Irish Manufacturing Research partnered with nTopology and Renishaw to streamline production of 3D-printed spinal implants, 3D Printing Media Network reports.
Five things to know:
1. The partnership used Renishaw’s metal additive manufacturing capabilities, nTopology’s design and optimization software and IMR’s spinal implant design.
2. The titanium cervical spinal implant features a complex internal lattice structure generated by nTopology’s platform.
“An implant with a lattice structure is lightweight, can be optimized to meet the required loading conditions and has a greater surface area, which aids osseointegration,” Renishaw’s Medical and Dental Products Division Marketing Manager Ed Littlewood told 3D Printing Media Network. “Therefore, [additively manufactured] implants can be designed to mimic the mechanical properties of bone, resulting in better patient outcomes.”
3. The 3D-printed implants are customized to the patient.
4. “Renishaw worked tirelessly with us on improving the AM process for producing the spinal implants,” IMR Senior Research Engineer Sean McConnell told 3D Printing Media Network. “Together, we designed a set of experiments that yield the most appropriate parameter settings for the product. As a result, we reduced the amount of post processing required on key features of the implants by a factor of ten.”
5. In addition to collaborating with nTopology and IMR, Renishaw also teamed up with the University Dental Hospital of Wales in Cardiff to 3D-print custom maxillofacial implants and surgical guides.