The Need

Surgeons routinely hand‑bend standard titanium or stainless‑steel fixation plates to conform to patient anatomy, a manual process that is time‑consuming, inconsistent, and prone to gaps, reversed bends, and unfavorable residual stress. Each of these factors can compromise fixation and outcomes. When 3D models exist, prebending still demands significant expert labor; when they don’t, intra‑operative bending further extends case time and variability. The market needs a reproducible, imaging‑driven way to deliver patient‑specific plate geometry before surgery.

The Technology

Dr. Glenn Daehn, Professor of Metallurgical Engineering at The Ohio State University, has developed a novel method and system that takes medical imaging, generates a curve representing the desired plate–bone attachment line, and incrementally bends a linear fixation plate until adjacent holes achieve the targeted geometric relationship to that curve. The plate is fixtured at each hole while controlled bends are applied; optional robotic actuation enables consistent execution. The output is a prebent plate tailored to the case, minimizing the need for intra‑operative modifications.

Commercial Applications

• Craniofacial/maxillofacial trauma plating workflows (pre‑operative prebending).
• General orthopedic trauma plates (e.g., long‑bone fixation) requiring patient‑specific curvature.

Benefits/Advantages

• Improved anatomical conformity: reduces plate–bone gaps and related failure modes.
• Lower OR time & variability: prebending upstream; no or minimal bending during surgery.
• Controlled residual stress: sequence‑aware bending can enhance fatigue performance.
• Digital, scalable workflow: uses standard imaging; compatible with robotic or manual systems.