4. Role of Imaging Data in Additive Manufacturing for Biomedical Applications

The role of data imaging in additive manufacturing (AM) for biomedical applications was studied in the present chapter. The advancement in the digital image processing techniques has changed the medical practitioners (such as doctors, medical researchers) way of working. The techniques such as computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and ultrasound help in scanning in-depth body part details. Further, the sliced scan data is merged and segmented to model a 3D part using different digital image processing tools and used as input file in an AM process. The working principles of different scanning techniques along with their advantages and disadvantages were briefly discussed. The different types of digital image processing software’s available in market to convert scanned data images to a CAD model have been compared on the basis of their advantages, disadvantages, and cost. The steps required from conversion of scanned data to patient-specific implant fabrication by 3D printing were elaborated in detail. AM fabricated parts have tremendous applications in the medical field as medical models for surgery practices or planning, surgical guides, patient-specific implants, etc. The in vitro and in vivo case studies using combination of AM and image processing tools have been discussed in the present chapter. It was revealed that the AM fabricated parts have made a huge contribution for revolutionary change in medical industry.