Method of manufacturing of individually formed prothesis or implant

Claim 1

A method of producing an endoprothesis having an anchoring pin individually adjusted to an opening into a cavity of a bone of a patient, comprising the steps of (a) moving an X-ray or nuclear spin apparatus along the patient's bone and measuring transversely to the path of movement a plurality of points of the bone so as to obtain characteristic data, such as bone density, at the respective points; (b) processing the measured data into a set of true-scale tomographs corresponding to cross-sections of the bone in planes extending transversely to the path of movement of the X-ray or nuclear spin apparatus; (c) determining in the set of tomographs a subset corresponding to a part of the bone which will receive the anchoring pin; (d) determining in said subset at least two centroids corresponding to planar centers of gravity at different levels in said bone part whereby a connection line of said centroids defines a structural center line of the endoprothesis; (e) determining in said subset a succession of superposed planes extending parallel to each other at different levels, and evaluating contours of the bone cavity in said parallel planes; (f) determining desired dimensions of a contour of the anchoring pin to match the contour of the bone cavity at respective parallel planes, checking the dimensions in view of the withdrawal of the pin from the bone cavity, and readjusting the dimensions to prevent collision of the pin with the contour of said bone opening during the withdrawal of the pin; (g) storing final values of the desired pin dimensions; (h) machining a raw sample of the pin in accordance with the stored final values by removing material from circumferential areas of the sample corresponding in height to spaces between the successive parallel planes in said subject whereby the resulting succession of step-like disks machined on the sample are oriented in accordance with said parallel planes.

Claim 2

A method of producing an endoprothesis having an anchoring pin individually adjusted to an opening into a cavity of a bone of a patient, comprising the steps of (a) moving an X-ray or nuclear spin apparatus along the patient's bone and measuring transversely to the path of movement a plurality of points of the bone so as to obtain characteristic data, such as bone density, at the respective points; (b) processing the measured data into a set of true-scale tomographs corresponding to cross-sections of the bone in planes extending transversely to the path of movement of the X-ray or nuclear spin apparatus; (c) determining in the set of tomographs a subset corresponding to a part of the bone which will receive the anchoring pin; (d) determining in said subset at least two centroids corresponding to planar centers of gravity at different levels in said bone part whereby a connection line of said centroids defines a structural center line of the endoprothesis; (e) determining in said subset a succession of superposed planes extending parallel to each other at different levels, and evaluating contours of the bone cavity in said parallel planes; (f) determining desired dimensions of a contour of the anchoring pin to match the contour of the bone cavity at respective parallel planes, checking the dimensions in view of the withdrawal of the pin from the bone cavity, and readjusting the dimensions to prevent collision of the pin with the contour of said bone opening during the withdrawal of the pin; (g) storing final values of the desired pin dimensions; (h) machining a raw sample of the pin in accordance with the stored final values by removing material from circumferential areas of the sample corresponding in height to spaces between the successive parallel planes in said subject whereby the resulting succession of step-like disks machined on the sample are oriented in accordance with said parallel planes.