Space filling curves: Its design and fabrication for extrusion based SFF systems

Scaffolds with designed interior pore architecture, predefined porosity and a well interconnected predetermined network has been the most favored design approach for tissue engineering applications. Solid freeform fabrication technologies have provided the capability of fabricating tissue scaffolds with desired characteristics due to its integration with CAD enabled tools. However, currently the interior macro pore design of scaffolds have been limited to simple regular shapes of either squares or circles due to limited CAD capability. In this paper we seek to enhance the design of the scaffold architecture by using space filling curves within its interior space. The process involves: definition and characterization of space filling curves such as the Hubert Curve and Sierpinski Curves, applying the principle of layered manufacturing to determine the scaffold individual layered process planes and layered contours; Feasibility studies applying the curve generators to sample models and the generation of fabrication planning instructions for extrusion based SFF systems is presented.