The human jaw movement analysis by finite element analysis

摘要

The human jaw is an important part of the human day to day activity. These activities include talking, eating, grimacing, singing, yawning and so on. Due to its activities, the jaw undergoes a lot of stress and strain. The jaw consist of fixed part which is the upper jaw or maxilla and the movable part which is the lower jaw or the mandible. The research was centered on the mandible because it is the major moving part of the jaw. Mastication, speech and few sport related accident conditions were considered in relation to the mandibles opening and closing movements. To carry out these analyses, Mimics software was used to obtain a 3D model of the mandible while ANSYS software performed the finite element analysis. Other software were in cooperated where necessary. This analysis gives insights to the stress and strain distribution of the mandible in particular since it is the major moving part of the jaw. Understanding the effects of compression, tension and deformations on the mandible and how it adjusts to the various stages of jaw movement was the main objective of this analysis.