Methods of injection molding a polymeric orthopedic device
AssigneeSDGI Holdings, Inc.
InventorsHarold Taylor, Thomas Carls
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Abstract
A method of injection molding an orthopedic device comprising: injection molding a polymeric orthopedic device having a length along a longitudinal axis; and deliberately inducing, in the device, a material property change along the longitudinal axis by varying a molding parameter during the injection molding. The material property may be, for example, elastic modulus and/or density. The molding parameter varied during the injection molding may be a supply material pressure. The orthopedic device may be an elongated rod-shaped element, such as a spinal fixation rod, which may or may not have a substantially uniform cross-section, and may or may not have a metallic core. A corresponding apparatus is also described.
Claims25
A method of injection molding an orthopedic device, comprising:
- injection molding a polymeric orthopedic device having a length along a longitudinal axis;
- and
- deliberately inducing, in said device, a material property change along said longitudinal axis by varying a molding parameter during said injection molding.
A method of injection molding an orthopedic device having first and second sections, comprising:
- injecting polymeric material into a mold cavity;
- causing said polymeric material forming said first section to solidify at a rate faster than said polymeric material forming said second section;
- subjecting said polymeric material forming said first section to a first pressure during cooling and subjecting said polymeric material forming said second section to a second pressure during cooling different from said first pressure;
- and
- allowing said polymeric material forming said first and second sections to solidify to form an orthopedic device having one or more different material properties in said first and second sections.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.