Solid X-ray

This article presents details of research and development in the field of medical treatments using rapid prototyping. Many physicians are turning to rapid prototyping because it can give them models of their patients’ internal organs or bones. The plastic models are essentially printed in three dimensions from a patient’s computer tomography or magnetic resonance imaging scans. The 3D models let doctors see and touch the diseased part of a patient’s anatomy as they will see it in the operating room. A medical team is adding a new technique called electron-beam melting, which relies upon melted titanium powder to produce implantable metal devices from CT-scan information. The technology, from Arcam of Boras, Sweden, builds up the metal parts via rapid prototyping. RP4Baghdad is a humanitarian effort founded in mid-2005 by members of the U.S. rapid prototyping and manufacturing industry. It calls upon rapid prototyping techniques to help treat Iraqi civilians with severe injuries to the head and face.