Metatarsal Bone Implant Cutting Guide Alignment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current bone implants for the metatarsal phalangeal joint require accurate bone removal to be effective, but existing methods lack a reliable and repeatable way to align cutting tools for precise bone cutting.
Innovation Solution
A cutting guide with a housing, saw guide, aligner, and handle is designed to accurately position and stabilize the saw blade for cutting the metatarsal bone, ensuring proper alignment and bone removal for implantation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a bone implant is used to treat metatarsal phalangeal joint conditions, then pain relief and improved joint function are achieved, but accurate alignment and precise bone cutting are required which are difficult to obtain with existing methods
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting guide is prepared in advance with pre-configured alignment features and cutting guides that establish the correct bone cut geometry before the surgical procedure begins. The guide includes pre-set alignment tabs, stabilizers, and saw guides that eliminate the need for complex intraoperative alignment measurements and calculations.
Solution Approach 2:
The cutting guide acts as an intermediary device between the surgeon and the bone, providing a mechanical interface that translates anatomical landmarks into precise cutting geometry. The guide includes intermediary components such as alignment tabs that interface with bone landmarks, stabilizers that interface with the bone surface, and saw guides that interface with the cutting tool, thereby mediating the complex alignment task.
2Manufacturing precision
If manual alignment methods are used for bone cutting, then the procedure is simple to perform, but the alignment precision and repeatability are insufficient for accurate implant placement
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting guide is divided into multiple functional segments including alignment tabs for establishing position, stabilizers for securing the guide to the bone, and saw guides for directing the cutting tool. Each segment independently performs a specific alignment function, and the modular design allows the surgeon to systematically engage each component in sequence, making the complex alignment task more manageable and easier to execute with high precision.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the cutting guide is secured to the metatarsal and proximal phalanx, then stability during cutting is achieved, but the structure becomes more complex requiring multiple components
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting guide combines multiple stabilization functions into a single integrated structure. The stabilizers are merged with the guide body to form a unified component that simultaneously provides mechanical support, positional reference, and cutting guidance. This merging reduces the number of separate parts the surgeon must handle and assemble while maintaining comprehensive stability during the cutting procedure.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for guiding a saw blade (22) during preparation of a metatarsal (14) of a foot (10) for a procedure, such as to receive a metatarsal bone implant (20), includes positioning a housing (242) substantially adjacent to the metatarsal (14), coupling an aligner (38) to the housing (242), and aligning a saw guide (30) of the housing (242). The housing (242) includes the saw guide (30) for receiving and guiding the saw blade (22). The foot (10) includes one or more additional metatarsals (142), and the aligner (38) is used to align the saw guide (30) relative to the metatarsal (14) by aligning the aligner (38) to be substantially parallel to and positioned over a longitudinal axis (40) of one of the additional metatarsals (142).