torsion by means of a built-in spring and thus protects the shaft from the shear forces that occur particularly in the sporting environment. This not only enables complex movements - it also protects the user's joints and spine.
The bearings installed in the prosthesis must also be able to permanently follow these movement patterns, absorb the high forces, exhibit low wear and, despite their stability, also have flexibility in order to offer the user the highest possible comfort experience.

Solution

Initially, metallic bearings with a special Teflon coating were used for the adapter system "TT Pro", which above all enabled high stability.
In the meantime, however, plain bearings made of the special material iglidur Z have replaced these metal bearings, which offer several advantages in practice. The polymer bearings from our iglidur product range easily absorb the enormous edge loads and shear forces that occur especially during sports activities. Another advantage is that the material is not completely rigid, but has a high flexibility. This has noticeably increased the wearing comfort. Users today describe the movement as particularly soft with simultaneous high stability. And last but not least, the service life is also a big plus. Significantly lower component wear results in less clearance in the prosthesis and makes the entire system more reliable than before.