{"id":2706,"date":"2012-05-09T11:37:32","date_gmt":"2012-05-09T11:37:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.compositestoday.com\/?p=2706"},"modified":"2012-05-09T12:04:31","modified_gmt":"2012-05-09T12:04:31","slug":"research-focusing-on-manufacturing-composite-orthotics-for-injured-soldiers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.compositestoday.com\/2012\/05\/research-focusing-on-manufacturing-composite-orthotics-for-injured-soldiers\/","title":{"rendered":"Research Focusing on Manufacturing Composite Orthotics for Injured Soldiers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"

This is a guest post written by Diane Kukich<\/a> at the University of Delaware<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Imagine being able to use a 3-D \u201cprinter\u201d to produce a custom orthotic device for a soldier with a severe lower extremity injury. Constructed of strong and durable yet lightweight composite materials, the device is designed to meet the user\u2019s specific needs. It can be fabricated in just 24 hours, and its \u201ctunable\u201d properties allow it to be modified to meet the wounded warrior\u2019s changing needs over the course of rehabilitation.<\/p>\n

This description may sound like the stuff of futuristic medical fiction, but it\u2019s actually the objective of a new research program at the University of Delaware Center for Composite Materials<\/a> (CCM).<\/p>\n

Led by Jack Gillespie and Shridhar Yarlagadda, CCM recently received a grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a rapid prototyping process for the manufacture of advanced passive dynamic ankle-foot orthoses (PD-AFOs) for injured soldiers. The three-year, $3-million project will be carried out in collaboration with UD\u2019s BADER Consortium, which will enable the new devices to be tested in clinical trials.<\/p>\n

Steven Stanhope, who leads the BADER Consortium and is a co-investigator on the new DARPA project, explains that PD-AFOs, which use a spring-like action to mimic the normal motion of the ankle, are enabling wounded warriors to retrain not only for a vigorous recreational lifestyle but also for active duty. <\/p>\n

With a process known as additive manufacturing, in which 3-D solid objects are built up in layers from digital files, Stanhope has invented a patent pending process for the rapid manufacture of PD-AFOs from \u201cneat,\u201d or unreinforced polymers. However, these materials are limited in strength and durability, and the devices must be thick and heavy to meet the soldier\u2019s need for active duty.<\/p>\n

In contrast, high-performance composites can reduce device size and offer improved mobility.<\/p>\n

If we can take full advantage of composites \u2014 which are 40 times stiffer and stronger than conventional materials \u2014 we can pare these devices down to the point where they will be thin enough to be readily worn within a shoe, we can also use the anisotropic properties of composites to \u2018stiffness tune\u2019 a device to an individual patient\u2019s impairment profile, enabling an unprecedented level of customization, not just initially but on a continuing basis.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, customized composite devices require labor-intensive and specialised skills to fabricate, so the DARPA-funded research is aimed at marrying the rapid production enabled by additive manufacturing with the performance advantages of composites.<\/p>\n

That sounds like a tall order, but the new program builds on CCM\u2019s well-developed composites manufacturing science base.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur goal is to develop integrated tools for manufacturing to meet the system requirements,\u201d says Yarlagadda, who directs other DARPA-funded composites manufacturing research at CCM. He explains that those tools include process models, composites analysis, composites design, materials selection, process engineering, and manufacturing workcells in a continuous feedback loop centered on the requirements of the application. <\/p>\n

In the new project, those tools will be complemented by patient data, patient foot scans, and biomechanics-based prescriptions for devices provided through the BADER Consortium. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a perfect collaboration,\u201d says Gillespie, \u201cwith CCM providing the engineering design, materials, and processes for composites and the BADER Consortium providing the network for clinical trials. Once the prototypes are manufactured, they will be tested on wounded warriors, who will provide us with valuable feedback for continuous improvement of the rapid prototyping process.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yarlagadda points out that the potential benefits go far beyond orthoses for injured soldiers. \u201cMany of the technological advances that we take for granted today had their roots in military programs,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n

Everything we do here at CCM contributes to the manufacturing science base that centre researchers began building almost four decades ago. It doesn\u2019t matter whether the system is a military vehicle or an orthotic device \u2014 what we\u2019re learning here will advance the state of the art of composites in general. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is a guest post written by Diane Kukich at the University of Delaware Imagine being able to use a 3-D \u201cprinter\u201d to produce a custom orthotic device for a soldier with a severe lower extremity injury. Constructed of strong and durable yet lightweight composite materials, the device is designed to meet the user\u2019s specific needs. It can be fabricated in just 24 hours, and its \u201ctunable\u201d properties allow it to be modified to meet the wounded warrior\u2019s changing needs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2707,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[302],"tags":[445,446,110],"class_list":["post-2706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-innovations","tag-darpa","tag-university-of-delaware","tag-usa"],"yoast_head":"\nResearch Focusing on Manufacturing Composite Orthotics for Injured Soldiers<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Imagine being able to use a 3-D 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