Abstract
Finite element analysis (FEA) is a common numerical method used to obtain approximate solutions for complex problems in engineering and mathematical physics. This study focuses on the application of an FEA to predict the biomechanical performance of a textile brace called the anisotropic textile brace that is used to treat scoliosis, and simulate the effects of the brace on a scoliotic spine. The simulation process consists of 6 steps: 1) creating the geometrical models, 2) defining the material properties, 3) meshing the models, 4) defining the initial and boundary conditions, 5) numerically processing the setting displacements and loading of the garment, and 6) post processing and validating the results. It is found that after wearing the brace, the movement of the simulated spine and changes in the curvature of the spine obtained from the FE model show a similar trend as those from the in-brace x-rays. The correlation coefficient of the vertebral body displacement is 0.74. This demonstrates that the model can be used in future studies to demonstrate the efficacy of other medical orthoses for treating scoliosis.
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This research is funded by the Laboratory for Artificial Intelligence in Design (Project Code: RP1-4), Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
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Fok, Q., Yip, J. (2021). Applying Numerical Simulation to Predict Effect of Brace Wear for Scoliosis. In: Wright, J.L., Barber, D., Scataglini, S., Rajulu, S.L. (eds) Advances in Simulation and Digital Human Modeling. AHFE 2021. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 264. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79763-8_26
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-79763-8_26
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