Leddy Michael T, Belter Joseph T, Gemmell Kevin D, Dollar Aaron M
Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2015;2015:4797-802. doi: 10.1109/EMBC.2015.7319467.
Additive manufacturing techniques are becoming more prominent and cost-effective as 3D printing becomes higher quality and more inexpensive. The idea of 3D printed prosthetics components promises affordable, customizable devices, but these systems currently have major shortcomings in durability and function. In this paper, we propose a fabrication method for custom composite prostheses utilizing additive manufacturing, allowing for customizability, as well the durability of professional prosthetics. The manufacturing process is completed using 3D printed molds in a multi-stage molding system, which creates a custom finger or palm with a lightweight epoxy foam core, a durable composite outer shell, and soft urethane gripping surfaces. The composite material was compared to 3D printed and aluminum materials using a three-point bending test to compare stiffness, as well as gravimetric measurements to compare weight. The composite finger demonstrates the largest stiffness with the lowest weight compared to other tested fingers, as well as having customizability and lower cost, proving to potentially be a substantial benefit to the development of upper-limb prostheses.
随着3D打印质量提高且成本降低，增材制造技术正变得愈发突出且性价比更高。3D打印假肢部件的理念有望实现价格亲民、可定制的设备，但目前这些系统在耐用性和功能方面存在重大缺陷。在本文中，我们提出了一种利用增材制造定制复合假肢的制造方法，既具备可定制性，又拥有专业假肢的耐用性。制造过程在多阶段成型系统中使用3D打印模具完成，该系统能制造出带有轻质环氧泡沫芯、耐用复合外壳和柔软聚氨酯抓握表面的定制手指或手掌。使用三点弯曲试验比较复合材料与3D打印材料及铝材料的刚度，并通过重量测量比较重量。与其他测试手指相比，复合手指展现出最大的刚度和最低的重量，同时具备可定制性和较低成本，证明其对上肢假肢的发展可能具有重大益处。
