TILT 176: 3D Printed Club Foot Brace

thingiverse

The TILT 176 serves to progressively correct club foot. There are eight positions for each foot to slowly correct positioning of the feet. Club foot is a congenital foot deformation where one foot or both feet are twisted abnormally. Club foot occurs once every 1240 births. It is best treated immediately at birth to avoid surgery. This device is a non-invasive treatment and is available almost immediately as needed. This allows for rapid treatment, reducing the risk of surgery. Traditionally, these devices require precision drilling for the positioning holes which is time-consuming for practitioners and therefore costly. This model is strong, precise, cheap and fast. Most importantly, in areas where importing pre-made devices is not possible or very expensive, this solution can be printed at a local 3D printing clinic. While not everyone has access to 3D printing clinics yet, they are rapidly growing in both developed and developing countries. This stationary device is intended for small children prior to crawling. This device should only be used under the guidance of a certified orthopedist. Print Settings Rafts: No Supports: No Infill: 100% Notes: I've used PLA but ABS would likely work well also.Testing is currently underway to determine what % fill is required but for safety - 100% is a good bet for the foot models. The bars can be less dense, about 20%. Post-Printing After the parts are printed, A pin(3mm diameter) needs to be tapped into the small holes at the end of the bars. This will be inserted into the positioning holes and progressively changed with the angle of the club foot. Lastly, 3-5 M5 countersunk flat-head screws and nuts are needed to hold everything in place. How I Designed This This was designed collaboratively with a orthopedic practitioner in Ecuador. Using SOLIDWORKS, I sketched up an existing manually drilled aluminum part. With this, I was able to 3D print the part, adjust tolerances and qualitatively test strength.