Interlocking Endoprosthesis Stents With Varying Stiffness
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing implantable stents face challenges in achieving a balance between a compact delivery profile and an enlarged deployed profile while maintaining structural integrity and porosity, particularly when using flexible connecting elements that can lead to undesired shape changes during expansion.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates interlocking stent elements with varying stiffness along the length of the stent, featuring stiffer sections at the ends and a flexible web with controlled apertures to allow for relative movement, enabling a compact delivery and expanded deployment without foreshortening.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a single uniform stent structure is used in the endoprostheses, then the manufacturing process is simple and cost-effective, but the stent cannot provide adequate support in different regions of the bone defect, leading to insufficient mechanical strength where needed
Solution Approach 1:
The stent is divided into multiple segments with different stiffness characteristics. Each segment can be independently designed and manufactured, then assembled to form the complete stent structure. This allows different regions of the stent to provide different levels of support according to the specific mechanical requirements of the bone defect areas they reinforce.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the stent are designed with different stiffness properties to match the local mechanical requirements. The stent includes a first portion with a first stiffness and a second portion with a second stiffness, where the stiffness varies locally to provide optimal support in different regions while maintaining overall structural integrity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple stents with different stiffness are combined in the endoprostheses, then adequate support can be provided in different regions of the bone defect, but the manufacturing process becomes more complex and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The stent is segmented into multiple portions that can be manufactured separately using standardized processes, then assembled together. This modular approach maintains manufacturing simplicity while enabling different stiffness characteristics in different portions to adapt to various bone defect regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The stent design incorporates multiple portions with different stiffness properties within a single integrated structure that serves multiple functions - providing differentiated mechanical support across different bone defect regions while maintaining a unified design that can be manufactured using consistent processes.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the stent has varying stiffness portions, then the stent can adapt to different mechanical requirements of bone defects, but the interlocking mechanism between stents becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The stent is divided into segments with different stiffness characteristics that can be independently designed and manufactured. Each segment includes interlocking features that allow them to connect to adjacent segments, creating a modular system that maintains relatively simple interlocking mechanisms while achieving varying stiffness properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The stent incorporates dynamic interlocking features that allow for controlled movement and adaptation between segments of different stiffness. The interlocking mechanism is designed to accommodate the varying stiffness portions while maintaining structural integrity, allowing the stent to adapt to different bone defect configurations.
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2A~2B
AI summary
An endoprosthesis having a length, a first end, a second end, and a longitudinal axis is disclosed herein, where the endoprosthesis is expandable from a compact, delivery configuration to an enlarged, deployed configuration. The endoprosthesis includes a plurality of rows of stent elements along the length of the endoprosthesis, where the plurality of rows include a first row and a second row located adjacent to the first row. The first row of stent elements has a first plurality of alternating apices, and the second row of stent elements has a second plurality of alternating apices. The first and second pluralities of alternating apices define a spaced apart, interlocking arrangement. The endoprosthesis also includes a discontinuous web of material comprising a plurality of web elements spaced from one another and interconnecting the first and second pluralities of alternating apices. The plurality of web elements are arranged along a first, common circumference such that the plurality of web elements restrict torsion and axial compression of the endoprosthesis between the first and second rows of stent elements when the endoprosthesis is in the enlarged, deployed configuration.