Injection moulding technique for replacement body parts

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German researchers has developed an injection moulding technique for producing small biocompatible implants such as titanium stirrup (ear) bones.

“Injection moulding with very fine metal powder enables us to replicate these tiny structures,” explains Philipp Imgrund of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Applied Materials Research IFAM in Bremen.

Until now, tiny prostheses, such as ear bones, have been manufactured using etching or milling techniques. This is a complex and time-consuming process, and not suitable for many types of metal.

With micro metal powder injection molding (micro-MIM), however, the scientists are able to combine and shape different types of material. While it has long been possible to produce tiny parts from stainless steel, micro-MIM makes it possible to produce small, delicate components out of biocompatible materials such as titanium and titanium alloys.

In a pilot run, the researchers manufactured 300 miniature prostheses with a weight of 5.4 milligrammes each and a wall thickness of only 0.3 millimetres. “We are now ready to start series production with the micro-MIM process,” says Imgrund. “Using the stirrup as an example, we are demonstrating the limits and possibilities of the process and of the new materials.”