Short answer

Integrate 3D scanning and digital modelling into your design process to enable direct additive manufacturing onto flexible substrates like textiles for personalized product creation.

Field: Modelling
Source: Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics (2020)
Method: Process development and demonstration
Evidence: Strong effect

A computer-aided engineering workflow enables the direct 3D printing of customized orthopaedic devices onto textile surfaces, streamlining production from patient scan to final assembly. This modelling research insight is drawn from a 2020 study published in Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics. Using Process development and demonstration, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: Integrate 3D scanning and digital modelling into your design process to enable direct additive manufacturing onto flexible substrates like textiles for personalized product creation.

Study

ModellingHigh ImpactStrong effect

3D Printing on Textiles: A Digital Workflow for Custom Orthopaedic Devices

A computer-aided engineering workflow enables the direct 3D printing of customized orthopaedic devices onto textile surfaces, streamlining production from patient scan to final assembly.

Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics · 2020

Key Findings

01A digital workflow integrating 3D scanning, CAD, and 3D printing onto textiles is feasible for custom orthopaedic devices.
02The proposed process offers a potential alternative to traditional, labour-intensive fabrication methods for orthoses.
03The method demonstrates potential for industrial application in the textile and ready-made sectors.

Application

Design takeaway

Integrate 3D scanning and digital modelling into your design process to enable direct additive manufacturing onto flexible substrates like textiles for personalized product creation.

How to apply

When designing custom-fit products, consider using 3D scanning to capture user-specific geometry and then employ 3D printing to add functional or aesthetic elements directly onto a textile base.

Project actions

01Consider how 3D scanning can capture unique user needs for your design project.
02Explore combining different manufacturing techniques, like 3D printing with textiles, to create innovative products.

Method & Evidence

AimTo develop and demonstrate a computer-aided engineering-supported process for manufacturing customized orthopaedic devices by three-dimensional printing directly onto textile surfaces.

MethodProcess development and demonstration

ProcedureThe process involves 3D scanning of a patient's body shape, reverse engineering to prepare the surface for textile pattern cuts, software-assisted transformation of 3D patterns to 2D, adding positioning lines for functional elements, designing 3D printed functional elements, saving the design in STL format, slicing, 3D printing onto textile pattern cuts using fused deposition modelling, and finally, assembling the textile fabric.

ContextManufacturing of customized orthopaedic devices, textile and ready-made industry

Variables

IVDigital workflow (3D scanning, CAD, 3D printing onto textiles)

DVCustomized orthopaedic device manufacturing process

CVType of orthopaedic device, specific textile material used, 3D printing technology (FDM), STL file format, slicing software parameters.

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths

+Presents a novel and integrated digital workflow.
+Addresses a practical need for customized medical devices.
+Demonstrates potential for industrial application.

Limitations

The complexity of textile surfaces and the adhesion of 3D printed materials can be challenging. The process might be sensitive to fabric type and printer settings.

Reliability & validity

The study's validity lies in its demonstration of a functional process. Reliability would depend on consistent results across different textile types and patient scans, which may require further testing.

Think critically

How might the properties of different textile materials affect the adhesion and performance of 3D printed elements, and what strategies could be employed to mitigate these challenges?

Design Principles

"Leverage digital modelling and additive manufacturing to create customized products by directly fabricating functional elements onto substrate materials."

This approach integrates advanced digital modelling and additive manufacturing with textile fabrication, offering a novel pathway for creating personalized medical devices. It has the potential to reduce labour intensity and improve the precision of custom orthotics, opening new avenues for innovation in both the medical and textile industries.

What This Means for Your Design

This research shows how to use computers to design and 3D print special supports directly onto fabric for people who need them, like braces for injuries.

How to use in your project

1.Reference this research when discussing the development of custom products using digital modelling and additive manufacturing techniques.
2.Use it to support claims about the efficiency and personalization benefits of integrated digital workflows.

Add to My Project

Quick Cite

Paragraph starter

The development of a computer-aided engineering-supported process for manufacturing customized orthopaedic devices by three-dimensional printing onto textile surfaces demonstrates a novel integration of digital modelling and additive manufacturing. This workflow, utilizing 3D scanning, reverse engineering, and fused deposition modelling, offers a pathway to create personalized medical devices with reduced labour intensity, highlighting the potential for hybrid manufacturing approaches in specialized product design.

Source

Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics

Development of a computer-aided engineering–supported process for the manufacturing of customized orthopaedic devices by three-dimensional printing onto textile surfaces

journal · 2020

View source

Questions About This Research

What does the research say about 3d printing on textiles: a digital workflow for custom orthopaedic devices?: Integrate 3D scanning and digital modelling into your design process to enable direct additive manufacturing onto flexible substrates like textiles for personalized product creation. Evidence: Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics (2020).
Why does "3D Printing on Textiles: A Digital Workflow for Custom Orthopaedic Devices" matter for design?: This approach integrates advanced digital modelling and additive manufacturing with textile fabrication, offering a novel pathway for creating personalized medical devices. It has the potential to reduce labour intensity and improve the precision of custom orthotics, opening new avenues for innovation in both the medical and textile industries.
How can designers apply this research?: Integrate 3D scanning and digital modelling into your design process to enable direct additive manufacturing onto flexible substrates like textiles for personalized product creation.
What were the main findings?: A digital workflow integrating 3D scanning, CAD, and 3D printing onto textiles is feasible for custom orthopaedic devices.. The proposed process offers a potential alternative to traditional, labour-intensive fabrication methods for orthoses.. The method demonstrates potential for industrial application in the textile and ready-made sectors.
What research method was used?: Process development and demonstration.
How strong is the evidence?: Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2020 journal from Journal of Engineered Fibers and Fabrics.
What should I do differently in my next project?: When designing custom-fit products, consider using 3D scanning to capture user-specific geometry and then employ 3D printing to add functional or aesthetic elements directly onto a textile base.
What are the limitations?: The study focuses on a specific application (orthopaedic devices) and may require adaptation for other product types. The long-term durability and performance of 3D printed elements on textiles may need further investigation.