Patent Publication Number: US-2016242948-A1

Title: Back plate of waist support

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Field 
     The present invention relates to waist supports, and more particularly to a back plate of a waist support. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     For those having low-back pain, a waist support is an effective medical aid that eases the wearer&#39;s discomfort by distributing loads around his/her waist vertebra. Thus, a patient having low-back pain is usually prescribed to wear a waist support in addition to performing rehabilitation and/or receiving treatment, with the expectation that his/her waist is supported and the effects of the rehabilitation/treatment can be enhanced. 
     A conventional waist support is mainly constructed from two elastic strips that are put around a wearer&#39;s waist and a back plate body that is provided between the two elastic strips and supports the wearer&#39;s low back. The known back plate is structurally a rigid board with or without some metal ribs therein for providing supplementary support. However, such a structural configuration is not adequate for providing effective support. Furthermore, over long-term use, it may make its wearer uncomfortable and even have adverse effect on the wearer&#39;s rehabilitation. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a back plate of a waist support, wherein the back plate effectively distributes the load that is otherwise focused on of the wearer&#39;s waist vertebra and in turn provides the wearer with more comfort. 
     For achieving the foregoing objective, the disclosed back plate comprises a plate body and at least two spring members. The plate body has a valley portion for receiving a wearer&#39;s spine. The plate body further has at least two positioning holes that are arranged symmetrically on two sides of the valley portion. Each of the positioning holes is for receiving one of the spring members. Thereby, in use, the back plate of the present invention implements the plate body to effectively support its wearer&#39;s low back and have the spring members prop the wearer&#39;s low back additionally, so as to effectively distribute the load that is otherwise focused on of the wearer&#39;s waist vertebra and in turn provides the wearer with more comfort. 
     In one embodiment of the present invention, each of the spring members has a propping ring, a seat, and two curved arms. The propping ring serves to prop the wearer&#39;s low back, and the seat is deposited in the positioning hole of the plate body. The two curved arms are symmetrically connected between the propping ring and the seat. Thereby, the spring member provides adequate support to the wearer&#39;s low back in virtue of the elastic deformation of the two curved arms. 
     In one embodiment of the present invention, a hole wall defining the positioning hole of the plate body includes an inner flange, and the seat of each said spring member includes a large-diameter ring-like section and a small-diameter shaft-like section, in which the large-diameter ring-like section has a periphery connected with one end of each said curved arm, while the small-diameter shaft-like section has one end connected to the large-diameter ring-like section and an opposite end inserted in the positioning hole of the plate body, and the small-diameter shaft-like section has an outer flange configured for fittingly engaging with the inner flange of the positioning hole of the plate body. Thereby, the spring member can be received in the positioning hole of the plate body securely. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an applied view of the present invention working with elastic strips. 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a spring member of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a partial, cross-sectional view of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , a waist support  10  primarily comprises two elastic strips  12  and a back plate  14 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , the disclosed back plate  14  has a plate body  20  and plural spring members  30 . 
     The plate body  20  is arranged between the two elastic strips  12 . The plate body  20  is centrally formed with a valley portion  22  for receiving a wearer&#39;s spine. The plate body  20  has plural positioning holes  24  that are arranged symmetrically on the right and left sides of the valley portion  22 . The positioning holes  24  are spaced along a direction in which the valley portion  22  extends. Additionally, each of the positioning holes  24  is defined by a hole wall on which an inner flange  242  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ) is formed. The plate body  20  has plural hollowed-out portions  26 , each for reducing the overall weight of the plate body  20  and allowing ventilation. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , each of the spring members  30  has a propping ring  32 , a seat  34 , and two curved arms  36 . The seat  34  includes a large-diameter ring-like section  342  and a small-diameter shaft-like section  344 . The small-diameter shaft-like section  344  has one end connected to the large-diameter ring-like section  342 . The small-diameter shaft-like section  344  has its opposite end formed with an outer flange  346 . The two curved arms  36  are arranged symmetrically. The two curved arms  36  each have one end connected to the inner periphery of the propping ring  32  and an opposite end connected to the outer periphery of the large-diameter ring-like section  342  of the seat  34 , thereby pushing the propping ring  32  away from the plate body  20 . During fabrication, the spring member  30  has the small-diameter shaft-like section  344  of the seat  34  inserted into the positioning hole  24  of the plate body  20 , so that the outer flange  346  of the small-diameter shaft-like section  344  of the seat  34  fittingly engages with the inner flange  242  of the positioning hole  24  of the plate body  20  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ), thereby making the spring member  30  and the plate body  20  combined with each other securely. 
     When wearing the waist support  10 , a wearer first puts the two elastic strips  12  around his/her waist, and then adjust the position of the plate body  20  so as to align his/her spine with the valley portion  22  of the plate body  20 . At last, when the two elastic strips  12  are bound with each other, the wearing of the waist support  10  is finished. The properly worn waist support  10  can have the plate body  20  of the back plate  14  support the wearer&#39;s low back effectively. Also, with the hollowed-out portions  26  of the plate body  20 , ventilation is allowed, so the wearer can wear the waist support  10  for a longer period without feeling uncomfortable. Moreover, since the spring members  30  of the back plate  14  uses the propping rings  32  to better support the wearer&#39;s low back, the waist support  10  can more effectively distribute the load that is otherwise focused on of the wearer&#39;s waist vertebra and in turn provides the wearer with more comfort.