Welcome to All Sensors “Put the Pressure on Us” blog. This blog brings out pressure sensor aspects in a variety of applications inspired by headlines, consumer and industry requirements, market research, government activities, and you.
Pressure and Anti-Gravity Therapy
After suffering a lower body injury such as a torn ACL, putting full weight on the injury can be quite painful. Conventional ways of reducing the weight include water-based techniques and suspension body harnesses. Both of these approaches have their shortcomings. To address the shortcomings, designers at AlterG® used patented Differential Air Pressure (DAP) technology developed by a NASA engineer to help astronauts exercise in lower gravity situations in their design of a treadmill.
The DAP system has a seal between the user’s lower body inside a chamber and the user’s upper body outside. With a chamber pressure, P2, higher than the ambient air pressure, P1, an upward vertical force (Fair) is created that is proportional to the product of the air pressure differential (ΔP=P2−P1) and the cross-sectional area of the user seal.
The patented differential air pressure system in an anti-gravity treadmill.
Patent US9642764B2.
A pressure sensor in the system allows feedback to the user. The incrementally adjustable air pressure system can reduce body weight by as much as 80%.
The user interface provides feedback to adjust for the user’s size and the desired amount of weight reduction.
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