Method of manufacturing a socket portion of a prosthetic limb
First Claim
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1. A method of forming a prosthetic limb for attachment to a residual limb of a living animal, the method comprising:
- generating a digital representation of a three-dimensional surface contour that is dependent on a physical three-dimensional surface contour of at least a portion of the residual limb;
generating a digital representation of a socket of the prosthetic limb, the socket having cavity defined by an interior surface, the interior surface being defined at least partially by the digital representation of the three-dimensional contour; and
forming the socket out of physical material using a digitally controlled layered manufacturing technique driven by the digital representation of the socket.
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Abstract
A method of forming prosthetic limbs is disclosed. A preferred embodiment of practicing the invention comprises the basic steps of scanning a portion of a residual limb on which a prosthetic device is to be attached, creating a digital representation of a socket portion of the prosthetic device using the scanned information, and creating the socket out of physical material using a digitally controlled layered manufacturing technique driven by the digital representation of the socket.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A method of forming a prosthetic limb for attachment to a residual limb of a living animal, the method comprising:
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generating a digital representation of a three-dimensional surface contour that is dependent on a physical three-dimensional surface contour of at least a portion of the residual limb;
generating a digital representation of a socket of the prosthetic limb, the socket having cavity defined by an interior surface, the interior surface being defined at least partially by the digital representation of the three-dimensional contour; and
forming the socket out of physical material using a digitally controlled layered manufacturing technique driven by the digital representation of the socket. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method of forming a socket of a prosthetic limb and attaching the socket to a residual limb of a living animal comprising:
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positioning a liner on at least a portion of the residual limb;
marking the liner in manner indicating a preferred contour and location of a non-planer terminal edge of the socket, the marking occurring when the liner is positioned on the residual limb;
electronically scanning at least a portion of the liner when the liner positioned on the residual limb to generate a digital representation of a three-dimensional surface contour that is dependent on a physical three-dimensional surface contour of the liner when the liner is positioned on the residual limb, the scanning occurring in a manner such that the contour and location of the non-planer terminal edge of the socket that has been marked on the liner is identifiable in the digital representation of the three-dimensional surface contour;
generating a digital representation of the socket, the digital representation of the socket having a cavity defined by an interior surface, the interior surface being defined at least partially by the digital representation of the three-dimensional contour, the digital representation of the socket also having an exterior surface and a non-planar perimeter surface, the perimeter surface terminating the cavity and bridging the exterior and interior surfaces, the perimeter surface being dependent upon the contour and location of the non-planer terminal edge of the socket that is identifiable in the digital representation of the three-dimensional surface contour;
using a digitally controlled layered manufacturing technique driven by the digital representation of the socket to form the interior, exterior, and perimeter surfaces of the socket out of physical material; and
attaching the socket of the prosthetic limb to the residual limb by positioning the residual limb with the liner positioned thereon at least partially into the cavity of the socket. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A method of forming a socket of a prosthetic limb and attaching the socket to a residual limb of a living animal comprising:
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positioning a liner on at least a portion of the residual limb, the liner having an exterior surface contour when the liner is positioned on the portion of the residual limb;
forming a socket having an exterior surface and a cavity that is defined by an interior surface, the forming occurring in a manner such that the interior surface of the socket has a contour that is dependent upon the exterior surface contour of the liner and occurring without a process of intentionally rectifying the contour of the interior surface for the purpose of altering the bearing characteristics between the socket and the liner; and
attaching the socket of the prosthetic limb to the residual limb by positioning the residual limb with the liner positioned thereon at least partially into the cavity of the socket. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A prosthetic limb for attachment to a residual limb of a living animal comprising:
a socket formed by a digitally controlled layered manufacturing technique, the socket having a cavity defined by an interior surface, the interior surface being dependent on a physical three-dimensional surface contour of at least a portion of the residual limb. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25)
Specification