Lattice Structure Design For Biomedical Implants

Lattice structures present great light‐weighting and/or modulus matching opportunities for a wide range of applications, especially within the aerospace and biomedical sectors. They are also difficult if not impossible to make by conventional manufacturing and are thus well suited for exploiting the design freedoms presented by additive manufacturing.

The aim of the Hub’s research is to design a lattice structure for biomedical implants with a Young’s modulus and fatigue performance similar to human bones.

Design considerations include the buildability by selective laser melting (SLM) to achieve mechanical properties similar to those of bone, in addition to achieving lattice cell morphologies and surface finish for both optimal fatigue performance and cell attachment and proliferation.

The preliminary results include reconstruction of CT scans to build prototypes of biomedical implants. Mechanical testing of different lattice structures in Ti64 has demonstrated that the lattice structures can be tailored to mimic the mechanical properties of bone.