Re:83 year-old woman got 3D printed mandible
by Someone on Sunday February 05, 2012 @08:31PM
(#3555856)
About that 'apparently': I guess they would take their time for any joint, but a jaw is special in two ways:
- it hinges at two points. As with doors, those must be t exactly the right distance of each other, or the thing simply will not fit, and be perfectly in line, or rotating the thing will cause huge forces on those hinges. I guess these could easily break of the new jaw or, worse, parts of the upper jaw.
- it must close perfectly flat; you do not want to have only a few teeth touch when it is maximally closed.
- it hinges at two points. As with doors, those must be t exactly the right distance of each other, or the thing simply will not fit, and be perfectly in line, or rotating the thing will cause huge forces on those hinges. I guess these could easily break of the new jaw or, worse, parts of the upper jaw.
- it must close perfectly flat; you do not want to have only a few teeth touch when it is maximally closed.