Post-fracture stability of limbs

Claim 1

A splint for immobilizing a fractured bone comprising: a rigid bar; at least four pin clamps slidably mounted on said bar and fixable thereto; at least four pins, each corresponding to a different one of said at least four pin clamps, each pin being capable of being lockably mounted in a different corresponding one of said at least four pin clamps and capable of engaging a part of the fractured bone; each of said at least four pin clamps including a hollowing cylindrical portion having a cylindrical wall formed with two diametrically opposed openings, said two openings having diameters greater than the diameter of said corresponding pin, said corresponding pin extending through said two openings when lockably mounted; each of said at least four pin clamps being structurally identical and further including: two washers slidably fit on said corresponding pin inside said cylinder, each washer being positioned adjacent to and having an external diameter greater than the diameter of said openings in said cylinder; a plastic tubular spacer slidably fit on said corresponding pin between said two washers so as to hold each of said two washers against a corresponding one of said two openings; a plurality of ball bearings contained in the space remaining in said cylinder when said corresponding pin, said two washers and said plastic spacer are disposed in said cylinder; and means for applying pressure to said ball bearings to clamp said corresponding pin; said corresponding pin, when in position to be clamped by said plurality of ball bearings, extends through said two openings in said cylinder, through said two washers and through said plastic spacer; said two washers being moveable by said corresponding pin when said means for applying pressure is not applied, to allow limited universal angular adjustment of said corresponding pin relative to said clamp; said two washers retain said plurality of ball bearings in said cylinder.