Post oxidation mass finishing techniques for prosthetic devices having textured diffusion-hardened surfaces

• US 20030209517A1
• Filed: 05/08/2002
• Published: 11/13/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Brian Mcgehee, Les Darby
• Original Assignee: Brian Mcgehee, Les Darby
• Inventors: Darby, Les, McGehee, Brian
• Application Number:
  US10/140,917
• Publication Number:
  US 20030209517A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 216/41
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/50 Materials characterised by their function or physical properties , e.g. injectable or lubricating compositions, shape-memory materials, surface modified materials

Abstract

A maskant plate is described which allows for protection of textured, diffusion-hardened surfaces on prosthetic devices while not interfering with common post-oxidation mass finishing procedures which are often used to form the finished product after surface oxidation.

Claims

1. A method of masking a textured diffusion-hardened surface on a prosthetic device during post-oxidation mass finishing comprising the steps of:

positioning a plate on at least a part of the textured surface to be masked;

performing post-oxidation mass finishing; and

,

removing said plate.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said plate is a sheet metal plate.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said plate is a stainless steel plate.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said plate is a plastic plate.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said plastic plate is a polyvinyl chloride plate.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising repeating one or more times, said steps of positioning, performing, and removing.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said textured diffusion-hardened surface comprises a composition selected from the group consisting of oxidized zirconium, oxidized hafnium, oxidized niobium, and oxidized titanium.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said textured diffusion-hardened surface comprises oxidized zirconium.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said surface is formed on a substrate comprising materials selected from the group consisting of zirconium, titanium, hafnium, niobium, and alloys thereof.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein said surface is formed on a substrate comprising zirconium or zirconium alloy.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said substrate consists of an alloy composition of;

from about 10 to about 50 weight % niobium;

from about 13 to about 20 weight % zirconium; and

,

the balance titanium.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein said substrate consists of an alloy composition of:

about 74 weight % titanium;

about 13 weight % niobium; and

,

about 13 weight % zirconium.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of positioning further comprises positioning with a mandrel.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of positioning further comprises positioning using a locking ring or set screw or both.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein said step of positioning comprises positioning a plate which completely covers and extends past the textured surface to be masked.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein said step of positioning a plate which completely covers and extends past the textured surface to be masked comprises completely covering and extending past the textured surface by about 10% of the total length of the textured region.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing post oxidation mass finishing comprises a tumbling procedure.

18. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing post oxidation mass finishing comprises a grit-blasting procedure.

19. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing post oxidation mass finishing comprises a cleaning procedure.

20. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing post oxidation mass finishing comprises the application of laser light to the prosthetic device.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein the application of laser light further comprises laser marking of the prosthetic device.

22. The method of claim 1 wherein the step of performing post oxidation mass finishing comprises a passivation step.

23. The method of claim 22 wherein the passivation step further comprises contacting the prosthetic device with a nitric acid solution.