Custom Orthopaedic Support via Additive Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current orthopaedic and tissue supports are often off-the-shelf, leading to inefficiencies, increased costs, and potential strain or stress due to customization methods like milling or molding, which require additional steps and can cause tissue damage during fitting and implantation.
Innovation Solution
A method for creating customized support members using additive manufacturing, where volumetric data of the tissue is obtained through imaging, processed into a three-dimensional rendition, and used to design and fabricate a support construct with specific features that match the tissue architecture, reducing strain and stress, and requiring fewer invasive steps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If off-the-shelf orthopaedic supports are used, then manufacturing cost and complexity are reduced, but manufacturing precision and adaptability to specific tissue architecture deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by obtaining volumetric tissue data through imaging and creating a three-dimensional digital rendition before manufacturing. This allows the support structure to be precisely customized to match the specific tissue architecture in advance, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing simplicity and manufacturing precision by preparing the precise design data beforehand through non-invasive imaging and computational modeling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a digital copy of the tissue architecture through volumetric imaging and three-dimensional rendering, then uses this copy to design the support structure. This copying approach enables precise replication of tissue architecture without requiring physical templates or invasive measurements, thereby maintaining manufacturing precision while keeping the process efficient and non-invasive.
2Manufacturing precision
If customization is achieved through milling or molding, then manufacturing precision improves, but device complexity and number of manufacturing steps increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical customization processes like milling and molding with additive manufacturing technology. The three-dimensional support structure is built layer-by-layer directly from digital design data, eliminating the need for multiple sequential manufacturing steps, tooling, and mechanical removal of material. This substitution maintains high customization accuracy while dramatically simplifying the manufacturing process into a single integrated step.
3Manufacturing precision
If invasive fitting and impression methods are used, then manufacturing precision improves, but object-affected harmful factors increase due to tissue damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses non-invasive volumetric imaging to create a digital copy of the tissue and its surrounding architecture, eliminating the need for invasive physical impressions or fittings. This digital copying method achieves high fitting accuracy by capturing three-dimensional spatial relationships through imaging, while completely avoiding tissue damage that would result from debriding, degloving, or physical molding procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a digital three-dimensional model as an intermediary between the tissue and the support structure manufacturing process. This digital intermediary captures all necessary geometric and architectural information without requiring physical contact with the tissue, thereby eliminating harmful fitting procedures while maintaining the precision needed for accurate support structure fabrication.
4Manufacturing precision
If extrusion molding is used for customization, then manufacturing precision improves, but loss of time and productivity decrease due to additional molding steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the multi-step extrusion molding process with additive manufacturing. Instead of requiring mold preparation, material extrusion, curing, and demolding operations, the support structure is directly fabricated layer-by-layer from digital design data. This substitution maintains customized product accuracy while eliminating the time-consuming sequential steps inherent in traditional molding processes, thereby improving manufacturing productivity and reducing overall cycle time.
Data Source
AI summary
A support for use with tissue or bone is described, the support having one or more spaced apart brace members, and at least one elongated linking member for linking to the one or more spaced apart brace members. The support may be provided in use in combination with a biologic glue, the biologic glue comprising a first portion containing stabilized blood product, and a second portion containing a growth factor, the first portion and the second portion comingled when or after the support is introduced to the tissue or bone in a subject in need thereof. The support is fabricated by actively producing the support through an additive manufacturing process, in which the support is customized specifically to the tissue or bone by creating a computer-generated construct of the support on a three-dimensional volume rendering of the tissue or bone, and the computer generated construct is interpretable via software directing the additive manufacturing process.