New mechanical metamaterial offers benefits in prosthetic design

The future design of prosthetic devices and wearable technologies could be enhanced by the creation of a new approach to manufacturing mechanical metamaterials.

Consisting of synthetic composite materials with structures and properties not usually found in nature, the metamaterials developed by Tel Aviv University have been fashioned into flexible building blocks with deformation properties that vary according to their position.

The blocks can change shape when pressure is applied, with spatially-patterned compression in one direction leading to predictable deformation in other directions – an unusual property.

It is believed that these qualities make the metamaterial ideal for use in applications in which a close fit with the body is important, such as in the design of prostheses or wearable technologies.

This will help to avoid the current problems caused by ill-fitting joint sockets, contact dermatitis and sebaceous cysts.

Dr Yair Shokef of Tel Aviv University's school of mechanical engineering said: "If we can make the building blocks even more complex or produce these from other materials, the possibilities really are endless."