At LIM Innovations, we strive to defy convention. Our Infinite Socket embodies this intention in a couple major ways: By design and model.
Conventional prosthetic sockets have forever been a fixed rigid shape. They contain a finite volume and for most intensive purposes, the alignment is inherently built into them. Conventional sockets are like a work of art, a one-time snapshot of an object that interacts with a residual limb.
The problem? A residual limb is anything but fixed and rigid. Short-term and long-term volume fluctuations like temperature changes, eating a meal containing a high sodium level, undergoing dialysis and seasonal changes (like the upcoming Holiday Season) are a few examples that can leave the user in a constant battle to maintain the appropriate fit.
This is one of the many reasons why we designed the Infinite Socket to be dynamic and flexible: to give the user the ability to tackle their volume fluctuations in a simple, user-friendly way without sacrificing control of their prosthesis.
The analogy I like to use is wearing a conventional socket is like wearing a clog versus wearing the Infinite Socket is like a high-performance running shoe. It’s designed to work with the residual limb, not against it; a concept we like to call the Dynamic Motion Frame.
So what about the Model? An iPhone is composed of the phone itself (the hardware) as well as an operating system and apps (the software) that together constitute the platform and create the user’s experience. We feel the modularity of Infinite Socket is a platform. The Base Plate and Struts are ‘hardware’ and the Distal Cup, the 3D printed Ischial Seat and the Brim are the ‘software’. Just as operating systems and apps are updated, so is our software. Our Innovations Team uses User Generated Innovation (UGI) to drive our software updates and we have many planned throughout 2015.
As we release new brims, suspension methods, and new ischial seat designs, the user can update them with their LIM Clinician. Rather than undergo a lengthy conventional socket replacement (weeks of appointments and high costs) the user can simply swap out one of the many modular components for an updated version in one quick visit.
Empowering our users requires thinking unconventionally and unconventional thinking allows the Infinite Socket to create Infinite possibilities.
Here at LIM Innovations we pride ourselves on the diversity of our team. We have a fantastic group of engineers, designers, machinists, clinicians, and amputees with relevant experience in the field. With such a diverse group working behind the scenes, we invite you to join one of our staff members each week for an in-depth look at what they bring to table. It is our goal to provide our loyal readers a behind-the-scenes look at LIM Innovations. Clinical Director, Jon Smith, picked up the pen this week to share how the Infinite Socket is similar to the iPhone and provides users with a dynamic system for their residual limb.