Beyond Tradition|SLS Printed Prosthetic Socket Cares Disabilities
According to data from the World Health Organization, the total number of people with disabilities worldwide nearly reaches 1.5 billion. Among these individuals, a considerable portion suffer from limb disabilities and mostly rely on various prosthetics to aid in their mobility. Prosthetics, as a type of rehabilitation aid, are specially designed and fabricated artificial limbs that utilize engineering techniques to compensate for the missing limbs of amputees, helping them regain certain levels of self-care and work abilities.
(Image Sourced : Internet)
In the development of prosthetic technology, traditional prosthetics were typically made from materials like leather and aluminum, resulting in an unattractive appearance that often did not match the residual limb. The common resin socket process involves taking a mold of the patient's affected area with plaster bandages, followed by molding, finishing, and finally assembling with resin materials. This process is not only complex and time-consuming but also fails to fully conform to the patient's residual limb. Additionally, finished prosthetic sockets are heavy, non-breathable, and non-waterproof, impacting the wearer's overall experience. People with disabilities endure lengthy molding processes, leading to poor experiences and the need for protective measures to avoid secondary injuries.
Traditional Plaster Casting Process (Source: Internet)
Prosthetic Socket Acceptance is a highly personalized product that requires precise fitting and matching to the human body's residual limb. 3D scanning and 3D printing technologies have digitized the design and manufacturing process of prosthetic sockets, reducing reliance on manual experience while simplifying and expediting the customization process. Importantly, 3D printing technology enables the production of more complex designs, including lightweight, breathable hollow designs, and personalized aesthetics, offering greater possibilities for optimizing prosthetic product design and enhancing the wearer's experience.
3D Printed Prosthetic Socket Acceptance &Carbon Fiber Energy Storage Foot
(Source: Internet)
In the new digital production process, 3D scanning technology enables contactless, rapid, and accurate scanning, with the entire process completed in just 1 minute. Designers import scanned data into specialized prosthetic design software for customized design, utilizing high-strength polymer materials through selective laser sintering 3D printing technology for rapid printing, without the need for support structures, particularly suitable for fabricating hollow curved surface structures of prosthetic sockets, and printing efficiency can be improved through model stacking. Using TPM3D's Precimid 1180 BLK Nylon 11 polymer powder as printing material, the printed prosthetic socket exhibits excellent toughness, impact resistance, wear resistance, and fatigue resistance, precisely conforming to the residual limb and effectively supporting the wearer's body. After printing, the surface of the socket is smoothed, resulting in a smoother surface. Additionally, it offers waterproof, antibacterial, washable, and durable effects, comparable to injection-molded products.
Prosthetic Socket Acceptance printed by TPM3D
The combination of 3D scanning technology with laser sintering SLS 3D printing technology has greatly simplified the prosthetic production process, alleviating the workload of prosthetists, reducing the weight of prosthetics, improving fitting accuracy, and optimizing the molding and wearing experience for people with disabilities. This manufacturing process aligns with the concept of precision medicine and is expected to be widely promoted in the future.
