Prosthetic design

3D printing is a technology that is perfectly suited for prosthetic and orthopedic designs. These applications require a high level of customization as well as complex shapes. We have seen this with companies like Mathis Orthopédie and organisations like Enable and 3D Life Prints.

To understand the needs and the challenges ourselves we have chosen to print a design for a prosthetic leg ourselves, using colorFabb_XT Dark Gray.

Design: https://grabcad.com/library/prosthetic-leg

This part was printed on a Swiss made Delta Tower with 0.15mm layer height. The design was altered slightly for better printing.

Please note that this model and print are made as a case study and not intended to be used in real life with a body’s weight supporting it. As you can see in the original design, the part we printed is meant to be the outer shell.

For this purpose colorFabb_XT is an excellent material.

colorFabb_XT is made with Eastman Amphora™ 3D polymer AM1800. Launched in September 2014, it is a fantastic functional engineering material. With colorFabb_XT we achieved to produce a filament that provides good strength and toughness, as well as certain FDA food contact compliances. It has found a wide audience amongst users looking for extra functionality. With a temperature resistance of 75+ degrees, this filament offers high strength and very high toughness, odor neutral processing, a styrene free formulation, FDA food contact compliance and BPA (Bisphenol A ) free formulation.

colorFabb_XT was our first co-polyester based filament. Our portfolio of co-polyester based filaments, made with Eastman Amphora polymers, has since extended with the all-round nGen, the high temperature resistant colorFabb_HT and semi-flexible nGen_FLEX. You can find more about what co-polyesters are by clicking here.

colorFabb is available in our webshop and through our worldwide network of distributors and resellers.

 

Keep checking out this site for the latest news regarding colorFabb news, tutorials and the latest prints from our print lab!

Prosthetic prototypes

One application for 3D printing that we are seeing a lot of potential in is the the field of prosthetics. Of course we all know the good work that projects like Enable and 3D Life Prints are doing, but 3D printing is already being used in the field of prosthetics as we speak. We have been following the French company Mathis Orthopédie for some time now on social media and specifically on their Twitter page.

 

We got in touch with them to know a little bit more about this exciting application for 3D printing. They use 3D printing not for the final application, but instead for the phase before that to make sure the prosthetic is fitting well and make sure the measurements and comfort are perfect.

Customization is one of the key aspects for prosthetics since no body is the same. 3D printing offers this on an unprecedented scale, but of course it doesn’t end there. Skills in both fields of prosthetics and 3D printing are essential in combination with the right materials.

With over 40 years of experience in prosthetics, Mathis Orthopédie is one of the leading companies in their field. 3D printing enables Mathis to customize the prosthetics for each and individual customer. It also significantly reduces waste and increases speed to bring the right prosthetic faster to the person in need by 3D printing the prototypes.

We have already seen 3D printing providing dramatic changes in bringing prototypes to life, products to the market and even finding its way into centuries old technologies like investment casting, but there are few ways where 3D printing can make such a personal impact on people daily lives as with prosthetics. Below is Mathis’  company video where you can see partially printed prosthetics being tested:

The material of choice they have been using is our colorFabb_XT, made with Eastman Amphora™ 3D polymer AM1800. Launched in September 2014, it is a fantastic functional engineering material. With colorFabb_XT we achieved to produce a filament that provides good strength and toughness, as well as certain FDA food contact compliances. It has found a wide audience amongst users looking for extra functionality. with a temperature resistance of 75+ degrees, this filament offers high strength and very high toughness, odor neutral processing, a styrene free formulation, FDA food contact compliance and BPA (Bisphenol A ) free formulation. It allows the user, like Mathis Orthopédie, to produce 3D printed functional products in a safe way.

colorFabb_XT was our first co-polyester based filament. Our portfolio of co-polyester based filaments, made with Eastman Amphora polymers, has since extended with the all-round nGen, the high temperature resistant colorFabb_HT and semi-flexible nGen_FLEX. You can find more about what co-polyesters are by clicking here.

The functionality that colorFabb_XT offers makes it a great material for prosthetics, as Mathis Orthopédie is using it. For visual prototyping, one of the materials Mathis uses is our colorFabb PLA/PHA natural, which has become a standard in the past 4 years as an extremely reliable filament.

For their printers they use Ultimakers and a Delta Tower.

Mathis Orthopédie strives for excellence in all aspects of the prosthetics they offer and have chosen colorFabb_XT as their primary material for this application. Be sure you visit their website (in French) and follow them on Twitter and Facebook, where they regularly share their works in progress.

 

 

This is the third part of an ongoing series of blogs about companies that use colorFabb filaments in unique and exciting ways. Recently we published about AKLIH, the Slovenian design company who use our woodFill filaments for their products, and last week we wrote about Spectra3D‘s use of 3D printing for investment casting.  If you are interested in being part of this feature, or know a company who would be suitable, please contact us at sales@colorfabb.com 

Coke bottles

Our nGen filament is a great material for visual prototyping. Recently we used nGen to print Coke bottles in various colors:

Design: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1594463

We printed these bottles on the Swiss made Delta Tower with a 0.2mm layer height. The smooth surface and consistency of the filament, make nGen an ideal material to print large prototypes with. These models were scaled up to nearly 30cm.

We printed this model in 6 colors, but did you know that we offer nGen in 17 colors (including a clear one)?

You can find the full portfolio of nGen in our webshop.

nGen is made from Eastman Amphora™ AM3300 3D polymer. Like colorFabb_XT, colorFabb_HT and nGen_FLEX, it is part of Eastman’s Amphora range of copolyesters for 3D printing. We work closely with Eastman to bring the best materials to the market. Find more about co-polyesters, what they are and what the advantages are by visiting our previous blog.

Ever since launching late last year nGen has seen a rapid adoption amongst experienced and new users alike. An early review by 3D Printing For Beginners still holds true to this very day. The ease of use and higher temperature resistance (twice that of PLA!) should make this a go-to filament for everybody who wants to get more from their print.

nGen is a low-odor, styrene-free material uniquely suited for 3D printing enthusiasts, particularly those who need the flexibility to print within a wide processing temperature range. With nGen you will have good flow properties through the printer nozzle—even at lower temperatures than some other polymers require. These properties make nGen more workable at a wider breadth of temperatures, producing reliable results and resulting in less waste. Find out how to print with nGen in our handy tutorial.

Amphora 3300 has been made into high-quality filament that exhibits advanced overhang ability, excellent looks, and large printing temperature range—empowering large panel of users to create durable and useful items. With the unique combination of a low processing temperature and an elevated temperature resistance, nGen can quickly print creations that are functional, durable, efficient and attractive.

You can find more information about nGen by clicking here.

 

Until the end of the year you can benefit from the Buy 4, Pay 3 promotion! Use coupon code colorfabb4you on our website to get the fourth spool you order for free! Some conditions apply though: cheapest spool is for free and samples and PLA Economy are exempt from this part of the promotion.

Sir Fill

Pop quiz: What is taller than 3 spools of colorFabb PLA Economy? There is only one answer: Sir Fill printed extra large on the Delta Tower!

colorfabb_pla_economy_sir_fill-2

Design: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:501831

You may or may not know Sir Fill. Sir Fill is our mascotte, proud protector of the printers. A fearless filament fan. Our guardian and true knight. Designed by Swedish character artist and digital sculptor Ola Sundberg a few years ago especially for us, it has been a print we keep printing with all our filaments.

Last week we launched our new grade of low cost PLA Economy and it has been a runaway success from the moment we launched it. You can find the full details of our latest offering here.

colorfabb_pla_economy_sir_fill-4

Printed on the Delta Tower with a 0.8mm nozzle and a 0.2mm layer height, Sir Fill weighs nearly 2kgs and measures 45.5cm. As you can see, PLA Economy is perfectly suited for the task.

We have been testing this material for the better part of the summer and have found this filament a great alternative those customers who need a lot of PLA. We are initially releasing PLA Economy in four colors: White (RAL 9010), Black (RAL 9005, Red (RAL 3020) and Silver (RAL 9023). This PLA grade has been tested extensively and is being produced and shipped by the same colorFabb team you are used to so you know we are not compromising on quality. You can rely with this filament on the same high standards that colorFabb is known for. It is available only on 2.2kg spools.

PLA Economy is an addition to our range of PLA/PHA, which is available in 30 colors (and on 750 grams spools).

And remember that during Black Friday we have a special deal on all our filaments: 15% off! Find out more by clicking here.

blackfridaydeals_rev2-07_webshop

Dodecahedron with colorFabb nGen

Today’s print, straight from our own print lab, is the Rhombic Dodecahedron Derived Figure by Fred Bartels, which we printed entirely with our all-round nGen filament.

dodecahedron-2

Design by Fred Bartels: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:539489

We used the Delta Tower in our print lab to achieve the build height of 40cm for this print and printed with a 0.2mm layer height. This work of art is perfectly suited for our nGen filament and we selected the stunning light blue color for this print.

Printing high resolution is no problem with nGen. With good performance on overhanging surfaces and great stability during print we think this makes nGen a great all-round filament for every day use.

nGen is made from Eastman Amphora™ AM3300 3D polymer. Like colorFabb_XT, colorFabb_HT and nGen_FLEX, it is part of Eastman’s Amphora range of copolyesters for 3D printing. Find more about co-polyesters, what they are and what the advantages are by visiting our previous blog.

nGen is a low-odor, styrene-free material uniquely suited for 3D printing enthusiasts, particularly those who need the flexibility to print within a wide processing temperature range. With nGen you will have good flow properties through the printer nozzle—even at lower temperatures than some other polymers require. These properties make nGen more workable at a wider breadth of temperatures, producing reliable results and resulting in less waste.

img_9985

Amphora 3300 has been made into high-quality filament that exhibits advanced overhang ability, excellent looks, and large printing temperature range—empowering large panel of users to create durable and useful items. With the unique combination of a low processing temperature and an elevated temperature resistance, nGen can quickly print creations that are functional, durable, efficient, and attractive.

 

You can find more information about nGen by clicking here. nGen is available in 17 colors.

Learn more about printing with nGen by visiting our tutorial.