Van Phillips (inventor)
Encyclopedia
Van Phillips is an American inventor of prosthetics
, he is known for the Flex-Foot brand of artificial foot and limbs that he created, and for his charity work for amputees.
An amputee himself, having lost a leg below the knee at age 21, Phillips was motivated by the limitations of then-existing artificial limbs to attend the Northwestern University Medical School Prosthetic-Orthotic Center. After graduation, he worked as a biomedical design engineer at the University of Utah
before starting his own company, Flex-Foot Incorporated.
Phillips ultimately created an artificial foot made from carbon graphite. Unlike all previous prostheses, it stored kinetic energy, like a spring, from the wearers steps as potential energy, allowing the wearer to run and jump.
A prosthetic foot that he created, the Flex-Foot Cheetah, is used by double-amputee and Paralympics
gold-medalist Oscar Pistorius
, and about 90 percent of Paralympics participants use a variation of the original Flex-Foot design, as well as thousands of people around the world.
In 1999 he established Second Wind, a non-profit organization
to provide inexpensive and resistant prostheses to amputees around the world, and is now working to create a prosthetic leg for land mine
victims in developing countries.
He sold Flex-Foot to Ossur
in 2000, who continues to manufacture the artificial foot.
In 1998 he received the Brian Blatchford Memorial Prize from the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics.
Prosthesis
In medicine, a prosthesis, prosthetic, or prosthetic limb is an artificial device extension that replaces a missing body part. It is part of the field of biomechatronics, the science of using mechanical devices with human muscle, skeleton, and nervous systems to assist or enhance motor control...
, he is known for the Flex-Foot brand of artificial foot and limbs that he created, and for his charity work for amputees.
An amputee himself, having lost a leg below the knee at age 21, Phillips was motivated by the limitations of then-existing artificial limbs to attend the Northwestern University Medical School Prosthetic-Orthotic Center. After graduation, he worked as a biomedical design engineer at the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
before starting his own company, Flex-Foot Incorporated.
Phillips ultimately created an artificial foot made from carbon graphite. Unlike all previous prostheses, it stored kinetic energy, like a spring, from the wearers steps as potential energy, allowing the wearer to run and jump.
A prosthetic foot that he created, the Flex-Foot Cheetah, is used by double-amputee and Paralympics
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their...
gold-medalist Oscar Pistorius
Oscar Pistorius
Oscar Leonard Carl Pistorius is a South African sprint runner. Known as the "Blade Runner" and "the fastest man on no legs", Pistorius, who has a double amputation, is the world record holder in the 100, 200 and 400 metres events and runs with the aid of Cheetah Flex-Foot carbon fibre transtibial...
, and about 90 percent of Paralympics participants use a variation of the original Flex-Foot design, as well as thousands of people around the world.
In 1999 he established Second Wind, a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
to provide inexpensive and resistant prostheses to amputees around the world, and is now working to create a prosthetic leg for land mine
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....
victims in developing countries.
He sold Flex-Foot to Ossur
Ossur
Össur is a company making non-invasive orthopaedics. It makes and sells bracing and support products, compression therapy, and prosthetics. The company’s headquarters are in Reykjavík, Iceland. The company also has extensive operations in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, with numerous distributors...
in 2000, who continues to manufacture the artificial foot.
In 1998 he received the Brian Blatchford Memorial Prize from the International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics.