Biomechanical Evaluation of Three Dimensionally Printed Passive Transfemoral Leg Socket Compliance with ISO 10328: A Comparison of Two Different Designs

Malaysia’s need for 200,000 prosthetic legs demands efficient production processes and three-dimensional (3D) printing can potentially address this. Despite the advantages of pin-lock sockets in below-knee prosthetics, research on their application in transfemoral amputations remains limited. This study designs and compares conventional and pin- lock prosthetic leg sockets for transfemoral amputees using 3D scanning, modeling, and printing. Conventional and pin- lock transfemoral leg sockets at 6 mm were designed using 3-Matic software. Their biomechanical properties were tested via ISO 10328 compression testing on the Instron 8874 machine. Results indicated that pin-lock sockets had higher average Young’s modulus (36.27%) and yield strength (43.53%) compared to conventional designs. However, ultimate compressive strength (UCS) showed no statistically significant difference between the designs (p > 0.05). Practical benefits like user stability and comfort might favor the pin-lock design. Future research should consider larger sample sizes and additional gait phases for comprehensive evaluation.