China3D printingNet, May 11, a group of researchers from Swansea University, Cardiff Metropolitan University and Morriston Hospital proposed a3D printingA method to provide wheelchair users with a highly customizable lightweight head support. The engineers compared their design with common commercial headrests in the mechanical strength test, and the results showed the practicability of AM for personalized accessories.
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3D printingNylon head bracket. The picture comes from Swansea University.
3D printingHead support
Most wheelchair users see that most of the ready-made back cushions and headrests can meet their seating needs. However, for a small part, more customization options may be required. People with more unique anatomies will need highly customized contours to provide comfort and usability. For the headrest, postural head support suitable for neck flexion is required to prevent overextension, muscle stiffness and fatigue.
With this in mind, the Welsh researchers3D scanningThe head of a volunteer was created, and a template STL was created to use its work as a basis. Autodesk Fusion 360 is used to model the head support, which provides lateral support on the left side while avoiding ear contact. Some holes were cut in the model so that the support can be connected to the British standard wheelchair bracket. Researchers use Markforged Mark Two 3D printingThe machine made three identical nylon head brackets and installed ball joints for them.
Strength test custom design
3D printingThe nylon parts of the company have been tested against commercially available G-type (known strength characteristics) headrests in two ways.The first saw applied backward force to3D printingOn the inner rear surface of the head support, the second saw applies a rearward force to the inner surface of the left lateral support arm (near the ear). The researchers recorded the force and displacement of the loading pad every 0.5 seconds.
G-type head support (top), backward force test (left), lateral force test (right). Photo of Swansea University.
In the backward force test, the maximum force reached before breaking was 3188N, and the maximum displacement was 71.7mm.After inspecting the damage, it was concluded that the failure point was in the aluminum rod of the ball joint, not in the3D printingIn the head bracket.Nylon AM parts have no permanent plastic deformation and no visible cracks, which means that the UK standard bracket will be3D printingBefore the head support exudes.
Posterior force test. Photo of Swansea University.
During the lateral force test, the researcher managed to apply a force of 93N3D printingThe left arm of the bracket moves to a maximum of 143.7mm. At that time, the test bench was already at the maximum displacement position and no longer affected the head support. The test was stopped and the headrest returned to its original contour without visible permanent plastic deformation.It turns out that by using3D scanning, Some clever CAD modeling and3D printingResearchers are able to produce lightweight customized wheelchair accessories with mechanical strength and ductility comparable to existing ready-made headrests.
Lateral force test. Photo of Swansea University.
More details of the study can be found in the paper titled “Assessment of Additive Manufacturing for Custom Headrest Production: Comparison with Commercial Headrests under Static Load Conditions.” It consists of Jonathan Howard (Jonathan Howard), Dominic Eggbeer (Dominic Eggbeer), Peter Dorrington (Peter Dorrington), Feras Korkees and Lorna Tasker (Lorna). Tasker) co-authored.
The head support in this study is3D printingA classic example of intensity, it is a cost-effective way to meet individual seating needs.Earlier this year, Porsche, known for its high-performance sports cars, was developing new3D printingThere are similar ideas for personalized bucket seats. Bucket seats were initially limited to 40 prototypes for European racing tracks. Elsewhere, the Triple Eight Racing Engineering Company is using HP MJF 3D printingTechnology to produce custom steering wheels for racing cars. The wheel is designed according to the driver’s hand, which is light in weight and low in production cost.
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