Computer-Aided Technique for the Design and Manufacturing of Auricular Prostheses

摘要

Custom-made esthetic auricular prostheses, which are used for rehabilitation of patients with missing or impaired auricles, have been fabricated manually. However, such fabrication is time-consuming and requires manual skill. This paper proposes a computer-aided technique for fabricating auricular prostheses to save time and allow fabrications that do not require considerable manual skill. In this technique, the shape of a patient's healthy auricle, which is contralateral to the impaired auricle, is first scanned using a laser scanner to make a 3D model of the healthy auricle. Because the 3D model obtained by laser scanning has the surface abnormalities and gaps, we apply morphing technology to make the 3D model complete. The morphing technology is originally for changing (or morphing) one image to another through a seamless transition. In this study, the morphing technology is used to change the 3D model of standard auricle by referring to the 3D model obtained by laser scanning, and consequently we obtain a 3D model that resembles a patient's healthy auricle. An auricular prosthesis for the patient is designed by mirroring the 3D model obtained by morphing. Based on the 3D model, a mold is designed, using the 3D modeling tools and computer-aided design system. The resulting mold is then fabricated using a 3D printer. An auricular prosthesis is fabricated by pouring silicone resin into the mold. An auricular prosthesis for a volunteer was experimentally fabricated according to the proposed technique.