Reconstruction of Orbital Wall by Using Hybrid Manufacturing Operations

Abstract

This paper will discuss the solutions and the main parameters used to print a mold that will be used in a manufacturing process for a personalized implant in orbital fracture situations. The main purpose of this article is to rebuild the damaged orbit. The new orbit should have dimensions and accuracy similar to one of the original elements. Based on the computed tomography (CT) of the patient, the images are extracted and processed. With that information, a customized implant is manufactured. In this article, a case study of a patient suffering from an orbital fracture is presented. Based on the CT images, a mold was printed on additive manufacturing equipment (AM). The manufacturing parameters being highly correlated with the requirements that are needed for this case such as hardness, accuracy, surface roughness and support removal were chosen based on a series of tests and results from other studies. Another aspect that was analysed was related to the material from which was manufactured the mold. The forming and cutting of the mesh are simplified, by introducing the formed metallic mesh making it ready to be applied to real patients and therefore decreasing the effective time required for this kind of operation.