Treatment element attachment system
Patent No. US10774860 (titled "Treatment element attachment system") on Sep 12, 2019. The application was issued on Sep 15, 2020.
What is this patent about?
’860 is related to the field of therapeutic massage and percussive treatment devices. Specifically, it addresses the mechanical challenges of securing interchangeable massage heads to a high-frequency reciprocating shaft, where intense vibrations often cause standard attachments to loosen or fail during operation.
The underlying idea behind ’860 is a multi-stage locking interface that combines rotational stability with a spring-loaded tactile catch. By nesting a keyed disc between the driving shaft and the treatment head, the system ensures that the components cannot rotate independently, while a spring-biased ball mechanism provides a reliable snap-fit that resists the axial and vibrational forces generated during percussive therapy.
The claims of ’860 focus on a specific three-part coupling assembly comprising a female attachment member embedded in the treatment head, a male attachment member fixed to the reciprocating shaft, and an intermediate disc. The architecture relies on securing protrusions that mate with corresponding openings to prevent rotation, and a spring-biased ball that seats into a detent on the disc to lock the assembly in place.
In practice, the invention works by threading the treatment head onto the shaft assembly until the spring-loaded plungers align with the detents in the disc. This creates a positive mechanical lock that the user can feel and hear. The use of flat surfaces and keyed protrusions ensures that the torque from the motor is efficiently transferred to the massage head without putting undue stress on the threads or the locking ball.
This approach differs from prior solutions by moving away from simple friction fits or basic threading, which are prone to backing out under high-frequency oscillation. By integrating a keyed disc and a ball-detent catch, the invention provides a secure connection that remains stable during use but allows for quick, tool-less head changes by simply overcoming the spring tension of the locking ball.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical Landscape
In the late 2010s when ’860 was filed, therapeutic massage devices were typically implemented using modular mechanical interfaces that allowed for the exchange of various treatment heads. At a time when these systems commonly relied on simple friction fits or threaded couplings to secure components to a reciprocating shaft, maintaining a stable connection under high-frequency vibration was a known engineering challenge. Hardware constraints made the design of quick-release mechanisms non-trivial, as the repetitive axial and percussive forces often led to the unintended loosening or detachment of the treatment element during operation.
Prosecution Position
The disclosed invention represents a technical advancement in the field of mechanical couplings for percussive devices through an architectural shift toward a multi-point retention system. By integrating a female attachment member having internal flat surfaces and detents with a male attachment member featuring corresponding flat surfaces and biased balls, the system achieves a secure anti-rotational lock that resists vibrational loosening. This configuration enables a robust mechanical engagement where the flat surfaces prevent axial rotation while the spring-biased balls provide positive tactile feedback and retention within the detents. Furthermore, the integration of magnetic attraction and specialized disc-based securing protrusions overcomes the constraint of mechanical wear in high-cycle interchangeable components, ensuring consistent attachment integrity across repeated use.
Claims
The patent contains a total of 5 claims, with claim 1 serving as the sole independent claim. This independent claim focuses on an attachment system for securing a treatment member to a shaft, specifically utilizing a female attachment member with a spring-biased ball and a male attachment member coupled to a disc featuring detents and securing openings. The dependent claims serve to provide additional structural details, such as the circular arrangement of protrusions and detents, the inclusion of threaded interfaces, and the specific orientation of the shaft through central openings in the assembly components.
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US10774860
- Application Number
- US16568971A
- Filing Date
- Sep 12, 2019
- Status
- Granted
- Publication Date
- Sep 15, 2020
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO , Google Patents