Osteochondral Integrated Scaffolds with Gradient Structure by 3D Printing Forming

Recently in the area of biological manufacturing and rapid prototyping manufacturing, the bone scaffolds based on the additive manufacturing in repairing bone defects have been paid more and more attention. In the process of preparation, path planning directly affects the structure, performance as well as the final bone cell culture conditions. Due to the special natural bone scaffold structural characteristic, the traditional rapid prototyping (RP) path planning is not fully suitable for the preparation of bone scaffolds. In this paper, based on the 3D printing extrusion forming technology, a method of path planning for osteochondral integrated scaffolds with gradient structure is put forward, which provides a theoretical basis for bone-scaffold modeling and practical preparation. The implementation of the path planning processing system makes it possible to process data automatically from the initial stereo lithography (STL) model of the actual bone defect part by computer X-ray tomography technique (CT) scan or modeling, to generate the path code and to generate the final machining information after post-processing. This work provides some guidelines for independent research and development of automation equipment for biological manufacturing preparation and software technology. The experiment and test results have verified the validity of the path planning method and the good properties of the bone scaffolds with gradient structures.