US 12,285,547 B2
Controlled randomized porous structures and methods for making same
Ryan L. Landon, Memphis, TN (US); Aashiish Agnihotri, Memphis, TN (US); Laura J. Gilmour, Memphis, TN (US); Jeffrey Sharp, Memphis, TN (US); and Randy C. Winebarger, Memphis, TN (US)
Assigned to Smith & Nephew, Inc., Memphis, TN (US)
Filed by Smith & Nephew, Inc., Memphis, TN (US)
Filed on Jul. 13, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/374,083.
Application 16/153,207 is a division of application No. 13/509,585, granted, now 10,166,316, issued on Jan. 1, 2019, previously published as PCT/US2010/056602, filed on Nov. 12, 2010.
Application 17/374,083 is a continuation of application No. 16/728,668, filed on Dec. 27, 2019, abandoned.
Application 16/728,668 is a continuation of application No. 16/153,207, filed on Oct. 5, 2018, abandoned.
Claims priority of provisional application 61/260,811, filed on Nov. 12, 2009.
Prior Publication US 2021/0338901 A1, Nov. 4, 2021
Int. Cl. B22F 10/85 (2021.01); A61L 27/56 (2006.01); B33Y 50/00 (2015.01); G06F 30/10 (2020.01); A61L 27/30 (2006.01); B33Y 80/00 (2015.01)
CPC A61L 27/56 (2013.01) [B22F 10/85 (2021.01); B33Y 50/00 (2014.12); G06F 30/10 (2020.01); A61L 27/30 (2013.01); A61L 2420/02 (2013.01); A61L 2430/02 (2013.01); B33Y 80/00 (2014.12); Y10T 428/249953 (2015.04)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A process for creating a porous structure using a computer-aided apparatus, comprising:
creating a model of the porous structure;
converting the model to a format compatible with the computer-aided apparatus;
providing the converted model to the computer-aided apparatus, the model defining one or more stacked or tiled base volumes of randomized struts;
controlling the computer-aided apparatus to iteratively deposit successive layers of a material, each successive layer of material creating a cross-section of the porous structure in accordance with the model; and
controlling the computer-aided apparatus to fuse, melt, re-melt or sinter each successive layer of deposited material by application of energy from an energy source;
wherein the model is created by defining one or more stacked or tiled base volumes of randomized struts, each strut having an elongated body and a node at each end thereof, each strut being connected to one or more other struts at a node; and
wherein the location and size of the struts are randomized by dividing each base volume into a plurality of three-dimensional cells defined by a tessellation process applied to a plurality of randomized seed points within each base volume, wherein edges of the three-dimensional cells define the elongated bodies of the struts and vertices of the three-dimensional cells define end nodes of the struts.