Comparative Evaluation of Optimum Additive Manufacturing Technology to Fabricate Bespoke Medical Prototypes of Composite Materials

The medical industry has greatly benefited from the aid of various additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, especially for applications that include the fabrication of bespoke implants and guides, devices and surgical instruments. Manufacturing functional prototypes that can behave as close as possible to the final product is a key factor in developing successful anatomically compliant medical products. The current research is intended to evaluate the optimum AM technology to fabricate medical prototypes with thin wall structures, destined for anatomical functional tests and surgical practitioner feedback. The main criteria of evaluation were: speed of fabrication from *.STL file to final prototype, mechanical characteristics and manufacturing costs.