Knee brace

Claim 1

A knee brace comprising upper and lower members adapted to snugly fit on a side of a person''s leg above and below the knee, respectively, each of said members having laterally extending portions at opposite sides thereof, said members and their laterally extending portions being curved so as to generally define a semicircle in cross section, whereby when said brace is worn, said lateral portions extend across the front and rear of the wearer''s leg above and below the knee, said members being constructed of a malleable metallic material so as to be readily deformable to be shaped to the leg of the wearer, a soft plastic coating covering said metallic material, a plurality of perforations in each of said members of sufficient size to permit the wearer''s skin to protrude therethrough and at the same time to enhance the deformability of said members, and means pivotally interconnecting said members to each other, said pivotal means comprising semispherical-shaped overlapping portions on said upper and lower members, a semi-spherical washer formed of a self-lubricating material positioned between said overlapping portions, said overlapping portions and said washer having aligned, centrally located openings, a semi-spherical member overlying the outermost semi-spherical portion and having a centrally positioned threaded stud extending inwardly through said openings, and a threaded semi-spherical inner member formed of self-lubricating material threadedly engaging said stud to maintain said overlapping portions and said washer in assembled relation.