This article proposes a type of transtibial socket composed of an inner layer fabricated by a rapid prototyping (RP) machine and an outer layer coated with unsaturated polyester resin. This work integrates contemporary technologies including a handheld scanner and CAD systems, to design a thin primary socket shape and then manufactures the socket using a fused deposition-modeling machine. To prevent breakage caused by the layer-based forming process and to reinforce flexural strength, the current research coats the preliminary RP socket with a layer of unsaturated polyester resin. After shaping the proximal brim of the resin-reinforced RP socket to match the specific stump, this study assembles and aligns a shank and a prosthetic foot to form a prosthesis set. After completing a trial safety walk wearing the prosthesis, which is satisfactory to the amputee and a registered prosthetist, this research measures interface pressures between the stump and the resin-reinforced RP socket. Experiment results demonstrate that the resin-reinforced RP socket is applicable for transtibial amputees. In addition to strengthening the FDM socket and producing consistent socket fit, this study also demonstrates a feasible procedure that employs current technologies to design and manufacture transtibial sockets without plaster moulds.
This study aims to employ the technology of rapid prototyping for the development of a
process that is to assist a prosthetist for easily designing and manufacturing a prosthetic socket for
specific transtibial amputee. Currently, the production of prosthetic socket still depends on
prosthetists’ skills and expertise. To improve its tedious process, quality uncertainty, and lack of
experienced prosthetists, the benefits of using rapid prototyping (RP) technology together with
computer-aided systems will be expecting goals. This article demonstrated the feasibility of
producing RP sockets using a fused deposition modeling (FDM) machine, and a prototype system that
allows a prosthetist to easily design prosthetic sockets has been developed. This proposed
computer-aided engineering process, which is plaster-free method, is expected to replace the manual
process of conventional approach of fabricating prosthetic sockets. Furthermore, since thin-layer RP
socket is easily broken, coating a resin layer on RP socket to enforce its strength is underway.
This paper describes a multidisciplinary project that applied the concept of reverse engineering using computer-aided design (CAD) tools to develop a three-dimensional printing (3DP)-based prosthetic socket for transtibial amputees by combining the concepts of patellar tendon-bearing (PTB) socket design principle and total surface-bearing (TSB) socket casting method. Using contemporary tools such as a handheld 3D scanner and an entry-level 3DP machine, together with an in-house prosthetic socket design system and a stump forming device, allowed us to fabricate prosthetic sockets with a consistent quality, and to shorten the learning process time-frame to fabricate them. The results of a case study of two participants demonstrated that the proposed CAD/3DP process of fabrication of transtibial sockets can be easily applied by an unskilled prosthetist to fabricate a socket with the required quality at the first fitting.
A duplicated mold of the residual limb of an amputee is usually needed to make the socket of prosthesis for the patient. However, traditional means to duplicate a positive mold is time-consuming, patient suffering and intensive manual-efforts required. The study has developed a prototype system that allows a prosthetist to construct the computer-aided design(CAD) model of residual limb easily using it's digitized points based on the concept of reverse engineering. First of all, the topographic data of a residual limb is captured using a non-intrusive scanning machine. The scanned data is then used as the input of a self-developed system that is based on the theories of B-spline curve and lofted surface to process the digitized points. The CAD model can then be built and transferred to a computer-aided manufacturing(CAM) system to generate the code for a computer numerical control(CNC) machine to make the duplicated mold of the residual limb.
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